The “Romance” Club’s Secret Meeting

“Ugh…”

“Have some shame, will you?”

“Lily. Saying something like that out of the blue without any explanation is… well, it’s a bit impolite, don’t you think?”

At Lily’s confident declaration, Titania, Luke, and Donovan—who had been standing beside her—immediately scrambled away. Titania, in particular, rubbed her arms as if she’d broken out in goosebumps.

“What! Why? Aren’t you guys being a bit much?”

“Even so, what was that? This isn’t a shonen manga.”

“You don’t actually think you’re the Pirate King, do you?”

Lily grumbled, wanting them to play along, but she was met only with cold, hard reality. Dejected, her shoulders slumped, and she pointedly wiped a fake tear from her eye with her index finger.

“Now that you’re all grown up, you’ve forgotten what true romance is… you boring lot.”

“What are you talking about, Lily? You say that right in front of Donovan, who continues his adventure in pursuit of romance!”

Titania quickly linked arms with Donovan and retorted. She didn’t stop there, adding a sharp jab that “romance found only in words is fake” and telling Lily not to “act” in the presence of true romance.

“Urgh, my lovely Titania is driving a stake through my heart.”

“That’s enough. Look at what you’re doing in front of a guest.”

“He’s right, Lily. Agni—no, I mean, the Young Lord must be feeling quite awkward.”

At Donovan’s pointed remark, Lily looked over at Agniell, who was still standing near the door. His expression remained as unreadable as ever, making it impossible to tell what he was feeling.

“Right. My apologies, Agniell. I was definitely acting on my own whims just now.”

Regardless of how the other person felt, the fact that she had been rude remained, so Lily bowed her head properly in apology. Unlike her usual passing remarks, this was a gesture and a voice filled with genuine sincerity. Agniell accepted it with a short nod.

“I should start with introductions. I’ll tell you why I called you here after that.”

Lily walked over to the still-distanced Donovan and placed a hand on his shoulder.

“This is Donovan. He’s from the Nordic Kingdom and worked as an adventurer before entering the Academy. He’s still an adventurer at heart… but currently, his priority is gathering data on the Euthia Disease that Ensi suffers from. He’s taking a break from active adventuring because of the Academy.”

“You can just think of me as a regular adventurer. I’ll be in your care for a while.”

“Understood.”

Donovan gave a bashful smile and a slight bow. Based on that short interaction and the fact that Lily hadn’t mentioned a family name, Agniell deduced that Donovan was a commoner, but he simply added a “I look forward to working with you” without further comment.

“And this is Luke Glancia. He’s from a Margrave family in the Rihasel Kingdom, but strangely enough, he’s a wizard. He’s also a bit of an oddball who’s dipped his toes into alchemy. Like Donovan, he’s researching a cure for Ensi—specifically, increasing the efficiency of medicine and developing new drugs… was that it? Anyway, something like that.”

“An oddball? Magic and alchemy are essentially two sides of the same coin. Both use the concepts of reagents and potions, and the transmutation circles used in alchemy eventually take the form of ‘arrays,’ making them similar to magic circles—Ack!”

“Stop! No one asked for a lecture! Just greet Agniell!”

Lily quickly lunged at Luke and smacked him on the back. At the crisp slap, Luke bent forward, clutching the spot she hit.

“Lily Florence!”

“What! Do you think it’s right to start a lecture in front of someone you’re meeting for the first time?”

“Now, now… that’s enough. You’re both getting too excited.”

“Exactly. Look at Agniell—er, I mean, Young Lord Lacius’s eyes. He’s wavering.”

Titania stepped in, following Donovan’s lead, and pulled Lily away from Luke. At their intervention, Luke irritably ruffled his hair and turned toward Agniell.

“It seems we’ll be seeing a lot of each other for a while. I look forward to it.”

‘Seeing a lot of each other?’

Agniell found Luke’s phrasing curious, but once again, he kept it to himself.

“And finally, this is Titania Maylin! She’s slated to become the mistress of the Duchy of Celine soon. She’s awaiting Imprinting with Sirius. Right, Titania?”

“How could you say that so casually… it’s embarrassing.”

Titania blushed, pretending to be annoyed while wearing a modest smile. In response, Lily pulled her into a tight hug and pressed their cheeks together.

“Oh my, our Titania finally knows what shame is! It’s okay, it’s okay. I only said it so Agniell wouldn’t get jealous and try to steal you.”

“Is there any reason for him to be jealous of Titania?”

“You’re right. That seems unlikely.”

Agniell, who usually remained silent unless absolutely necessary, spoke up for the first time of his own accord. Lily let out a small chuckle and tightened her hold on Titania, her lips curling into a knowing smirk.

“You shouldn’t be so sure—? Titania is Ensi’s most precious child, after all.”

“Precious… child?”

The word “child” didn’t seem appropriate for a classmate. Though they surely knew this, both Lily and Titania herself accepted the term without a second thought.

“Yeah. His most precious child. You have no idea how soft Ensi is toward Titania, do you?”

“Lily—”

“Shh, Titania. He needs to know. He needs to know how much Ensi loves you.”

Watching Lily, who looked delighted at the prospect of teasing, Donovan and Luke let out a secret sigh. They wondered if it was necessary to provoke Agniell, but they figured if they didn’t clear things up now, misunderstandings might arise later. Technically, since Titania was going back to the Celine Duchy, the chance of a misunderstanding was low, but one never knows.

After all, doesn’t love create countless unexpected situations? Luke and Donovan, who were practically laymen when it came to romance, decided not to interfere with Lily’s antics.

“You see, Ensi hates physical contact with others. He barely tolerates it from his servants. Even we, who boast of being close to him, can’t get within a certain distance. It’s like there’s a defined line.”

Agniell’s eyes widened at this new information. He hates physical contact? He naturally thought back to what happened during the training session and just a few hours ago.

“But Titania is the exception! It feels like she’s the only one for whom that line doesn’t exist.”

“No, that’s not true. Even with me, Ensi pushes me away sometimes. You guys saw it. So, Young Lord Lacius, there’s no need to worry—”

“Of course! He might push you away occasionally! But the distance you can approach is much closer than ours, right?”

Titania gave a slow nod, noticing Agniell’s complexion turning somewhat dark. It was an undeniable fact that Ensi allowed her a certain degree of proximity.

“And above all… Ensi is extremely lenient with Titania’s mistakes. If we mess up, his eyes turn sharp, but for Titania! It’s so obvious!”

“Ah—I think I know what you mean.”

Donovan nodded in agreement while Lily pretended to wail about how unfair it was. The scope of mistakes he would overlook was entirely different. Whenever Titania caused trouble she couldn’t handle, Ensi would sigh but solve it for her every single time. Afterward, he’d always end it with a gentle flick to her forehead—and a bit of light nagging about consulting him next time.

“Anyway, that’s how it is. But you don’t need to worry too much. No need for jealousy, either. The relationship between Ensi and Titania is… well, rather than lovers or friends, it’s closer to a parent-child bond.”

“I think ‘Guardian and Ward’ would be a more accurate description.”

“Whatever, the vibe is the same. That’s enough, why be so pedantic?”

Lily waved off Luke’s correction. Even though “Parent-Child” and “Guardian-Ward” carried significantly different nuances, she was shameless. Luke simply sighed and didn’t push it further; he knew it would only waste his breath.

Lily, seeing right through Luke, laughed triumphantly. But then her eyes caught a glimpse of Agniell, and her shoulders flinched.

“W-what’s with that… why is your expression so dark…?”

“See, Lily? I told you to keep it moderate.”

Lily had been so busy doting on Titania and rattling off her own thoughts that she had only just noticed Agniell’s face. He was usually expressionless, but now, a wave of gloom was so apparent that anyone could see it. Titania, who had been worried about Agniell for a while, scolded Lily for her late realization, but it was too late.

Lily released Titania and cautiously approached Agniell.

“Um—Mr. Agniell?”

She moved intentionally, making noise as if approaching a skittish animal to signal she was harmless.

“Ensius… hates physical contact with others?”

Whether her efforts reached him or not, Agniell—who looked half-dazed—muttered in a small voice. Reading the shock, worry, and self-reproach within that voice, Lily let out a sudden gasp.

Now that she thought about it, Agniell had engaged in contact even more intense than Titania’s!

“Hey, look. I get what you’re worried about, Agniell, but it’s fine. All of those thoughts are completely useless. I guarantee it, really.”

“Did you not just say with your own mouth that Ensius hates contacting others beyond a certain point?”

“I did, but that changes depending on the person! How can a human be perfectly consistent? Do you think Titania is an exception for no reason?”

“I am still—”

“Argh, I said it’s fine! You’re an exception too! Stop worrying! Ensi hasn’t avoided you after you touched him, so what’s the problem?!”

At this rate, he’s going to dig a hole straight through the mantle!

Unable to stand the frustration, Lily grabbed the overthinking Agniell by the shoulders and emphasized her point.

“You are fine, got it? If you don’t understand it, just memorize it. Titania and you are the exceptions Ensi has allowed.”

“I… understand.”

Faced with Lily’s intense energy, Agniell wondered what on earth she based such certainty on, but he nodded for now. Titania, who had fully understood what Agniell was worried about and why he looked so pale, burst into a bright, clear laugh as she watched the two of them.