Side Story 5. Relationships

Oops.

I had brought it out to give to the jeweler, but I forgot and showed it to Mihail.

Just as the compass happened to be in my pocket, when it came up in conversation, I took it out without thinking because I was happy.

You stupid Seraphina, sob, sob.

I had to endure the sharp silence that settled in the spring garden while blaming myself for my own stupidity. Mihail’s blue-green gaze was not pleasant.

“…Did you drop it?”

Fortunately, it seemed he was misunderstanding something.

I quickly asked with a grateful heart.

“Well, in the Grodes Mountains… you know how rough it is there, right?”

Seeing Johann about to open his mouth, I frantically made eye signals.

Just stay quiet for a moment. Let me handle this quietly.

Luckily, the silent eye signal seemed to work as Johann obediently closed his mouth. With a somewhat dissatisfied expression.

“How did it happen.”

“I accidentally dropped it, you know. Haha…”

I tried to get through this situation by letting out an awkward laugh.

But unfortunately, Mihail was not dull. Rather, he was on the sensitive side.

“It doesn’t look like it was dented from falling, though?”

“But it is? It fell right on a rock, you know?”

“That rock must have conveniently been shaped like fingers, I suppose.”

“Uh, um…”

I was so flustered that I couldn’t say anything and just rolled my eyes once. It felt like cold sweat was running down my back.

By the time I looked back at Mihail, it was already too late. He seemed to have deduced the culprit and was glaring directly at Johann.

Johann didn’t seem to have any intention of hiding it either. Sob, sob. Please cooperate…

“This is a good opportunity. I’ve been itching to say something.”

Johann opened his mouth proudly, as if something good had happened.

“I hope you’ll never give Sera any more gifts. Let that be the last one.”

“The last one was the wand, though.”

“…Anyway.”

Mihail won the verbal exchange.

I inwardly judged the win and loss while carefully looking back and forth between the two men. Meanwhile, Claude intervened.

“What about the one I gave?”

“Pardon?”

“Weren’t you carefully preserving the dried camellia?”

“That one is fortunately intact.”

I answered with a bright smile.

The wild card was Johann again this time. Who knew my husband would be such an obstacle.

“That cheap case was also dented and then restored to its original state thanks to Marseus’s great generosity.”

“Shut up. Do you know what kind of case that is?”

“Does Marseus need to know about such things?”

“It’s Leah’s. Don’t speak carelessly.”

“……”

For someone who just retorted that Marseus didn’t need to know about such things, Johann quietly closed his mouth like someone who had made a mistake.

That’s right.

Don’t mess with family.

Especially if that family member has already passed away.

By the way, I was inwardly surprised. To think that this small, round case belonged to Claude’s deceased younger sister Leah…

I had no idea.

Expecting the tension between the two men to drag on, I was about to take a sip of tea when I put the teacup back down as it was. The clinking sound of white porcelain striking together swept through the warm air of the garden.

“Um…”

If I didn’t know, it would be one thing, but now that I knew who the case belonged to, I really didn’t know what to do.

I carefully chose my words.

“I didn’t know the case was so precious. I received it from Kiel.”

Why Kiel had Leah’s belongings was a mystery. Not knowing how to resolve this awkward situation, I fidgeted and glanced at Claude.

Johann had made the slip-up, but I was the one cleaning up after it.

“I’ll return it to you. I can keep the flower petals in a different case.”

“It’s fine.”

But Claude rejected my offer without a moment’s hesitation.

I soon understood why.

“I told Kiel to give it to you.”

“What?”

“What. Do you have any complaints?”

“No. I don’t.”

Because of his fierce glare, I abandoned all the manners I had been diligently learning as proper etiquette for an Empress and answered briskly with my back straight. It felt like I had gone back to the days when I was rolling around among the knights.

Come to think of it.

It hasn’t been that long, has it?

Just two months ago, I was indeed rolling around excitedly.

Ah, I suddenly realized how hard I’ve been living. Rolling as a purifier, and now it seems I’ll be rolling in a different way as an Empress.

Ionia’s voice, saying I must fulfill my duties as Empress, swirled in my head. The image of her pushing up her glasses with a stern face came along as a bonus.

The dignity of the Prime Minister who seems like something terrible will happen if you don’t listen. Haha…

Anyway, while thinking about the duties of an Empress in one corner of my mind, I looked at Claude. He was almost glaring at me with an expression that said, ‘Just try to return the case. I won’t let you off easy if you do.’

I got it.

You can just accept it gratefully, you know.

While my insides shriveled under Claude’s gaze, Johann frowned with an expression of displeasure.

“I’d like you to start showing proper respect to the Empress now.”

Ah.

I was suddenly reminded that Johann was very old-fashioned in this regard. Wasn’t he the man who tried so hard to get me to greet him properly from our first meeting?

However…

“I don’t even show it to you, what are you expecting?”

Claude growled as if it was out of the question.

“Once Miss Sera, always Miss Sera.”

Mihail, who was so obedient to God but didn’t listen to a word the Emperor said, had a similar reaction.

Well.

I understand.

They’ve been doing it this way all along, so it won’t be easy to change. By the looks of it, they don’t seem to have any intention of changing for the rest of their lives.

Actually, I preferred it this way too. If Claude and Mihail started treating me like a superior, I might feel too awkward.

Thinking it was rather for the best, I smiled and opened my mouth.

“I don’t know about others, but I want to stay the same with Your Grace Denhague and Sir Andantino.”

I looked at the three men seated around the round table in turn.

Johann had a sour expression, and Claude and Mihail…

What kind of expressions are those?

Anyway, I felt it would be a bit sad if my relationship with those two changed.

* * *

After finishing the tea time in the garden, I returned to Felice Palace with Johann.

As we walked side by side down the corridor, Johann subtly spoke up. It seemed he had something on his mind.

“You seem to regard Claude and Mihail too specially.”

See that? Hehe.

Is this man jealous?

I turned my head to look at Johann. He was trying to maintain a calm expression, but the fact that he asked this question in the first place was proof that he wasn’t indifferent.

How cute.

I wonder how hard he’s trying to manage his expression inside.

Since he asked so casually, I felt like teasing him more. I opened my mouth with an intentionally innocent face as if I didn’t know anything.

“It’s not that I regard them specially, it’s just that we’ve become that close.”

“That sounds like the same thing to me.”

Johann’s brow furrowed slightly.

I continued to play dumb.

“Well. It’s true that they’ve worried about me a lot all this time. That’s why Sir Andantino gave me the compass too.”

“That d*mn compass.”

Johann snapped irritably. He originally didn’t like Mihail’s gift, but it was probably more because the jeweler had just visited a moment ago.

When we left the bedroom, I had asked Faye to call a jeweler, saying I thought the compass needed to be repaired. I didn’t know he would rush over to where I was so quickly.

<It’s clearly been pressed by a strong grip. It looks like it was held and pressed hard like this, but without an unusually strong force…>

The jeweler realized he had misspoken at that point and closed his mouth with a ‘hup’. His eyes were scanning the faces of the three heroes.

A chilling aura flowed from Mihail, Johann was stubbornly holding his chin up slightly, and Claude, well…. He looked on as if it was someone else’s business.

Before the atmosphere could become awkward, I stepped in.

<I’ll give you plenty, just make it like it was originally.>

Ah, how awkward.

I felt very awkward using such a condescending tone, but I could feel that I had done well enough that Countess Adria would have given me a standing ovation if she had seen it.

They say the position makes the person.

I can do it if I try.

Anyway, the compass was thus transferred to the jeweler’s hands. Using that as an excuse, Mihail extended his stay at the Imperial Palace. Something about needing to confirm that it was properly restored before leaving.

Because of that, Johann’s mood seemed to be in a bit of low pressure.

He looked like he would rather die than give Mihail a room in the Imperial Palace, but he couldn’t chase away a hero recognized by the whole world without a proper reason.

Even if he gave an unreasonable order, there was no servant who would dare to kick Mihail out. If he were to do it, he would have to fairly send Claude out as a set too.

Anyway, it didn’t seem easy to chase out Mihail and Claude due to practical barriers. I could understand why Johann was in low spirits.

I had a hard time swallowing my laughter, finding this childish side of the man cute.

“We greet Your Majesties the Emperor and Empress.”

Just then, someone approached from the opposite end of the corridor.

I swallowed dryly, tensing up.