Chapter 3
“It’s because of the victory festival. Bear with it.”
“Ughhh… it’s so overwhelming!”
Honestly, even in my past life, I absolutely hated noisy places.
And on top of that, the magical kingdom of Arcadia where I grew up had fewer than 3,000 citizens total—basically a monastery, if you want to put it simply…
So this chaos in the imperial capital is way too much stimulation for me!
I felt more drained than when I’d run into a dark monster.
“You should start by building up your stamina.”
Gasp! I immediately looked up at Leviathan.
“You mean… you’ll train me?”
“…Not even worth answering.”
“Hiiing.”
Didn’t fall for it.
“So what do we do now?”
I really hoped I could at least wash up first!
In response to my question, he suddenly yanked the reins and changed direction. Not long after, the horse came to a stop.
“…….”
We were standing in front of a building with an especially flashy signboard.
<Imperial Rieta Shelter>
“…Huh?”
He’s abandoning me first thing?
Before I could fully process it, Uncle Leviathan plopped me down in front of the building. After having a guard deliver a message inside, he waved at me with an utterly charming smile.
“It was fun while it lasted, little grubby one.”
“Hah.”
I let out a sigh.
In front of me sat a bowl of vegetable soup and a chunk of brown bread speckled with sesame seeds.
“Hah!”
This is ridiculous.
Seriously—how could he do that?
Weren’t we… just a little bit, even just a tiny bit, closer back in that forest?
And yet the moment we reached the capital, he dumped me like old luggage and left…
I set down the child-sized spoon. I had no appetite at all.
“Haaaah.”
“Um…”
At that moment, a very cautious voice spoke up.
When I turned my head, a blond boy with dazzling hair was sitting beside me.
He seemed to be a child who’d arrived at the shelter before me.
“I think that was the third one.”
“Huh? Third what?”
“Uh… that grandfather-like sigh you just did?”
“…….”
I closed my mouth.
Try being crushed by the weight of life sometime. These sighs come out naturally.
“You seem like you have something on your mind. Want to talk about it?”
Since I didn’t react much, the blond boy’s curiosity seemed to grow. He even scooted his chair closer and started chatting me up.
I stared quietly at his blond hair.
‘An imperial shelter, huh…’
Guess it really is nice.
Why does this kid look nothing like a war refugee?
His clothes were shabby, but his milky-white skin was unbelievably smooth.
Slightly drooping eyes like a puppy’s, with jewel-like turquoise irises embedded within. His fluffy hair looked like a little cloud soaked in sunlight.
‘What kind of boy is this pretty?’
It made me feel unjustly bitter as a girl.
“I’ve got plenty of worries.”
“What are they? Tell me.”
Curiosity sparkled in his large blond eyes.
“First of all…”
I need to prevent the world from being destroyed.
I have to stop Part 2 of the original story from ever beginning.
“And to do that…”
I need to save the male lead, who’s destined to die soon.
His name is Leviathan Gebert—also known as the hero of the continent.
“So…”
I was planning to stick close to the male lead somehow, all while hiding my identity as a runaway mage, so he wouldn’t suddenly die!
“But then…”
That old man dumped me. Coldly. Brutally.
“And therefore…”
I have to meet him again, but…
“There’s no way to do it…”
Waaah. I shoved aside my now-tattered bread and slumped face-down onto the table.
“Hmm.”
A strange little chuckle came from beside me.
“So if ‘first of all,’ ‘to do that,’ ‘so,’ ‘but then,’ and ‘therefore’ all end with ‘there’s no way,’ then…”
“…….”
“What exactly is your worry?”
I only turned my head to look at him.
His doll-like face tilted in confusion, looking utterly innocent.
“Geez. You’re just a kid.”
Without thinking, I ended up patting his head like he was a doll.
A being who knows nothing of the world’s worries. How enviable.
“…You’re really not shy, are you?”
The blond boy smoothed his fluffy hair and grinned. His dazzling smile seemed to brighten the area around us.
Leviathan stared at the emperor before him. A familiar cigarette rested in his hand.
But for some reason, he didn’t feel like lighting it. Come to think of it, he hadn’t smoked even once in the forest… Maybe it was time to quit.
“Good work, Duke.”
The emperor spoke as he flipped through a stack of documents.
“Welcome back.”
Gentle features. Long blond hair tied loosely to one side. Clear turquoise eyes beneath long lashes.
Indeed, he looked every bit like the young emperor praised as the most beautiful man in Barmilon.
“Spare me the pleasantries and get to the point.”
“How prickly… Fine. The Magical Kingdom has requested our cooperation in tracking down a runaway mage.”
Emperor Ditrian Barmilon said this.
Leviathan’s eyebrow lifted sharply. He set down the cigarette and lifted a glass, ice clinking softly.
“A runaway mage?”
“A mage unit passing through the Canalan Gorge was ambushed and annihilated.”
“I’ve heard.”
“One body is unaccounted for.”
“……”
The corner of Leviathan’s lips curled upward.
There was not a trace of warmth in his sharp violet eyes. The air grew heavy.
A man who could overwhelm others with sheer presence alone—there was likely only one such person on this continent.
“They’re probably crushed under some rock. Or fell off a cliff—it was a gorge, after all.”
“…….”
“Do we really have to clean up that kind of mess?”
“Rein in that murderous aura. Are you trying to knock out all my maids?”
The emperor smiled gently and closed the documents.
“You know the Magical Kingdom is always busy keeping their mages in check. Still, you seem unusually sharp today.”
“Isn’t it laughable? Those ‘great mages’ can’t even find a single deserter and are losing their minds.”
“You still hate mages, I see.”
“A dark mage is still a mage.”
Grit. The sound of teeth grinding echoed.
Leviathan despised magic more than anything. It was closer to hatred toward mages as a whole.
“How is the duchess’s health?”
The emperor smoothly changed the subject.
A deep frown creased Leviathan’s brow.
“The attack on Rosetta’s carriage by a runaway mage from the Magical Kingdom must never happen again. And the loss of the unborn child…”
Crack!
A horrifying sound rang out—it was the glass in Leviathan’s hand.
Drip. Drip. Red blood patterned the ornate carpet.
“Y-Your Majesty!”
A servant rushed forward in panic, but the emperor raised a hand sharply to stop them.
Touching Duke Gebert in that state meant death.
‘That was a mistake,’ the emperor thought, swallowing his tension and smiling calmly.
“Oh dear. I seem to have angered our hero.”
Was that what a dragon looked like when its reverse scale was touched?
“Alright, alright. I’ll handle the runaway mage matter myself. I won’t involve you.”
“I’d appreciate that.”
“Go rest. You look exhausted.”
Leviathan casually pulled the glass shards from his hand and tossed them aside.
As the duke stood to leave, the emperor suddenly asked—despite knowing better.
“Marquis Eibrich said he saw you on your way to the palace.”
“And?”
“He said you had a child with you.”
Leviathan froze.
“You’re not planning to adopt again, are you?”
Leaning back in his chair, the emperor continued.
“Unless you’re opening a daycare, stop. Void and Liam are exceptional cases. You know not many children like the harsh northern lands.”
“I know.”
It was well-known that the duchess had become infertile due to the carriage accident.
After discussing it with Rosetta, he had adopted two boys from a collateral branch. He didn’t see them often due to his long absences at war, but they were fine, admirable children.
‘That child…’
The dirty little figure suddenly came to mind.
‘I wonder if they’re doing well.’
They’d made it painfully clear they didn’t want to go to the shelter.
That unusually small frame and those transparent blue eyes lingered in his thoughts.
Leviathan shook his head as if to dispel them.
The emperor was right.
Unless he planned to run a daycare, he had to forget.
For the child’s sake, too.
“Anyway. Will you attend the banquet?”
“No. I’m returning immediately.”
“A victory banquet without its hero—how disloyal, Duke.”
“Then.”
Cold wind followed Leviathan as he left the office. The emperor clicked his tongue.
“So stiff.”
Leviathan walked through the streets after leaving the palace.
The capital was lively.
Vibrant. Overflowing with life.
It was a sight he hadn’t seen in nearly ten years.
People poured into the streets, reveling in the joy of the war’s end. Scars still remained here and there, but time would take care of that.
‘Come to think of it… you hated this.’
Leviathan chuckled.
The moment the child entered the capital, they’d clamped their hands over their ears. They’d looked more terrified than when facing a dark monster.
And yet, their wide, clear eyes had rolled around busily, taking in everything…
‘I almost gave them a full tour of the city.’
He recalled the way their thin, silver-thread-like hair bounced, their small body scurrying about.
‘They had a surprisingly mature side.’
Even back in that forest.
“Things must’ve been hard. Thanks to you, we have peace.”
When he’d heard those words, his heart had clenched painfully.
Leviathan had been raised as a knight from birth. Rolling around on battlefields was more natural than eating meals.
He’d always thought it was simply his duty.
So being praised now felt awkward. Unfamiliar.
Especially coming from such a young child.
‘But maybe…’
Had he wanted to hear that?
That he’d done well.
That it was thanks to him.
“……”
Leviathan ran a hand lazily through his hair.
“Maybe I should at least say goodbye.”
Come to think of it, he hadn’t even exchanged a proper farewell.
His hesitant steps quickened on their own.
The sky had grown heavy, and before long, raindrops began to fall.
As he entered the road where the shelter stood, soaking in the drizzle—
He saw a group of people gathered, whispering anxiously.
“Why are there so many guards here?”
“Haven’t you heard?”
“Heard what?”
“There was a robbery at the Imperial Shelter.”
“My goodness!”
“They say some children were hurt.”
“Oh no—!”
A gust of wind tore through the crowd.
Leviathan ran through the mass of people, his face paler than it had ever been.
