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ONCE Agnes was done explaining all about the trip to the Barthet territory, the kidnapping, and the destruction of the cathedral, Cesar nodded thoughtfully.
“I had no idea you were the Queen of Mushrooms, Agnes. No wonder you can do such wonderful things just by transporting food on your person.”
The room was filled with a pop, as if to punctuate Cesar’s sentence.
A mushroom with a brownish cap and white stalk was now growing atop the table. The Termitomyces’s cap spread with confidence.
“Is being the Queen of Mushrooms such a big deal then?” Agnes asked.
Charles was looking satisfied after working his way through half of the cookies Agnes had brought. Oddly enough, he had also drunk quite a deal of Agnes’s special but poisonous-looking tea. It seemed he’d grown to like it despite the off-putting appearance.
The tea was imbued with the blessing of the spirits and should be good for health. So, there was no real concern even if Charles had finished off the entire teapot.
But, wasn’t it rather odd how casual everyone was about mushrooms popping up all the time now? It was a little frightening how adaptable people were.
“It’s hard to draw comparisons, but to put it in Visage terms, a Queen or King of Mushrooms is up there amongst the noblest Dragon Crest Bearers,” Cesar explained.
“Wow, Lady Agnes, you’re actually really cool!” Charles exclaimed.
“But I make mushrooms sprout wherever I go,” Agnes replied dryly.
Having an official title sounded impressive, but the reality of her condition was just abominable.
“You really are a huge asset to Claude!” Charles cheered.
“Yes, I do feel that if I keep him supplied with mushrooms, he will grow stronger,” Agnes commented hesitantly.
Even in Oreille, which was a country where the blessings of the spirits were strong, very few people were blessed with the power to sprout mushrooms. In a sense, you could say that Agnes was Claude’s only shot at a mushroom-sprouting partner.
“I hear the monsters have been growing stronger lately, so Claude getting stronger can only be a good thing.”
“Monsters, you say?” Agnes had heard that monsters existed, but to her they sounded rather like something out of a fairytale.
“People in the capital don’t have much experience with monsters,” Cesar said.
“I’ve never seen one, either,” Charles added.
Cesar shot a worried look at Charles, who was helping himself to another cup of the poisonous-looking tea. “We work hard to keep it that way,” he said. “Though having said that, it has been some time since I left the frontline of battle. Claude has also been spending most of his time in the capital of late, but Armand is now posted there. It should be all right.”
Armand, the third-born prince but fourth in line to the throne, was in disgrace after trying to assassinate Agnes and weaken Claude. Agnes guessed that Cesar was referring to monster subjugation, but what did Cesar mean exactly by the frontline of battle?
“Monster invasions and Dragon Crest Bearers are deeply linked. You should ask His Majesty or Claude if you’d like to know more. Now, to change the subject.” Cesar turned his attention to Ciel, who was reclining comfortably on the sofa.
The creature’s glossy fur shone in the light, his ears twitched every now and then, and he had his plush tail wrapped around his body. His fluffy snoozing presence seemed to epitomize pure happiness. Just looking at him was enough to bring a smile to Agnes’s face. But it wasn’t only Agnes that Ciel seemed to be having an effect on. Charles and Cesar were smiling too as they watched the cat’s furry belly rise and fall with the rhythm of his breathing.
“I was aware that various bodyguards were being considered for you, Agnes, but to actually summon a sacred beast…” To hear this from Cesar, himself a Crest Bearer, made Agnes realize that summoning Ciel must have been a wild choice indeed. “I mean, to start with, it’s difficult for a Crest Bearer to even enter Oreille. Not impossible mind you, but uncomfortable, even painful. And under a temporary contract to a sacred beast, you’d be burning through twice as much magical energy.”
“Claude said he was fine… But was he, really?” Agnes reached out to pet Ciel, and the cat purred happily. Despite its cuteness, the white tiger fed off of Claude’s magical power.
“I suppose he must be all right, since it was his choice to summon the cat. Dragon Crest Bearers are strong. And they become even stronger once they meet their Dragonmate. There’s no need to fret too much,” Cesar said.
“I hope so… I feel terrible to think that his burdens have increased all because of me,” Agnes confessed.
Claude had only summoned the sacred beast in the first place to protect Agnes. Since it was due to her kidnapping, Claude had to expend double the usual amount of magical energy necessary—and she felt awful about it.
“A Crest Bearer’s Dragonmate is never a burden to them. For better or for worse, Claude would do anything for you, Agnes,” Cesar said.
“Princess Zenaide said the same thing,” Agnes remembered.
Cesar nodded firmly. “She knows it firsthand.”
“Xavier’s completely lovey-dovey with Zenaide,” Charles chimed in. “You know, I don’t think I’ve seen too many normal couples.”
The thought of the prince being lovey-dovey with his wife made Agnes smile, but the thought of her and Claude being like that… It was terrifying! If Claude got any more loving toward Agnes, she’d drown in a sea of syrup.
“Well, it’s good that a couple has a strong bond. Agnes and Claude’s wedding is right around the corner. Everyone is looking forward to the day they have children,” Cesar said.
“What?” Agnes yelped, but Charles ignored it, closing his eyes as if amused.
“A child born from a Dragon Crest Bearer who summoned a sacred beast and a Mushroom Queen beloved by the spirits. That’s got to be one powerful kid!”
Charles’s choice of words gave Agnes a mental image of a white tiger riding on a dragon’s back, batting at a giant mushroom. Goodness, what was wrong with her?
“I must recover my strength as soon as possible and prepare for the wedding, too,” Cesar said. “Then I must speak to Claude about military concerns.”
“But Claude won’t be up for it for a while— Oops!”
From the way Charles clapped his hands over his mouth, Agnes sensed that something was up.
“What do you mean, he ‘won’t be up for it?’” she asked.
“Oh, uh, I just mean he’ll be busy with this and, er, that?”
Charles’s innocent expression was cute, but Agnes couldn’t fail to notice how his gaze was wavering.
“…Is Claude unwell?” she pressed.
“It’s not like he’s had a breakdown or anything! But Xavier has asked him to take a break for a while, just in case.”
Not only was Charles avoiding Agnes’s intense gaze, but his voice had also grown raspy. It was clear that he wasn’t telling the whole truth.
“He’s bad enough that the crown prince, a Dragon Crest Bearer, has asked him to take a rest?” Agnes asked.
“Ah, well yes, but also, not as such.”
She couldn’t get a straight answer out of Charles. Agnes let out a sigh, stood up from the sofa, and turned to Charles.
“Prince Charles?”
“Y-Yeah?”
“I want to go and visit Claude. Would you kindly escort me?” Agnes demanded.
With a faltering grin still plastered on his face, Charles nodded weakly.
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Mushrooms of the Day
Mycena interrupta (Pixie’s Parasol)
A mushroom with an umbrella cap that sparkles like glasswork. It’s about 2 centimeters long and .2 centimeters thick, making it small and fragile. It’s poisonous, so you can’t eat it…but who would try, when it’s so tiny? It grew when it heard the word sparkle to add a little glitter.
Coprinellus micaceus
Covered with tiny, mica-like cells that glitter. A light yellow-colored mushroom. When someone eats it with alcohol, they can get very sick. It sprouted to reassure Cesar, saying, “Don’t worry! Behold the sparkle!” But nobody noticed.
Termitomyces
A mushroom that lives symbiotically with termites. With its brown cap and white stalk, it is as delicious as it looks and is called the king of mushrooms.
A fungal garden grown by self-sufficient termites accidentally grew on the ground. “I’m the King of Mushrooms. Did you call me?’’ it asked as it sprouted, but of course, no one understood.