Chapter 68

"Only when I want you to do something will I give you an order. So until then, be a good girl and 'wait,' okay?"

"…………"

Noah squinted in frustration and then let out a small sigh.

"Just now, I received a message from Prince Lewis. It said, 'I had fun today, let's do it again soon.'"

"……Oh."

She blinked in surprise at the unexpected proposal.

"Could it be a secret invitation?"

"…Most likely."

"It seems I've taught Lewis a naughty game. I must take responsibility… mwa."

She hugged a nearby stuffed animal tightly and pondered. Noah looked slightly dissatisfied.

"Will you continue the arranged meetings?"

"Hehe. Without that pretense, I couldn't stay at the Clingate Castle for days, could I?"

"…Prince Lewis seems to have taken a liking to you, Princess."

"Yes…."

Noah hadn't been told anything, but he must have noticed something.

(Since our secret 'talk' at noon, Lewis's expression towards me has clearly changed.)

Lewis had always been kind, but it was part of his behavior as an older person dealing with a younger child.

However, it has shown a clear change.

He not only holds my hand to prevent me from falling but also pays attention to my feet. When I thank him, he smiles happily.

"Relax… surely, the results will come soon… mnya."

"Results?"

"Mmm…"

With slow blinks, she told Noah:

"The magic floating in this castle is still distorted… I can sense the presence of a curse, but it is cleverly concealed."

"Even you, Princess, can't clearly identify it?"

"The caster of the curse must be very skilled in barrier magic… But this place is definitely at the center of it… ah."

She was starting to doze off. Although her magic was fully charged, her small body, that of an eight-year-old, needed a nap.

"Tell Lewis that we will, of course, play again. Noah."

"…As you command, Princess."

"Good girl."

Claudia smiled, closed her eyes, and soon fell asleep.

"…………"

Noah gently scooped up Claudia's hair scattered on the sheets. But his fingers, after combing through it once tenderly, quickly withdrew.

Noah, who had touched his lord, looked down at his own palm as if glaring at it and then clenched it tightly.

***

"---Wake up, Adelheit."

"…?"

When Adelheit slowly opened her eyes, she found herself on a calm sandy beach.

A white chair was placed in the shallow water. Adelheit had been dozing in that chair, which was submerged in the sea.

Her toes were wet from the sea, which was a blue like melted lapis lazuli. In the waves that pushed and pulled, the hem of Adelheit's white dress fluttered like a jellyfish in the sea breeze.

As she gazed at this scene, she was called again from nearby.

"Adelheit."

Adelheit turned and saw a young man standing at the water's edge.

"…Rinald."

The young man with black hair and obsidian eyes is Adelheit's top disciple.

He is younger than her by a year but much taller. He has broad shoulders, a solid build, and a handsome face that turns heads.

Rinald walked through the waves and smiled down at Adelheit.

"Still not fully awake? You're showing an unusually vulnerable expression for you."

He took her wrist as if to escort her. Adelheit yawned as she stood up, leaning on him.

"…I was dreaming. Should I sleep a little more?"

"Hey, are you planning to nap until sunset? The other disciples will get bored and noisy if you don't wake up."

"You're their senior disciple, Rinald. As an older brother, you should take good care of them."

"Great witch Adelheit. That's too much to ask."

Rinald casually made the chair disappear and guided Adelheit to walk without her tripping.

"Seawell is holed up in his room, doing research. No matter how many times I call him, he won't come out. Could you at least cast a healing spell on him?"

"Should I go and call him out?"

"No, that would have the opposite effect. He's so eager to gain your approval that he's driven to this."

Seawell, a disciple Adelheit picked up a few years ago, was a boy when they first met.

Now he has grown tall and looks like an adult, but his habits haven't changed.

"He still locks himself in his room. Seawell is too hard on himself. He has excellent magical skills and is very hardworking, but I want to give him more confidence."

"Don't say that, Adelheit. Seawell, along with the rest of us, your disciples, strive to become useful to you."

"……"

Two sets of footprints dotted the white sand. Rinald continued, looking at Adelheit's narrowed eyes.

"He has lived a life of persecution. He will spare no effort to repay you for discovering him."

"Is he so driven that he won't come out of his room?"

"Please understand his dedication and tendency to become reclusive."

The sound of the waves could be heard in the distance.

(What a nostalgic dream I'm having.)

Claudia, Adelheit's reincarnation, quietly thought this while listening to the familiar voice.

"He will surely show us great results soon, with his talent in barrier magic."

"…Yes, I look forward to it."

However, Claudia never got to see the completion of Seawell's magic.

She died alone, leaving behind these disciples.

She never regretted it, but the only thing she regretted was not knowing how her disciples spent their lives.

The names of her beloved disciples, whom she remembered fondly, were only occasionally heard in her life as Claudia.

For example, in the corner of a magic book.

In the names of the kings of various countries.

When she sensed the presence of her disciples, a wave of various emotions washed over Claudia's heart.

***

On the third day of her stay in Clingate, the afternoon after the secret meeting.

The adults around her, including the Clingate king and the maids, seemed surprised by the behavior of Claudia and Lewis.

This was because Lewis's behavior towards Claudia had continued to change from the previous day.

"Claudia, come here."