Chapter 46
The next day, Anes woke up and spent the entire morning waiting for some sign from Teowin.
She expected him to come, not to make grand apologies, but at least to invite her to talk.
She didn’t even expect him to come all the way here; just a word asking her to come over would have been enough.
“Your Highness… there was no particular message. But, um… someone came to the Crown Prince’s palace just now.”
“…Someone?”
Anes wasn’t particularly interested in who it was.
“Well… it was a wizard named Kir…kan? He said, ‘I came to explain yesterday’s incident. Please relay it to Her Highness, the Crown Princess,’” she explained.
It had been said that many years had passed and wizards had decreased in number, but not all of them had disappeared. He had appeared at the banquet yesterday out of the blue and somehow ended up arranging a meeting.
Yesterday, Anes had been extremely excited at the thought of discussing wizards and mana. She had wanted to bombard him with questions and immediately go talk with him, but she held herself back.
Even someone like Anes knew proper etiquette.
Anyway, after allowing his visit, she went down to meet Kirkan. He was just as beautiful as he had been yesterday—truly a striking person, even without the extravagant banquet lighting.
He was shown to the Crown Prince’s office. She knew he would come today because she had been asked to meet him, but her expression darkened slightly because Teowin had postponed the appointment.
Kirkan was standing when she arrived. As she took a seat before him, he bowed respectfully, then sat with a slightly awkward smile.
“You seem much different from yesterday,” he said, in the calm tone of a jeweler. His voice acknowledged the version of her he had seen at the banquet. Well, she thought, she had made an effort to look nice at the banquet beside the Crown Prince, so it wasn’t a big deal.
She didn’t know what he wanted to discuss, so that was the only thing that mattered for now.
“I heard you have something you want to tell me.”
Anes calmly took her seat and responded evenly. Kirkan carefully studied the person before him, someone who seemed oblivious and no longer had the sparkling gaze from yesterday.
There was a strange thrill in being looked at with such an emotionless face.
“That necklace… may I have it for a moment?”
Kirkan seemed to assess her mood and spoke while looking up at her.
The necklace he referred to was the one she had bought herself, aside from the first one she had bought for Tarin and the last one he had given her.
She had picked it herself because she wanted to gift it personally, not leave it to someone else.
“To explain would take too long… This necklace is not an ordinary one. But it seems necessary for me to take a look at it because there is a tied function that might need adjustment.”
While they exchanged these somewhat inconsequential words, Anes handed him her necklace.
“Does this necklace… contain magic?”
Whatever its purpose, it implied he could handle a considerable amount of mana.
If so, perhaps she could ask him whether it could safely remove the mana from Marquis Rizern or if it could affect her.
“I will take this necklace for a moment. It’s not clearly visible here.”
“…Alright. Then next time, I’ll ask my questions too.”
It didn’t seem like the right time now. She was still concerned about the change in Teowin after Kirkan’s visit.
Yesterday, she had been so delighted… Anes gave a small smile for Kirkan’s sake.
After seeing Kirkan off, her frown returned, this time because of Teowin. She wanted to immerse herself in something to temporarily forget him.
So she chose the library. The Royal Library now had so many books that even just exploring it was enjoyable.
As she walked slowly inside, the ceiling opened up to reveal the reading area.
The reading area at the far end of the hall extended three floors high, and the balconies of the second and third floors overlooked the bookshelves. Glancing up at the tall ceiling, her eyes were caught by a splendid chandelier hanging around the second floor.
It wasn’t practical, but it was a beautiful space—efficiency wasn’t a concern for royalty.
She walked to the center of the reading area, gazed up at the open ceiling, and then began scanning the books along the walls. There were clearly older books, and some looked newly printed but still stylistically antique.
Moving deeper into the shelves, she found more interesting books. She had already read theoretical texts, so now she was deliberately searching for books related to magic.
Then, a book on the topmost shelf caught her eye: “What is Magic? – Advanced Introduction.” The title drew her in irresistibly.
However, the shelf, though appearing low, was out of reach. She tiptoed and rolled up her sleeves, but her fingertips barely touched the bottom of the topmost slot.
She lowered her arms and studied the shelf, then looked around the floor for a ladder.
Scanning the area, she found a stepped structure in a corner, sturdy enough to climb. She pulled it towards her, and it moved heavily with a clatter.
Even a few steps up made her sweat, but she persevered. Placing one foot, then another, she reached the next step, grabbing the shelf support on the left when—
Creaaak! Her left hand lost its grip. The support collapsed, and books threatened to fall on her head.
Time seemed to slow as if in a flash.
If she got hurt… it would be a disaster. Hopefully, the shelves wouldn’t completely collapse.
Thump!
Just as she thought she’d hit the floor along with the falling books, something caught her midway.
Her fall was stopped by a strong hand around her waist and a solid body behind her. She was unharmed.
Sigh… why does someone always have to help me? She wasn’t this helpless… But noticing that someone had not only caught her but also stopped the books, her thoughts shifted in another direction.
Maybe she could even guess who had saved her.
Though calm in thought, she exhaled deeply, then slowly lifted her head. Resolving not to be flustered, she opened her eyes to meet the deep blue gaze and silently decided to say “thank you” first.
The past week had been consumed with budgeting for the banquet preparation she suddenly had to manage. Yesterday, all he wanted was to see her face.
He hadn’t expected her to reject him so strongly, and he hadn’t particularly planned to visit her.
There was always something about her that made him want to see her. Being near her brought a sense of calm. He had thought about asking her for help once the banquet preparations intensified.
Originally, he assumed she would hate being assigned tasks and tried to do everything herself. But she was different—she wanted to work with him. He didn’t know exactly what that would feel like, but it seemed fun.
“Memoyette?”
Upon opening the large door, he found the space inside almost frozen in stillness.
The Royal Library had excellent resources but few visitors, making it enjoyable. Though the interior had been overwhelming at first, it had become a personal hideout over time.
He had been aware of the books she was looking at, even if not formally told, since he had seen them in her room.
“Memoyette no longer comes, huh.”
Muttering bitterly as he saw the empty librarian’s seat, Teowin’s gentle voice broke the still air.
Taking his time, he walked through the first and second floors of the library, opening all the windows. Sunlight and the scent of grass-filled air began to stir the stagnant atmosphere.
Surprisingly, Teowin quite liked the library. Though his work mostly involved martial training and learning governance, he enjoyed reading for pleasure.
This place was a quiet playground for him. Perhaps that was why he felt good when she said she came to the library—she liked the same thing he did.
As he turned pages, lost in thought, a sound from downstairs caught his attention.
“…Huh?”
No one should have been coming. While the library wasn’t off-limits, he was curious who would visit the empty Royal Library.
He quietly descended to the lower floor. Not immediately visible, the person must have gone toward the bookshelves.
The rustle of fabric came from that direction.
He tread carefully, peeking into the shelves as the sound of brushes against books guided him.
