He had tried to endure it.
That insolent attitude, as though granting permission.
The casual, informal speech.
As if setting conditions were not enough, that absurd nonsense about not showing proper respect.
His insides boiled, but since Sylvia had not stepped forward, Theordo tried to hold himself back.
But then—
“You’re going to die soon.”
Just how far was he supposed to endure?
If he endured even after hearing those words, could he truly call himself a guardian knight?
And so Theordo grew furious.
So that Sylvia, barely holding herself together, would not crumble over such worthless words.
So that the authority of the noble imperial princess would fall no further, the knight willingly gave voice to his rage.
His anger awakened his aura, and it became a force that pressed down on Hio.
A murderous intent laden with all the fury of a high-ranking knight.
Yet even while receiving that level of killing intent, Hio did not so much as twitch an eyebrow and continued speaking.
“You get chills, and your body trembles.”
Theordo flinched and stopped moving.
The murderous intent that had been swelling in size began to fade little by little.
“Thoughts of death must have risen naturally in your mind and pressed down on your spirit.”
Sylvia’s chronic illness, the cause of which they had not even been able to guess.
Its exact symptoms were being recited from Hio’s mouth.
Sylvia, too, was overcome with shock as she listened.
“Nightmares come whenever they get the chance, and your mind wears away, but your body is more intact than expected. So no one could have understood. They must have diagnosed it as simply a mental problem. Tsk, tsk… fools.”
Forgetting even the dignity of an imperial princess, she covered her mouth with her hand.
That was how shocked she was.
Because there was not the slightest error in Hio’s words.
The trembling that came suddenly, without any warning.
That strange symptom where her body would not obey her, trembling violently as if seized by something else.
Whenever it happened, thoughts of death always filled her head.
What came to mind was the sight of herself dying as her body was torn to shreds.
Or her head being cut off, or her heart being stabbed.
Her own end, painted in cruel detail.
How had that man grasped all of that with a single glance?
As he looked at the two of them, both struck speechless with shock, Hio continued.
—If you wanted to cure it, you should have looked through history books, not medical texts.
“If you wanted to cure it, you should have looked through history books, not medical texts.”
—Of course, even if you had searched, it would have been of no use. What could one expect in an age that has lost magic?
“Well, even then, it probably wouldn’t have done any good. This is an age that has lost magic, after all.”
Hio was repeating Purnell’s words like a parrot.
Inside his head, Purnell’s bewildered voice rang out.
—…What are you doing?
What Hio was saying to Sylvia was, in truth, nothing more than the words Purnell had been excitedly rambling on about, spoken aloud exactly as they were.
—If you are going to do it, do it properly. With your manner of speech, there is no dignity. Relay my words exactly as I say them.
“……”
Theordo, who had somehow forgotten his own anger and was focused on Hio, and Sylvia, who was still seized by shock.
Looking at the two of them, Hio spoke.
—Just because the body appears fine does not mean it is fine.
“Just because the body appears fine doesn’t mean it’s fine.”
—No one knows when it will break down. You may be fine today, only to suddenly exceed your limit and collapse tomorrow.
“No one knows when it’ll break down. You might be fine today, only to suddenly exceed your limit and collapse tomorrow.”
Sylvia’s eyes trembled violently.
How many people could remain calm after being told they might die suddenly tomorrow?
—It is because you were born with an excessive power you cannot handle. What is there to blame?
“It’s because you were born with too much power. You didn’t do anything wrong.”
—Therefore, you must refrain from using your ability as much as possible and endure. In truth, even then, I cannot guarantee you will make it past this year.
“……”
—Hm? Hurry and relay it. This is the most important part. The more she uses that excessive ability, the more death energy will accumulate, and the closer death will come.
Despite Purnell’s urging, Hio kept his mouth shut and silently looked at Sylvia.
An imperial princess of the empire. A being who had inherited noble blood.
But in truth, she was merely a girl who wanted to live.
To tell such a girl that she would soon die.
That in truth, there was no way.
That all she could do was endure.
How could he possibly say that?
“So…”
And so Hio looked at Sylvia.
Because he had read the faint trace of expectation in those beautiful silver eyes.
“Let’s try to survive. I’ll look for a way as best I can.”
He ended up uttering words he might not be able to keep.
First, do everything you can to survive.
Even with death closing in right before your eyes, live on while holding on to a sliver of hope.
Until you die, struggle with all your might as if your life depends on it.
“That’s my second condition.”
* * *
The eastern region of the empire.
And in the east, the castle of the great noble who commanded the largest force of all: Margrave Yon Torner.
That was their destination.
Since ancient times, margraves had no choice but to possess powerful military strength due to the special nature and importance of their geographical positions, and so the imperial family, too, had no choice but to pay close attention to its relationship with them.
One of the results of that was marriage with the imperial family.
The late emperor’s second imperial consort, and Sylvia Verden’s birth mother, had been Margrave Yon Torner’s one and only younger sister.
And so Sylvia was headed there.
The imperial consort, whose body had always been weak, had passed away not long after giving birth to Sylvia, but Yon Torner would not turn away the only blood kin she had left behind.
Surely… that would be the case.
* * *
“Hio Pavlenko.”
At the low, stiff voice, Hio answered brightly.
“Yeah?”
“…Once we arrive in a city, buy a horse.”
“I don’t know how to ride.”
“……”
After deciding to accompany the imperial princess, they set out for their destination, the margrave’s territory.
Unlike Hio, who had naturally assumed they would walk, Theordo and Sylvia left the village and mounted their horses.
There were only two horses. Three people.
Since they were going to ride together anyway, Hio naturally headed toward Sylvia’s side.
But a ferocious wave of killing intent came crashing toward him, and in the end, he had climbed onto Theordo’s horse and was traveling with him.
“Hio Pavlenko.”
“What?”
“Why not take off that strange hat?”
“No. A wizard without a hat? That’s weird, isn’t it?”
“……”
The needlessly large hat kept poking him in the chin, and irritation welled up in Theordo.
“Hio Pavlenko.”
“Yeah?”
“What have you been doing all this time, that you never even learned how to ride a horse?”
“Wizards don’t ride horses. A wizard on horseback? That’s weird.”
“……”
At the silent pressure rising from directly behind him, Hio shut his mouth.
It had been fun teasing this taciturn knight, so he had kept doing it, but it seemed he had truly angered him.
“All right. Once we arrive in a city, I’ll buy one for myself too.”
“Did you not say you do not know how to ride?”
“Now that I’m trying it, it seems manageable enough.”
“…Fine. Before we enter the city, change your clothes. It is not good to stand out.”
“Mm… because the crazy sociopathic princes are chasing Sylvia and you?”
“Do not utter Her Highness’s name so carelessly.”
“I guess ‘crazy sociopathic princes’ is fine, then.”
Hio gave a faint laugh and continued with certainty.
“It’s fine. Those two won’t look for Sylvia for a while.”
That was certain.
To be precise, they would not have the leeway to care about Sylvia.
After all, the imperial princess had only ever been a pretext.
The imperial princess disappeared? Then they could simply create a new pretext.
What mattered right now was the power to win the war, not the pretext.
If a victor had already emerged between the two of them, it might be another matter.
But until then, they would be unable to pay attention to Sylvia.
“So don’t worry and let’s keep going.”
* * *
The road to the east was long.
They stopped by a city, purchased a horse for Hio, changed out their tired horses, and set out again.
Over those few days, the distance between him and Sylvia had also grown considerably closer.
Sylvia, who had used the solemn manner of speech befitting an imperial princess, changed after a few days to a tone similar to the one she used with Theordo, the sort one might use with a friend of the same age.
And there was one more thing he learned.
“You read that every day. What kind of book is it?”
“An ancient grimoire? There are people who really read things like that?”
“Ancient language… I learned a little when I was young. Can you read all of this?”
“Wow, that was incredibly troublesome.”
Sylvia Verden, the noble imperial princess of the empire, was extremely talkative.
She was curious about many things and had many questions.
Since she must have lived only in the imperial palace, he understood.
Wasn’t bright better than gloomy, at least?
The only curious thing was… how she had managed to travel with that blunt knight.
“Hm? How did I travel with Theordo? No-fun? What’s that?”
“No-fun means he isn’t entertaining. Look at Theordo. He barely talks, he’s just stiff and blunt. Isn’t he no-fun?”
At Hio’s words, Sylvia became visibly flustered.
“N-no. Theordo is not no-fun.”
She was so flustered that she even stammered.
“You really can’t lie, can you?”
“That’s really not true. Theordo may be a little blunt, but he’s so… he listens to me well, and he’s fun.”
“…I apologize, Your Highness.”
“No! Theordo, you misunderstand!”
Even while traveling like that, he did not neglect his magic training whenever he had time.
Of course, calling it training only meant reading the 2nd Circle grimoire or practicing mana breathing, and even that was not something he could do very often.
On days when they stayed in a village, he did it in an inn room.
On days when they camped outdoors, he did it in front of the campfire before sleeping.
And when he sat reading a book before the fire, Sylvia would, before he knew it, come to his side and stare at him with fascination.
“…What?”
“It’s interesting.”
“I can’t concentrate. Go to sleep.”
“Okay.”
At any rate, she answered well.
She only answered well, without moving an inch.
“Haa…”
In the end, Hio closed the book and looked at Sylvia.
“What? What’s so interesting?”
Sylvia’s gaze was fixed on the grimoire Hio was holding.
“Magic. Why can’t I do it?”
On the way here, both Sylvia and Theordo had witnessed Hio’s magic several times.
Of course, it had amounted to no more than lighting a campfire with Fire, or making use of things like Aqua and Ice.
Even so, Sylvia did not mock magic.
Rather, she was interested in it.
“I can do it because I’m a genius. For you, it’d be difficul…”
Just as he was about to say it would be difficult, he felt an extremely sharp gaze from somewhere.
When he turned his head, he saw Theordo glaring at him from a place beyond the reach of the campfire’s light.
“Difficul… perhaps not?”
“Hm? What do you mean?”
“…Nothing. More importantly, tell me what sort of person Margrave Yon Torner is. Can we be certain he’ll help?”
Perhaps Hio’s change of subject succeeded, because a shadow fell over Sylvia’s expression.
“Yon Torner. He is truly aristocratic. I know that he values bloodline and is very stubborn.”
“Mm… that won’t be easy.”
“Even so, he is a man of exceptional strength and wisdom, enough to have held control over the troublesome eastern region for more than ten years. In the east… he is no different from a king.”
Though the explanation was brief, an impression formed in his mind.
Of course, Yon Torner was also a named NPC Hio had heard of before.
However, that name had been limited to the east, and since he had not participated in the civil war nor shown any particular desire for power or honor, Hio had simply never had occasion to meet him.
“Before the civil war broke out, he certainly said he would lend me his strength. But whether that means he will participate in the war as well… that is something I will have to go and persuade him of.”
“Then you absolutely have to persuade him.”
For an imperial princess with no faction of her own, this was a task she absolutely had to accomplish.
If the ruler of the east, Yon Torner, supported Sylvia and raised troops for her, that alone would make the fight worth attempting.
But this was not a problem Hio could solve for her.
Hadn’t she said he was truly aristocratic?
He might not even be willing to sit at the same table as Hio.
“Yes… I must do it, no matter what…”
The shadow cast over Sylvia’s face only deepened.
Several more days passed like that.
“Her Imperial Highness the Princess has arrived! Open the gates!”
The three of them arrived at Yon Torner’s castle.