Chapter 42: 42

He couldn’t get rid of the feeling that all his hypotheses are wrong.

There is a contradiction between her genuinely grateful eyes and her suspicious behavior. 

There also was a contradiction between the dream hypothesis and her claim that she couldn’t remember anything.

Valhayle clenched his fist in frustration.

The bird still remains deadly still and the princess shuts her mouth whenever he interrogates her.

…Third hypothesis.

The princess was the bird’s owner?

The key point in this hypothesis is the relationship between the princess and the bird.

The bird belonged to Roheneim.

And the princess is Roymonde’s princess.

Royals enjoyed falcon hunting and the princess grew up in that environment.

Perhaps there was a possibility that the princess knew or trained this bird? Considering the peculiarity of the bird, it wasn’t totally impossible. 

The bird definitely behaved like it was used to humans.

It understood human language, imitated human behavior, and enjoyed human food. Perhaps this was enough to assume there was some sort of relationship between the bird and princess?

“….”

No, the premise is already wrong.

The premise was that the princess knew something she isn’t supposed to, and if the third hypothesis is true, there is no way the bird could have delivered all that information to her. 

Since the bird was already unconscious when the princess woke.

Valhayle roughly loosened his sleeve and sat in front of his desk.

He had to get started with today’s worth of paperwork. 

Then, someone shouted outside.

“Sir! It’s me!!”

It was Sir Luke.

“Enter.”

Sir Luke hurriedly came in and said.

“Sir, we received intel that…!!”

*･ﾟ:༻✦༺･ﾟ:*

Zelle was scribbling on the ground with a branch.

She felt like she was wasting resources when she tore paper so she stopped doing that to pass time. 

When she was a bird, she got papers that needed to be destroyed. Now, they gave her clean, good-quality paper.

Plus, time passed faster if she drew or wrote on the ground too.

“Only if I had a book.”

Zelle rested her chin on her hand and sighed.

Even when she lived in the palace, she couldn’t read freely. It was because there were people that hated more than anything for her to read and become educated.

But Zelle had to know and learn to survive.

There was no guarantee that she could survive as an idiot.

It was better to hide her knowledge even though it could get her killed. 

So Zelle used the ‘gap’. The small gap where the servants placed the books Linbessy read to be returned back to the palace library.

She snuck up one or two books and placed them back when the other books were in the gap.

It became a habit to memorize the book since she never knew if she could reread the same book again. 

“…I hope I can at least get locked up somewhere like the palace library.”

As she stood up, she heard someone approaching.

“Your Highness, It’s Valhayle.”

Zelle wondered.

‘I told him not to come today though?’

When she opened the tent entrance, Valhayle stomped inside which was unusual of him.

“W-What brings you here?”

He stood firmly and glared at the Zelle.

Zelle was shocked to see him in his casual attire.

“Is the urgent news?”

“….”

Zelle fluttered her eyes in confusion since Valhayle remained silent.

Valhayle then parted his lips.

“I need your answer.”

Zelle gulped.

“What answer… Do you want?”

Valhayle replied.

“I need you to tell me the truth.”

The truth? Zelle chewed her lips nervously. She couldn’t quite grasp what truth he wanted to hear from her.

If the answer he wanted was her being Granoir’s spy, it wasn’t true.

And if the answer he wanted was ‘Princess Zelleine have met Valhayle before the war’, it wasn’t true either.

But if the answer he wanted was ‘Zelleine was the messenger bird’…

Zelle looked up at Valhayle with a pale face.

“There is something… Odd about you, your highness.”

It sounded like he was suppressing something. Zelle shut her eyes.

“…What do you mean?”

“The way you speak, the way you act, everything.”

“Odd how exactly?”

She grew nervous as she asked.

There were countless times when her actions must have seemed odd to him.

Such as moving her arms like her wings, her mouth moving towards the food first rather than her hand, burying her head in her shoulders like a bird when she sleeps… And earlier today, she told him something she heard as a bird.

Zelle asked with a trembling voice. 

“Is it related to the reason why you won’t share anything with me?”

He answered with absolutely no hesitation.

“Yes.”

Zelle clenched her fist.

“There is no point suspecting me.”

“We have no ground or proof to trust you.”

It was upsetting to hear that considering the times she risked her life for his sake despite that being when she was a bird.

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“I am this country’s princess. Was that not enough?”

“I am waiting for your answer. What did you do as the princess.”

Zelle clenched her jaw and uttered.

“I am innocent.”

Valhayle’s eyes sparked.

“But there is something you haven’t told me yet.”

*･ﾟ:༻✦༺･ﾟ:*

“….”

Zelle felt guilty after hearing that. She never lied to him but she never told him the truth either.

Zelle stepped away.

“W-What did I… Not tell you?”

Valhayle pulled a paper from him pocket.

“We received news from outside that there are people who saw you a fortnight ago.”

“!!!!”

Zelle took a deep breath.

She was still unconscious in Granoir’s captivity a fortnight ago.

“You told me that you fell unconscious after being placed in the sack.”

Zelle answered.

“Yes. I was. That’s why I have no memory of meeting anyone else after that. Are you sure they saw me?”

Valhayle spoke with fury.

“We searched the whole nation. And the only royal heir we found is you. So, I believe there is a very high chance of it being you, your highness.”

But… That’s impossible.

Zelle was confused.

“What did that witness exactly see?”

“They saw someone like you together with the enemy. They couldn’t exactly see the face since she wore a cloak from head to toe but they were sure it was a brown-haired Roymode woman. It was also near the port where you were held captive.”

Valhayle face grew cold.

“Apparently, Granoir moved with that person secretly.”

Zelle bit her lips.

She had no memory. The other captives that were with her also claimed they never saw her conscious.

“It’s not me.”

Zelle recalled the other royal heirs that had brown hair.

‘Brown-haired woman.’

Then the realization hit.

“Demiera or Linbessy but be alive!”

Valhayle remained still even at Zelle’s rejoice. 

Zelle’s eyes lit up in hope that the 1st or 2nd princess could be alive.

“Yes. Linbessy’s hair is dark brown and Demiera’s is auburn so it must be either of them–”

Valhayle interrupted mid-sentence.

“Why are you excluding the 3rd princess?”

“Well because she’s dea–”

Ah.

Zelle covered her mouth.

Valhayle uttered coldly.

“I expected you to know. About the 3rd princess’s death. You haven’t told that us either.”

“….”

“It must be because you can’t tell us the source of that information.”

Zelle stared at Valhayle at a loss for words.

Valhayle stomped towards Zelle. There was a glimpse of pain on his face.

“Have you ever thought about how suspicious you may seem to me?”

Valhayle spoke just a foot away from Zelle.

“A captive that knows about the confidential information of Roheneim, war status, meeting contents, and even is aware that the messenger bird is a cavier falcon? What role were you in Granoir.”

…Role?

“What do you mean by role. Are you… Suspecting me?”

Her heart paced in frustration.

‘No way. Does he think I’m a traitor?’

Her lips quivered.

She complained jokingly that he treats her like a spy but she didn’t expect him to genuinely think that. She was so struck by that fact that she couldn’t even breathe properly.

‘He thinks I would betray this country….’

How is that suspicion even logical for some powerless, connectionless person like me?

Valhayle spoke.

“You told me that you can’t remember anything. And that you were asleep the entire time. But considering that, you know too much. As if you were in the action the whole time. Or at least like someone who was updated by someone in the action.”

“That’s…”

“You were with them the whole time so it must be from them. That’s also probably how you know that the messenger bird is a cavier falcon.”

Valhayle continued.

“Roymonde needs a royal heir. For the reason to fight this war. For the trust that that leader will bring peace. As the core of everyone’s hope.

Leader. Core.

Zelle chewed the inside of her cheeks. Those were words Zelleine could never get close to.

But even so, she was a royal heir. She was born to serve the nation.

So, how dare he.

‘Think that I would turn my back on this nation?’

She was infuriated at Valhayle for holding such suspicion. Zelle glared at him.

“Yes. Until news of the survival of my other siblings is heard, I am that royal heir. But the only thing you did after rescuing me is suspect.”

Valhayle suppressed his anger and replied.

“As long as you’re under suspicion, I can’t present you to the other soldiers. And based on all the circumstances I can’t trust you.”

He added coldly.

“So tell me the truth.”

“You already know what’s true.”

Valhayle clenched his jaw.

“I don’t think so. Please don’t make me regret rescuing you.”

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