Chapter 205

“Her Highness wishes it so.”

“…I no longer possess mana, nor do I have magic circuits. I lack the qualities befitting the emperor of Argan…”

“What qualities you possess are of little importance,” Rezette replied evenly. “What matters is that Her Highness wants you to return.”

Andrei remained silent.

“Her Highness has no desire to become emperor. However, she did say there are matters she wishes to discuss once you come back.”

“And what might those be?”

“She wants to cultivate mages who will lead the empire.”

The boundless mana that had once been sealed within the catacombs had begun to seep into the land of Argan. A power once wielded only by the imperial bloodline and the dragonkin was now spreading among the common people.

Perhaps not immediately, but someday, one by one, there would be those who could see mana with their own eyes and feel it at their fingertips.

“It would be good to establish an official magical academy under the imperial household. Inashio Conrad already deciphered the principles of magic seven hundred years ago, so we would only need to follow his theories for education. For now, I’m the only mage, so I suppose I’ll have to study as well…”

As Elise spoke of her plans for the future, her eyes shimmered like starlight. If it was something she wanted, then anything was acceptable.

As long as it was not becoming emperor.

That alone was something Rezette could not bring himself to accept. If that happened, he would be forced to remain in this sweltering southern land.

The north suited his constitution far better than the south. Temperature, humidity, even the intensity of sunlight. There was not a single part of him that wished to endure a summer here.

Fortunately for him, Elise had recently expressed her desire to return to Rotiara. From that very day, Rezette began making preparations to leave at once.

Their belongings were already packed, and Elise’s teleportation circle had been completed. All that remained was to step onto it.

“…Very well. If my sister wishes it, I have no choice,” Andrei said at last, conceding after long deliberation.

“I will return once Sameshita has fully stabilized. If you are to depart soon, do not tell her that I came. It would only leave lingering regrets.”

“You need not worry about that.”

In truth, Rezette had no intention of reporting today’s meeting to his wife in full. Once they returned to Rotiara, he would mention it only in passing.

With that, his business with Andrei was concluded. Andrei stepped forward with a hopeful expression.

“By the way, Your Grace. You said the child’s name is Roana, was it not? I will not come too close, but…”

“You may leave.”

Rezette cut him off coldly.

There was no reason to risk upsetting his daughter.

With the baby in his arms, he strode out, his retreating figure radiating a chill. The door slammed shut with merciless force.

Left behind in the reception room was only a brown-haired young man, frozen like a statue. As the lord of the castle, this was the first time he had ever been treated with such disregard.

Andrei let out a heavy sigh.

“What am I to do… I have thoroughly earned his displeasure.”

***

That night, news reached Elise that Roana had cried inconsolably.

“She suddenly started crying? Why?”

Roana was not a child who cried easily. At least, not in Elise’s experience.

Rezette climbed onto the bed with both his wife and daughter in his arms and summarized the matter simply.

“She must have been startled. An unwelcome visitor came.”

“To the imperial palace? When? Who?”

“No one of interest. A stranger. She must have been frightened.”

Tilting her head, Elise peered down at the baby. There were still faint tear tracks beneath Roana’s chin that Rezette had not fully wiped away.

“She isn’t usually so timid. Who could have scared her that much…?”

“Pay it no mind. We leave for Rotiara tomorrow. You will not be seeing them again anytime soon.”

“Still…”

They planned to depart at dawn. First, they would head to Opel, the capital of Van Yela, and from there proceed to Rotiara.

Rezette could no longer afford to leave Rotiara unattended, and Elise, too, had begun to miss the quiet days spent with her husband. Besides, there were many in Rotiara clamoring to see Roana.

The urgent matters concerning the stability of the imperial household had been resolved. Until Andrei returned, Barnon would serve as regent, and arrangements had been made to ensure immediate communication with Rotiara if necessary.

Once the carrier pigeons sent north a few days prior confirmed the coordinates of Opel and Rotiara, the teleportation circle would be complete.

At last, their preparations to return were nearing their end.

Elise carefully lifted the baby from the bed and settled her onto her lap. Roana no longer burst into tears when held by her as she once had.

“You’ll like it there too. You resemble your father so much, you might even enjoy the summer there more.”

“Maah!”

“Your father certainly seems eager to go back, doesn’t he?”

Tickling her daughter’s cheek, Elise cast a glance toward her husband.

Rezette lay on his side, propped on one arm, watching their exchange. Fresh from washing, the faint scent of water clung to him, mingling with his natural warmth.

He noticed her curious gaze a moment too late.

“Why are you looking at me like that?” he asked.

“You know, you’ve been acting strangely slow lately.”

“…Pardon?”

“Just like now. It feels like you’ve… loosened up.”

It showed in his clothing as well. Elise’s eyes drifted briefly to the open front of his shirt, where the loosened ties revealed glimpses of his throat, collarbone, and the dense musculature beneath.

Perhaps it was because the fabrics of the south were lighter and thinner than those of the north. Even with only the ties undone, he exuded a raw, disheveled allure.

“…I didn’t know you were sensitive to heat.”

“Drop a northerner into the heart of the south, and anyone would end up like this.”

As summer approached, Rezette’s attire grew increasingly casual. Rolling his sleeves up to his elbows had already become routine.

There was something about it that felt almost… indulgent.

Normally, he dressed with near-perfect precision. Even in his study at Rotiara, he had never once loosened his collar. His posture had always been as rigid and composed as a sculpture.

That had been better. Now, the sight of his exposed arms and broad chest throughout the day drew her attention in ways she could not ignore.

Elise pouted slightly.

“When we return to Rotiara, you must dress properly.”

“What do you mean?”

“Your clothes. Don’t go around looking like you’ve just walked out of the bedroom. I only tolerate it because this is Argan…”

Every time the newly hired palace servants cast lingering glances at her husband, she felt something she could not quite name.

Their admiration made her proud, yet at the same time, it unsettled her.

She wished that the dense, intoxicating aura surrounding him belonged to her alone. The heat that seemed to shimmer off his skin, the darkened intensity in his gaze, the suffocating masculinity of his perfectly sculpted body.

…Even she had not properly seen it in a long while.

Though she was not particularly affected by the heat, her throat felt inexplicably dry. Elise absentmindedly traced the back of Rezette’s hand.

Come to think of it, the first time they had truly come together had been around this time last year. Their last night together had been in autumn.

To be precise, it had been at dawn on the day Elise left Rotiara. That had been the last time they had been so completely entwined that breathing felt impossible.

Since then… it had not been quite the same.

Even so, certain moments just as intoxicating flickered through her mind. Not thoughts she ought to entertain while holding a baby.

Flustered, Elise forced her gaze back to Roana, her cheeks flushing like ripe peaches.

Rezette narrowed his eyes slightly and reached for her hand, clasping it with ease.

“Elise.”

“Yes?”

“I can see exactly what you’re thinking.”

His finger tapped lightly against her warm cheek.

Her lips pressed together as her entire face burned. She muttered under her breath.

“Then don’t just lie there…”

“What have I done?”

“Stop looking so… indecent. Here, close this.”

Her hand moved to his chest, fingers brushing upward as she grasped the loose ties of his shirt. But before she could pull them tight, Rezette was faster, rising in one swift motion.

His hand seized the back of her neck, and his lips crashed against hers. His tongue slipped inside instantly through her parted lips, searingly hot.

“Mm…!”

Up close, she could see the heat rising in his blue eyes like a wavering haze. As Elise instinctively closed her eyes and tilted her head back under his pull, the moment deepened.