Chapter 177
Chapter 177
[Thoughts: I always thought she was just a kind person, but she has the dignity of a royal.]
[Thoughts: Somehow, I knew it from the moment her etiquette was perfect.]
[Thoughts: It’s not a good thing to cover up such a disgraceful incident just because you’re royalty. Is that what it means to be royalty?]
‘Is it good?’
Perhaps because the times had changed, the way people evaluated her had also changed.
Meanwhile, Catherine, who had been looking at her former friend with an angry expression, said coldly.
“Lady Rovery, I am truly disappointed. I would prefer it if we never had to face each other again.”
It was a very decisive action for someone who belonged to the same team.
However, Lady Rovery said nothing and simply bowed her head deeply.
Then, without anyone to see her off, she left the Green Hall dejectedly.
‘Whew. I’ll have to thank Ellie when I get back.’
After the incident, the ladies and lords went their separate ways again.
This was because the table rounds were still in full swing.
“But why did the brooch go to Lady Navij?”
Catherine had been lost in thought and quietly asked a question as people began to disperse.
It could go to another lady’s wrist pocket. It was a near miss for a big misunderstanding.
“Hmm, Catherine. Did your grandmother by any chance have red hair?”
“Oh, yes! You’re right!”
Siervian cautiously uttered the thought that had been on her mind since earlier.
When she specifically mentioned red hair, the eyes of both Catherine and Lady Navij widened.
Damian smiled wryly and explained the hypothesis to the young ladies.
“It seems to be a magic that returns to its owner. It appears that the magic was cast using your grandmother’s red hair as a medium.”
“Ah….”
[Karmen Kasselov]
Thoughts: This is going to cause another uproar.
Just hearing about it, it was difficult to even grasp how it was designed.
His expression was still cold, but Karmen seemed to be already worrying about the future that was to come.
‘I’m glad it worked out well!’
There was nothing more satisfying than saving Lady Navij, who had been on her mind since her previous life.
“Your Highness….”
At that moment, Lady Irvita, who had been behind her, spoke cautiously to Siervian.
Only then did Siervian realize that while she had saved Lady Navij, she had caused great humiliation to Lady Irvita instead.
‘What should I do? What if we don’t get along again?’
Siervian turned around slowly, feeling nervous.
Unlike her previous life, she really wanted to remain on good terms.
“Thank you, truly…!”
“Huh? Ah….”
[Irvita Hardouin]
Favorability: +50
Favorability: +50
Thoughts: What should I do? She’s really cool… !
Her worries were nowhere to be seen as Lady Irvita literally sparkled.
Her eyes were filled with boundless admiration.
‘Suddenly, why is Irvita’s status window like this? Ah, is it because I helped her…?’
It made sense since she must have been relieved of a big misunderstanding thanks to her.
However, Siervian couldn’t shake off her bewilderment at Irvita’s intense reaction even after that.
“Don’t mention it.”
“You are my savior!”
[Irvita Hardouin]
Favorability: +50
Favorability: +50
Thoughts: Breathe, I need to breathe. Phew, ha! Phew, ha!
“Th, that’s too much…”
“I will repay your kindness for the rest of my life!”
[Irvita Hardouin]
Favorability: +50
Favorability: +50
“….”
With every word she spoke, Irvita’s increasingly intense reaction was becoming worrying.
‘…She’s not sick, is she?’
Whether or not she was aware of Siervian’s worried gaze, Irvita continued to circle around her with sparkling eyes.
The table rounds, which had been put on hold due to the unpleasant incident, were neatly concluded afterwards.
* * *
The spring picnic and the social season passed in the blink of an eye, and summer arrived without fail.
As she welcomed the approaching summer once again, Siervian stared blankly out the window.
‘I have this strange urge to fly.’
Lately, Siervian had felt an inexplicable sense of constraint.
Sometimes she felt infinitely happy, but then suddenly the Imperial Palace felt incredibly suffocating.
‘Hmm, should I try some magic in the garden?’
She often thought about the experience she had during her awakening period.
The feeling of being completely free, soaring like a storm.
“Your Highness. They said they are ready.”
“Okay.”
Ellie had a worried expression and approached carefully and informed her.
Seeing her serious expression, Siervian deliberately smiled and rose from her seat.
‘Oh well. This isn’t the time to be using magic and having fun.’
She had been urgently summoned to the Imperial Palace.
“What on earth is going on?”
“Have you heard anything about the cause?”
Siervian asked Ellie and Jane, half convinced.
The two seemed to have run around the palace diligently, but they shook their heads, indicating that they had not found anything significant.
‘I thought it would just pass like the Thousand-Year Garden… Why did this incident happen?’
In the summer of her fourteenth year, the event she had been dreading happened.
It was none other than the creation of a ‘Mana Windless Zone’ within the Imperial Palace.
“Can mana suddenly disappear like this?”
Those who were not mages perceived mana as a kind of life force surrounding a person.
Everyone was terrified to hear that mana had disappeared in some places, not just anywhere, but in the Imperial Palace.
“You don’t have to worry so much.”
Although it was a serious situation, Siervian smiled and reassured the maids.
“The flow of mana has simply stopped for a while. It’s easier to understand if you think of mana as a wind that continues to flow. But since the flow has disappeared, it won’t last long.”
“Ah, I see.”
“Somehow, I feel relieved when I hear the Princess’ explanation.”
It was the same in her previous life.
The Mana Windless Zone that appeared in this way disappeared naturally without passing this year.
‘The problem is, it’s unclear why it happened.’
This was the time Siervian had been worried about since she caught the thief in the treasure vault when she was young.
It was time to strengthen the security of the Imperial Palace due to the occurrence of the Mana Windless Zone.
However, in her previous life, her father had a hard time strengthening the security at this time due to the theft from the treasure vault.
‘The theft of the treasure vault was related to the Duke’s family, so I thought this would be the same. What could be the cause?’
When a Mana Windless Zone appears, the palace’s notification magic does not function properly.
Therefore, it was a situation where manual manpower had to fill in for a significant portion of the palace’s security system that had relied on magic.
‘Was it just Duke Pacour taking advantage of that situation at that time?’
Although magic accounted for most of the military power, it was natural that the imperial authority would become stronger if the number of guards increased.
The nobles had opposed the reinforcement, saying that the guards, who had failed to properly guard the Imperial Palace, which should be the most confidential place, were unnecessary.
‘Fortunately, that kind of problem doesn’t happen in this life.’
The treasure vault thief was caught in advance, and the noble faction had become almost powerless.
With the emperor’s intention to increase the number of guards in the sudden situation, there were few ministers who could object.
“Your Majesty. Princess Siervian has arrived.”
While she was pondering, she had arrived at the Imperial Palace.
As soon as she saw her father’s serious face, Siervian quickened her pace and approached him.
Her father, who was alone, was looking down at a map depicting the Imperial Palace.
“You’ve come.”
“Yes. I see the number of guards has increased significantly.”
“That’s right. There was some opposition, claiming the number is excessive.”
Siervian tilted her head at her father’s low voice.
‘Come to think of it, the security was incredible, wasn’t it?’
She hadn’t looked closely because she was worried, but the path to the Imperial Palace was almost lined with guards.
It seemed that the maids were also a little tense as one guard with sharp eyes guarded Siervian’s surroundings every two steps.
‘Well, in my previous life, we weren’t able to increase the number of guards in the end. So I can’t compare.’
Siervian obediently approached the table, following her father’s outstretched hand.
However, she did not sit on her father’s lap as she used to.
Now that she was almost fully grown, she thought she should maintain her composure. She believed her father would understand.
[Alderuan Erveldotte]
Mood: Gloominess
…Right?
“Yes. Take a look at this for now.”
“A map of the Imperial Palace. …Have you marked the location where the Mana Windless Zone occurred this time?”
“Yes.”
Her father concealed his disappointment well and tapped the map he had been looking at all along.
“I called you because I wanted to ask if you know anything about this incident.”
“Ah….”
Although he knew that Siervian had regressed, her father did not ask about it unless it was absolutely necessary.
The incident this time had no warning signs and no clear solution.
“You’re right. This happened in my previous life as well. The timing is similar.”
“Hmm.”
While examining the map in detail, Siervian tilted her head in puzzlement again.
“But, um…. It seems that the range of the Mana Windless Zone is slightly smaller than it was then.”
“Hmm.”
She clearly remembered that a fairly large area had become a Mana Windless Zone.
That’s why she had a lingering memory of being confined to the Princess’ Palace for quite some time because the range of movement was limited.
‘Huh?’
And as she looked at the areas marked on the map, Siervian realized one more thing.
“Mana’s windless zone… is connected from the treasure vault… to the Imperial Princess’ Palace…?”
The mana windless zone was indeed heading somewhere, even though it was connected in a scattered manner.
To none other than the Imperial Princess’ Palace of Siervian.
“It seems you didn’t know.”
“…Yes.”
In her previous life, she had never sat across from her father like this to inspect the mana windless zone.
In the first place, she was confined to the Princess’ Palace, and Sara, who was annoyed by the changed security measures, did not allow her to go out.
‘Did the mana windless zone look like this in my previous life as well?’
Her father observed her shocked face then quietly asked.
“Did my previous self find a solution?”
Hearing that question, she was certain.
Her father in her previous life must have tried to increase the number of guards to protect Siervian.
“Um, I don’t know.”
However, most of those attempts seemed to have failed.
Fortunately, the mana windless zone disappeared without incident.
“Was the cause ever uncovered?”
“No. The research continued, but we couldn’t discover it. Fortunately, it disappeared before the next year without any problems.”
“I see.”
After listening to Siervian’s explanation, her father fell into contemplation.
His hand tapping on the map seemed strangely anxious.
He must be worried about something…
“Siervy. How about staying here in the Imperial Palace for the time being?”
“Yes?”
“It would be better to refrain from going out as much as possible. Leave the magic circle maintenance entirely to Damian.”
—
