The birthday celebration continued from noon until the afternoon. Surprisingly, Ord remained in his seat the entire time, showing no signs of headaches or coughing even once.

In preparation for a sudden deterioration of his condition, all the royal physicians were on standby in the banquet hall, but it turned out to be unnecessary.

As the celebration was coming to an end, Eustar briefly summoned the branch leaders of Tentinella to the meeting room in Sercita.

Those who were about to return to their branches or stay at the palace for a day or two gathered in the meeting room with puzzled faces, and wore serious expressions after hearing about Count Haliwell.

“The one who died at the count’s mansion was Wells, right? The original count’s mansion, I mean.”

Laila answered.

“His name was Wells. The dead person, I mean. And yes, according to the count, it seemed so.”

Byron crossed his arms and made a ‘hmm’ sound.

“I don’t know much about ghosts, but do ghosts who died in accidents linger for a long time? Is that common?”

Laila tilted her head.

“Common, not common… it’s hard to say definitively like that. A soul remaining in the mortal world instead of departing is very complicated. Even I don’t know all the reasons. Some kind of… mental energy might cause it.”

Felix crossed his legs on the chair and furrowed his brows.

“Lady Kristrad is the most powerful medium in Sierou. If she doesn’t know, none of us would know.”

Eustar said,

“For that reason, Laila and I plan to visit the count’s mansion directly. I’ve called you all here because I’d like one or two of you to remain at the palace and look after Sercita and other matters while I’m away.”

Then Marnak, the branch leader of the 4th branch Adiak, raised his hand first with a gentle expression.

“If it’s alright, I’ll take on that task, Your Highness.”

“Is it okay to leave Adiak, Marnak?”

Marnak nodded.

“It’s fine. I left it in Lo’s hands. And since I’m in the capital after a long time, I’d like to see the High Priest. I was planning to stay for two or three days anyway. Don’t worry.”

“Good. Then you and…”

Eustar looked around the table and narrowed his eyebrows.

“Where did Branch Leader Olga go?”

Come to think of it, Muge was nowhere to be seen. Felix pouted his lips.

“She’s probably holed up in some room as usual.”

Eustar let out a short sigh and smiled at Felix as if looking at a troublesome child.

“Branch Leader Felix, do you think locking you and Branch Leader Olga in a room for a day or two would improve your relationship?”

Before he finished speaking, Felix pretended to jump out of his seat.

“Don’t say such horrible things, Your Highness! Ugh, it gives me goosebumps.”

“Don’t make me turn those horrible words into reality. I’ll have to ask Olga to stay at the palace for a few days when we find her. Marnak, you and Olga will look after Sercita and the palace affairs. Report immediately if anything unusual happens.”

“Understood, Your Highness.”

Eustar stood up.

“That will be all. Dismissed.”

Felix was the first to hop off his chair, followed by the others rising from their seats.

Amidst the bustle, a heavy and concerned atmosphere lingered. If Marnak, a branch leader and priest, hadn’t taken each person’s hand and given them a blessing, the end of the birthday celebration might have concluded with a gloomy and serious discussion.

“Lady Kristrad.”

Marnak also extended his hand to Laila. A witch and a priest. It was an unlikely combination, but Laila gladly accepted his blessing. However, she couldn’t understand why a corner of her heart felt uneasy as she watched him pray.

“I hope all goes well for you.”

“Thank you, Marnak.”

Count Haliwell’s mansion was located on the outskirts of the capital, Benatis.

Judging from the fact that the land prices were not very high and it was not easily accessible for visitors, one could guess that it had not been an easy decision for the count to move to the capital with his family.

Perhaps life in the count’s territory had not been very prosperous either.

Laila rode in a carriage with Eustar towards the count’s mansion.

The vast garden of the palace was withered and desolate in the winter wind.

Pale birch trees grown behind the castle walls could be seen occasionally shaking and trembling. Laila, with her forehead pressed against the cold glass window like an innocent child, was looking outside when she suddenly said,

“I thought carriages this big only existed in stories.”

Eustar, who had been lost in thought with his arms crossed, looked at her and smiled.

“Come to think of it, this is the first time I’m riding in a royal carriage with you. Isn’t it, Laila?”

Laila nodded. When she turned her head again, there was a round mark on her forehead exactly where she had been leaning against the window.

Eustar playfully tapped his own forehead with his finger and said,

“There’s a mark here.”

Laila opened her eyes wide and rubbed her forehead. However, the pinkish mark only became more prominent.

Eustar laughed softly and leaned towards Laila.

His long hair flowed down, lightly touching her knee. As Laila curled her fingertips at this, Eustar’s warm fingertips touched her marked forehead.

“It’s gotten redder.”

Eustar’s thumb gently rubbed and caressed Laila’s forehead.

It’s not like it will disappear by doing that, Laila thought. But she didn’t say anything. She liked him caressing her forehead.

When the tiny pressure of his fingertips pressed against her skin, she felt as if Eustar was also caressing a very secret part of her.

Not her body, but something deeper, awakening and touching some fragile and sensitive sense that she wasn’t even sure existed.

Eustar smiled softly as he removed his hand from her forehead and leaned back. For a moment, his clear violet eyes shone seductively, and Laila, without knowing why, hurriedly brought up the topic of Count Haliwell.

“That soul that suddenly appears when you open the door.”

For a moment, Eustar slightly raised one eyebrow. He crossed his arms and smiled leisurely.

“Yes, that soul?”

“That soul…”

Laila’s face reddened slightly as her voice trailed off. After hesitating, she cleared her throat.

“…why does it appear?”

For a moment, the carriage was filled with silence. Just as Laila’s cheeks turned as red as baked apples, Eustar burst into laughter.

Laila glared at him with a sulky expression.

“Why are you laughing, Eustar?”

Eustar, who had been laughing so hard his shoulders were shaking, said,

“Because you’re cute.”

“Cu…”

Laila, whose face and even neck had turned red, pressed her lips together like an angry child.

Why on earth…, Laila thought.

‘Why does he say such things so casually?’

If she had been familiar with romance between men and women, or with courtship and expressions of affection, she would have guessed Eustar’s intentions long ago.

Some perceptive people had already noticed that Eustar was smitten with Laila, and those who hadn’t thought they were a very happily married couple.

No one knew about the promise that had passed between them. That’s how honest and seductive Eustar’s expressions of emotion towards Laila were, but…

Laila couldn’t even imagine that he might have personal feelings for her. The more he treated her kindly, the more she struggled to suppress the strangely fluttering feelings in her heart.

Laila snapped as if offended,

“Don’t do that. It feels like someone might be watching.”

Eustar’s eyes widened as if to ask what she meant.

“There’s only the two of us here.”

Laila’s gaze briefly touched and left Eustar’s shoulder.

“I mean Deceptor. It keeps bothering me. Is there no way for me to know if he’s here or not?”

Eustar made an “ah” sound.

“I thought you had gotten used to it.”

Laila asked back as if dumbfounded,

“Why did you think that?”

Eustar said,

“Because you haven’t been reacting much lately when you see me feeding him.”

“That’s just because I see it all the time… It doesn’t mean I’ve gotten used to it itself, absolutely not. So tell me. Is there no way for me to know? Surely he’s not eavesdropping from somewhere right now?”

“He’s not here now. I can only sense his presence when he appears, so… I’m sorry.”

Laila deliberately made a suspicious expression and stared at Eustar. Eustar smiled with a troubled face and brushed his hair back.

“It’s true. You don’t believe me?”

Laila, who had been silent, snorted lightly and pretended to look away.

At that side profile, which looked even prim, Eustar felt a ridiculously yearning heart. He wanted to kneel at her feet and act out a pleading scene, his chest tickling and his heart floating.

But. Eustar thought. But I can’t do that yet.

‘Because she’ll be surprised and run away.’

It was common sense that if you suddenly try to hug a rabbit because it’s cute, it will run away.

But it should be fine to touch lightly to pique interest. Eustar deliberately let out a long sigh and said in a calm voice,

“About Deceptor… Laila doesn’t need to worry so much.”

As soon as the words left his mouth, Laila turned to look at Eustar.

“Why?”

Eustar was silent for a moment, then shrugged.

“Why, you ask. Once the sync problem is resolved, Laila will leave here. Then you won’t even meet me… Can I, in the distant future, continue to be an important issue for Laila? I don’t think so.”

Laila’s mouth opened slightly.

Seeing her clearly flustered, Eustar felt like laughing again, so he bit his lower lip inwardly. Though unintended, this made his expression even more serious and grave.

Laila remained silent for a long time, unable to continue speaking. She felt she should deny his words, but didn’t know where to start pointing out.

Eustar smiled brightly. His gaze was melting, but the beautiful and densely packed melancholic expression made him look steeped in sorrow.

“Isn’t that right? Tell me.”