“Since Your Highness has decided to trust Lady Shuria, I will follow suit. However, if you ask my opinion… I also trust Lady Shuria.”

“Why?”

At Asphayren’s question, Canis awkwardly rubbed the back of his neck.

“To be honest, it’s a simple intuition… Lady Shuria doesn’t feel like someone who would harm others. Besides, lies usually manifest in some form, and I haven’t noticed any such signs from her.”

Kiara nodded in agreement.

“Moreover, the circumstances of her arrival from Beltrum as a sacrifice to Eros have been clearly proven. I don’t think she came under your command with a hidden agenda.”

Kiara added another point.

“Of course, it is suspicious that even Ulysses couldn’t find out about her past before she ended up in the village with lost memories.”

After accepting Shuria as a subordinate, Asphayren had asked his cousin Ulysses to investigate her. He wanted to know what lay in the memories she had lost.

However, even Emperor Ulysses, who had all of Grancia’s information at his fingertips, couldn’t find out anything about Shuria’s past.

It was odd. Was she some sort of angel or fairy fallen from the sky?

Although it was a ludicrous fantasy, Asphayren occasionally felt engulfed by the thought that Shuria might disappear just as suddenly as she had appeared.

It happened earlier too. Shuria, bathed in the brilliant sunlight filtering through the glass window, seemed as if she could dissipate like a midday dream at any moment.

Her light brown hair looked like it might melt and shatter in the sunlight right then and there.

So he felt anxious…
“When you see Shuria, it’s as if she fell from the sky one day. Hahaha!”

Canis’ hearty laughter brought Asphayren back from his deep thoughts. Confused, he revisited the thoughts he had just moments before.

Why am I nervous? Have I gone mad?

As if to add fuel to his already confused state, Canis continued to speak.

“Ah! So that’s why you named her ‘Shuria,’ my Lord?”

“What?”

Asphayren raised an eyebrow. Canis seemed excited as if he had made a groundbreaking discovery.

“The name ‘Shuria,’ it’s the name of a snow fairy in a fairy tale, isn’t it? She came to Nyx, the lonely transcendent, and taught him love while dissipating his deep loneliness…”

“……Anyway.”

“Isn’t the situation similar to the fairy tale? Nyx is the founder of the Loarkin family, and Shuria appeared just like a snow fairy. Moreover, you named her yourself, just like Nyx did to the snow fairy…”

Listening to Canis, Asphayren felt his nose and throat closing up.

Doesn’t it sound like I named her Shuria, wishing for her to become my snow fairy?

Asphayren gave Canis a glare, signaling for him to stop talking. Unfortunately, Canis was so obtuse that he didn’t catch on and kept talking.

“I really think it’s a fitting name. Shuria does have the appearance of a snow fairy and is helpful to you, my Lord, just like one…”

“Shut up.”

“Excuse me?”

“Just shut up. How long will you keep spouting nonsense?”

Asphayren growled softly. Only then did Canis realize his Lord’s discontent and closed his mouth.

Asphayren rubbed his temples and finally spoke.

“Anyway, I plan to keep an eye on Shuria. Ulysses is still investigating her. And come to think of it, what she has been saying makes some sense.”

“What do you mean, my Lord?”

“She might be from a scholarly family.”

For someone who claimed to have amnesia, Shuria knew quite a lot, most of it peculiar and strange.

If Shuria was the daughter of eccentric scholars researching Beltraw, her having such odd knowledge made sense.

“Plus, her behavior suggests a high level of education.”

“Ah, yes. Shuria does give off the vibe of a noble young lady raised in a respectable household.”

Canis, seemingly forgetting he’d been reprimanded, eagerly chimed in again. Asphayren frowned.

“Why do you all go soft when it comes to Shuria? Not just you, but the guards and even the elderly in the artisans’ district. Why?”

Asphayren muttered irritably. Kiara and Canis exchanged glances, both thinking the same thing.

Is that something for you to say, my Lord? You went so far as to give her a golden badge.

However, neither could say this to their Lord. Canis hesitantly listed Shuria’s good qualities.

“Well, for starters, Shuria is diligent and kind to everyone. She greets everyone with a warm smile. Being with her just lifts one’s spirits. Moreover…”

“She is objectively cute in appearance.”

Kiara declared matter-of-factly. A heavy silence settled in the office.