Will You Accept The Deal (4)

“Lady, stop this!”

Juan spun in tight circles, quickly batting the blade attacking him outward, then shouted.

He had read the other person’s sword strikes with perfect accuracy.

“Not going to attack?”

Josephina hiked up her skirt and drew another sword she had strapped to her leg.

Juan’s face went pale.

Crazy. Crazy woman.

Juan rushed at the heir of Lirin, prepared to have his throat cut.

He held his sword in reverse and struck Josephina’s wrist with the hilt.

Clang.

Josephina dropped the newly drawn sword and, without a moment to catch her breath, hurriedly stepped back.

At the same speed she retreated, Juan pressed in.

Juan’s blade, stuck to Josephina’s remaining sword, blocked its very line of movement and disrupted her attack.

Even while being pushed back, Josephina admired Juan’s swordsmanship.

Juan knocked Josephina’s sword aside and sent it flying.

“Lady, what do you think you’re doing?”

Juan spoke with a hardened face.

He was known for being courteous when he should be, pleasant when it suited, and generous even when angered—so it was rare to see him truly furious.

“If I startled you, I’m sorry, Sir Juan. But you wouldn’t accept my sparring request, so I had no choice. Won’t you spar with me tomorrow?”

At Josephina’s suggestion, Juan recoiled in horror.

“No.”

“No…?”

Josephina, who had rarely been refused in her life, felt displeased at Juan’s rejection.

And this was not the first time he had refused her.

“Lady Josephina, do not attack your escort inside the grand ducal residence. You could be mistaken for an assailant.”

Juan turned away, whipping up a cold draft as he did.

“…So you mean I should ambush you outside the grand ducal residence.”

Josephina muttered as she retrieved the sword she had dropped and the one that had flown away.

If Juan heard it, he would have bristled.

She gathered the swords and followed after Juan, who was already walking ahead.

Then, ignoring his refusal, she asked again to spar.

Alicia stood by the window of her private room in Adelheid House and watched Juan and Josephina’s tussle with interest.

Josephina showed Juan her sword hand and forced some kind of “help” on him.

Even from afar, Juan’s misery was palpable.

“Poor Juan. Even being too good at swordsmanship is a problem.”

Alicia sipped her tea, blowing on it softly as she watched them.

These days, the sound of blades sometimes rang through the grand ducal residence.

It was Josephina ambushing Juan—and Juan fending her off.

Juan recoiled in disgust each time he was ambushed, and Josephina chased after him, wanting to talk about swordplay.

Because of Josephina’s high status, Juan endured miserable days.

“That’s why you shouldn’t catch the eye of someone powerful.”

Alicia shook her head at Josephina, pitying Juan.

Josephina thought she was simply interested in Juan’s swordsmanship, but to Alicia, it didn’t look that way.

“With that, when are you planning to seduce him…?”

Alicia idly watched the two of them recede, wondering when the poor Juan and the simple, destructive Josephina would finally become a couple.

It was a leisurely noon.

Alicia was in the mansion’s study, sorting documents.

Then she paused at the urgent footsteps approaching from outside the door.

It was a day when the audience had ended early.

Reichardt was also due to return soon.

“Your Highness!”

An urgent voice rang out from beyond the door.

“Henrik?”

Alicia rose from her desk and walked to the door.

Henrik opened it and hurried inside.

His hand was smeared red with blood.

“…An, an accident….”

“Henrik, what happened?”

“His Grace was stabbed by Lady Josephina’s blade. While the lady was ambushing Juan, Roderick was with him, and when Your Grace saw the two of them counterattacking the lady at the same time…”

Henrik moved forward with tears in his eyes.

Alicia followed him with a dazed expression.

“Was he badly hurt?”

“The lady was holding two blades, and it seems Your Grace didn’t see the short sword. He managed to pull her in and seize the hand holding the sword, making Juan and Roderick back off even as they attacked together—but as he caught the staggering lady to steady her, he was stabbed in the side by the blade in her other hand.”

The mansion was in turmoil.

Alicia ran toward the commotion.

Henrik, shaken, slowed to a plodding pace.

Reichardt sat on one side of the reception room, surrounded by people.

Red blood seeped from his side.

“Rei!”

Reichardt’s expression looked as it always did—courteous and steadfast.

“Alicia.”

He tried to smile at Alicia as she approached.

His face looked embarrassed by the absurdity of his injury.

“Rei, you’re hurt….”

Alicia’s face crumpled at once.

“Everyone, step back.”

Reichardt reached for his side, then caught Alicia when she hesitated, unsure what to do.

He felt ashamed of his injury, but it seemed to have shocked Alicia.

Reichardt had meant to laugh and grumble that he’d let his guard down—that he’d moved rashly because he worried Josephina might get hurt, and ended up injured in a ridiculous way.

He had meant to say there was no need to worry, that the court physician would arrive soon and examine the wound.

“I’m fine.”

Because of her cool, delicate default expression, Alicia was often mistaken for someone cold.

Reichardt knew Alicia smiled easily, chatted a lot, and was the type to react in perfectly ordinary ways.

Or so he thought—yet it seemed he had formed an unconscious bias from Alicia’s composed expression.

Seeing Alicia’s emotions swing sharply at his injury, he realized she was far more emotionally rich than he had assumed.

“You’re not fine! You’re hurt!”

Alicia raised her voice.

“Once I’m outside Tessen, there’s not much I can do—so I get scratched up sometimes.”

Reichardt smiled as he brushed Alicia’s worried face with his hand.

Shock spread through her violet eyes.

As if deciding something, Alicia rummaged in her clothes and pulled out the astronomical clock.

“Hug me.”

Opening the pendant, Alicia spoke firmly.

At that bold demand, Reichardt couldn’t even bring himself to say that the blood from his side would stain her dress.

Reichardt pulled Alicia into his arms, and Alicia traced her hand along the glass plate of the astronomical clock.

The next instant, a fierce wind rose.

Holding Alicia tightly, Reichardt turned his head away from the wind.

He wanted to shield Alicia’s face with his hand, but the scorching gusts blew so violently he couldn’t lift his head.

When the fierce wind subsided and he looked up, something unbelievable had happened.

“…Here.”

They were in Tessen.

They had arrived at East Noah inside Tessen Castle.

“Is your wound okay? Does it seem to be closing?”

Alicia said, feeling around Reichardt’s side.

“It’s not that bad. But here… Alicia, wait.”

Reichardt wanted to know what was going on.

Ignoring him, Alicia tried to undo the buttons and ties of Reichardt’s shirt.

“The wound…”

Reichardt hurriedly grabbed Alicia’s hand.

Alicia shot him a look that accused him of being competent enough to snatch her hand like that, yet careless enough to get stabbed in the side.

“Just a moment.”

Instead of throwing his clothes open, he chose to slip his hand through a torn gap.

Alicia watched him with a pained expression as he put his hand into the bloodstained area.

“…This is Tessen?”

“Yes. Is it healed?”

Reichardt scanned the surroundings with a gaze full of suspicion.

“How did we get here?”

“The wound is….”

“It’s completely healed. Alicia, answer me. How did we get here? What did you do with the astronomical clock just now?”

Reichardt fired off questions and quickly checked Alicia, worried she might have been harmed by some backlash from using a strange power.

Alicia misunderstood and thought he was trying to take the astronomical clock, so she hid it behind her back.

“Rei… that is… can’t you just forget it?”

Alicia looked at Reichardt with an absurdly sweet gaze and said something ridiculous.

“Forget what? This is the real Tessen. How did you do it?”

Reichardt worried Alicia might have fallen into some wicked secret art.

Alicia had never once imagined Reichardt could be hurt.

But he had been stabbed.

Worry filled her head and swept away every other thought.

All she could think about was healing him.

“Well…”

Alicia studied Reichardt’s face with an awkward expression.

“Tell me honestly.”

Reichardt tried to cut off anything dubious before it started.

At his firm words, Alicia regretted it a little—belatedly, and only slightly.

Her thoughts wavered back and forth.

I should’ve waited until the court physician arrived.

No, coming was right—of course he heals in Tessen. Thank goodness.

It would be so nice if he’d just forget it.

Sitting on Reichardt’s lap, Alicia opened the astronomical clock and explained, in detail, what she had discovered.

The longer the explanation went on, the stricter Reichardt’s face became.

“You’re saying you went back and forth to hell to collect mana stones?”

“Rei…”

Alicia called to him carefully at the incredulous tone.

Reichardt’s eyebrows twitched, cocked at an angle.

“So that’s why you looked like you were constantly coming and going somewhere on your own.”

“Th-that…”

Alicia realized Reichardt had been sharp enough to suspect something.

There was no real way for him to have noticed, which made it strange.

‘Rei. Are you… watching me?’

She wanted to ask, but now was not the time.

“So that club was from hell.”

Reichardt spoke in an icy voice.

It seemed he had been the one to remove the club from the bedroom.

“Where is that—”

Alicia tried to speak casually.

“How do we get home?”

At Reichardt’s question, Alicia realized she had forgotten that part in her explanation.

Alicia spread her arms, signaling him to hold her.

Reichardt looked dumbfounded, but he obediently pulled her into his arms.

“We’ll be back soon.”

Alicia said hazily, having had her secret completely exposed.

Soon, a fierce wind blew again.

They were back at the grand ducal residence in Baden.

“We’ll talk about that again later. The people outside are worried, so tell them you’re fine.”

Reichardt said, loosening the arms that had been holding Alicia.

“Yes.”

Alicia retreated for now.

When she stepped out of the reception room, her face looked blank and hollow.

“…Alicia….”

Josephina approached Alicia with reddened eyes, as if she had been crying.

Juan and Roderick also looked deeply worried.

Henrik was still blaming himself for failing to serve Reichardt properly.

“Rei is fine.”

“Really? The court physician will be here soon…”

Alicia gradually came back to herself.

It felt like her soul had been stripped bare, but the shock slowly dulled.

As reason returned, indignation surged up.

With a blank face, Alicia looked at Josephina and Juan.

It felt as though cold air was spreading in every direction.

“…”

Josephina, mid-sentence, felt fear along with guilt.

“…”

Juan also realized Alicia’s atmosphere had changed.

Roderick had already withdrawn early and stood close to Henrik.

“Josephina.”

“Yes.”

“Don’t come to my house for a while.”

Alicia said in a voice so cold it felt like ice would drip from it.

It carried the air of someone who might beat a person with ice if they disobeyed.

“Yes.”

Josephina couldn’t even work up the courage to apologize—she blurted out an answer first.

Alicia looked at Juan.

“Juan.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

“You too—stay out of my sight for a while.”

Alicia said, scattering chill in every direction.

She seemed very angry.