I Want To Be Your First – R19 - Chapter 107

When she looked around with an absurd expression as she thought she was going crazy, Berthwald opened the door and entered the room with a low laugh.

“Didn’t I say to not be too surprised.”

“…J—just now. That voice that I heard just now! Was that the Count?”

“That’s right. I guess you can hear me clearly.”

Berthwald raised the hand that was wearing the ring and pressed on the sapphire portion with his other finger and said, “Isn’t it amazing?” At the same time, his voice echoed in Ariel’s head.

“Wow, wow… What is this? What is it?

“It’s a ring of trial. Apparently it was once used as a tool to deliver messages between the Wizards of the Six Lights, before the Empire’s time. No matter the distance, as long as you press the stone with your finger and speak like you did just now, you’ll be able to communicate with the person wearing the other ring.”

“The Wizards of the Six Lights…? Does that mean that it’s a magic tool?”

“That’s right.”

“Really? Wow…! I heard that it’s very difficult to find magic tools now!”

Without erasing her surprised look, Ariel stroked the ring and uttered exclamations like, “Oh!” and “Wow!”

During the days when wizards existed, the Wizards of the Six Lights were secretly praised as heroes. The items that they’d used in those stories seemed to have emerged into reality.

Less than a hundred years after the magic was censured, wizards and magic tools disappeared without a trace. Gone was the world where those with magic tyrannised, and instead, those with noble blood monopolised the world under the names of royalty and nobility.

In an empire that belittled magic, anyone that was in possession of magic tools were subject to punishment, but there were too few relics left behind that one couldn’t find it even if they wanted to.

Even in the magnificent ducal castle, there were only two magic tools that remained; carrier pigeons that delivered messages, and the wild roses that never wither.

Ariel stared at the ring with curiosity-filled eyes. She mumbled and tried to say something, but glanced at Berthwald and gave an amused smile.

Seeming to find something funny, Ariel giggled and suddenly jumped up and ran somewhere.

“Hello? Can you hear me—?”

Ariel ran to the corner, squatted down shabbily and mumbled towards the ring to herself. She seemed to be testing the furthest possible distance.

“Can’t you hear me—? Hello, hello?”

As Berthwald looked at Ariel, who kept muttering to herself, with a look of pity, he tapped his ring and recalled the method to use it again, saying, “You have to press it and speak.”

“…ello? me…?”

He tapped on the jewel with his finger like he was about to break it, and whispered in a small enough voice that Ariel couldn’t hear him. In order to suppress his laughter, Berthwald gave a lot of strength to the corners of his mouth, and spoke with a hoarse voice towards the ring.

“I can hear you. Please speak louder.”

“You responded!”

“Softer than that.”

“Wow! It’s amazing!”

Berthwald’s shoulder trembled at the resounding shout, and dropped the hand wearing the ring down. Only then did Ariel return to the sofa with an embarrassed blush, and said, “Oh no, I’m sorry.”

“With this, will I be able to talk to the Count whenever and wherever I want?”

“It’s possible when both people are pressing the stone. Hmm… but I think it would be better to leave it in the jewellery box at normal times.”

“Oh…right. I could lose it.”

“Yes. And as my wife might already know, magic tools are prohibited in the Empire, so please refrain from using them in other’s presence.”

“Yes! I’ll only use it when I’m alone.”

Less than ten seconds after answering bravely, Ariel asked another question with a sullen tone.

“If I can’t use it on a daily basis, and I can’t immediately chat when I want to… When can I talk to the Count?”

“Why don’t we set a time? Like this,eight o’clock in the morning, and eight o’clock in the evening.”

“Oh! That’s a good idea. eight in the morning, and eight in the evening. It would be perfect to chat after breakfast and after showering.”

With a bright smile on her face, Ariel kept fumbling with the ring while muttering “That’s great, I really like it.”

The final ‘I really like it’ resonated calmly in Berthwald’s head like an echo. Within his narrow eyes, the dark blue eyes reflected Ariel with a smile.

Berthwald gently brushed Ariel’s cheek, while reciting that he liked it more.

The atmosphere that was warmer than the noon sunshine slowly melted into the blanket of the night.

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Berthwald started for the North two days later. Violet also left with him, saying that she had urgent matters to settle, so Ariel was left alone in the mansion.

No, she wasn’t exactly alone.

Berthwald, who was worried about leaving Ariel behind by herself, asked Violet for a decent and reliable subordinate. At that, Violet laughed and said she would leave the best escort that she knew of with Ariel, and left behind an unexpected figure.

Just like that, Ariel was now escorted by Ruth Contellaren, the deputy guild leader of Northride and head of the Bluebird Falcons. The same person that said Ariel was unlucky at their first meeting.

“Now then, watch this closely, Ruth.”

With a fascinated expression, Ariel picked up a bean the size of a pinky and waved it in front of him. Ruth then responded dryly as he brushed back the red hair that was covering his eyes.

“I think you showed me the same thing yesterday. Isn’t it just a flower tea?”

“It’s not just flower tea. Look carefully! If you put it in like this…!”

After putting a couple of beans into a transparent glass teapot, Ariel gently shook the teapot with a nervous look. The flower, which had been the size of a small bean, swelled up and the petals bloomed at a very slow pace like a curled finger was opening up.

It was the Valley Flower that Richter had gifted her. After emphasising that it was good for the eyes, Richter bought three bags of expensive Valley Flowers and placed it in Ariel’s hands before his son and daughter-in-law left Nedik.

Despite its dubious efficacy, Ariel was willing to have Valley Flower tea for its beautiful scent and appearance, and also because she couldn’t just let such expensive tea rot away. Ariel, who watched the flowers bloom with eyes that sparkled with delight, suddenly picked up the teapot, saying, “Look!”

Ruth was startled at the sight of the almost overflowing pot and stole it away from her.

“Oh, please be careful!”

“Isn’t it pretty? Isn’t it?”

“Pretty, you say… Take more care to not spill it everywhere.”

Exasperated, Ruth placed the teapot aside. Regardless of that, Ariel smiled and lifted the teacup in front of Ruth. He glanced alternately between the teacup and Ariel’s face, before clicking his tongue irritably. He soon gave up and poured tea into Ariel’s glass.

With the clear sound of water being poured, the fragrant scent of flowers lingered in the air. Light scattered each time the tea rattled. A smile slowly formed on the face of Ariel, who looked at the teacup like she was bewitched.

“It smells good, doesn’t it? I’ll pour it for you too, so please sample it.”

“How can you do that when you don’t even know my true identity… And I don’t really like tea.”

“Here you go.”

Her blank countenance disappeared without a trace, and Ariel, who suddenly jumped up, quickly served a cup of tea for Ruth. He looked down at the teacup bewilderedly, and only raised the teacup with a bitter look at Ariel’s urging gaze. Ariel watched Ruth quietly with a happy smile, and fiddled with the handle of her teacup. The scent that brushed the tip of her nose was particularly strong today.

Recently, it was Ariel’s source of joy to have tea with Berthwald in a garden that overlooked the sea underneath the afternoon sun.

The savoury smell of butter emanating from freshly baked scones, the sweet scent of peach jam beside it. That alone was blissful enough, but the inclusion of his low voice along with the faint sound of waves added to the atmosphere of a drowsy afternoon.

But that source of joy disappeared three days ago, ever since Berthwald left for the North.

Just as Ariel thought that it would be a waste to drink such excellent tea alone, a peculiar thought crossed her mind as she looked at Ruth. As her escort, he had to follow her around without having a say, so if she drinks tea with him…if only they could get a little closer.

Wouldn’t it make the time they had to spend together more comfortable?

“Ruth.”

Ariel traced the rim of her teacup with her fingers and spoke in a small voice.

“I’m sorry that you’re forced to escort me. I’d be staying in the mansion all this while, so there wouldn’t be anything dangerous… Erm, something happened before. The Count might be a little too sensitive about my safety.”

“You’re talking about the incident where the Princess conspired with her nanny to kidnap the Countess. Who wouldn’t become sensitive after hearing that his wife was kidnapped? Well, it’s fine, regardless.”

Ruth nonchalantly recited hushed up information and brushed his hair temperamentally.

“Madam doesn’t have to feel apologetic. After all, this was an order by the guild leader.”

In other words, if it weren’t for the order, he would have left immediately. Ariel looked at Ruth’s chest calmly.

When they first met, and even until now, red ripples were still emanating from his chest.

Does he hate her that much? At the sight of the red ripples that were filled with burning hostility, Ariel’s heart gradually cooled.

From the perspective of the persecuted, it doesn’t matter why the other party hates her. That was all the more the case if it was due to something that wasn’t her fault, such as being born blind.

However, as aggrieved incidents gradually accumulated, her emotions wore out and now even the desire to express her grievances disappeared. It was tiresome to hate the other party, much less talk about it.

Pointless anger would turn into emptiness, and it would only encourage emotional fatigue.