By Zephyria 
“Did he really… seem to like him?”
“Hmm. I never thought Ray would say something like that.”
After the meal.
Leshnold and Esili, who had gone out for a walk to get some fresh air, recalled what had happened during the meal. And what they both had in common was something related to Ray.
-Please don’t torment Ardian too much.
Raymond, who after suffering from a fever and losing his memory, had become largely indifferent and uninterested in anyone other than himself—much like he was in early childhood—and whose way of speaking had also changed somehow… Even though his memories returned about a year ago, that still somewhat rigid Raymond.
To speak as if protecting someone, to show such concern.
The fact that he had come to like someone was surprising enough, but for him to step forward like that, to speak up and even argue on their behalf—these two truly hadn’t expected it. Somehow, they felt a mix of disappointment and sadness, as if their precious younger brother had been taken away, yet at the same time, they were happy.
“Hmm. Come to think of it, didn’t he say he had a fiancée?”
“Ah, that… I think I saw an article saying the engagement was called off.”
“I see. The fiancée was the daughter of Duke Blest’s family, right?”
At Esili’s question, Leshnold nodded.
The two walked slowly across the front yard of the mansion in silence once more.
Again, Esili was the first to ask Leshnold.
“What are you going to do when he comes?”
“What do you mean, what am I going to do! I still can’t accept it. There was no sign of it at all… and suddenly he says they’re dating? What’s that about?”
Leshnold frowned with a face full of dissatisfaction. He’s probably still too young to even understand what love is… The guy who seduced such an innocent younger brother of mine is a bad guy. A real sly fox. If he knew that Raymond and Ardian had already done everything imaginable, he might have grabbed the back of his neck and collapsed.
“I can tell Ray is serious. But we still don’t know what that guy’s true intentions are, right? Let’s see for ourselves. Whether he’s just playing with our brother with that handsome face of his, or if he’s genuinely by his side because he likes him… we’ll find out.”
“That’s true.”
Esili agreed with Leshnold’s words. Still, Esili recalled the sight of Ardian, who had consistently watched over Raymond when she attended the meeting regarding Raymond’s security issues.
‘…Maybe he’s liked him for a long time?’
The eyes she saw back then were definitely the kind that made her think that.
☠
The next morning.
To avoid having him meet the family abruptly, I went out to the front gate to wait, and sensing a faint disturbance in the Mana in the air, I looked up. Just then, Ardian appeared nearby.
As soon as he saw me, he narrowed his eyes into crescent moons, smiling as he approached.
“Ray.”
He kissed my eyelids, then followed with a kiss on my cheek. To my eyes, he looked exactly like a dog overjoyed to see its owner. And it had only been a day since we parted.
Staring intently at Ardian, who seemed to be wagging an invisible tail vigorously, I opened my mouth.
“Adam.”
When I called his name, he met my gaze affectionately.
When we’re alone, I usually call him ‘Adam,’ his middle name and effectively his real name, and he always seemed to prefer it when I called him that.
“I’m just saying this just in case, even though you probably won’t…”
“I won’t do anything strange to your family. Absolutely not.”
“…Good that you know.”
What I was about to say was to make sure he didn’t lay a hand on my family. For someone like him, manipulating their memories or artificially altering their perceptions wouldn’t be difficult, but I didn’t think that was a good idea.
At times like this, he’s quick to catch on. Does what I want to say show on my face? Anyway, since he said ‘I absolutely won’t do it’ with his own mouth, I’ll believe him.
“Let’s go in.”
I opened the front gate, which I had unlocked earlier, and entered the front yard. Ardian followed behind me, looking around. I glanced back at him and spoke.
“How long are you planning to stay?”
“Can I stay here for a month?”
“No.”
“Then about half a month.”
“Half a month is too long.”
“It feels short to me.”
Ardian muttered as if whining. Then, matching his pace with mine, he approached and took my hand.
It’s truly questionable whether he can afford to be leisurely fooling around when the Emperor currently sitting on the throne is a puppet, and he himself is the real power pulling the strings behind the scenes. I stared intently into his eyes, which resembled embedded golden gemstones.
“Aren’t you busy?”
“…I can’t exactly say I’m not.”
“……”
“This is the first time I’ve ever wished that ‘people other than me’ would just handle things well on their own. Trying to do everything myself until now… seems to have been the wrong choice after all.”
Ardian, who expressed his regret plainly, smiled faintly.
This empire is something Ardian… no. Adam created, a land he has led alone until now, essentially no different.
All the numerous Emperors this empire has had until now were ‘him,’ and because of that, there were no power struggles within the imperial family, and no matter which Emperor sat on the throne, the country was led as usual.
Until he found me again in this land, there couldn’t be other problems like wars breaking out or the empire collapsing, making it difficult to keep an eye on things.
Because of that, the strict imperial education that should have been properly conducted within the imperial family wasn’t, resulting in someone as incompetent as Ardian’s older brother ascending the throne.
You could say it was his own doing.
Ardian is regretting that now.
“But still, my brother won’t be able to ruin the country in the month I’m here. I also told him not to touch important or difficult-to-understand approval documents and to leave them be.”
He said this quite coldly, with his eyes curved into a gentle smile. Well, if he could ruin a country in just a month, that would be a remarkable talent in itself.
“…Wait. I never said you could stay for a month.”
Where did that sneak in from?
“Can’t you just pretend you didn’t hear that part?”
Ardian pulled our intertwined hands and kissed the back of my hand. Pretending not to know, trying to slip past like a snake over a wall—his intention to stay for a month is obvious. I kicked him in the back of the knee, freed our intertwined hands, and grabbed the doorknob of the mansion.
Ouch, Ardian, who exaggerated the pain, came closer. The family waiting in the first-floor lobby turned to look at us. Ardian observed each of them as they approached with a much more polite attitude than I had expected and greeted them.
“It’s been a long time, Duke Maximun, Duke Luciel. Duke Esili and Duke Leshnold as well.”
“It’s the first time since the meeting. Have you been well, Your Majesty?”
“Thanks to you, I have been.”
Maximun also shook hands briefly with Ardian and continued the conversation with his usual solemn demeanor. The childish behavior from last night was nowhere to be seen.
“By the way, why did our son say he’s dating Your Majesty?”
No, it was my brief delusion.
“Let’s not do this here! Let’s go inside first, Dad.”
Esili soothed Ardian and the family, turning their steps toward the reception room. Then she approached me and said she’d ‘borrow Ardian for a moment.’ I felt a bit worried, but before I could say anything to stop them, they had already dragged Ardian away and disappeared.
“……”
Shaking my head, I decided to go up to my room first. He’d find his way to the room location somehow. I’ll pass the time reading a book. With that thought, I took out a book I had been reading from the bookshelf and leaned back on the bed.
I thought I wouldn’t be able to concentrate well because I was concerned about the situation in the reception room, but once I started reading, I quickly became engrossed. I had no idea how much time had passed as I immersed myself in the book when suddenly I sensed a presence.
Turning my head, I saw Ardian standing there.
“You called me here just to read a book?”
“Is the conversation over?”
“Yeah. Everyone was very kind to me.”
I couldn’t tell if he was being sarcastic or sincere. I closed the book and sat up, patting the spot beside me. Ardian approached and sat down as if he had been waiting. Looking beyond the half-open door, it seemed no family members were nearby, so I asked again.
“They were kind to you? Weren’t they threatening to dissect you piece by piece?”
“That’s how it was at first, but later it was fine. They said they’d allow me to date you. I think they wanted to know if I genuinely like you or not.”
“What did you say?”
Suddenly, Ardian smiled meaningfully.
“Do you really want to hear?”
“…You said you wouldn’t do anything strange.”
“I didn’t do anything strange. I just sincerely told them how much I like you.”
Hearing that makes me even more uneasy.
When I glared at him, Ardian smiled a little more deeply.