Calyx rearranged the messy bouquet again and handed it to Rosaline.
“A present, Sister.”
“It smells nice.”
Rosaline inhaled the fragrance as she hugged the bouquet. It wasn’t anything to eat, but she seemed very satisfied with the scent.
“Oh, right. I learned this from Raymond.”
Rosaline immediately took a flower from the bouquet, broke its long stem in half, and finely placed it behind Calyx’s ear.
“Beautiful.”
“…”
Rosaline smiled so brightly that Calyx couldn’t say he didn’t like it.
‘R- Raymond, this guy…!’
Calyx’s expression contorted for a moment, but he was quick and proficient in calming his emotions after having dealt with Rosaline for so long. ‘There is no flower behind my ear, and people are looking at me… because I’m handsome.’ He had to pretend to be a little crazy and make a self-suggestion; fortunately, it was somehow comforting to his heart.
[T/N: Iris the Editor says that in S. Korea a flower behind the ear signifies that someone is crazy… I didn’t know that before :rofl:]
Calyx tried to shift onlookers’ attention and also pulled out a single flower from the bouquet. He removed the stem, the leaves, and even the flower petals before putting the remaining bud to Rosaline’s lips.
“Suck on this a little.”
Rosaline, who just stared at his actions blankly, grabbed the bud and lightly sucked on the back of the flower stalk. ‘Hoh, this is…!’ Rosaline’s eyes widened.
“This is the essence of the honey that goes on top of pancakes.”
“This is very… very wonderful, Calyx,” Rosaline repeatedly expressed her admiration.
In the same way, she ate every single flower of the gigantic bouquet she was holding. One adult man and woman were doing what young children would while strolling around. The older people looked at them with warm eyes, as if the siblings had turned into puppies.
The gentle gaze of the people suppressed the shame that swelled inside Calyx. In Illavenia, demons, or mages, are scarier than murderers and more sinister than plagues. Even though Rosaline had saved the life of the 2nd Prince Ricardis, this did not change that perception.
However, the emotional reunion with her family and their friendly stroll seemed like the right actions to break people’s perceptions. Calyx walked around enduring this shameful situation with a flower behind his ear because he noticed this atmosphere.
‘If things continue going well like this, why would I mind putting a hundred more flowers behind my ears? A mission is a mission, so there is no reason to be ashamed!’ Calyx completed his rationalization.
“Oh, Young Lor-”
The knights who had scattered to find Rosaline finally found the siblings. They raised their hands in greeting but then haphazardly put them down again. The Young Lady was biting a flower and sucking it, while the Young Lord had a flower behind his ear.
‘Come to think of it, wasn’t there something we needed to do before?…’ The knights immediately disappeared as if they had never known this Young Lord and Lady. Calyx trembled at their betrayal.
“…!”
While Calyx shivered with a sense of betrayal, Rosaline’s gaze instantly pierced through the street full of people. Tall and short people, fat and skinny people; it was a noisy space with a dizzying number of footsteps as people dealt with their circumstances. Rosaline felt a wave of familiar energy in the hundreds of human signatures, and she sharpened her five senses. Macaron also wriggled in her pocket.
It wasn’t close by, but she felt power in a boy who pretended to bump into a passing man in order to steal his wallet. It was a momentary and very slight ripple, but Rosaline and Macaron did not miss it.
As pure mages, they were not artificially created like the demons of the Black Moon. The boy’s magical power was harmonious: it did not go against the life force inside his body. ‘They’ had no life, but that point aside, it was safe to say that ‘They’ and the boy had similar natures. Moreover, since life had already begun to combine with the present Rosaline, their energies had to feel even more similar.
“Sister, is there something wrong?”
Rosaline didn’t answer for a while and just watched the alley where the pickpocket boy had disappeared. Calyx looked at her silently. As usual, there was no emotion on her calm face, but something deep inside her eyes swayed like a blue wave in the wind.
Rosaline answered a moment later, her gaze still on the dark alley.
“I saw a mage.”
She was debating whether to pursue him or not. Rosaline spoke bluntly, but Calyx changed his stance in an instant. Although his sister was unaware, it wasn’t good to be on a crowded street in a situation where they weren’t sure if the enemy was near.
“Let’s go to the castle and talk. I’ll call the carriage.”
Calyx blew his whistle three times. The Knights of Radwiell, scattered here and there, surrounded the siblings. Dyed red, the setting sun shone over the busy streets where people came and went. Rosaline paused to watch the scene before Calyx grabbed her hand and pulled her away.
***
Count Drythorne came out to the castle gates to meet the siblings, then roared with laughter because of the single flower behind Calyx’s ear. How inconsistent it was with his domineering face.
Moreover, it was obvious this funny thing was Rosaline’s work, making his efforts to keep the flower and not hurt his sister’s feelings both cute and endearing. Cecil gasped and laughed while holding the shoulder of the Knight of Drythorne standing next to her. Calyx was shamed by her laughter-induced tears, but in the end, he still couldn’t remove the flower with his own hands.
Cecil didn’t invite Calyx to a meal or party because she thought he must have been exhausted from the long journey. It was a thoughtful gesture coming from someone who was not considerate enough to avoid laughing at a person’s appearance.
“Oh, it wasn’t a demon of the Black Moon, but just an ordinary mage?” Calyx asked as he sat down on the sofa.
“Mm-hmm, just a normal mage, and he stole someone else’s wallet.”
‘That bastard, showing a bad example! I’ll catch him and hand him over to the guard’s station. And then…’
“There have always been rumors that Vista has a lot of demons. I guess it’s true.”
There were a lot of rumors, but it must be the truth. Where have all the mages gone? Some died, and some ran away. Among those who fled, more than half went to Balta. In any case, it was accurate to say their kind was difficult to see in Illavenia.
But if one were to ask the old people, ‘Where can I find mages?’, they would all point to Vista. The closer to the capital, the stronger the Imperial power. Conversely, the farther away, the weaker the Imperial power was.
Vista, the territory farthest from the capital, perfectly met that requirement. It was the place for those who wished to live in wars and battles for the glory of Idelavhim and Illavenia. But what good is Idelavhim on the ground? ‘If I can win, I’ll even borrow the power of magic!’ Thus, Vista had the perfect conditions for mages to live, as it was a land where even such brazenly told stories spread.
There were many powerful knights and mercenaries under Drythorne— any one of them could be a mage hiding his identity, but as long as Cecil concealed it, no one would know.
“I hear there are people who are active as strong warriors, but they sneak around in the shadows more often. They take advantage of their physical strength… to do bad things…”
After talking about the fact that there are many mages in Vista, Rosaline looked out the window. It was as if Rosaline looked out at a distant mountain, or she could see the faraway people who looked like tiny dots.
Calyx had never really thought about it. What kind of existence was Rosaline to him? Even though there was a big difference between a human and this unknown being, he could not shake the idea that the mage and Rosline were somehow closely connected. Perhaps it was because they had a similar kind of power.
“Sister, by the way…”
Calyx parted his dry lips and stuttered when he opened his mouth. He realized it was not something he should say in such a grave situation, but…
“Mm-hmm?”
“That… Uhm… What is… that mouse?”
Calyx was so concerned about the mouse on her shoulder that he had to break Rosaline’s deep contemplation. The posture of the tiny beast, standing on its two feet with its chest puffed out, was very unique. Rosaline glanced at the mouse on her shoulder with a look that said, ‘Oops, I forgot.’
“Macaron, this is my brother, Calyx. Calyx, this is my friend, Macaron.”
Calyx was shocked: he had educated his sister that it is polite to introduce a person of low status to a high-status person first and then introduce the high-status person to the low-status person. She wouldn’t have forgotten that lesson with that brilliant brain, so his sister was now treating that gray mouse as a creature with… status.
Now that he thought about it, he had heard the name Macaron from Count Drythorne. Wasn’t it the clever eagle that played chess?
“Isn’t Macaron an eagle?”
“That’s right. It’s large and nice.”
Rosaline boasted to Calyx proudly. Calyx felt a big problem with his sister’s speech. Her answer was so short that he couldn’t understand it. And when involved with Rosaline, you can’t solve many things with brief responses.
“It’s my kin.”
Ahh… Now Calyx understood. Macaron, which used to be an ordinary pet mouse, now started to feel terrifying.
Calyx wasn’t the only one who felt awkward. Macaron was startled and jumped up and down on Rosaline’s shoulder. Then Macaron slammed into Rosaline with its grain-sized paws as if saying, ‘Crazy, this wench is crazy!’ Rosaline, on the other hand, just carefreely untied her boot laces.
