MYKBH 08

Chapter 8

Kesenor nodded in confirmation.

Then, with a wave of his hand through the air, a single gold coin suddenly appeared from empty space.

“I’ve been keeping it in my possession for the time being, like this.”

“What? The amount you gave me before wasn’t everything?”

“That is correct.”

He smiled meaningfully.

At the same time, a voice echoed inside Agnes’s head.

「It is roughly several times greater than the Empire’s annual budget.」

It was clearly Kesenor’s voice.

Agnes stared at him in surprise, but his lips remained firmly closed.

Did I hear that wrong?

Confused, she opened and closed her mouth wordlessly.

Then she heard his voice again.

「It’s something no one else should hear, so I’m conveying it through magic.」

「If it’s difficult to imagine… think of it this way. If all of it were suddenly released into the market, it would be enough to disrupt the value of gold coins. Or, if you prefer, it’s enough to build an army capable of standing against an entire nation. Would that help you understand?」

“My goodness…”

He’d said they’d obtained gold coins from a dragon’s lair, but had they really obtained that much?

The amount was beyond her imagination.

Then is the Marquess really storing that much gold with magic right now?

If Agnes had been in his position, she felt as though she’d simply run away with it all.

She was once again impressed by Kesenor’s trustworthiness.

Perhaps reading something in Agnes’s expression, he pulled a document out of thin air this time.

“This is a contract enchanted with magic that will forcibly enforce its terms if they aren’t honored. Miss Amy somehow knew about it in advance and told me to prepare one.”

Agnes looked over the contents of the contract and was horrified.

“If I break it, I’ll be magically sealed? Why on earth did you make a contract like this?”

“It says right there. I agreed to set aside a little extra for my share. I had no intention of breaking the agreement anyway, so it didn’t matter.”

“Then you also have an amount equivalent to what you just mentioned…”

Kesenor raised a finger to his lips.

Shh.

It meant she shouldn’t say anything more.

Agnes immediately fell silent.

Once it seemed that Agnes had understood the general situation, Silmare continued.

“In any case, you have enough wealth to solve practically any problem, so she told me to make sure you returned home.”

It was impossible for Agnes to grasp the reality of it.

She couldn’t verify it herself, but neither of these men seemed like the type who would lie to her about something like this for no reason.

As she stood there in a daze, a cool breeze brushed against her flushed cheeks.

She turned her head.

The window was open.

Spring wind poured inside, carrying a faint floral fragrance along with the rich scent of grass.

As Silmare’s clothes fluttered in the breeze, the world outside seemed to transform into a vast field of lush green.

In an impossible, dreamlike illusion, the mysterious and beautiful fairy reached out his hand toward Agnes.

“Then let us depart at once, my Agnes.”

Without thinking, Agnes took a step toward him and was just about to take his hand—

Someone caught her other hand.

It was a hand somewhat thicker and more firmly curved than Silmare’s.

Agnes turned her head.

Kesenor was looking at her with an awkward smile.

“Ah.”

Oh my goodness. What was I about to do?

Was I actually going to leave through the window? And because I’d been captivated by Silmare’s beauty…?

Nothing like this had ever happened to her before.

Suppressing the urge to run away immediately, Agnes lowered her head and barely managed to squeeze out a voice.

“W-We can’t leave through the window.”

Kesenor, standing beside her, chimed in.

“Exactly. She’s right. Humans are supposed to leave through doors.”

“More importantly, I need some time before I can return to my family home. I have to speak to the Countess and pack my belongings. I’ll first ask her to give me a few days off!”

With that, Agnes hurried out of the drawing room as though fleeing.

She couldn’t possibly face the Countess until she had calmed down, so Agnes headed straight for her room.

“I don’t know…”

Agnes leaned against the door and panted heavily before sliding down and collapsing onto the floor.

“What must they think of me?”

The thought that both men had witnessed her behaving so foolishly was unbearably embarrassing.

Agnes buried her face in her knees and groaned for a long time.

Why does this keep happening to me?

“Amy…!”

Come to think of it, there was only one reason.

Her adorable little sister kept sending people who were impossibly difficult to deal with straight to her.

Prospective consort.

Husband candidate.

And now—

Soulmate.

“Amy, when you come back, I’m not letting you off the hook…”

What am I supposed to do with all this?

“So come home soon, Amy.”

If only she could send her a few words, just as the Marquess had done earlier.

Don’t go wandering around somewhere dangerous. Come home soon.

I want to see you safe and sound.

No matter how many times Agnes said it aloud, there was, of course, no response.

The two men were left standing alone in the drawing room.

Silmare turned his gaze toward Kesenor first.

His eyes, which had been as calm as a tranquil lake, had frozen over.

Even his noble and beautiful features had twisted.

With an expression as though he were looking at filthy refuse shoved into a corner, Silmare gave a contemptuous snort.

“Humans are supposed to leave through doors?”

“Of course. Unfortunately, she is a human you dislike.”

“Dislike? Who dislikes whom? You know who she is too.”

Silmare glared coldly at Kesenor, as though offended that he would dare call her a human.

“I heard that Amy sought you out first. Thanks to that, I suppose you’re also expecting to be chosen because you were born from a seed. But that position does not belong to someone as insignificant as you. You little Celesta brat.”

Kesenor clicked his tongue.

In fact, the two of them had met once before.

It had been before Kesenor inherited the marquessate, during a time when he’d traveled around the world because he felt suffocated by his life.

He’d searched for all kinds of unknown things, encountering monsters such as dragons, and, curious about the other races separated by the ‘Non-Aggression Treaty,’ he’d even crossed their borders.

Then, when he entered the Naopa Forest, supposedly the land of the fairies—

Silmare had appeared and blocked Kesenor’s path.

‘What business does a mage have here?’

‘You know me?’

‘Of course. Which Celesta are you? The last time I met one, it was the thirty-fourth. So this time, are you the thirty-sixth? Thirty-seventh?’

It was the moment Kesenor finally understood just how long the lifespan of a fairy could be.

Silmare had warned the bewildered Kesenor with a look of contempt.

‘This is not territory permitted to mages. Don’t bother showing off your pitiful magic and get out. Anyone who crosses the border may be shot and killed by us under the treaty.’

‘Do you actually have the ability to do that?’

At that moment, an arrow grazed Kesenor’s cheek.

It had been fired so quickly that he hadn’t even noticed when Silmare had drawn the string.

If he hadn’t instinctively cast a barrier, his cheek would have been scratched.

When Kesenor’s expression hardened, Silmare smiled with his beautiful face.

‘We don’t welcome you. So get out.’

‘What is your name?’

‘Silmare, Prince of the Naopa Forest.’

At the time, Kesenor had never imagined they would meet again like this.

He spoke as though he hated humans, yet he’s making an exception for his ‘consort.’

Kesenor couldn’t tell whether Silmare was truly sincere, but it was fascinating to see how blindly devoted he was to Agnes.

Still, if someone you’ve waited two hundred years for finally appeared, I suppose you’d be desperate.

But what difference did that make?

It wasn’t as though Agnes would choose her partner based on how long someone had waited for her.

Kesenor thought that and scoffed.

“Regardless, if she doesn’t choose you, you’re nothing, Your Highness, Prince of the Fairies.”

“She will choose me.”

“I wonder. Are you really the only two ‘seeds’? Where did Miss Amy say she was going next?”

As though Kesenor had struck a nerve, Silmare’s expression turned cold.

Just as Kesenor had hurried here, Silmare was in much the same position.

He, too, had to wait for someone’s choice based on an uncertain legend.

All because a legendary mark had appeared on the back of his hand.

“In any case, seeing how quickly you came running here as well, I suppose what I knew about the ‘World Tree’s Consort’ must be true. I found it in an extremely old document, so I wondered whether it was merely an absurd story.”

“What did it say?”

“Why would I have any reason to tell you? In any case, I now understand that she is the ‘World Tree’s Consort’ and that she is extremely important.”

“Indeed. She is irreplaceable by anything else and is utterly unique.”

“Then I’ll have no choice but to be more proactive.”

After that, only a heavy silence filled the drawing room.

Silmare stared out the window, while Kesenor drank the tea sitting on the table, waiting for Agnes to return.

After quite some time had passed, Agnes finally came back.

“We’re planning to leave in about an hour. They said it will take some time for the carriage to arrive.”

“Did the Countess give you permission?”

“Yes. It’s been a long time since I’ve returned to my family home. Since the two of you are technically my guests, I told her that I would personally see to it that you were properly looked after until you leave.”

However, the process had been more complicated than she’d expected.

Remembering the conversation she’d just had with the Countess, Agnes let out a sigh.