Chapter 080
“Are you almost ready to leave?”
“Yeah. There’s really not much to pack, so I don’t need to do much.”
In response to my question, Joy awkwardly scratched his head and turned his gaze toward one side of the garden.
With less than a week left before he would leave this place, I wanted to have more conversations during the remaining time, so I had just settled at the garden table.
Just then, a soft voice echoed through the garden.
“Oh, what a coincidence! Is that you, Duchess? It’s a pleasure to see you again.”
Turning toward the voice, I saw Bjorn smiling warmly as he walked over with a knight who seemed to be his escort.
“Your Highness.”
“I felt drawn to take a walk this way. I guess I wanted to meet the duchess.”
His friendly remarks made me stand up with an awkward smile plastered on my face.
“The weather is nice; how about having a cup of tea?”
“That sounds good.”
I couldn’t refuse outright, so I agreed, and the knight behind Bjorn stepped forward and said,
“I’ll accompany the duchess’s attendant.”
“Huh? Me? Oh, yes.”
When the knight suddenly pointed to him, Joy looked flustered, but he ultimately succumbed to the knight’s imposing presence and followed him.
As Joy and the knight disappeared into the garden, a brief silence settled between Bjorn and me.
‘I’ve never had a conversation like this with him in my previous life.’
I considered adopting a friendly demeanor but hesitated, thinking of Delos; I felt it was best not to speak too hastily.
At that moment, a small laugh came from in front of us.
“You might be wondering what kind of conversation the duchess and I could possibly have to suddenly be in this situation, right?”
“Haha, that can’t be true…”
His words hit too close to home, so I just mumbled a vague response with a forced smile.
Bjorn shrugged and continued casually.
“I just came to see if you two are really getting along well.”
“It seems you care a lot for Evan, to come all the way to the duchy like this…”
“Pfft.”
I was responding seriously to Bjorn’s words when he suddenly burst out laughing. I stopped mid-sentence, staring blankly at him. He was laughing so hard his shoulders shook.
“Um, I’m sorry.”
After finally stopping his laughter, he clasped his hands together and leaned closer to me.
“I do care a lot for Evan, but if he knew, he would probably hate it.”
Bjorn leaned his face on his hands and looked straight into my eyes, muttering nonchalantly.
Then he tilted his head back and began to admire the calm sky.
“It’s peaceful.”
Somehow, it felt like he was speaking of a place a bit farther away, rather than this very spot.
After gazing at the sky for a while, Bjorn suddenly asked an unexpected question.
“Do you know much about herbs?”
“I don’t know in detail, but I have some knowledge.”
I wanted to ask why he was asking such a thing, but I answered sincerely for the time being.
“If so, could you take a look at these herbs for me?”
He took out three different herbs from his pocket and placed them on the table.
‘What is this situation?’
I felt flustered, but it seemed like a situation where I couldn’t refuse, so I began to examine the herbs he had laid out slowly.
Having learned from my mother over her shoulder, I felt quite confident in my knowledge of herbs.
“These two are herbs commonly used in making magical potions. The other one is new to me; what is it?”
“Well, I hope you can figure that out starting now.”
“Excuse me?”
As I was examining the unfamiliar herb closely, I raised my head suddenly, wondering if I had misheard Bjorn’s words.
But Bjorn smiled, as if confirming that I had heard him correctly, and continued speaking.
“It seems that you are the only one suited for this task.”
“What do you mean…?”
“Recently, I received a suspicious letter.”
At that moment, Bjorn took a letter from his pocket and placed it in front of me.
‘This is…’
The moment I saw the letter, I couldn’t help but close my mouth tightly.
The suspicious letter he received anonymously was none other than one that I had sent.
“Well, it says that within half a year, the Empire’s sun will lose its light due to an incurable disease.”
How dare he! Although his face was smiling, there was something chilling in his voice that sent shivers down my spine.
“But what’s even more curious?”
“…What is it?”
“The truth is, His Majesty’s health has been gradually deteriorating, albeit slightly.”
Bjorn leaned forward, whispering softly as if sharing a secret.
“And these herbs are the ingredients used in the medicine that His Majesty always takes.”
He lamented how difficult it was to figure this out.
With Bjorn right in front of me, seeking my response about whether this was suspicious, I couldn’t stop my trembling gaze.
‘What? He couldn’t possibly know I sent the letter. Is he testing me?’
The palace had several special devices installed to secretly receive external correspondence.
One of these methods involved using magic to send letters, which required knowing the exact coordinates inscribed in the palace, making it impossible for anyone other than the palace owner and their close aides to know.
Having accidentally seen documents related to the palace in Delos’s office, I had sent a letter to Bjorn’s palace through this very method.
“Can I ask why you’re telling me such an incredible story?”
I asked him with a shocked expression, trying to manage my astonishment.
I was certain that he wouldn’t ignore the contents of the letter I sent, as it was delivered with utmost secrecy to the royal family. I hoped this would encourage him to actively involve himself in the succession of the throne.
I intended to change the future gradually along a safe path without putting those around me in danger, but I never expected to face such a situation suddenly.
“Well, who knows?”
His response to my question about the reason turned back into a question.
As the tension in the atmosphere thickened, I bit my lip to suppress my anxiety.
“Aren’t you curious about who is truly behind Delos?”
“What do you mean…?”
I asked back, surprised by his words, but Bjorn only smiled lightly and remained silent.
“One thing is certain: the Duchess and I are allies facing the same enemy.”
His evasive manner in answering while skillfully avoiding the core of my questions added to my confusion.
“Can we consider this a secret between just the two of us, something Evan doesn’t know? The more people who know, the worse it becomes.”
“….”
His attitude was distinctly different from before.
And his ambiguous tone suggested he knew something.
Considering his demeanor, I could only arrive at one hypothesis.
‘Does this man also know the future?’
If that were not the case, he wouldn’t have come to me with such certainty.
I held my breath, fearing that the sound of my rapidly beating heart might be audible to him.
He watched me intently with a serious expression and then added in his characteristic soft voice.
“You’ll soon hear some interesting news from the capital.”
I looked at him, wondering what he meant by that.
But he raised both hands, shaking his head with a bright smile.
“That’s still a secret.”
He then stood up, brushing himself off as if he needed to leave.
“Oh, and if you find out anything about the herbs, please go to this address and look for someone named Terry.”
Before leaving the garden, he handed me a piece of paper with an address written on it.
He spoke as if he was certain I would take on this task.
“If you come here, you’ll be able to meet me anytime. You have a face full of questions, and I hope we can talk more openly then.”
Bjorn left the garden, leaving behind words that ignited a flame of certainty in my doubts.
midori
thanks! this bjorn is but a plot device…but you’re taking away my ship’s moments! angry!