You're the Only One I Can Rely On

Despite being just a small fragment, King Izard's crown fragment maintained its brilliant shine.

A brilliance that seemed to put whoever saw it at ease.

"What's that?"

Princess Tianis stared blankly at the crown fragment I'd taken out.

She seemed to have no idea what it was.

"Did you find some big lump of gold? It is pretty, though."

"This is… Yohane-san, may I see it?"

I nodded, and Anatia-san gently took the crown fragment in her hands.

She gazed at it intently, then held it up high, closed one eye, and squinted.

It was as if she was appraising it.

"Yohane-san, where did you get this?"

"When I got caught up in the red moon incident I mentioned earlier. I met King Izard and after he helped me, he asked me to bring this back to the Kingdom."

"King Izard did… No wonder we couldn't find the rest of it no matter how hard we searched. I had no idea something like that had happened. What became of King Izard?"

"After defeating the red moon, he entrusted this to me and faded away. It seems his physical body had perished long ago."

She returned it to me.

To complete the crown, I'd need to go to Duke Baroba. Since she couldn't leave the Royal Capital, entrusting it to her wasn't appropriate.

"What are you two talking about? Don't leave me out! King Izard was an old king, right?"

"Yes, the king called the most courageous in history. He went missing on his way back from leading knights to exterminate monsters. Some cried conspiracy, others whispered it was another nation's doing, and there was conflict upon conflict. He was a man of great popularity, so the parliament was thrown into turmoil accordingly, or so it's been passed down."

King Izard had been a strong and dependable figure.

Just watching his back had felt like it gave me courage.

When such a king suddenly vanished, it was easy to imagine the agitation of those who admired him.

"That developed into a succession dispute… I've heard it nearly reached civil war. As a result, the Deiancle ducal house was established. The Kingdom couldn't afford to be split in two."

"I see. That's why he bid such a sum for that one crown. Perhaps hoping to learn something."

"Yes. And I think he simply wanted to reclaim it. My father had a strong admiration for the tales of King Izard."

"… Nothing like that was passed down to me."

While Anatia-san and I were engrossed in conversation, Princess Tianis looked a bit sulky.

Did stories pass down differently between the ducal house and the royal family?

But could that really be the case?

"Since the kingdom's own king suddenly went missing, the royal family probably didn't want to make it public. They must have deliberately kept it vague and didn't pass it down."

"That's just too…"

She tried to say "that's just too much," but managed to stop herself.

It wasn't Princess Tianis's fault.

But I couldn't accept such treatment of my savior.

"That's exactly why we in the ducal house at least wanted to remember and pass it on. And now King Izard has finally returned to the Kingdom. Surely that's what matters."

King Izard's final request had been to return the crown to the Kingdom.

It hadn't been fully restored yet, but I'd succeeded in bringing it home.

"With this, the rightful royal authority has returned to the Kingdom, and that can be proclaimed at the coronation. Even without making it as extravagant as the Empire's, legitimacy can be guaranteed. King Izard's return can be announced publicly too. Killing two birds with one stone."

Anatia-san stroked Princess Tianis's head.

She really was shrewd.

Even though she must have been surprised by the crown fragment, she was already thinking that far ahead.

"Yohane-san. I think my father will be overjoyed when he sees this."

"I just brought it back, but I'm glad if it makes him that happy."

"And so, about that…"

She looked up at me hesitantly, her eyes moist.

When the elegant and beautiful Anatia-san made such gestures, my heart couldn't help but skip a beat.

But from experience, I could predict what came next.

This was the prelude to a request.

"I can't entrust this to anyone I don't trust. Especially not now, at such a delicate time. If I could deliver it myself, I would, but I can't leave this child alone."

"I'm sure there are many who would want to fill Princess Tianis's head with unsavory ideas."

"Yes. And it wouldn't be strange if some were thinking of more extreme measures. So I want you, the person I trust most, Yohane-san, to deliver this to my father. Would that be too much to ask?"

Looking up at me with moist eyes and asking if it was too much was unfair.

How many men in this world could refuse?

But even if she hadn't asked, I'd intended to deliver it myself.

I felt that was the proper courtesy for someone who had saved my life.

"Understood. I will deliver it without fail."

"Thank you."

She squeezed my hands firmly with both of hers.

The feel of her silk gloves made my heart race.

Was she calculating this or being genuine?

I thought I heard a clicking tongue from behind me.

*　*　*

"Oh, that's right. I found some good tea, so I brought it as a souvenir from the Empire. Would you like to try it?"

"My, how thoughtful. There's hot water, so use that."

"Fufu. If you recommend it, Yohane-san, I'm looking forward to it."

I put the tea leaves in the teapot the same way as black tea and poured hot water to extract the essence.

As the tea leaves swirled around in the water as if dancing, the aroma emerged.

"What a refreshing scent. I feel like it could relieve my fatigue. Shall I have some sweets prepared too?"

"I agree. I'd like to have it with cake."

She had a maid bring cake.

I was grateful that she prepared portions for Azu and the others as well.

Not as a poison test, but I took a sip first to demonstrate.

An herbal aroma passed through my nose, and a faint sweetness and bitterness lingered on my tongue.

It almost felt like it sharpened my concentration.

The two of them brought the cups of tea I'd poured to their lips.

I watched nervously, but they seemed to like it.

They even placed an order on the spot.

As I'd thought, this would be popular with women.