Chapter 9
Sisstein Detached Palace. That was where Euphen resided.
‘Of all places.’
To think she’d be going there.
Come to think of it, Mari was rather fortunate. Euphen was the type of person who treated even lowly maids with a fair degree of kindness. Compared to serving some of the more ill-tempered members of the Imperial Family, being under his command was a stroke of great luck.
She moved her steps toward the detached palace, though she had no desire to run into Euphen. She didn’t want him to fall in love with her all over again.
So it was best to avoid the risk of encountering him as much as possible. After all, the more often people saw each other, the more likely they were to develop feelings.
‘But why does she want to see me?’
Lynette tilted her head slightly, a faint frown on her face.
Was it to thank her, like Lara had?
But Mari had seemed rather cynical. And the people who had been trapped in there probably had no idea that they had really almost died.
“Haa… I don’t know.”
She shook her head. Lost in thought as she walked, she soon found herself in front of the detached palace. As she unconsciously headed for the main gate like before, she suddenly came to her senses.
Things were different now. Of course, if word got to Euphen that Lynette, his “temporary Guide,” had come to visit, he would no doubt readily grant permission, but she didn’t want him to know she was here.
The last time, thanks to Shirin’s interference, they hadn’t been able to have a proper conversation, so he would surely want to sit down and have tea with her. Keeping as much physical distance as possible and only meeting when guiding was necessary was the best course of action.
Reinforcing that thought, Lynette headed for the small side door tucked away in a corner of the outer wall. It was a door that wasn’t supposed to exist, but the servants had made it to avoid the hassle of going through the main gate’s inspection procedures.
‘They said this door’s been here since quite a while ago… so it should still be there, right?’
Recalling her memory, she pushed her way into the bushes. Just as she was about to part the branches to check for the door’s presence, a low voice came from behind her.
“What are you doing?”
Startled, Lynette quickly turned around. A man in a guard’s uniform was looking down at her from horseback.
“Ah, well…”
Of all things, to get caught by a guard.
She couldn’t exactly deny that her actions looked suspicious. As her lips parted without any explanation coming out, the man swung down from his horse.
“Judging by your clothes, you’re not a maid… how did you get in here?”
“Ah, well… I’m not a maid… I’m from the Mage Tower…”
From the Mage Tower…
She couldn’t think of a proper word to follow.
A test subject? A fake Guide? She wasn’t wearing a maid’s uniform, so calling herself a maid was out of the question.
As Lynette’s eyes darted around, the man strode closer, brushing back his hair with a frown.
“From the Mage Tower?”
Then, as if urging her to continue, the man suddenly reached into his b****t pocket and pulled something out, a pendant that glimmered faintly.
“…!”
The guard, who had just been eyeing her with open suspicion, widened his eyes. He looked at Lynette, then at the pendant again.
Not understanding why, Lynette tilted her head slightly. The man took a step closer, then suddenly held out his hand.
“If you don’t mind, may I take your hand for a moment?”
“…Excuse me?”
“There’s something I’d like to confirm.”
His tone was nothing like when he’d been questioning her as a suspicious stranger.
The sudden change made her instinctively step back. Seeing this, the man bit his lip as if realizing he’d made a mistake, then bent at the waist in a surprisingly graceful bow.
Lynette found herself staring blankly at the few strands of long golden hair that slid slowly down his shoulder.
She’d seen plenty of blond hair before, but never one that shone so brilliantly. And paired with those striking crimson eyes…
‘He stands out.’
He was extremely tall, and despite his broad frame, he somehow gave the impression of being slender. His jawline was more refined than heavy, with a sharp nose and straight lips, a face one would hardly expect to see walking down the street.
“It’s a pleasure to meet you. I’m Sillian. May I ask your name?”
“Lynette.”
Strange man.
She eyed Sillian warily. Just moments ago he’d suspected her of being an intruder, and now he was acting with utmost courtesy.
“Lynette, if it’s not too much trouble, may I take your hand for a moment?”
“Why… why?”
“Please.”
Sillian extended his hand again. Lynette hesitated, staring at the large hand for a while, before cautiously placing her own on top of it.
“…”
Silence fell. Nothing happened.
She saw him bite his lip slightly.
“There’s no way the pendant is wrong.”
The murmur was so low it was barely audible.
He gave her hand a firm squeeze before slowly letting go. All traces of suspicion toward her now gone, Sillian simply stared intently at the pendant with a grave expression.
“Is the awakening still not there…?”
Awakening.
That was one word Lynette understood perfectly well. Before her regression, she’d grown sick and tired of hearing it during her time as a fake Guide.
‘Awakening? Why bring that up all of a sudden?’
Was he someone who had noticed Euphen’s awakening?
Lynette tensed slightly.
As far as she knew, the fact that Euphen was an Esper was a closely guarded secret. An Esper without a Guide carried a severe weakness.
Until the real Guide, Eshar, appeared, he had never officially disclosed that he had awakened.
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