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“Get out.”
“Th, then please rest, Commander.”
A junior knight, sensing the murderous aura, quickly left the commander’s office, looking around cautiously.
As the knight left, a pungent smell of alcohol filled the quiet silence.
Rubeus’s nose and cheeks were flushed red, indicating how much he had been pouring down since morning.
His pupils were almost completely unfocused, long devoid of their usual sparkle.
His once vibrant purple eyes were now dull, like those of a dead fish, giving off an eerie feeling.
Rubeus, who was sitting on his office chair with a bandage on his shoulder as a preventive measure, couldn’t hold back any longer and threw the glass in his hand against the wall.
The glass shattered against the wall with a thud, scattering alcohol everywhere and breaking into pieces on the floor.
The strong liquor left traces on the white wall of the office, and the carpet on the floor became damp.
“To dare, to dare……!”
Rubeus trembled, clenching his fists tightly.
He had suffered all sorts of humiliation from the shameful events of yesterday.
Yesterday, upon hearing the news, he had entered Duke Galloway’s office with a nervous heart at Galloway’s summons.
However, the Duke treated him as if he weren’t there, continuing to work on his documents for some time.
Several tens of minutes passed as he waited anxiously.
“To think that the commander of the Ducal Knights would lose to a beast of the night. It’s a disgrace to our prestige.”
His heart sank at the Duke’s words, filled with obvious disappointment.
After that, Galloway glared at him with colder eyes than ever before, issuing a three-month pay cut and an order to leave.
As the second son of a Count, he had put in countless efforts to become the commander of the Vesin Ducal Knights.
For over a decade, he had not only worked hard enough to grind his bones and flesh but also taken on all the menial tasks of the Ducal family.
Surely, Galloway wouldn’t cast him aside considering their history.
He would be able to keep his position as commander, and for the sake of the reputation of the Vesin Ducal Knights, the Duke would surely cover up the rumors.
There might be some whispering within the Knights Order due to yesterday’s duel, but it would quiet down with time.
He was furious, but he decided to remain quiet for now. However, Celonia’s visit this morning made him unable to hold back and he started pouring down alcohol.
“Sir Sid, I heard about it. I also know what kind of bet you two made. I’ll pretend it never happened, so don’t do anything like that again while he’s staying at the mansion.”
Her blue eyes, filled with disgust, turned away without giving him a chance to explain.
At that moment, the feelings he had been harboring crumbled and began to twist.
In the end, the Princess was determined to keep that man by her side.
Why is she protecting him? It’s as if she has feelings for him.
A mere commoner who is neither a Duke, a Holy Knight, nor a Dragon, why!
He had quietly folded away his feelings upon hearing the news of her engagement to Duke Ian, accepting it.
Ian was a suitable match for the Vesin Princess.
He would have understood even if the Princess had chosen a Holy Knight or a Dragon after returning from the subjugation.
The four of them were saviors who had saved the world and were recognized by everyone.
But now, it was not those three but a worthless beggar who was by her side.
It didn’t seem like she was just treating him as a benefactor. The two of them were eating together every day and were always together.
“How dare that bastard……!”
He hadn’t given up on her just to hand her over to that kind of guy.
He had climbed up to this point through his own skills, but the barrier of status was too high for him to reach her.
She was so noble and untouchable that all he could do was watch her from afar.
If he had known that she would give her heart even to such a man, he wouldn’t have stood by and watched like this.
“That bastard…….”
Rubeus recalled the face of the man who had been smiling arrogantly without the slightest hesitation, unlike himself, as they crossed swords yesterday.
He didn’t even use his sword, as if he was mocking him, and just pushed him back with his huge body, while he, who had trained countless times, could only be pushed back.
He couldn’t just let this humiliation pass.
He couldn’t just let that bastard take her away. That wasn’t why he had hidden his feelings.
I won’t let it go.
He gnashed his teeth and grabbed the bottle of alcohol in front of him.
His uncontrollable jealousy and respect were completely twisted.
Celonia could not have anyone by her side unless they were a better human than himself.
* * *
Celonia, dressed up for the first time in a while, was heading to Monterah Street in her going-out clothes.
Monterah.
The largest and busiest shopping district in the Flanagan Empire.
It was built on a large site that resembled a small city, with four distinct sections centered around the Angel’s Fountain in the middle.
The north was where Roblan was located, a food district filled with desserts and restaurants, which she frequented.
The south was a boutique district with clothing shops and jewelry stores, the east was a miscellaneous goods district selling handmade furniture and decorations, and the west was a magic district selling magical items.
Today, she was going to the west and south.
To find out about the parchment Gillian had shown her yesterday and to order a dress for the celebration in two weeks.
Since there was a magic circle drawn on the parchment, she suspected it might be a magical tool.
Celonia traveled by carriage and got off at the west entrance of Monterah.
Carriages were allowed up to the entrance, but they could not enter the street because the passageways were narrow.
“Wow! There are so many amazing things!”
Ella, who jumped out of the carriage, was busy looking around with wide eyes at the unique scenery of the magic district.
Celonia was also surprised, as it was her first time visiting the magic district, which she had only heard about.
The most surprising thing was that, unlike other districts, the entire street of the magic district had fist-sized magic bulbs floating in the air.
The bulbs floating above the street where people passed were turned off because it was bright daylight, but they said that they would light up in the dark evening and illuminate the street brightly.
Light bulbs illuminating the night streets. The scenery must be spectacular.
But today, she was too busy to wander around from broad daylight, so she didn’t think she would have time to see it. She thought that she should definitely come back once more in the evening if she had time.
“Miss, Miss. You resolved things well with the Beast, right? When I saw you at breakfast, the atmosphere was as friendly as usual.”
“That was friendly?”
Celonia questioned Ella’s words and recalled the breakfast.
She had breakfast with him as usual.
However, since he had to leave right after the meal, she told him to eat lunch alone, and he glared at her fiercely and said.
“Did you forget the negotiation? Do you really want to see the mansion burn down?”
He threatened her so fiercely that the water in the glass was about to freeze from the chill he was emitting.
Only after she explained at length that it wasn’t that and that she had to go out for work did he release the tension in his eyes.
“Ella, you seem to like that person quite a bit.”
She saw it as friendly.
Celonia felt yesterday that Ella really liked him. Thanks to that, she cleared up the misunderstanding.
“Of course! He’s the benefactor who saved Miss! And he doesn’t seem like a bad person.”
“How are you so sure?”
“A really bad person is a cowardly person like the Commander. Compared to him, the Beast is just…….”
“Just?”
“A little lacking, but fair and square!”
Is that a compliment?
She couldn’t tell if it was an insult or a compliment, but seeing Ella’s expression with her fists clenched, it seemed like the best compliment.
Yes. If she looked at him without any prejudice like Ella, he might be on the good side.
If she didn’t know his true identity.
Celonia began to walk around the magic district with Ella in earnest.
One place, two places, three places, four places.
She had visited over ten stores, but all were in vain.
“I don’t think I’ve seen such a product.”
“We don’t have anything like that among the items that come to us.”
Everyone shook their heads, saying they didn’t know.
Unable to shake off the feeling that it was all in vain, she entered the twelfth store.
“Excuse me, do you have any items that are palm-sized parchment with a magic circle drawn on them?”
“Parchment? We don’t handle parchment these days. It’s probably old magic…… Would you like to go to the Wiklander store with the ginkgo tree drawn on the door? The owner there might know.”
She was almost giving up, but she heard some welcome information.
“Thank you.”
“By the way, um…… are you Princess Vesin? Could I ask for an autograph here? My child likes you very much! He says he wants to be a healer when he grows up, haha!”
The owner asked for an autograph, joking in a friendly manner.
Celonia gladly signed the paper that was handed to her for his child and left the store.
“As expected! That’s our Miss!”
Ella’s face blossomed, as if she was very happy that people recognized her, even though she had been complaining that her legs hurt just a moment ago.
Celonia smiled and looked around, telling Ella to cheer up a little more.
A store with a ginkgo tree drawn on the door…….
“Found it.”
She ran to the store with ‘Wiklander’ written on the sign and opened the door.
Clang.
The inside of the store was revealed with a clear ringing sound.
The store seemed quite old, and she could feel the passage of time everywhere.
The floor, where many customers had come and gone, had paint that was half peeled off, thin cracks on the walls, and even a layer of dust on the magical items displayed on the highest shelves.