Chapter 128

Aivert turned to look at Rodella. He heard a gasp, and she tried to subtly turn away. Aivert watched her, choosing not to extend the handcuffs’ length.

—Clang.

Naturally, the shimmering chain appeared. Yet, Rodella still pretended to be asleep, mumbling as if she were talking in her sleep. ‘I know you’re not.’ Aivert was instantly confused.

‘You and I are friends. You’d want us to remain friends even after our engagement ends, wouldn’t you?’

But.

“Without you, how will I ever sleep?” Would friends say such a thing?

“…”

Would friends charm someone with such a clear, beautiful smile?

“Should I not go on the overseas tour?” If she only considered him a friend… countless events from the ship flashed through his mind.

“I can’t stand going on like this, not even making eye contact with you.” If you were just a friend, would you have said that?

Perhaps… Aivert wanted to put aside all other possibilities and focus on just one.

‘Can I be mistaken?’ He wanted to ask. ‘Like me, you might want me too, right?’

—Clang.

The light of the shimmering chain briefly illuminated Rodella’s face. Her ears, revealed by the faint light, were red like flowers. Aivert let out a short breath. Watching the light of the handcuffs fade, he thought, ‘If I take this as my last chance, how will you see me?’

He looked back at Rodella.

“…”

Rodella was pretending to be asleep, her ears red, breathing rapidly. Aivert’s lips curled into a smile.

“Indeed, how will I live without you?”

At her flinch, he tightly clenched his trembling fingertips. It was the moment a decision solidified in his mind.

***

The more chaotic the political situation, the more smoothly everything else needed to run. If everything was swept away by the turmoil, even things that were relatively stable would inevitably collapse.

…This was Chancellor Ameris’s belief. Thus, the schedule for the Administration Bureau was set as usual, and as a result, a message arrived for Rodella the day after the banquet, just as she was leaving for the Azure Knights’ headquarters.

[2nd Regular Report Schedule]

Her opportunity to prove her abilities as the quartermaster of the Azure Knights’ Administration Bureau was approaching again.

“There’s going to be a mountain of work.” Rodella smiled sweetly. Even if the position of the next Chancellor was practically decided, she couldn’t let her guard down. Ryan Diepelt was still holding out, perhaps believing there was no conclusive evidence to arrest him. More importantly, he had supposedly prevented troop movement within the Red Knights on the day of the rebellion, saying, “We shouldn’t go this time.” It seemed that was why he hadn’t been arrested yet…

But she had definite evidence to take down Ryan Diepelt. The regular report would be his grave. Just as Rodella’s eyes gleamed with that thought, “Rodella.”

“Huh?”

Aivert suddenly leaned his face close to hers.

“Thinking about work again, are we?”

“How can I not, when this has arrived?” Rodella waved the regular report schedule in front of him. Aivert narrowed his eyes, snatched the document, and blurted out something unexpected.

“Want to go on vacation?”

“What?” Rodella blinked. “In this situation?”

The country was half-turned upside down, and they were right in the middle of it. But Aivert held up four fingers. “Interrogating the captured ones isn’t our job. You’ve finished reorganizing the Azure Knights. And the tired knights just need time to rest.” His outstretched fingers folded one by one. “Royden is handling the remnants of the enemy, and the noble families’ atmosphere is better than usual.”

All his fingers were now folded. In short, there was nothing for them to do… or so he implied. Rodella scratched her cheek. It was true, but there was still an emergency. Just as she was about to say something,

“More than anything, I…” Aivert’s words weren’t finished. “…want you to rest. You haven’t rested a single day since that day.” He was referring to the day of the rebellion.

“Well, it was an emergency…”

“You’ll collapse if you keep going.” Aivert crossed his arms. “You only think about work until you’re pulled away from it, so let’s just go on vacation.” Making her flinch with accurate remarks seemed to be Aivert’s specialty.

Rodella scratched her cheek. “…That’s true, but can we get permission? How long will we go?”

“About three days?” He answered immediately, seeming to have a plan. He looked just as busy with Royden’s affairs and the Azure Knights’ work; she wondered when he had even made this plan. They had been sitting side-by-side because of the handcuffs, but she hadn’t noticed anything. Aivert had always teased her that she wouldn’t notice anything when she was focused, but she hadn’t realized she was that oblivious, so Rodella was bewildered.

‘No, setting that aside.’ To get permission for a vacation, she would obviously need approval from Commander Latine, and even from the Chancellor, wouldn’t she?

Did he sense that she was considering all sorts of things again? Aivert snapped his fingers, redirecting her attention. Then he said, “If I get us a vacation, you’ll come with me, right?”

Seeing his confident and reassuring smile, as if telling her to just follow him, Rodella felt her tightly bound thoughts scatter. He often looked like that when he was about to cause trouble. But following him often led to surprisingly easy solutions for complex problems. He usually gave off an addictive feeling, as if she could just follow him without thinking or needing to be wary of her surroundings.

Perhaps that was why. Before her rational mind could catch up and wonder what kind of trouble he was about to cause, Rodella nodded, as if mesmerized.

***

“Vacation?”

An Azure Knights’ commander’s office had been hastily set up in the Imperial Palace. Azure Knights and Red Knights were supposed to be stationed outside the Imperial Palace, but many things had changed since the day of the rebellion. The Red Knights’ quarters were, of course, gone, but the Azure Knights now had a presence inside the Imperial Palace. And the first thing to be set up was Azure Knight Commander Latine’s office.

Latine wasn’t particularly pleased about it. “Having two offices means twice the work, doesn’t it?” Despite his grumbling, he had entered the Imperial Family… and was now, ironically, less busy than before. This was natural, as he hadn’t been able to work as a mercenary or a blacksmith for a while. Even interrogations weren’t an all-day affair, so all that was left was a fierce battle with the dreadful paperwork left behind by the aftermath of the rebellion. Thanks to that, he was in a very bad mood right now.

But then, the Vice Commander and the quartermaster of the Administration Bureau suddenly showed up and said this: Vacation?! Any other person would have flipped their desk, calling it nonsense, but he was different.

“Of course, you should go and rest.” He was a man who knew the wise way. “However,” his hand pointed to the pile of documents on his desk. “When you come back, would you mind helping me with these?”

“Of course.” Aivert smiled brightly.

Rodella hesitated, watching him. ‘He didn’t pull away the documents that were supposed to go to the Commander a few days ago just for this, did he? No, he wouldn’t.’

Next, the two went to Ameris’s office. She, too, looked tired, with a mountain of work to do. Rodella thought for sure she would object this time, but Ameris said coolly, “Ah, it’s for your birthday. Congratulations, Rodella. It’s not a bad idea to take this opportunity to rest.”

Then she told Rodella something that could only be terrifying. “Once your position as the next Chancellor is officially announced, you two might not even have time to be together. There will be so many eyes on you.” She smiled sweetly. “Go and have fun before that happens. Vacation… Ah, you two have a mansion, don’t you?”

“Yes.”

‘We’re going there?’ Rodella felt a strange sensation as the vacation location was naturally decided for her. She only realized the nature of this feeling when Aivert exchanged perfunctory greetings with Ameris, turned, and left the office, sending a refreshing smile her way.

‘That’s the Chancellor’s expression right before a deluge of work hits the Administration Bureau!’

“You have to breathe before you’re buried alive in work, right?” Her face drained of color as she remembered her golden words from her time in the Administration Bureau. No matter how much she loved her work, that was only when it was a manageable amount.

“Should I—”

‘Should I hand it back now?’ It was the moment Rodella looked back at Ameris’s office.

“You’ll keep your promise, right?” Aivert asked.

“…”

‘Why do I feel like I’m being drawn into something?’ But in the end, Rodella nodded.

—Clatter, clatter.

As if to say they wouldn’t accept the vacation being returned, the Chancellor’s office door was already firmly locked when she tried the doorknob. It was a moment when she began to fear what awaited her after the vacation.