“Oh my, who do we have here!”

The shout was so loud that everyone passing through the courtyard stopped and looked at them.

“Ah, Lord Dwayne.”

The man who turned his head smiled faintly on his smooth, light brown face. At that moment, Amy felt something strange.

Dwayne rushed over and hugged the man tightly.

“My benefactor, you really came!”

“!”

Amy’s face hardened. The man was the very person who had helped Dwayne and Jack find the magic tool. Amy stared at him with a completely changed look in her eyes.

“Lord Dwayne. This is a bit uncomfortable.”

The man, crushed flat in Dwayne’s embrace, made a troubled expression. Only then did Dwayne stop his fuss and release him.

“Well then, let’s go inside. Jack has been waiting too.”

“Ah, I was just passing by to see your face for a moment…”

“Come on, how can that be? You’ll stay for a week, right?”

Regardless of the man’s reluctance, Dwayne wrapped an arm around his shoulders and strode off, saying only what he wanted to say.

The man, who really seemed unwilling, sighed softly but soon gave up and allowed himself to be dragged along. His gaze inadvertently caught Amy.

“Ah…”

At that moment, surprise spread across the man’s face. It was clearly visible that it stemmed from joy, which confused Amy. Then the man’s gaze shifted slightly downward. That is, to Amy’s chest area.

“Oh, that!”

The man muttered blankly and then suddenly burst into laughter. He was shaking so much that even Dwayne stopped walking.

“What’s with that person…?”

Amy looked down at her chest, following his gaze. As always, she was wearing a simple maid’s uniform. She couldn’t understand what he found so funny. But she was sure it didn’t feel good.

“Is he crazy?”

Amy desperately wanted to ignore it and leave. But this man might be someone who had regressed like her.

As she suppressed her aversion and was about to step forward, suddenly someone darted out from behind her and blocked her front protectively.

“…Your Highness?”

It was Noah. Noah stood motionless with his back to Amy, glaring at the man. The man stopped abruptly when he saw Noah. The expression and color drained from his face in an instant.

“…”

It was a strange sight. The Crown Prince Noah and the guest whom Dwayne was enthusiastically welcoming were glaring at each other with tightly closed mouths. People held their breath at the ominous atmosphere flowing between them.

Amy also felt a pressure in her chest for unknown reasons, but soon felt relieved. It was because Noah reached back and grasped her tightly.

It felt like a promise that he would absolutely never let her get hurt, allowing her to feel at ease.

Amy pressed close to his back and whispered.

“…Your Highness, do you know this person?”

“…”

The tension in Noah’s stiff shoulders eased slightly, and he nodded once silently. Amy paused in surprise. To think that Noah already knew the person she was suspicious of…

Could this be called a coincidence?

“…”

The man seemed to think so too, as he looked at them with a downcast gaze. Noah and Amy just stood there holding each other’s hands tightly like siblings from the same nest.

“You came earlier than expected.”

Jack said to him with a friendly smile.

“Ah, I think I came at a bad time…”

The man smiled awkwardly as he paused eating the food laid out in the hall. Jack patted his shoulder and plopped down in the seat next to him.

“I don’t mean it that way, I just remembered you said you’d only be able to come in autumn.”

“My work finished early, so I came. But…”

He rubbed his nape sheepishly. Feeling the glances from around, Jack laughed weakly. It was understandable that people were curious about who this person was, getting into a confrontation with the Crown Prince and the head maid, the real powers of the castle, as soon as he arrived.

Jack shook his head.

“I should apologize. I didn’t expect something like this to happen…”

“No, this is entirely my fault.”

Jack made a strange expression at the man’s words as he smiled bitterly.

“So you really do know our Crown Prince.”

“…I’ll go see him after the meal is over.”

Seeing him avoid eye contact by lowering his gaze, which looked like a refusal to speak further, Jack nodded and withdrew.

“Sigh…”

Elai, the king of the Tezernet Kingdom in the south of the empire, commonly known as the Southern Kingdom and Noah’s maternal uncle, let out a small sigh. His heart felt empty, wondering what he had been doing while that young child had changed beyond recognition.

The spoon that had been moving half-heartedly stopped. He stared blankly at the oatmeal porridge, recalling the face of his nephew whom he had seen after a very long time.

‘He’s grown a lot.’

As he sat still, feeling a tingling in his chest, Rita approached carefully and spoke.

“Um, guest. Have you finished your meal?”

“Ah, yes.”

Elai quickly put down his spoon. Rita narrowed her eyes and stared at the handsome man with gentle features.

She had only been told to treat him with utmost care as he was no ordinary person, but not knowing his status, she could only address him as a guest… Rita bowed politely and said.

“His Highness is calling for you. Shall we go?”

“Let’s do that.”

Elai rose obediently from his seat. But his face was full of resignation. He took a small breath as if to steel himself.

It was now time for atonement.

“His Highness’s maternal uncle? That person from earlier?”

Amy widened her eyes at the unexpected information, then furrowed her brows.

‘Is that why I felt strange when I first saw him? Because he resembles His Highness?’

Come to think of it, he did seem to resemble the portrait of Noah that had been painted over as he aged.

But that wasn’t all. Honestly, before hearing about their relationship just now, she couldn’t have imagined it at all, could she? As Amy was lost in other thoughts, Noah glanced at her briefly before turning his head away.

“I’ve hardly ever met him. He came briefly when my mother passed away, but the Empress didn’t let me see him…”

“Oh, I see…”

Just then, the door opened and Elai walked in with steady steps, speaking in a low voice.

“We’ve met before that too.”

“…”

Amy stood up and bowed, but Noah remained seated, just staring blankly at Elai.

Elai, seemingly unbothered that his nephew wasn’t showing proper respect to him as the King of the Southern Kingdom, walked over and sat down gracefully in an empty chair. Then he looked at Noah and Amy for a moment before murmuring quietly.

“You’ve grown a lot.”

“…”

Noah’s eyebrow twitched. Elai examined Noah’s face carefully. It was as if he was trying to find something he missed. He let out a small sigh and muttered.

“You’re looking more and more like your sister.”

“Mother always missed you.”

Noah said gruffly. It was such a natural informal speech, as if talking to a friend, that Amy realized it a beat later and was startled.

“Your Highness! He is the King of the Southern Kingdom!”

“So what. He’s someone who didn’t care how his sister was living.”

Noah glared at Elai and growled. Amy flinched, seeing his rough demeanor for the first time. Noah exhaled sharply, then started and quickly turned to look at Amy.

“Ah…”

Seeing Amy frozen, Noah bit his lip. Anxiety grew rapidly.

‘What if Amy dislikes me?’

As he anxiously watched her, Amy, who had already calmed herself, casually patted Noah’s arm.

“Let’s first find out why he came, Your Highness.”

Amy’s tone was no different from before. She wasn’t afraid of or avoiding him even though he had shown his temper. Relieved by this, Noah nodded obediently.

“…Alright.”

Elai’s expression changed strangely as he watched this scene. He looked at Amy quietly.

“You should speak with me.”

Noah tried to draw his gaze to himself, disliking how he was looking at Amy. But Elai didn’t give in easily. He tapped his temple with his finger and muttered meaningfully.

“So you were the ghost maid that the Imperial Crown Prince was said to be head over heels for.”

“…”

Amy looked back at him. Since he didn’t seem to be expecting an answer, she didn’t respond, but she felt that sense of discomfort creeping up again, like when she first saw him.

As Amy habitually brought her hand to her neck to fiddle with her brooch, Elai suddenly raised the corner of his mouth.

“Did you remember?”

“Remember what?”

The answer came from Noah’s mouth. Amy lowered her hand and tilted her head, wondering what he meant.

‘Have I seen him before? But I never went to the Second Prince’s palace when the Empress passed away…’

Then she recalled what the King of the Southern Kingdom had said as he opened the door and entered.

“We’ve met before that too.”

And just now, he asked her if she remembered. Amy hardened her face and stared at him. As if there was no longer any need to keep his mouth shut, Elai lowered his arm and straightened his back.

“You once told me. What’s important is not how far ahead you go, but how long you keep going.”

His green eyes, resembling new buds, gazed at Amy intensely as if to capture her.

“That’s…”

Amy blinked blankly. His words that they had met before were probably true. Because the idea that persistence, not speed, is important was a life motto she held.

‘When did I say that to someone…?’

As she was puzzled, trying to recall, suddenly something came to mind. Her hand automatically went to her brooch.

‘I’m always like this. I always make the wrong choices…’

‘What if I take the wrong path? What if others overtake me in the meantime?’

‘Father won’t leave me alone…’

The voice of someone trembling in fear played in her head, and finally, a much softer voice was heard. It was the voice of Elai Tezernet.

‘I’ve taken out just this part of the magic tool, so it would be good to make it into a brooch and always wear it.’

‘Magic tool?’

Amy unconsciously gripped the brooch tightly.

‘This was… a magic tool?’

The thing she had never taken off her body, even when imprisoned before her regression?

Her eyes shook greatly as she stared at Elai.