Chapter 46

The past and present do not intersect

The interior of the tower, specifically the staircase, was as I remembered.
The problem was my room.

After exchanging glances with His Highness Lian, we climbed the stairs together.

“If the flow of time differs drastically between inside and outside, it’s better to assume the space itself exists in a different worldline. The quickest way to confirm is this.”

What His Highness Lian took out was a single handkerchief.

In front of the door, I tilted my head upon seeing it.

“What’s that?”

“It’s just a handkerchief I have on hand. I’ll throw it into the room. Since one second inside is roughly equivalent to ten hours outside, the handkerchief’s movement will tell us.”

I see. If my time-transcending ability is still active, the flow of time in the room should be absurdly slow.
If the thrown handkerchief appears to be frozen in place—that would mean the time-transcending magic is in effect.
Nodding in response, His Highness Lian opened the door and threw the handkerchief inside.

The result was—

“…It stopped, didn’t it?”

The handkerchief appeared to be suspended in midair.
As if there were no gravity at all.

“For a moment, I saw something like ripples spreading. Likely, beyond that line is the affected area… For now, we’ve confirmed the time-transcending magic is active.”

His Highness Lian slowly lowered the arm he had raised to throw the handkerchief.
Then, he looked at me.
His honey-colored eyes sparkled with a shimmering light.

“Time-transcending magic exists. In other words, Lady Felicia—You can return to Tsaobera five hundred years ago.”

Hearing that, I—.

☆

That night, returning to the guest room assigned to me, I collapsed onto the bed with a thud.
If Liza saw me, she’d surely scold me… or rather, she’d probably turn pale.

She’d ask if I was feeling unwell.
She’d worry about me.

Because Felicia of the Frenzel Duchy would never do such a thing.

That was only natural.
As the daughter of the Frenzel Duchy, as Lord Felix’s fiancée, I had always strived to act without shame and lived as such.
But coming to the Lumos Empire, becoming just plain Felicia—.
That restraint was starting to slip.

Lying on the bed, my loosened peach-colored hair spread across the sheets.
Staring at it blankly, I questioned myself.

(Do I… really want to go back?)

‘You can return to Tsaobera five hundred years ago.’

I recalled His Highness Lian’s words from earlier.
In that moment, I felt a sense of ‘Ah, I see,’ confusion, and… resignation.

When I first arrived in the Lumos Empire, I was disoriented and thought I had to return to Tsaobera immediately.

(…But now?)

Even if I returned to Tsaobera, there was no place for me in that world.
If I had to keep watching Lord Felix and Onee-sama like that, I’d rather…
Thinking that far, I sighed at my own thoughts.

(What am I even thinking?)

In this Lumos Empire, I’m an anomaly.
A person who shouldn’t exist.

A human from the Tsaobera Dynasty era shouldn’t exist in this empire.

(Besides, I have something I need to do, don’t I?)

I went to great lengths to prepare that presentation.
To ensure it wasn’t all for nothing, I have to return to the past.
I must return.

I gently placed a hand on my forehead.
Closing my eyes, but the world behind my eyelids was filled with darkness, and sleep didn’t come at all.

☆

The next day, walking through the corridor while fighting drowsiness, His Highness Lian called out to me.
He handed me a crystal-like stone, the same one I’d seen before.
Unlike last time, it was faintly tinged with a soft peach color.

This was, if I recalled—

“A parasol stone?”

“Somewhat different. It’s called a candy stone, and its use is… like this.”

When His Highness Lian waved his hand over the stone, a pale blue light glowed faintly—and a single wrapped candy appeared.

My eyes widened, and he handed it to me.
Taking it reflexively, His Highness Lian smiled softly.

“If you think that channeling magic into it will produce something sweet, doesn’t that motivate you?”

“Thank you. What flavor is this?”

The candy was wrapped in cream-colored packaging, and I couldn’t tell its flavor.
To that, His Highness Lian smiled and replied.

“That’s a surprise for when you eat it. The type of candy that appears changes each time, so I think you’ll enjoy it, Lady Felicia.”

He seemed to have put a lot of thought into this.
Each time I noticed his small acts of kindness, I felt warmed by his care.
Staring intently at the stone, His Highness Lian continued.

“These are mainly carried by nannies or nursemaids who look after young children. For now, I’d like you to use this to become aware of your magic, Lady Felicia.”

“It’s amazing… Five hundred years, it really sinks in.”

I held the stone up to my face, letting it catch the sunlight.
His Highness Lian said with a wry smile.

“Five hundred years is a very long time. Normally, it would be impossible for us to be talking like this, Lady Felicia. I must be grateful for this miracle.”

While staring at the stone, a sudden thought made me look up.
My gaze met His Highness Lian’s honey-colored eyes.

After looking into his eyes for a moment—I voiced a question I’d been holding since arriving in the Lumos Empire.

“Um… this is an awfully, truly belated question, but… why does Your Highness Lian call me ‘Lady Felicia’?”