“Because today I’m here to give you the necklace, I’ll go back for now. I’m a little tired from just coming back to the capital, and I’ll be back tomorrow … would that be alright for you?”

“Yes, I can’t even go out because I’m on probation anyway.”

“You’re on probation? Why … no, let’s talk about this tomorrow.”

She sighed, giving her head. The appearance of complaining of a headache was like looking in a mirror, and I also sighed.

Alice raised herself with a bag that was much lighter than when she first came. The platinum string around her neck glistened through her collar.

The necklace she gave Aaron. The necklace she gave me. The necklace on Alice’s neck. All were the same necklace.

For me, who had once been relieved of Aaron Claymore’s feelings, I couldn’t help but have a strange impression. More or less impulsively, I called Alice as she headed for the door.

“Alice, I told you I saw in a dream what kind of relationship I had with Aaron.”

“I don’t know the details, but you’re engaged with the intention to end it … Why? What happened?”

“What if I marry Aaron?” I asked in a serious voice.

It was an assumption drawn by Aaron’s proposal. I wanted to know how Alice would take it that might have become a reality.

Aaron Claymore knew who Alice was, and still loved her. Still, he doesn’t approach Alice and even hides the fact that he knows it.

Then what about Alice?

Does she know who Aaron is or does she recognize Ed?

Frankly, it was not something that was open to others.

But if one does not push the other, the two may not be able to speak to each other.

Honestly, I was guilty of thinking that I would intercept Aaron for a while, and I was doing things with reflection on myself, but I sincerely hoped that the two would be united.

A lot of things have changed because I acted differently from the original, but the love of the protagonist has not changed, as can be seen through Aaron.

So would Alice.

I hoped that Alice’s face would be hardened or whitened, or anyway, the expression I had when I knew Nocton’s identity, but her face was rather bright.

Her bright eyes were wide open and her flushed cheeks seemed to be filled with joy.

“Oh my god, is it real? You were going to break up your engagement … but you fell in love? How romantic! It’s like a novel!”

Congratulations!

When I saw Alice’s face, I couldn’t think she was hiding her innermost thoughts.

I’m sure she really doesn’t know.

I swallowed a sigh, recalling Aaron’s face.

At least take off the anti-recognition artifacts.

There’s no one in that country town who’s going to recognize me, but he always wore it and made things complicated.

I’ve decided to keep things up and put off my case for Aaron later.

“No, I’m talking about ‘what if‘. I’m just thinking about what it would be like to get married.”

“Isn’t the imagination itself creating a mind?”

“Not at all. I’m rather uncomfortable because I feel like he is my brother.”

“Well … that’s not fun.”

Alice’s face turned dark. Somehow I wanted to tell Aaron about the current conversation.

After hearing the story, can he affirms that Alice is not the woman?

“Anyway, if you fall in love, I will be cheering for you, unless the other person is Lord Edgar.”

“Please don’t say anything unlucky.”

My face trembled in a series of absurd noises.

However, the smile on Alice’s face was also sincere.

What was I thinking about this girl?

I was going to steal Alice’s man, not someone else’s. That was absolutely preposterous.

“The same goes for me, Alice. I will cheer you up when you fall in love.”

“Uh…? Yes, thank you.”

“I can cheer for your love even if the person is Nocton.”

“Please don’t say such a bad thing.”

The smile on Alice’s face disappeared in a flash.

After a long time, I burst into laughter at her earnestness.

Alice also began to laugh loudly.

***

It was spring, a little after Nocton threw the cuff button into the lake.

The relationship between Nocton Edgar and Roa Valrose had turned a little like a bad friend.

Valrose visited the mansion every day, and Nocton said “Come again, Valrose day to day.

On that day, too, the two were reading in the study.

A flying bug flew over to the side of Nocton.

The boy’s eyes, who couldn’t concentrate very much, turned to the bug. Likewise, Roa Valrose, who was so engrossed in the morning of spring, unexpectedly screamed.

“Don’t kill it, Nocton!”

“What?”

Nocton blinked at the sudden noise. However, soon realizing the object of the words, he pointed to the beetle in front of him.

“Do you like this?”

“No, not at all. Not a bit. I don’t like anything flying except butterfly. I want to die just by looking at it when it’s flying around.”

“Then why don’t you kill it? I had no plan to do so in the first place.”

Though added as an excuse, the look of doubt didn’t go away.

He doen’t have to listen to people who say they wouldn’t believe him.

The irritated boy raised his hand to kill the bug.

“I think killing life is the worst of the worst.”

But at the words of Valrose, he pretended not to raise his hand.

“….it’s a bug.”

“To you, humans are the same as bugs.”

“Don’t sell yourself short, Valrose.”

“It’s a joke, but seriously. Killing bugs, killing cats, killing orphans, killing people. That’s what I’ve seen in the book.”

“It’s an overinterpretation. What’s the title of the book you saw?”

“The mystery of life.”

“I’ve never heard of this book.”

“The author is Roa Valrose.”

This was bullshit from somewhere else.

Unbelievable, Nocton laughed, but Valrose was still serious.

“Anyway, don’t kill it, Nocton. I hate that kind of thing. Don’t kill something no matter how bad you were. Besides, it’s terrible to burn people. A burn … people are not moths who are attracted to flame….”

“Why is the burn coming out of nowhere?”

“Well … that came from a book I saw. And….”

“Okay, I’m sure the author will do it anyway.”

Nocton could not understand why she was moving from the story of a bug to the story of a person being burned, but he didn’t think the right answer would come from talking to each other.

He looked at the bug, ignoring the glaring Valrose. His mana faded in his eyes, and the bug that was standing in front of him took his wings.

The little flying bug, which had no sense of presence, flew out of the window without life.

Valrose smiled, clapping her hands.

“Oh, it looks scary when I stare. It went out, went out!”

“Be quiet, Valrose. Before I bring it back.”

“How are you going to get the bug that’s already gone back?”

Nocton shut his mouth because he had nothing to say. No matter how upset he was, he couldn’t talk about black magic.

“Well done, Nocton. In the future … please never kill a life. Let’s make a promise.”

He can’t believe he made a promise about what he did because he was annoyed. Eventually, he opened his mouth to reject, but he couldn’t.

This was because Valrose, who was smiling brightly, forcibly took his hand and put her own little finger on it.

Then she put their thumbs together and nodded satisfactorily.

“Never kill anything. Understand? It’s a promise!“

With the last words, the dream was over and Nocton woke up.

Was he sleeping all day, or maybe for more than a day….

When he woke up, he frowned at the stiffness of his whole body.

He lifted his eyelids.

As soon as he did, the first thing he came into sight was a blue blade flying into his face.

‘It’s a great morning greeting.’

Nocton stretched out his right hand with a flying excitement.

The blade eased the palm and sprinkled blood. It wasn’t painless, but he immediately grabbed the opponent’s counterattack with his left hand and threw it at a low level.

Tuk, keugh.

It seems that he is not dead because he’s groaning.

In the midst of his stiffness, his palms were pierced and he even used strength, so the creaking sound from his whole body intensified.

Frowning, Nocton rose from his seat. Blinking his eyes a couple of times, he turned his eyes to the sideways.

There was a servant carrying the troll’s blood that he asked, not knowing how long.

He still had a clear face and glimpses of his eyes.

It hasn’t been four days since he didn’t roll to death.

Nocton twisted the knife in his left hand and threw it to the floor. The good quality carpet swallowed the sound of the knife falling.

His torn hand healed in an instant, and the stiff body got better.

He turned his mana around to check his condition, and then turned his head to the intruder who tried to assassinate him.

Perhaps his shoulder dislocated as he fell to the ground, but a middle-aged man grabbed his shoulder with the other hand was crawling away.

“Oh, how….! You were clearly unconscious!”

“In a new way.”

Laughing lightly, Nocton approached the intruder.

The sound of footsteps eaten on the carpet was a bit dull, but the silent footsteps rather stimulated fear.

“You thought I wouldn’t know, Braman Duff? I’m disappointed if you really thought so.”

“Save me, save me! I just did it because it was an order. Lady Patricia asked me to do it, so I couldn’t really—”

“Yes, I knew that, too. I thought my mother is still quite well, thanks to you. Sometimes whenever I wondered about her well-being, I solved my curiosity through you.”

Nocton Edgar also had the ability to shed memories through others’ dreams.

He’s been playing Braman Duff with bad feelings ever since he was a kid, he had to return even when he was in a bad condition because of the fact.

She sent someone to spy on Nocton, but she wouldn’t have thought that she would be watched in reverse.

Actually, Braman Duff listened to Nocton and didn’t know what he meant, he only blinked his eyes.

Still, the acting was praiseworthy.

He thought he was just a man of no power, but he could not get rid of the blinding glow of his eyes.

He would have seen the light if he went to the extreme.

Nocton approached the corner of Braman Duff, rolled his eyes and looked down.

A feverish pupil showed a middle-aged man wriggling in pain.

It looks like a bug.

Yeah, just like she said.