Hector slowly pulled his head away.

His eyes, burning as if they would ignite, looked down at Charlie.

Belatedly overcome with embarrassment, Charlie lowered her head to Hector’s chest.

He gently embraced Charlie like that and buried his face in her nape.

Only the sound of heartbeats, whose they were unclear, echoed in the silence.

No words were necessary.

As if their emotions were connected, they just felt each other and embraced more tightly.

* * *

It was on one of the peaceful days that continued.

“……”

Inside the main building’s dining room.

Eyes tinged with bewilderment looked at the huge dragon placed in front of her.

Hector was calmly cutting his steak, and Charlie was sitting blankly, holding her fork.

“Eat.”

“Pardon?”

“I said eat.”

Hector answered, lifting his wine glass as if it were nothing unusual.

That movement was so elegant that Charlie stared at Hector blankly.

Every time she saw him, she felt that each of Hector’s movements was truly full of grace.

Especially when he was eating, it was most apparent.

Hector never made a loud noise, whether in putting down his glass or chewing food.

Charlie’s gaze, which had been capturing his graceful movements, turned back to the dragon covered in chocolate.

Surely, this dragon must be what he meant for her to eat.

“……”

A carrot pretending to be a dragon.

No, a dragon made of carrot. And it was so large, about the size of Charlie’s sailing ship.

The intricately crafted wings were majestic, and the layered carved scales reminded one of armor.

Though she had never seen a real dragon, this must be exactly what they looked like.

Wasn’t this truly a waste of talent?

After staring at the dragon for a long while, Charlie asked again.

“This… This?”

“Didn’t you like chocolate?”

Crunch- The cut meat was gently pierced by Hector’s fork.

“This… This isn’t chocolate, it’s carrot.”

At that moment, Hector’s eyebrow twitched.

Cold sweat trickled down the spine of the chef standing at one side of the dining room.

“How did you know?”

“……”

Charlie was at a loss for words at Hector’s genuinely puzzled expression.

What was this feeling, as if the work had not only collapsed but the genre had changed to a childcare story?

No, that’s not it. She wasn’t really a fool. How could she not know this was a carrot?

While Charlie was feeling dumbfounded, Hector’s cold voice fell like a thunderbolt.

“Remove it.”

“I-I’m sorry.”

The chef, his face turning pale, approached with trembling hands.

Charlie felt inexplicably heavy-hearted.

Surely, they had made this for her. How much effort must have gone into making just this one?

Though she disliked carrots, it wouldn’t kill her to eat it.

Charlie hurriedly reached out her hand.

“Oh, don’t remove it. I’ll eat it.”

“You’ll eat it?!”

The chef’s eyes widened in surprise.

He knew as well as Hector how much Charlie disliked carrots.

[Carrots contain components that boost immunity to magical toxins, making them an essential food for a Zero.]

This was the advice of Audrey, Charlie’s personal physician.

Thus, they tried so hard to make Charlie eat carrots until now.

They tried roasting them, frying them, and even grinding them to put in dishes. But every time, Charlie had uncannily detected them and refused to touch them.

Yet now she was volunteering to eat them.

Even Hector, as if he couldn’t believe it, leaned forward to observe the situation.

“Miss Charlie. Are you sure these are carrots?!”

A ridiculous sound, neither question nor answer, escaped from the flustered chef’s throat.

“I know.”

“But you’re still saying you’ll eat them?”

“…Yes.”

The chef’s face came a span closer.

“Why?”

It was truly a strange question to ask why when she said she would eat what was made for her to eat.

Charlie, with a bewildered expression, answered.

“Well… Because it’s a dragon?”

Color returned to the chef’s face. The corners of Hector’s mouth were also slightly raised.

“You don’t have to go this far next time.”

Charlie waved her hands as she spoke, worried that something like this might happen again.

But her words were drowned out by the solemn gazes exchanged between Hector and the chef.

* * *

Inside the office.

“The preparations?”

“They’re perfect, we could leave tomorrow.”

Leon confidently answered Hector’s question.

It wasn’t arrogance. The Knight Order was in top condition and the preparations were flawless.

Hector exhaled softly at his spirited appearance.

“Good work.”

Hector’s gaze, which had been turning away with an expressionless face, suddenly stopped.

It was because Charlie was looking at him with surprised, wide eyes.

Following Hector, Leon also turned to look at Charlie.

As the silence was about to become awkward, Charlie opened her mouth.

“…Where are you going?”

“We’ll be leaving soon for the monster subjugation expedition.”

When she asked, it wasn’t that she didn’t know. From the conversations she had heard so far, she was well aware that Hector was leaving for an expedition.

This was also something that appeared in the original work.

It was just an annual event attended for the sake of the alliance with the imperial family. It wasn’t even a significant matter for Hector, who was a Grand Master.

But why did it sound different from before?

Charlie, who had hesitated for a moment, asked again.

“When will you return if you go?”

Worry was evident in Charlie’s pheromones.

Hector answered with a gentle expression.

“That will be known only after we go.”

“Ah…”

Charlie fiddled with the hem of her clothes.

Although they had formed a relationship, she wasn’t in a position to tell him to go or not to go.

Hector, who had been staring at her fidgeting hands, said.

“Are you scared?”

“Rather than scared… It’s still an expedition, after all.”

“Don’t worry, they won’t even be able to step on your shadow.”

Leon nodded in agreement with Hector’s words.

“That’s right. Miss Charlie, although there’s nothing to worry about with His Grace by your side, our Knight Order is also there as an escort.”

“Yes, the Knight Order…”

But wait a moment?

The Knight Order is by her side when Hector is with her?

What on earth could this mean?

Charlie tilted her head, not understanding.

“I’ve told Tanner to prepare, but if there’s anything else you need, tell me.”

“What? Me?!”

“Yes.”

“What would I need?”

Charlie blinked in confusion at Hector’s words.

On the other hand, Hector’s expression was calm and composed.

“Things you might need on the expedition.”

* * *

The clear sky was cloudless and bright.

Below it, the red flag symbolizing the Hunt family fluttered in the wind.

The weather, neither hot nor cold, seemed to be blessing Charlie and Hector as they departed for the expedition.

“Mr. Mateo, why are you bringing so many carrots?”

A knight spoke up, looking at the pile of carrots loaded on an entire cart.

“You’re not planning to feed us only carrots, are you?”

“What are you worried about? If that’s the case, we can just hunt and eat.”

A knight tightening his gauntlet answered instead of Mateo.

“That’s… true.”

“After all, freshly hunted roast deer is the best.”

“That’s right. Just thinking about it makes my mouth water.”

“No, rabbit roast eaten on an expedition is the best.”

“I vote for rabbit roast too!”

“I’m for deer roast.”

The sound of chatter flowing from here and there echoed like a cheerful melody.

The knights in full armor were in high spirits.

Their faces full of smiles, as if going on a picnic, showed not a trace of fear.

At that moment, Emma called out to Charlie as she was about to board the carriage.

“Charlie…”

“I’ll be back soon, Emma.”

Charlie smiled at Emma, who was on the verge of tears. But her worried gaze refused to leave.

“Still…”

Emma’s fingertips trembled slightly as she clutched Charlie’s clothes.

When she heard about the expedition, she insisted on coming along.

Anyone who saw would think they were going to their death.

From Emma’s perspective as a Zero, the expedition was no different from going to certain death.

It was a place teeming with monsters and rampant with attack magic.

That’s why Charlie had decided not to take Emma along.

Wasn’t she the one who had nearly died from just basic attack magic?

She couldn’t take Emma to a place fraught with mortal danger just to have her attend to her needs.

“In the morning, you need washing water, and your hair needs to be styled. And bathing…”

“I’ll be really fine, Emma. These are things I used to do alone. Don’t worry.”

Charlie shrugged her shoulders.

Washing and bathing alone weren’t particularly troublesome tasks.

It was also true that there was no need to worry.

Their overprotection had been so extreme even before departure. Charlie had listened to instructions on how to act in emergency situations from Tanner, Leon, and Hector until she was sick of it.

And that wasn’t all.

As if the goal of this expedition was to protect Charlie, the entire Knight Order, equipped with magic defensive gear, was surrounding and escorting the carriage.