“Okay. We’ll wait right here.”
Once we arrived at the forest, Sir Osvalt and I set off on our stroll, unaccompanied.
The sun had only just come up, so the forest was dark. It was quiet enough for me to hear turtledoves chirping in the distance.
“It’s still pretty chilly. Are you okay, Philia?”
“Oh, I’m fine. I can cloak myself in a thin layer of magic to maintain a reliably comfortable temperature.”
My work required me to venture into a range of environments, so there were times when my saint’s attire simply wasn’t appropriate. On those occasions, I found it useful to blanket my body in a thermal layer of magic. This technique was far simpler than the Robe of Light, which required the absorption of mana from the atmosphere. All saints had it in their repertoire.
Sir Osvalt laughed. “I should have known. Now that you mention it, I remember that when you first arrived, Lena was surprised that you didn’t have a change of wardrobe for the seasons. I guess you don’t need it.”
“No, but Mia likes to have robes in different styles. I suppose fashion just doesn’t interest me.”
“That’s another thing that makes you unique.”
“When you put it that way, you make me blush…”
Our conversation was meandering, and our pace was slow. I began to understand why Sir Osvalt wanted to spend some time like this. Everything felt so comfortable. It was as if the two of us had the world to ourselves.
Maybe the most valuable moments in life were the most ordinary, uneventful ones.
“Is this a place you’ve visited often?” I asked.
“Yes. I used to ride my horse here a lot. Sometimes my brother and Lady Elizabeth would join me.”
“Lady Elizabeth, too?”
At this mention of my predecessor, I couldn’t help but press further. More than anything, however, I was intrigued by Sir Osvalt’s past.
“This was before Lady Elizabeth caught the devil’s seed. She never had the strongest constitution, though. My brother heard that forest walks might help build up her strength, so he invited her along. I was the one who introduced them to this place.”
“Sir Osvalt…”
Sir Osvalt looked proud as he spoke of his brother’s kindness. It was clear that Prince Reichardt had long been concerned about Elizabeth’s health.
“I told you before that I had no special reason for wanting to come here, but on second thought, maybe it was because of them.”
“You wanted to come here because of Prince Reichardt and Elizabeth?”
Sir Osvalt explained why he had been drawn to the forest. His tone indicated that this realization had only just dawned on him. It must have come to him while he was reminiscing about the past.
“When I saw my brother and Lady Elizabeth enjoying their stroll through this forest, something just felt…right. They seemed like a perfect match.”
I stayed quiet.
“So…I guess I wanted to recreate that with you. I imagined us walking side by side, as if it was the most natural thing in the world… Wait, that’s extremely embarrassing to say out loud. Forgive me.”
He must have grown shy as he was speaking, because he averted his gaze and awkwardly scratched his head.
Walking side by side—he wanted that to be second nature for us. As I listened to him describe this idyllic vision, I began to fall in love with it, too.
“What a lovely thought. I’d love for moments like this to become part of our lives.”
“Philia?”
I reached out and clasped his large hand. Blood flowed through our intertwined fingers. Its warmth made it feel like we were truly connected.
I wasn’t sure how other people would perceive us, but one thing was certain: I wanted the spot beside Sir Osvalt all to myself. I wanted him to be mine and mine alone.
“I think my selfishness might be getting the better of me.”
“Oh? This again?”
“It’s your fault, Sir Osvalt. Nowadays, I struggle to think of anything but life with you.”
As the sunlight filtered through the trees, I silently nestled closer to my husband.
Maybe I was being needy again, but I wanted to feel him near me forever, even when we were old and gray.
✦ ✦ ✦
“Welcome back, Prince Osvalt and Lady Philia.”
We emerged from the forest and returned to our carriage to find Lena waiting for us.
“How was your walk in the woods?” she asked.
“It was so much fun. It’ll be a fond memory.”
“Hearing you say that makes me glad I suggested it,” Sir Osvalt chuckled.
“That’s the best answer I could’ve hoped for,” said Lena. “Now then, your carriage awaits.” With a reverential bow, she opened the carriage door.
We climbed back in and set out for our next destination, a place I’d dreamed of visiting since I first arrived in the country—the Sivaltz Ruins.
“Come to think of it, we’ll have a guide around the ruins, won’t we, Sir Osvalt? Do you know whom?”
“Yup. At the palace’s request, the Royal Academy has arranged for a promising young archeologist to act as our guide. His name is Rick Lucael.”
“Rick Lucael? Isn’t he the researcher who made waves with his groundbreaking archeology paper the year before last?”
“Oh, you’ve heard of him? But that was before you came to this country.”
Someone would be accompanying us as we toured the ruins on our honeymoon. That guide was called Rick Lucael, and I knew him by name. The second son of a noble family, he’d won wide acclaim with his archeology thesis at the Royal Academy, then studied abroad. I was sure he was a promising talent. Rick had also conducted archeological research to determine when the explosions in the Volcanic Miasma Region commenced, so his name was one I knew well.
“We’re meeting Rick at the Sivaltz Ruins. I hear he really knows his stuff, so I’m sure he’ll make an excellent tour guide.”
The Sivaltz Ruins were situated in a remote area along the border with Alectron. After several hours of being tossed around in our carriage, we finally reached the site.