Melancholy

Early the next morning, the royal capital suddenly buzzed with an announcement from the royal palace.

—Yesterday, the royal family's assassination unit, Shadow, successfully arrested and executed the foreign criminal who had attacked the third prince.

Even though it was just a short sentence, this announcement conveyed far too many messages.

Nonetheless, everyone who heard it gleaned three main points from the announcement.

First, the culprit behind the attack on the third prince had been found.

Second, the culprit was a foreigner.

Third, the culprit had been arrested and executed by the royal family's assassination unit, Shadow.

All of this left the nobles throughout the royal capital shocked, contemplative, and in an uproar, especially those following the Cordelion family's instructions—they were genuinely surprised when they heard the announcement.

"We haven't finished our arrangements yet, have we?"

"How is it that the blame is suddenly placed on a foreigner?"

"Is there someone else carrying out the same actions as we are?"

They found themselves puzzled by these questions.

Only the Cordelion siblings knew for sure that this was definitely not their doing.

What actually happened?

In the Cordelion residence, Sergius and Serena were both confused.

Regardless, since the royal palace's announcement had been issued, it effectively declared Sorren's incident over.

As a result, from this day forward, the royal family stopped summoning nobles to the royal palace for interrogation, and the number of royal knights sent to search house by house gradually decreased, leaving only a few to handle the aftermath.

All of these occurrences undoubtedly further confirmed the end of the incident, leading the nobles to finally believe that the culprit had truly been dealt with.

While the entire royal capital was abuzz with discussions and noise, Riezel returned to Yuri's office with Lizbeth.

"Yuri, I'm going to Sinielle."

As soon as Riezel entered the office and sat down before Yuri, he informed her of his decision.

Yes, he planned to go to Sinielle to search for the ancient ruin related to Moslow.

"Is that so...?"

As Yuri replied, she didn't seem surprised—or rather, she looked as though she had expected this.

Clearly, she had guessed that Riezel would make this decision sooner or later.

"Are you really sure about this?"

Yuri looked straight into Riezel's eyes as she spoke.

"You know, that ancient ruin is tied to an event that even the royal family avoids discussing, and the truth behind that event remains unsolved to this day."

Her intention in saying this was simple.

"Sinielle is also guarded by a Sword Saint, and he personally took action to cover up the event, which shows it's far from a minor one. If you plan to go there, you might not only run into conflict with him but also encounter unknown dangers."

"Plus, that place is right at the border of two countries, at the very edge. Not only is the journey long and filled with countless surprises and monsters, but you could also find yourself caught up in the chaos of potential warfare between the two countries."

"Even knowing all this, do you still want to go?"

Yuri laid out the risks and possible difficulties for Riezel, though she had already anticipated what kind of answer he would give.

"Go."

Riezel answered briefly with a calm expression, his words unwavering and perfectly matching what Yuri had anticipated in her heart.

In truth, Yuri had already prepared herself for this moment.

"I didn't think this day would come so soon..."

Yuri's muttering plunged the entire office into silence.

Seeing her like this, Riezel found himself momentarily at a loss for words.

Needless to say, when he made this decision, it meant they were destined to be temporarily separated.

It couldn't be helped.

Since Yuri was the Chief Court Magician and a Strategic-Class Magician, even though she could entrust her territory to someone else for management and delegate the work in the royal capital to others, she couldn't simply leave the royal capital and head to Sinielle with him.

Sinielle was located at the border between the two countries, with Jinas on one side and Reiburg on the other. If a Strategic-Class Magician like her were to go there, it would undoubtedly provoke a strong reaction from Reiburg.

A human weapon capable of annihilating a large city or even toppling a small country suddenly stepping onto their border was no different from an army marching in—it was like aiming a nuclear missile at their country.

If she did that, Reiburg would see it as Jinas preparing for a large-scale invasion, sounding the horn for war.

At that point, tensions between the two countries would surely escalate, and the consequences and subsequent chain reactions would be unimaginable.

For this reason, Riezel's journey this time would separate him from Yuri, unlike before when she was always by his side.

Such a fact made the atmosphere between them a bit melancholic, leaving them both speechless until Marilyn, who rarely intervened in such matters, suddenly spoke up.

"Is this your decision too?"

Marilyn's question wasn't directed at Riezel but rather at Lizbeth, who stood behind him. She fixed her gaze on Lizbeth, much like Yuri had just done with Riezel as if trying to see through Lizbeth's true thoughts.

"Uhh…"

Under Marilyn's intense gaze, Lizbeth hesitated for a moment, but in the next second, she provided a firm answer.

"Wherever my master goes, I will go."

Lizbeth's answer was something Marilyn had taught her, but of course, even without Marilyn's teaching, she would say the same thing. Even though she didn't know what might happen or how it would affect her, after Riezel decided to go to Sinielle last night, she also formed her own goals.

She wanted to know what Moslow was and why it was in her hand.

She wanted to understand the connection between herself and the ancient magic civilization.

She wanted to know whether her origins could be uncovered during this journey.

If it were just her alone, she definitely wouldn't have such thoughts, but it was precisely because Riezel was there and had decided to explore that she began to entertain the same idea.

It was as expected.

She was Riezel's attendant, after all—if he decided to go, then she would absolutely follow him no matter where he went.

Such was Lizbeth's thinking and belief.

Marilyn seemed to sense Lizbeth's intention, and after a moment of silence, she nodded and said no more.

However, thanks to the conversation between Lizbeth and Marilyn, the atmosphere between Riezel and Yuri lightened up, no longer feeling so melancholic.

Riezel was the first to gather his emotions and smiled at Yuri.

"Well, it's not like we're going to stop seeing each other, right?" Riezel said casually.

"I know..." Yuri quickly calmed herself and replied with a smile. "Don't worry. I've been mentally prepared for this since long ago."

Riezel leaving was something she had expected from the beginning.

He was undoubtedly a man who could not avoid the limelight and wouldn't settle for the status quo. If it weren't for his previous concerns, reasons, and her request for him to stay, he definitely wouldn't have stayed at the Frenzel residence in the first place.

He had mentioned more than once that he wanted to travel and explore the continent, experience various landscapes, and go on adventures.

From that time on, she knew he would leave someday, though she didn't expect it to come so soon.

Nevertheless, she wasn't one to dwell on sentimentality.

"I'll have Marilyn help you guys get a carriage ready, sorting out your essential luggage and supplies for your journey." Yuri nodded with a faint smile. "When are you planning to leave?"

Riezel initially thought about leaving tomorrow, but after seeing Yuri's reaction, he quickly changed his mind.

"Let's make it the day after tomorrow... I need another day to prepare for this trip anyway."

What would he use this day for?

Naturally, to strengthen himself.

He understood that Yuri was correct about this journey.

Not only might the journey not be a peaceful one, but arriving at the destination also wouldn't be the end—it would merely mark the beginning.

Ancient magic civilization-related items, coupled with the unknown event, could indeed be fraught with danger. Furthermore, there was a chance he would clash with Sinielle's city lord and end up at odds with this neutral city.

Because of this, he planned to undertake another dimensional travel beforehand, just to be safe. If he could manage to gain high-rank excelia during this dimensional travel and accumulate enough basic ability proficiency to reach Level 7, the journey would be much safer.

"I see... the day after tomorrow..." Yuri acknowledged before turning to Marilyn. "I'll leave it to you to handle, Marilyn."

"Yes, My Lady." Marilyn bowed her head in acknowledgment before turning to Lizbeth. "Come with me."

"Me?"

Lizbeth looked at Riezel, unsure.

"Go ahead." Riezel nodded with a smile.

"Um, got it!"

Lizbeth took a deep breath, then walked over to Marilyn.

Before long, the two attendants left the room, leaving Riezel and Yuri alone.

"Fufu, once you leave, there might not be anyone to drink tea and chat with me anymore, huh..." Yuri remarked with a light chuckle.

"Aren't Mediste and Isaac still around?" Riezel brought up the siblings who hadn't been very present lately.

"Them? They're too busy for me right now..." Yuri replied, looking a bit annoyed. "Ever since you set up that arena, those two have been like your diehard fans, cheering for you from morning till night and hardly remembering that I'm their elder sister."

"Hmm..." Riezel raised his eyebrows. "Since I'm going later, I'll end the arena, so that won't happen anymore, right?"

"Eh? Yeah... that's true..." Yuri replied in a somewhat dazed tone.

"Anyway, when you want someone to accompany you for tea or just to chat, just look for them." Riezel smiled and shrugged his shoulders. "I can see they really like spending time with you."

"Oh, I know that already." Yuri smiled faintly, her expression brightening a little. "They are my younger brother and sister, after all."

"Umu, that's good then." Riezel nodded with a smile.

"Um..."

"..."

"..."

Suddenly, silence filled the room, making the atmosphere somewhat awkward.

"Well... do you want me to keep you company for some tea?" Riezel asked in a somewhat awkward tone.

"Sure..."

Yuri immediately stood up, grabbed the kettle and cups from the nearby tea cart, and personally brewed tea for Riezel.

Surprisingly, although the tea this time wasn't as super sweet as usual, it was fragrant and truly memorable.