45.
“It’s quite exquisite that two spots for Court Mages opened up just in time.”
“They both packed their bags with joy the moment I told them the Magic Tower would provide the best research environment.”
“…….”
“While the job of a Court Mage offers excellent prestige and pay, there are quite a few who want to quit because of the many constraints placed on their research.”
It seemed there were machinations behind the scenes that Philomel was unaware of.
Leguin asked Lexion, “You were the one who packed Phil’s things, right? She’s been looking for it.”
“I will hand it over now.”
Lexion pulled a familiar cloth bag from the backpack that had fallen on the floor.
It was a bag Philomel had bought herself at the market. He had discovered it at an inn while tracing Philomel’s tracks in Angelium and had kept it safe for her.
Philomel hesitated just as she was about to open the bag.
“Did you, by any chance, check inside?”
“Of course not. I am not such a boor as to rummage through someone else’s belongings at will.”
“I’m sorry. I didn’t mean to suspect you.”
“I understand.”
Having *Princess Ellensia* inside made her sensitive. That book was like a shameful secret she didn’t want to show anyone.
She opened the bag just a crack to peek inside and saw the familiar brown cover. Thankfully, it hadn’t been lost.
“Nothing is missing, right?”
“Yes. Thank you for bringing it, Lexion.”
Philomel replied quietly as she closed the bag again.
“It is my pleasure.”
“Eub-eub-eub-eub!”
“It seems he wants to say that he was the one who actually carried it here.”
“Thank you, too, Cadin.”
“Eup!”
It was somewhat amusing to see him express his opinion so vigorously despite being tied up tight.
“Shut up. You have a lot to say for someone who’s tied up.”
Thump!
“Eup, eup, eup!”
As Jeremiah kicked him in the backside, Cadin jumped.
“Pfft.”
Philomel knew it was rude to laugh at someone else getting hit, but she couldn’t help but burst into laughter. Having the book back in her hands had eased her mind to some extent.
When Philomel laughed, the four men stopped all movement and stared at her.
“It’s good to see you smiling like that.”
“Indeed.”
Leguin agreed with Lexion’s words.
“Me? You must have seen wrong.”
Feeling a little embarrassed, Philomel wiped the expression off her face and played it cool.
Leguin, without taking his eyes off her, brought up the question he had asked earlier.
“Now that I think about it, what will you do now? You’ve found your belongings, so you’ll be going to the Magic Tower, right?”
“……I have to leave the Imperial Palace at the very least.”
It wasn’t that she wanted to go to the Magic Tower, but she had to leave. She had to leave this place where Ellensia, her Nanny, Katherine, and Eustis were.
Surely, somewhere other than here, a new life must be waiting for Philomel. Because this place was not meant for her.
Then, Lexion spoke in a very serious tone.
“Phil, what is it that you truly want to do?”
“Pardon?”
“Your face right now doesn’t look very happy. Like a child facing homework they don’t want to do.”
“……That can’t be. I want to leave.”
“Is that really true?”
Philomel couldn’t answer.
“We don’t want to take you along against your will. If you don’t want to, please tell us honestly.”
“Well, I want to take you with me.”
“……Lord Leguin, are you not going to respect Phil’s wishes again? Have you already forgotten what happened at the Magic Tower?”
“Ugh, why bring that up.”
Leguin glanced at Philomel and ruffled his own hair wildly.
“Fine! People should live doing what they want. That’s how I lived, and that’s what I taught these boys.”
“You were the one who had a problem because you did everything you wanted to do.”
“Eup!”
Jeremiah and Cadin, who had returned to their seats at some point, added a word each.
“Regardless, don’t mind us and make your decision. No, don’t just mind us—ignore anything that gets in your way and think about it. How you want to live from now on.”
Philomel blinked.
‘……What I want to do?’
She was confused. In this situation, she should have immediately replied, “I want to leave this place,” but strangely, she was at a loss for words.
‘What is it that I want? Not what I must do, but what I want to do.’
It was a question she hadn’t asked herself in a very long time.
For many years, whenever Philomel made decisions, big or small, her own pure desires were always sidelined. Most of the things she did were not done because she wanted to; she was recognized by the Emperor because she didn’t want to die, and she ran away because she didn’t want to die.
‘And the reason I ended up living like that was…….’
*Slide.*
Philomel brushed the surface of the bag in her arms with her fingertips. The outline of the leather cover could be felt beneath the thin cloth.
‘It was all because of this book.’
For the past seven years, her greatest wish had been to sleep peacefully in a place where she didn’t have to worry about her life.
But today, Philomel saw a possibility. That this book, which had been dictating her life all this time, might, perhaps, just perhaps, be wrong.
It was a cruel possibility she had felt implicitly but kept buried.
Without even organizing her thoughts, Philomel impulsively opened her mouth.
“I… perhaps I’ve just been running away from some massive truth all this time.”
Because if she acknowledged that possibility, she was afraid all the efforts of the past seven years would go down the drain. She was afraid that all the fear, resignation, and worry she’d felt might have been for nothing. She was afraid that it might have been the wrong choice not to open her heart to the people who had approached her with sincerity.
“But now, I don’t want to run away. I’ve become curious.”
What was the true identity of this book, which had been swaying her for so long? Why did it come into her hands? What truth was hidden within it?
She didn’t want to avoid it anymore; she wanted to face it.
“…….”
The four men didn’t say a word.
Ever since she grew up, Philomel had made a habit of ruminating over her words several times before speaking. Being the Emperor’s successor was that kind of position, and as a fake princess, she had to be even more careful. She felt embarrassed by the words that had suddenly spilled out.
Moreover, she had left out everything regarding the book, so it must have sounded like nonsense to them.
“I—I said something very confusing, didn’t I? What I mean by that is…….”
“Forget it. Leguin says nonsense all the time.”
“Thank you for being honest with us. To be frank, I didn’t understand everything, but I think I understand roughly how you feel.”
“Eub-eub!”
Philomel looked at the three brothers in turn. None of them had confused or troubled expressions. They had simply accepted her words as they were.
The same went for Leguin.
“Good. I don’t know the details, but you’re saying you need to be here to achieve what you want, right?”
“……I think that’s likely.”
The key to everything must lie with Ellensia. At least, that was what Philomel believed.
Ellensia—the protagonist of *Princess Ellensia* and the real princess. But she was a girl who showed a different side than what was frequently mentioned in the book.
Philomel’s intuition whispered that she should be wary of Ellensia if she wanted to find out the truth about the book.
“Then the policy for the future is settled. I’ll act together with Phil. The rest of you can do as you please.”
Philomel asked, surprised.
“You intend to stay here?”
“I told you. As long as you’re here, I’m not going anywhere.”
His smiling face was unexpectedly reliable. It would be a great help to have the Tower Master by her side. Even if the Emperor didn’t intend to kill her right away, one never knew about the future. If it was Leguin, who could ignore barriers, he might be able to pull Philomel out using movement magic in an emergency.
“If you spend just a little time with me, you’ll be dying to go to the Magic Tower.”
But because he was so confident, she felt uneasy instead.
‘……Will I really be able to get along well?’
After Leguin, it was Lexion and Cadin.
“I suppose I should get used to palace life as soon as possible, then.”
“Eup, eup!”
“You two as well? Are you really okay not going back to the Magic Tower?”
“We just started our jobs, so we can’t just quit. We will actively cooperate with whatever you do, Phil.”
“Eub-eub!”
A slightly touching sensation welled up in Philomel’s chest.
However, Jeremiah’s attitude was cold.
“Count me out. I’m going back.”
“He always pours cold water on things.”
“I’ve seen the face of the new sister, so I’ve finished my business here.”
Dismissing his father’s words, he turned toward the exit of the garden.
“Wait a moment!”
When Philomel called out, he turned his head.
“I have no personal feelings toward you. But I don’t like group activities.”
“That’s not it…… I have something I want to ask.”
Jeremiah tilted his chin as if to tell her to go ahead.
After a moment of hesitation, Philomel asked what she had been curious about for a while. It was a matter that had bothered her ever since Jeremiah had revealed his name.
“Jeremiah, is your alias by any chance the Prince of Ice?”
The Prince of Ice.
It was the moniker for a certain mage. In fact, Philomel had suspected he was the Prince of Ice from the moment she heard the name Jeremiah.
“……Ugh.”
But Jeremiah’s pale face turned red in an instant. He pulled his hood down as if to hide his face and shouted.
“Don’t call me by that name!”
“……Did I say something rude?”
Lexion, who had been snickering, stepped in.
“He hates that nickname. He doesn’t like it because it sounds too much like a pampered noble. Cadin teased him about it a lot.”
“Why are you laughing!”
As Cadin grinned, he squirmed away to avoid his brother, who was approaching to kick him.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t know……”
“Forget it!”
She had suspected it, and it turned out Jeremiah was indeed the Prince of Ice.
‘This is troublesome.’
This situation was very difficult. Because Jeremiah was another male lead who appeared in *Princess Ellensia*.