The Returnee Wants Peace

Marquis Belice, Lysithea’s father, was a nobleman with light blonde hair and a wealthy appearance.

He had a relaxed demeanor that suggested he loved art and knew how to enjoy the finer things in life, but recently, due to Lysithea, he seemed to have been under a lot of stress, with dark circles under his eyes reaching down to his chin.

“Why did you leave home without saying anything! Do you know how worried I’ve been?”

Though he seemed angry, he was still calling Lysithea ‘Tia’, so it wasn’t too bad yet.

Rosha, who had briefly stepped aside for them, murmured quietly.

“It seems he’s more relieved that Lysithea returned safely than angry.”

“Really?”

“He’s still using her nickname. It only becomes dangerous when they start using the full name and surname.”

Originally, ‘Roshanak’ was more dangerous than just ‘Rosha’, and ‘Roshanak Aper’ was far more dangerous than just ‘Roshanak’.

Amused by her interesting assertion, Froy, leaning against the wall, chuckled and replied.

“I can tell this is your first time seeing Marquis Belice. From what I know, using only the nickname means he’s quite angry.”

“…Is it so?”

So what, should he add ‘Oh my little sweet girl’ before the nickname?

Koko, understanding her humor, laughed kya-kya-kya. Froy just shrugged and continued.

“But I think you’re right that he’s relieved she’s back safely. It’s the first time I’ve seen Marquis Belice, who rarely shows emotion, with such mood swings.”

Marquis Belice was holding Lysithea tightly, his eyes red-rimmed. As expected of family, when put together like that, the two looked subtly alike.

Froy looked at them with an unreadable expression.

‘…I wonder what he’s thinking.’

Suddenly, she started to worry about him.

Perhaps it was because she knew vaguely about his unfortunate family history.

He wouldn’t have family to hug him and say they’re glad he returned safely.

“Um… I’m glad Froy is safe without any major injuries too.”

“…What’s this, suddenly?”

Rosha’s fingers gently patted the back of Froy’s hand resting on the windowsill. It was a simple gesture of comfort since hugging might be a bit much.

The man, who had been watching her action with bewilderment, soon caught her fingers as she was about to pull away.

“Where are you going? Do it some more.”

“Pardon?”

“Weren’t you trying to comfort me for not having a family?”

…When you put it like that, it’s hard to deny.

Watching her fingers slowly start patting again, Froy showed a faint smile.

He murmured quietly.

“I’ve always thought life wasn’t particularly fun, but when I’m with you, it’s somehow different.”

His low, calm voice penetrated her ears unusually deeply.

Rosha paused her fingers. While her heart fluttered a bit at his words that seemed to regard her as special, she was more concerned about the part where he said life wasn’t particularly fun.

‘Mild depression?’

Well, considering the childhood he occasionally mentions, it would be strange if he didn’t have depression.

Rosha in the previous world was like that too.

Although she had a goal ‘to meet her family again’, no matter how many trials she cleared, there seemed to be no end in sight. Life wasn’t just unfun, it was painful.

The feeling that everything in the present becomes meaningless because of a goal that may or may not be achievable.

In that feeling, she suddenly realized something.

“Froy, life is generally not fun if you look at it in the long term. We live for those fleeting moments of happiness.”

By holding onto those moments of happiness for a long time, she was able to endure even 18 years. In other words, it means we should focus on the present moment, not the future or the past.

Although her physical age was young, she gave sincere advice as a senior in life. He stared at Rosha blankly.

After a moment, he elegantly curled up the corners of his mouth.

After silently touching his lips for a while, he slowly began to speak.

“This is what I find fun.”

…But I didn’t make a joke this time?

As Rosha tilted her head with a puzzled look, Froy naturally changed the subject.

“More importantly, I think we’ve been away from the Empire for too long. I need to leave briefly to assess the situation. There are also a few things I need to check.”

“…What do you need to check?”

“I’ll tell you about that when I return. It will probably take a day or two.”

The man gently intertwined his fingers with hers, which were still unconsciously patting the back of his hand, stopping her movement. He continued casually.

“So please take care until then. You might have many ‘fleeting moments of happiness’, but for now, I only have one.”

“…Pardon?”

There was no response.

Because Froy had disappeared, sinking into the ground as if he had never been there.

And at that moment.

“Rosha! Cassis!”

At the far end of the corridor, a very familiar face appeared.

It was MacLennan Aper, her grandfather and the head of the Aper County.

“…Grandfather?”

As their eyes met, the old man’s expression brightened.

He seemed to have recovered significantly, as he was now walking with just a cane, no longer in a wheelchair.

‘How did he know to come here? Don’t tell me he’s been eating and sleeping in this mansion all this time?’

Whether it’s Marquis Belice or Grandfather, they couldn’t have appeared this quickly otherwise.

Realizing this fact, Heres, who had been squeezed in a corner, also muttered quietly.

“Guests keep appearing from somewhere without the host knowing.”

Unaware of their reactions, Count Aper, who had quickly approached, first checked Rosha’s condition.

“Never mind what happened in there, are you alright? Are you hurt or injured anywhere? I heard that after a trial ends, it always hurts a lot.”

“I’m fine, Grandfather.”

It really was true.

Since her return, this was the first time she didn’t feel any pain after going through a trial.

‘Actually, this trial was more like an extra episode.’

It felt more like she had traveled to another world rather than engaged in a life-or-death battle.

However, despite her answer, Grandfather asked Cassis again for confirmation.

“Is it true, Cassis?”

Look at how he doesn’t bother asking Cassis, who looks fine on the outside. What a funny grandfather.

The problem was Cassis’s answer.

“She had just fainted and woken up right before. It was only for about a minute though.”

“…She fainted?”

Rosha hurriedly interjected before the conversation could turn serious.

“No, I didn’t collapse because I was unwell. It’s just, suddenly something like a ghost whooshed by… It’s true.”

It was the absolute truth. Of course, it wasn’t perceived that way.

Grandfather’s expression naturally became serious, and Cassis asked with furrowed brows.

“Are you so weak now that you’re seeing things?”

“No, no!”

* * *

A colorless castle where cold winter had set in.

The first thing Duke Echerzen, who had returned directly to his territory using his ability, checked was how much time had passed.

And whether any trials had occurred here during that period.

“A little over a month has passed, and there were two trials. One in the wasteland to the east and another in the plains to the northwest. The human casualties were not significant, they say.”

“…Two of them?”

“Yes, Your Grace. It’s only been two days since the trial that opened in the plains was resolved.”

The sudden appearance of the master, who usually didn’t like coming here, had made the people in the castle very tense.

The head butler, who had been in charge of managing the territory while the Duke was away, bowed deeply.

Froy, mulling over his words, turned his head to look out the window again.

While the snow in Marquis Lycaon’s territory was thin enough to see the ground, here it was piled up easily over a hand span thick.

‘…The flow of time is quite different.’

In the world inside the rift, barely three days had passed, but here, more than a month had already gone by.

Although he had gained a lot there, he felt overwhelmed by how many clues he might have missed while away from the Empire.

Moreover, that wasn’t the only problem.

“The rift that opened in the eastern wasteland was resolved by Prince Nardil of the Atica Kingdom. He is currently staying in the Imperial capital. And…”

“And?”

“The rift that opened in the northwestern plains was handled by someone recently knighted by His Majesty the Emperor. But that person seems a bit suspicious.”

Froy, who had twitched his eyes at the mention of Nardil’s name, slightly furrowed his brow as he listened to the butler’s continuing words.

He had good reason to.

“Do you know that Marquis Lycaon, who was imprisoned in the capital’s underground prison, has gone missing? It’s not certain, but it seems to be related to that.”