The rain gradually intensified. Ricardo and I standing here looked utterly ridiculous.
……Ricardo, do you know?
That because of your pitiful conscience, I’m getting drenched in the rain again.
If the person standing in front of you were Idette, you would have found a place to avoid the rain with her no matter what.
At least in the original story I read, that’s what you did.
You’re a considerate person. But your consideration never reaches me.
I stared quietly at Ricardo, then turned around. But at that moment, Ricardo blocked my path.
His shadow, cast by the sunlight, fell over me.
Raindrops trickled down Ricardo’s jawline. But he didn’t seem to have any intention of avoiding the rain—he simply continued to gaze at me.
I spoke without thinking.
“……Do you want to apologize to me?”
“I just… wanted to look at you…….”
Ricardo’s words trailed off. He seemed unaware of what he was even saying.
Eventually, a voice tinged with bitterness quietly echoed in my ears.
“If I apologize to you, then from now on, there will be nothing left of your feelings for me, will there?”
……I still didn’t understand what he was saying.
Even though it had been days since we left the lakeside, my ears still felt stuffed and heavy.
Ricardo spoke in a low voice.
“I won’t apologize to you.”
“……What did you say?”
“Just like you said, I’m selfish.”
A faint light briefly passed through Ricardo’s eyes.
“If you want an apology from me, come find me yourself.”
At that moment, complete light filled the eyes that had been consumed by darkness all along.
“Blame me. It’s fine to despise me for not being able to save you. No, better yet, hate me.”
“…….”
“Because you’ll look prettier that way than you do now.”
For some reason, I felt suffocated.
As I stood there, Ricardo reached out his hand toward me. The hand that hadn’t reached me last time brushed past my eye this time. His cold touch gently caressed the corner of my eye.
“I’m the one who let you, when you weren’t feeling well, stand in the rain.”
……I know. Who wouldn’t know that.
“I’m also the one who, despite having a fiancée, saved another woman.”
His hand slowly moved downward and grazed my lips. As he lingered at my lips, he let out a bitter smile.
“You must know this. That the one your feelings should be directed toward is no one else but me.”
His fingers pressed firmly against my lips.
Swoooosh―.
The rain poured down harder. The rain falling under the clear sky was warm, as if it carried the gentleness of sunlight.
……Did I really hear Ricardo correctly?
Am I the one who’s lost it……?
If not, Ricardo, are you the one who’s lost it?
“You said the letter of annulment would arrive this week?”
While I stood dazed, Ricardo continued speaking on his own.
“Bring the annulment letter yourself. Even if it’s over, you should still maintain the propriety of a fiancée.”
At that moment, something dropped lightly onto my shoulder. Startled, I quickly looked up, and I saw Ricardo’s jacket placed over my shoulder.
A terribly arrogant voice rang out above my head.
“Return it to me the next time we meet.”
“…….”
“Along with the annulment letter.”
* * *
Grandfather didn’t return to the mansion even after a week had passed. No matter how many times I asked Cedric what was going on, he only cut me off, saying it wasn’t my concern.
〈You just focus on recovering.〉
My body had long since recovered.
All I knew in this situation was that a great wind was stirring from the imperial palace.
……And that Cedric’s coronation was not far off.
The Roygin mansion was unusually chaotic.
〈We grew up safely under Grandfather’s protection all this time, so now it’s our turn to protect him.〉
I didn’t know the details of what was going on, but one thing was certain—Cedric was right.
It was our turn now to protect Grandfather.
I read through materials about the Drimokan Forest.
Just as Peril had speculated, there was a high chance that Grandfather’s illness was connected to the Drimokan Forest. The fact that there was a problem with his mana served as proof that mana originated from the gods of the Divine Era.
“Bianca.”
At the sound of Leon’s voice approaching me, I quickly lifted my head.
“Oh, Brother.”
As I pushed the documents I had been reading to one side of the table, his gaze briefly touched them.
I changed the subject.
“Thank you for what you did that day.”
“It’s fine. I didn’t do it to get a thank you from you.”
Leon brushed off my words nonchalantly.
“……I heard you decided to hand over the mine to the House of Hessen.”
Leon flinched at my words.
On the day of the hunting competition, Leon aimed an arrow at Ricardo. As a result, Ricardo was seriously injured. In return, he demanded one of the mines owned by the count's family as compensation.
“It’s a mine that doesn’t even produce proper minerals anyway.”
Leon replied with a disinterested tone.
The mine Ricardo had requested was the Seren Mine, located in the western region.
……And countless pieces of Kaen were expected to be discovered there.
As magic stones diminished, Kaen was emerging as a mineral that could replace them. Its value would skyrocket.
I knew about Kaen because I had read the original work, but the fact that Ricardo—who didn’t know the original story—specifically asked for Seren among so many mines unsettled me.
Of course, it could just be a coincidence.
But in all the crossroads Ricardo had ever taken, not a single thing had been left to chance.
As I tapped the table with my fingers, I quietly spoke.
“Do we really have to give up the Seren Mine?”
“Huh?”
From the start, this whole situation felt highly suspicious to me. In the original story, there was no scene where Ricardo got injured because of Leon.
Ricardo was a naturally gifted swordsman. The House of Duke Hessen itself was called the Empire’s Sword, yet its heir couldn’t dodge Leon’s arrow?
Besides, in the original story, the person who came to possess the Seren Mine wasn’t Ricardo, but Idette.
“There’s a mine in the western region owned by the House of Marquis Roygin.”
“You’re talking about the mine the Marquis gave you as a gift when you came of age, right?”
“Yes.”
Right now, it was yielding magic stones, but compared to the future Seren Mine, it was nothing special.
“The Hurrigon Mine I own is more valuable than the Seren Mine. I’ll give Hurrigon to you, Brother, so hand that over to the House of Hessen instead.”
Leon’s eyes widened at my words. But he soon shook his head.
“It’s fine. I’m the one who did wrong, so why should I use your help.”
“Just consider it a return for saving me the last time. And please don’t hand over Seren Mine to anyone.”
Leon looked confused. He didn’t understand why I was asking him to hand over Hurrigon, which was currently producing magic stones, instead of Seren, which wasn’t yielding anything.
Even I would find it hard to accept if I were in his shoes.
But I could never watch Ricardo be handed the mine where Kaen would be discovered.
“Please, Brother.”
Leon looked troubled. When I grabbed the hand he had placed on the table, the tips of his ears began to turn red.
“……The problem is that you know all too well that I’m weak when it comes to you.”
Leon fiddled with my hand.
“Fine, I’ll do as you say… but I’ll still pay for Hurrigon.”
“There’s no need.”
“Take it. I didn’t save you because I wanted a reward.”
It was a rare, resolute attitude from him.
In the end, I had no choice but to agree with him. If Kaen were discovered later, Leon would gain far more than just this.
“Oh, and if the House of Hessen rejects Hurrigon, could you ask them why?”
“They wouldn’t refuse. Hurrigon is much more valuable than Seren.”
……That’s true.
Yes, thinking about it rationally, there was no reason Ricardo would turn down Hurrigon.
If he still insisted on Seren, then it would be clear that he knew something too.
I saw Leon off. Then I turned my gaze to the jacket draped over the back of the sofa.
One matter had been settled. Now only one thing remained.
……Ricardo Hessen.
The annulment with him.