Chapter 39

“I don’t want to go back if you keep looking at me like that……… Can you play with your brother some more? Hmm??”

“……No. We have to study.”

Argen told him our upcoming schedule since it seemed like I was likely to be swept away by the atmosphere. I nodded eagerly at the positive meaning in that.

“Argen, come here.”

Eiji simply chewed on Argen’s retorted words and patted his other knee, opposite from where he sat me down.

I looked alternately at Argen and Eiji as he tried to get Argen to sit on his lap.

‘You’re not coming?’

‘……I don’t like it.’

‘Why?’

‘……That’s embarrassing.’

Eiji was waiting with his arms open, but when he asked if he would come, Argen replied in silence. Eiji, who had been abandoned for no reason, looked quite pitiful, so I opened my arms and held his neck slightly.

I meant to convey that I was also hugging Argen’s share, but Eiji suddenly jumped up from his seat. I blinked my eyes while somehow dangling from his neck.

“I don’t want to be separated from Arien either! Oh, what should I do?!!? I think it would be better to change the schedule. Do you want to go somewhere fun with your brother? They say flowers are blooming these days……. Ah, Arien is allergic to pollen, so no. Then shall we go to a place where we can see the animals? Argen, you like it there, don’t you?

Eiji held me steady, but I couldn’t understand all the words he poured out like a rapid fire, so There were question marks in my head.

It was normal for Lloyd and Eiji to come to this room whenever our snack time came. They’d entered one by one holding something tightly in their arms. Thanks to this, the playroom built by the emperor was densely packed to the brim.

“Eiji, it’s cold outside right now. Don’t even think about taking the kids away.”

Lloyd, who brought in something that looked like a picnic basket, sat across from us and stopped Eiji. Then he hugged me, who was hanging in Eiji’s arms.

“I’ll take you out with me next time when things settle down. Wouldn’t you catch a cold?”

Argen looked at the brown basket on the table with curiosity. I also turned my eyes at Argen’s gaze.

“Oh my, were you wondering what this is?”

My back flinched at the soothing tone used on children, but I still hugged him quietly. I like it when he holds me in his arms while giving me this and that.

LLoyd had many younger brothers, but I was his first younger sister so he always took care of this and that for me. Of course, Argen was also cared for.

Argen did not seem to dislike the favor either.

“Argen, open your mouth.”

He opened the basket slightly. Argen and I moved our eyes wondering what it was since we couldn’t see the inside.

Perhaps because Lloyd, the first prince, and Eiji, the third prince, were wearing colorful and sparkling uniforms, it felt strange to see them smiling in front of us like this.

To be exact, there’s a big difference between when they treat their subordinates and when they treat us, so it felt a little ticklish.

“It’s a fruit that only comes from Count Mosiebena’s estate. The fruit of God is famous because there’s only one tree, which bears just one fruit every 50 years.”

“……..??”

“It will boost your body’s immune system.”

A piece of fruit wrapped in a thin red shell rolled out. Lloyd casually handed over the fruit to the maid and when the maid received the red fruit, she was so surprised that her fingers trembled.

“It’s worth a fortune because it bears fruit only once every 50 years. But as much as it is called the fruit of God, the effect is indescribable.”

Did you just hand over something that looked so precious to your maid and roll it on the table? When Lloyd relaxed his hands, I came down and sat next to Argen.

Of course, when I came down, Argen naturally became the next target and sat on Lloyd’s lap, but he didn’t seem to dislike it.

I didn’t dislike being in his arms because I could feel the warmth of a person and Argen seem to also enjoyed the warmth.

“Your highness the crown prince, I’ve prepared it for you.”

“Yes, put it here.”

Fruits that looked red and a little desirable came out on a plate. While I was sitting there and wondering if I should eat this or not, Eiji, who finished the sherbet I was eating, opened his eyes wide.

“Isn’t this the one? It even attached a soldier’s severed neck……”

“….…!?”

“….….”

Argen quietly leaned toward Lloyd and I pulled my neck back in surprise. Is it that precious?

“They say it makes the body healthy. Eiji, you don’t need to eat it, right?”

“Of course!”

“Then Argen, Arien, let’s eat this.”

From what I heard, it’s very precious. The maids also kept glancing at the fruit.

No wonder she put more care than usual to prevent the fruit from dropping, from the time she got it until it came out!

“Father brought it to feed you.”

“But…..”

Lloyd put the red fruit on my lips as if he was waiting for me to open my mouth.

“Isn’t it delicious?”

But such a precious thing, to carelessly….…

“Delicious, huh?”

When I felt the juice flowing against my lips and became calm, he pushed the fork a little further and put the fruit into my mouth.

‘It’s delicious……’

‘……Once every 50 years, God’s fruit that reattaches a soldier’s neck……… There’s nothing you can do even if it doesn’t taste good.’

Of course, Argen couldn’t escape Lloyd. He had to bite the red fruit in his mouth and chew it.

“But as far as I know, I heard that before eating this, they would pray in the temple, wipe it with holy water, and then the high priest would cut the fruit.”

“That’s how precious the fruit is. Oh my, Argen. You shouldn’t spill while eating.”

Lloyd took out a handkerchief and wiped the juice flowing down from Argen’s chin.

I later found out…..The fruit of God that the First Prince brought in a basket and fed to us out of nowhere, was really……Was literally a fruit of God.

It was said that dragons also coveted the fruit and that it was once a cause of war……God’s fruit…..

******

It was dawn. The emperor, who was sleeping in the bed, rose when he felt a presence in his bedroom.

He glanced at the window with his vivid green eyes and swept away his bangs when he saw a red-haired man sitting on the terrace.

He was wearing a well-dressed uniform and shoes, but he didn’t make any sound as he walked over.

It was thanks to the carpet laid out on the floor for the children who were likely to fall.

“Jason.”

“……Long time no see, Your Majesty.”

The emperor glanced behind him when he saw the wolf looking sharper than last time. He got up carefully so as to not awaken the children, who were not aware of the presence and were still asleep.

“I didn’t think you’d show up for a while……. What’s going on?”

He picked up the glass on the table and held it to his mouth, then tilted his head. Even with that question, Jason continue to gaze at Argen and Arien, who laid behind the emperor, for a while without saying a word.

When there was no sign of an answer, he eventually decided to change the question. But, the moment he was about to change it, Jason’s lips moved.

“……The shackles have been released to some extent.”

“…….?”

“…….”

He eventually changed the question when he saw Jason muttering something unknown. The cup was enchanted with cooling magic, so the water was still cold when it flowed down his throat.

“When on earth can you come out? When they need protection beyond the realm of humans, shouldn’t you, the guardian, stand by their side?”

That point was enough to draw the attention away from the two who were asleep.

“……I mean. I’ve been watching everything. But for what reason did I just stupidly watch my masters get hurt…..Do you know?”

The emperor placed the glass of water down with a click and Jason, who passed by him, slowly lowered the curtains of the bed.

For a moment, he seemed to be fiddling with the curtain a few times, and then placed soundproof magic on the thin cloth to keep the noise from being heard.

“There’s one thing your Majesty doesn’t know. Guardians come from the peace of mind.”

Jason pulled up the corners of his lips bitterly. The emperor wrinkled his forehead while giving strength to his hand holding the glass of water.

“Since birth, there is plenty of room for the superior royal family, the princes who have no shortages and wants.”

Freedom of mind, it was something he had never heard before. Jason, who was slightly holding the curtain, slowly reached out and tried to touch Argen, but at that moment his fingertips broke apart.

As soon as he took off his hand, he returned to the original state, but the emperor couldn’t easily relaxed his wrinkled forehead because of the scene he had just witness.

“My feet are always shackled.”

“…….”

“I try to approach them every time the shackles are released, but they’re still too far away.”

“……What on earth do you want to say?”

He didn’t want to turn around. Jason, who was well aware of the emperor’s personality, lowered his eyes.

“My masters……..It seems like you think that it’s easy to ease their hearts, it’s infuriating.”

“……..”

“The Guardians are by their master’s side from the moment they are born, but there is no way that children, who were abandoned from birth without a chance to realize that they are an imperial family, can bring me out.”

“Jason.”

“Just as your green snake was the guardian of life, I stand for freedom. ”

The emperor’s face distorted beyond description. His face distorted so harshly that it made him wonder if he was the emperor of the Yuriana Empire, who was always so calm even on the battlefield.

“I was able to come out into the world as a guardian when they had the time to relax in their hearts. But that’s it. I’m still not free……I always have shackles on my feet, so I can’t take care of them, I can’t protect them, and I can’t even get close and share their pain.”

Jason’s face crumpled painfully.

“I was only able to reveal my form when the children were already big enough to take care of themselves……”

“…….”

“A guardian who is born for the imperial family as if it was a natural right.”

The sound of tossing and turning shifted the two eyes to the bed. As the emperor turned around, he could see the blankets gathering through the translucent curtains.