Chapter 26
As soon as we stepped out of the military training hall, he lifted me into his arms.
This was the third time he had carried me, the princess.
“Put me down. I can walk on my own.”
“Stay still, Kae. I’ll use magic all the way to the main building.”
I struggled, wanting to get down out of embarrassment, but against his strong strength, I was helpless.
“By the way, I heard it from the maid. Why did you come to see me? I would have gone immediately if you had just said so.”
“Ah… well…”
The reason I came to see him was purely to ask him to let me return to Zeronia.
But since I had been introduced in front of the knights as the lady of Helderios, I couldn’t bluntly say I wanted to go back to Zeronia. My mind was too weak for that, so I had to speak indirectly.
“Um… as you know, Lord Lloyd, I have a job.”
“If you mean the Imperial Healer Association, giving poor wages for work, I know well enough.”
Ah… hahaha. Yeah, the pay is terrible for the work you do. His words hit the core, and I awkwardly smiled and continued.
“Even so… I passed the national exam to get in. I still have a mountain of work to do, and I want to see my friends I live with… That’s why. So… if you could take me to Zeronia… would that… be possible…?”
I looked at him with my eyes wide open, and Lloyd’s gaze landed on my hand.
“The ring on your finger… do you know what it is?”
A ring? We were talking about sending me to Zeronia.
“No?”
“That is the Ring of Lurangel. You found it in the Ascenta Dungeon.”
The Ring of Lurangel… I’d heard that name somewhere.
Suddenly, something clicked in my mind.
The Ring of Lurangel was the ring Dabien gave to the original male lead at the wedding near the end of the novel. Its purpose was to make the wearer control the other forever. I remembered laughing at the time, saying the male lead would now be permanently under Dabien’s control.
Does this mean he wants to make me obey forever?
“It is a magical ring created by ancient people to swear love. You can sense the other person’s life. Haven’t you seen the magic circle engraved on your heart?”
I already had a strange magic circle on my chest.
I hadn’t paid attention because my mind was elsewhere…
“The problem is, if you move a certain distance away from the other person, your heart will be shocked.”
Wha… what?
“The distance is probably more than fifty kilometers. If you return to Zeronia, your heart will be shocked. If the shock continues, you could even die.”
“You… you put this ring on me…?”
Lloyd’s eyes flickered slightly as he saw my shocked expression.
“How can I take it off?”
“And that is…”
The heroine was planning to kill me. How long am I supposed to stay here?
Lloyd gripped me tightly and shouted determinedly.
“I… will take responsibility.”
Does he really think saying that makes everything okay? This guy! Does he even know how many times he’s said that?!
At that moment—
“Wow. Nice painting, Lloyd.”
Dabien had appeared. She smiled, but I felt the danger radiating from her. My skin prickled.
“Move aside, Dabien.”
Dabien silently stepped aside at Lloyd’s words.
As Lloyd passed by her, Dabien spoke.
“Do you know, Lloyd? Father asked me to educate my new sister-in-law.”
Lloyd spun around.
“What do you mean?”
“Well, you’re busy with the heir matters, right? So he asked me, who has more free time, to teach our new sister-in-law, suddenly turned noble from a commoner, about Helderios etiquette and how nobles should carry themselves.”
“That’s unnecessary.”
“That’s your opinion.”
“Dabien!”
Lloyd’s shout made Dabien grin and speak to me.
“New sister-in-law, I’ll be teaching you! Just so you know, I’m a bit strict as a teacher.”
When we arrived at the main building still in Lloyd’s arms, the Duke and Duchess of Helderios were waiting.
Seeing me enter with Lloyd, they smiled warmly.
Handing me tea kindly, the Duke told me that Dabien would teach me noble etiquette and various subjects as an apology.
Lloyd, who had already clashed with Dabien over this, strongly refused by his side, and the Duchess showed concern, but the Duke insisted. As the future head of the family, Lloyd couldn’t take time to educate me himself.
When the butler came to fetch the Duke and Duchess, they excused themselves and left. Lloyd sighed and knelt at my feet.
He bit his finger to draw blood and began drawing a magic circle on the floor.
“What are you doing?”
I shouted in surprise, but he didn’t answer.
As the magic circle made of blood was completed, it began glowing red. He told me seriously not to hurt myself, yet within thirty minutes, he had bitten his own finger.
While I stared in disbelief, the door suddenly burst open, and Dabien entered. She looked at Lloyd kneeling at my feet and the magic circle, frowning.
“You’re crazy, Lloyd.”
Lloyd didn’t care about her scolding.
When the glowing magic circle disappeared, the blood writhed and was absorbed into the floor. Lloyd stood and said,
“No one will harm you from now on.”
“What… is this?”
Dabien sneered.
“What is it? Lloyd just risked his life to cast a protective spell on you. He’s completely lost it.”
“Watch your mouth, Dabien.”
Lloyd’s cold voice silenced her, then he hesitated before patting my shoulder.
“Dabien won’t be able to touch you anymore. You can safely take lessons from her.”
My confused expression made Dabien shout.
“Hey, Lloyd! You’re really crazy! Did you cast magic just for that reason?”
Ignoring her, Lloyd left the room.
“Then I must return to work. Kae, if anything happens, come to my office on the third floor.”
“Hey, Lloyd!”
Dabien shouted, but he didn’t care. Suddenly, she charged at me with a fist.
I squeezed my eyes shut at her sudden attack.
Bang! A loud noise rang out, but I felt no pain. Peeking open my eyes, her fist had stopped in midair. Around it, the blood-red magic circle Lloyd had drawn now glowed, blocking her punch.
“Cough… Dabien, do you… want to die?”
From a distance, Lloyd suddenly groaned, clutching his stomach.
“You’re the one crazy enough to want death. Who in their right mind casts reverse-protection magic on her?”
As he finished speaking, Lloyd disappeared from the door and reappeared behind Dabien.
He kicked her back with all his strength. Dabien flew through the air and hit the wall straight on. The room shook violently.
The impact should have killed an ordinary person. It was strong enough to make a dent in the wall.
But Dabien was no ordinary person. She lightly got up, spat on the floor, and was unscathed.
“Trying this, huh? Lloyd.”
Dabien walked out from the cracked wall, smiling.
Her whole body was soon surrounded by a red aura.
“Don’t mess with me, Dabien.”
Lloyd’s aura also rose red. Both stared at each other as if they wanted to kill. The mansion trembled with a loud rumble.
“Kae, come here.”
I was startled by the whisper beside me. The butler grandfather had appeared and reached out carefully.
“What’s happening?”
When I held his hand, a blue barrier suddenly formed around us with a buzzing sound.
“This happens often. They fight when opinions clash.”
“Opinions clash?”
They were attacking each other like they wanted to kill. Their attacks were so strong that walls and floors were breaking from each strike. You could see into the next rooms, above, and below. It was a miracle the mansion hadn’t collapsed.
The rumbling sounded serious. It looked like the mansion might collapse soon.
“This… is called often happening?”
“Yes, but since you are here, Kae, they are fighting lightly. Normally, half the mansion walls would have flown away.”
The butler smiled reassuringly at me.
No… sir, the walls are already full of holes, and I can see everything around me…
