Side Story.15

“So first, bow your head. Try to accommodate Adelstein as much as you can.”

“……Why should I?”

The boy, looking truly puzzled, asked again.

“You want to get closer to Adelstein, don’t you?”

“……Yes.”

“Then you have to bow first. There’s no other way.”

She didn’t know the exact answer. Maybe it was a little unfair for him.

But in the distant future, he would stubbornly stick to this method and win her heart.

“Don’t worry too much. Adelstein is really too kind, so if you just bend a little, he’ll open up right away.”

Maia smiled gently, sincerely advising him.

“You…”

At that moment, a faint ripple appeared in Hyperion’s pupils as he looked at her.

“……No. I’ll gratefully accept your advice.”

Hyperion, about to say something, turned his gaze to the side and murmured quietly.

From his attitude, it was clear that something had changed in his feelings toward Maia, but Maia, relieved at having mediated the dispute at least a little, didn’t notice.

* * *

Hyperion seemed to have taken Maia’s advice more seriously than expected.

“……If I forced anything on you, I sincerely apologize. From now on… I’ll respect your wishes.”

“No, Hyperion. I was too stubborn, too. You only did it because you genuinely wanted to help me…….”

As Hyperion offered an apology first, Adelstein, who had already been anxious, greeted Hyperion with a bright smile.

Krshunie Polaris did not seem pleased with the situation.

But Maia could not have been happier.

Maia let out a sigh of relief, wishing that, without any further incidents, those two would swear eternal friendship as soon as possible.

“……Still no response.”

Late at night, Maia sat alone in the Princess’s bedroom, took out the familiar staff from the chest, and muttered bitterly as she stroked it.

Could she really not go back like this?

Who knows, the anxiety she had remembered now grew in size and clung darkly to the depths of her heart.

“Anyway, since I’ve taken Princess Seiya’s place…….”

How far did the Princess’s deeds recorded in the Book of the Founder go?

Maia furrowed her brow, deep in thought.

Princess Seiya’s deeds were not passed down after the first battle Adelstein had laid the foundation for.

……She still couldn’t be sure, but if all of this was predetermined fate.

“If only it’s firmly known that the Princess is behind Adelstein, maybe it doesn’t matter if I’m absent in practice?”

She couldn’t just spend time peacefully, doing nothing by Adelstein and Hyperion’s side forever.

She had to find a way to return to her original timeline.

“Whew…….”

Even asking Hyperion for help didn’t sit well.

Just because she had given a few words of advice to mediate the fight with Adelstein, she couldn’t boldly claim she was from the distant future and ask him to send her back with magic.

Hyperion was only gentle with Adelstein; when it came to Maia, he was still indifferent and cold.

“Ugh…….”

What should she do? Really, what should she do?

“Ah, this is too frustrating.”

Maia sprang up from her bed and wrapped herself in a thick cloak.

The palace was safe, so maybe some fresh air alone would calm her mind.

She still hadn’t found a clear solution.

Maia swallowed her endless sighs, stopped the maids who tried to follow her, and walked alone through the palace corridors.

* * *

A waning moon hung in the black sky, casting a faint light.

The chilly night breeze seemed to calm her complicated feelings.

No one was present in the palace’s rear garden.

The soldiers had no reason to come here, and while maids sometimes strolled in groups, they seemed absent at this late hour.

Maia walked quietly.

Not a single leaf was stepped on; it was a truly silent night walk.

Rustle—

“……?”

At that moment, she heard an unnatural sound not far away.

Nothing could be seen in the darkness……

But it felt too uneasy to ignore and pass by.

After glancing around and hesitating for a moment, Maia quieted her steps even more and moved toward the source of the sound.

“Ah, yes. Yes. Eat as much as you want.”

“!”

And at the end, she unexpectedly encountered Krshunie Polaris.

The faint moonlight reflected off Krshunie’s hair, and above all, his beautiful yet sly voice revealed the identity of the man crouched in the shadowed garden.

……What was he doing in a corner of the garden at this hour?

Maia, filled with suspicion, held her breath and watched Krshunie.

She couldn’t see clearly, but Krshunie kept muttering to himself, staring at the bushes shrouded in deep darkness.

Also…… There was a continuous sound like a beast tearing at something and eating, disturbing her ears.

Her heart grew cold deep inside.

Surely, it was nothing serious.

What beast could possibly enter Ilarya Kingdom’s palace, where Hyperion Luar stayed?

He was probably just feeding a pet, or something trivial like that.

“Now, have you finished eating?”

Then, Krshunie let out a faint groan and stood up.

Beyond the shiny glass, his eyes, filled with strange enthusiasm, stared at the bush illuminated by the faint moonlight as he rose.

[Growl…….]

Rustle, rustle.

With the sound of leaves being trampled, something appeared—something Maia knew well.

“!”

It was a Saharan beast, one of the twelve beast tribes, now extinct and only described in history books for its appearance and habits.

Maia barely managed to steady her trembling body as she witnessed the shocking scene.

Even with a ferocious beast that fed on humans before her eyes, Krshunie was nothing but relaxed.

……Was he really feeding a beast?!

Maia stared at Krshunie’s back in shock.

He must be insane, coming in saying he wanted to follow Adelstein.

“Now—”

Bringing a beast into Ilarya Kingdom’s palace?

As Maia watched, wrapped in shock, fear, and anger, Krshunie muttered expectantly.

[Growl…… Gr, Grrr!]

The Saharan beast, huge and resembling a black panther but twice as large, let out a painful cry.

“……Yes, just a little more.”

Black beast blood endlessly flowed between its massive teeth, and its once imposing figure weakened and collapsed onto the grass.

“Success.”

Before the horrific scene, Krshunie Polaris spoke with a voice filled with intense excitement.

What had he just done?

What…… had Maia just seen?

Even as she was stunned to the point her mind went blank, Maia hid behind the dark bush and did not take her eyes off Krshunie, who was poking the corpse of the beast.

“……Tsk, so it can’t be prevented from mutating.”

Krshunie dipped his finger into the blood around the dead beast and brought it to his lips, murmuring with faint dissatisfaction.

“There’s a limit to killing with drugs.”

His next words sounded decisive, as if he had made up his mind.

Krshunie straightened up. The white glass reflected the beast that had met a tragic death.

“Magic is needed.”

A short mutter, and Krshunie left like the wind.

Even after his steps faded, Maia remained hidden for a long time, then slowly, cautiously approached the discarded beast’s corpse.

The faint moonlight in the sky illuminated Maia’s pale face.

“……So he killed the beast with drugs?”

Maia muttered, as if trying to imprint the sight of the Saharan’s corpse in her memory.

There were no records of killing beasts with poison.

It was only said that Adelstein and his companions’ strength and Hyperion Luar’s magic led to the beasts’ extinction.

Yet, in this era, the Saharan beast, known only for its brief description, had died from Krshunie’s mysterious drug……

“There’s something going on.”

Maia thought.

Krshunie Polaris, who showed strange interest in Adelstein.

Krshunie Polaris, who acted as if trying to drive a wedge between Adelstein and Hyperion.

And Krshunie Polaris, who, after the Saharan’s death, muttered that killing with drugs caused mutation and said that magic was needed.

Krshunie Polaris did not follow Adelstein because he was captivated by him.

He had his own, independent goal.

He intended to use Adelstein, and further, Hyperion, to achieve it.

“……Who should I tell this to……?”

But Maia was soon troubled.

She had already intervened in the past several times.

But Princess Seiya, whose deeds were not recorded after the first battle in history, was not a problem.

If she quietly stayed by Adelstein’s side until she returned, nothing would change in the future she lived in.

But Krshunie Polaris was different.

Although he was never respected despite being a founding hero due to his cruel curiosity, he was clearly the ancestor of Earl Polaris.

He and his descendants became founding nobles and had a massive influence on the Adelstein Empire, and were even entangled with Maia’s own life as a bitter connection.

But if she told anyone—Adelstein, Hyperion, anyone—about Krshunie’s suspicious behavior……

Krshunie would be suspected by everyone. He would be expelled from Adelstein’s group.

Maybe, if Hyperion judged him dangerous, he might even be killed.

If that happened, what would become of Earl Polaris in the future she had lived?

She couldn’t bear the aftermath of such a change.

No, it was more accurate to say she wasn’t sure.

“…….”

In the end, Maia decided to keep silent about what she saw today.

Though she was inevitably caught up in the past, she couldn’t cause any more major changes.