"Someone will arrive from Silva soon."
Those were the words that Rosenta woke up to.
As Enoch said that his left eye was facing Rosenta, showing off its subtle hue.
He didn’t know if he was doing it on purpose, but recently Enoch's magic usage had been increasing.
But Rosenta couldn't say anything.
Enoch only used magic when it was related to him.
“……They’re riding the Jaguar from that time?"
"Yes, if they run all day and night, they might arrive tomorrow."
Rosenta reached out.
"I see."
It was just a moment. He gently pressed his hand over Enoch's left eye. He was preventing him from using any more magic.
Only after he did that did he calmly withdraw his hand.
Enoch didn't grab his hand; he just looked at Rosenta with his calm, pale green eyes.
Then, after a long pause, he said.
“……It’s fine to use magic here."
"Familiars leave traces and Young Lord Marigold asked me to be careful so that your presence is not discovered."
It was written in a letter Lysander sent through Vivian. It was only after seeing it that Rosenta knew.
He’d had no idea until then.
If he thought about it, of course, familiars were a part of the wizard. So, it would make sense that they would leave magical traces behind...….
He remembered all the help he had received from Enoch through his familiars.
Of course, he felt it would be okay because the crows fly in the air.
There still would have been some risk.
"Please refrain from using it in the future."
After speaking in an almost formal manner, he turned away from Enoch.
But Enoch grabbed his wrist.
An incredibly mournful voice came out of Enoch's mouth.
“……I wanted to help you."
"No."
He took his wrist out of Enoch's hand and faced him.
He spoke in a cold voice, without any emotion.
"Stay still. That's the most helpful thing you can do."
A normal person would have been hurt, but this was the only way.
He had to stop Enoch.
Enoch would do anything for him, even if he was overworking his body.
Enoch was no different from him.
Just like he was willing to do anything for Vivian and Theodore...….
Enoch felt the same towards him.
“……Enoch."
His unprovoked affection that Rosenta had encountered for the first time in a place where there were only adults trying to use him.
The person to whom he freely poured out that affection.
Enoch would do anything to receive that affection in return.
He understood Enoch's mind.
As a result, his heart was heavy, and he was worried and felt pity.
He hoped Enoch would be happy. He wanted him to be able to go out into the world proudly without hiding anymore. He hoped he’d make friends.
It was his wish.
"Please...… Don't do anything."
The corners of his mouth kept trembling.
He quickly turned to hide the tremor.
"Then I'll go meet Aphra for a while. Until then, you...….”
Suddenly, a purple veil fell over his head. The lace obscured his view.
Slowly, he pulled it off his head.
"It's a gift."
“……This is the veil from that time."
It was the white veil that he had prepared to give to Yura.
The veil that he’d given to Enoch when he no longer desired to give her a gift.
The veil was now purple and in his hand.
He stared blankly at Enoch, clasping the veil.
Enoch smiled languidly and reached for him. He touched him.
At first, he gently swept the area around his eyes. Later, he started smoothing his navy-blue hair.
"Your eyes will appear a dull purple color. Your hair will also look purple."
"Did you prepare it in advance?"
Dyeing the veil and adding new magic would only have been possible if prepared in advance.
‘When did you prepare this?’
"Yes, I thought you'd like it, but it's a shame."
His indigo hair fell from Enoch's fingers.
As Rosenta was watching that happen, Enoch took the veil.
Then he put it back on Rosenta’s head.
“……because I won't be around to see you use this."
He stared at Rosenta intently, as if he was regretful and wanted to preserve his current state in his eyes.
Then he muttered something.
Rosenta didn't hear it in detail because Enoch mumbled like he was talking to himself.
"As expected...… I'm going to tear it all down."
***
It was as Enoch had said.
By dawn the next day, a jaguar had arrived at the delivery office.
Aphra headed straight to the office.
He only left a message asking Rosenta to come out of the castle in an hour.
His involvement in this matter could not be known. This had to be seen as the first official business of the ‘delivery’ service.
So, things had to be done solely in the office, not in the duke's castle.
"Enoch, I'll be back in two days, so please make sure no one notices my absence."
If they moved quickly, Deutschen would be a two-day round trip.
So, he hadn’t told anyone except Edmund and Enoch.
Two days was a short enough time that people would think, 'The Duke is locked away on the top floor again.'
"If anything happens, consult Edmund."
As worried as he was, he kept nagging Enoch.
Then he saw three wagons approaching the entrance of the castle.
It was a skeleton in armor and Aphra.
"Get in!"
Aphra waved at him.
He quickly got into the back seat of the wagon. However, he continued to worry about Enoch.
"When we go, don't forget to feed the guards the antidote."
In fact, the guards were dozing off, leaning against the wall of the entrance.
It was the influence of sleeping pills that were pre-fed to them by Enoch.
"Is that all you have to say?"
At the end of that, Enoch squinted in discontent.
Rosenta shook his head.
He then said what Enoch probably wanted.
"Wait for me. I’ll come back."
“……Yes."
He could see the tail of his slender eyes slithering down.
Rosenta also had a smile on his face.
Then he shut the door of the carriage and gave orders to the skeleton driving the carriage.
"Let's go to Deutschen."
The wheels of the carriage rolled.
Along with that, Aphra's chatter began little by little.
"The skeletons have no ego, but they do well when they are given commands. So, I gradually gave them the maps I drew...….”
Rosenta reacted by nodding or shaking his head blankly.
That's how the chat continued.
He started to feel sick, and he was confused whether this was motion sickness or sickness because of Aphra.
In the end, it wasn’t until after arriving near their destination that Aphra's mouth closed.
"Oh! We're here!"
In front of the entrance to Deutschen, the carriage stopped.
Aphra jumped out of the wagon at once.
"Duke? Are you not getting off?"
Aphra was puzzled to see Rosenta not getting out of the carriage.
There was a reason.
Because he had no intention of shamelessly meeting others.
He didn't want the name 'Rosenta Estella' at the center of the situation, and he wanted to live a comfortable, normal life.
So, he had no choice but to make a decision.
"Aphra, I have something to tell you."
A way to make sure other people didn't notice that he was the Duke of Estella.
He would change his gender and appearance.
"I'm going to take off all these magic tools right now and go back to my original appearance."
He thought Aphra would be flustered.
But even when he was done talking, Aphra was nonchalant.
He didn't even ask what his "original appearance" was.
He simply laughed.
Then, in return, he uttered a question that surprised Rosenta.
"Oh! As a girl?"
***
As the days went by, Theodore's treatment of Yura was as cold as ice.
Yura became increasingly sensitive.
People were gossiping that His Majesty had changed his mind.
In the end, she continued to send letters to the Pope, imploring Conitel.
But Conitel never replied. Until yesterday.
"Saint, the Pope has written...….”
Even though the maid's words were barely out, Yura roughly snatched the letter.
Then, with urgent hands, she roughly tore open the envelope.
After reading the contents of the letter in a hurry, Yura's expression gradually became mysterious.
There is no solution, so leave and come to the Holy Land.
It was futilely short.
However, Yura read despair in the short message.
The despair that Theodore and the people here would never see her with the same eyes as before.
"His Majesty, I must go see His Majesty."
"What? But His Majesty has been concentrating on his work for a while...….”
"Focusing on his work?"
For the first time, Yura properly expressed her feelings without caring about the eyes of the maids.
She put on a very fishy smile.
Then she spat out the derisive words.
"He’s focusing on his work by calling on the Duke and Young Lady? Do you think I’m an idiot?"
Yura jumped forward without waiting for the maids.
She walked so fast that they could not easily follow.
Yura's destination was Theodore's office.
"Open the door."
"No. I told you no one’s allowed in the office...….”
The cheek of the servant, who was guarding the door, suddenly turned at the hands of Yura.
"Get out of the way."
“……I'm sorry."
"Are you defying the words of the saint?"
Then she raised her hand again.
This time, she swung her hand hard, as if she were about to slap the other cheek.
But before she could slap the servant’s other cheek, she was blocked by Theodore.
"Saint! What are you doing right now?"
"I needed to see His Majesty...…. It's an urgent matter, but the servant kept blocking me…….”
Yura cried.
Theodore did not soothe her, even when he saw her tears.
He only pointed out more sternly,
"The royal office is where all the official paperwork is. It's a place where others have to refrain from entering even when they’re with me."
Then, he turned his back on Yura.
It was like giving the order to leave the front of his office.
Yura's eyes gradually turned red. But she didn't leave.
She was standing firmly.
Then she shouted at Theodore, who had turned his back to her as if she were angry.
"From the Holy Father! I received a call. He said he needed me! Your Majesty, Your Majesty, don’t you still...….”
Her question was not even complete.
But Theodore turned as if he knew what she was about to ask.
He answered her calmly while looking into Yura's black eyes.
"It doesn't matter, do as you wish."
It was a very casual voice.
There was nothing that represented Theodore's feelings more than that.