Niveus checked the hallway, looking for any sign of life. After determining there was none, he pushed the door and closed it with a click.
It should have been tightly closed as there was a click sound already, but somehow the God of Cliche—if there was ever one—made the lock loose on purpose.
He wasn't even aware of how fate had played him in its palm as he sat on the chair and began writing on a piece of paper he pulled from the envelope that seemed to have been enhanced by Magitech.
Instant Letter.
A daily life item made by one of the best Magitech industries in the Empire. It served as an alternative, cheaper version of the chat feature in M-Phone that almost everyone could afford.
Of course, that was not the case in Aetheris; Only the rich could afford to buy and use Instant Letter in their daily lives.
Luckily, it was not an item that would become worthless after you used it once.
After Niveus finished writing, he put the letter inside the envelope and examined it.
Although it had everyday paper everyone used, whether in the kingdom or the Empire, by nobles or commoners, the design of the envelope was clearly targeted at people with money, especially the nobles of Aetheris.
'Clever, aren't they?'
It was a deep, rich navy blue, embossed with a custom silver crest of Albus in the center. Its seal was no different—a customized seal represented his family.
'Same function but with exclusive design, selling it at a high price, fooling those nobles with a great sense of pride.'
As Niveus pressed the recently stamped seal, a glorious glow of blue emanated from inside the envelope briefly. A second later, the seal shattered into magic particles, jutting the empty letter out of the envelope.
Throwing the Instant Letter to the table, Niveus took his mask off.
The gleaming golden eyes had sunken as he stared at the mirror. His soft, delicate face retained its existence despite the owner's wish. The snow-white hair poured down like a waterfall upon the release of the black band holding it in a ponytail.
Thud!
Suddenly, his eyebrows knitted as his ears caught a falling noise outside the room. Even while frowning, the beauty remained, refusing to tarnish the identity that had been shaped by people's perceptions.
Turning around, Niveus saw the door had opened, and through the gap, he could see a figure lying on the floor.
'Sh!t… Since when has it opened? Did they find out? Why didn't I hear any sound when they opened the door?'
Niveus did not have a big secret that would end with people drowning in their own pool of blood, but having an addition to the group that thought of his pretty face made it difficult for him who had a grand plan to break their misconception.
With a sigh, Niveus put on his mask and strode toward the door.
He could hear a murmur, mixed with disbelief and panic, as he pulled the door gently.
'Huh?'
On the floor, lay a familiar figure with an open mouth.
"Are you okay, Your Highness, Princess Aurum?"
For some reason, the Princess looked frightened.
Her long blonde hair was disheveled as two golden eyes met with the other pairs behind the dark mask, seemingly trembling in rhythm with the quick up-and-down motion of her chest. Simultaneously, her ragged breath and the occasional whimper made their way to Niveus's ears.
Realizing the state of the Princess was abnormal, Niveus immediately kneeled and grabbed her hands.
"What's wrong, Princess? Are you sick?"
The Princess resisted and slapped Niveus's hand as she tried to crawl behind. Cold sweat poured down her entire body, her already pale skin becoming even paler.
"Why... here...?" the Princess muttered, her voice barely heard.
Niveus, with his 6th-class hearing, picked up her inaudible voice.
'Why am I here? What does she mean?' Niveus thought, almost falling into his mind's world and possibly ending up in trouble again.
Pushing the questions out of his head, Niveus leaned and picked up the Princess. A literal princess carrying; One hand wrapped around her back and shoulder, the other went under her legs, just behind the knees.
"N...no...!"
The Princess resisted, struggling to get off him for a moment before her body slumped and her limbs hung limply.
Repositioning everything and making sure the Princess was comfortable, Niveus immediately ran on the corridor.
As he turned at the fork leading to the staircases to the lower and upper floors, Niveus stopped immediately when he spotted the fifth Prince, the Princess's blood-brother.
"Your hi—"
Before Niveus could call and explain everything, the fifth Prince suddenly lunged at him with a sword that he swiftly manifested out of thin air, shouting at him.
"You kidnapper!"
"Wait, Your Highness! Let me explain...!" Niveus tried to convince the raging Prince as he dodged and parried the Prince's attack with his legs only, which had been covered by metal plates.
Clang! Clang!
The sound of metal clashing echoed down the hallway, especially at night, it was bound to draw everyone's attention, potentially making the misunderstanding turn into something else.
"Listen to me, Prince!" Niveus shouted, ducking under another swing. He could feel the Princess's small and fragile form in his arms, her shallow breaths warming his chest through the fabric of his clothes. "She's hurt! And I'm trying to get help, not kidnapping!"
But the Prince was beyond reason. A flame seemed to burn in his eyes. He never ceased to swing his sword at Niveus.
Niveus couldn't afford to hurt the Prince, but if he didn't do something, he would risk getting the Princess injured from an 'accident.'
'Tsk...'
Left without a choice, Niveus tightened his arms around the Princess as he bent his body, trying to bait the Prince to use a thrust downward.
When the Prince took the bait, Niveus immediately jumped and stepped on the tip of the blade, focusing his strength and breaking it apart. Quickly after that, he gently pushed the Prince with his feet as leaped backward, standing on the railing.
Soon after, noises began to stir. The servant's murmurs grew louder as they rushed toward the stairway connecting the second floor to the first and third floors.
Among them, the Queen had her eyes squinted at Niveus from the first floor, and when she noticed the figure in Niveus's arms, she stepped forward.
"I suppose I will need an explanation."