He would only be able to see Palladium Lake from there, but whether he wiped his sword or
drank his tea, the time he spent monitoring the scene outside his window only became longer day after day.
âYour Majesty appears to be in quite a deep concern. If it is that your body is not feeling okayâŠâ
âWhat about me?â
âAfter all, one may imagine you may have caught a cold that day or the like.â
Though he was the one to bring this up first, Peyton looked embarrassed.
Elder brother, catching a cold? If that really had been the case, he wouldnât even be this worried. The god of death who reigns over the living. He didnât have that kind of nickname for nothing. He was the man who had spent many months in a bitter cold much worse than what they had now without the glint of his eyes ever faltering, much less a cough.
Peyton the Commander of Knights included, when all the rest of his brothers had each lay
down sick at least once, only his elder brother had been completely flawless, never wavering even once both physically and mentally.
âAnyways, itâs true that you have been overdoing things for a while now. As soon as you
returned from the battle with Solium, you headed to the North to find Haniel, so I would fathom that it is a given for your body to not be in its usual condition. And you do appear more flushed than usualâŠâ
ââŠ.this witch, again.â
What have you done to me.
Placing a hand on his heated up forehead, he mumbled those words looking like he knew
this would happen. But since Haniel had been mentioned, he didnât dismiss the topic.
âHowâs the pearlstone?â
âI checked it just a moment ago, but there have been no changes.â
As he had never let the pearlstone leave his body for a single moment, Peyton nodded.
It wasnât just that no changes had occurredâin fact, every time he looked at it again, it
became more and more sparkling and shiny. If it had been a normal magical
artifact, he wouldâve suspected other people pulling the strings, but since the
Grand Sorcerer himself had personally made it, it was impossible other magic could be at work.
âAs of now, she seems to be doing fine, but we cannot let our guard down. Since she is still only a three-year-old child, we should find her as soon as possible, before she gains a bad memory.â
âBrother Peytonâs right. Ahem, so about that, I have been thinking that it must be related to the Duchess after all. We canât believe in all of the rumors, but they do say that they havenât had so many missing persons before the woman appeared.â
âNo, sheâs not one whoâd do that.â
ââŠ.Your Majesty, what do you mean?â
âItâs not her.â
A seemingly indifferent, yet firm declaration.
âIt would be better if she did have such talent.â
ââŠ..what? Are you saying that she really isnât a witch?â
âNo. She is.â
ââŠ. Elder brother.â
So what is your point.
Tenonâs face fell more and more in confusion the more he listened. There was Rashidâs reddening neck and his heavy gaze for one, but even more so, he found those temperamental words of his beyond random.
âDoes he mean that she really is a witch, but not to the level of being able to do anything to anyone?â
He managed to understand that much, but even that didnât make sense. It wasnât like witches cursed people while accommodating their circumstances. Anyways, if one thing was clear, it was that either Rashid or the Duchess had something going on.
Or perhaps that applied to both of them at the same time.
âThen I will be more attentive in my examinations as I watch over her.â
âWhy should you?â
ââŠâŠâ
âIâm asking you under what intentions youâre going to be watching over her, Tenon.â
Rashidâs eyes, which had been pointed entirely to the window and his sword, sharpened anew.
Pupils so cold-blooded, they could produce frost.
But this was the Emperorâs side that his younger brothers were most familiar with. So much so that Tenon even smiled, seeming to welcome the sight.