LP 3.1 The Prince’s Rebellion

Despite working diligently, it still took quite a bit of time.

First, I dealt with a few more ominous auras. ‘Those things’ were buried at regular intervals around the West Wing, and most of them were such trivial objects that they wouldn’t seem out of place anywhere.

Only a mage would be able to sense traces of incomplete sorcery from them.

Ancient sorcery was generally a strict ritualistic act. Adhering to rules regarding numbers, actions, directions, intervals, materials, and such was of utmost importance.

Kosha hadn’t even learned enough magic, let alone sorcery, so he couldn’t gauge the intent of the sorcery from just the traces. However, he vividly felt that it was a very unpleasant sensation, encroaching upon his own territory.

Unpleasant and dirty things must be cleaned. Even when he was a gooseherd, didn’t he spend all day cleaning the house and the barn?

The lizard, having gorged itself on someone else’s mana, had a bulging belly and was lying on its back. Kosha carefully tucked it into his bosom so it wouldn’t suffer from indigestion.

Next, he went to find the geese.

No one had ever told Kosha the whereabouts of the geese, but Kosha ‘just’ knew where they were. Well, a familiar and its mage can find each other even if they are at opposite ends of the continent.

The newly prepared goose barn in the northern courtyard of the West Wing, where hunting dogs were originally kept, was quite tidy. A black hunting dog of noble lineage, lying in a corner, sensed movement and sprang up, then immediately lowered its head and lay back down.

Even without communication, nature tends to be friendly to mages. Animals were no different.

Feeling sorry for the dog who had nearly half of its spacious courtyard taken away by the geese, Kosha gently stroked its scruff. The large Callot mastiff let out a whimper. It seemed somewhat dejected. It seemed to be desperately trying not to look in the direction of the geese.

“Did something happen?”

Kosha approached the goose barn. The barn door, separated from where the dog was by a sturdy fence, was locked, but that was no problem for a mage.

The geese spread their wings and huddled around the mage. They all looked fluffy, as if they had been given bathwater. Kosha took the time to stroke the scruff of each of the nine geese one by one.

A familiar is essentially a part of its mage. They act on the mage’s will even without words, but Kosha still couldn’t quite believe that these geese were familiars, so he decided to tell them out loud.

“Hey guys. This is our home now.”

Then the geese made gurgling sounds and chattered.

“…Even if you don’t like it, there’s nothing we can do. It’s already done.”

Adding that with his own brand of firmness, Kosha loosened the tightly fastened robe. Inside was only a thin shirt, and his body was still covered with traces left by Lucian. From his scent to his aura.

Humans also have their own inherent wavelengths they are born with. They are too faint to be felt, but it would be different for sensitive animals.

The nine geese sniffed around Kosha’s body, detecting that aura. A few of them wagged their short tails with a dissatisfied look.

After designating a new ‘territory’ for the geese, Kosha fastened his robe again.

“You know what to do, right?”

Lucian had asked if anyone could just come and go from the house in that neighborhood, but surprisingly, that wasn’t the case.

“You can guard the house well, right?”

Geese are better watchmen than one might think. Even Beorn, who used to torment Kosha, couldn’t set foot inside the house.

Soon, the largest leader goose honked loudly on behalf of everyone. It was the one that caused the most trouble and had fought with Kosha many times, but in times like these, it was the most reliable.

Although the barn door was locked, if they were truly ‘familiars,’ it shouldn’t be a problem. Familiars are part of the mage and share in the mage’s authority. Kosha hugged them once more and left the barn.

And then he went to the bathhouse to wash his body. Perhaps because the timing was awkward, the bathhouse was completely empty. Thankfully. There were many embarrassing marks left on his body, so if there had been onlookers, it would have been mortifying.

He secretly took a new shirt from the supply warehouse and changed—of course, Kosha merely ‘summoned’ the new clothes before him, so he didn’t particularly consider it theft—and as he passed by the kitchen, he skillfully pulled a loaf of bread through the open window to satisfy his hunger.

His leisurely steps halted when he reached the floor where his room was. Being preoccupied with paying attention to his surroundings, he hadn’t noticed, but he could sense Lucian’s presence in his room.

He seemed to be in a hurry about something, so why was he in my room?

Kosha hurriedly ran over, flung the door open, and called out to him.

“Your Highness? You’re here?”

“…….”

In the narrow room that came into view at a glance, Lucian was indeed sitting on a chair. Their eyes met precisely the moment he entered. Lucian sprang up from the chair.

Somehow, the atmosphere didn’t seem good.

Striding over, he grabbed Kosha, who was awkwardly standing in the doorway, and pushed the door shut.

“Where were you.”

Kosha rolled his eyes awkwardly. The human self was once again clumsily stitched back onto the mage’s head, which had been merrily wandering about on its own.

“…Um, the restroom.”

“The restroom?”

Lucian smiled crookedly. He looked truly displeased.

“In the restroom for half a day? Don’t you remember saying you’d send someone? Say it again.”

Sharp words poured out rapidly. Kosha shrunk further into himself.

“S-sorry. Actually, I wanted to wash up. My body was too, dirty.”

“…….”

“And I wanted to see the geese a bit….”

Kosha mumbled. He wisely swallowed the part about meeting that strange man. He had an intuition that it wouldn’t be good to mention it carelessly. Anyway, he had dealt with the urgent matters….

And he was in the process of making the West Wing his ‘territory’….

“Sigh….”

After staring down at Kosha for a moment, Lucian sighed and rubbed his eyes with his hand.

It was difficult to be harsh in front of those large, frightened-looking eyes.

“…Don’t lie to me.”

“I won’t. I’m sorry.”

When he spoke in a softened voice, the answer came back obediently again. Lucian stared at that face for a long time.

The face, which looked endlessly innocent, still retained a hint of childishness. It looked soft and naive, as if incapable of any mischief.

Simultaneously, the conversation from earlier naturally came to mind.

In the office, where he had dismissed people as requested, only his closest aides, including Gosrick, remained. However, even then, Renata lowered her voice considerably. As if afraid her words might leak out.

‘I beseech you to look into that mage’s parents.’

‘Parents?’

That was something Lucian hadn’t expected either.

‘I already looked into it. There weren’t any. You know that in remote places like Allohen, resident records aren’t strictly managed.’

‘No, it wouldn’t be Allohen.’

The answer came immediately.

‘We confirmed traces of him residing in Allohen during his childhood, but….’

Eydrick, who had been dispatched before to investigate the mage’s background, interjected, but Renata shook her head.

‘Haven’t you ever thought it was strange? Starting with his name. Kosha, was it? Izelant men’s names aren’t given like that.’

Izelant names have rules. Male names tend to end with certain specific consonants, and if they end with a vowel, nine times out of ten it’s a female name.

Isn’t that true even for the names of the people here? Gosrick, Eydrick, Lucian, Pellon. They were typical Izelant male names.

‘…Naming conventions aren’t legally mandated, and that happens often in the east. Among my knights, there’s one named Ilensha, and he’s an eastern-born man.’

‘I am well acquainted with Sir Ilensha. That is a typical and familiar name. But ‘Kosha’ is different. It sounds completely unfamiliar and, well… doesn’t it sound somewhat unfinished?’

‘Isn’t it a bit much to mock someone over their name. He’s a grown man.’

Gosrick frowned and interjected.

‘It’s not to mock. I’m merely suggesting the possibility that it might not be his real name.’

Renata shrugged her shoulders.

‘Precisely, it’s a matter of lineage. I saw the mage in person a few days ago. Has no one else felt anything strange until now?’

Strange? The mage’s manners were impeccable. There was nothing else to fault….

‘He bowed by bending his knee. That’s an etiquette used only among court nobles a generation ago. Even that has been standardized to bowing at the waist for nearly 20 years now.’

‘…….’

‘Of course, there are still those who use the old etiquette. Your Highness probably learned that kind of etiquette until your childhood as well. But that doesn’t apply to commoners,’

…The mage’s manners were impeccably flawless. If he was truly born in a remote countryside and raised as a gooseherd, would that have been possible? In remote places like Allohen, even the lord is ignorant of court etiquette, and servants, when newly hired, usually receive etiquette training for quite a while.

The mage was natural from the start. Not intimidated at all. Even the words and titles he used.

So natural that one didn’t even sense anything odd.

‘It’s highly likely that he is of a certain status or above and had some circumstances that led him to leave his place and hide. I don’t know much about mage society either, but perhaps he was expelled from the Tower, or maybe….’

Renata hesitated for a moment.

‘…of Grafen origin.’

Silence filled the room.

Grafen is undeniably Izelant’s enemy nation. Some border areas are still in a stalemate under a truce. Moreover, everyone in that room had direct experience fighting on that front.

‘So, you’re saying my mage is a Grafen exiled noble?’

Lucian slowly asked back.

The label of Grafen origin is not good. Even more so if the mage is one. If evidence exists that he is of that lineage, he must be seized and eliminated before others. In the worst case, that could become a weakness not of the mage, but of his master, Lucian.

But Renata slowly shook her head.

‘I’d rather hope for that, Your Highness. But if he is of Grafen origin, can we rule out the possibility of him being a spy?’

‘…….’

‘Haven’t you ever thought it strange that the mage got entangled in such an absurd incident?’

It’s odd why no one has doubted this aspect until now, Renata added.

And no one could answer that.

Lucian stared at the mage before him again. The mage merely blinked a little, fidgeted with his fingertips, and quietly endured his gaze.

He had considered the possibility of him being a spy from Bastian’s side. But that possibility was now almost discarded. And now, Grafen origin?

If that’s the case, it would be better if he were a spy for Bastian or Arabella.

After hesitating for a moment, Lucian opened his mouth.

“…How did you know I was here? Did someone tell you?”

“No, I just felt it.”

“You just felt it?”

“Because my mana remains in Your Highness’s body….”

Kosha raised his hand and timidly pressed down near his heart. That touch unexpectedly brought back memories of last night. Lucian’s fingertips twitched.

Suspicion mixed into the sticky memories.

His face is too good-looking for a gooseherd….

Why were you herding geese in the countryside, of all things? Without revealing your presence a bit more. If you had settled in a city, there would have been plenty of jobs where you could trade on your looks. At the very least, you could have gone into business….

Lucian slowly cupped Kosha’s cheek. Kosha, who had flinched, soon obediently leaned his cheek into the palm without asking anything.

For such a striking face, he’s excessively docile. As if tailored to be so.

…But.

Yesterday’s events were still vivid in his mind. And not just the events of the night.

The mage made flowers bloom against the season. The scene of flowers blooming over the mage’s head was too surreal. Yet, the pure white petals shone dazzlingly, and the vibrating fragrance was almost headache-inducing.

Everything was so vivid that it didn’t even allow for suspicion of hallucination.

He didn’t know what kind of magic that was. Its principle, what it required, how difficult it was. But at that moment, it was a kind of language.

So complete in itself that it was enough without hearing any other words.

Sex could be false or planned. Sex, of all things, is easy. But even something like that?

That expression, that voice, the single flower handed over with trembling fingertips… Ah, that single flower.

As he retraced his memories, Lucian suddenly frowned. Come to think of it, what happened to that flower? He didn’t bring it. He couldn’t remember exactly. Because from the moment the mage offered that flower, everything had escaped his expectations and control.

He suddenly felt anxious, like someone who had lost crucial evidence in an important trial. Of course, a single flower would have withered quickly even if brought, but still….

Would flowers still be blooming on that tree? Delicate flowers like magnolias wouldn’t last long in this weather. He wanted to go back and prove that all of it wasn’t an illusion, but he couldn’t spare even a moment now.

“Um… Did something bad happen?”

Kosha, rubbing his cheek against his palm, asked cautiously. Despite being a knight who wielded a sword, his hands were surprisingly not that rough.

Something bad? What could be bad? His siblings originally wanted to kill each other and actually did anything for that purpose.

Bastian’s expedition approval was a headache, but it wasn’t much different from what he had experienced before. It was something that could happen anytime, and he had been through much worse situations than this.

If he had to point out something bad right now….

Lucian irritably averted his gaze and swept back his hair.

He wanted to grab him by the hair and interrogate him immediately, but if there really was something suspicious, digging into it carelessly wasn’t a good method.

Impulse and reason were jumbled together. His nerves were overly sharp, so he had postponed his work and stubbornly sat in this room waiting for the mage, but even seeing his face didn’t make things better.

What severed that tension was a touch landing on his shoulder.

Tap, tap. Dry fingertips were patting his shoulder rhythmically. As if calming a child.

“Your Highness, are you alright?”

“…….”

“Is there anything I can help with?”

A deep sigh escaped. Lucian slumped forward, holding onto Kosha’s shoulders. Pressing his forehead against the nape of his neck and leaning his weight, Kosha staggered but supported him.

“Help? You?”

He asked sarcastically, but whether Kosha was oblivious or what, he just nodded earnestly.

Seeing that, a hollow laugh escaped. Right, it’s still just a suspicion without any evidence. It’s not even something to think deeply about.

Above all, last night’s events were just about mutual needs being met and enjoying each other. Even if the mage was truly sent under some plan. Nothing changes.

“…Come to my room before sunset.”

Lucian pressed his lips to his ear and whispered quietly. Kosha could feel his ear getting warm moment by moment.

“Y-your room, you say.”

“Bedroom.”

He replied simply.

“As you said, something bad has happened, so I’ll be busy all night.”

“…….”

“So that I can keep my sanity, shouldn’t we… make an effort in various ways?”

The pretty face, flushed red, made an extremely troubled expression, then soon gave a slight nod. Just enough for Lucian, with his forehead pressed against his nape, to barely feel it.

It was too easy, so suspicion mixed in again, then his energy drained, and he grew restless again in a cycle.

Lucian let out a bitter laugh. He was going crazy. Wasting time on such worries. Anyway, sex is just sex. It’s fine as long as emotions aren’t mixed in.

So, it didn’t matter that he couldn’t bring that flower. There were more important and urgent matters than that.