Chapter 104
“I apologize.”
“That is not enough. Talus Futurum, for daring to insult the First Princess with baseless accusations, you will be charged with lèse-majesté and punished accordingly.” (t/n: Lèse-majesté is a crime that involves defaming or offending the dignity of a ruling head of state or the state itself.)
“…….”
“Furthermore, I order the Duke of Futurum’s household to take responsibility and retrieve all the iron distributed to the commoners, and take necessary action.”
“……I shall obey Your Highness’s command.”
“Additionally, I believe the librarian who recklessly issued the records was negligent. I will hold them accountable.”
It was a clean conclusion. If there was something to regret, it would be a lie to say there wasn’t, but it wasn’t something worth complaining about.
The meeting was adjourned, and Evgenia left. Following her, the Duke of Futurum stormed out. As others followed him, I approached Killis.
“Killis, thank you earlier. Thanks to you, I was able to clear my name.”
“I am glad to have been of help to Your Highness.”
A smile appeared on Killis’ lips. However, he seemed paler than usual. Although he already had a fair complexion, he now looked significantly more gaunt.
Upon closer inspection, I noticed cold sweat on his forehead, with strands of gray hair sticking to his skin.
“Are you in pain?”
“No, no. I’m fine.”
Killis attempted to rise from his seat. As he tried to take a step, his body tilted to the side.
“Killis!”
Startled, I reached out to catch him. However, a hand was already there, faster than mine, supporting Killis.
Isaac inspected Killis and immediately spoke to me about his condition.
“He seems to have fainted.”
“Do you know why?”
“It seems he used a lot of mana during the verification earlier. It would be wise to call a healer.”
“Ah…… Yes. That’s probably for the best.”
I looked at Killis with concern. He appeared to be barely breathing, his eyes closed as if unconscious, and his breathing was shallow, which made him look like he was in great pain.
Isaac carried Killis out of the meeting room. The maids quickly guided Killis to a nearby guest room, and healers were summoned right away.
Fortunately, there were healers on standby at Evgenia’s palace, so immediate action could be taken.
“There are no underlying illnesses. As the princess and Lord Harsen suspected, it seems to be mana exhaustion, so he will recover naturally with time.”
The healer bowed to me before leaving. I sat on a small chair beside the bed, looking down at Killis.
His pale face was covered in cold sweat.
‘Because of me…….’
Seeing him in such a state, guilt washed over me.
‘His glasses must be uncomfortable, hmm?’
I gently placed my hand on Killis’ face. As I carefully removed his glasses, his face scrunched up, and he soon opened his eyes.
“……Your Highness?”
“Are you okay?”
“Why…… Where am I……?”
“You fainted in the meeting room, so we brought you to a nearby guest room. They said it’s mana exhaustion.”
“I see…… I have caused you trouble.”
“It’s more that Lord Isaac worked hard. He was the one who carried you here. Here are your glasses. I took them off in case they were uncomfortable.”
“Thank you for your consideration, Your Highness. And thank you, Lord Isaac.”
“It’s nothing.”
Isaac responded curtly. Meanwhile, Killis tried to sit up, and I asked with concern.
“Wouldn’t it be better to rest a bit more?”
“I’m fine. I’ll feel more at ease if I return and rest.”
“What if you collapse again? Rest for a bit before you go.”
“Thanks to Your Highness’s mana…… I won’t collapse again.”
“My mana?”
“When you removed my glasses earlier, I received a tiny bit of Your Highness’s mana.”
Mana was transferred just by touch?
I had always thought mana could only be transferred through more intimate contact, like kissing, so this was a bit surprising.
“Can my mana really be received? I thought mages couldn’t take in my mana?”
“I didn’t realize I had said that. Mages can also receive mana.”
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