Chapter 61

"......The Garden of Ice and Snow"

The breath she exhaled turned white, as if dyed.

Noah, standing beside her, also looked around. Despite it being spring, the space of moderate size was covered entirely in white and silver.

It seemed to have originally been a rose garden.

However, the thorny bushes and the blooming red roses were all frozen.

The flowers, encased in ice like armor, seemed to be staring at them intently, still fresh.

"It must be magic that keeps this garden in winter."

Beside Claudia, Noah chanted a short spell. The magic transformed into a white fur mantle.

When Noah touched Claudia’s back, the smooth, fluffy mantle was draped over Claudia’s shoulders, which were clad in a thin spring dress. Claudia, naturally wearing the mantle, began to walk through the snow-covered garden. Noah, keeping a watchful eye on the surroundings, asked Claudia:

"Maintaining this garden must require a powerful magic user, right?"

"Yes, but it’s hard to tell if it’s delicate or bold."

Claudia looked back at their footprints. The large footprints of a man and the small footprints of a woman were quickly repaired in the snow, causing Noah to frown.

There were no footprints left in this snowy garden.

However, this wasn’t because Claudia and Noah were the first to step in, but because the footprints disappeared after being made.

"There’s no sign of anyone in this garden..."

"Please be careful. They might be using magic to hide their presence, just like we are now."

In the past two years, Noah had become quite accustomed to such situations. Claudia smiled and continued to walk, crunching the snow under her feet.

The spring sunlight illuminated the snowfield and the ice-encased flowers.

Even the white breath she exhaled sparkled like diamonds before disappearing.

"What a beautiful garden."

"......"

Suddenly, Noah, who was walking ahead, raised his right hand to stop Claudia.

Claudia understood why Noah was on guard.

A large painting covered the wall at the edge of the rose garden.

It was a delicate piece of art, so exquisite that Claudia couldn’t help but be captivated.

Despite being a painting on a flat wall, it had a three-dimensional quality, as if the objects were actually there. It looked warm, soft, and even faintly glowing.

Despite its beauty, Noah was on guard because of the subject of the painting.

"......A painting of beautiful princesses sleeping."

"......"

The princesses in the painting had their eyes closed.

Noah, still shielding Claudia, glared at the painting and spoke.

"It doesn’t seem to be created by magic."

"Yes, someone must have painted it. The entire wall is filled with their portraits."

"Who, and for what purpose?"

"Given its beauty, it should be considered a work of art, but..."

At that moment, both Claudia and Noah looked at the same point.

A scream echoed immediately after.

"Wh-What!?"

The owner of the garden seemed to have returned.

Noah, naturally stepping forward, placed his hand on the hilt of his sword to protect Claudia. Claudia touched Noah’s back and peeked out from behind him.

"Oh my?"

A man was crouching on the snow.

His hair was silver. He was tall for an adult male but appeared to be very thin. In his hunched position, that was about all they could tell.

"W-Why are there strangers in my garden!? It’s impossible. This can’t be happening!!"

Noah, frowning, informed Claudia:

"Please step back. He was using magic to hide his presence and we didn’t detect him until just now."

"Yes, he’s quite skilled."

Usually, when conducting investigations that border on unauthorized entry, they would use magic to mask their presence.

Of course, this wasn’t a spell to become invisible. Since being seen would ruin the cover, Claudia and Noah would be vigilant of their surroundings and hide if anyone approached.

However, the ‘owner of the garden’ had almost perfectly hidden his presence.

Thanks to this, they couldn’t take action until they were seen.

It was a good thing they had taken the form of adults instead of the eight-year-old princess Claudia and her servant Noah.

"‘Leopold’"

Claudia called him by his real name.

Noah was a new name given by Claudia. When Noah was in his adult form, she often called him ‘Leopold’ instead of his alias.

"We should apologize to this gentleman first."

"......Yes."

Noah, ready to draw his sword at any moment, walked towards the crouching man.

"I apologize. We are travelers caught in unusual circumstances and seem to have ended up here due to a failed teleportation spell."

They had a well-prepared excuse for such situations, which had been refined over the past two years. However, the garden’s owner didn’t lift his head from his hands, continuing to tremble.

"......So, why...? I set up a barrier, so why are there strangers in my garden? ...Ah, wait, no, that’s right...!!"

"......?"

Then, the man declared with a surprisingly clear voice:

"It’s all because I’m a worthless, dull existence, too insignificant to matter...!"

"......"

At that moment, Noah’s expression conveyed a slightly exasperated feeling, as if to say, "Why are you so confident in that conclusion?"