My body would not move properly, as though a large boulder had been placed on top of me. When I opened my eyes, I was in a bedroom with an unfamiliar ceiling above me.

Is this already the third time I have collapsed? Am I going to set a Guinness World Record for the number of times I have passed out?

A fatigue so overwhelming that I could barely move washed over my body. Just as I was wondering what to do, the bedroom door opened and the sound of voices reached my ears.

The voices belonged to Hylus and Schmitz. Wondering if they were strangers, I opened my tightly shut eyes wide and simply waited for them to come closer.

“According to Sir Siobhan, it is possible that the magical energy within the magic stone entered the young lady’s body.”

“Is that possible?”

“It is not impossible. Since it was a small magic stone, it is alright for now, but if too large an amount of magical energy were to enter all at once, it could be dangerous.”

“Then right now the young la…”

I had intended to speak first once they came a little closer, but I ended up making eye contact with Hylus.

What do I do in a situation like this? Just smile!

“Hehe…”

Because Hylus had stopped mid-sentence, Schmitz also quickly realized I had woken up.

“My lady! You are awake.”

“My body feels so heavy. Could you help me sit up?”

I had clearly asked Schmitz, but the one who came to the bedside and helped me was Hylus.

I had not expected Hylus, being a duke, to respond to such a request.

“Is Sir Siobhan alright?”

“You wake up and immediately worry about someone else.”

“Because I am alive right now. What about Sir Siobhan?”

“Siobhan is under confinement. He failed to fulfill his duty.”

Siobhan is under confinement? Since Siobhan belongs to the imperial knighthood, Hylus should not be able to impose a confinement order on him.

“Was Sir Siobhan not a member of the imperial knighthood?”

He had been wearing the ducal knighthood uniform, but I had been certain he belonged to the imperial knighthood. That was how it was supposed to be according to the original work.

At my question, Hylus’s expression hardened for a brief moment. Not just his expression. His tone turned cold as well. His composed demeanor matched exactly how he had been described in the novel.

Eyes that seemed devoid of any emotion, and an expression that looked as though it would not be moved by anything.

“How would you know that?”

“……”

“I asked how you would know that.”

***

At his sharp interrogation, I felt as though I had lost my words for a moment. What could I say to dispel the look of suspicion he was sending my way?

“Um… it must have been a dream.”

“A dream?”

“In the dream, Sir Siobhan introduced himself as a member of the imperial knighthood.”

It was Schmitz who added flesh to that excuse.

“It seems the young lady had a dream. Perhaps she saw the future in it. That is likely due to the magic stone as well.”

“Due to the magic stone?”

I was the one who was actually surprised by Schmitz’s words. It had been said as an excuse, but if what he said was true, could the magic stone really have some kind of effect like that?

“Yes. My lady, could you try holding this magic stone in your hand for a moment?”

The moment I took the magic stone Schmitz handed me and held it in my hand, light came out just as it had in the undergrowth and entered my body. And the magic stone returned to being nothing more than an ordinary rock.

“Do you feel any pain?”

“My palm feels slightly warm, but nothing hurts.”

“It seems my hypothesis is correct. The young lady’s body has changed into a rare constitution that absorbs the magical energy within magic stones. This is an extremely, extremely rare constitution. I have only seen it in academic journals myself… this is my first time seeing it in person.”

“How rare is it?”

“The academic journal I read stated that it is a constitution that appears in perhaps one in a hundred thousand people.”

This was something that had not appeared in the novel. Not a single line had been written about a constitution in which the magical energy of magic stones is absorbed into the body.

The novel is unfolding differently from what I knew.

“This constitution is beneficial in that one can use simple magic even without a magic stone, but… if a vast amount of magic stones were present, the body may not be able to withstand the magical energy, and it could be life-threatening.”

Schmitz performed a brief examination, prescribed some medicine, and then left.

“This is the ducal residence, isn’t it?”

“Since transport magic stones cannot be used to travel to the temple.”

“Are you alright, Your Grace?”

“As you can see.”

Yes. You look perfectly fine. How impressive. Meanwhile, I feel as though I have bruises all over my upper body, and even breathing hurts!

“Siobhan is still a member of the Hylus ducal knighthood. He is scheduled to transfer to the imperial knighthood soon.”

The story had diverged from the novel. Why? Was it because I had not married Ter Giuo? By this point in the timeline, he should have already transferred to the imperial knighthood.

“This is something only Siobhan and I know.”

“……”

“I will ask once more. Did the young lady truly have a dream?”

What should I say. What could I say to dispel the suspicion Hylus was directing at me.

Unable to answer rashly, my gaze, which had been fixed on his amber eyes, drifted to his hair, then touched the corner of his lips, then moved down to his neck. Not satisfied with merely lowering my gaze, I troubled my own lips needlessly.

And then I finally opened my mouth with great effort.

“…When the time comes that I can speak of it, I will. For now, please believe that it was a dream.”

“Who are you? Are you truly Lady Eloa Rumania?”

Hylus pressed harder than I had expected. Looking closely, his eyes were trembling intensely, carrying a rather sorrowful look within them.

“What proof is there that you are not part of the anti-faction?”

The anti-faction? The anti-faction was a splinter group formed to oppose the politics led by the Istria family and Emperor Istria. But I was fairly certain that in the novel, Hylus had captured all of them early on.

“Even if I cannot tell you right now how I knew Sir Siobhan would be going to the imperial knighthood, there is one thing I can tell you with certainty.”

“……”

“I am indeed Eloa Rumania. I am absolutely not part of the anti-faction. Whatever you may be thinking right now, I am your fiancée, and I will never bring harm to you or those around you.”

I could not explain everything to Hylus right away, but I could show him my innocence and give him reason to trust me.

Whether my sincerity reached him or not, his eyes, which had been trembling intensely, began to slowly settle.

“I am staking everything I have on these words… even my life.”

“…I believe you.”

“Thank you.”

“Get some rest. The engagement ceremony we could not hold today will take place here tomorrow when someone comes from the temple.”

I had wanted to ask Hylus about what had happened to the injured horse when I saw him, but as things stood, I could not even bring it up.

The look of his eyes, which had been trembling quite intensely, remained deeply etched in my mind.

The next day.

The moment the priest arrived, a modest engagement ceremony was held in the ducal residence’s banquet hall. For a banquet hall decorated in just one day, it had quite the atmosphere of an engagement ceremony.

The deep green dress I had carefully chosen with Neves could not be worn. That was only natural, since I had torn the dress in the forest the day before.

After the engagement ceremony, there was a mountain of things I wanted to ask Hylus.

“The two of you have made a vow before the divine to love one another without wavering.”

“Yes.”

It was a prearranged engagement, yet the word did not come easily to my lips. As though sensing my hesitation, his hand tightened around mine.

“…Yes.”

“Then, please share the kiss of the vow.”

A kiss… wait, a kiss?! This was not in the script!

Unaware of my inner turmoil, Hylus simply wore a pleasant smile and drew ever closer.

Are you really going to kiss me? We are only in a contractual relationship.

Just as I was flustered at the sight of Hylus approaching, he whispered softly.

“Hand kiss.”

It did not take long for his thumb to come to rest upon my lips, and for Hylus’s lips to press against it. The moment it appeared as though two pairs of lips had met, countless flower petals were scattered and cheers rang out.

The engagement ceremony concluded without incident. Well, of course it had to conclude without incident. No matter that there was no particular tradition for an engagement ceremony, the two of us had pared it down to the absolute minimum.

And since we had been ambushed on the way to the temple, the holy knights who had come with the priest and the ducal knighthood were lined up in rows guarding the banquet hall.

“Hylus, let us talk for a moment.”

“Eden.”