Chapter 48: 49

Hisch and I had a noticeable height difference, but even when he lifted me up, our eye level was almost the same.

Hisch held me tightly, as if to keep me from getting wet, and took a step forward. Suddenly, he stopped and looked down at me.

When I looked up at him in confusion, Hisch tilted his head slightly. When I blinked in approval at his subtle request for permission, he leaned in deeper and kissed me.

It was a shallow kiss, perhaps because he was aware of the people around us. I blinked my eyes in surprise.

I thought Hisch had become more comfortable with physical contact lately, but I never expected him to initiate such intimacy.

He looked at me with a slightly shy smile. It was hard to tell if the blush was from the sunset or because he was embarrassed.

But his round black eyes shone warmer than anything else.

“Because it’s the perfect height for a kiss.”

Hisch repeated the excuse I once told him, smiling innocently.

The shimmering waves and droplets of water splashing from his clothes reflected the sunlight, making Hisch sparkle.

And so, I wrapped my arms around Hisch’s neck and pressed my forehead against his.

“It really is.”

I said with a smile. And one more time, I kissed him, gently closing my eyes.

・❥・

Since then, a relatively peaceful time has passed.

Hisch has temporarily stopped his duties outside. There was no reason for him to move around and attract attention while there were outsiders in the territory.

Sudden free time allowed Hisch to pour his heart and soul into tending to his ‘secret garden’. I would occasionally go for a walk and watch him work, or lend a hand a bit on the side.

Of course, there was little I could do to help, as I had a very high probability of killing a plant if I tried to grow it.

The only amusing thing was that Hisch didn’t like insects very much.

It was kind of funny, and actually kind of cute to see him freaking out and getting scared of an existence that would disappear if he just touched them.

“Doesn’t Liddell get scared of insects…?”

Hisch looked at me as if he were looking at a great person.

“They have too many legs to not be gross.”

“Do you really need to observe them in such detail? You just need to know that they’re just some little things that crawl around.”

I thought about teasing Hisch by putting a bug that looked like a centipede I had seen on Earth on his shovel, but I stopped since he looked like he hated it and would really cry.

I wondered why he didn’t just close his eyes and use his ability to kill those insects if he hated them so much.

Maybe it’s because the mindset of valuing life is deeply ingrained in his body.

Even my serious thoughts didn’t last long, as Hisch quickly made a professional statement: ‘Among insects, there are pests but also beneficial ones, so we shouldn’t kill them indiscriminately.’ With that, I lightly reflected that I had once again become too engrossed in my thoughts.

Anyway, among the plants that have been grown so far, the one that showed exceptionally remarkable growth was corn… -like plant.

No, let’s just call it corn.

Since Hisch was so curious if there was any dish I could make with it, I decided to demonstrate my nonexistent cooking skills.

For the record, I’m the kind of person who could barely adjust the water level for instant noodles, and since coming to this world, I’ve been someone who just accepts whatever people offer me.

At first, I thought about just lightly boiling the corn, but since Hisch seemed so excited, I suddenly thought of popcorn.

For some reason, in novels where modern humans have been transported to another world, the first time the residents of that world see popcorn, they would either like it or not because it was a snack that was white as snow, or because it had an unusual texture.

So, with the help of the head chef, I somehow managed to make a snack that looked like popcorn. When I gave it to Hisch to try, he said it was really delicious.

Perhaps… I could earn some money here by making simple Korean food and selling it?

With that dream in mind, I also gave some popcorn to Sein, but this noble bastard to the core politely refused, saying it ‘tasted somewhat empty and poor’.

These noble bastards…

I thought to myself as I munched on the popcorn, which tasted a bit boring compared to what I was used to in the modern world.

・❥・

While spending peaceful and carefree days, I let Edwin Roelich spread his wings freely within the territory. I thought it would be less suspicious to act confidently and provide necessary information instead of showing signs of hiding something.

Although Sir Edwin’s demeanor had always been friendly enough that one wondered if he had been suspicious in the first place.

But it seemed that Sein had a different opinion, and after giving him information about the territory army of the Ensis, he said with a slightly worried expression.

“Even so… I wonder if we’re giving away too much information on our side. Although you are of the Catlan bloodline, my Lord, it is not typical of you to divulge information in such detail to the royal family.”

Well, loyalty is loyalty, but securing the position of one’s family is another issue altogether, so to speak.

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“What I’m concerned about is if, at some point in the future, this information might be used to send out the territory army for monster subjugation…”

“I can’t deny that such intentions may exist, but considering the size of our army, we’re not much different from other territories. Even if our territory were sent, it would all be the same anyway.”

And although it may be a somewhat naive thought, I don’t think the current royal family would use a bunch of half-assed soldiers.

I suddenly thought of the red-haired man who would likely command if an alliance army were formed for the royal family. The man who was once my superior.

While I’ve said that I shouldn’t easily trust people, there was something in Callen’s character that I felt was trustworthy, having served alongside him for quite a long time.

“And above all, I’m satisfied that the excuse of having a well-trained territory army covers up Hisch’s involvement. It was worth the money I spent.”

The territory army of Ensis, who were just starting to organize, consists of soldiers who, although small in number, have been trained diligently. As a result, even Sir Roelich was impressed, referring to them as ‘well-trained soldiers.’ As expected, money is everything.

“I don’t like being investigated either. Why, we should make a small sacrifice in order to achieve greater success [1] .”

Sein seemed to understand my words to some extent, but he still couldn’t relax his expression.

But I couldn’t call him foolish, as this was exactly the role of Sein Borter. He served as my aide, anticipating and preparing for things I couldn’t catch or think of.

So he was always in a position where he couldn’t help but worry, but I still felt a little sorry for him and patted his shoulder while saying:

“You always go through a lot of trouble and worry, thinking about this and that on my behalf.”

He finally relaxed his expression and laughed in disbelief.

“Isn’t that my job?”

But with that one word of comfort, my mood improved, and I secretly felt relieved as I watched my vassal return to his usual expressionless state.

And soon I was lost in other thoughts.

On the other hand, I also had something I wanted to ask Edwin Roelich about.

About that voice.

[It’s you]

[You’re the one]

[who is]

[interfering with the prophecy?]

That oracle-like voice I heard while using my abilities in the capital.

I wanted to ask in detail about the conclusions reached regarding the ‘prophecy’ spoken by that voice, and whether any investigation was being conducted in the first place.

I was almost convinced that the ‘prophecy’ the voice was talking about was the plot of the novel, <People of Levitea>, which may have been ‘a future that may have been realized.’

So, what is the identity of that voice?

Is it the deterrence of the original work commonly found in romance transmigration novels? But thinking like that, this place is not even the world in the book I read.

If I were to assume as simply as possible, then that voice may be some transcendent being that wants to realize the ‘destruction of the world’… exactly as it was prophesied in that novel?

If so, then Edwin Roelich, who is currently in my territory and is one of the main characters in the book of prophecy, may unknowingly hold some clues to the origin of this destruction.

However, if I suddenly bring up such a topic, I might become a weird person who asks, ‘Do you believe in Tao [2] ?’ So, I was just waiting for the opportunity.

Surprisingly, the opportunity to meet Edwin Roelich came soon enough.

・❥・

In the afternoon after the sun passed its zenith, a brown-haired knight sat across from me with a smile.

Today, Sein had a busy schedule, and I had tasks assigned to Albert, so there was only one maid who had brought us tea waiting quietly in the corner of the room.

And I responded to the man’s words just now with a reluctant tone.

“I suppose you’re going back now?”

“Yes. It is also a daunting situation to leave my position for too long.”

Did he get all the information he wanted? In just this short period of time? Maybe it was really nothing important, as father said.

But then he suddenly spoke up.

“Even though it hasn’t been long since you took office, you have been managing the territory army extremely well.”

“…….”

“It’s as if you’ve foreseen some sort of crisis would come.”

1. Literally means to cut one’s own flesh and sever the opponent’s bones. 육참골단(肉斬骨斷) is a Korean idiom that means to sacrifice one’s own flesh (肉) while cutting the opponent’s bone (骨). In other words, it refers to making a small sacrifice in order to achieve a greater victory. The phrase emphasizes the importance of taking risks and making sacrifices in order to achieve success. It suggests that one should not be afraid of small losses or setbacks if they are necessary to achieve a bigger goal or victory. It can be found on the 11th strategy of the “36 Stratagems.”2. The word “Tao” (道) has a variety of meanings in both ancient and modern Chinese language. Aside from its purely prosaic use meaning road, channel, path, principle, or similar, the word has acquired a variety of differing and often confusing metaphorical, philosophical, and religious uses.

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