The holy sword grumbled sulkily.

『Did the Guardian of Light tell you? No, he can’t speak because of the oath. Who are you really?』

“I won’t tell a stupid holy sword.”

The holy sword, which had been asleep three years ago, only had vague and fragmented memories; it didn’t know everything.

It didn’t know that she remembered her past life or that she had two names.

Adelia turned her back on the noisy holy sword and approached Lucian, who was quietly lying in one corner.

“He’s still not awake.”

Adelia plopped down beside him.

She pulled her long legs towards her and hugged her knees with her arms, resting her head on them. When she turned her head slightly, she could see his face clearly.

Her blue eyes rolled around as she observed him.

His red eyes beneath his jet-black hair, his long eyelashes, his high nose with thick lines, and his lively red lips.

His face, lying there, overlapped with the one she had seen in the illusion.

‘He was a good kisser earlier.’

Adelia’s gaze lingered on his lips. The lips that had seduced her with sweet words.

His bare red lips looked warm and soft.

Her gaze slowly moved up to his long eyes. His sharp eyes, which gave off a fierce impression, were closed.

Inside them were the red eyes Adelia loved. Although all the imperial family members had red eyes, Adelia particularly liked Lucian’s.

His eyes, which held both youthful vitality and experience, gleamed with an indescribable beauty whenever he saw something interesting.

Adelia reached out to Lucian’s face. The hair that had fallen on his forehead tickled his eyes. He flinched unconsciously.

Adelia carefully brushed his hair to the side. The feel of his well-maintained hair was soft.

‘Nice.’

A faint smile spread across her face. It felt like it was just her and Lucian left in this quiet place. Her whole body relaxed comfortably.

Some might find it too quiet and scary, but Adelia liked this silence.

She completely ignored the holy sword’s grumbling.

It was a long-awaited rest.

No work, no magic, no original story. There was nothing to bind her.

It wasn’t a break taken by postponing tasks, but a rest because there was truly nothing to do.

It had been a long time since she relaxed without thinking about anything.

Her blue eyes moved slowly. Her worry for Lucian had also diminished.

She realized something after seeing the illusion.

“He’s not someone who would be fooled by such an illusion.”

Even with the influence of white magic, the illusion was sloppy.

It was impossible for something created by looking at desires rather than human memories to be perfect.

Moreover, the only desire Lucian had was for his family.

He might see an illusion where he lived happily with his beloved sister in the imperial palace or met his mother, who didn’t exist in this world.

“If it’s about family, he would never fail to distinguish it.”

If his desire was for his family’s happiness, he would be even less likely to be deceived. Someone who cherished his family as much as he did would never fail to distinguish between reality and illusion.

Adelia let out a soft laugh.

“There really was no need to worry.”

The corners of her mouth lifted gently, and her face softened with peace.

She buried her face in her knees, wrapped in her arms, and enjoyed the silence.

* * *

『He really succeeded!』

The silence filling the cave was broken after a long time.

The holy sword, which had given up grumbling, suddenly exclaimed. And from the holy sword, which had been emitting a faint light, a blindingly strong light burst forth.

Adelia quickly covered her eyes and cast a barrier around the entire cave. She meticulously blocked everything so that neither light nor sound could escape.

‘It would be troublesome if this gets out now.’

She had already planned with Lucian on how to announce the holy sword. If the light leaked out now, it would reveal to the world that Lucian was not spending his first night.

Moreover, if it became known that Adelia was there, many people would undoubtedly suspect her.

Fortunately, thanks to Adelia’s quick response, the light didn’t leak out, but her eyes stung from the intense brightness.

Although she thought she had covered her eyes tightly with her clothes and arms, there must have been an unexpected gap.

The light gradually subsided.

『Finally, I have a master! After five hundred years!』

The holy sword laughed heartily with a booming voice. Happiness and joy were evident in its tone.

Hearing the good news, Adelia cautiously opened her eyes.

The whites of her eyes, which had been surrounded by a blue light, turned red. Her bloodshot eyes and the surrounding area stung.

Her eyes gradually became moist, glistening. Adelia blinked. Each time her fluttering eyelashes brushed over her eyes, moisture welled up.

Eventually, like water overflowing, tears rolled down. Transparent droplets flowed down her pale cheeks from both eyes.

Adelia squeezed her eyes shut. When she opened her eyelids again, the reddish hue had completely disappeared, and the whites of her eyes were revealed. The tears that had fallen on her face also vanished without a trace.

“This…feels dirtier than I thought.”

The red eyes that Adelia liked were now on his face instead of tightly shut eyes.

Lucian rose from his spot. He placed a hand on his chest, feeling his pounding heart. Even though he had realized it was an illusion, he never wanted to stab his heart with a sword again.

Although there was no pain, the sensation of the sticky death aura clinging to him and then leaving was horrifying.

“You really succeeded. Congratulations on becoming the master of the holy sword.”

Adelia bowed towards him from where she was sitting. Her blue eyes curved prettily, and the corners of her mouth lifted into a smile.

When she had mistakenly thought he was dead a while ago, her heart had felt like it was dropping. Now that he was alive, awake, and moving, she felt a special kind of emotion.

Lucian blinked slowly. His unfocused eyes were covered by his eyelids. When his eyes reappeared, he was looking in a different direction.

With each blink, his gaze changed, as if he was trying to figure out where he was.

After a short while, his clear red eyes finally focused on Adelia.

“Ah.”

Lucian let out a short breath and covered his mouth with one hand. His eyebrows drew together, creating a beautiful crease on his forehead. He twitched his eyes and then turned his head, avoiding her gaze.

For some reason, he looked troubled.

“Why? Is something wrong?”

Adelia widened her eyes and tilted her head slightly. She tried to meet his eyes that had avoided her.

When she hovered in front of him, he finally squeezed his eyes shut. Then, with the hand that had been covering his mouth, he slowly rubbed his face from his forehead to his chin as if washing his face.

Only then did his red eyes give her a direct look.

“Is this reality?”

His slightly husky voice held a question.

“Of course, it’s reality. Is something wrong? Are you feeling nauseous or do you have a headache? Could it be an aftereffect?”

Adelia bombarded him with questions, her face filled with concern.

Seeing Lucian looking dazed, unlike usual, she frowned anxiously. She seemed worried that there might be aftereffects she didn’t know about.

Lucian rubbed his eyes with one hand and held up his other hand, palm out, to stop her approach.

“No. The illusion was just so similar to reality that I was momentarily confused.”

“That’s a relief.”

Only then did Adelia step back and clasp her hands behind her back.

A sigh of relief escaped softly from between her lips.

『Stop standing around and pull me out quickly! Hurry!』

The holy sword shouted excitedly. It seemed thrilled at the prospect of leaving the cave where it had been stuck for five hundred years.

Lucian turned his back on Adelia with a reluctant expression.

He stood in front of the holy sword, which was trembling with excitement.

‘Has the rock aged in the meantime, or is it just my imagination?’

Lucian grabbed the hilt of the holy sword, which was shaking more than before he fell into the illusion.

The handle, wrapped in white leather, fit comfortably in his hand as if it had always been his.

He exerted force and pulled the holy sword from the rock.

The sound of metal clashing with stone and the cracking of the rock echoed together.

The long sword slowly revealed its gleaming blade.

『I’m finally out! It’s been so long!』

The rock, which Adelia had half-destroyed, split completely in two as the holy sword was pulled out.

The silver aura surrounding the holy sword was absorbed by Lucian.

“As expected… It is indeed the holy sword. It’s much lighter and easier to handle.”

Lucian swung the sword in his hand. As his arm cut through the air, the sword moved swiftly, and when he struck a rock, it shattered without any strain on his hand.

The holy sword, in the form of a longsword, felt almost weightless. It was as if it was made from a metal that didn’t exist in this world, as light as playing with a twig.