[IHTTMBW] Chapter 67

The soft clatter of hooves filled the air. Horses adorned with banners embroidered with the symbols of noble families stood proudly, their backs draped in richly embroidered cloaks like saddles.

Of course, there wasn’t a single knight approaching me to beg for a kiss, nor a horse bearing my crest among them. If there had been, I would have had to seriously question the course of my life thus far. After all, it wasn’t as though I had ever aspired to live peacefully past the age of nineteen. It was always about killing the king and taking the throne for myself, wasn’t it?

Bouquets were tossed into the air, petals of pure white amilije flowers scattering in the wind, their fragrance carrying wishes of blessings. Somewhere in the distance, the sweet scent of fruit candies filled the air.

“Hey, girl.”

Gelbart’s familiar voice broke through the crowd as he cleared a path to my side, clearing his throat in that unmistakable way of his. In his hands was a plate piled high with my favorite desserts.

I couldn’t help but chuckle. The awkward look on his face was endearing, almost unbearably so.

“Are you trying to bribe me with sweets?”

“Well, let’s just say… they’ve never failed me before.”

“You’re right. I walk the path of desserts only,” I said confidently, puffing out my chest before taking a bite of the macaron he offered.

The raspberry macaron with Earl Grey chocolate filling was almost overwhelmingly sweet, but it was delicious all the same. Next came an éclair with hazelnut chocolate filling.

As I devoured two desserts in rapid succession, Gelbart seemed to decide that my blood sugar levels were sufficiently restored and finally spoke again.

“Are you all right?”

Munch. Chew. Munch. Hmm?

I blinked, realizing too late that I’d missed my chance to respond. When I glanced at him, Gelbart wore an expression caught somewhere between exasperation and amusement.

“What did you just say, Grandpa?”

“I asked if you were all right, but it seems quite clear that you are. You’ve always been like this, haven’t you? As if you could survive anywhere in the world with just a handful of desserts to keep you smiling…”

He let out a long sigh, though his face betrayed the ghost of a smile.

Nibble.

I bit into my third éclair and dabbed at my lips with a handkerchief.

“What’s there to not be all right about?”

Indeed, there wasn’t. No matter how hard the king tried to erase me, no matter the schemes he concocted, I knew the greatest truth of all.

I was going to die at nineteen. And so would he.

Now that I was nineteen, it seemed as if fate itself had clicked into place. Euphil Raize had sent word, announcing that he would arrive at the palace to meet me now that I had come of age. What kind of person he had become during his years at the academy, I couldn’t yet imagine. But if I could trust in one thing, it was this.

“Tiaras.”

“Hmm?”

“I brought one,” he said.

Diamonds glittered in his hand.

The eternal jewel sent to me, a promise of everlasting life.

I extended my hand to Auzette, who delicately placed the diamond tiara from Gelbart atop my head. Wearing something so valuable in such a crowded place might not have been the wisest decision, but this was a symbolic act. Here I was, donning the crown of eternity at a tournament where the king no doubt wished to shorten my days.

In other words, the gesture translated roughly to: “Enjoy your death, you bastard.”

Besides, even if I lost the tiara here, it wouldn’t matter. Thanks to Euphil, I now had more diamonds than I could count.

“Hahaha! That’s my granddaughter, all right. Hahaha!”

“Hmmph. Did you really think I’d be so easily intimidated?”

“Don’t worry about a thing. I’ve assigned my best knight to protect you.”

Gelbart laughed heartily but quickly fixed me with a serious look. I blinked at him, puzzled. His words didn’t quite add up.

“Grandpa, your best knight isn’t even in the palace right now.”

Gelbart’s best knight. A man said to bear all the honors imaginable at a young age, currently across the seas, amassing an army. A man whose weapons were like extensions of his body, whose every step was a march to victory.

Euphil Raize.

In my mind, there was no one else who could hold that title.

“Black Knight! Kandane of the Wardie Viscounty!”

“White Knight! Urfe of the Hanel Barony!”

The tournament was beginning. Announcements of the knights echoed from below.