14.

“If I’d known it had an owner, I wouldn’t have meddled.”

“Peep.”

Nephi let out a faint, pitiful chirp.

“….”

“Excuse me for a moment.”

With a small shrug, Leo fric approached Nephi, who was still caught in the vines.

The tall man effortlessly jumped up, reaching the bird and freeing it from the vines with ease. He was so tall that, even after reaching Nephi, there was still plenty of room to spare.

“Annoying little bird,” he muttered, scolding it lightly. Nephi, cowed, tucked its head further into its feathers, forming a red, round fluff. Leo clicked his tongue in mild annoyance.

Ateira silently watched him. She had tried so hard to reach the bird, but he’d done it with such ease.

It seemed he truly had come for the bird. The tension she’d felt, suspecting another motive, relaxed slightly. Without another glance in her direction, he tucked Nephi into his upper pocket.

But the bird squirmed free and flew straight to Ateira.

“…Ah.”

He reached out to grab it, but stopped just before his hand got too close to the princess. That meddlesome bird!

As Nephi flitted over to her, Ateira instinctively raised her hands to catch it. She watched it closely as it rubbed its beak affectionately against her fingers.

It was at that precise moment that Leo fric sensed something unusual.

“Damn it,” he cursed inwardly, his sharp gaze shifting to the shadows at the edge of the garden.

One of them?

It was a monster. A dark, eagle-like shape was perched between the trees. Unfortunately, this one looked particularly aggressive.

He’d had a bad feeling when he impulsively lunged to catch the princess during her fall. Moving so openly had been a mistake. He’d thought he might get away with it, but apparently not.

Glancing sidelong at the princess, he realized he wouldn’t be able to handle this quietly without her noticing.

With a sigh, he spoke up.

“…Princess.”

“…?”

The sudden shift in his demeanor made her eye him suspiciously, her gaze sharp.

“Hold the bird for a moment.”

Without another word, Leo fric leapt off the terrace, landing silently like a predator. He walked with soundless steps, merging into the shadows between the trees, his figure dissolving into the night as though he were part of it.

Ateira, holding Nephi in her hands, watched silently. Before she knew it, he had vanished completely from sight.

The monster cocked its head, fixing its gaze on him in an unnerving manner.

Get lost before I lose my patience.

Leo fric’s gray-blue eyes glowed strangely, almost red, casting a faint, eerie light. Yet the monster didn’t flinch, its head tilting down at a sharp, unnatural angle as it stared.

Its beak—or what could be its mouth—stretched open, writhing as though it were laughing. Its body began to swell, growing larger. If left unchecked, it would eventually become noticeable even to passersby.

This thing was stronger than average, judging by its refusal to back down.

Of all things, why did it have to be one of these lurking nearby? Rotten luck. All because of that troublesome bird, Nephi. Maybe he should skip a few meals for it. The damn bird was so well-fed that it roamed freely, causing all this trouble.

Thinking how satisfying it’d be if Nephi could understand, Leo slowly drew his sword, his mind set.

Bad luck for both of us.

The creature’s maw pulsed, as if it were taunting him. Claws extended from its long, spread wings, reaching out to seize him.

With a single, smooth breath, Leo drove his blade through the creature, slicing it cleanly in half.

“…”

Thanks to his care, he managed to avoid getting covered in blood.

With a quick flick, he shook the blood from his blade. The monster’s blood would corrode the metal, so he grabbed a few leaves from a nearby tree, wiping the blade clean before sheathing it.

There’s no way to pretend that was nothing.

Clicking his tongue in mild annoyance, he made his way back to the terrace where Ateira and Nephi waited.

“…A bear.”

“…”

“A bear showed up.”

The excuse sounded ridiculous even to him, and he regretted it immediately.

Bear? Really? In the middle of a baron’s estate? In a garden, no less? He felt the absurdity of his own words and resisted the urge to groan.

As he leapt back onto the terrace, Ateira took a step back, quietly pointing to the opposite end.

“That doesn’t look like a bear.”

At the spot she indicated sat something small, resembling a rabbit with short ears or perhaps a dog with long ears.

The monster was sitting eerily calm, staring right back at her.

No matter how docile it appeared, monsters could turn vicious in an instant. Even if they looked small and harmless, some of them could rapidly expand and transform. It was always best to deal with them before they became a real threat.

“There was more than one.”

With a light sigh, Leo fric stepped closer to the creature. The monster stared at him, and as he drew his sword, it spun around and darted off, flapping its short wings furiously.

“…A monster,” Ateira said quietly.

Leo fric’s shoulders slumped slightly. He had hoped the princess wouldn’t notice.

“Well, Your Highness…”

“…?”

In the gentlest tone he could muster, Leo fric spoke. He was intent on ensuring no one would think he or his actions had any connection to the monsters’ appearance.

“Perhaps it would be best not to mention this monster to anyone else.”

“Won’t the people here be in danger?”

Ateira asked calmly.

“Hmm…”

It was standard practice to deal with monsters as soon as they appeared. Like disease, if left alone, they would only grow and bring greater harm. The common belief was that monsters had to be eradicated at the root.

“Well… they won’t attack anyone else.”

“…?”

Ateira’s skeptical look lingered until she seemed to realize something.

“This bird is a monster too, isn’t it?”

Damn.

“…”

There was a saying: monsters attract monsters.

In society, monsters were seen as ominous and terrifying. The idea of taming one was unthinkable for most. This was why Edgick had enchanted Nephi to appear as harmless as possible.

But if someone suddenly realized it was a monster, their usual reaction would be to flee or to inform the temple, which would promptly dispatch hunters.

Yet Ateira’s response was different. She merely gazed at Nephi with a curious expression, as though inspecting an unusual find.

“So, other monsters are drawn here because of this bird…”

Leo fric instinctively nodded.

“Exactly. Monsters are often drawn to each other. This one lured the others here. So once we leave, there will be no more monster sightings in this area.”

Leo spoke in a steady tone, trying to reassure her.

“…”

Ateira gazed at him thoughtfully, her red eyes no longer filled solely with hatred but now holding a more complex light.

“…Very well.”

Relieved by her answer, Leo fric was about to thank her when she extended Nephi toward him.

“This settles my debt.”

“…”

Debt?

Something clicked in Leo’s mind.

“This?” he asked, raising his left hand slightly. Ateira’s expression showed a hint of discomfort.

Under her composed exterior, she was wrestling with guilt for having harmed him, resentment for accepting his help, a faint sense of gratitude she couldn’t voice, and a lingering sense of inner conflict.

…Has she never attacked someone before?

“Fair enough,” Leo fric replied with a slight chuckle.

For him, Ateira was neither the first nor the last person to attempt to harm him.

Among the countless attackers he had faced, she was probably the most noble—and the least adept.

Her fixation on that brief incident was mildly amusing to him.

He took Nephi back, noting that her fingers, chilled from tension, brushed against his own.

Swinging one leg over the terrace railing, Leo fric prepared to leave.

Not bad. In the end, he’d followed Count Zellered’s orders after all.

“I’m sure Count Zellered will be pleased,” he muttered.

“…?”

“He was so insistent about me spending the night with you. We did end up spending the night together, after all.”

“…So you think this counts as spending the night? Has it made you more eager for marriage?” Ateira’s voice took on a sharp chill. Ah, a woman who doesn’t take kindly to jokes. Leo raised an eyebrow, responding lightly.

“Not at all. I’m as disinterested in this marriage as you are. Has Your Highness perhaps changed her mind?”

“I still only think of death as preferable to marrying you.”

It was as if she were a different person from the one who had just handled Nephi. Leo fric found this princess, with her barbed responses, rather entertaining.

“That’s one way to go about it. If one of us dies, the engagement will be nullified.”

With a casual joke, he vaulted over the terrace railing, leaving her with a parting salute.

“Well then, here’s to an interesting separation, Your Highness.”