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“—Speaking of,”

Thanks to Princess Lieselotte and Viola acting as a sort of barrier from the onslaught of guests, I was finally able to catch my breath. After nibbling on some light snacks and wetting my throat, I asked Lieselotte something that had been on my mind since entering this hall.

“It seemed that the head of the Aulanthia Frontier Count was not among those we greeted earlier. Could it be that he is absent from the central capital?”

For some reason, at the party, my half-elder brother—the second son of Count Aulanthia, Tommaso Abbondio Chiaffredo Aulanthia (twenty-five)—was standing in as a proxy. He seemed not to have realized that I was his former half-sister, Syltianna. But my concern—the presence of my father, Count Aulanthia—did not materialize at any point, and before I knew it, even Tommaso had vanished from the hall.
Officially, he is the foremost among the Lords of the Livitium Imperial Kingdom. Privately, he was the man who had taken the previous Shrine Maiden Princess, Clara, as his concubine. That such a figure would not attend the unveiling of the second (technically the first) Shrine Maiden Princess seems extremely unnatural. What could be the reason?

“Oh, today it’s my cousin… Sir Tommaso, who attended as a proxy. Apparently, the head could not make it due to some circumstances.”

Lieselotte fell into thought, humming “hmm…”

Incidentally, Tommaso’s mother, my father’s first concubine Lady Eloise, is a cousin of the current king, which automatically makes Lieselotte and Tommaso second cousins. Well, for royalty, there are countless nobles related by blood, so they aren’t particularly close.

“Indeed, it is unusual. Just three days ago, I happened to meet the Count at the palace, and the topic of Jill came up—”

*“Her Highness the Princess is said to have a close friendship with the aforementioned Shrine Maiden Princess. Tell me, does she resemble my late wife so much?”*
*“Indeed. I knew the previous Shrine Maiden Princess only by likeness, but she was truly her spitting image… actually, she was far more beautiful in person, King Aulanthia.”*
*“Hoho! That is indeed an anecdote that brings Clara of the past to mind. I’ve always heard that her portraits convey barely a tenth of her beauty.”*
*“That is true. Honestly, I had my doubts, but seeing her left no room for disbelief. As a woman, I feel neither jealousy nor envy—her beauty is not just on another scale, it is on another dimension entirely.”*
*“You jest. You are also extremely charming yourself, Your Highness. Ha ha ha!”*
*“Enough with the flattery. Well, in truth, one could easily be convinced she is the reincarnation of Lady Clara or even her daughter—ah!”*
*“Hahaha, no need for concern. Syltianna seems to take after her father in both appearance and character; even her eye color is much like mine.”*
*“Is that right? Come to think of it, Jill… the second Shrine Maiden Princess also has eyes the same color as King Aulanthia’s. A clear, emerald or jade-like hue, truly beautiful they were.”*
*“——!?!?”*
*“What is the matter, King Aulanthia? You look quite pale.”*
*“………”*
*“King Aulanthia?”*
*“O-oh, my apologies, Your Highness. I let my thoughts wander to the second Shrine Maiden Princess despite not meeting her yet. How unbecoming of someone my age.”*
*“Hoho. King Aulanthia, you are still full of vigor. But the current Shrine Maiden Princess already has a mutual partner, Prince Lucas, so I hope you won’t use love as an excuse to start a war with the Imperial Kingdom.”*
*“Ha ha ha ha. Well, until I actually meet her, I cannot say for certain. But truly, I am very much looking forward to seeing her.”*

“—And so, he is very much looking forward to meeting you, Jill. …What’s the matter, Jill? Why are you holding your head?”

I instinctively buried my face in my hands.

There were plenty of points that begged commentary—“mutual partner” being one—but the pressing issue right now was that my father had almost certainly discovered my existence. Even if he hadn’t, he would at least harbor serious suspicions.

Even my grandfather, Pope Theodoros, had seen through my true identity fairly easily. With my father, it would be a certainty that he’d uncover it immediately the moment we met face to face.

“…No, I was just thinking I might return to Tenebrae Nemus for a little while.”

And perhaps make a quick escape while I was at it.

“Yes, after being missing for a year, your family must be very worried. I think it would be best to return home for a bit.”
“However, before that, you should probably stop by the academy to report your safety and pay your respects to the headmistress.”

Viola immediately agreed, but Lieselotte added with a very reasonable suggestion, tilting her head.

“Indeed, I ought to. I am indebted to Headmistress Mei, after all…”

This was clearly a flag: there was no way I could leave the central capital without meeting my father.
I let out a deep sigh, wondering what I should do.

“…Is there really no way to avoid meeting him?”

For this moment alone, I sincerely prayed to the Saintess, clinging to the stars with all my heart.

With that, the party ended without incident. We returned to Letindüte past two in the morning—horrifyingly, the festival in the central capital was still in full swing at this hour. After heartfelt reunions with everyone, including Vier, we slipped into a private home party with just our group, including Eren and Bruno, who had returned earlier.

The next morning, rubbing my sleepy eyes as I stopped by the academy, I was met with troubling news: the carriage carrying King Aulanthia (the Imperial Frontier Count) had apparently been attacked by someone the previous day, resulting in numerous casualties.

Author’s note:

Jill: “W-was it because I prayed for something bad?!”
Hiyuki: “I take no fault in this!”