CH 98

The old man’s hair was as white as Baron Edward’s, but his body looked stronger than ever.

He stood out from the crowd and was muscular all over.

“You don’t remember me, which is perhaps not surprising, as it was a long time ago………….”

The old man straightened his posture and stood up, bowing low to Pepe.

“My name is Margrave* Winfrote, and by the grace of the Sylphid, my estate was saved, and I’ve been waiting for the day to repay the favor.”

(T/N: Margrave was originally the medieval title for the military commander assigned to maintain the defense of the border.)

-Winfrote? Sounds familiar……………

“Are you sure? It is an honor.”

Unlike the perpetually cheerful Pepe, Margrave Winfrote was overwhelmed.

“I’ve never seen Margrave Winfrote like that before.”

“I know, right? I always thought he was a scary guy………….”

“I don’t know why, but it makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside.”

“Me too, and I hope the spirit remembers Margrave Winfronte as soon as possible.”

His desperate sincerity came through, and everyone silently cheered for Pepe to remember.

– I think I can’t remember it like this. Tell me a little more.

“Yes. Of course. It was a time of unprecedented cold and famine in the north. As people starved to death, a horde of demons attacked Winfrote. As I watched the dying people, I was helpless.

In the midst of…………

Pepe, who had been pondering the story of Margrave Winfrote, whirled around in midair.

– Oh yes, I remembered!

“Are you sure?”

– Yes!

Nodding toward the Margrave Winfrote, Pepe whirled around to look at me.

– Rose, this is actually something you………….

But at that moment.

A cloud, just the size of Pepe, formed and enveloped him.

“What’s going on?”

Poof!

A moment later, the cloud burst and disappeared, leaving nothing in its place.

“Huh?”

Pepe was gone.

My mana connected to Pepe was gone, too.

‘What happened?’

Apparently, I wasn’t the only one who was puzzled, as I heard voices around the hall.

“Mr. Sylphid?”

As Margrave Winfrote searched for Pepe with a grim face, a notification popped up.

【Elemental King Sylphid has violated the Law of Causality and will be sent back as a penalty】.

‘Pepe violated the Law of Causality?’

【As a penalty, you will not be able to summon Sylphid the Elemental King for a certain amount of time. Time remaining: 6 days, 23 hours, 59 minutes, 55 seconds】

【You are also penalized for allowing this to happen: 100 Fate Energy has been deducted】.

【Remaining Fate Energy: 700】

I was confused by the succession of notifications.

‘What is this all about?’

While I was still trying to figure out what was going on, inquiries from people began to pour in.

“The Duchess of Palesdon, where has your spirit gone?”

“Has the Duchess of Palesdon summoned the spirit back?”

“If not, has she offended the spirit?”

The most prominent of them all, Margrave Winfrote, strode briskly toward me.

“Allow me to greet you for the first time. I am Aiden Winfrote.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Roselina Palesdon.”

I’d been accustomed to not using honorifics with most people as I defend my name as the world’s greatest villainess, but I couldn’t do that with Margrave Winfrote.

“You are the Duchess of Palesdon who summoned Sylphid, aren’t you?”

“Yes. That is correct.”

“I was hoping to speak with Sylphid a bit more, but now that things have come to this, would it be possible for me to see him again?”

Margrave Winfrote asked just the right question.

‘I can’t talk to people about causality, so I’ll have to come up with a convincing excuse.’

I nodded quickly and replied.

“Yeah. Well, I summoned Pepe with my own mana, but I ran out of mana, so he was summoned back. Once my mana is restored, I can summon him again.”

“Is that so? I’m so glad to hear that.”

Margrave Winfrote’s gray eyes seemed genuinely relieved.

Then he suddenly bowed to me as well.

“I never thought the day would come when I would see Sylphid again. If it weren’t for you, I would not have seen Sylphid until the day I closed my eyes. From now on, Winfrote will count you as a benefactor for allowing me to meet him.”

“Ah, yes.”

I answered without thinking, not really knowing much about Margrave Winfrote.

“Winfrote has a new benefactor?”

“The Duchess of Palesdon is causing quite a stir today all by herself.”

“I envy her. House Winfrote would make an excellent ally for the Duchess of Palesdon, wouldn’t they?”

But despite myself, a ripple went through the Grand Hall.

“Congratulations to House Winfrote on a new ally. The presentation of the Rose of Harmony study will resume after a short break.”

The Emperor added with a slightly surprised look.

‘Is Winfrote such a great family?’

I was about to slip out onto the balcony, thinking I should ask the Master.

“M, may I have one more word with you?”

“Yes. Go ahead.”

Margrave Winfrote caught me.

“I want you to visit Winfrote sometime. It is out of Winfrote’s courtesy to ask a benefactor to come, but… I would like to ask you to visit sometime.”

“I will visit if I get a chance.”

“Thank you. You are always welcome in Winfrote.”

I answered out of politeness, but I felt slightly guilty because Margrave Winfrote seemed to be touched.

‘Okay. Perhaps next time I’ll visit Winfrote.’

I left him behind and headed to the balcony.

The sight of the sofa on the balcony put me at ease.

After drawing the curtains to indicate that I didn’t want to be disturbed, I sat down on the couch.

Sitting down on the cushions seemed to ease my tension.

‘I’m also human, I need to rest.’

I was tired from all that running.

That’s when I felt someone peeking through the curtains.

‘I thought I indicated I didn’t want to be disturbed, but who is it?’

【Your newly tamed beast wants to talk to you.】

‘Felix?’

Thanks to the notification, I realized who was on the other side of the curtain.

Indeed, it would be a bit embarrassing to stand alone in front of the crowd as an abandoned prince.

‘I won’t be embarrassed in front of Felix, so I won’t be disturbed from my rest.’

With that thought, I gladly allowed Felix to enter.

“Felix, right? You can come in.”

“Really?”

“What do you mean by that question? Of course, you can. ”

But Felix’s shadow on the other side of the curtain was still hesitating.

“What’s wrong?”

“If I go inside the balcony, word will get around, and if it gets nasty, it might come back to bite you.”

A duchess rumored to be getting divorced secretly meets an abandoned prince.

I could see what Felix was worried about.

‘After all, there are plenty of couples who have clandestine affairs on the balcony.’

I shrugged lightly.

“Then it’s better for me. I’d rather have a bad reputation help me get a divorce, not hinder it.”

“Is that so?”

“Yes. So if you want to come in, come in now. Or I won’t let you in.”

Finally, Felix wobbled onto the balcony.

‘Wow. I can’t believe he’s so different from his first impression.’

Catalina’s first impression was even more different.

“So, what’s up?”

“……………Thank you.”

“Huh?”

“If it wasn’t for you, I wouldn’t be breathing right now, and I know I can’t do much for you now, like the Margrave… but you’re my savior.”

【The newly tamed beast is embarrassed】.

Hearing Felix’s sincere gratitude made me feel unnecessarily embarrassed.

“No, it was nothing.”

“So…… you can call me by my nickname too. Originally, only the Emperor and Empress were allowed to call me by my nickname.”

“You’re not royalty anymore, so it doesn’t matter.”

Despite having lost everything and despite having been deliberately poked in a sore spot, Felix laughed softly, his expression unchanged.

“Yes. That’s right. …………It’s Pepe, by the way.”

“What?”

I asked again, wondering if I’d misheard, but Felix’s expression remained impassive.

“Pepe.”

“…?”

“My nickname is Pepe, too.”

“Oh, don’t be ridiculous. Your nickname shouldn’t be Pepe, you’re so big.”

“I was small when I was a kid. That’s my nickname.”

I looked at Felix and thought.

‘Why didn’t I get a notification that Felix was embarrassed this time?’

Is Felix really that unabashed about his nickname?

“You can call me Pepe anyway.”

Felix is like a big bear, but he’s not shy about calling himself Pepe.

It was so ridiculous that I laughed out loud.

“Ha. Okay. I’ll call you that sometimes if you want.”

“Really? Thank you!”

He exclaimed, and I was lost for words as I watched him jump in joy.

A notification flashed across Felix’s face.

【Quest 〈Find the person responsible for Felix Blake’s kidnapping〉 has been confirmed】.

【Quest 〈Discover the truth behind Felix Blake’s kidnapping!(2)〉 has been completed】.

【You will receive 30 Fate Energy as a reward】.

Now that the quest is complete, I feel a bit more in control.

‘Though there’s still a lot of work to be done.’

There were a lot of complicated issues, such as the cause and effect of Pepe’s disappearance, unbelievers, and ancient witches.

‘I’ll start with what’s in front of me.’

Finally, the bell rang, signaling the end of the break.

I stood up from my seat.

“What?”

“We have to finish my Rose of Harmony research presentation.”

I told Felix, who looked confused and walked out onto the balcony.