Chapter 35
There was a slight furrow between Lukas’s brows as he approached.
His displeased gaze was fixed on the hand wrapped around Brillia’s waist.
“Lu…!”
As soon as she saw Lukas, Rosedale stepped away from Brillia and rushed over to him.
With a worried expression, she hurriedly cupped his face with both hands.
“Are you okay? Why that look? Are you hurt? Is that blood…?!”
“It’s not mine. I’m fine.”
Lukas leaned into her hand, his expression slowly relaxing. Peace settled on his face as he closed his eyes and soaked in her warmth.
Rosedale, having thoroughly checked his body in the meantime, finally let out a breath of relief.
Thankfully, the blood on Lukas wasn’t his. He was unscathed, only a bit dirtied.
“You scared me. Don’t go around getting stained like that.”
Sighing like a mother scolding a child, Rosedale began wiping the blood off his face.
Lukas stopped her hand and smiled.
“Rosi, your clothes’ll get dirty.”
It’s just a bit of dirt—nothing to worry about.
As Rosedale thought this, Lukas turned his gaze toward Brillia. The kind emerald eyes that had been looking at Rosedale now turned dangerously deep, like the sea.
Brillia, however, didn’t notice. Her entire attention was still on Rosedale.
Lukas’s brow twitched at the way she seemed utterly captivated, unable to tear her gaze away. For some reason, he even shifted slightly to block Rosedale from view with his broad shoulders.
“Who is she?”
The tone was gentle, but his voice was so calm it was almost cold.
“Oh, that’s Brillia. Brillia Fuglisi.”
“Fuglisi… Then she must be Count Michael Fuglisi’s daughter.”
“…Pardon?”
Brillia, who had been staring only at Rosedale, finally turned to Lukas.
She thought she heard her father’s name… And now that she looked, who exactly was this man holding Rosedale’s hand so affectionately?
Because of Rosedale’s illusion magic, Brillia couldn’t recognize Lukas’s face.
She’d heard that Rosedale had been secretly raised within the imperial palace since childhood—only people from the palace would know her.
But the man showing this level of intimacy with her? He must be connected to the imperial family.
If he’s close enough to Rosedale to speak so informally, he must hold a very high position…
There was no one in Iveria of equal rank to the emperor’s mage, save perhaps the chancellor.
But the Chancellor of Iveria was an elderly man with graying beard—not a young, handsome man like this.
So who on earth is he?
While Brillia calmly pondered this, still clueless, Rosedale casually slung an arm around her shoulders.
“They’re expanding the Magic Research Department soon. She’s joining. My recruit now.”
“No, Rosedale! I might not even pass!”
Startled, Brillia frantically waved her hands.
According to rumors, the number of applicants was so overwhelming they couldn’t even keep count. It made sense—curiosity about magic was growing, and Rosedale was the talk of the empire.
But Rosedale just looked puzzled by her denial.
“If Brillia doesn’t pass, who would?”
“Pardon?”
Rosedale’s confident tone made Brillia widen her eyes.
Where did she get such certainty when she barely knew her?
“Brillia. Just before you saw me, you were searching for an escape route, weren’t you?”
Rosedale asked seriously.
She recalled Brillia in the kidnappers’ warehouse—clear-eyed, even as others cried or collapsed in despair.
Through clenched teeth and welled-up tears, she’d scanned her surroundings. Even with a trembling body, she’d refused to shut her eyes.
How many people could keep their wits in such a situation?
“You know, our people at the Magic Department are just like you.”
Rosedale thought of her team—those steadfast souls who kept working despite being labeled budget thieves, who walked a hard road knowing how impossible their goals were.
“You’re like them. So I’m sure we’ll meet again. And you’ll do well.”
“…Rosedale.”
Brillia’s eyes sparkled with a reverent glow as she gazed at her—almost as if she heard angelic trumpets in the background.
Rosedale smiled and patted her shoulder.
Watching the two, Lukas’s expression gradually cooled. His gaze lingered on Rosedale’s hand on Brillia’s shoulder with something like bitterness.
“If she’s helping lighten Rosi’s burden, she’s welcome anytime.”
Smiling sweetly, Lukas drew Rosedale’s attention back to him.
“Then that means I’ll get more dinners with you. Right?”
“Probably.”
As he playfully offered his hand, she took it with ease.
And just like that, Rosedale’s hand was no longer on Brillia’s shoulder. Brillia felt the sudden coldness there and shot a glare at Lukas.
Who even is this man, and why is he taking what’s not his?
Even under her sharp gaze, Lukas didn’t spare her a single glance—his eyes remained on Rosedale, smiling.
Just then, Rosedale spotted figures riding toward them—imperial knights in uniform.
“Your Majesty!”
At the front, Kane galloped up, completely out of breath. His usually neat hair was plastered to his forehead with sweat.
He swiftly dismounted and rushed over to Rosedale.
“Forgive the delay. I was bringing a Swordmaster knight sensitive enough to sense Your Majesty’s aura from afar—Your Majesty?”
Unable to recognize Lukas’s magically hidden face, Kane looked dumbfounded.
The tall figure and broad shoulders matched Lukas, and the way he stood with Rosedale made it obvious. But his face looked so different.
Kane looked this way and that, completely baffled, and both Lukas and Rosedale let out a chuckle.
“It really is His Majesty.”
Rosedale nudged Lukas with her elbow, and whoosh—a gust of wind swept through.
As Kane blinked against the wind, the illusion lifted—and Lukas stood there.
“Your Majesty!”
Seeing his true face, Kane bit his lip hard, overwhelmed. The frantic search he’d conducted all night flashed through his mind.
“I’m glad to see you safe.”
As Kane knelt on one knee, the rest of the knights followed suit.
Faced with this sudden spectacle, Brillia and the other civilians stiffened.
“…Your Majesty?”
“Now that you mention it, his face did change just now…”
“He kind of looks like the emperor I saw in that portrait…”
Murmurs spread through the crowd.
Seeing Brillia completely stunned, Rosedale smirked, then placed a hand over her chest and bowed to Lukas.
“We greet the highest sun of Iveria.”
“…!”
Startled, Brillia quickly dropped to her knees.
“We greet the sun of the Empire. May light and glory be yours!”
“W-We greet the sun of the Empire!”
Everyone hurried to prostrate themselves before Lukas. The children too young to understand what was happening were helped down by nearby adults.
Even before all the greetings ended, Lukas placed a gentle hand on Rosedale’s back and spoke.
“Rise. There is much to do.”
“Yes, Your Majesty.”
Led by Kane, the knights, Brillia, and the others slowly rose to their feet.
Brillia’s eyes still spun in confusion, but there was no time to explain.
The sun was fully up—it was time to clean up the mess.
“Hiers.”
Lukas called the name of the knight commander.
“Yes, Your Majesty!”
His voice rang out loud enough to pierce ears.
“Gather the village administrator and sheriff immediately. Bring the local lord too, wherever he is.”
“Understood!”
“Squad One, handle the victims here. Get them to safety and give them food. Once they’re stable, question them in detail.”
“Yes!”
“The rest, secure the perpetrators. They’ll be tried harshly under Iverian law when we return.”
“We obey!”
“Wait.”
Just then, Rosedale stopped the knights about to move. As Lukas and Kane turned to her in surprise, she raised her right hand.
“It’d be tough moving all these people, right? You’ll need transportation.”
She pointed toward the frogs—still panicking, still not fully comprehending their fate.
With narrowed eyes, Rosedale curled her fingers toward them.
This time, there was no wind, no light—no theatrics. Just a flick of her hand, and all the frogs leapt and transformed into large horses.
Then, with her left hand, she directed her magic at the criminals Lukas had taken down.
The ropes that had once bound the hostages flew back and coiled tightly around the captives.
“Gasp!”
The knights stared in awe at the magic, and Rosedale turned to Kane.
“Load the victims on those horses. It’ll be faster. Oh, and make sure to bind the horses too—they were criminals after all.”
“You transformed them?”
“Yep. They weren’t human to begin with, so I figured I might as well.”
Rosedale snorted.
“I placed a spell on them to keep them from escaping. But just in case, keep an eye on them.”
“Yes, ma’am.”
Kane nodded sincerely.
Then, overwhelmed by emotion, he lifted his head again—though he didn’t dare glare at Lukas, so he settled for glaring at Rosedale.
“Why did you leave secretly?! Do you know how hard we searched all night?! I was worried sick!”
“His Majesty’s safe, isn’t he? Even if I got hurt, I would’ve protected him. That’s what matters, right?”
Rosedale gave him a lazy side glance and yawned.
Kane shouted again.
“You can’t get hurt either! Both of you must stay safe! That means no more running off alone!”
“Oh… okay. Sorry.”
As Kane huffed in frustration, Rosedale blinked slowly.
He was angry because he was worried for her. That… felt unfamiliar.
He must be concerned about the empire’s only mage, right?
Still…
Now there was another person besides Lukas who cared about her. It was a sweet, almost sour feeling.
A faint smile rose on Rosedale’s lips.
At that moment.
A pair of eyes watched them from around the corner of a nearby building, their presence completely concealed.
“Hmm. A failure, huh.”
The man’s mutter came from eyes pitch-black, without a trace of white.
“What a waste of dark mana.”
Still, it was fine. None of the ones he’d aimed to capture were particularly useful.
Just as he was about to turn away without regret, he paused—and looked back.
His gaze locked on Brillia, who trailed after Rosedale.
More precisely, something glittering inside the pocket of her robe.
A slow, twisted smile crept onto his lips.
Looks like something useful after all.
“I’ll be coming to retrieve it soon.”
With a flourish of his robe, he vanished into thin air—leaving behind only a swirl of ominous black smoke.
