Chapter 34
Maya persistently negotiated with the owner to find a middle ground. That resulted in the brooch now in Tristan’s hand.
A sword-shaped brooch with a blue topaz that matched Tristan’s eye color.
The delicately crafted silver design was a longsword, Maya’s favorite.
“I’ll pin it on for you.”
Maya, with a reverence as if standing before a priest, pinned the brooch onto Tristan’s chest.
The man, dressed in a pristine white uniform for the occasion, matched the silver brooch as if it was meant to be.
“Such a beautiful brooch. Thank you.”
Was the sword-shaped brooch prepared because the Pendragon family is known for swords? Tristan started to speak, thinking it was a good gift.
“Would you now please stand in your place?”
A lowered voice brushed his ear. Tristan hesitated but then silently complied with Maya’s request.
Maya knelt, placing her right hand on his shoulder.
“It’s not a perfect gift yet since I haven’t awakened. But there may come a day when you need it, Your Highness.”
Maya’s eyes sparkled as she caught her breath.
“I, Maya Pendragon, swear to Tristan Bayarden.”
The brooch was merely a formality. The true gift was something else.
“Even after our contractual marriage ends, if you ever need me, whatever it is, I will do it.”
Realizing the strangeness in Maya’s posture of kneeling and speaking, Tristan was belatedly shocked, understanding what her actions meant.
“…Is this a Pendragon oath?”
The Pendragon oath.
Maya, with Pendragon blood flowing through her, risks losing her life if she fails to keep the oath.
“Maya, stop this. This is different from signing a contract! This is foolish.”
A contract can end anytime, but this oath was different. Unless Tristan were to use it, it would continuously bind Maya like a chain.
Tristan hurriedly lifted Maya up.
Maya smiled warmly.
“I’m fine with being foolish.”
Making the oath wasn’t her original intention.
She had pondered over it.
But the ball prepared for her,
Realizing while hearing his kind words that he too hadn’t had a debutante ball, she thought,
‘If it’s with you, it would be alright.’
Tristan would not use the Pendragon oath for futile reasons.
The time linked by the contract with Tristan was just over half a year.
Since she would mostly sever contact with Tristan afterward, it was highly likely Maya wouldn’t know if he truly faced an emergency.
The gift prepared now was for such times.
When the Emperor needed the sword of Pendragon.
Because such a time will surely come.
Maya decided to trust someone again.
Convinced she would reach a different ending from her previous life.
And most importantly,
‘Because I want to believe.’
She wanted to truly trust the person before her.
Burdened suddenly with this responsibility, Tristan looked at Maya with a heavy heart.
And as if challenging him, Maya stared back intensely.
The straightforward gaze she had from the first meeting remained.
‘How long have we known each other?’
The faith she held for him was astonishingly pure. The blind gaze left him feeling complex.
‘……’
The tense standoff was broken by Maya.
“I’ll try to hasten my awakening as much as possible.”
Perhaps it could be achieved within three days if she explored deep in the mountains?
Of course, it would require much more effort than in her previous life…
Considering the curse to be quickly lifted and the debt of her heart to Tristan, it seemed worth it.
‘This celebration is enough for a birthday.’
Receiving a great gift from Kendrick, who arrived unexpectedly, and having a perfect day from the morning.
“I’ll depart this evening. I’ll finish packing by lunch and inquire more about the monster that Knight Commander Alec saw.”
With a clear goal in sight, it’s time to pour everything into it.
‘To ensure Tristan Bayarden can return to a normal life as soon as possible, to become a perfect Emperor, let’s lift the curse.’
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