Chapter 150

We went out to play whenever we had the chance.

We took Tia to a huge amusement park.

We enjoyed a cozy dinner at a fancy restaurant.

Tia once went to see a play that was so boring she felt like dying.

We just walked wherever our feet led us and chatted away.

I thought I would come to dislike going out like this.

But soon, I found myself excited and laughing and realized something.

The reason I disliked going out was because I was afraid my identity as a Holy Maiden would be discovered.

And I was also afraid that Tia’s horns would be found out.

Indeed, I realized I had always loved going out.

It really pains me, but I feel the image of the Duke changing day by day.

Once, he seemed like just a carefree fool living without a thought, but lately, I keep discovering new sides of him.

There are times when the Duke appears knowledgeable, and sometimes he looks quite cool.

I thought, he’s not someone Nikolai admires for no reason.

“Wow, fireflies…!”

“They are not fireflies. It’s the light emitted by spirits.”

“Really? How can it be so beautiful?”

“It’s a view I enjoy as well.”

The Duke and I had a lot of similar tastes.

Especially when it came to our palate and aesthetic sense.

If our first meeting hadn’t gone like that, we might have become good friends.

The more I thought about it, the angrier I became.

How could someone who can do so well, who is such a good person, act like that back then?

Why did someone so endlessly pure in relationships with women choose that day to act like that towards me?

It’s infuriating.

What annoys me is that I had no choice but to hate the Duke for so long because of that.

The fact that I still can’t forgive him annoys me.

“Married life. I could do it for a long time.”

I began to think that the Duke might be right.

It would be better not to ignite passionate feelings like love from the start.

That way, our married life could be peaceful without fierce fights.

When everyone eventually dies and disappears, one person who can stay by my side unchanged.

Someone who can remember me.

Someone I can lean on.

As long as we can be that kind of presence for each other, it’s enough.

“Mom! Uncle! I brought Sparkles, or rather, Lara!”

A cheerful voice rang out from behind.

At that, when I turned around with the Duke, Tia was running towards us with both hands clasped and a bright face.

On her small palm was Lara, trembling as if her past trauma was surfacing.

“Mew?!”

“Eek!”

Crash.

Tia tripped over a rock and buried her face in the grass.

As a result, Lara ended up stuck in the ground since Tia’s hands hit first.

When I approached in surprise, Lara was spitting dirt from her mouth, making a displeased expression.

Is it that as a great spirit, this much doesn’t faze her?

“Meeow! Sorry?”

“It’s alright! I didn’t expect to arrive without any trouble anyway!”

Lara, smiling brightly despite the situation, seemed rather composed.

Tia rewrapped Lara in her palm and ran back to the Duke.

The Duke patted Tia’s head, brushed off the dirt, and took Lara from her.

“Uncle! You can fix our Sparkles, right?”

“Of course. I’ve been researching hard, so I’ll give it a shot.”

Tia spoke with the expression of a mother sending her little daughter into the operating room.

Though it was her own doing that led to Lara being like that…

“I’m a little nervous too.”

Today was the day we decided to fix Lara’s wings.

After researching the structure of spirits, the Duke found a way to reassemble Lara’s wings.

However, it’s uncertain if this would apply to a great spirit’s body, so he indicated it wasn’t guaranteed.

“You can do it. You studied so hard, after all.”

“Oh? Did you see through me?”

“Of course. Did you think I wouldn’t notice you reading specialist books piled up every night?”

“Ugh. I was trying to hide it. I wanted to be perceived as a genius by Julia.”

“Then let’s compromise and say you’re a ‘hard-working genius.’”

Joking about trivial matters, I placed my hand on the Duke’s back.

Then, I slowly concentrated on controlling the flow of divine power within me.

At the same time, I cast a miracle.

It was a miracle that infused energy, or magical power, into the Duke’s body.

“That’s enough now. I think it’s going to work.”

Gaining confidence, the Duke began sketching a magic formula in the air.

In the night sky decorated by spirits, thin lines spread chaotically, creating beautiful patterns.

He seemed deeply focused, letting out soft groans from his lips.

“Wow!”

Tia gasped in awe.

The lines that had spread in various directions had formed the shape of two pairs of wings.

The complexity of each wing exceeded imagination.

It was magic that no human could memorize and cast.

“Ugh…”

Soon, the Duke opened his eyes.

It seemed that his part was finished.

The wings that had been floating in the sky began to shrink slowly and descend to the ground.

Lara, trembling with what seemed like anxiety, turned her back, and the new wings perfectly matched the wings of Lara, which had lost their light.

In a flash.

At that moment, a blinding light expanded.

“Wow! Wow! My body is floating! I can feel the magic! How long has it been…!”

Lara’s body slowly began to rise into the air.

Seemingly realizing her strength was back, she began shooting various spells into the air as if on a test.

It was a grand success.

“Lara is flying! This is amazing!”

“Woohoo! Can you see it? This is the majesty of a great spirit!”

When Lara first entered our home, I was uncertain how it would turn out.

I’m really grateful that Lara was able to regain her wings safely and that Tia and she didn’t fall out.

I was really lucky.

If there hadn’t been a genius specializing in magic like the Duke nearby, I couldn’t have imagined this future.

“Thank you, Schwarz, for correcting Tia’s mistake.”

“Isn’t that what parents do?”

“I’m truly grateful…”

“But are you okay?”

“Huh? What do you mean?”

“About our bodies being close together.”

“Oh, ah…!”

Startled, I jumped away from the Duke.

I had naturally been leaning on his shoulder, hugging his arm.

It had become such a habit…

Don’t boys often link arms?

Since the Duke and I don’t match in height, we replaced it with linking arms.

So this was merely a display of friendship.

That’s all there was to it.

Well, the closeness of our bodies…

It could happen.

After all, we’re both male, so what’s the big deal?

“Is it over? Everyone hurry and come eat!”

At that moment, a husky voice echoed from below the hill.

It was Leopard.

He had already lit a campfire and was grilling meat with a stone plate.

Lara, joyfully soaring through the sky, and Tia running around her.

And the Duke, who was smiling contently while observing them.

Ah, how long I had wished for such a scene.

I felt happy.

For the first time since coming to this world, I think I had that thought.

After deciding to camp for the night in this beautifully expansive plain, Tia had already fallen asleep, and the barbecue party ended, creating a relaxed atmosphere for rest.

There was no need to worry about the cold.

Thanks to the warming magic, the inside of the tent was quite cozy.

Tia was even sleeping while tossing her blanket aside due to the heat.

Around the tent, foxes had gathered, forming a massive furball and sleeping soundly.

They showed no intention of entering the tent, being surprisingly well-behaved.

“Hmm?”

At that moment, a shadow appeared before the tent and placed something on the ground.

Who could it be? The Duke?

When I opened the tent, there was no one around, only a note lying on the ground.

Just as I was about to pick up the note, a sudden jolt of electricity coursed through me.

Static electricity?

– Walk directly towards the forest. As quietly as possible.

“…?”

It was the Duke’s handwriting.

What is this guy up to, sneaking me out at night for some lewd thing?

Still, without hesitation, I stepped out of the tent and headed towards the forest.

I had learned well that the Duke isn’t someone who would engage in something I dislike.

Even if it seemed random, since it was the Duke, there must be a reason for it.

I decided to think that way.

‘Leopard’s tent is empty too?’

It wasn’t just the Duke’s tent that was vacant.

Leopard was also absent.

Were the two of them together?

Was there something they needed to share that required our close attention?

I figured that I needed to go and find out what was happening.

I entered the forest slowly, feeling the cool night breeze.

‘Voices!’

At that moment, I heard voices coming from somewhere.

It was Leopard’s voice.

Then the Duke must be with him too.

My intuition proved correct.

Through the brush, I saw the Duke and Leopard standing face to face, having a conversation.

I was about to voice my irritation at being called out when I overheard them.

“Well then, let’s finish up quickly. Transform back to your true form.”

“Impatient as always. I understand.”

“…?”

The flow of their conversation seemed odd.

Did I instinctively sense that something was off?

I swallowed my voice again and hid behind the bushes to keep watching the situation.

“What is this?”

Then the Duke began to peel off his layers of clothing.

Why, why is the Duke undressing in front of Leopard?

In the deep woods at this late hour?

I clenched my teeth and decided to spy from behind the tree.

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