74

Mia… Lady Mia, can you hear me?

If you can hear me, please answer…!

But there was no response. Perhaps she still wasn't used to the spell. Leca wanted to believe that was all.

He desperately sent another mind-transfer message.

Lady Mia, I will return soon.

So please don't be too alarmed or sad. Just trust me.

If anything happens while I'm gone, call the salamander.

Also, there's a witch I'm close to who knows the magic for transforming a mermaid's tail and a siren's wings into human legs.

If you ask her, she might know a way to remove your fairy wings as well.

There must be a way. So please… trust me.

If you don't want to become queen, or wish to leave Sibareth—I will help you.

You don't have to ascend the throne just because of your wings.

I brought you to Sibareth under the orders of my former master…

but now, you are my master. And I live only for you.

I never want to see you unhappy, or without your smile.

So please—

CLANG.

The harsh scrape of metal broke his concentration. Heavy shackles were locked around his wrists and ankles.

A mana suppression collar clamped around his neck.

The guards fastened the restraints and left. How many times had he been in this underground prison now?

Leca moved his shackled limbs. At least he wasn't hanging upside down this time.

And the chains were long—long enough to walk around the small cell.

Even the manacles were fixed to the corners of the walls, allowing some range of motion.

He touched the collar around his neck. He had memorized the incantation his father had sent—he could escape at any time.

But he had to wait for the right moment. The chain length implied long-term confinement.

Such relative freedom was usually given to long-term prisoners.

He sat down and leaned his head against the cold stone wall. There were no windows.

Just a single, dim lamp flickering in the corner.

Leca closed his eyes and pictured Mia. Despite his exhaustion, a faint smile spread across his lips.

"Hey, sleepyhead. Get up already."

The smell of food tickled her nose. Mia twitched and opened her eyes.

Standing beside her bed was Zeffel, the spirit of air, holding a food tray.

"Gah—Zeffel?! How the heck did you even get in here?"

"Something important came up. This was prepared by Lily. She said you should eat."

"…Oh."

Seeing Mia still groggy, Zeffel clicked his tongue.

"It's already noon, and you're still in bed? Did you stay up late again?"

Mia nodded.

She'd barely slept, her mind spinning all night. Even now, being woken suddenly, her body felt heavy with fatigue.

As she let out a long yawn, Zeffel prodded,

"Eat quickly. You've got somewhere to be."

"Where?"

Mia lifted the lid of the tray: soup, croissants, orange juice, and fruit. She wasn't hungry at all, but since Lily had gone through the trouble,

she forced down a spoonful of soup.

"Leca's been imprisoned. And this time, it's not going to be easy for him to get out."

"What?! Leca? Why? Was it because of me again?"

Mia's face went pale, and she dropped her spoon.

"They found out he was a mixed-blood. He's been hiding it all along."

Mixed-blood… Could that be why he had to undergo that medical exam?

Why he didn't have the usual crest on his forehead? Everything suddenly made a twisted kind of sense.

"Why is being mixed-blood such a big deal?"

"Mixed-blood spirits have weaker mana, and they're not as strong as pure-bloods. They're not supposed to work in the palace. If they do, it's usually just as servants. But the king made Leca the High commander of the knights."

"And now the king's unconscious. So they're using the chance to drag Leca down. They always hated him anyway."

Zeffel nodded grimly.

"I bribed a guard. You'll only have ten minutes for a visit."

"Thank you, Zeffel. For this… and for last time too."

Just as Mia was about to rush out, Zeffel grabbed her sleeve.

"Eat first. The prison's far."

"Where is it?"

"I've got something else to do, so I can't go with you. But I'll call someone to take you there."

Mia gulped down the rest of the juice, forced herself to eat quickly, then changed her clothes in a flash.

Zeffel led her to a hidden corner of the fairy garden, where a small hut stood.

A scruffy-haired boy in shabby clothes stepped out. He looked about sixteen.

"Jim, take this lady to where Leca is."

Without a word, the boy turned and walked ahead. Mia nervously parted ways with Zeffel and followed him.

He led her through a tangled field of weeds until they came to what looked like a manhole cover.

He lifted it, revealing a ladder, and climbed down.

A foul stench wafted up. It was clearly an old sewer.

Mia held her breath and carefully floated down after him. Just as she'd guessed, it had once been part of the drainage system.

Rotten water pooled on the floor. Rats scurried past her feet.

She summoned a will-o'-the-wisp for light—only to shut it off immediately when she saw the centipedes, cockroaches, and sow bugs crawling on the walls.

The boy seemed to have no trouble navigating without light, so she figured it wasn't necessary.

As they trudged through the nauseating sewer, Mia thought Zeffel had been wrong about one thing:

In a place this disgusting, I probably should've skipped the meal after all.

Still, the sewer stretched on and on.

By the time they'd walked in darkness for what felt like forever—her stomach had fully digested everything.

At last, the path ended, revealing a heavy iron door. The boy pulled a key from his pocket and unlocked it with a loud clack.

Behind it—the underground prison emerged.

A long corridor ran down the middle, flanked by dozens of barred cells on either side.

As Mia and the boy walked past, several prisoners whistled. She heard crude jokes, lewd remarks, words in strange tongues. Mia covered her ears.

Finally, the boy stopped in front of a cell.

Mia stretched her neck, peering in to see if Leca was inside—but the cell was empty.

The boy whistled.

Shhrrrk—

From the back emerged a grotesque creature, something like a goblin, with a third eye gleaming in the center of its forehead.

"Gah!"

Mia flinched and stumbled back, but the boy casually asked,

"Is Leca inside?"

"He is. Shall I bring him out?"

The goblin's voice rasped like gravel in his throat.

"Yes. Bring him here. Oh, and—"

The boy handed him a gold coin. The goblin snatched it and vanished, then returned with Leca in tow.

"Lady Mia?"

"Leca!"

Mia rushed up to the bars. Chains bound his wrists and ankles, and the goblin held the ends like a leash.

Leca's eyes widened in shock.

"Leca, what happened—what is this?"

"And you—how did you get here?"

"Zeffel told me."

"I'm fine. I can't explain everything here… but—did my mind message reach you?"

Mia looked startled.

"You sent one?"

"This morning. Maybe you were asleep…"

"Oh no. Of course I was. I always miss the important moments like that."

She bumped her head lightly against the bars, scolding herself. Leca's eyes filled with concern.

"Please don't. It wasn't anything urgent. You'll hurt yourself."

"When can you get out? Should I ask them to release you?"

Leca's expression hardened.

"Please—don't say a word about me. Not to Julius, not to anyone. If you do, it will only backfire. Everything will resolve itself when the time is right. Just… wait for me a little longer."

Tears spilled from Mia's eyes.

"You've suffered so much because of me…This is my fault, isn't it?"

"No. Truly, it isn't. This is my burden, not yours. Please, Lady Mia, don't blame yourself."

But the tears wouldn't stop.

"When I become queen… hic… I'll protect you, Leca…So just hold on… a little longer… promise me?"

Something surged within Leca's chest.

Seeing her—clinging to the bars, weeping those helpless, heartfelt tears—

melted the ice that had long frozen deep inside him.

Without thinking, he stepped closer to the bars and leaned in. And gently—his trembling lips met hers.

A fleeting moment. A breath of warmth. Then he pulled back in shock, his eyes wide.

"I—I don't know what came over me…"

Mia tried to respond, but just then—the goblin jailer grabbed Leca and yanked him away.

"Time's up."

"Take care of yourself, Leca!"

Even as he was being dragged off, Leca turned and shouted,

"Please… don't worry about me. Stay safe—always!"

CRASH!

A crystal orb shattered on the marble floor with a sharp clatter.

"Good heavens!"

"Kyaa!"

Panicked maids jumped back, barely avoiding the shards.

"Did you see that, Rodolphe…? He… he stole her lips…"

The peridot in Julius's forehead blazed with a ferocious light.

It shimmered so brightly that Rodolphe had to turn his face away, shielding his eyes.

"Leca Parvati…How dare you—how dare you—!!"