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Chapter 67. The Second Tea Party
Ferda checked on what was happening in Valdrova Castle.
Since he had been away for a whole month, he wondered if anything had gone wrong. But everything was running smoothly.
The first place he visited was Vernell’s research lab.
Vernell’s theories, which were hard to understand before, were now becoming easier to grasp. Thanks to the fifteen assistants helping him, progress was being made.
‘Still a long way to go.’
His biggest challenge was Malcolm.
“Malcolm, can you put this in the right input slot?”
“The right one? Got it!”
“No, the right one! The hand you eat with! No, not there! Ahh!”
For the geniuses working there, Malcolm was nothing short of a disaster.
If anything was even a little complicated, he would get confused immediately. He didn’t just mix up east, west, north, and south—he couldn’t even tell left from right.
A complete fool among the smartest minds.
Trying to teach a fool something even geniuses struggled to understand was driving Vernell crazy.
He had pulled his hair so much that his once-thick hair was now thinning.
Meanwhile, Malcolm was smiling brightly, completely unaware.
‘Magical engineering is meant for humans, not just mages.’
If even someone like Malcolm could understand how to use it, then ordinary people would be able to use it too.
That was Ferda’s ultimate goal.
‘Anyway, everything here seems fine.’
As he was passing by, he suddenly heard a loud voice from the hallway.
“Hyyaaah!?”
As soon as he heard it, he knew.
It was the demon, Penelope.
“What is this witch doing here?! Why is there a witch walking around a dragon’s castle?!”
The “witch” she was talking about had to be Echidna.
“Huhuhuhu, if a demon can be here, why not a witch?”
Ferda wondered why they were together, but the reason became clear right away.
“Um, Miss Echidna? Could you calm down and listen to me?”
It was because of Jed.
As Ferda walked closer, he confirmed the situation.
Penelope was clinging to Jed’s leg.
Jed looked flustered.
And Echidna was pointing a knife at Jed.
Her eyes were dazed.
“Ah, Jed. Don’t worry. I won’t harm you. I just want to perform a contract separation spell.”
“A contract separation spell?”
“Yes. I’ll cut off the part where your contract mark is and give it new life to remove the curse. Then, you’ll have a clean body, just like before.”
“…Wait. Are you saying you’ll cut off my arm?”
“And you’ll have to endure constant pain for the rest of your life! But that pain is nothing!”
Jed was so shocked that he blurted out his real thoughts.
“Are you crazy?”
“It’s fine! Even if you only have one arm, I’ll still love you forever!”
“But I love my arm!”
“You’ll overcome it! With our love!”
Things were a complete mess.
Ferda could already guess why this was happening.
‘It’s because of the oath between Penelope and Jed.’
Back when he saved them, Ferda made sure that Penelope and Jed formed a contract.
It was to keep Penelope’s body from returning to hell and to keep her under watch.
He also made sure that she couldn’t reveal anything about Sitri’s Life Vessel without his permission.
Penelope might have been chained, but to her, this was a good deal.
Hiding in the dragon’s nest was much safer than running from place to place.
‘Was this also good for Jed…?’
Jed was the type to flirt with any woman he saw.
And Penelope was a woman, after all.
Ferda hadn’t explained Penelope’s full purpose to Jed.
He only told him that she was someone Sitri cherished deeply.
As Ferda and Jed made eye contact, Jed’s eyes silently begged him.
Please, save me.
But men don’t plead with words.
Ferda turned his back like a true man.
Handle it yourself.
‘Anyway, everything seems to be running fine.’
Even if something had happened while he was gone, he wasn’t aware of it.
“Ferda.”
A small girl in a maid uniform approached.
It was Ruri.
“Everything is ready.”
“Alright.”
Ferda adjusted his tie.
Then, shadowy hands reached out from his clothes, fixing his outfit once more.
He had taken risks to gain information from demons.
He had killed those who threatened Ruri.
He had faced two major crises that could have destroyed the kingdom.
But even all of that didn’t make him as nervous as he was now.
It felt like hiding a wet bed sheet in the closet as a child—something that wouldn’t be discovered right away but would be found eventually.
But all his anxiety disappeared as soon as he saw the open balcony.
There was a tea table.
And an armoured dragon knight.
‘Again, today.’
Since this was the third time, he wasn’t surprised.
She sat there silently, staring at him.
Her helmet, shaped like Valdrova’s head, gave off an intimidating presence.
‘Why is she just sitting there like that?’
Ferda walked forward.
He imagined what expression might be hidden behind that helmet.
Before he could reach the worst-case scenario, he realised something.
“…Zzz.”
She was asleep.
Valdrova’s head tilted forward.
She almost face-planted onto the table but suddenly jerked back up.
“…Mmm… hmm?”
Still half-asleep, she blinked at him.
“…Ferda?”
She stared blankly at him.
Then, suddenly—
“Huh?! Ferda?!”
She jumped up in surprise.
“Oh! Oh! Y-You’re here!”
“Yes. It’s good to see you, Lady Valdrova.”
“Uh, um… welcome, Ferda. I, uh…”
She struggled to find an excuse.
Ferda helped her out.
“You must have been deep in thought. Lost in your worries.”
“Huh? Oh, well… actually, I was just sleeping…”
“When a king is caught sleeping, it’s polite to say they were thinking.”
“O-Oh! That makes sense! Yes, I was thinking! Definitely!”
She nodded repeatedly, feeling relieved.
She was bad at lying.
“Are you alright, Ferda?”
“Yes.”
“I heard your carriage had problems, and you stopped at Count Consilus’s estate…”
Ferda glanced at Ruri.
She nodded slightly, confirming she had reported everything.
“Yes, that’s right.”
“You weren’t hurt?”
“There was no serious issue. Just some minor repairs.”
“That’s good. I was a little worried.”
She sighed in relief.
That reaction was exactly why he had to keep things secret.
“What did the Grand Council discuss?”
Ferda explained.
It was mostly about land disputes.
“I see. I’ve heard that wars sometimes happen on the Serdes Continent.”
The conflicts between elves and dwarves.
“They’re still fighting? It feels like they always were…”
Most of the talks were about conflict and anger.
There were no stories of peace.
But Valdrova listened carefully.
And that scared him.
He worried he might say something he shouldn’t.
Her pure heart made it hard to step into the conversation with dirty truths.
“And…”
As the discussion came to an end—
“They talked about the Eastern Conquest.”
“The Eastern Conquest?”
“They declared their intent to conquer the land known as the Cursed Lands.”
“Ah.”
Valdrova fell silent.
She gently touched her arm.
Her eyes turned toward the balcony.
The scenery of early autumn, full of vibrant colours.
The landscape that most people in Serdes saw.
“But that land… it wasn’t always called the Cursed Lands.”
Her voice was soft, filled with old memories.
—
“Once, it used to have such a beautiful view.”
There were complicated emotions in that voice.
“Now, it has turned dark, but… do you think it can return to those pretty colours again?”
It would be easy to say, Of course.
But Ferda couldn’t say that.
“It won’t be easy.”
Ferda wasn’t sure.
“But I will do anything to bring back the view you remember.”
Instead of giving empty hope, he showed his determination.
“Is that so?”
Valdrova seemed to like that answer.
“If there’s anything I can do, I will help as much as I can.”
She clenched her fist.
“I can’t just sit and do nothing while my fiancé is working so hard.”
“If Your Highness offered your hand, it would be my greatest honour.”
Watching her, Ferda felt at ease.
There was no need to overthink her words.
He could just accept them as they were.
This—this was true purity.
“Um… do you have anything else to say?”
“No, that’s all.”
“Oh… okay…”
Valdrova’s voice sounded unsure.
What was it?
What was she expecting him to say?
Ferda took a sip of his cooling tea.
“Well… Ruri told me something…”
“Yes?”
“That you… held hands with a woman named Olivia.”
“Pfft!”
He choked and spat out the tea.
But Valdrova was more shocked than Ferda, who had just made a mess.
“Ferda? Are you okay?!”
“Yes, I’m fine.”
“I’m sorry! I didn’t mean to startle you… I just wanted to talk…”
Ferda wiped his mouth with a handkerchief and looked away.
His eyes met Ruri’s.
So, she really told her everything?
He glared at her with that question in his eyes.
Ruri quickly looked away.
It would be a lie to say he wasn’t upset.
His head started to ache.
What could he say to get out of this situation?
That Olivia held his hand first?
That it wasn’t anything special?
Dozens of excuses filled his mind.
But Ferda erased them all.
“I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have held hands with another woman in front of my fiancée…”
“B-Betrayal? No, no! I don’t care about that!”
She waved her hands, flustered.
“Ferda, you’re a man, and… I heard she’s really pretty, so… I understand.”
She spoke as if she didn’t mind, but her fidgeting fingers and lowered head said otherwise.
Ferda felt guilt press down on his heart.
“So… um…”
She looked up at him carefully.
“Maybe…”
She tilted her head slightly and asked,
“Maybe… you want to hold my hand too…?”
Ferda’s mind went blank.
“…Huh?”
He stupidly repeated her words.
“Your Highness’s… hand?”
“Yes. We’ve done it once before… and I think I can do it again…”
Her voice trailed off at the end.
“Well, what do you think?”
Unlike her casual words, Ferda became more serious than ever.
This was a once-in-a-lifetime chance.
He couldn’t let it slip away.
He took a deep breath and steadied his voice.
“I… want to hold it.”
“Okay. Wait a moment.”
She took off her gauntlet.
Underneath the large armour was a small, delicate hand.
A hand that didn’t seem to hold any of her overwhelming strength.
She curled her fingers into a shy fist, making it look even smaller.
“H-Here!”
She held out her palm.
Ferda stared at it, mesmerised.
Her thin fingers, the lines on her palm—it all looked like a painting.
He carefully reached out—
“Hic!”
Valdrova’s hand jerked away.
He didn’t even get to feel its softness.
“Why?”
“Ah, um… I just… I’m afraid I might not control my strength well… I need a moment to prepare myself…”
Her voice stretched nervously, and her breathing was rough inside her helmet.
Ferda thought she might refuse, and his heart sank.
She placed her hands on her chest and took deep breaths.
Since she was still nervous, Ferda made a suggestion.
“If strength is the problem, how about I place my hand over yours?”
“Oh! That’s a good idea! Let’s do that.”
Valdrova placed the back of her hand on the table.
Ferda gently placed his hand on top of hers.
Crack—
A sharp noise filled the air.
He looked down.
The table had cracked.
‘Wasn’t this made of granite?’
A material said to be so strong that even a meteor wouldn’t break it.
If this table cracked, it must be the strongest table on the whole continent.
‘So this is why she’s called the “Force of Power”…’
Ferda sighed in admiration.
Then, he remembered something.
Their first meeting.
That time, he had impulsively held her hand to see her face.
‘Back then, I even intertwined our fingers…’
Ferda was grateful his right hand hadn’t been crushed.
Even with that chilling thought, he didn’t let go.
Her warm skin.
The steady pulse under his touch.
He never wanted to let go of this small hand.
And if he had to, he wanted to feel it properly before he did.
‘Even if my hand gets a little broken, maybe it’s worth it.’
A reckless thought.
But his reason held him back.
“Are you still struggling with your blood energy?”
Valdrova shook her head.
“No… I’m fine.”
“But you didn’t go hunting yesterday.”
“R-Ruri?!”
Valdrova flinched.
Ruri had spoken so casually and then went silent again.
“Is it true?”
“Well… yes… but it’s okay. Just because I didn’t hunt yesterday doesn’t mean monsters won’t come today.”
“But there’s no guarantee they will, either.”
“Yes… that’s true.”
“If you don’t hunt, you’ll end up harming yourself.”
“…”
Valdrova closed her mouth.
She didn’t know what to say.
But there was no need for words.
“Ah…”
She suddenly felt something enter her hand.
She knew this feeling well.
The same power that calmed her blood energy before.
“Ferda…”
“It’s fine.”
She stayed silent.
As it entered her, her heart calmed.
Even though she had felt it once before, she was amazed.
The raging energy inside her settled so easily.
“Ferda…”
“Yes?”
“This is enough.”
“Are you sure?”
“Yes.”
Ferda stopped.
Silence followed.
A very awkward silence.
But neither of them broke it.
If they spoke, one of them would stand up.
And this hand, held so bravely, would separate.
Just a little longer.
They stayed in that uncomfortable silence.
bedsheet
And enjoyed it.
—
