(EP-184.1) And Take #3
184 – Give and Take #3
I’d had quite a few guests in my room.
Elga often barged in here as if it were her own, and Mirna and Professor Stella Bellhawk had also visited.
While their sudden visits in the past surprised me, there had never been a time when my heart sunk more than today.
“Theo, I asked where you went and why are you only back now. You’re well aware that I don’t like repeating myself.”
Queen Aira was sitting on my bed, with her legs crossed.
It was almost as if she owned the room while I was the unexpected guest, coming without warning.
… This was still my room, right?
I looked around in a panic, but seeing my belongings filling every corner, this was undeniably my personal space. Realizing this fact, Calm Thinking was triggered.
“Queen Aira, I was out fulfilling my duties. So, what brings Aira-nim here? If you had informed me in advance, I could have tidied up the room to your liking.”
My room was relatively clean since I was not around much and only slept here.
However, there might be some questionable items that Elga had brought in or that Aira might find unacceptable.
─Fairy Eyes-!
I focused the senses on my eyes and carefully scanned every inch of the room. Fortunately, there were no Elga’s underwear or awkward items left behind, like some stockings.
Follow on NovᴇlEnglish.nᴇtThank god!
Breathing a sigh of relief, I spoke up again.
“The room was locked, you must have struggled quite a bit to get in.”
I pretended to congratulate Aira for her hard work, while secretly criticizing her for unlocking my door and barging in. Unfortunately, Aira didn’t seem to catch on.
“There is no lock that I cannot open. So, Theo, what did you talk about with that girl, Serazade?”
“…….”
She actually went straight to the point.
I began to wonder if Aira had attached a spider to my body. Otherwise, how could she have known that I had met with Serazade.
“You knew?”
“I am a wise Queen. A wise queen knows everything happening in the world. So, Theo, did Serazade play tricks on you?”
“It wasn’t like that. She just wanted to hear about the future in exchange for something called ‘stalaktos dew’ .”
Mumbling.
I laid out everything lest Aira would misunderstand. Hearing the story, Aira seemed relieved, saying, “So it wasn’t a big deal.”
And seeing this, I was surprised. This was the first time something like this had happened.
Had Aira ever reacted like this with Mirna or Elga?
“Serazade, that woman, is like a snake. It would be wise to be cautious, she might bite your ankle and sink her fangs. So, is that all you’ve discussed with Serazade?”
At Aira’s question, I recalled Serazade expressing her desire to grow taller and asking if I had any intention of going to Tureuki’s court.
The matter about wanting to grow taller was a secret between the two of us, which would be awkward to talk about. As for sharing that she scouted me, I was worried that Aira might react strongly.
Aira’s mental state had been doing well these days. Just thinking about how all the progress would go in vain made me dizzy.
“There’s more.”
Then Aira spoke to me in a soft voice.
“As expected. Go on, tell me~.”
Aira was stroking my hair, urging me to talk more. If I continue to hide it like this, her anger might just get directed at me.
“Then please don’t misunderstand or get angry.”
“Theo, you know that I’ve never misunderstood or gotten angry when listening to a story.”
“…Serazade-nim asked me if I had plans to go to Tureuki’s court.”
“Hmm, I see. She said that…”
That was the end of Aira’s words.
“…….”
“…….”
Neither she nor I said anything.
My Half-Fairy senses warned me that Aira was furious and was on the verge of erupting, but her expression remained remarkably calm.
Follow on Novᴇl-Onlinᴇ.cᴏmThen Aira asked.
“So, Theo, what’s your answer?”
“I was planning to refuse, of course. My place is in the Angmar Palace, next to Queen Aira.”
“I see… But, Theo, I respect your choice. I wouldn’t mind too much if you went there.”
“… Really?”
I was a little surprised. I couldn’t believe that Aira would allow me to go somewhere else. It seemed that the peaceful days we had spent at Ark actually left a great influence on her personality.
Aira then laughed with a beautiful smile.
“Well, if Theo plans to go, then can’t I, Queen Aira, just take over Tureuki’s court?”
“… What do you mean?”
“I’ll send a carrier piegon to Reinhardt and have him form an expeditionary force to invade Tureuki. After all, the time has come to put an end to the long-standing dispute between our two countries~.”
“…….”
If I changed my affiliation, she was just going to take it over. Aira hadn’t changed. No, she had changed, but I didn’t know if it was all good.
“Then bring me pen and paper, and the royal seal.”
“Are you really going to war with Tureuki?”
“Yes, with the Empress and Prince Kasim out of the country, don’t you think that now is the opportune time for an invasion?”
Hearing such, my eyes darkened.
Edited by: faker