When she saw me holding Kaori up like that, her eyes widened almost instantly, and then she broke into a run straight toward me without even thinking twice. There was urgency in the way she moved, the kind that didn't really care about anything else in the moment. At this point, Kaori's consciousness looked like it had already clocked out for the day and jumped out the nearest window without leaving a note.

"Kaori!" she called out, her voice tight and uneven. "W-What…? What happened? Is she okay?" Her gaze snapped toward me right after, filled with concern, like she was trying to read the answer off my face before I even said anything.

"She's pretty intoxicated," I told her, keeping things simple. "When I found her, she was vomiting and about to fall over the railing."

"I see…" she said, her expression shifting as she processed it. Her shoulders relaxed just a little, though the worry didn't completely disappear. "T-Thank you for that," she added, sounding genuinely relieved.

Then she slowly stretched her hands out toward me, a bit hesitant, like she wasn't entirely sure if she should just take Kaori or wait for me to say something first.

"U-Um, it's okay now. I'll carry her back to her room."

I looked at her for a moment, just long enough to make her second guess herself, before I replied.

"It's fine. I'll carry her for you. You can just lead the way."

The moment I said that, she stiffened slightly, and her face shifted into that flustered look people get when they weren't expecting help but suddenly had to deal with it anyway.

"N-No, it's fine," she said quickly, almost tripping over her words. "I-I can handle it. I think I'm strong enough to carry her."

Well, she wasn't wrong. She was a hero, after all. Carrying someone like Kaori wouldn't exactly be a challenge for her. Still, it felt like the right thing to offer, and I had already said it, so backing out now would just make things awkward.

"It's fine," I repeated, a little more firmly this time.

"W-Well… if you say so…"

She turned around and started walking, still looking a bit unsure, and I followed behind her without saying anything else. Honestly, I had no idea where they were staying, so I was just trusting her to lead properly.

Although, it felt like there was some kind of tension hanging around, like something had been going on between the boys and the girls.

It wasn't obvious enough to point at directly, but it was there.

I thought about asking her what was up, but I stopped myself. Getting too involved in things that didn't concern me usually led to more trouble than it was worth. If it was something serious, it would come up eventually. If not, then it was better to just stay out of it. Watching from the sidelines was easier, and honestly, less of a headache.

"I haven't thanked you yet, have I?" she suddenly said, breaking the quiet.

"Thank me? For what?" I asked, glancing at her.

"I mean, you saved Kaori when she got kidnapped by those bandits, right?" she said. "I never really got the chance to talk to you about it, so I figured I should thank you now."

"Well, it was nothing. Myrcella asked me to do it," I replied casually.

"Well… I guess that's true," she said, looking a bit conflicted for a second. "Still, it's only natural for me to thank you."

There was a small pause after that, like she wanted to say more but decided against it. The rest of the walk went by quietly, with only the sound of our footsteps filling the space between us.

After a while, we finally reached their rooms.

"Sakai-san? Did you find her?" a voice called from inside.

"Yup. Leon-san saw her," she answered right away.

The door opened, and Hasegawa-sensei stepped out. The moment her eyes landed on me, she froze for a brief second, clearly not expecting to see me there. Then her gaze shifted down to Kaori in my arms, and the tension in her expression melted into something softer. Relief, plain and obvious.

"T-Thank goodness…" she said, almost under her breath.

"Where should I put her?" I asked, adjusting my hold slightly.

"W-Well, like I said, you can just let me carry her. We can handle things from here," Sakai said, stepping closer.

I carefully lowered Kaori into her arms, making sure she didn't slip or jolt too much. Hasegawa-sensei quickly moved in to help support her, the two of them working together to keep her steady.

"T-Thank you," she said, looking at me with genuine gratitude.

There had been a bit of an awkward situation between us earlier, something that probably would've lingered under normal circumstances. Right now, though, it didn't seem to matter. Bringing Kaori back safely had pretty much overwritten whatever tension there was.

I gave a small nod, keeping things simple, and then turned around without dragging the moment any longer.

***

Heading back to the celebration felt like stepping into a completely different atmosphere.

The noise hit first. Conversations layered over each other, laughter, as well as the occasional forced politeness that came with formal gatherings. Myrcella was still at the center of it all, surrounded by people who seemed determined to get a word in with her.

At this point, almost everyone had already congratulated her, or at least tried to. Even so, there were still plenty lingering nearby, hovering just close enough to jump in when the opportunity showed up. Some of them had that look in their eyes, the kind that made their intentions pretty obvious.

They wanted something.

Actually, a lot of them wanted something.

Power, influence, favor, and anything they could get their hands on. It was almost impressive how quickly they moved. She had only just become King, and they were already lining up, ready to latch onto her position like it was the best opportunity they'd ever get.

And somehow, Myrcella handled all of it without missing a beat.

She smiled, nodded, responded just enough to keep things polite without giving anything away. Watching her navigate through all that was honestly kind of impressive. It wasn't easy dealing with people like that, especially when most of them weren't even trying to hide their intentions.

Some of them were practically advertising it.

At the same time, she wasn't just standing there accepting everything. From what I could tell, she was already taking mental notes. Figuring out who was worth keeping around and who needed to go. The kingdom had its fair share of problems, and a lot of those problems came from people like this.

Corrupt, self-serving, and way too comfortable in their positions. 𝒻𝘳ℯℯ𝑤ℯ𝒷𝘯ℴ𝓋ℯ𝘭.𝑐ℴ𝑚

Right now, it looked like she was identifying the ones who hadn't exposed themselves yet. Which, for them, probably wasn't going to end well.

Then someone approached her.

Hereon's mother.

She carried herself with a certain level of confidence, the kind that came from knowing exactly where she stood. Her daughter walked beside her, and Hereon followed close behind, all three of them moving with purpose.

"Congratulations on your coronation, King Myrcella," she said, her tone smooth and composed.

"Thank you, Lady Anemoi," Myrcella replied, giving a slight bow, just enough to acknowledge her properly without lowering herself too much.

There was a brief pause after that.

Something about this wasn't just a simple greeting.

From where I stood, it was pretty clear that this conversation was going to be interesting.