A familiar voice coming from a distance.

Not just the voice, but the tone and the expression in the words left no doubt about who it was. The red twin-tailed princess hurriedly ran between Harold and me, positioning herself to block the space between us with her body.

—Tadadak!

“Huff, huff, huff….”

“…Princess Meslen?”

“Haa, haa… I-I knew it would be like this… Haa, haa….”

“Princess Meslen, are you all right? You usually don’t even run, but now you’re rushing over here in such a hurry….”

“Haa, I-I… that th-thieving, haa, cat… haa, like, haa… huff…”

Princess Meslen, who seemed to be demonstrating an extreme lack of physical endurance, stood between Harold and me, panting heavily.

While I wondered why she had suddenly shown up, Harold turned to me, clearly curious about her identity and asking for an introduction.

“Hmm, who is this young lady? Do you know her, Lilith?”

“This is Princess Meslen Emilia Balthoria, a first-year in the Magic Department who enrolled this year at the academy, Professor Harold. She’s also the younger sister of Prince Antonio Robert Balthoria from the Swordsmanship Department, who enrolled alongside her.”

“Ah, so she’s the sister of that clear-eyed prince. Now that you mention it, I think I heard that he has a twin sister.”

Since Harold rarely remembered information about others, it was safe to assume he recalled Antonio more than Meslen. Harold tended to remember those involved in swordsmanship more clearly, even though he usually paid little attention to others.

“I-I’m glad you remember me… Haa, haa…”

“…Perhaps you should catch your breath first. You don’t seem to be in a state to continue talking just yet.”

“Haa… Yes, yes….”

Princess Meslen, her face somewhat flushed, had appeared, and the moment she positioned herself between us, she sent a rather hostile glance in my direction. There was something familiar about that look.

‘It’s like how Seraphine used to look at Cerista or Silena in the game.’

A sharp, protective gaze, as if guarding something she believed belonged to her.

Given that Meslen was of imperial blood, it was no surprise that she resembled Seraphine in that way. But why was this princess suddenly appearing and throwing me such hostile looks?

“It’s understandable that, as a professor, I wouldn’t need to use formal language with you within the academy. But what brings you here all of a sudden?”

“W-What? Ah, no… I, well…”

‘Wait a second… Could it be…?’

Now that I thought about it, didn’t Meslen mention something recently about falling in love with someone at the academy? A character who was skilled with a sword, had an intense gaze, and was likely a noble.

Back then, I had assumed she was talking about a fellow student in the Swordsmanship Department. But now that I reconsidered, she hadn’t mentioned anything about the person being a student.

If it wasn’t a student but rather someone skilled in swordsmanship, a noble, and a named character at Luminor Academy…

‘Could it really be…?’

The idea seemed ridiculous, but it was the only possibility that made sense right now.

Fortunately, Princess Meslen’s response soon confirmed that my speculation wasn’t just a wild guess.

“Well, if there’s nothing else, I’ll be heading back. It’s getting late, and it is already night.”

“Ah, yes… I’m sorry for holding you up….”

“…What?”

Meslen, apologizing?

The princess, who always looked down on others and considered herself the most noble person in the world, was apologizing after seeing Harold act like that?

‘This is practically a 100% confirmation.’

As unbelievable as it was, I couldn’t deny what was happening before my eyes.

Even in the modern world, there were people who married with age differences of 20 or 30 years, so in a medieval fantasy setting, such things were even less surprising. After all, even the current emperor married his last empress despite a nearly 30-year age gap.

If I considered the age difference between Meslen and Harold…

‘Meslen is 19 this year since she just entered the academy. Ethan, though his body is 21 years old, didn’t age for five years, so he should be around 26 now. Tanathia gave birth to Ethan about three years after graduating from the academy, and Harold is the same age as Tanathia….’

…Is this for real?

That’s nearly a two-and-a-half, almost three-generation gap!

Sure, Harold had slowed aging due to his mastery of energy, but wasn’t this going too far? And we’re not talking about just any woman—Princess Meslen, of all people, as a potential second wife?

Even for one of the empire’s three swordsmen, this seemed a bit too shameless.

“It’s late, and I’m a little concerned about whether Princess Meslen will be able to get back safely. Where’s your escort?”

“Ah, well… Kate, my escort, has a habit of disappearing sometimes…! It’s quite inconvenient, you know….”

“…Is it acceptable for an escort to vanish while on duty? That seems different from the imperial protocols I’m familiar with.”

That’s because Meslen just made that excuse up on the spot.

More likely, Kate had been sent off on some errand by Meslen, who, not wanting any interference, ordered her away the moment she saw Harold. It was typical of Meslen’s personality.

In other words, Harold’s comment was an unfair accusation as far as Kate was concerned. But then again, it was Kate’s fault for choosing to serve a master like Meslen in the first place.

“Well, since it’s come to this, could you… um, escort me back for a bit?”

“Lilith, could you accompany Princess Meslen back safely?”

“What?”

“It’s late, and it wouldn’t be safe to send her off alone. But you should be able to handle at least one person, right?”

"……."

This was clearly Harold’s way of blocking Meslen’s advances toward him.

Well, of course, there was no way Harold would ever end up with Meslen. It wasn’t just a matter of the age gap—it was never going to happen from the start.

Harold’s heart still belonged to Tanathia, and he had left the position of his wife permanently open for her. No matter how much Meslen might try, she wouldn’t be able to find her way into Harold’s heart, which had only ever loved one woman.

Besides, if Harold had wanted to remarry, he’d had plenty of opportunities to do so over the past 15 years since Tanathia’s passing. He hadn’t remarried simply because he didn’t want to.

‘…Well, that’s that.’

Still, I could at least help Meslen by giving her a chance to come to terms with reality and move on.

Honestly, this princess needed a harsh dose of unrequited love to understand that not everything in the world goes her way. Maybe it would finally calm her down a bit.

“Wouldn’t it be better if Professor Harold escorted her himself?”

“Hmm?”

“The thing is, I used a lot of magic during the duel earlier, and I’m feeling a bit fatigued. I could probably handle a couple of thugs with just my sword, but if there’s a serious threat to Princess Meslen, I’m not sure I’d be able to protect her properly.”

“…Hmm, I see. That’s understandable. It wouldn’t be impossible for some ill-intentioned person to target a princess.”

Since Harold was the reason I’d spent so much magic during the duel, he had no choice but to agree with my excuse, even if it was a poor one.

Of course, my mana reserves were still more than half full, but the real goal was to leave Harold and Meslen alone together so she could face reality faster.

There was no point in telling Meslen to give up on an impossible love if she wouldn’t listen to me. It was better for her to quickly confess and get rejected—it would be the best medicine for her.

“What department are you in?”

“The Magic Department….”

“I’ll escort you to the entrance of the girls’ dormitory. Unless there’s somewhere else you need to stop by first?”

“N-No… I’d appreciate that….”

"……."

Watching them walk away, it felt more like a father walking his youngest daughter home than a romantic couple.

I just hoped that Meslen’s heartbreak wouldn’t end up being too painful. With that thought in mind, I turned and headed back toward the dormitory for the Swordsmanship Department.

‘…Let’s hope I don’t have to deal with Meslen for a while.’

Getting involved in complicated relationships like this was exactly the kind of thing I hated most.