"Why are you with him? "Weren't you supposed to stay in your room?"
Ningyou lowered her gaze to the marble floor. "I… I just wanted some fresh—"
"Do you not understand at all? You are not allowed to leave the room alone. You—"
"Sssh. Enough. Miss Ningyou, please sit. Eral as well. And Ou, be quiet," Danna said sharply.
Ou responded with a harsh snort. Once everyone was seated, Danna cleared his throat and began.
"I intended to introduce Miss Ningyou to all of you another time, but since she is already here, I will introduce her now. Kael, Eral, this is Miss Ningyou."
Ningyou bowed politely. The young man wearing glasses nodded.
"Kael Rerier."
"She is the product of the forbidden magic I mentioned yesterday," Danna continued with serious tone.
The Rerier brothers stiffened and looked at Ningyou, making her feel awkward.
"You already know about the forbidden magic incident. What I haven't told you is that my beloved brother executed Knightalian citizens who participated in the practice. If Queen Annia finds out…"
Danna cast a worried look around the room.
"Knightalia maintains strong diplomatic ties, but Queen Annia does not take the loss of her people lightly," Kael stated gravely.
Danna sighed. What would he say to Queen Annia later?
"You are right, Kael. This is a dire situation," Danna muttered, glancing at Ou, who remained silent with an innocent expression.
"Ou, at least think of a solution," Danna scolded.
Ou grinned, resting his chin on his hand. "I already told you. Just tell that ill-tempered old woman that I did it. Leave the rest to me."
"Your Majesty, perhaps you should dismiss the cursed lunatic's suggestion.It is not good advice," Eral said calmly.
Ou scowled. "Cursed lunatic? Look at yourself, Eral."
Eral glanced at him briefly and took a sip of tea. "May Goddess Malvheeta grant you her blessing."
"I do not worship Malvheeta," Ou snapped.
"May God Shams grant you enlightenment."
"I do not worship him either—"
"Then may Goddess Ishara grant you endless love."
Ou froze. Everyone looked at him, then at Ningyou.
"Oh, so that is what it means. Ishara Ningyou. That is a beautiful name."
"Indeed, Your Majesty."
Danna and Kael laughed openly, while Ou's irritation boiled over. Ou stood abruptly and dragged Ningyou to her feet. Only then did he remember that Ishara was the Goddess of Love and Happiness.
"Let's go, Ningyou," Ou said stiffly.
He shot a sharp glare at his brothers, who were still laughing. The door slammed shut behind them, only making Danna and Kael laugh harder. Eral remained silent, calmly sipping his tea.
"My goodness, Eral. That was brilliant. You managed to provoke Ou until he looked irritated," Danna laughed, wiping tears from his eyes.
"He truly needs to worship Goddess Ishara, doesn't he? He is always alone and lonely. Thinking of his past makes me sad," Danna said softly, his laughter fading. "But I think I can rest easy now. With Ningyou around, I no longer worry about Ou. He is not alone anymore."
Danna smiled faintly, and the Rerier brothers exchanged puzzled looks.
"Ah. Because of Ou, we could not continue discussing the issue further."
***
Knightalia
"What?" The blonde woman with ocean-blue eyes yelled angrily at the messenger before her.
"P-Please forgive me, Your Majesty. I only delivered what truly happened."
The messenger knelt, cold sweat dripping down his temples.
"Why didn't His Majesty Orninn Danna inform Knightalia directly?" The woman muttered, wondering what the King of Urca was thinking.
Urca had become a prosperous and welcoming nation under the rule of King Orninn Danna. But why does the King of Urca seem to be turning a blind eye?
"Annia."
The blonde woman turned around after hearing her name. Her face turned bright red right away.
"G-Gama? Since when have you been here?"
"Just now."
Gama gestured for the messenger to leave the throne room. After the messenger departed, Gama approached Queen Annia and bowed respectfully.
"Gamalegio Nathan, Supreme General of the International Organization and fiancé of Her Majesty Queen Rhy Annia Lexcia Morrow, reporting."
With his sweet smile, Queen Annia's face turned as red as a ripe tomato. The brown-haired man chuckled softly.
"Gama! Do not laugh at me!"
"Sorry. You are very cute when you blush like that, my beautiful queen." Gama wrapped his arms around Queen Annia's petite body. She fell silent, savoring the warmth and masculine scent of her handsome fiancé.
"Where have you been? You never sent any word."
Queen Annia pouted, making Gama even more amused.
"You know it yourself. I have been jumping from one country to another," Gama replied.
"So, what do you think about Urca?"
The atmosphere suddenly grew serious as they looked at each other.
"Knightalia has been implicated in a forbidden magic case. I do not understand at all, Gama. Even His Majesty Orninn Danna gave no explanation. Do you know? Citizens of Knightalia suspected of practicing forbidden magic were executed."
The Queen's face hardened in anger. She couldn't accept such unilateral action when the truth was unclear.
Gama gave a faint smile. "Well, that is nothing unusual."
Queen Annia frowned. "What do you mean?"
"Do you know who leads Urca's Execution Division?"
Queen Annia shook her head innocently, making Gama chuckle again.
"Ou Yuusha. The crown prince. A problematic psychopath."
The Queen widened her eyes. "That explains everything."
***
Zigg Castle, Urca
"This is strange."
Danna stared at the open book before him, studying forbidden magic. Nothing. His search yielded no results. Anxious, he picked up the reports sent by the spies he had dispatched to the incident site.
He examined them carefully. One page, two pages, three pages. None provided any clues. Frustrated, he slammed the papers onto the desk. His head throbbed painfully.
"My gods, there is nothing at all?" He covered his face in frustration.
Giving up, he began to tidy the scattered documents. Suddenly, something slipped from between the papers. A flat, gleaming object shaped like a shield, made of gold.
Confused, he picked it up and turned it over. A shield-shaped emblem with a magic circle in its center. As the King of Urca, Danna knew exactly what it was.
"I knew it. He must be involved in this incident!" Danna furrowed his brows. "I am certain he orchestrated this. I must inform Ou!"
He hurriedly gathered the papers and ran toward the door. But when he opened it, a familiar figure stood before him. Danna replaced his serious expression with a gentle smile.
"Ah, is there someth—"
His eyes widened as a sword pierced his chest.
"W-Why are you doing this?"
"Goodbye, Your Majesty."
***