Chapter 100
The content of the letter Kaien received from the Crown Prince was as follows:
There was a sorcerer hiding among the temple’s group, who had entered the northern castle with them.
A total of twenty individuals were sent from the temple. Excluding Nadia and Winston, who were the least likely to be sorcerers, this meant that there was a sorcerer among the eighteen others.
“Did you notice anything unusual while searching their belongings?”
At Kaien’s question, Theodore shook his head.
“No.”
In fact, it was impossible to find a sorcerer just by searching their belongings.
Sorcerers don’t have any obvious physical traits, nor do they carry items necessary for casting spells. All that’s needed is the blood of the caster.
Moreover, most priests wore robes that covered their faces, making it impossible to identify them. Of course, seeing their faces wouldn’t change much anyway.
“On a slightly different note, could the blood Nadia possesses be that of a sorcerer?”
After parting with Philome, Nadia had made contact with a sorcerer, and it could only be explained that she obtained the blood through that sorcerer.
“If that’s the case… Nadia Alice might be able to use spells.”
The atmosphere froze.
Sorcerers know powerful spells capable of awakening all the monsters that have been asleep for 200 years. In such a situation, having Nadia, who might be able to use spells, here is concerning.
“However, there’s also a chance that the sorcerer mentioned by the Crown Prince isn’t Nadia Alice.”
“Then we should proceed under the assumption that there’s one more sorcerer in addition to Nadia.”
Natasha added, “For now, everyone must be tired, so please head inside. It’s useless to think about this while exhausted. Philome, you worked hard today. There will be guards on watch at night, so rest easy. Kaien, take Philome to her room.”
Philome and Kaien were pushed out by Natasha.
The two blinked at each other, sitting idly in the hallway, and naturally held hands.
“I’ll take you to your room.”
At those words, Philome smiled gently at Kaien.
It was a pity that they didn’t have the luxury to create separate time together, but she was glad they could at least be together like this. This moment was their simple happiness.
“Did you have a good lunch?”
“Yes, I had lunch and even drank some milk.”
Knowing how precious this time was, they took careful steps, neither slow nor fast, intentionally engaging in mundane conversation.
“Really? I’ll ask Ken separately, so be prepared.”
“I’m telling the truth. Sir Ken worked hard today too, so don’t bother him for no reason.”
“Are you more concerned about another man than your fiancé? Hmm? Are you trying to make me jealous?”
Now that Philome was no longer fooled by Kaien’s sly words, she leaned her head against his shoulder instead of replying.
When this frequently used tactic didn’t work, Kaien narrowed his eyes.
“I promise I won’t bother you if you just give me a kiss on the cheek.”
“Were you really trying to bother me?”
Philome couldn’t hide her astonishment as she asked.
In response, Kaien answered with a dissatisfied expression.
“Of course. I’ve been with you, constantly trying to get close to you, like this.”
“You weren’t here for long. You kept going back and forth looking for the injured.”
“So, will you give me that kiss or not?”
They were almost at the room, and time was running out.
After a brief moment of hesitation, Philome reached out, holding Kaien’s cheek, and stood on her tiptoes.
The touch of his lips was familiar as she kissed him softly.
“……”
Instead of her cheek, it was his lips that she touched. Philome’s eyes widened. She was about to protest, but the moment she parted her lips, Kaiyen, as if he had been waiting, delved deeper.
She stumbled back, her back hitting the wall.
Kaien lowered his head further, shielding her head with his hand to prevent her from hitting the wall.
After a long while, their lips parted, and Philome gasped for breath. Even as Philome panted, Kaien peppered kisses around her mouth, trying to satisfy his insatiable desire.
“You clearly said my cheek, my cheek.”
Philome protested, her face flushed from lack of breath. Kaien gently kissed the tip of her nose.
“I was going to be satisfied with your cheek, but I wanted to turn your head, and at that moment, my lips just happened to touch yours.”
“Your Grace is really…”
“Ruthless?”
“You know it.”
It wasn’t a wrong assessment, so Kaien laughed and stepped back.
Philome noticed that she had unconsciously crumpled Kaien’s cloak and blushed with embarrassment.
Meanwhile, Kaien opened Philome’s door for her.
“Go rest, Philome.”
“Your Grace should also take a break and rest early.”
“I should go lie down, since you’re worried.”
Philome turned around just as she was about to enter her room.
Just as Kaien was about to close the door after watching her go inside, Philome suddenly turned, lightly bit his cheek, and quickly closed the door.
“…Hah.”
Left alone in the hallway, Kaien placed his hand on his cheek and let out a dry laugh.
Even after returning to his office, Kaien continued to rub his cheek. The sensation of being bitten on the cheek for the first time was quite strange.
“Your Grace?”
At Gio’s question, Kaien snapped back to reality.
“Oh, what did you say?”
“Ken has arrived.”
“Let him in.”
As Gio opened the door, Ken entered.
Kaien set down the letter he was writing to the crown prince and asked, “Did you discover something?”
There was one more thing Kaien had instructed Ken when he assigned him to guard Philome. He had asked Ken to carefully observe Nadia’s powers whenever they moved around to bring back the injured.
“For now, there were no issues.”
Nadia had faced the monsters at the castle walls.
From what Kaien had observed from below the walls, more monsters had rushed toward the wall where Nadia was stationed.
Whenever light burst forth from above, the monsters flocked to it, causing a concentration of them, and Nadia had to retreat into the castle within just a few hours.
The reason was that she had expended too much magical energy in such a short time.
Because of this, Kaien and Ken were unable to properly observe Nadia’s battle against the monsters.
“I’ll make sure to look more closely next time.”
“Still, prioritize Philome first. There’s a chance that the temple or Winston might take advantage of any openings.”
At the mention of Winston, Ken suddenly recalled what had happened a few hours earlier.
It was ambiguous to report that Winston had simply returned after receiving treatment for his injuries. After some hesitation, Ken ultimately kept silent and stepped back.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
“Sophia, how many bandages are left?”
“We’ve only used one box out of the ten. It’s enough.”
“What about the gauze?”
Philome assessed the supplies through Sophia, who was going in and out of the storage.
If there were suddenly many injuries, they might run low on supplies. After asking Sophia, she was relieved to hear that it wasn’t a situation to worry about.
Philome turned her gaze toward Ken.
“Sir Ken, what about the monsters?”
“They have retreated for now. However, it seems that a larger number will come in the second wave.”
“Phew, we need to prepare to receive the injured.”
Philome wiped the sweat that was trickling down her forehead.
They had already been fighting the monsters for about two hours. Seeing a few still charging in, she concluded that more monsters would soon arrive, so she couldn’t relax.
“Be careful when washing up. I’ll gather the gauze and bandages, so you’ll need to change them regularly.”
“Thank you, Lady Philome.”
After providing gauze and bandages to the injured villager, Philome sent them back into the castle. The wound was a bit severe, so they wouldn’t be able to participate in the second battle.
At that moment, a small commotion arose.
“Oh dear, Saint!”
Turning her head, Philome saw Johannes helping Nadia down from the castle walls.
“Be careful, come down slowly! Are you hurt anywhere? Huh? Are you tired?”
“Protecting the people isn’t tiring at all. It’s just regrettable that I lack strength.”
Seeing the two, Sophia quietly slipped behind Philome and whispered, “It looks like those two cockroaches are finally coming in.”
