“Riersha. What brings you all the way to my castle at this hour? Today was supposed to be the day we meet in the forest.”
Risideon stared at Riersha in bewilderment. She had shown up on his doorstep first thing in the morning.
Rather than answering him, Riersha began looking around his castle, her eyes darting this way and that.
“Where is he?”
“Where is who?”
“Isierd.”
Ah. So she figured it all out and came here knowing everything. Risideon looked at her with a pained expression.
He had already been filled in on the events of early that morning by Pernoa. Still, he hadn’t expected Riersha to come find him quite this quickly.
“Papa wouldn’t trust Isierd to anyone but you, Oppa. There’s no one else. And besides — he’s of the imperial family.”
“…Haa.”
How on earth had things come to this.
Risideon pressed his hands over his face.
Pernoa had warned him to be careful, but when Riersha stood there asking with such absolute certainty, there was simply no way to hide it.
When had she grown up like this?
Not only had she figured out that Isierd was an imperial prince — she seemed to have also guessed what Pernoa was thinking.
“Riersha, that’s not something you need to worry yourself over.”
“I promised to protect Isierd.”
“…You’re going to protect him?”
For a brief moment, Risideon’s expression turned cold.
Who exactly did that boy think he was, to be receiving Riersha’s protection?
The fact that they were close in age only made it more concerning. A person who had never known kindness will always hunger for the first affection they’re shown.
Risideon had heard the story — how Isierd had bristled like a blade whenever anyone came near the necklace Riersha had given him. He frowned at the memory.
“I think it would be best if you kept your distance from him, Riersha.”
“Why?”
“Because he must become Crown Prince. If you grow close to him, you’ll only end up in danger too.”
Once someone was dragged into the intrigues of the imperial court, those around them inevitably suffered for it.
That was why he wanted Riersha to stay somewhere safe — the safest place possible.
“But then what about Isierd? Is he okay?”
“…”
“My heart feels heavy. Papa brought Isierd here because of me. I feel so sorry.”
Riersha made a miserable face and pressed her little fist against her chest, thumping it softly.
If it hadn’t been for the family’s affairs, Isierd would never have been taken to this place. Dragged away in the dead of night.
Of course, it seemed as though Isierd hadn’t had much of a choice to begin with — no matter what. That much was clear just from the state he’d been in when he arrived in the early hours of the morning.
And yet, regardless of how it had happened, now that he was entangled with House Arachrene, there would come moments when he’d have to do things that went against his own wishes.
That was what weighed on Riersha’s heart.
“…Is that how you’ve been thinking about what happened yesterday?”
“Mm-hm. So promise me, Oppa. Promise you’ll treat Isierd well.”
Risideon was struck speechless.
He had never once imagined that Riersha would feel guilty on Isierd’s behalf.
“All right. This time, I’ll make sure to keep my promise.”
Risideon nodded and held out his little finger first.
Riersha’s face lit up as she hooked hers around his. With that firm answer in hand, the shadow lifted from her expression entirely.
“Good. Then let’s head out together. The others are probably already waiting for us in the forest by now.”
“Okay.”
Riersha took Risideon’s hand and reached for the door.
Then she tilted her head. The moment she touched the handle, the door swung open on its own.
Hm? Was it open this whole time?
It was possible she’d simply forgotten to close it properly when she came in.
Riersha shook off the thought and stepped through the doorway.
⁂
“I will now explain the rules.”
Early morning.
In the forest, Riersha, Risideon, Ricador, and Riscal each stood spread out at a wide distance from one another.
Today was the day of the treasure hunt.
Milia, who had been designated as referee, walked to the center to explain the rules. In her hand she held a small yellow flag.
“A yellow flag identical to this one will be planted at each location where a treasure is hidden. There are five in total, and whoever collects the most wins.”
Milia extended her hand into the air, and the entirety of the forest became visible at once.
Her ability was to transform every area within her magical range into a living map that could be seen and read.
Riersha stared at the map with wide, fascinated eyes. The terrain of the whole forest — every contour and obstacle — was laid out before them.
“Wow, that’s amazing.”
“Is it?”
“Yes! If you always had that, you’d never get lost!”
It seemed like you could wander through any unfamiliar territory as freely as you liked, as long as you had that power.
Milia smiled gently at the remark.
The child wasn’t wrong — though Milia herself had typically used the ability on battlefields, to gauge enemy forces and map out the shape of opposing lines.
“As you can see, there are four starting points within this forest. Can you all find them?”
“Yes!”
Riersha nodded eagerly, saying she could see them perfectly. The starting points were marked in red.
“Please decide on an order, then make your way to whichever starting point you choose.”
At Milia’s explanation, Riersha felt her heart begin to race. Hearing the rules laid out so concretely made it feel as though she were truly about to set off into an uncharted world.
All that hard work finally paid off today.
Milia thought back to a few days prior.
She had been summoned quietly by Pernoa and given a straightforward order.
“Dismantle every trap in the forest. Right away.”
The one condition: Riersha must not find out. If the child discovered it, Pernoa had reasoned, she might sulk off on her own.
That day, Milia had set out through the entire forest and begun the work of dismantling each trap, one by one. No one was better suited to the task.
…To think I’d be using my ability for something like this.
It hadn’t been an unpleasant experience, exactly — but the more she thought about it, the more absurd it seemed.
Milia paused briefly before continuing her explanation.
“Whoever holds the most treasure before the time limit runs out will be the winner. Can you see the hourglass in the sky?”
She pointed upward, and Riersha along with the rest of the siblings all looked up without hesitation, as if it were perfectly natural.
The hourglass floated above the forest, visible from any point within it, so that everyone would know when time was running short.
“Ooooh.”
Riersha let out one exclamation of wonder after another. Risideon noticed how adorable she looked and let out a quiet laugh.
“Where is Papa?”
“The young lord will be watching from somewhere in the forest. Should anything happen, please blow the whistle you’ve each been given.”
“Okay!”
Riersha answered with exaggerated seriousness.
Milia distributed four small whistles, one to each of them. The moment Riersha hung hers around her neck, it felt truly real — the treasure hunt was about to begin.
“So how are we deciding who goes where?”
“Simple — rock-paper-scissors sounds good to me.”
When Ricador asked the question, Riscal answered immediately.
There was a confident gleam in Riscal’s eyes.
Good. I’ve memorized the whole map.
With his exceptional mind, Riscal had already committed every detail of Milia’s map to memory.
Starting at the second point gives me the biggest advantage.
He had already calculated his optimal route from beginning to end. His eyes glittered with anticipation.
The others seemed to be giving it no particular thought — but Riscal had finished all his preparations for today long before anyone else.
“Then let’s do what Riscal said. Any objections?”
“None!”
When Risideon suggested it sounded like a fair method, Riersha answered immediately.
“All right then… loser goes first — rock, paper, scissors!”
Several rounds later, the order had been settled among the four of them.
Ricador, who had won first, studied the map intently and pointed to a spot.
“I’ll start at the third point. I’m heading out.”
“Then I’ll take the second.”
“Riersha, where do you want to start?”
Ricador waved and disappeared into the forest. Riscal followed right after, as though he’d been waiting for just that moment.
In the end, only Riersha and Risideon remained.
“Hmm, then I’ll take the first one!”
“All right. Be careful out there. See you later.”
“Mm! You too, Oppa — be safe!”
Riersha beamed and made her way toward the first starting point.
