Chapter 17
“This is quite something. How am I supposed to take this?”
“We’re that desperate for your help, Lord Jade. There’s also the advantage that you haven’t yet revealed yourself to the world. So just name your price. I’m even considering giving myself to you.”
In short, she had essentially presented him with a blank check.
And those words showed just how desperate she was.
Desperate enough for a princess to throw herself at him.
“I think you may be overestimating me.”
“To be honest, I don’t have the discernment to judge your abilities, Lord Jade. But Sir Haines is different. He is the captain of the Royal Knights and was once hailed as the kingdom’s greatest swordsman. And Sir Haines said that you, Lord Jade, are a powerhouse on par with himself.”
“You trust him absolutely.”
“Yes. He’s no different from a father to us. He’s also the man who protected the two of us all the way here at the risk of his life.”
Jade nodded.
He knew well enough what the relationship among the three of them was.
“……May I hear your answer?”
Rainy continued, her face taut with tension.
She felt she had given him enough time to think.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t think I can accept that proposal. I don’t think I’m a suitable partner for you, Your Highness.”
“Ah……”
Rainy’s complexion paled at the tactful rejection.
At the same time, her eyes wavered violently.
She was at a loss over what to do next in the worst possible outcome.
“Instead, I’d like something else.”
“S-something else?”
“I heard you can grant me a title.”
“Yes!”
If the rebellion were put down, Lloyd would become king.
But this much she could decide on her own.
High-ranking titles like duke or marquis would be difficult, but a count should be possible.
And with time, perhaps even higher than that.
“I would like a title.”
“……May I ask why? I’m curious, personally.”
Rainy asked with an awkward smile.
From her expression, her pride seemed slightly wounded.
Jade pretended not to notice, despite knowing it.
Instead, he revealed a secret he had told no one.
“Actually, I’m the illegitimate son of Baron Baris Leon. At present, only two people know that: Baron Baris and me.”
“……!”
“That’s why I need a title. One higher than a baron’s.”
Rainy’s eyes widened.
But her shock was brief.
She now understood why Jade had lived in the Great Forest despite his exceptional abilities.
She also realized what Jade wanted from these words.
And why he was revealing his secret.
Just as she had lowered her pride, Jade too had exposed his own secret.
“Are you planning to seek revenge?”
“At first, I had no particular plans. I’d possessed the necessary strength for quite some time, after all. But lately, I’d been wondering whether there was any point in doing so now. Yet with things turning out this way, I’m starting to feel greedy. There was also something I wanted to ask him face-to-face, at least once.”
Thump. Thump.
His heart suddenly began to pound.
Regardless of his own will.
‘Did you want this, too?’
Jade let out a small laugh at the heartbeat, as if the body’s original owner were reacting.
Because he felt that if he were in that man’s place, he would have wanted this.
Not simply crushing him with power, but crushing him under the status of that great noble.
Simply beating him down would be no fun.
‘And letting him know I have every right to do it.’
The reason Rainy had offered herself instead of merely proposing terms was obvious.
She feared Jade might switch sides if the Second Prince, or another country, offered him better terms.
Of course, Jade had no intention of doing that, but Rainy, Lloyd, and Haines would not readily believe him even if he swore an oath or pledge.
So she was trying to bind him to them somehow through blood ties.
‘Well, they’ll still be suspicious, but revealing that I’m from House Leon should make them less wary than before.’
Though Rainy had put herself on the line, the chances of it actually happening were slim.
Lloyd and Haines would rise up against it immediately.
So this was exactly the right balance.
“House Leon, you say. That’s worked out nicely. I had a score to settle with that family anyway.”
“I think that should be answer enough.”
“Of course. Though I wasn’t satisfied, to be honest. Am I not your type?”
Rainy asked playfully.
But despite her smile, her gaze was sincere.
She was harboring a bit of a grudge.
“Of course you are. You’re more beautiful than any woman I’ve ever seen, Your Highness. And you’ll become even more beautiful in the future.”
-Liar! I’m prettier!
-I can’t agree with that. I’m quite beautiful myself.
The two spirits reacted fiercely the moment Jade finished speaking.
As if they absolutely refused to admit it.
The two spirits’ shouts were inaudible to Rainy but deafening to him, making it difficult for Jade to keep his expression under control.
They were shouting right beside his ears from his shoulders, and it was starting to hurt.
“Really?”
“Yes.”
“Then that’s a relief.”
Rainy beamed.
She was strangely delighted by what was merely lip service.
Then she looked at Jade with an expression completely different from the one she had worn moments before.
“Is there something else you’d like to say?”
Jade asked as he lifted his teacup, seeing that she clearly had something to say.
Rainy nodded emphatically.
“I’ve wanted to ask since we first met: Do Lloyd or I happen to have any affinity for spirits?”
“I’m sorry, but it doesn’t seem so.”
“I see.”
Rainy, who had been hopeful for a moment, soon smiled bitterly.
She had been just a little hopeful, but apparently she had no talent in that regard, either.
“Why did you ask?”
“Actually, our mother is a quarter-elf. It’s not known to the world, but that means Lloyd and I still have a little elven blood in us. I thought I’d ask, just in case.”
“Ah.”
Jade nodded.
In that case, it was understandable that she had hoped.
Unlike humans, elves were a race known as the fairy folk, and they had an especially close relationship with spirits.
Unfortunately, however, it seemed that connection had not been passed on to the siblings.
“It’s a shame, but it can’t be helped. There are few talents as dependent on innate gifts as an affinity for spirits.”
“But you’ll have many things in the future instead, won’t you?”
“I hope so. No, I will. Since you’ve agreed to join us, Lord Jade.”
“Please don’t expect too much of me.”
Seeing Rainy’s gaze plainly brimming with immense trust and expectation, Jade modestly demurred.
But even after hearing that, she continued to look at Jade with fervent eyes.
“We can definitely win. Especially since the Second Prince’s side doesn’t know much about you, Lord Jade. You’re essentially our secret weapon.”
“They likely haven’t ever faced a spirit mage.”
“High-ranking spirit mages are that rare.”
“Haha.”
Jade neither agreed nor disagreed.
He merely smiled.
But Rainy was no pushover, either.
She wore a smile similar to Jade’s.
“We’re leaving for the capital first thing tomorrow morning via the teleportation gate. So if there’s anything else you need to take care of, you’d better do it today.”
“Understood.”
“Let’s have dinner together later.”
“Let’s.”
Now that they were in the same boat, Jade did not refuse Rainy’s invitation.
He had been hoping to learn from Haines’s experience anyway.
‘The memories of a living master will surely be a great help. Especially since Sir Haines has so many years of experience.’
As he stood, Whid, who had been sleeping peacefully, got up.
He had woken at the movement.
Then he began flying energetically around Jade.
Click.
As Jade left the room with Whid flying excitedly beside him, Rainy looked down at her body with a more serious expression than ever.
Lloyd had not noticed, but she had paid considerable attention to not only her clothes but also her makeup and hair for this meeting.
Yet being rejected so bluntly had wounded Rainy’s pride.
“I’m good enough, aren’t I? I even have some elven blood in me.”
Rainy ran her hands over her body.
Her gently rounded breasts and slender waist.
And her full hips, curving from her waist, were so splendid that the words “perfect as a woman” came naturally to mind.
Moreover, she was wearing an outfit that accentuated her figure.
“……How could anyone not fall for me?”
Even by objective standards, she was beautiful enough to qualify as a beauty.
Besides, with even a little elven blood mixed in, her aging should differ from that of an ordinary human.
Even so, Rainy could not understand being rejected.
“It’s really frustrating.”
She had always been the one making the choices.
But now that she was on the receiving end—and had even been rejected—she felt terrible.
At the same time, a competitive streak rose in her.
“Just you wait.”
Remembering Jade’s gaze, which had not wavered in the slightest when she had offered herself to him, Rainy ground her teeth.
For the sake of restoring her pride, she intended to somehow hear the words she wanted.
In any case, from her perspective, she absolutely had to win him over.
Upon arriving in the capital, Jade headed straight to the magic shop, unlike the rest of the group.
His original purpose was an artifact enchanted with subspace magic, and he had decided to act separately because he did not want the two siblings to be revealed to the Arhan royal family.
“Haha! Just leave it to me! I was once called a genius in the royal palace!”
Of course, he was not alone.
They had assigned him the only mage in the group as an attendant.
Since they were the princess and crown prince’s party, there was little chance of being swindled at the magic shop, but Rainy had attached him just in case.
“I’ll put my trust in you, Sir Steven.”
“Don’t worry! I’ll make sure no one rips you off!”
“Please do.”
He had sensed it from when they first met, but Steven was normally extremely high-energy.
Perhaps because this was his field, he was even louder and more talkative than usual this time.
“Welcome.”
“There should be a reservation under Princess Rainy.”
“I’ve been informed. Please come in. I’ll show you around.”
“Ahem! This way, Lord Jade.”
Steven looked slightly surprised by the excessively neat and dignified speech and conduct for a mere clerk.
But he quickly erased that expression and attended to Jade.
Since this was surely Jade’s first time in a place like this, he was being especially attentive.
Rainy had also asked him to do so separately.
-Wow! There are so many artifacts!
-What good is that? There’s nothing special here. They’re all pretty average.
Silestin was fascinated by the various magical items filling the long, narrow interior.
Unlike Silestin, however, Elestra was unimpressed.
Having lived for many years, artifacts of this level failed to impress her.
“Are you looking for anything in particular?”
“I’d like to see items enchanted with subspace magic.”
“Those are the items people look for most often.”
“People tend to want the same things.”
“Indeed. This way, please.”
The clerk answered politely and led the way.
Even so, the clerk surreptitiously glanced at Whid nestled in Jade’s arms.
Quite a few nobles went around with beasts of prey as pets, but this was his first time seeing a drake.
But even though he was curious, he did not ask.
The most important thing when working here was not to show one’s emotions.
Moreover, since Jade was part of Princess Rainy’s party, the clerk hid his curiosity and led them to where the items imbued with subspace magic were gathered.