P. 235

P. 252

“Then our hearts are one.”

Lydia was troubled at how to respond, but Edgar didn’t pay any heed and continued to speak.

“I’ll never let you go.”

In the next second, the moonstone gave out a shining bright light.

The light of the moonstone was so bright that one could tell even with their eyes closed as that white light filled his view.

Edgar felt her hand softly grip his hand back and he opened his eyes.

He was feeling how Lydia, in his arms and her golden-green eyes that were facing him were like a precious treasure.

***

“Yes, I mean really, I have no idea how it happened, but in the next moment I was standing in front of the landlord’s house.”

In one of the landlord’s rooms, Lota was resting down in a bathtub that was set out in front of the hearth and spoke as she blew out a?puff of smoke from her cigarette.

P. 253

“That’s because the changeling magic was broken. Remember, Lota how you exchanged with Betty and was made the changeling. That’s why you were naturally returned to the place where you were meant to be,” said Lydia as she dried her hair that was just washed with a towel.

“That was easy for you. As Pino and I were walking together, we were being followed by frightening monsters.”

*

In the old days, the Blue Knight Earl was begged by?villagers and sealed away a dragon Wyrm.

And he must have hidden the fire fluorite, freya that was?its weakness somewhere in the village.

P. 272

The one who came later was the brothers that carried the?earl’s blood. They knew where the dragon’s freya was and that if they used it,?it would once again awaken the dragon.

The older brother only used his talent for sculptures to?increase the value of the fluorites.

However, the younger brother was different.

It seemed like the red fluorite, freya that the dragon?creates has another special use to it.

The mayor claimed that it was the stone of immortality and it could only be handled by those who carry the blood of the Blue Knight Earl, but Edgar didn’t know what kind of method it was to gain such an outcome, so didn’t know if it was true or not.

Anyhow, the younger brother had revived the dragon and?thought to once again make it so that freyas could be mined.

The older brother who sensed the danger in that had?entrusted the only fluorite that was able to revive the dragon to the far away?Cremon dukedom.

Molding it into a ring that had the crest carved into it.

Before he was killed by his younger brother.

The young man Ulysess that Edgar knew, could he be the son of that younger brother?

He gave the impression like he had gone through special?education and brain-washing, but he still must be a part of the bloodline.

Anyhow, Ulysess who became a pawn for Prince still carried the blood of the Blue Knight Earl and wasn’t killed because he turned his allegiance to Prince.

And then he searched and found the fluorite that was sent to the Cremona dukedom in secret, and revived the dragon.

P. 273

In the end, it looked like the freya was carried out of the village. The two villagers that Ermine was talking about still was no where to be found.

If that stone ends up in the hands of Prince then I wonder if that would make him not die.

I wouldn’t want that to happen, thought Edgar.

Putting that aside, mysteries kept on increasing.

Even if the dragon was defeated, it was mostly thanks to?Lydia and for Edgar who couldn’t bring out the power of the merrow’s sword?against a fairy, there still was no guarantee that he could keep on fighting.

And it still was unknown what he should do with Lydia.

Edgar was standing out on the balcony as he looked out at?the sea which the morning sun reflected out over and he shivered in cold and?entered back into the room.

It just when Raven came in to announce that the morning meal is ready.

“Lord Edgar, I will be going to the village postal office, but do you have any other duties for me?”

“Postal office? To do what?”

“To send out the letter that Miss Carlton asked of me.”

“Who is the letter addressed out to?”

Even if he thought he was breeching her privacy, when it?came to Lydia, he became too curious and ended up asking.

P. 274

“To her father, Professor Carlton. It seems she is informing him that she will go back to Scotland from here and will be spending the holiday with him.”

That was a complete bolt from the blue. Holiday? Echoed?Edgar back to him.

“She said she got the approval already for an early Christmas holiday. Did you not approve of it?”

I have never heard that.

With his coat in his hand, he tried to hurry out of the?room.

“Um, Miss Carlton has already departed long ago.”

“You let her go?”

There was no fault in Raven. However, Edgar was completely confused. Why, why, why was the only thing that came to his mind.

“I haven’t approved for time off for the holidays. Why didn’t you give me any word of this?”

“It was still dark before morning. If he was told he didn’t have to wake his master, then your loyal servant would take the word of your fiancée Lydia.”

Without giving a knock, Lota came into the man’s private?courters. And then she held out a piece of paper in front of his eyes.

“The holiday request form of Lydia’s. I’ve made sure to hand it to you.”

“....But it’s still November.”

“It seems like you put her through hard work, so shouldn’t she have the right to rest for a month and a half until Christmas is over?”

The strength had completely disappeared from his body,?and Edgar slumped down onto the sofa.

P. 275

“Besides that, why is it you that she entrusts to submit her form?”

“Because I was the one who suggested the idea to Lydia.?About the idea of getting a holiday break from here and spending some time away?from you. I pushed that once you have the idea, it’s best she go through with?it before she was talked out of it.”

“Whaat?”

His open mouth didn’t shut back closed.

“It’s because I let it slip to Lydia that you might have?become a little more decent. But, don’t you feel that you haven’t changed that?much since the time with Betty? I felt the guilt of making Lydia become?depressed.”

Lydia was depressed?

She didn’t show any such signs, so Edgar had no idea what?Lota was talking about.

“I thought you didn’t make any slips or blunders with women, but I was wrong.”

That made him irritated, and so he raised his brow and?glared at Lota.

“Or is it, that you can’t think calm and straight when it?comes to Lydia?”

“You go and get in other people’s love affairs, and what is it that you want to say?”

“Till late in the night, there were quite a number of?fairies partying in her room. Although I could only see the black-wavy haired?one and cat, it seemed quite lively and loud so there must have been quite a?number of little ones there too. So, I thought why you weren’t there with her.”

P. 276

“I had said to Lydia that it’s best she rested. Shouldn’t?she be tired?”

“Yes, she did go through a hectic day for someone. She?needed to save Betty and me, and Martha’s baby, everyone all at once, and she?couldn’t turn to anyone when it came to fairies.”

She was correct. Lydia tried to do it on her own and was?prepared that she might not be able to return.

That’s why Edgar thought he definitely didn’t want to leave her by herself. Even if he didn’t have any power to fight against fairies, he believed he could stay by Lydia’s side at least.

And then he realized.

That last night, she was all alone.

“I had thought that you would stay by her side. Since the?two of you broke through the danger together, then all the more you are the?only one who knows all the trouble she went through. I had imagined that you?were flirting with her and then Lydia would completely forget about all the frightening memories and I thought that would make her relaxed and be able to rest.”

Edgar could only remain silent. However, it wasn’t like he thoughtlessly made her be by herself.

He was thinking about shortening the distance between him?and Lydia all at once, but he hesitated because he felt like he still didn’t?have the right to do that.

He wasn’t able to retrieve the freya and still didn’t know what kind of mysterious power it held.

He didn’t know how he was going to continue protecting Lydia against Ulysess who carried the blood of the real Blue Knight Earl.

P. 277

He didn’t want to let her go and yet he wasn’t able to step in towards her.

Lydia was willing to face him heart-to-heart but Edgar had ran away.

“Lydia had a smile on her face. She said that fairies are?the only ones that would stay by her side.”

She had come back because she decided to believe in humans, in Edgar, but it was fairies who were beside her.

That....was sure to hurt her.

“That girl, because she could see fairies, I heard that she was made fun of a lot. But, just like that she must have always smiled about?it. I wish that Lydia would become happy with a man who she considers the most?dearest. That’s why I can’t entrust you as you are right now with Lydia.”

“Are you considering yourself as Lydia’s guardian?”

“As a friend. Lydia is not like Betty. You seduce her with such thin feelings, but from her point, she only has one of the two options of rejecting you or seriously loving you.”

Her words were bitter through and through. Lota looked to be completely enraged with Edgar.

Thin feelings, that’s not how I feel.

Even if he thought that, he couldn’t retaliate, and so Edgar was left to remain alone.

“Shall I go after Miss Carlton?” asked Raven, who apparently was still remaining where he was.

“....No, right now, I don’t feel like I can properly seduce her.”

P. 278

Raven bowed and left the room.

It was definite that he gained a step closer to Lydia. And with that, Edgar thought that he might change her destiny and that made him?unnerved.

He was completely half-hearted.

Because he wasn’t making the his choice, and when they were thrown inside the magic of the fairy, Lydia had gone out for Edgar’s sake so that he could let go of her hand.

He pledged to his heart because he wanted to save her, and if it was for Lydia, then he wouldn’t lose to the illusionary magic of the?fairy, but it was Edgar who made her make that kind of lie.

He wanted to protect her but he was hurting her. At this?rate, she was only going to go through alienation in the human world, and on?day she might leave his side.

“What should I do?”

Even if he asked himself about what to do, he just couldn’t think about making himself put distance between her.

In the end, he was thinking about how he could make this?misconduct of his erased.

And as he thought, if it was a holiday break then she would be coming back, right?

P. 279

Afterword