TVWD 41

Chapter 41

“Kyuu!”
The culprit behind the noise was none other than the silver fox.
“Were you playing well, Lys?”
“Kyuu!”
The baby silver fox’s name, Lys, was taken from Lysianthus. It was such a common name that no one would realize it was a nickname for Lysianthus.
Following Ted’s advice that it was best to raise the young fox safely within a confined space for now, I was keeping it in my room.

The little creature hopped onto my lap and tilted its head as if asking to be petted.
“Were you bored? They said you can go outside in about a month, so wait just a little longer.”
As I stroked its soft fur, the tension in my shoulders loosened. Lys purred and rolled onto its back, exposing its belly, which was even softer and whiter than the rest.
“Kyuuu.”
The little one blinked sleepily, then soon fell asleep.

Not wanting to move and risk having Lys fall off, I carefully checked the bundle of papers I’d been looking at earlier. They were full of archaic words and indecipherable drawings.
“It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that no one in this world truly knows about the ‘Center of the World.’ Even if they’ve heard of it, they don’t believe it…”

Finding these papers had been a complete accident. I had sneaked into the Blue Bird’s gambling den and branch, and caught them as they fluttered to the floor. It was lucky I happened to be studying old languages at the time.

On the very last page, there was also something written about the Mirror of Truth—its usage, its hidden purposes, and even what was needed to summon the map.
I could read all the ancient text, but some of the drawings remained a mystery. Still, I couldn’t give up—there might be clues hidden in the parts I hadn’t yet deciphered.
“There are still portions I can’t make sense of…”

I wanted to handle it all on my own, but I had no choice. I made two copies—one for myself and another for Ted, containing only the sections with the indecipherable symbols.
“These drawings—please find out what they mean.”
“They seem related to magic… but are you sure this isn’t illegal?”
“I’m not sure. It could be illegal.”
I answered calmly, and Ted blinked.
“You can’t even use magic yourself. How on earth did you come across something like this?”
“There are always ways.”
“I mean—”
“Kyuu!”

Lys let out a loud cry, as if telling him to stop prying, and Ted burst out laughing.
“All right. Oh, and the artisans the Duke’s son introduced will be arriving at the estate soon. Would you like to meet them in person, or shall I just take your instructions?”
“Hmm… I’ll see them myself. It would be good if Lord Stein could come along and introduce them personally.”
“Understood. I’ll make the arrangements.”

With a bow, Ted left the room.

“Good day, my lady.”
“You’re here!”

When I arrived at the training grounds, the family knights greeted me warmly. I began my exercises to build up my basic stamina.
Honestly, this sort of thing feels like such a waste of time. But I decided to work hard—out of guilt for Lexian, who had been injured protecting me.

I wanted to visit the Duchy of Lysianthus to see him, but since I couldn’t get too close, I sent flowers instead. He’d almost fully recovered then, so he should be completely fine by now.
Thinking this, I tried to calm the strange fluttering in my chest.

“Sis.”
Calvin, having heard I was training, was eager to help. It seemed he still hadn’t gotten over what happened during the hunting tournament.
“Let’s warm up first and start with some light running. We’ll do strength training after that.”

My brother, who had planned out the entire curriculum, was more enthusiastic about my training than I was.
He ran far faster than I could, but kept checking my posture and giving me advice.
“If you’re tired, slow down and walk. People like you, who aren’t used to physical activity, can get hurt if they overdo it.”
“I think I’ve heard that a hundred times already.”
“Have you? Haha.”

He laughed awkwardly, then sped up again.
After two laps around the grounds, I was exhausted and slowed to a walk. By the time I had gone around three more times, Calvin came over.
“Cal, there was trouble at the boat party Pony hosted today.”
When I told him that Merina’s boat had capsized, his face turned pale. I thought he’d rush off immediately, but surprisingly, he stayed and listened until the end.
“I’m glad she’s okay.”

Relief washed over his face. I purposely left out Merina’s comment—‘Do I really have to choose just one person?’

“But Cal, why do you like Merina? Because she’s pretty?”
“Hmm, I’m not sure.”

Calvin and Merina had been classmates at the academy. They’d seen each other for years, but according to the original story, it’s around this point that Calvin starts to like her.
There was never any clear reason given.
The male leads—men in general—liked Merina simply because she was the heroine.

Knowing that, I asked the question without much thought. But Calvin’s response was different this time.
“I don’t really know. Why did I start liking Merina? Now that I think about it… why do I like her?”

He’d always just said he liked her before. But now, he was actually thinking about it.
He was acting unlike himself—could it be the Blue Bird’s magic affecting him?

“Hmm…”
“Cal, what’s next on the training schedule?”

I cut off his endless pondering by asking. He blinked, as if snapping out of a trance.
“Strength training, Sis. Follow me.”

He handed me a practice wooden sword.
“There’s an iron core inside, so it’s quite heavy. Stand with your legs parallel, balance your weight, and lift and lower the sword with both hands.”
“Like this?”
“Good. Do twenty reps, five sets.”

Thanks to the strength-enhancing tonic I’d taken earlier, it didn’t feel too heavy. Still, I lifted the sword slowly, knowing that overdoing it would only lead to sore muscles tomorrow.
Calvin stayed by my side until I finished.
“I hope I’m not stealing your time.”
“Of course not, Sis. You’re my sister—this is nothing.”

He took the sword back with a grin, but then muttered under his breath—
“I’ll make sure the Captain doesn’t interfere.”

It seemed Calvin’s competitiveness was flaring up again, since Merina had shown interest in Lexian. He and the Crown Prince had always been rivals, constantly butting heads.
I’d worried that the story was starting to go off track, but seeing Calvin act according to the original flow reassured me.
I smiled faintly—though I couldn’t tell whether I should feel relieved or sad.

Lexian, who had insisted he would come visit, hadn’t shown up for quite some time.
Or more accurately—he couldn’t come.

“Lately, the Royal Knights, city guards, and all the security divisions have been running ragged.”
My father said this over dinner one evening, having returned home early for the first time in a while.
Well, even Calvin had been coming home late these days because of his duties.

“I heard there was an illegal gambling den discovered in the capital. The rumors are spreading fast.”
“Yes. The scale was so enormous that everyone was stunned. Even more, a large one was found on the outskirts of the capital recently, and from there, we found traces of a criminal organization.”

My father’s hand tightened slightly as he sliced his meat.
“I’ll personally see to it that the bastards who hurt our Roa are wiped out.”

“I’m relieved to hear they’ve been found. I hope the city becomes safe again soon—so I can go out comfortably.”
“It’s nice that you’ve started to enjoy going out instead of staying cooped up in the mansion, but be careful for now, all right?”
My mother, recalling the incident when I’d left without permission, gave me a worried look.
“I’ll remember that.”
When I smiled reassuringly, she shook her head with a resigned little smile.

Thankfully, it seemed Lexian hadn’t told Father anything about that day.

“Oh, Roa.”
“Yes, Father?”
“I happened to run into Duke Lysianthus today.”

Cough! Cough!
I choked on my wine.

“My goodness, look at her. Just hearing about the Duke gets her all flustered.”
“What? The Duke’s a fine man, but still—Roa’s too good for him. If she marries him, she’ll belong to his house instead of inheriting ours.”
“That’s true. But still, the Duke would make an excellent husband.”
“Dear.”

While I was still coughing, my parents had already started running wild with their imaginations.
I couldn’t let this conversation continue.
Mother had always liked Lexian, to the point she’d once asked him directly what he thought of me.
That must never happen again. So I quickly opened my mouth to change the subject—