By Zephyria 
The new year had not yet dawned. Starlight poured through the open window, illuminating the child facing me with a radiant glow. Rubel, with the dark night sky scattered behind him like a veil, concluded his words in a resolute voice.
“I need to know what’s happening in the Yuil Mountains.”
“If that’s the case, couldn’t I investigate and report back to you?”
“I’m also a Wizard, Mika.”
“…”
“I don’t want to rely on your strength; I want to become stronger myself. If not now, while you’re protecting me, while I’m still young enough to receive the Mana’s blessing, then when?”
“…”
“I know I seem like someone blinded by love, but, Mika.”
The child lowered his voice to a whisper, in a distance where our noses could almost touch.
“You’re going to make me strong, aren’t you?”
“…”
“Help me.”
When I didn’t answer immediately, the child whined and wrapped his arms around my waist. The distance wasn’t much different from when we danced, but when Ruben leaned his forehead against my shoulder and nuzzled slightly, I stiffened and became flustered.
“Huh? Mikaa.”
“…But, Ruben.”
“You’re taking Young Lady Philodendor, so why can’t I go?”
Who is he comparing himself to?
I scoffed in disbelief. Well, rather than leaving this child alone in the capital and constantly worrying about him getting hurt on a long journey… The thought of keeping him by my side and raising him welled up inside me.
I sighed once and patted the child’s back reassuringly.
“…Yes, let’s do that.”
Ruben would be better at using his head than I am. There was no need to forcibly separate him when he said he would finish all his work and follow. With that thought, I couldn’t push him away any further. The child stood up abruptly, a bright smile spreading across his face. His lively eyes sparkled with starlight and moonlight. I suppressed a laugh with a dry cough, finding him adorable.
“Thank you, Mika! I’ll work really hard.”
“Are you that happy? No, in the first place, going to the Yuil Mountains… It’s not like I have the authority to allow or deny it.”
“If even one member opposes, we can’t form the same team, can we?”
“The other children will allow it?”
“Young Master Claudian or Young Lady Philodendor would bother to…?”
That was true. They weren’t the type to refuse if I said it was okay.
Rubel kept burrowing into my arms, making it difficult, so I soothed him and sat him down next to me.
I wanted to burst out laughing, but I suppressed it, feeling embarrassed.
Instead, I subtly brought up a story from the past.
“You said you would wait patiently.”
“…W-Well, I didn’t know such strange things were happening back then…”
I averted my gaze from the child’s flushed cheeks and looked out the open window into the distance. The outside was dark. I felt anxious even though I knew it would soon be bright.
It felt like only yesterday that I was worried about Ruben losing his precious feelings if I left him behind and went far away. The days and nights I spent trying to let go of my feelings, believing that distance would make hearts grow apart, felt like a decade ago.
Was it because he wasn’t following for a good reason? The child falling into my grasp didn’t feel like pure luck. After a moment of contemplation, I asked again.
“The Knights who left with Wesley haven’t returned, don’t the others find it suspicious?”
“Well, because they went to the Yuil Mountains.”
Rubel held my left hand tightly in both of his, not letting go. I had been looking into the distance for a while, but when the child didn’t continue, I turned halfway to look at his face again. Only then did Rubel continue in a low voice.
“You know that the free movement of the territory’s residents is restricted… That each territory is close to being the lord’s autonomous region, right?”
“Yes.”
“Not only goods and people, but also news and letters usually arrive a month or two late. If you go up to the Yuil Mountains, you can only come down to the territory below the mountains once every three months.”
“Hmm…”
“So, they think no news is good news. Death notices are sent immediately.”
“What about Ranunculus?”
“That’s… It’s expensive, but there’s another problem.”
Another problem?
Rubel was playing with my palm, pressing it gently, which tickled, so I told him to stop and held his hand. Rubel only wiggled his fingertips a little before becoming quiet, and continued in a slightly smaller voice.
“The Mana concentration in the Yuil Mountains is so high. Only Ranunculus that have been fed Mana for at least seven years can go to the mountains. And also, Magical Creatures aren’t afraid of death… Even if they’re caught by a Monster, they don’t desperately try to survive until the end.”
“…That’s.”
“The Wizard who raised them with affection has to take care of the Ranunculus by their side, or they have to send expensive, high-grade Ranunculus for one-time use… Either way, it’s not easy.”
“Hmph…”
“The Imperial Knights work in three shifts and can’t always carry Ranunculus with them, so it’s even harder.”
That was true. They were Knights working in the Imperial Palace, after all. With watchful eyes everywhere, strict security was natural. There was no need for them, busy with their training, to carry Magical Creatures and invite unnecessary suspicion.
After a moment of contemplation, I asked again.
“So, it’s not strange that they haven’t returned for almost a year?”
“That’s right. You’re thinking of spending at least three years in the Yuil Mountains, right? Wesley can go back and forth to the capital, saying he needs to take care of the Duke’s family and report to the First Prince… That’s because he’s skilled enough not to have to live in a group.”
“Hmm.”
“It’s possible because he can go up and down the mountains alone and move that quickly…”
I looked closely at the child’s face. After looking for a long time, the child shyly bit his lip. Feeling awkward, I coughed a few times and looked into the distance. Only then could I organize my thoughts.
“How did Ruben come to think it was strange?”
“I said I sent a Wizard with them, right? I received the first contact safely, but there was no contact from the second month. So, I sent another Wizard, but it was the same.”
“And then?”
“The third time… I didn’t send anyone. It could be dangerous, and I didn’t want to waste trustworthy Wizards.”
I see.
His words about valuing people sounded sweet to my ears. The child, suddenly digging into my softest spot, felt precious, and I was speechless.
Hesitantly, I asked once more.
“…Then the capital…”
“I’ve already mentioned it to Father. The Emperor of the Sierran Empire receives the strongest blessing of Shinui. As long as Father is healthy, he can withstand whatever Wesley has in mind.”
“Does the Emperor suspect the First Prince?”
“For now, only Wesley Kiadris.”
The child answered all my questions without hesitation, like someone who had prepared.
I asked and asked until I could understand.
Ruben replied that the reason the Emperor was wary of Wesley Kiadris was because of his power and wealth. He also said that the reason he didn’t greatly antagonize Richard was because the Emperor had taught him that way. Ruben and Richard had never gotten along since childhood, but he said he didn’t forget that they were still family.
I tried hard to suppress a sigh that came out on its own.
Rubel chattered on about what he had to do and what he wanted to do in the future, reciting his ambitions. After listening carefully to everything the child said, I swore to protect this child’s body and mind in the first year of the new year.
Ruben was very happy, which was embarrassing but also satisfying.
❖ ❖ ❖
The second day of January dawned.
Several beautiful and splendid dresses drew a round circle to the sound of musicians strumming long instruments from top to bottom. Standing on a slightly higher platform than the hall and looking at the scene, it was like looking into a lake with rain pouring down.
Round and round, like water droplets spreading on the surface, the round hems of the skirts, brushing against each other, seemed to have swallowed all the colors of the world.
The jewels placed on the heads and chests of boys and girls alike fully received the light of the chandeliers and shone blindingly. The dance, in which they brushed their hands against each other or intertwined and released their arms to the rhythm of the music, was something I was familiar with.
It was an unparalleled spectacle.
The repeatedly repeated dance showed no sign of ending. The children who had been playing pressed their fluttering chests and laughed. The child threw a laugh, and the other child received it and laughed again. The sight of healthy children playing happily made me smile as well.
Rubel was sitting in his seat, but Richard, the First Prince, invited Hestia Yeldidus to dance and strolled around the hall with her, showing off their splendid appearance. That guy is really good at dancing too. He didn’t move a single fingertip or toe carelessly, showing how much he had practiced.
The surrounding children also glanced at the First Prince and his prospective fiancée.
The sight of children, tired from playing, sipping drinks and catching their breath, and children who had rested for a while rejoining the dance floor, was captured in one view. It was like watching the dance of bees, each carrying sweet and delicious sweets on their heads and buzzing around.
After watching for a while, Marianne came to me with her hand on Damian’s arm and interfered.
“Michael, eat something too. You’re still a wallflower today.”
“Ah, it’s okay. I ate breakfast a little late.”
“With Your Highness?”
“Yes, well.”
Even if we prepared a plentiful dinner and ate it with several children, there was no need to gather everyone for the meals in between. It wasn’t specifically tailored to Ruben and my circumstances. All the children were busy greeting, talking, and dancing with those they wanted to get closer to.
Rubel had to show his face at the New Year Festival ball all day long. That’s why he wanted to be alone with me whenever he had a spare moment.
At the same time, he told me to go and play freely during the times he couldn’t be with me. He explained that there was no Wesley in the Opal Palace right now, and even if Wesley Kiadris was there, he wouldn’t do anything dangerous in the current Sierran Empire with the Emperor in good health, so I should enjoy myself comfortably.
So, standing here and looking at Ruben and the banquet hall he was watching over was entirely my desire. I stood there with a smiling face and said nothing, so Marianne narrowed her eyes as if she was about to say something mischievous. Damian stopped Marianne with a gesture and brought up their story.
“Michael, did you see Senior Kiadris today?”
“Senior who, Edwin?”
“Yes. I heard that Edwin Senior would be attending the Opal Palace New Year’s ball this year instead of Wesley Kiadris, but he’s not noticeable.”
Marianne and Damian were unusually close, so I wondered what was going on, but they were looking for Edwin. I thought it was a strange combination, so I couldn’t answer right away and just looked back and forth at their faces.