Chapter 25

The royal library has a restricted section that only the royal family is allowed to enter.

There are numerous books about fairies, which have been passed down through generations of the royal family—

"…The throne of the Forest Fairy King, huh?"

"Is Lady Tiara Rose there?"

"Most likely, yes."

In the quiet place, the voices of Aquasteed and Elliot echoed.

Descending the spiral staircase that led underground, they arrived at a small room. It was generally known as a space for the library's librarians to take breaks, but it had a different purpose.

After descending, Elliot took a step back and stood behind Aquasteed.

When Aquasteed placed his hand on the wall, a magic circle appeared.

Since only the royal family could enter beyond this point, Elliot had to wait.

"Please be careful, Lord Aquasteed. …I am frustrated that I cannot go with you."

"It's the rule. I will be fine."

With a nod, Aquasteed stepped through the magic circle into the hidden restricted section.

The place, slightly dusty, seemed to have been untouched for a long time.

Aquasteed had come here to retrieve Tiara Rose from the Fairy King Keith.

The restricted section housed only valuable books, so the total number was not large. From the bookshelf edged in gold, Aquasteed gently picked up a book about fairies.

"…If I had been blessed by the Forest Fairy, I might have been able to reach the Fairy King's throne more quickly."

This was a mutter from Aquasteed to himself.

The throne of the Fairy King is prepared in the forest, sea, and sky. The one who sits on it is the king of that fairy.

Who would have thought that Tiara Rose, from another country, would be favored by the Forest Fairy King? Of course, Aquasteed had not thought so either.

While being blessed by a fairy is possible, meeting the Fairy King is something no one would have predicted.

Therefore, he felt a sense of urgency.

What to do if Tiara Rose caught the eye of the Fairy King—already, it seemed she had caught his attention, but the final line had not been crossed.

"The Forest Fairy has blessed Tiara, but the Fairy King has not. But, it might just be a matter of time…?"

Fairies bestow blessings on those they favor.

Like how Tiara Rose was blessed by the Forest Fairy Aishira and the Sea Fairy. However, the Fairy King does not bestow blessings so easily. Only those who are truly favored.

"…Damn, where is it? There must be a document that records the path to the Forest Fairy King."

He flipped through the books hurriedly but carefully. The urgency to find it made Aquasteed anxious. The books, stored for a long time, were so fragile that they might fall apart if mishandled.

He thought about making time to rewrite them, but now was not the time for such things.

"Of course, there are many descriptions of the sea, but there are too few about the forest…"

The number of kings throughout history who were favored by the Forest Fairy King was not many. But there must have been at least one.

Suppressing his frustration, Aquasteed followed the words written in the books.

On a page near the end, he found what he was looking for. The path to the throne of the Forest Fairy King was connected to the royal castle.

"From the castle…? I know all the hidden passages, but there shouldn't be one like that."

—Where exactly does it connect from?

As he read on, it was written that it connected to the private room of the queen.

Aquasteed frowned, wondering why it would be in such a place. But the reason was clear. The queen must have been a royal who was favored by the Fairy King.

Whether it was Keith or the previous Fairy King, he didn't know. But knowing the location, Aquasteed had only one course of action.

He would return immediately and go to the Fairy King's throne through the hidden passage.

Just as he turned to run, his path was blocked by Keith's appearance.

The deep green hair that flowed smoothly and the golden eyes that seemed to see through everything filled Aquasteed's vision.

"Fairy King!"

"…Hey. You seem pretty desperate."

"It's because you took my fiancée, isn't it?"

—Give her back quickly.

Aquasteed glared at the noble Fairy King without hesitation, but his tone remained composed.

"Well, I didn't intend to at first. But—my mind changed."

With a chuckle, Keith said, "Fairies are whimsical, right?" as if he was joking.

As if he didn't care about Aquasteed at all. No, he truly didn't care.

"Stop joking. —She is my fiancée."

"Yeah, I'm not joking."

"…!"

Aquasteed's quiet but firm voice did not deter Keith. The tone in which he said he wasn't joking was either serious or whimsical—impossible to tell from his voice.

Keith's narrowed eyes focused on Aquasteed.

"Tiara. —I'm taking her."

"Don't joke!"

Keith's calm but heavy voice echoed in the quiet restricted section, and in that moment, he disappeared. He had teleported from the spot.

Aquasteed, forgetting his tone, lunged at Keith, but his hand only grasped the air.

He bit his lip and glared at the spot where Keith had been.

◇ ◇ ◇

"Please stop, Prince Aquasteed!"

"The Queen is currently out on official business."

"It's an urgent matter."

Immediately after leaving the restricted section, Aquasteed, accompanied by Elliot, went to the Queen's private room. Unfortunately, the room's owner was not there.

The queen's attendants and ladies-in-waiting tried to stop him, but Aquasteed had no time to wait.

He needed to go to Keith as soon as possible.

"I have already contacted the Queen."

"But, Lord Elliot—"

Unlike his usual self, Aquasteed, who rarely spoke, let Elliot explain to the attendants.

However, the attendants and the guards at the entrance to the private room were not pleased. They had not received any direct orders.

Nevertheless, Aquasteed was the Queen's biological son. The attendants could not strongly refuse.

It was true that Aquasteed had contacted the Queen, but it was also true that the attendants had not received any notification.

Aquasteed did not have the time to wait for such a notification.

"All responsibility lies with me. Open the door."

"Prince Aquasteed… Understood."

Aquasteed ordered the guard to open the door and immediately entered the room. His destination was, of course, the passage leading to the throne of the Forest Fairy King.

Elliot, bowing and apologizing, followed Aquasteed.

"…What exactly happened?"

"Yes, but Prince Aquasteed would not do something meaningless. We should confirm with the Queen."

The attendants and guards consulted and one of them hurriedly left to confirm.

They had allowed Aquasteed to enter without the Queen's permission, which weighed heavily on their minds. However, they knew Aquasteed well and cared for him deeply.

The relationship between the Queen and Aquasteed was very good. It was not uncommon for him to be invited to have tea with her. He was a caring son.

Therefore, those who served the Queen could not strongly refuse.

Of course, they were worried, but they also trusted Aquasteed deeply.

They could only wait for the Queen's confirmation, hoping it would come soon.

"…I'm sorry, but I will close the door."

"But, that's—"

"I'm sorry, but you do not have the right to see inside."

With a regretful expression, Elliot firmly closed the door.

Now, only Aquasteed and Elliot were in the Queen's private room. It was crucial that the existence of the hidden passage not be known by the attendants or the guards.

Moreover, this passage was not for escape but a secret of the royal family, leading to the Fairy King.

"…You've gone to a lot of trouble, Elliot."

"No, it's an emergency. Lady Tiara Rose being taken by the Fairy King is no small matter."

Besides, Elliot's job was to inspect the sea, which Aishira was raising. He judged that a slight delay would not be a problem.

"Lady Aishira was also worried about Lady Tiara Rose."

Aishira was very concerned about Tiara Rose, who was supposed to marry into the country from a neighboring kingdom.

After learning that Tiara Rose was disliked by the sea fairy she loved, Aishira became even more concerned. She wanted Tiara Rose to be happy with Aquasteed and to love and live in the country for a long time.

Aishira had hoped they would become close like sisters. Elliot remembered her smiling about it.

"…How about it?"

"According to the document, it should be around here…"

At the back of the room, Aquasteed reached out to a beautiful painting on the wall.

The painting, framed in a beautiful frame, depicted flowers. Although he had not paid much attention to it before, it was indeed a painting that evoked the Forest Fairy.

When Aquasteed focused on it, he could faintly sense a magical presence.

"I see, this is… an old and difficult magic."

"I have to open it no matter what."

Aquasteed narrowed his eyes, looking serious.

Elliot, who also had knowledge of magic, had far less magical power than Aquasteed. He decided to watch from behind.

He could only pray that Aquasteed would quickly retrieve Tiara Rose—.

This is supposed to be Aquasteed's turn…

And then.

Before I knew it, it had been a month since the last update!

Time flies so fast, doesn't it? (sigh)

I am very grateful for all the bookmarks and evaluations I have received!

Thank you so much!