‘What’s going on?’

Although puzzled, we went over to them. It was Irmin who spoke first.

“Would you like to tour the royal palace?”

“……?”

Both Hans and I were perplexed.

A sudden invitation to the palace?

As we looked at him questioningly, Irmin continued to explain.

“Kabir was about to accept Owen as―”

He couldn’t finish his sentence. Kabir had covered Irmin’s mouth with his hand, seemingly harboring a different agenda.

‘Visiting the palace after a while isn’t bad.’

I had spent plenty of time there when I was engaged to Jamon. It seemed like a good idea to revisit after such a long time.

“How about it, Owen?”

“If you’re going, then sure.”

Hans seemed willing to go if I was going.

Seeing our reaction, Irmin spoke excitedly.

“Great, so it’s decided?”

“When are we going?”

“Now!”

True to his nature, Irmin didn’t hesitate. Kabir sighed beside him.

“We’ll be back before dinner with teleportation magic. I’ll make sure you’re home!”

With that reassurance, there was no need to worry about troubling my parents. I nodded.

* * *

We arrived at the royal palace in an instant. As soon as we got there, Irmin dispelled his disguise magic.

Seeing his face again stirred no particular feelings in me. He looked exactly like Jamon.

“Where do you want to start the tour?”

Honestly, I wanted to visit Jamon’s garden. It had been so long, and I missed Nemoh.

But with our current appearance, entry was unlikely.

As Hans and I remained silent, Irmin and Kabir started discussing seriously.

“How about the library?”

“There are only boring books there. They’ll surely find it tedious. The garden would be better.”

“Owen just had a training session, walking around might be exhausting for him.”

“Then let’s have tea in the indoor garden!”

That didn’t seem like a bad idea, and even Kabir quietly nodded.

“How about it? Is that okay with you?”

“Yeah, sure.”

“Sounds good.”

Who would object to enjoying desserts in a warm place?

The destination was a garden I had never seen before. Like Jamon had his own garden, this seemed to be Irmin’s.

By the time we got there, everything was ready. A tea table was set up in the indoor garden.

“Please, take a seat.”

Irmin pulled out a chair for me with courteousness, evoking memories I’d rather forget. Despite feeling a tad annoyed, I couldn’t exactly show it, so I quietly took my seat.

As we settled down, we started sharing desserts and tea. Conversation flowed effortlessly, and even Kabir seemed more at ease with us now.

Amidst the peaceful atmosphere, one thing caught my attention.

“There’s an extra chair.”

The presence of an empty seat was noticeable.

Hans seemed to notice it too and whispered to me.

Is someone else coming?

Not long after, someone entered the garden.

“…?”

It was Jamon.

“Jamon, you’re here?”

Whether called by Irmin or not, Irmin greeted Jamon casually.

Jamon, with a displeased expression, walked over and took the seat next to mine.

“Even in the midst of busyness, you keep summoning me.”

“Come on, you need to see the face of the Heyward Duke’s potential heir.”

“Heir…?”

Jamon’s gaze shifted to me.

Why do they assume I’m the heir? Silently, I pointed to Hans beside me.

Holding a teacup, Hans began,

“It’s not decided yet, we’re still in the testing phase.”

“Huh? No, Owen, you’re already the heir. That’s why he is teaching you himself.”

“Irmin….”

Irmin nonchalantly dropped the big news.

Kabir furrowed his brow as if a headache was coming on.

“He’s the heir?”

“I wanted to discuss it in a more serious setting.”

At my question, Kabir let out a sigh laced with laughter.

“Yes. In this short time, it’s clear that Owen is a suitable heir to carry on the Duke’s legacy.”

Kabir smiled warmly at Hans.

“I look forward to working with you, Owen.”

“….”

Hans looked reluctant. A gentle nudge from me, and he finally started to feign happiness.

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

“The orphanage has been informed. You can continue staying in your usual room.”

“Congratulations, Owen―!”

Irmin clapped his hands in applause.

“…To think the Duke’s house would take in a commoner as an heir.”

Jamon muttered to himself, seemingly as bewildered as everyone else.

“Could you explain how this came about?”

Jamon asked Kabir, clearly wanting to understand the situation.

Kabir explained the whole story, focusing mostly on me. After all, I played a significant part in this situation.

“….”

Jamon’s gaze fixed on me. I pretended not to notice and sipped my tea.

“Jamon’s looking at you.”

“You know you’re not supposed to meet the eyes of royalty.”

“Then you’d have been executed many times over by now.”

Hans and I conversed in hushed tones, audible only to each other.

“What execution?”

Even that was cut short by Irmin’s keen hearing. We both clamped our mouths shut as if on cue.

“…Camilla is―”

Jamon started speaking, drawing everyone’s attention to him.

“What are your thoughts on Camilla?”

That’s not something you usually discuss with the subject right there.

Both Kabir and Irmin seemed taken aback by the sudden question, blinking in confusion.

“Just, a cute kid?”

“Quite sharp for her age. Mature.”

“….”

Jamon looked at me.

He mouthed a question.

‘May I speak?’

He was seeking my permission about the promise we had made.

‘It’s less hassle not to say anything.’

Yet, it was a tricky situation to outright deny, so I finally nodded.

Only after receiving my consent did Jamon turn back to them.

“I, in the past, made a promise with Camilla.”

“The past?”

“She’s seven now. Are you talking about an even earlier past?”

“Yes. At least 7 years earlier.”

“…?”

Their expressions went blank. The idea of making a promise with me even before I was born must have seemed absurd.

“I don’t know how it happened. But one thing is certain. I made a promise with Camilla, a promise not in my memory.”

Precisely, a promise with Anais. It seemed like Jamon was confused about the memo’s content or how to phrase it.

“What promise?”

As unbelievable as it might sound, Irmin seemed serious, perhaps because it was Jamon talking.

“…A promise to meet you all.”

Technically, it included the Erpeso family as well.

“Let’s take a moment to sort this out.”

Kabir, trying to maintain a smile, spoke in a calm voice.

Kabir processed the information. “So you’re saying… before you were even born, you made a promise with Jamon to meet us.”

“Yes, that’s right.”

“….”

Kabir looked at me. Not wanting to make Jamon seem odd, I decided to be honest.

“His Highness is right. I asked for it.”

“Before you were born?”

“Yes. I’ve always known all of you.”

As I spoke, I glanced at Hans, but he was nonchalantly eating a cookie, unfazed by my words. After seven years, my partner had grown accustomed to chaos. 

“…Can you explain in more detail?”

Even Irmin, usually the light-hearted one, was looking at me seriously.

Knowing that telling the truth would make me sound insane, I decided to add a bit of exaggeration.

“It’s all thanks to Lady Venecia.”

Blaming it on Ian.

“I was born with divine power. That’s why I have memories of my past life. In my previous life, knowing what was to come, I asked His Highness to ensure we meet again. I didn’t want to part from you, not in this life, nor the next.”

Most of it was a lie, but the conclusion was true. It should be fine, I thought.

“….”

As expected, everyone looked skeptical. It would be strange if they believed me.

Left with no other choice and needing Ian’s help, I started a broadcast.

[OnlyFinley: What’s going on??? Why is everyone together???]

[Stress: You said to start broadcasting if anything interesting happened!!!]

[MadelineTastesGood: Lost your original intent, huh?]

The viewers were upset they had missed an interesting moment.

Ignoring them, I called out to Ian.

“Lady Venecia.”

[Ian: Yeah]

“I need your help.”

[Ian: What do you need?]

“Anything, really.”

[Ian: Should I make a prophecy or something?]

“That’s perfect.”

Prophecy was a power only a saintess could use.

Then, Ian’s chat popped up.

“…?”

I was puzzled by the message.

“What’s wrong?”

Hans asked, noticing my confusion.

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, I reluctantly shared the “prophecy.”

“…His Highness’s fated one will fall from the sky?”

Even to me, it sounded ridiculous.