[CHAPTER 141]
I stepped back into the warehouse.
Sylvia was still sitting on the floor with her palm pressed against the magic circle.
A faint blue mana flowed from her hand and gently spread along the lines of the magic circle.
As I moved closer, the intricate patterns of the magic circle became clearer and clearer.
Four mana stones were placed at each cardinal direction, and a circular magic formation was drawn at the center.
The patterns inside the circle were connected to one another and seemed to move slowly, like a single living organism.
“Is it going well?”
When I asked quietly, Sylvia took a short breath.
She braced her hand on the floor and checked the mana stones placed on the magic circle once more.
“Yes, it’s all finished now.”
Sylvia stood up and pointed at one of the mana stones with her fingertip.
“Thanks to that mana stone, the time was reduced drastically.”
“Even considering that it’s a portable magic circle, it was completed incredibly fast.”
“Normally, it takes an entire day.”
I listened to her explanation with interest.
“Is that so?”
“Installing a magic circle takes quite a long time, then.”
“It does take a long time, but…”
“Usually, a mage has to inject mana every time it’s used.”
“Magic circles made as magic tools can be used a couple more times, but still.”
“Anyway, this one connects mana stones that were preloaded with mana, so it should be usable for quite a long time.”
I examined the magic circle engraved before my eyes once again.
“Then this means you can go anywhere through it.”
“Can an ordinary person like me use it too?”
“Not yet,”
“but I think it’ll work if I make a startup switch so mana can flow.”
“The destination also needs to have a magic circle, and you need accurate coordinates.”
As she said that, she took out another small fragment of a mana stone and placed it at the center of the magic circle.
The unprocessed mana stone was rough and jagged, but it still seemed to fulfill its role well as it emitted a faint glow in response to Sylvia’s mana.
“I’ll go test it out.”
“Where to?”
“The mana stone cave.”
“I made a small one over there too.”
“I’ll be right back.”
“Huh…!”
Before I could say anything, a mass of white light wrapped around Sylvia and then disappeared.
In the warehouse, now settled into silence, I looked around for a moment, waited briefly, then awkwardly stepped outside.
The sun was setting, and layers of red sunset dyed the sky as it slowly sank into darkness.
***
Night had fully fallen.
The view outside the villa’s window was quiet.
The snow-covered garden, frost lightly settled on each branch, and the frozen fountain sparkling faintly under the moonlight all looked calm and peaceful.
Yet my heart, unlike that stillness, continued to waver endlessly.
I stood in the middle of the room and revisited the prophetic vision that had come to mind earlier in the day.
So in that scene… Vincent was standing in front of me, and it was dark outside the window.
If the prophecy was not showing a distant future, then today, or at the latest tomorrow, was most likely.
It was frustrating that I did not know the exact time, but either way, he was coming.
Before I realized it, I pressed my fingertips firmly against my chest.
My heart had been beating rapidly for a while now.
Will he really come?
The prophecy had never been wrong even once, yet strangely, I was trying to lower my expectations.
I thought it was because I was afraid of being disappointed if I hoped too much.
I took a sharp breath in.
“Did he… come?”
I struggled to suppress the sudden surge of anticipation and tension.
No, maybe not.
It could be that Sylvia had gone back for another check, or there could be another reason entirely.
But my heart was already giving its own answer.
This fast, pounding rhythm was blatantly revealing my expectations.
Should I go check…?
The moment I hesitated—
The window flew open.
“……!”
Cold night air rushed into the room in an instant.
Startled, I took a step back.
Through that gust of wind, Vincent grabbed the window frame and stepped boldly into the room.
“Amelia.”
Along with his low voice, his black cloak fluttered lightly in the wind.
The moonlight cast a long shadow, deepening his striking presence.
When I lifted my gaze, his eyes met mine directly.
The emotions dwelling in his emerald eyes were hard to read in the darkness.
But one thing was clear.
It was the gaze of someone who had found me in an instant.
“Y-Your…”
I stared at him blankly, as if I still could not believe it.
Vincent took a step toward me.
No, more accurately, he rushed toward me as if he were almost leaping.
I reflexively inhaled and stumbled backward, but Vincent reached me first and pulled me into his arms.
A cold yet burning warmth enveloped me.
His embrace tightened firmly around me.
“Amelia.”
His low voice echoed near my ear.
For a moment, I could not say anything and simply froze in his arms.
Outside, the wind continued to shake the window, and inside the room, only his rapid breathing rang in my ears, forcing me to acknowledge reality.
“Y-Your Highness.”
“I missed you.”
At his trembling voice, a scene from long ago, though not that long ago, came to mind.
It was the day, not long after I had awakened as Amelia, when I went to the Crown Prince’s Palace to see him after he fell from his horse.
Back then, he had said he missed me too, but I had not believed him at all and had even been afraid.
But now…
Nestled quietly in his arms, I slowly lifted my head.
Within his slightly disheveled, shining blond hair, I saw those beautiful emerald eyes.
As I looked into that flickering light, my chest fluttered as well.
A soft smile slipped out unconsciously.
“How did you come here?”
“You must be busy.”
I spoke as calmly and casually as I could, but his next action made it impossible for me to remain unaffected.
Vincent met my eyes, stepped back once, and suddenly knelt on one knee in front of me.
“Your Highness?”
“Why all of a sudden…?”
“A royal cannot kneel on both knees, so forgive me.”
“My heart, however, is already touching the ground with both.”
“What?”
“I’m sorry, Amelia.”
“I failed to show you my trust.”
“……”
To apologize like this was unfair.
If he did this, there was no way I could ever refuse him.
