Chapter 33
The uninvited guest Harumia encountered was none other than Jack. Jack had been urgently chasing a carriage on horseback and got caught up in Harumia’s spatial teleportation magic.
“I managed to follow the carriage to this castle, but…”
Trying to follow discreetly caused him to fall behind, and he failed to enter the castle. No, even if he had tried to sneak in, he would have failed anyway since it was a castle moved by magic.
“Should I wait until they come out?”
As he lingered around on horseback, pondering this, a loud *boom* echoed, and he saw a large crystal gate opening.
“You’re quite rude to come all the way here without an invitation.”
“Who’s the one kidnapping someone else’s fiancée?”
“Kidnapping? I clearly received her consent.”
“A noble lady ought to be accompanied by a servant to act as her hands and feet.”
“I can serve as her hands and feet just fine.”
“Someone who’s been by her side for a long time is better than a man she just met recently.”
“…I won’t harm you since you seem to be a close aide of Lady Iris, but you should know that intruding into a wizard’s personal space without permission is something you could lose your life over and have no right to complain about.”
“I’ll be more careful in the future.”
The two men exchanged sharp words, neither yielding an inch. Then, a brief silence fell. Harumia stared at Jack for a while, as if he had something to say, but Jack couldn’t figure out what it was and kept his mouth shut for the moment.
“Do you have something to say?”
“You said you’re Lady Iris’s servant, didn’t you?”
“…For now, yes.”
“Are you sure about that?”
Harumia furrowed his brow.
“Your face feels strangely familiar.”
“…It’s probably just your imagination.”
“Given the nature of my profession, I don’t meet just anyone.”
“There are plenty of people in the world who look similar.”
“Someone as peculiar-looking as you saying that isn’t convincing at all.”
“….”
“For now, come inside. If you’re someone Lady Iris needs, you should be by her side.”
And so, Harumia invited him in, and Jack dismounted, following him into the crystal castle.
* * *
“Jack!”
Iris, who had been conversing with the lady in the portrait, widened her eyes at Jack’s sudden appearance.
“How are you here? Did you get caught up again while following me?”
“You already know, so why ask…?”
“That’s funny.”
“Be quiet.”
It was always amusing to see Jack speak to her so formally. Harumia explained that he had brought Jack in because he was lingering around outside, which had been bothersome.
“Sorry about that. He’s just so overprotective, it’s second nature.”
“I’d be overprotective too if I were him, with someone as beautiful as Lady Iris. What if someone stole you away?”
“You do have a way with words.”
Iris gave a light smile, bid farewell to the lady in the portrait, and moved to another room. This time, it was an ordinary-looking tea room.
“Is there anything you like here?”
“Oh, the teapot that brews tea on its own was quite fascinating.”
“I’ll give it to you as a gift when you leave.”
“Oh, really?”
Iris smiled brightly, expressing her gratitude, and Harumia couldn’t take his eyes off her whenever she smiled.
“Good for you, Jack, isn’t it? Now you won’t have to brew tea you’re terrible at making.”
“…Tch.”
“Haha.”
With Jack standing behind her, Iris and Harumia, seated across from each other on the sofa, had quite a long conversation—about their ages, hobbies, and families.
Iris had to skirt around a lot of details, but Harumia didn’t seem to mind and didn’t pry into what she was hiding.
“Come to think of it, Harumia, do you really want to marry me?”
“Is there such a thing as wanting to marry someone falsely?”
“But, Harumia, until just a moment ago, all we knew about each other were our faces and names.”
“Is that a problem? I thought nobles all married that way.”
Well, when you put it like that, I don’t have much to say.
“…Still, you’re a wizard. You could find someone much better.”
“I haven’t seen anyone better than Lady Iris yet.”
“I don’t know whether to say you’re stubborn or just unwavering in your convictions…”
Iris let out a hollow laugh and took a sip of tea brewed by the self-brewing teapot.
“As you might have realized from talking with Madame Roth…”
“Roth?”
“The lady in the portrait earlier.”
“Oh.”
“Ever since I was young, my dream has been to marry the most beautiful woman.”
“Why?”
“Because it’s the most certain thing that can be confirmed with the eyes.”
Harumia took a sip from his teacup to wet his throat before continuing.
“True love, eternal devotion—none of those things are visible to the eye, are they? Honestly, when someone whispers words of love, how can you tell if they’re lying or not?”
His words were surprisingly, almost excessively, cynical.
“Compared to words of love that can’t be verified with the eyes or even magic, beauty, which can be seen clearly, is far better.”
Iris listened quietly to his words, keeping her mouth shut for a moment.
“I love beauty. That’s why, no matter who you are, as long as you’re beautiful, I can stay by your side.”
“No matter who I am?”
“Yes. Whether you’re a villain who’d destroy the world or a scheming femme fatale, it doesn’t matter. I’m praising your beauty.”
Jack, listening to this, furrowed his brow. Honestly, it sounded like sophistry, almost repulsive. Did he mean that even a murderer would be fine as long as they were beautiful?
“That’s interesting.”
But Iris felt more intrigue than repulsion.
“So, even if I were a notorious con artist who toyed with people’s hearts, as long as I’m beautiful, you’d still be on my side?”
“Exactly.”
At that, Iris burst out laughing.
“I’d better take good care of my looks then.”
If Harumia’s words were true, the moment her beauty faded, he’d leave. Not that she was actually planning to win his heart.
‘After all, someone like the Crown Prince, a true heroine, will appear for him eventually.’
She set her teacup down.
“Harumia.”
“Yes, Lady Iris.”
“Shall I make a prophecy?”
“Did you know that wizards, of all people, are the least likely to believe in prophecies?”
“Even so.”
Iris gazed down at her half-empty teacup, her red eyes reflected in the tea, and slowly spoke.
“Someday, you’ll meet someone who captivates your heart even more than I do.”
“…Is that your prophecy?”
“Yes.”
“Prophecies really are unreliable.”
“Unfortunately, my prophecies have never been wrong.”
“….”
“It will definitely happen, Harumia.”
Harumia was left speechless.
There was something forlorn about the way she said it.
“…Shall we go see the next room then?”
Instead of arguing further, Harumia changed the subject. Iris gladly went along, rising from her seat.
As the two left the room, Jack followed them like a shadow.
Why does that woman sometimes speak with such certainty about things no one else could know?
Jack looked at Iris’s back with a strange expression.
And so, Iris spent the evening with Harumia, even gazing at countless stars from the top of the crystal castle before returning to the royal palace where the Crown Prince was.
“I had a really wonderful day today.”
“The pleasure was mine. Call me anytime you need me.”
Harumia said this as he kissed the back of her hand, and Iris bid farewell to the man who had made her day enjoyable.
“Oh, and please keep this ring.”
“It’s a bit much to accept…”
“It’s an artifact imbued with magic.”
Oh, well, that changes things.
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By Anna 💓
