Episode 26
On the map depicting all continents and unexplored regions of the world, a star was marked on each continent.
Surprisingly, there was only one treasure per continent. Not more, not less.
And the final spring mentioned in the book had very little information. No—forget information—
“An unexplored region…”
The northern edge of the continent. A land completely engulfed in darkness, a realm of fear.
Over the centuries, many explorers had attempted to reach this uncharted land, but none had ever returned.
Rumors said that monsters even more terrifying than dragons existed there. But those were just rumors—something even worse could lie in wait.
“Why would Father hide a treasure in a place like this?”
Miel furrowed her brows. It felt like he was intentionally sending her into danger.
For now, she decided that the unexplored region would be the very last place she visited.
“At least Selu is close.”
The treasures were spread absurdly wide across the world.
If their locations had been just a little closer, she could have collected them quickly.
But they were scattered, far from one another, making it impossible to find them all at once.
Trying to collect all the widely dispersed treasures in one go would be a massive waste of energy and resources.
Instead, it would be better to base her operations around the Magic Tower and travel outward in intervals.
“There are one or two that are nearby, so I can go to them back-to-back.”
That was all. Still, she wondered—why had her father scattered the treasures like this? Miel paused to think. She was trying to understand her father’s true intentions.
‘Or… maybe Father didn’t scatter them. After so much time has passed, people may have moved them even farther… or maybe closer…’
She hoped they had moved closer. If not, the journey ahead would be even harder than expected.
While staring at the map and book, Miel turned her eyes to the calendar.
She needed to make a schedule. The princess’s birthday party was in a week. So, at the earliest, she would have to leave after attending the party.
‘I don’t know how long the trip will take… I need to inform Lulu and Rarama, and also tell Lady Shulien…’
After some thought, Miel picked up a quill and marked the calendar. The first journey was set to begin in ten days.
Just then, a knock was heard. Soon, the door to the drawing room opened. Of course, the one entering was Miel—the person Troy had been eagerly waiting for.
“Good day.”
Miel bowed politely and sat across from Troy.
Facing the real Miel, not just in imagination, his heartbeat skyrocketed. Troy tried to calm himself, pressing his lips down with his hand to suppress the smile forming.
“Have you been well?”
“Yes.”
“I heard you were unwell for a while, so I brought you a little gift.”
“A gift?”
Troy imagined Miel’s delighted reaction to his present. She would surely smile—beautifully and radiantly.
“Here.”
He handed her a box filled with apples. Miel opened it with a puzzled look.
Inside were shiny, red apples—top-quality, luxurious ones. Yet, Miel’s expression didn’t brighten.
‘What’s wrong?’
Something had gone wrong. Miel loved apples. According to Revina, she even once participated in an apple-eating contest.
“Thank you.”
Miel forced a smile and expressed gratitude, but it was obvious she was accepting it reluctantly. Troy realized he’d made a mistake.
‘Wait—could it be she got sick of apples after the contest?!’
He realized the obvious too late.
Even the apples he had given her last time were premium apples from Euro.
Damn it. What a foolish mistake!
“Miel…”
Troy cautiously spoke up. Just in case, he wanted to ask—maybe there was another reason?
“Did you grow to dislike apples?”
“Not exactly. I’ve just had too many lately.”
“I joined an apple-eating contest back home and ended up winning. They gave me a whole crate of premium Euro apples.”
No matter how much you like something, you’ll get tired of it if you eat it every day.
She was right. He’d made a stupid mistake.
Damn. He had just wanted to see her smile…
As his plan failed miserably, Troy’s shoulders slumped. Miel looked at him and offered a faint smile.
“But thank you for thinking of me, Your Highness.”
Her kind words made Troy lift his head slightly. His slumped shoulders straightened up again. He smiled brightly and replied,
“I didn’t give it to you just for the thanks.”
Still, the disappointment was clear on his face.
“Oh, here—it’s ready.”
Miel set down the book she had been carrying when she entered and pulled out a silk pouch.
Inside was a small crystal sphere, about the size of a fist. Miel handed it directly to Troy.
Troy inspected the sphere in his hands.
It was slightly smaller than a regular crystal orb, but didn’t seem all that different otherwise.
He couldn’t help but hum softly. His long fingers gently rolled the orb on the table, making a pleasant sound.
Just thinking about her lifted his mood.
Even if something bad had just happened, remembering her bright smile made his mind feel clearer and refreshed.
‘She’ll like it, right?’
A picturesque smile appeared on Troy’s face. On the table in front of him sat the box of apples.
It contained nothing else—just the premium apples he had brought as a gift for her.
A girl who loved apples couldn’t possibly dislike such a gift.
‘Now that I think about it… Princess Revina also visited the Magic Tower recently…’
Thinking of Miel reminded him of his younger sisters.
From the very first meeting, they had gotten along so well. Now they even visited her at the tower. Honestly, who were they trying to impress?
As he examined the sphere with a curious gaze, Miel spoke up.
“Before you use it, would you mind infusing it with your mana?”
Members of the royal family like Troy had mana within them.
That didn’t mean most royals could actually use magic. They had it, but couldn’t utilize it—it was like a chicken rib: not worth much, but you still hesitated to throw it away.
However, Troy was different. Since childhood, he had channeled mana into his sword.
A sword filled with mana became a magical weapon capable of cutting through anything and had brought him countless victories.
Miel knew this well. She wasn’t interested in the royal family, but she had read enough news articles to know. So Troy wasn’t surprised when he replied,
“Mana?”
“Yes. It needs to be attuned to your energy.”
Troy placed the crystal sphere on the table and rested his hand on top of it.
Closing his eyes, he slowly channeled mana into it. The orb began absorbing the mana.
“Now the user of this interpreter orb is officially the Crown Prince. When you need to use it, just infuse it with a bit of mana and place your hand on it. The magic will flow into your mind and convert the language.”
“Oh… how fascinating.”
“I’ll try speaking in Tart language. Could you test it?”
Troy nodded and infused it with mana again. A blue mist filled the orb, signaling it was ready.
Miel slowly spoke a few phrases in the Tart Kingdom’s language. Troy’s eyes widened.
“Oh. It really works.”
It felt as though someone was whispering the meanings directly into his mind. Even though the sentences were simple, the translation was remarkably accurate.
“As expected of you, Miss Miel. Not just the quality of the item—but you completed the request so quickly too. Thank you.”
“I’m glad you like it. If the orb has any issues later, please visit the Magic Tower again.”
“I will.”
Troy beamed and kept his hand on the orb, unable to let go. Then suddenly, he remembered—
He would soon have to leave the tower.
While Miel was handling his commission, he had planned to visit more often.
But as Crown Prince of the Empire, he was buried in paperwork, and had to squeeze in training sessions.
As a result, he hadn’t been able to visit the Magic Tower as often as he’d wanted.
‘I wanted to spend more time talking today…’
But the job was finished too quickly. He had hoped to chat for at least a few hours.
Just as he let out a sigh, Troy noticed something at the edge of his vision.
