Magic Gems Gourmet

Chapter 181

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ED: LonelyMatter

Chapter 181 – The Two of You

“――N-no. My apologies.”

…It was clear that she had been shaken by the appearance of the magic stone.

Ain stared at Beria’s actions with a questioning look.

He should think about it. Why on earth was Beria shaken?

Was it because he had the magic stone in his pocket? No, Beria didn’t seem to be upset just by hearing that.

Was it because Ain was holding the magic stone in his bare hands? That’s also wrong. There’s no way that Beria didn’t understand Ain’s characteristics.

The fact that Ain could absorb the contents of magic stones was something that people in the castle talk about as a matter of course.

So it would be strange if Beria were surprised by it now.

“Ara, ara. This is a very, very nice magic stone. Where did you buy it?”

After that, Beria’s response was calm, and her demeanor was soft.

But what looked different was Beria’s expression… and her eyes.

Looking steadily into her eyes, there was a nervousness that couldn’t be concealed, shaking slightly.

There was no way that Ain would take this look and just say, “Oh, is that so?”

With her eyes on Ain, who was lost in thought, Beria narrowed her eyes and smiled.

She tilted her head as if to ask, “What’s wrong?” but Ain’s doubts were not dispelled.

“…Do you know?”

Without answering her question, Ain lowered his gaze to the magic stone and asked.

At the very least, it was strange that she knew about Raviola’s magic stone. After all, the Chief had always had it.

Then he heard Beria take a deep breath.

There was such a thing as experience.

Beria was Laralua’s personal maid, and as a skilled servant, she was also intelligent.

Her speech was smooth and natural, but all that disappeared, and she continued to show a look of utter confusion.

“Hey, Beria-san?”

Ain asked again, his eyes downcast.

This time, he asked while clutching Raviola’s magic stone.

The air that surrounded him was very cold, but it also gave off a heat that felt like it would burn you if you touched it.

“I think I saw a similar stone in a jewelry store.”

Beria replied.

“Ah, I see… Is that when you accompanied my grandmother?”

“Yes, that is correct. This old maid often accompanies Laralua-sama to the castle town. So it is possible that I saw it then.”

Beria smiled and replied to Ain, even though she took in Ain’s atmosphere.

At first glance, it seemed like a trivial attitude, but it was hard to shake off.

Ain was still caught in an unfamiliar feeling as if she had missed something.

Normally, this would be nothing more than a matter of saying “I see” and moving on.

Ain also knew that Laralua often went shopping with Beria.

Besides, the queen’s attendants often go to jewelry stores.

“…I see.”

He replied in a listless voice, but Ain’s eyes never left Raviola’s magic stone.

What on earth is he hooked on? He asked himself over and over again in this short time.

Then Beria stood up and approached Warren. He wondered what she was going to do, but she started wiping the sweat from Warren’s brow.

Ain looked at her in admiration and thought, “How did she notice that little bit of sweat?”

“Speaking of which…”

Ain murmured quietly so Beria couldn’t hear.

When he came to think of it, he heard that Beria had been in love with Warren for a while.

Martha told him this story, and he remembered hearing it on the day he first learned that Mei was an angel in the Knight’s Dining Hall.

It was the day Roland, Leonard, and Butz came to the castle for a field training exercise during their school years, so he remembers it clearly.

Ain remembered this in relation to Beria’s devotion, and it felt like a piece of the puzzle had been filled in.

What is this nagging feeling? Ain continued to think as if in agony.

Then, the Chief’s words came to mind.

“…In the founding of the United Kingdom of Ishtalika, these two played a very important role. The man was a friend of His Majesty Mark, who made many suggestions and helped develop the law. And the other person was a woman. …She served as Queen Raviola’s maid, and Queen Raviola said that it was thanks to her that she was able to exercise her power.”

The first king of Ishtalika, Mark. The two attendants his wife Raviola had with her.

The female attendant served Raviola.

And the male attendant’s work was just like he was right in front of him.

Ain suddenly realized this.

“This is strange…but then…”

But strangely enough, once you start noticing things like that, sometimes your mind becomes even clearer.

The next thing Ain remembered was the old story Oz had told him. The reason Oz’s story had stayed in his mind was probably because he had summoned him to the royal capital, but now he was reminded of the old story he had heard in Magna.

“Of course, this love was never fulfilled. But he decided to watch over the queen from afar.”

This was part of the old story Oz told. Partly because of the way he told it, but also because the story was so interesting, Ain remembered it in detail.

And this love was never fulfilled… There was also what the chief elf told him.

“――I have not heard the exact reason, but I think the male red fox was probably in love with Raviola-sama.”

This was what the chief elf said.

These two stories seemed to be more related than anything else.

If Warren was to be applied to the ancient tale of Oz, then the idea of him being a red fox who excelled at strategizing also seemed plausible.

And it seemed that he fell in love with the queen, that was, Raviola, but that his love was never reciprocated and that he ended up in Ishtalika.

Ain suddenly stood up, realizing that this was clearly the same story.

“Haha… I see. This story is too good to be true…”

Ain laughed dryly, laughing at his own theory.

However, it has become a story that cannot be settled with a laugh.

“But there was another person who was in a tragic love. This was the woman who was his childhood friend. This woman, knowing that her own love would not be fulfilled, did not leave him.”

“…It is said that she cared for the queen until she died.”

That was the old story Oz told him.

…So that’s what happened.

He thought about the story that has become attached to him, over and over again, like a curse.

“Beria-san.”

“Yes? What is it, Your Highness?”

When he called Beria in a voice that showed no emotion, she stopped wiping Warren’s sweat and turned around.

While calling Beria, Ain’s feelings were extremely complex.

This was because, for Ain, this was a story that has no reality at all.

He had never dreamed that the person he had been living with was such a remarkable person.

…Given this fact, which was so far from reality, Ain would now question its authenticity.

“Excuse me for interrupting. Can I ask you something?”

He called to Beria, who was wiping away Warren’s sweat.

“…Yes. What is it?”

Beria looked at Ain with eyes that seemed to show no concern and waited for Ain’s next words.

But Ain suddenly changed his appearance. He had the dignity of royalty, the kind of presence that even Warren would be awed by.

“In the name of Ain von Ishtalika, I hereby issue a royal decree to you. From this moment on, you must answer my questions truthfully.”

“――?!”

Beria’s eyes widened in surprise.

Then, as if to reassure Ain, she tried for a moment to answer with a gesture, but Ain opened his mouth first.

“Beria-san, please tell me the name of the queen you served.”

It must have been a fatal question.

Beria let her arms fall limply and, looking down, focused her eyes on Ain’s hand.

In that hand, Raviola’s magic stone was simply held.

But when Ain saw Beria stuttering, he changed his question.

“――The former royal capital. You two… Beria-san and Warren-san, you have been to the real royal family cemetery with Raviola-sama, haven’t you?”

“…Yes. We have.”

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