“By the way, has Duke Bermund been here?”

Ryan suddenly asked Rachel.

Hearing an unwelcome name, Rachel frowned slightly and nodded.

“Yes, that’s right. He was here even before I arrived.”

“I ran into him on my way here. I’ve never seen him at the Rose Palace before, so if he had a purpose, I figured it must be related to you.”

“Why… do you think he came looking for me?”

“Because you’re the person everyone’s talking about recently. Besides, during his audience with His Majesty the Emperor today, the news that you’ve become an imperial mage was mentioned. If he stopped by the Rose Palace, there could only be one reason.”

Rachel agreed with Ryan’s explanation. She had briefly wondered if Ryan might have learned something about Creon and was testing her, but it didn’t seem to be the case.

At that moment, Rachel felt someone tugging at her hand. She looked down to find Erika staring up at her with a bored expression.

“Sorry, Erika. This conversation must be boring you, huh?”

“…Yeah.”

Erika pouted her lips dramatically, clearly wanting Rachel to notice. Finding her adorable, Rachel let out a small laugh.

Ryan also looked at Erika and smiled.

“It seems I’ve interrupted your time with your sister. I only came to greet you since I heard you were here, so I’ll take my leave.”

“No, it’s fine.”

“I’m not so tactless as to overstay my welcome.”

With that, Ryan bent down on one knee to meet Erika at eye level. Erika, who had been pouting, became flustered and hid behind Rachel when their eyes met.

“Well then, my lady, I apologize for interrupting your time with Rachel.”

“I-I didn’t mean for you to leave.”

“No need to worry. I have other engagements to attend to anyway.”

Ryan replied kindly to Erika, his voice gentle, before bowing slightly to her.

Erika, after hesitating for a moment, stepped out from behind Rachel and grabbed the hem of her dress, curtseying in return.

Only then did Ryan stand up straight and bow lightly to Rachel.

“I’ll see you again next time.”

With that, Ryan left the research room. Once the door closed, Rachel turned to Erika.

“Erika, since there’s nothing much to do in here, shall we go outside?”

“Okay!”

Erika answered brightly, her face lighting up with a smile.

Rachel left the research room with Erika in tow.

“Is there anywhere you want to go?”

“Hmm…”

Erika seemed to ponder for a moment, apparently not having thought of anywhere specific.

Rachel slowed her pace, giving Erika time to decide.

“Sis, Tervan’s here too, right?”

“What?”

“I heard you and the Crown Prince talking about Tervan earlier. Isn’t he here too? You were going to meet him, weren’t you? Can I come along?”

Rachel paused for a moment, looking down at Erika.

It was true that she and Ryan had talked about Tervan, but the conversation hadn’t exactly been positive.

Still, Erika, being young, couldn’t fully grasp the nuances of their discussion.

“Okay. But we should check if he’s actually around today.”

After hesitating briefly, Rachel gave in, unable to resist Erika’s hopeful expression. She decided to look for Tervan.

“Really? We’re going?”

“Yeah.”

“Yay!”

Erika jumped up and down in excitement, and Rachel couldn’t help but smile at her enthusiasm.

“Let’s go.”

Rachel extended her hand toward Erika, who immediately grabbed it and swung it happily.

Leaving the research room, Rachel led Erika out of the Rose Palace and toward the training grounds where the imperial knights practiced.

At the training grounds, knights busily honed their skills. Rachel scanned the area carefully, searching for Tervan among them. Before long, she spotted him swinging his sword nearby.

“Tervan!”

Erika called out to him first, her voice ringing across the training grounds. The knights, hearing her cheerful shout, turned their attention to Erika and Rachel. Tervan, too, reacted instinctively to Erika’s familiar voice, turning toward her.

Erika waved at him enthusiastically.

Tervan smiled briefly at Erika but froze when he noticed Rachel standing beside her.

Rachel raised her hand slightly in greeting, acknowledging Tervan’s gaze.

After a moment of hesitation, Tervan sheathed his sword and quickly made his way toward them.

“What brings you here? And with Erika, no less.”

Standing before them, Tervan greeted them with a warm expression.

“I wanted to see you.”

“Really?”

Erika beamed as she spoke, and Tervan let out a small laugh.

“Actually, when I heard my sister was going to the palace today, I begged her to let me come along.”

Tervan glanced at Rachel briefly as Erika explained. Rachel nodded slightly, confirming Erika’s words.

“Let’s move somewhere else. We can’t just stand here and talk.”

“Okay!”

Erika readily agreed to Tervan’s suggestion and began following him eagerly.

“Aren’t you coming, sis?”

When Rachel didn’t immediately follow, Erika turned back to call her.

“No, I’m coming.”

Rachel replied casually and walked after them.

Tervan led them to a reception room inside the imperial knights’ building.

“So, what brings you two here?”

Tervan asked after taking a sip of water. Erika, ever the chatterbox, answered before Rachel could.

“My sister became an imperial mage! She even got her own research room in the palace. I wanted to see it, so I came along.”

“…An imperial mage?”

Tervan tilted his head, clearly surprised by the unexpected news.

“Yes. I’ve decided to become an imperial mage. His Majesty made the offer yesterday.”

Rachel’s explanation made Tervan realize why she had been with Ryan the previous day.

“So that’s what it was.”

He let out a small sigh of relief, nodding slightly as he muttered.

Still, some questions lingered in his mind.

“Erika, want to try this?”

“Wow! What’s that?”

Tervan handed Erika a puzzle, something he thought might keep her entertained.

“If you turn the pieces, you’ll figure out the solution. It’s pretty easy, so give it a try.”

“Okay!”

Erika smiled brightly at Tervan and nodded before focusing intently on solving the puzzle.

Tervan chuckled softly as he watched her.

“But Rachel.”

Tervan suddenly called her name cautiously. Seeing his gaze on her, Rachel nodded, signaling him to speak.

“You seem to have gotten close to the Crown Prince.”

“What do you mean?”

Rachel asked, tilting her head in confusion.

Tervan hesitated, unsure how to phrase his thoughts, before finally speaking.

“He called you Rachel. I was curious when you two became close enough for him to address you by name.”

“That hasn’t been long.”

Rachel answered briefly, still not understanding his point.

“But why does that matter?”

“Well…”

“I don’t see why you’d be curious about whether I allowed him to call me by my name.”

Rachel’s words drew a clear boundary, leaving Tervan momentarily speechless.

She was right.

To Tervan, Rachel was now nothing more than a friend. After all, he had ignored her feelings and chosen to keep her at arm’s length. Rachel, too, had accepted that they were just friends.

So why did he feel the need to question her relationship with Ryan?

Tervan wasn’t someone like Viola, who enjoyed gossip or meddling in others’ affairs. Rachel found his behavior even more puzzling because of this.

“By the way, the Crown Prince mentioned you earlier.”

“…”

“You were following us yesterday, weren’t you?”

Rachel feigned ignorance, speaking as though she had heard this from Ryan.

“What did His Highness… Ryan, say about me?”

Tervan flinched slightly when Rachel casually referred to Ryan by name.

“Nothing much. Actually, I was going to greet you yesterday, but the atmosphere between you and the Crown Prince seemed intense, so I didn’t want to interrupt.”

“…I see.”

Rachel responded skeptically, prompting Tervan to nod as if his explanation were entirely reasonable.

“Still, hearing him call you Rachel made me wonder if something had changed between the two of you.”

“I didn’t think you’d take an interest in such things.”

Rachel’s continued suspicion made Tervan swallow nervously before replying.

“…It’s just a friend’s concern. I’d feel the same way if it were Viola.”

Of course, if it were Viola, she would have been far more curious and nosy. But since it was Tervan, Rachel found his reasoning unconvincing.