Chapter 178
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With the discovery of mana stones, the rest of sumr passed quite noisily.
The newspapers sent articles every day predicting the new life that would beco possible with mana stones.
Mana stones could hold the mana injected by mages for a long ti.
Using this property, there was talk that even non-mages might be able to enjoy the benefits of magic later on, and people were enthusiastic regardless of their status.
At the banquets and performances that took place almost every day, there were always different scandals pouring out.
Thanks to that, the Yellow Paper dealing with the private lives of nobles also recorded the highest sales in history.
Even when everyone was burning the last of the hot sumr like this, there was soone who couldn’t be a part of it.
It was none other than lody Higgins.
She turned down most invitations and often spent her ti quietly in the mansion.
The main reason she spent ti like that was actually because she beca anxious after completely entrusting the Duke with Prince Samuel’s matter.
But since she couldn’t reveal that fact to those around her, she used the excuse of “wanting to stay quiet until the results of the Records Keeper exam co out.”
Fortunately, those who understood the importance of that exam respected her opinion no matter what.
“l, haven’t you been staying in the mansion too much lately?”
But Isaiah didn’t seem to want to listen to such excuses anymore.
With his face nicely tanned by the sumr sun, he visited lody’s room window.
“Hello, Isaiah. And even if I only stay in the mansion, I take a walk in the garden every day and swing wooden swords with Miss Loretta.”
Loretta, who had expected a long ti ago that she “might be able to receive a real sword,” ended up receiving a new wooden sword as a gift.
She didn’t neglect training, swinging the wooden sword whenever she had a chance, saying “Next ti for sure, I’ll get a real sword!”
“I know that, but still. You didn’t even go see the magic of light being shot up at the fortress the other night, right? It was really pretty.”
lody shrugged and laughed.
“I already got called an idiot by Ronny for that. He said, ‘How could you miss such a spectacular sight, are you in your right mind?'”
When she imitated Ronny’s way of speaking quite similarly, Isaiah laughed, giggling.
“That’s his way of worrying about you.”
“I know.”
“So, l.”
Isaiah reached out his hand from beyond the window.
“If I ask, will you co out with ?”
lody alternately looked at Isaiah and the window for a mont before answering.
“I can climb over a window by myself even without Isaiah’s help?”
“Not the window!”
Isaiah hung his body completely over the window fra.
“I’m asking if you can go outside with .”
“Where are you trying to go?”
“Oh, it’s nothing special.”
He raised his head again and grinned.
“To the temple.”
“Why there?”
“I’m going to get my new sword blessed.”
“A new sword? Isaiah, you got another sword?”
lody asked in surprise.
No wonder, since he already possessed two famous swords.
One was a gift from the imperial family when he saved His Highness the Crown Prince at the hunting grounds. The other was received from Duke Baldwin when he pledged his loyalty to the ducal family.
Even after receiving swords from the two most influential people in this capital, getting yet another new sword was quite impressive.
“It just happened to co to , that’s all.”
He fiddled with his hair and answered as if it was no big deal.
“His Majesty the Emperor gave
another sword.”
“Suddenly? Why?”
“Well, I recently won the martial arts tournant.”
“…!”
lody was so surprised that she could only stare at him blankly.
She had heard there was a tournant, but this was the first ti she heard that Isaiah had entered, and even that he had won.
“Why didn’t you tell ?!”
lody quickly grabbed his arm.
“How could I tell you such a thing?”
“Why can’t you tell !”
“Why, you ask.”
He looked down slightly, feeling very embarrassed.
“If I said I was entering the martial arts tournant, you would have thought I would definitely win, right?”
“?”
“Yeah. But it would be embarrassing if I didn’t win.”
At his words, lody recalled sothing from a very long ti ago.
When they first reunited in the capital.
He had said he couldn’t send news to his mother because he hadn’t beco a knight yet.
Since he often sent news to his mother after that day, she had forgotten for a mont, but it seed his personality hadn’t changed at all.
“Isaiah, you dummy.”
lody lightly squeezed the hand holding him.
“I just wanted to cheer for you. I’m saying I wouldn’t be disappointed even if you didn’t win.”
“But it’s still embarrassing to lose in front of you.”
“Hmph, even though you say that, you splendidly won when I wasn’t looking.”
At lody’s words, he slowly broke into a smile.
“Well, that’s true. I was also lucky though.”
“You anie, make sure to invite
to such important events from now on.”
“Okay, I will. So I’d like you to co with
to the temple, lody.”
lody was about to willingly nod her head. If Isaiah hadn’t added these words.
“And let
offer all the glory of victory to you there.”
“…What?”
When she asked in surprise, Isaiah touched his cheek and smiled awkwardly. He seed to be suppressing his embarrassnt sohow.
“It’s a knight’s job to offer glory to his lady, isn’t it?”
“But I’m not Isaiah’s lady!”
It was Loretta Baldwin.
That was right as long as he existed as a knight of the ducal family.
“She’s not my lady, but my captain. For , there’s only l.”
“…Isaiah.”
“Of course, I’m not forcing you.”
He straightened his body that had been leaning on the window fra. Naturally, lody’s head was raised high to follow his face.
“As I said before, I won’t do anything you don’t allow, l.”
He paused for a mont and swallowed a large breath. lody knew he was very nervous, unlike usual.
“Miss lody Higgins.”
Isaiah took out his sword, placed it to his lower left, and knelt on one knee.
Only then did lody realize that he was perfectly dressed in the knight’s uniform he never wore normally.
If so, he must be making a request to lody not as her friend Isaiah, but as the knight Mullern.
“Please allow
to offer the glory I have obtained to you.”
At his words filled with deep sincerity, lody couldn’t give any answer carelessly.
She didn’t want to respond to his serious heart with light words.
After staring at the floor for a long ti, he finally raised his head.
He gazed at her solely with a heavy gaze, then grinned at one point.
“How was it, did I seem like a real knight?”
Along with a much lighter voice compared to a mont ago.
lody couldn’t say anything this ti either. Because she knew he was acting this way to ease her tension.
“Oh, was it not good? I practiced a lot, you know.”
He stood up as if jumping, and approached the window again.
“Uh… sorry.”
“Mm, no. It’s not sothing Isaiah needs to apologize for.”
“You say that, but your face was totally stiff. It’s no use if you don’t smile, l.”
At his words, lody fidgeted awkwardly with her hands clasped together.
“I was just, surprised. Very surprised.”
“Surprised. You already knew I wanted to protect you, right? Of course, you’re doing well on your own, l.”
“Well, I do know that, but still…”
Him formally offering glory to her was a bit of a different issue. To the extent that it could be a turning point in their relationship.
Above all, lody couldn’t help but think that way, given that Isaiah’s attitude in making that request was much more polite than usual.
“Got it. Then can you think about it slowly? It’s sothing happening in ten days anyway.”
“…Okay, I’ll seriously consider it.”
“Great, now praise !”
He stuck his head out over the window fra in his usual manner.
“P-Praise?”
“Yeah, I won. I deserve to hear you say I did well, right?”
Since that seed to be the case, lody stroked his head appropriately as usual for now.
“You did well, Isaiah. I’m really proud of you. The doctor will be extrely happy too. Right?”
“Ahh!” He gasped.
Isaiah stared blankly at lody for a mont, then quickly straightened his posture.
“No, it’s not that I forgot to contact Mother! You always emphasize that! I listen to you really well!”
“In other words, you haven’t written a letter, right?”
“No! I just haven’t written it yet! I was definitely going to write it today! Really! There’s no way I would forget what you said! Believe !”
He started backing away little by little while wildly waving both hands.
“I’ll go write it right now. So you have to seriously think about my request too, okay? Got it?”
“Yes, I will.”
“Great!”
Looking so delighted for so reason, he took a startlingly high jump on the spot and began happily crossing the garden.
“…Seeing him like that, it seems he hasn’t changed at all.”
As lody muttered softly, there was a knocking sound at her room door.
“Yes.”
lody answered in a small voice, but the closed door didn’t open.
‘Did I mishear?’
Out of curiosity, she tried opening the door herself.
Through the crack of the door, a man’s suit was visible. Looking up, Claude Baldwin was standing there with an awkward smile.
“Young Master?”
“I’m sorry.”
He gave a small apology, then added a word so lody wouldn’t misunderstand.
“I wasn’t waiting for you to open the door. I was contemplating whether it was okay to open it.”
“…Why…?”
“Well, I didn’t want to ruin your mood.”
He said “Ah, right.” and held out what he had been hiding behind his back.
When lody looked down at the familiar scent, there was a bundle of dicinal herbs they had made together before.
“This is…”
“It’s not completely dry yet, but… Jeremiah said to give it to you since it will give off a nice scent if you decorate your room with it.”
“Ah.”
lody accepted the bundle of herbs he handed over.
“Thank you for delivering it. Did you visit the herb garden today?”
“Yes, I also had sothing to receive from Jeremiah.”
Silence lingered between the two for a mont.
lody thought he wouldn’t have even set foot in her room if it hadn’t been for Jeremiah’s request.
Because there was no reason for the two of them to et on purpose after finding a point of contact with Prince Samuel.
Sohow, the inside of her wrist felt throbbing.
The place where his lips had deeply touched before. Now there was nothing left there.
“Well… then.”
At his words as he took a step back, lody unconsciously reached out her hand towards him.
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