Just as Evenel Istella was about to call out to the silent Shuher once more, a baritone voice echoed through the corridor.

“Your Highness is correct.”

“What?”

“We have grown accustomed to this peace.”

Caught off guard by his unexpected words, she was only bewildered. She hadn’t expected him to readily agree like this.

“Just look at how frequently magical beasts are illegally trafficked or traded, leading to an endless stream of problems.”

Magical beasts, once a source of fear, were now being used for various moneymaking schemes. And invasions into their habitats were also increasingly frequent, despite the knowledge of the enormous consequences they could bring.

Evenel Istella simply listened to what he was saying. For some reason, it felt like she should, at that moment.

“If things continue this way, we might walk the same path as Aodin, just as Your Highness said.”

That was the point she had failed to make earlier.

As time passed, more generations would grow up without experiencing the past tragedies, and so the collective understanding that such tragedies should not be repeated would naturally fade.

If magical beasts were to run rampant uncontrollably at that time, no one could guarantee that they could be overcome as in the past. Especially if Cariath lost its power like Aodin had.

‘Perhaps an even more horrifying tragedy would engulf Cariath.’

Evenel Istella was only surprised to hear him calmly acknowledge all of it. She had thought he would tell her never to bring up such a topic again.

“I thought you were angry because I brought it up. It’s not really my place to say, after all.”

“I was surprised… I never expected you to share my thoughts.”

Shuher was momentarily flustered, effectively halting what she was about to say.

Moreover, he himself didn’t understand why he had followed Evenel Istella to say this when he could have simply ignored her.

It was a matter of no concern to her, so what kind of response was he looking for?

“I should go.”

Watching him walk away, Evenel Istella briefly pondered and finally spoke.

“That won’t happen.”

Puzzled by her enigmatic words, Shuher turned back to see Evenel Istella still standing there, watching him. But unlike before, the corners of her mouth were upturned.

She stepped closer to him.

“Cariath won’t end up like Aodin.”

He became curious upon hearing her voice filled with strong conviction. How could she be so sure about the future, something nobody knew?

“Why?”

“Because Your Majesty already knows. You know that it cannot be allowed to happen that way.”
That was the biggest difference Evenel felt between herself and Aodin. Shuher had always been at the forefront in protecting Karies from the emperor’s position. That alone was reason enough to be sure.

“Besides, having me around should be a bit helpful, right? These eyes are quite useful, even if it’s not for hunting monsters.”

Although she said this while spreading her thumb and index finger apart, Shuher remained silent. Evenel glanced around awkwardly and subtly narrowed the distance between her fingers.

“Or this much?”

Still no response, so she narrowed the gap even more.

“At least this much then.”

At that moment, Shuher, who had been silent, cracked a short laugh. Entranced by the pleasant sound of laughter she’d never heard before, Evenel blankly stared at his face.

The sharp aura that always surrounded him seemed to have lifted, making such an expression quite fitting.

“Isn’t that a bit too confident?”

“Even this isn’t enough?”

His previously serious face flushed quickly, and Shuher felt unexpectedly light-hearted. It seemed pointless even to have that thought.

“We’ll see whether you’ll be helpful or not.”

With those words, he completely disappeared from her sight, a smile still lingering on his lips.

Like any other day, Evenel, dressed in her training clothes, headed to the dining hall for breakfast. She was having a conversation with Emil while waiting for her food when an unexpected person entered.

“Your Majesty?”

Evenel was surprised and stood up, but Shuher took no notice and sat at the head seat. As he showed no sign of letting her sit, he spoke.

“Are you going to keep standing?”

“No, not at all.”

Evenel sat down but was puzzled as to why Shuher was still in the palace at this time. By the time she usually ate, he was already in his office.

She had never encountered him like this before.

Reaching the conclusion, she asked,

“Did you oversleep?”

“Ahem.”

The noise came from Emil, who was standing behind. Evenel momentarily looked flustered but quickly composed her face under Shuher’s gaze.

He then looked at Evenel as if he found her absurd. Just like yesterday, she had a knack for blurting out unexpected things, especially to him, the Emperor.

“No, you worked late yesterday, so it’s entirely possible.”

“It’s just that there was no special agenda this morning.”

“I see.”

Just then, the food arrived, and they began eating. That’s when Evenel’s training clothes caught Shuher’s eye.
“Is that the only training suit you have?”