CHAPTER 118
“Until now, there haven’t been any incidents.”
At Bernian’s reply, Liana let out a faint sigh.
It was a relief that nothing serious had occurred for the time being…
“Still, we must remain vigilant. The Forest of Death is a place where humans have yet to uncover many things.”
“Of course. We’ve switched to a heightened alert status, and I’ve also dispatched reinforcements to nearby cities just in case. If anything happens, we’ll be notified immediately.”
“…Good.”
Liana nodded slowly.
Though a bit uneasy, it seemed fine since the Empire was handling the matter cautiously.
“Oh, and regarding the materials you lent me a few days ago, would it be alright to extract parts and send them to other nations as reference?”
At Bernian’s question, Liana nodded with a look that said, Why are you even asking that?
“Of course. There’s no point in hoarding it alone. Use it however you see fit.”
That was the very purpose of recording the information.
Would one gain anything by selling it, or simply keep it to oneself?
“You don’t need to return it, so feel free to use it.”
“…I see.”
Bernian’s response came a beat late, and his face seemed somewhat moved.
The Duke of Delcaron isn’t exactly ordinary…
Feeling slightly burdened, Liana gave a small, awkward smile and sipped her tea.
Fortunately, Bernian soon returned to his usual composure, and they continued their serious discussion.
After another ten minutes of conversation, he stood.
“I’ll take my leave now, Your Highness.”
“Go safely.”
Once Bernian left, Liana muttered to herself:
“…I should work on my equipment.”
As she considered her next task, she slowly got up.
Since she had already received the report related to the founding ceremony in the morning, it was fine to spend a day maintaining her equipment.
There were still plenty of practice weapons left from when she and Ianheart had gone shopping in the Ropel commercial district.
Now that I think about it, he seemed interested in magic swords…
Earlier, when touring Rowen’s capital, Ianheart had shown interest in Liana’s magic sword.
She had even told him that it could be enchanted.
Recalling Ianheart, a small, unconscious smile appeared on Liana’s face.
“…Would he like it as a gift?”
Since he already had a primary sword, it seemed appropriate to enchant a suitable dagger and give it to him.
And she could say his name while giving it, but only when they were alone.
Liana had no idea that Ianheart would sulk because she hadn’t called him by his name.
Even funnier was that seeing him sulk made her laugh.
No wonder he’s acting a bit more playful since I confessed…
No, it wasn’t that he was acting playful—he genuinely behaved like a sly fox.
While Liana carefully considered her feelings, Ianheart had been actively wooing her.
Through his affectionate gaze, tender words, gentle expressions, and bold yet careful touches, Ianheart was declaring his love.
And Liana knew that none of it was an act—it was genuine.
Looking into his eyes, it was impossible to miss.
“…Anyway, clever.”
Liana muttered, feigning a complaint.
“Betty, I’ll be in the inner room. If anyone comes by, tell them I’m busy unless it’s important.”
“Yes! If it’s nothing important, I’ll send them away!”
Having given Betty her instructions, Liana moved toward her room inside the Emerald Palace.
The modestly sized room contained a large desk stacked with thick books, a cabinet, and a plush sofa.
It was the space she used for enchanting.
“…A dagger is better, right?”
Muttering to herself, Liana opened the cabinet and pulled out a plain-looking dagger.
Ideally, she would have gifted Ianheart his primary sword, but she wasn’t confident she could find a better one.
Using a ceremonial sword merely as decoration didn’t feel right either.
After some brief deliberation, she chose the dagger.
“I’ll practice a few times and then engrave the magic circle on it.”
Recalling the dagger in her pocket dimension, Liana eagerly began her work.
After a little over an hour, she had just finished engraving a small magic circle on the practice dagger.
Knock-knock-.
A polite, light knock echoed through the small room.
“…Betty?”
She called out, thinking it was her, but there was no answer.
If it weren’t Betty, the visitor would surely have laughed and called her name.
“What…”
Liana set the small dagger on the desk, pushed back her chair, and stood.
Since the room wasn’t large, she reached the door quickly.
“What is it…”
When she flung the door open, she was interrupted mid-sentence.
Someone leaned casually against the wall beside the door, wearing a faint smile she recognized instantly.
Seeing him relaxed and giving a playful smile, Liana let out a soft, resigned laugh.
“My face doesn’t look like it should be sighed at…”
“What are you saying…? You knocked but didn’t speak, so I wondered who it was.”
Ianheart’s low laugh followed Liana’s teasing.
“I thought if I waited, you’d come out.”
“So that’s why you stood there silently? Really…”
Her exasperation melted into laughter.
Softly, Ianheart’s hand brushed against her ear.
“Your hair’s a bit messy.”
Speaking gently, he adjusted her hair and withdrew his hand with neither hurry nor delay.
The touch lingered just slightly, causing Liana’s fingertips to flinch.
Truly, he was a sly fox.
“…I was working on something.”
Adding credibility to the “Ianheart as a sly fox” theory, Liana cleared her throat and changed the subject.
“By the way, what brings you here?”
“I wanted to see you.”
“…But I just saw you a moment ago.”
“If I answer that, I think you’ll groan again.”
Even when changing the subject, he still acted like a sly fox.
As she muttered under her breath with him by her ear, a low laugh came from above.
She glanced up and saw Ianheart smiling gently, his eyes curved playfully.
Soft, yet with a subtle youthful energy in his expression.
Liana liked that smile.
“I actually wanted to ask if you could make time to go somewhere with me.”
Go somewhere with him?
“Can we go now?”
She glanced back at him as she asked.
“Hmm, now would be good, but if you’re busy, we can go later.”
Ianheart shrugged casually, speaking in a calm tone.
Hmm…
Liana had recently noticed something more clearly—the emotions of the man before her.
Perhaps it was because she understood Ianheart better now.
Or maybe he simply didn’t hide his emotions around her.
The point was, she realized that his calm words contained a hint of disappointment.
And Liana didn’t want to upset him over the few remaining tasks.
“I’m not busy. I have plenty of time, so let’s go now.”
“…Really?”
Look at that.
It’s obvious how much she likes him.
Liana smiled and released the door she had been holding, stepping outside.
“So, where are we going?”
At Liana’s question, Ianheart didn’t give a precise answer.
He merely said it wasn’t far and led her along.
“Are we going to the Ruby Palace?”
The path was familiar—it led from the Emerald Palace toward the Ruby Palace.
But contrary to her expectations, Ianheart shook his head.
“We’re on the way, but the destination isn’t the Ruby Palace.”
“…You really aren’t going to tell me?”
“Just wait a little; we’re almost there.”
His words, like soothing a sulking child, made Liana quietly keep her mouth shut.
She was curious where they were going but didn’t want to act like a spoiled child.
…Definitely not the Ruby Palace.
Liana glanced back at the Ruby Palace they had just passed.
