Braden shook his head.
The magic crystal in the drawing room was the largest magic crystal that exists on the continent now.
When the tower begged and asked for it to be returned, he refused, saying it was the Wade heirloom.
It was said that the magic was the exclusive property of the imperial family, but it was an unspoken pressure that even the Wade could use great magic if they wanted to.
Not long ago, he secretly showed it to Annabelle and even boasted, 'Wade is so amazing'!
The magic crystal now lost its light on the floor of the room and was scattered.
"What, what?"
Of course, Braden wasn't the only one panicking.
"That huge magic stone… Did he just use it for acceleration magic?"
Even Leslie blinked in disbelief.
"A magical stone that can elevate the taste buds to the extreme, or cook great dishes with rare ingredients…"
She muttered, gasping for her breath.
"And he is just using it for the horses to run fast? Isn't that crazy? I'd rather ask Prince Robert for a warp item!"
"…Prince Robert is not in the capital right now."
Braden answered, rubbing his forehead.
"He couldn't find a magic item, so it seems like he cast a spell right away."
"No, you just saw him at the stadium this morning! Where the hell did he go?"
To Leslie's words, Braden sighed in response.
"Well, the destination is not clear."
"Isn't that obvious? But why do I not know?"
"Because…"
He continued, barely holding back the words.
"I don't know why, but he must have gone to Miss Annabelle. Her and Prince Robert left a few days ago."
"Well, I didn't see Ian for a while, so I thought he would have joined from somewhere else… Did he have to go out of his way like that?"
"…Of course not."
Braden sighed and shook his head.
"Looking at it, it seems that Ian was taken care of so that he could participate in the swordsmanship competition… No one would have known that he could change his mind so much."
They must have been quite far, though he didn't know if it was enough to even break the giant magic crystal.
It was assumed that no one would calculate him doing something outside of common sense.
Since Ian's actions were based on his own judgment, and he didn't think Annabelle or Robert could have expected it…
"Honey, I have no idea what this…"
Leslie muttered as she looked at the wreckage of the shattered crystal.
"For once, one thing is certain. I think Ian is going to create a huge accident."
"I agree with that."
Braden swallowed dry saliva and answered.
"And when we both agree, it really means that Ian is doing something beyond our expectations."
The two eyes met. They both looked anxious for a very long time.
"Since he's been turned over, and he has never been upset once, I'm sure it's going to shock us…"
Leslie said nervously, biting her nails.
"Is there a law to preserve the total amount of worries for your child…"
So, for the first time in their lives, Braden and Leslie began to be genuinely worried about their son.
~*~
Aaron was having the most hectic day of his life.
First of all, he had been a little busy in the morning because of Robert's drug tracking report.
Headquarters received the report and immediately began testing the subjects one after another.
As a result, a large number of participants suddenly dropped out.
"Hmm, but this route…"
Aaron easily defeated his opponent in the final, and then headed straight for the headquarters.
Anyways, since he had delivered the report himself, he felt like he had to check how things ended up.
"Oh, Aaron. Congratulations on winning."
The people at the headquarters saw Aaron and immediately greeted him.
"The report was very accurate. It is also from Prince Robert."
"Is that so? I didn't come here to check anything. Well then…"
Aaron, who did not want to be greatly entangled in this matter, tried to leave quickly, but the following words from the headquarters agent caught him by the ankle.
"Ah, but there is only one thing that I couldn't find."
"What? Well… If it's not a big deal, I wonder if you can just skip it…"
"But it doesn't matter."
The headquarters agent pushed up his glasses and said.
"Following this report, it seems that the Empress purchased it, right?"
"Ahh, ahhh… It really doesn't matter."
"But I don't know the next distribution channel. No matter how much I searched, none of the people who participated in the swordsmanship contest received drugs from the Empress. But why would the Empress give this out? She didn't drink it herself, did she?"
No matter how many questions he had, Aaron could not answer them.
Aaron scratched his chin and muttered.
"But it's an illegal drug, so if you ask the Empress, you won't get an answer. If you report poorly, you will be threatened in the middle."
"So, by any chance, Mr. Aaron."
The moment the headquarters agent grabbed Aaron's arm, Aaron was enveloped in an ominous feeling.
"Can Aaron, the winner, say something at the awards ceremony tomorrow? Can't we just ignore the words of the winner?"
"Oh, no. I have a small throat. Besides, who thinks of me as a real winner?"
Aaron immediately refused. It was because of course he didn't have the courage of a winner.
He knew best that he had accidentally become the winner because Ian and Annabelle were absent.
Still, after thinking for a while, he came up with a good answer.
"But I can recommend someone who can do the public debate on their own."
"Who?"
"If it's the Empress, there are people who are grinding their teeth. That's the president of the common people's assembly. She's in row A of the cheering table right now, so let's sneak a peek."
Aaron said, remembering Maiena, who had come to Annabelle before.
"Perhaps the common people attending the awards ceremony tomorrow will know all about it. It's getting out of hand to just bury it."
So, Aaron completed passing it on brilliantly.
When he returned to the Duke of Wade with an empty mind, he was dazed again.
The whole mansion was devastated by the fact that Ian broke the magic crystal and ran with a tremendous acceleration magic on his horse.
'Ah, maybe… Did he go to the Smaho forest?'
Aaron opened his mouth wide.
'But wouldn't it be in vain if he went? Anyways, if you don't accompany the royal family in the Smaho Forest, the monsters will attack you at random and you will die in less than 5 minutes.
He blinked his eyes for a moment.
Come to think of it, Ian is not a normal person, so even if the monsters cling to him, he thought he would be able to withstand it.
'Even so, the man who does such reckless things is not my master, hah…'
Despite being the winner of the swordsmanship competition, Aaron tossed and turned all night long with worry, rather than rejoicing.
~*~
(Annabelle's pov)
Banafarim Coast wasn't far from Smaho Forest.
This was because it only took a little more than a full day after we had camped once from the time we started right away to the time we reached the forest.
It was noon when the sun was shining brightly in front of the entrance to the forest.
Pls read only at pink muffin tl.
As soon as we arrived, a pigeon flew to Robert.
It was sent two days ago by Robert's men who had left him in the capital, and had arrived now because of the distance.
"Hmm."
Robert read the note quickly and then said:
"As expected. They said that my brother started helping me."
"Ah."
"It must have been because there was no justification for the sudden absence. Of course, he's even thinking about how he could improve his reputation after getting rid of us."
Perhaps everyone in the capital would know that Carlon followed us.
Because he would not have even attended the swordsmanship contest, one of the empire's best events.
"…Is it okay?"
Robert looked into my eyes and said quietly.
Yesterday was the swordsmanship competition and today was the awards ceremony.
Of course Ian would have won and today he would receive his third medal.
There was no doubt that Ian was participating in the swordsmanship contest.
First of all, there was no reason to follow me now, since he should've lost all affection from my words.
Second, he didn't know where we were.
Third, no matter if he found out, the forest was too far for him to pursue impulsively. Besides, an imperial family member had to accompany him, so even if he came, he couldn't come in.
"Sure."
I shrugged and answered.
"Because Ian would have won anyway."
"Right, but…"
"Look. Even a man who likes me says that Ian's victory is natural, so what am I missing?"
"… Aren't you too outspoken that you won't even accept it?"
"I'm sorry. For me, it's just 'fact 1', 'fact 2', something like that…"
"You are so ruthless, Annabelle."
"It is my consideration to not have vain hopes and to close your heart."
"Can I break your heart for Ian?"
"You have to try. It will not be easy."
I gave a very straightforward answer to Robert's question.
"I'm not your opponent, but you can't force my heart."
The entrance to the forest was quiet, and I spoke in a slightly sad tone.
"One day, Ian said so. It's common sense."
You couldn't force yourself on the opponent, so I'd pray for world peace so that it didn't endanger him…
It was admirable just thinking about how it was possible to have such a mature love.
To be honest, I wasn't that mature, so I thought I would be upset to see Ian happy with another good woman.
I have to practice mindfulness quickly and reach the same level as Ian.
Looking back, I thought that even if Ian stopped hating me, he would have safely attended the swordsmanship contest.
Because he was a person who respected my wishes unconditionally.
"Well then, shall we go in?"
I looked at Robert and asked resolutely.