BGFV 129

Chapter 129

‘It’ll be okay.’
As long as they’re within her sight and control, like now.
Earlier, she told Sophia to wait until spring because there was going to be an epidemic this winter.

‘Even with all this careful preparation, if people still say the refugees brought the disease this time, there are only two possibilities.’
One, the refugees actually did bring the disease.
Two, someone is spreading false rumors for political reasons to avoid public anger.

“It’s strange, but…”
When Luciard started talking, Hestia looked at him.

“Sometimes I’m really curious about how your mind works.”
“Huh? That’s sudden.”
Surprised by the comment, Hestia blinked.

“How do I put this… You think on a different level. You’re great at seeing what’s ahead.”
Luciard looked at her thoughtfully.

“It’s almost like… you know the future.”
Hestia’s hand trembled. Her palm started to get sweaty.

‘No way… Did he figure out that I’ve returned to the past…?’

“Do you have some kind of secret? If so, can you tell me too?”
Hestia, who had been tense, relaxed a bit at his next question.

Sigh…
She let out a deep breath and mumbled softly.

“Well, I guess not…”
“Huh? So, do you have a secret method or not?”
“Nope. I’m just desperately thinking and acting for a better future.”
“Hmmm…”
Luciard narrowed his eyes. Hestia avoided his gaze and looked straight ahead.

“I’m just trying to help everyone live a better, happier life, Isn’t that strange, right?”
Luciard followed her gaze and also looked forward.
People were enjoying a peaceful and happy day.
Birds were chirping, laughter filled the air, and they basked in the sunlight for a while.

“You’ve chosen a hard path.”
“Really?”
“A world where everyone is happy? That’s impossible. Not everyone can be happy.”
“…”
Hestia gave a bitter smile. He was right—she had done things that hurt others to build a better future for herself.

“But… thanks to you, there are people who now have a hopeful future.”
She looked up quickly at Luciard.

“Leonhard and I are good examples of that.”
Hestia looked like she might cry. Luciard smiled and gently wiped her teary eyes.

“Making everyone happy might be too hard, but helping a few people—like us—be happy, little by little, that’s possible, right?”
His rough fingers wiped her tears, and his calloused hand touched her cheek.
Signs of how hard he had worked.
She and Luciard had built Winston together through so much effort.
When she worked hard, he did too. When he wished for something, she also wished for it.
His rough hands were proof of their shared struggle.

“It feels nice…”
Hestia rubbed her face against his warm hand.
His big hand twitched.

When she opened her eyes slightly, she saw his blue eyes looking at her differently—like blue flames that might consume her.

“Tia…”
She felt his large hand softly stroking her cheek.

“I really think I—”
“Whoa, you two seem close. I guess that rumor was just nonsense, huh?”
Before Luciard could finish his sentence, someone else’s voice interrupted.

Hestia and Luciard turned their heads quickly toward the voice.
Someone was leaning on the backrest between them.

“‘I really think I—’ What were you about to say? I’m curious. Go ahead and say it.”
This rude interruption was baffling. Who was this guy?

‘He looks… kind of familiar.’
‘Where have I seen that face?’
Brown hair and eyes, shabby clothes—he looked like an ordinary young man.
But his actions had a grace he couldn’t hide. He looked like a teenager, but his tone was strangely mature.
And he was too handsome to be just a commoner…

“Y-Your Maj—!”
“Emperor—!”
“Shh. No need to shout. I don’t want to cause a scene.”
When Hestia and Luciard realized who he was, they were shocked.
He quickly covered their mouths.

“You can stay quiet, right?”
He smiled brightly. Only when they nodded did he take his hands away.

“Phew…”
“Hah… How did you get here, Your Majesty?”
While Hestia caught her breath, Luciard whispered. Emperor Sylvester gave a cheeky smile.

“I came out on a little secret trip.”
“A secret… trip?”
They looked at him again. He did look like a commoner—if you ignored the noble aura.

“You even changed your hair and eye color… You were serious about this.”
“You’re not here alone, are you? It’s dangerous.”
“Of course I brought some guards. They’re probably watching from somewhere I don’t even know.”
Sylvester laughed, and Luciard looked around.

“So that’s why I kept feeling watched.”
A familiar face—Sir Karl—was in the nearby alley.

“But if it’s a secret trip, Count O’Clain didn’t mention anything.”
Kenneth, a close ally of the emperor, had come down to check the town.
If he had known, he wouldn’t have left the capital.

“Why do you think it’s called a secret trip? No one’s supposed to know.”
“So… no one knows you’re here?”
“I’m the emperor. I don’t need to report to everyone.”
Hestia and Luciard made awkward faces.

“Wait… Even the Grand Duke doesn’t know?”
“Right. He doesn’t. That’s why I could do this. He’s not around.”
“Not around?”
“There’s a new resort in the south. He got an invitation, so I told him to go with his family. He’s never really taken a break before.”
A new resort… maybe the one Count Humphrey redeveloped?

“Right after he left, I started preparing this trip. Once I take on the full duties of the throne, I won’t have time like this anymore.”
He looked like an excited kid, thrilled at a rare adventure.
Despite being nearly an adult, he still had that childlike wonder.

“I see… You do seem to be enjoying yourself.”
“At first, we had no idea who you were.”
“If I fooled you two, I’ll fool others too. As long as they don’t look closely.”
“Yes, Your Maj—”
“Ah ah, I’m on a secret trip. Don’t call me that here.”

Luciard and Hestia blinked and looked at each other.
“Then… what should we call you?”
“Hmm… How about ‘Sly’?”
“Sly… Okay, we’ll call you that.”
“But Sly, you might want to watch your words.”
“My words? Is there a problem with how I speak?”
“That’s exactly the problem.”

Even though Hestia pointed it out, Sylvester didn’t understand.

“The word ‘I’ you’re using—‘jim’—only emperors use it.”

“Oh.”
“Please use normal titles. And if you really want to go undercover, you should also change the way you talk. You sound like a middle-aged man.”
Sylvester looked deeply shocked, his mouth wide open and frozen in place.

Luciard poked Hestia in the side.
“…What if His Majesty gets angry at you?”
“Why? I just gave him practical advice. The way he speaks really isn’t normal.”
“Well, that’s true…”

Both of them looked at Sylvester with worried eyes.

“Middle-aged… man…”
The comment seemed to hit hard, especially for someone not even an adult yet. He widened his eyes as he came to his senses.

“Alright. I’ll try to change…!”

When Hestia and Luciard narrowed their eyes, Sylvester lowered his voice.
“…I’ll change.”
“That’s much better.”
“Now you sound more like someone your age, Sly.”
“Can I say one more thing? Since we don’t look that different in age, if I use polite speech, others might find it weird. Commoners don’t usually talk so formally to each other.”
“R-Really…?”
“Yes, so while people are watching, I’ll speak casually. That’s okay, right, Sly?”

Before getting permission, Hestia was already speaking informally. Luciard’s heart was racing.
‘Is she just brave, or does she have no fear?’
Did she forget that the man in front of her was the emperor?

Luciard glanced nervously at Sylvester. He looked a bit sulky at first, then shut his eyes tight.
“Fine, just this once!”
“Great. Luciard, you talk casually too.”
“I’ll… try slowly.”

Luciard couldn’t keep up with Hestia’s pace.

Sylvester quietly came over and sat next to Hestia on the left side of the bench.

“How is it, going undercover? Is it fun?”

Hestia asked so casually that Sylvester found it awkward but refreshing. It felt like chatting with a real friend for once, and it made him smile.

“It’s really fun! I’ve always been stuck in the palace, so coming outside is amazing. I can see how the people live.”
“I see. But why did you come all the way here? There are other places you could’ve visited.”
This place, after all, was Noveli Town—mostly full of refugees.

“I wanted to see how the refugees are living.”
Sylvester smiled softly.

“The first real task I ever led as emperor was the refugee issue. It was my first time handling something so big from beginning to end, so I was curious.”

Two years ago, during the Milky Way Festival, he had assigned Hestia and Kenneth to handle the refugee matter. But he had still researched a lot and often worked with Kenneth to figure things out.

Even though he had been emperor for a while, this was the first time he felt like he had truly done something emperor-like.

“Some people might think I care more about foreigners than our own people, but helping them is really helping my own people in the end. And through this experience, I can take better care of everyone else too.”

Looking at the people happily enjoying themselves in the town square, Sylvester smiled warmly.