Chapter 22. Handkerchief

“Rather than talking, it was more like I pried it out of him. This guy rarely opens up about you.”

Brix answered cheerfully, glancing at Aster with a mischievous look. He seemed eager to say something.

On the other hand, Aster’s expression was darkening, suggesting there was indeed something going on.

‘Who said it was an unwanted engagement?’

‘If that were true, I wouldn’t have rushed to the capital.’

I recalled that Aster had hurried back to Ahivith to maintain this engagement. Judging by everyone’s surprise at his arrival, it seemed like an unplanned return.

‘Was he serious about wanting to get married?’

Why?

It wasn’t an engagement out of love or mutual interest. It was solely because of an unavoidable imperial decree.

Thus, we had no interaction throughout the engagement period. Since it was a forced engagement by an imperial command, we didn’t feel obligated to fulfill any duties.

Moreover, he went straight to the battlefield before the engagement, so I assumed he felt the same as I did.

But now, facing Aster, he seemed quite serious about this engagement. Whether it was for political reasons or something else, it was indeed puzzling.

At that moment, Aster tried to stop Brix from talking.

“Stop saying unnecessary things.”

“That depends on your behavior.”

But I wasn’t about to let this topic slide. I stared at Aster and asked,

“It seems you did talk about me, judging by your bickering?”

“I’m not close enough to him to share personal stories.”

Aster quickly made an excuse, looking flustered. Seeing him so rattled, I wanted to press further.

“Aster, that’s a bit hurtful. If you act like that, I’ll get chatty too.”

Brix seemed to feel the same, as he continued to tease with a deflated expression. Brix cautiously spoke, glancing at me.

“There were many at the academy curious about Aster’s fiancée. It was such a noisy engagement, after all.”

“Indeed, the combination of Francis and Blanche was quite shocking.”

As I reacted nonchalantly, Brix’s expression lightened.

“Yes. So, at first, everyone was worried. When it was decided he would join the war, we thought he must really hate the engagement.”

“Brix Vogt.”

Aster called his name with a murderous expression, as if he would kill him if he said one more word. But since I was there, Brix wasn’t scared and continued chatting.

“But who am I? I’m supposedly Aster’s closest friend, right? I saw him grinning right before joining the war. He rarely smiles, so I thought he had gone mad.”

Aster had already turned his back and was sighing deeply. Smiling before joining the war, when he should have been anxious, was indeed a situation that could be misunderstood as madness.

“I see.”

“And crucially, he carried around a handkerchief like a treasure and looked at it whenever he had a moment.”

“Ah, the handkerchief!”

I suddenly remembered the handkerchief Christopher mentioned and stared at Aster. I had meant to ask about it but had forgotten.

Aster tilted his head with a puzzled look.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Aster, how did you get my handkerchief?”

Aster looked puzzled at my question.

“How? You sent it to me yourself, didn’t you?”

“Me? Send it?”

I don’t recall doing that.

Seeing my bewildered expression, Aster’s face fell. He seemed lost in thought, then muttered with a slightly dejected look.

“You enclosed it with the engagement letter, wishing me good luck in the war.”

Ah, the engagement letter.

If it was that, it made sense that I didn’t know. It was a formal letter after all.

‘Serri must have packed the handkerchief.’

It was common to send a handkerchief to a fiancé going to war, wishing for his safe return.

But in my case, it wasn’t an affectionate engagement, so I hadn’t thought of it. Serri, being efficient, must have taken care of it.

Reading my expression, Aster narrowed his eyes and spoke weakly.

“So, it wasn’t from you after all. I thought it might not be, but…”

He looked visibly disappointed. I had no excuse, so I mumbled.

“Well, it was sent by me, but…”

It was something I sent without much thought, but he had treasured it. I felt a bit sorry, especially since I hadn’t even known it was sent.

Fortunately, Aster seemed to recover quickly and spoke with a calm face.

“It’s fine. The situation was like that back then. I was surprised to receive it too.”

“I’m sorry.”

“If you’re sorry, please prepare it yourself next time. Without going through a maid.”

Aster smiled, trying to get a promise from me. I was surprised and asked,

“What? Are you planning to go to war again?”

“Where would I go, leaving you behind? I just meant that I’d like a heartfelt gift from you someday.”

It was hard to tell if he was just being polite or sincere. His face, which had quickly regained its usual calmness, looked as relaxed as ever.

“Don’t expect too much.”

I muttered, trying to avoid his gaze out of guilt. Aster nodded with a soft smile, seemingly pleased.

Brix watched us with a curious expression, as if he was discovering a new side of his friend.

I suddenly remembered that I had left Brix standing like a background prop and spoke to him.

“Oh, Sir Brix. I heard you recently achieved excellent results in the Holy Knight Order’s promotion exam. Congratulations.”

“Oh, has that news already spread? It’s a bit embarrassing to be praised in front of Aster.”

Brix scratched the back of his head and laughed awkwardly. This information also came from Letia.

“I’m very interested in the Vogt family. Especially your active involvement in the horse business.”

As a family of knights, they were dedicated to discovering fine horses. Their skills in handling horses were also said to be excellent, which would be beneficial for the carriage industry in the future.

Hearing me mention the horse business, Brix widened his eyes.

“Well, well. If I stay still, I might just fall for you. As expected of the young duke of Francis, attacking at every opportunity.”

“I just hope to have a good relationship in the future.”

“Hahaha. Yes, indeed. As Aster’s fiancée, there’s no doubt about it.”

“Of course, I’m also very interested in Aster. I’m curious about how he was at the academy.”

“If that’s the case, I can give you a very detailed explanation.”

Brix laughed heartily, welcoming the opportunity. Aster seemed surprised that I was interested in him. He spoke quietly.

“You can ask me directly about myself.”

“It’s more accurate to hear from an acquaintance than from the person themselves.”

“You’re absolutely right.”

Brix agreed and continued.

“Actually, we weren’t close from the beginning. At first, we were almost rivals.”

“Rivals?”

“Yes. Thanks to Aster, I was always second place. I never saw him study, yet he always got perfect scores on exams, which was so frustrating.”

“So Aster studied quite a bit.”

“Not just quite a bit, he was excellent. His swordsmanship was also outstanding, making him an even more unattainable opponent. Moreover, his skill with magic swordsmanship, using both aura and mana, was unmatched.”

Brix shivered as he recalled the past. Surprised by his words, I asked,

“He uses both aura and mana?”

Aura and mana were energies with strong individual characteristics, making them difficult to use together. Typically, one would choose to enhance either aura or mana.

Many who tried to use both ended up failing at both. The training itself was highly challenging and could even cause internal injuries.

“Oh. Didn’t you know this guy was a magic swordsman?”

I felt as if my lack of interest in my fiancé had been inadvertently exposed. Noticing this, Brix added lightly,

“Well, his skills weren’t known in Ahivith, so it’s understandable.”

“Indeed. For a magic swordsman, it should be well known. Why didn’t I know?”

If it were the Duke of Blanche, he would have boasted about it everywhere.

Seeing my puzzled expression, Aster answered unexpectedly.

“Well, it was intentionally hidden.”