The Sword and The Shadow

As one fo the people in charge of the safety of the banquet, Xeno was among the first to reach First Magic Academy. He had planned to leave the bureau with Leguna, but after Leguna left, he remained behind to assign the patrol assignments of the agents.

Oddly, by the time he was done with the arrangements, one of his subordinates told him that it had been an hour since Leguna arrived. That put some questions in his head immediately.

Noticing fine details like that was one of his strengths. He didn't leave that shred of doubt unattended. He wouldn't dare question Leguna's orders and did as he said to call off the guards near Alissanda. Instead, he personally replaced them and paid attention to the prince's movements.

The amazing assassin that fought in the duel just now caught his attention. As the acting head of the bureau, he knew far more about his subordinates than Leguna did, and he couldn't make sure that mysterious, bearded assassin was someone from the bureau.

That made him even more alert. Just now, there were Leguna's weird instructions, and now, someone mysterious popped out.

He began to form a guess in his mind. However, as Leguna was with Alissanda, he didn't dare make any careless moves.

"So you just got back, huh?" Leguna glanced at One, motioning her to not get too close to eavesdrop or to be too far away he couldn't see her.

"That's right. The war slowed down a bit, so I finally got a chance to go home."

While he sounded rather neutral, Leguna caught the word 'home'. The prince didn't say he came to Melindor or came back to rest for a couple days, only home.

It seemed that the capital and the highly defended palace held a special meaning for him.

After a moment of silence, Leguna asked, "Then when are you leaving again?"

"Three days later, maybe. You know how busy I am. We'll have to start attacking the south again in the coming spring," he said with a shrug, "That's why I can only rest so much for now. There are still tons of things I have to attend to."

"Well aren't you busy!" Leguna, as the bureau head, could still meet Eirinn and Innilis from time to time during his duties, but Alissanda had to work far away. Even though he was also an imperial prince, he seemed to have it far worse than Geoffrey did. Leguna had to admit that he was indeed a really magnificent person.

"There's no choice. After General Manhattan left, somebody has to stand out to fill his shoes. I'm not as amazing as the old general, so I can only rely on time and willpower to make up for that."

Leguna kept silent. He finally understood what differentiated Alissanda from him.

Though he was the number-one assassin on Chino and had gifts that so many people were envious of, he had never felt like he was some kind of hero that could save the world.

He had no great burdens and wasn't interested in saving or conquering the world at all. All he wanted to do was to protect those he cared about with his own two hands and give them a better life. That was the only goal he held in all 20 plus years of his life, his dream for which he was willing to pay almost any price. While it seemed boring and plain to others, it was the most important thing for him. That was because he knew that he was nothing more than a coward who hated to lose what he already had.

Alissanda. on the other hand, was the real protagonist of those chivalric novels out there. He was huge, handsome, courageous, kind, firm-willed, upright and possessed all the qualities a hero should have. He also had ambition. While he seemed rather homesick just now, unlike Leguna, he was a man who could give up on certain things. He was willing to leave his comfortable home which so many envied him for to enter a world of bloodshed and fighting for his ambitions.

That wasn't something Leguna was capable of.

He was reminded of the cold, sharp yet gentle and beautiful girl who spent much time beside Alissanda at the thought of battle.

He recalled that he owed Lisana a promise. She had spent a good couple of days to ensure Eirinn's safety, which greatly moved him. Additionally, he had her to thank for saving Eirinn's life. If not for her, he couldn't imagine what would've happened. Since she did so much for him already, he decided to help her out a bit.

"Come to think of it, where's Lisana? Isn't she part of your personal guard?"

"Even personal guards have to take breaks, you know," Alissanda said with a shrug, "She just got back to Melindor after a long time, so I gave her two days off so that she can spend some time with her father."

"I didn't think you'd have a delicate side to you." He widened his eyes and looked at him with shock.

"Hey! I'm a delicate and sensible man, alright?"

"You? Delicate? If you are sensible, you'd have noticed it long ago."

"What are you talking about?" Alissanda wore a doubtful expression. It seemed he would play the fool unless he was directly confronted about it.

"I was talking about Lisana's feelings for you," Leguna sighed, "You should know what she thinks about you."

"I do."

"I am indebted to her, so don't blame me for being a busybody. I want to know what you think of her."

He didn't seem opposed to being questioned about this at all. He merely shook his head in silence.

Leguna wasn't surprised to see that. Alissanda was still single even in his twenties and had never touched any other woman. Leguna, being someone near his age, believed that either he had strong self-control or he was probably not attracted to women at all. He reasoned that the latter seemed more probable.

And so, a scene with Alissanda and Jast appeared in is head.

"Huff... Puff... Your Highness, do you feel good?"

"Yes... It's not bad... Be more forceful... huff... my darling Jast..."

"Ugh... Your Highness... It's my turn."

"Alright. Come, get down..."

"Guah!" The last cry wasn't something he envisioned, but rather, his cry. He couldn't stand letting his train of thought go any further down that hole.

It wasn't that he was predisposed to think about matters like that. Being the head of the bureau for so long, he would often accidentally discover some secrets of the nobles. After years of seeing and hearing about them, there was no way he could keep a pure mind.

Leguna shook his head and shrugged those thoughts away and solemnly said, "Hey, Alissanda, I'm not joking around. Hear me out."

"Oh? Let's hear it then." He gave him an interested look.

Leguna picked his words carefully. "I know some things can't be forced, so I'm not expecting things to go well between the two of you. But I hope you don't leave her hanging. If you don't like her, cut it off quick. She's my benefactor, so I don't wish for her to get hurt over this."

Alisannda turned around surprisingly to look at him with an odd gaze before he burst out laughing.

"Hahahahaha!"

"What are you laughing at?"

"Hahaha!" He didn't stop until Leguna was about to burst with impatience. He gave Leguna a friendly gaze and composed himself. "You've guessed wrong. I do like Lisana, and I've decided to make her my wife."

"Huh?!" He had thought Alissanda shook his head because he wanted to reject her. It seemed that he was wrong about something.

"What I mean is, Lisana is a great candidate for my wife. She's gentle and smart and even I have to admit I like her quite a lot. But now's not the time, my friend. I believe we have to at least wait until the end of this war. I can only think about this after things stabilize. My personal feelings and relationships aren't really high up on my list. However, I promise I'll treat her well."

Leguna felt relieved upon hearing that. While he hadn't spent much time with Lisana, he saw her as an important friend. He could rest assured after hearing his promise. Alissanda was anything if not a guy who kept his word.

Alissanda fisted him in the chest and asked, "Well, since you brought it up, what about your plans for the future?"