TDAA Ch 37

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

The place where Ladie was located was Lord Meric’s office.

Lord Meric would always yield the seat of honor to Ladie, no matter where they were. He would casually stand behind Ladie like a subordinate or sit in a lower seat, making it clear to anyone that he was the princess’s inferior and the sword that supported her.

But not in this place. Lord Meric was sitting in the seat of honor in the office, and Ladie was sitting diagonally from him. As Siol, thinking it was strange, went to the seat across from Ladie, Ladie, perhaps noticing his confusion, explained first.

“It’s customary for the lord to sit in the seat of honor in the lord’s office, even if the king visits. I heard it has something to do with the title of lord appointed by the king, but there’s no way to confirm it now.”

Historically, customs were rarely created without any meaning. There were cases where the original meaning was distorted or lost over time, but it could not be a completely meaningless act. Since it was a custom that existed in a special land where the very meaning of a lord’s existence lay in maintaining the protective barrier, one could only think that there was some secret hidden within it.

And Siol, as an alchemist, was instinctively drawn to secrets.

Siol, with a curious face, slowly scanned Lord Meric’s ornate chair, which was carved with a sun. He felt as if he were being crushed by the sun. Anyone who came to this room to meet with the lord would inevitably be intimidated by the chair, which looked fit for a god.

Ladie pushed a piece of paper towards Siol, who was sitting in the chair opposite her. It was placed facing her, but Lord Meric intercepted it and turned it so that Siol could see it comfortably.

Siol took it and read through the contents.

“This is the remaining amount of wood.”

“Yes, I had them go to the remaining wood storage and count it. What do you think?”

“What do you mean, what do I think?”

“I don’t think the alchemy you showed me can be done indefinitely. Even when you were at the research institute, you would often fall ill after making some special tool. Within a range that doesn’t push you that hard, how much can you do?”

The reason he had occasionally fallen ill at the research institute was that Siol had (unreasonably) requested a transaction that could not be covered by the value of the offerings he sacrificed to the world. The world wanted to refuse, but Siol begged and pleaded until it had no choice but to grant his request. An unfair transaction would inevitably have an adverse effect on the alchemist, and as a result, Siol would fall ill.

Such transactions were dangerous alchemy that could, by a hair’s breadth, turn an alchemist into a monster or melt them into a pool of blood.

It had all happened because he had forced the alchemy while the offerings were precariously insufficient, and Siol had no intention of doing such a dangerous thing when he had plenty of magic stones and jewels to use as offerings.

However, explaining this would only get him scolded for what he had done back then, so Siol quietly estimated the numbers.

“What I did then wasn’t very difficult. If I use a magic stone each time like that, I could probably do it twenty times. But for things like this, it’s much more efficient to pile up a lot at once and request it all at once, rather than making small requests multiple times. In fact, when I was experimenting with one log at a time, the efficiency was double. The fact that I got more than five times the amount, even though I used a magic stone, was probably because it was a relatively large order. Or maybe the world or the delivery person was in a good mood…. Perhaps they gave me more to teach me that large orders are better.”

“…Master Siol. Your explanation of alchemy is a bit… difficult to understand, so just tell me what you want to do.”

Siol suddenly missed Burdril, who was in the land of the beastmen. If Burdril had been here, they could have had a more in-depth conversation.

Of course, he knew it sounded strange to suddenly talk about fairytales like deals with the world and deliverymen while discussing efficiency-related numbers, but that was the truth of alchemy.

“So… I need to experiment, but it seems doing it in large quantities at once is more efficient, so I’m asking you to prepare a lot of high-quality wood. I think… I can probably handle about ten times the amount from last time all at once. If possible, I’d prefer the wood to be whole, not split. I want to experiment because that might have a higher value.”

“And your limit, Master Siol?”

“I can do about ten times the amount from last time about eight times a day. With magic stones, of course.”

“That’s within a range where you’re not overexerting yourself, right?”

“Yes, this much should be fine.”

As Siol nodded and replied, Ladie frowned.

“I’m not very convinced.”

“I’ll tell you if I think it’s too much after I try. But isn’t it meaningless if I can’t produce enough for the entire domain to use? Rather than letting the Lord go on a dangerous path, it’s better to do it even if it’s a little risky…”

Suddenly, Lord Meric clicked his tongue with a displeased face. At his reproachful gaze, Siol flinched and quickly made an excuse.

“No, but since there are magic stones and jewels, I probably won’t have to push myself that hard. Of course, that’s if you give them to me…”

In truth, having lived a life of being overworked for a long time on Earth, Siol’s standard of ‘overexertion’ was different from that of an ordinary person. Even during the relatively comfortable time in the king’s glass garden and the not-so-short rest in the Blue Dragon’s arms while living in abundance, that alone had not changed.

Ladie and Lord Meric, who didn’t know these circumstances well, could still feel well enough just from the conversation that the alchemist before them did not take good care of his own body.

“Let’s try five times first. I’ll tell Luber to keep a close watch to make sure you’re not overdoing it, Master Siol.”

“What? Luber is such a slacker, I think his evaluation criteria would be too low…”

“That’s why he’ll be a good match for you, Master Siol, since you tend to overdo it. That’s why I assigned him to you in the first place.”

As Siol, who had inadvertently badmouthed Luber, paused, wondering if he had made a mistake, Ladie affirmed it nonchalantly. Hearing that answer, Siol’s heart grew even more anxious.

“But, what if we really run out of firewood?”

“Even if your limit is ten times the amount five times, it won’t be a big problem. That will be enough to last for a month or two for now, and it’s my job and Lord Meric’s to come up with another way within that time.”

“Why look for another way when I can solve it?”

“…Master Siol, why are you trying to solve everything by yourself?”

The moment Siol heard those words, he realized that this question was the very one that pierced his heart right now.

It was the identity of the anxiety that had gripped him since coming to this domain, and the reason he couldn’t stop moving to achieve more and more results even after taking the first step of achieving a pretty good outcome recently. The source of the impatience that he had to keep running, and running, and running.

“…Because I have to solve everything to be acknowledged.”

“Master Siol.”

“Only then can I kill Nanthiel even a day sooner, get revenge on the king, erase the name of the alchemist… of death, and after that…”

I can go back.

Siol clenched his fists to hold back the tears that suddenly welled up. Not only Ladie but also Lord Meric was here. He couldn’t carelessly show tears in a place like this. But no matter how hard he tried to clench his teeth and suppress his emotions, memories and longing kept stirring up sadness and turmoil in his heart.

He thought he was doing well, but he didn’t know why he had suddenly become like this.

Come to think of it, he had been fine until the firewood storage fire incident. But because he had dreamed of Eorzen that day, the emotions he had barely managed to lock away in a box kept popping out, growing bigger and bigger, until he could no longer close the box….

It was all because of that sweet dream.

On the day he was not in his right mind due to a fever, Eorzen, who had whispered that it was okay and hugged him, was vivid. So vivid that he couldn’t stop thinking about him.

The Blue Dragon’s warmth, the feel of his skin, his voice, the gentle embrace. The gentle hand that had stroked his forehead, the worried-looking eyes that had asked him to say whatever he wanted. The whisper asking him to go together, the suggestion that had surely been a representation of his own desires, kept dominating his mind and wouldn’t leave.

In that dream, Siol had repeated to himself over and over.

I can’t. I have responsibilities. I have things I must do.

He knew himself well. He was not a person who could endure by turning a blind eye to the misfortune caused by his own existence. Even if he were to return in this state, he would surely suffer from a sense of duty to resolve the things that had arisen due to his existence, just as he was now suffering from the desire to return.

In the end, he had no choice but to endure this pain. While fighting and fighting against the desire to go back.

Maybe, just maybe, I’m going crazy from wanting the Blue Dragon.

That’s why he couldn’t stop trying. Before he truly went mad, he had to hurry up and be acknowledged in this land, prove that he was not a murderer who had slaughtered the beastmen, and then go to the Blue Dragon and ask him to make him his alchemist as promised….

But what if he doesn’t accept me?

There were countless reasons for the Blue Dragon to dislike him.

Ladie had said that he was just a sword that had fallen to the ground, but some people hated swords and broke them. Even if the Blue Dragon didn’t do that, if even one of the many beastmen who protected the Blue Dragon’s side held such feelings, the kind Blue Dragon might willingly cast Siol aside out of consideration for them.

In the Tower of Survival, the Blue Dragon had learned the truth about the alchemist of death and apologized for the killing. But at that time, the man was not in his right mind, so maybe….

“…Siol…! Master Siol! Breathe!”

Siol, feeling a pat on his back, barely managed to exhale and lifted his head. His vision, which had been turning black, cleared up, and before him were the bewildered faces of Lord Meric and Ladie. He was out of breath as if he had just run a hundred-meter dash.

“…Sorry…. I’m sorry.”

Despite the reflexive apology, the two of them just stood there blankly, saying nothing. Siol hurriedly wiped away his streaming tears and shot up from his seat.

“I, I’ll go downstairs first. I’ll start work tomorrow, so please prepare for that, Ladie. Um… I’m sorry. I apologize, my Lord.”

Siol left the office and ran down the stairs, gritting his teeth to control the sudden surge of emotion.

This was clearly homesickness. The fact that he was homesick for the land of the beastmen, where he had only stayed for a few months, felt a bit ridiculous, but it was the first place Siol had ever felt at ease, so there was no rule saying he couldn’t be.

It wasn’t just Eorzen he missed. He wanted to see Ryufen, he wanted to see Asios, and he even wanted to see Burdril. It wasn’t just the beastmen; he missed Eorzen’s castle and all the time he had spent there.

Siol ran straight for the basement.

People who saw his tear-stained face, despite his attempts to wipe it clean, looked surprised, but he had no time to worry about such things. Right now, he needed time to be alone in a quiet place. And in this mansion, there was only one such space: the underground laboratory.

“Ma, Master Siol?!”

Luber, who had been mooching something off a passing servant on the first floor, saw Siol and, startled, chased after him. Ah, it would have been better if he had gone out to play. I’m in no mood to be nice right now. Siol gritted his teeth and leaped down the stairs two or three at a time.

“Master Siol, what’s wrong? Why, why are you like this? Is someone bullying you?”

Luber, who had caught up in no time, grabbed Siol’s arm, fidgeting right behind him. Siol reflexively shook him off, glanced at Luber’s surprised face, and ran towards the basement again.

Right now, he couldn’t help it even if Luber got hurt. Tears were falling, he couldn’t control his emotions, he wanted to smash everything, and sadness washed over him endlessly.

Most of all, he couldn’t bear the desire to leave the Meric territory right this instant and return to the city of the blue dragon.

Siol had the ability to act on that desire. That was the bigger problem.

Perhaps the reason he was running to the lab now was to lock himself away.

Kwaang!

Leaning his back against the violently shut door, panting, Siol soon slid down and sat on the floor. He gathered his knees, rested his face on them, closed his eyes tightly, and took slow, deep breaths. Gradually, he began to clearly feel his current surroundings. The cold stone floor, the musty smell, the smell of burning wood from the firewood, the shimmering sensation from the mix of cold and hot air, and—the touch of a small animal friend.

“…Little one….”

A harvest mouse that had approached at some point stood at his feet, looking up at him. Siol reached out his hand to the tiny friend. The harvest mouse, which had become quite friendly, climbed onto Siol’s hand.

Tadak. A small footstep was heard from beyond the door. Siol, clutching the harvest mouse to his chest, glared at the door as if facing some threat or attack. To be precise, at Luber who would be beyond it.

“Master Siol. If someone bullied you, I’ll scold them for you. I, I can do it. Did the Lord say something to you, Master Siol? I can even stand up to the Lord. I did it last time. If I did it once, I can do it twice. Should I go and hit him right now?”

When Siol didn’t answer, Luber continued to speak.

“If it’s not that, and you’re just… having a hard time, should we go play somewhere with a nice view? Do you want to go to the ice lake? It really makes you feel good when you go there. It might be a little cold, but it’ll be fine if we dress warmly. We can go skating there….”

“No, Luber. I just… want to be alone. You don’t have to worry. I’ll probably… be fine by tomorrow.”

Facing the large dog who, despite having the strength to tear down a wooden door like this with one hand, was just gently whispering about going to freshen up, Siol felt his heart soften a little. He even felt guilty for having perceived Luber’s presence as a threat just a moment ago.

“Then is there anything you need? If you think you’ll want to be alone until dinner… should I bring you something to eat?”

“No, I have plenty of food in my room, so it’s fine. I’ll heat it up myself if I get hungry. Just… let me be alone.”

“If you need anything, just tell me. Okay?”

“…Then… could you bring me a few bottles of wine?”

“Yes!”

After that, Luber ran off with a sniffle and returned a little later, leaving a wagon in front of Siol’s room. He warned him several times not to drink on an empty stomach.

About five minutes after Luber’s footsteps disappeared, Siol opened the door and was speechless to find hot meat pies, roasted chicken, dinner bread, sandwiches, and three bottles of wine on the wagon. Even though there’s already a ton of food in the room….

Still, he couldn’t just leave what was brought, so he took it into the room. Then he heard the sound of small footsteps receding in the distance. It seemed Luber had been waiting all along for Siol to take the wagon inside.

At the sound of those footsteps, Siol felt tears welling up again for some reason, an emotion that wasn’t quite sadness. There was no way to describe exactly what he was feeling. He was thankful and happy, so why was his throat getting choked up and tears streaming down?

Siol wiped his tears with the back of his hand, took the wagon to the fireplace, and opened a bottle of wine.

“What am I doing, acting like a child….”

As Siol stared blankly at the flickering flames of the fireplace, another tear trickled down his cheek. Siol wiped it away nonchalantly and downed a glass of wine in one go.

He felt so sorry for shaking off and being cold to the innocent Luber. He had taken his anger out on and even ignored a dog much younger than him, yet the mature Luber came to comfort him and even brought him food and wine. What had he done to such a kind kid? Self-loathing washed over him.

But what made him feel even more guilty was that Luber’s comfort hadn’t helped him at all, not even a little. To be honest, Luber’s presence was actually tormenting him right now.

In the land of the beastmen, there was Eorzen, whom he loved, and Ryufen, whom he disliked a little but was still on good terms with. They were precious people who had cared for him like family when he had fallen to rock bottom and had made him understand what affection was for the first time. Precious. Truly, precious.

The friendlier he became with Luber, the more enjoyable time they spent together, the more Siol had to realize that time flows and relationships change. Just as he was building a new relationship with Luber, Eorzen and Ryufen also….

He knew how childish this thought was.

But, he couldn’t help it. Siol had never once wanted not to be forgotten by someone. He had never once wanted to continue a relationship with someone forever. No matter how much of an adult he was on the inside, such a deep human relationship was a first in his life. Maybe he was only just now going through adolescence.

Suddenly something wriggled in his arms, and Siol, only then remembering the harvest mouse, lowered his gaze. The harvest mouse was looking up at Siol with its bright, clear eyes.

“…Do you know of the land of the beastmen?”

Siol poured another glass of wine and continued to talk while sipping it.

“There’s someone I like there…, and I’m so worried he’ll forget me. No, it’s not like we were in any kind of relationship in the first place….”

Saying it out loud made him think he was worrying about something truly trivial. It had been a long time since he decided to just become the blue dragon’s alchemist since he already has a mate, so why on earth was he worried about being forgotten? He wasn’t even a lover, so what was the point of worrying about feelings fading?

“I, I’m not usually like this. When I decide… when I make a conclusion, I’ve never really worried about it afterwards. It was like that when I started alchemy, and when the lab got smaller after my master passed away, and when I was tricked by the king and went to the research institute… I worried a lot before making a decision, but once I decided, I was fine. Since I can’t turn back now, I just have to run hard in the direction I’ve already decided on….”

Perhaps back then, the difference in value between the things he held in both hands was so great that there was no reason to have regrets later.

But this time was different. This time, Siol had no choice but to choose something of lesser value over something of higher value. Because his duty and responsibility were there.

“Yes, that’s what… it was. I… came here, leaving something precious behind….”

Siol muttered as he opened the second bottle of wine.

“That’s why I keep wavering like this, unable to find my way.”

There was nothing he could do about the heart he left behind, yet he was afraid of the possibility that just as Siol was slowly changing and building new relationships, the blue dragon and Ryufen would also be changing. He would imagine that they might be taking care of a new little wolf, and he would end up feeling lonely.

It was a reality he had to accept since he left the land of the beastmen in such a way, but he didn’t want to accept it.

“I’m so mean….”

He wasn’t like this originally.

From a very young age, Siol had been a mature child, a child who knew how to do everything himself, a very low-maintenance child. If he hadn’t been, he wouldn’t have been chosen by his master.

So why had he changed so much now? Why had he become unable to either accept or give up on the result of his choice?

“…Actually, I didn’t want to leave. But… if I hadn’t left, I might have suffocated to death there. So I had to come. If I hadn’t come, I would have definitely been crushed by responsibility and been a mess. It was right to come. I had to come. I had to….”

Even thinking back to that day, there was no option of not leaving. But today, there was no option of not regretting it. In the end, he was in a position where he had to make a choice he would regret, spend every day regretting it, and yet still fulfill his duties and responsibilities. All by his own choice.

Siol reached for the third bottle of wine but suddenly fell into a deep sleep.

There was a hand that gently caressed the cheek of Siol, who had fallen asleep rubbing his face on the carpet. The large hand wiped Siol’s wet cheek and then lifted him up. Siol only groaned a little, not waking from his sleep.

The blue dragon looked at his mate sleeping in his arms with greedy eyes. His eyes overflowed with deep desire and hunger.

Right now, Siol was vulnerable enough to be eaten.

His mate, who had been overflowing with firm will, was now revealing his bare body through his shattered armor.

If he were to caress his cheek like this, wake him up, and whisper to him, asking if he would not return with him, his exhausted mate would nod his head without resistance. Perhaps, soaked in sadness, he would blame him, asking why he came only now, and might even tell him to take him away.

Then, Eorzen would only have to soar into the air, holding the sobbing Siol tightly. And without dropping him from his arms, he would feed him, put him to sleep, kiss him, and hug him….

The blue dragon closed his eyes and smiled, imagining the time that would be filled with such happiness and satisfaction.

But then, an image flashed through Eorzen’s mind like lightning. It was the black dragon who, constantly anxious because he could not fully possess his mate, ended up hiding even the existence of the ice flower lake he had decorated because he hated his mate going out. The black dragon’s mate walking irritably, and the black dragon following behind, fidgeting.

When he was still a young dragon, he didn’t know it was such a miserable sight. To the point that between his father, who clung to his mother’s waist, crying and begging, and the flusteredly chasing black dragon, the black dragon’s situation seemed better.

But after meeting his mate, he thought about it and realized his father had confidence. He acted that way with the confidence that his lenient mother would look upon him favorably. It was a completely different situation from the trembling black dragon who had no confidence whatsoever.

Eorzen gritted his teeth and laid Siol down on the bed. Kneeling beside the bed, Eorzen pulled the thick blanket up to Siol’s chin and, pressing his forehead against Siol’s, leaned into that warmth to drive out the desire and hunger that had consumed his entire body.

When he opened his eyes again, only sadness remained in them.

“Right, I understand. Siol, you had to come, and I… had to chase you. It’s okay, Siol. You just do whatever you want.”

Siol’s closed eyes slowly opened. With a dazed look, he stared at Eorzen’s face, close enough for their noses to touch, blinked a few times, and then closed his eyes again.

He clearly thought it was another dream.

“I will chase you, so Siol, you can do whatever you want. You’re allowed to.”

Eorzen stroked Siol’s hair and whispered in his ear.

He had become an idiot, just as his father had said, and he now understood the difference between ‘fully possessing one’s mate and not fully possessing them,’ a phrase that was incomprehensible when he was a young dragon. He never wanted to feel like they weren’t together even when they were.

To achieve that, now was the time for patience.

“Sweet dreams.”

As he bid farewell to the gradually slumbering Siol, Siol’s hand suddenly grabbed his wrist and quietly pulled it under the covers. Eorzen looked at his captured hand with a surprised face, then smiled softly and rested his cheek next to Siol’s face.

And until his little wolf was completely asleep, he stayed by his side, murmuring the words he wanted to say.

⋆୨🔮୧⋆

As always, when the next day came, Siol became acutely embarrassed.

Though only a day had passed, the homesickness from yesterday had peacefully subsided to less than a quarter of what it was, and its place was completely filled with shame. It was so childish. To burst out crying in such a public setting and confess that he wanted to end it all quickly.

How old are you, Siyoon?

Siol berated himself, clutching his head.

Today, he wanted to lock himself in the lab and see no one. But he had already promised to start the alchemy for increasing firewood today, so he couldn’t stay away.

You’re an adult, so don’t lose to shame and get to work. Siol repeated to himself and took a deep breath.

“Master Siol…?”

“Huh? Oh?”

Luber, who had carefully opened the door and peeked his head in, asked cautiously.

“Can I come in?”

“…Luber, didn’t you used to say, ‘Why wait after knocking when you’re going to tell me to come in anyway’?”

“That was then.”

“Alright, come in.”

Luber came in with a grin and approached Siol’s bedside, but his expression suddenly hardened. His face contorted in what was almost horror, and Luber rushed past Siol to the window, stood on his tiptoes, and opened the small window. Curious as to what he was doing, he saw Luber grab a handful of the snow piled just outside the window and bring it to him.

“Your eyes are really swollen. Cool them down with this.”

“Ah….”

Indeed, his eyes felt stiff and uncomfortable to open.

Siol gently placed the snowball, which Luber had packed so tightly it was almost a chunk of ice, against his eye. The coolness felt good. Seeing Siol being obedient, Luber suddenly became cocky and started nagging.

“Gosh, if I had been here yesterday, I would have put a compress on your eyes before you went to sleep! You should have just let me in, thinking of me as the puppy next door. I really could have just laid on the floor and let you rub my belly without saying a word!”

Luber was still full of pride for his belly. Siol, feeling it was awkward to deny it, just nodded and looked away.

“I wouldn’t have been so upset if Master Siol had kicked out the harvest mouse too. What’s the difference between him and me? Why did you let him stay inside but not me? I’m, I’m closer to Master Siol!”

“Um… he’s just an animal.”

“If looks are the problem, I would have turned into a dog and followed you!”

Siol couldn’t help but be surprised by the simplicity of reducing the difference between an animal and a beastman to a matter of appearance. The truth was, yesterday the problem had been that he was getting too close to Luber. Thinking about it now, the reason was so petty that he was too embarrassed to confess his true feelings.

“…Next time I’ll come as a dog, so you have to let me in, okay?”

“Alright.”

“Or at the very least, you have to kick out that rat… harvest mouse! It hurts my pride too much to lose to him!”

“Fine, I get it.”

Siol placated Luber, who was showing a strange competitiveness towards the harvest mouse, by agreeing to everything.

While grumbling, complaining, and nagging, Luber was diligently heating up breakfast. When had the big-bodied puppy, who used to sneak into Siol’s room to steal his food behind Eriard’s back, turned into such a nagging maid? The whining like a little puppy was the same as before, but watching him busily moving about to make sure he ate felt strange.

Siol finished the breakfast Luber had warmed up and dressed warmly. He then followed Luber’s guidance to a warehouse in the mansion’s backyard, but he had to pause the moment he stepped inside.

Ladie was there.

Siol tried his best to control his expression to hide the new wave of embarrassment washing over him.

“H-Hi, Ladie!”

But it seemed he had failed from the first greeting. Ladie, who had been giving instructions to the beastman knights carrying firewood, turned to look at Siol and flinched. When Siol instinctively raised a hand to cover his eyes, Ladie averted her gaze, cleared her throat with a “ahem,” and approached him.

“Um… did you sleep well?”

“Mhm… Did you sleep well?”

“Yes, I slept fine…. About… yesterday….”

“I’m fine now!”

“What? Fine, that’s not something….”

“No, I’m really fine. Yesterday was just a sudden… moment. I’m okay now. Not sad at all, not depressed at all. You were probably taken aback by the unsightly scene yesterday, weren’t you? I’m so embarrassed.”

Siol spewed out his words as if to cut Ladie off, fanning his face with his hand. Seeing Siol, whose cheeks were flushed red and at a loss, Ladie couldn’t press him any further.

But she could be sure of one thing. Siol was absolutely not okay.

It wasn’t that he was pretending to be okay. He truly believed he was okay. He truly considered yesterday to be just a day when he suddenly felt a bit down.

But how could an emotion that had shaken a person so violently be fine in just one day?

It was absolutely impossible, but perhaps Siol had lived in a place where he had to be like that. A place where, no matter how painful and difficult things were, he had to pull himself together in a single day. So, even when he wasn’t okay, he tricked himself into thinking he was, and eventually, he himself came to feel that way.

Looking at Siol like that, Ladie felt an indescribable emotion.

Until yesterday’s incident, Ladie hadn’t realized how heavy the pressure and responsibility Siol was feeling were. She truly believed that the king was behind all of this and that his existence made everyone miserable. The technology Siol provided was just technology. The king would have committed the same acts he was committing now at any time, even without Siol. Perhaps if Siol hadn’t been there, he would have done so by putting the witch’s power at the forefront instead of disguising Nathaniel as an alchemist.

She thought Siol understood that fact as well.

“Master Siol. You are absolutely not….”

“Ladie.”

But Siol stopped her without even hearing her comfort.

“You’re being my maid, Ladie, right now.”

“…I am….”

It was a sharp point. At the rebuke asking where she had left Princess Ladie, Ladie froze as if she were ice.

But it didn’t last long. Ladie gritted her teeth, took a step forward, and grabbed Siol’s shoulders. Siol yelped in surprise and pain, but Ladie paid him no mind and snapped.

“Master Siol, I am a princess. But I decide where and what role I play. When Lord Meric and I were fighting, you told us not to fight because we think of each other as family, so why are you making me a princess now?”

“Uh…. Uh…?”

“Lord Meric is of course like an uncle to me and a precious person. But so are you, Master Siol. My teenage years were spent with you! Weren’t they?”

“Huh? Oh, uh, right…. I’m sorry.”

“…Don’t you ever talk like that again.”

“Okay, sorry…. It was my fault….”

As Siol apologized, looking nervous, Ladie finally stopped squinting at him.

“And, Luber said he brought you three bottles of wine yesterday. Don’t tell me you drank it all?”

“I only drank two bottles!”

“Two bottles is a lot. From now on, you can only drink up to half a bottle of wine a day.”

“No, half a bottle is gone if I just have one glass with each meal.”

“Accompanying every meal with wine is not good for your health.”

“What? Ladie, no matter how much you said you choose your own role, this is too much. There’s a difference between caring and meddling in every little thing. And what kind of princess meddles in how many glasses of alcohol her subject drinks? No matter what, you should maintain your dignity as a princess!”

“…That’s true too.”

Ladie, agreeing readily, motioned for Luber.

“Luber, you’ll be in charge of Master Siol’s diet from now on. Wine is limited to half a bottle a day. If he tries to eat only meat, encourage him to eat vegetables too, and prepare his meals so he can eat on time. He’s the type to skip meals, so if he’s doing something else during mealtime, you have to grab his pant leg and hang on until he eats. You can do it, right?”

“Yes, my lady!”

Luber answered excitedly, clenching his fists.

Siol watched from the side, dumbfounded, as Ladie passed on the duties she had undertaken as a maid at the research institute to Luber, one by one. It was as if to counter his protest that she shouldn’t act so much like a maid when she wasn’t one, by turning Luber into a maid. He had jokingly thought of Luber as a maid earlier, but he truly hadn’t expected this.

Why is Luber, a knight, so happily receiving that kind of handover?

After the handover, which had been going on for quite some time, finally ended, Ladie’s face looked much more refreshed.

“Alright. Now that the important matters are settled, let’s proceed with Master Siol’s alchemy.”

“Right….”