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Snowflakes were slowly coming down from the sky.

Unlike the white snow, the clouds scattering the snow were gray. Noel, who was gazing up at the sky, suddenly questioned the color of the clouds but quickly redirected her attention to the world now blanketed in white by the snow.

It wasn’t her first time seeing snow, but everything visible to Noel now felt new.

Simply turning her head revealed landscapes she’d never seen before. Having never left the Imperial Palace, she realized she was not standing on its grounds.

For the first time since her birth, Noel had stepped outside the palace and found herself in none other than Merohim, the center of the Empire’s north, known for spending half of the year covered in snow.

True to its nickname as the City of Snow, every direction she looked was dominated by a world veiled in pure white snow.

Until now, the Emperor had never taken his children along on inspections, but for some reason, he brought both Orcus and Noel along on this northern inspection.

Orcus seemed to think there must be some reason for this, given that the Emperor was known as the current king, but unlike him, Noel was just happy to be outside the palace.

She could smile just from standing still and looking up at the snow-filled sky.

Even though snow was falling in the capital, Ruden, that was of no concern to her.

What mattered to Noel was not the falling snow but that she was in a new place she’d never been to before. No matter how massive the Winter Castle of Edelweiss was, it couldn’t compare to the Imperial Palace, but walking through the newly encountered Winter Castle was far more enjoyable than the tedious buildings of the palace she had always seen.

When she looked up at the sky, she noticed something along with the snow.

The Dawn’s Tower, which could be said to be a symbol of Merohim. Despite the thick clouds above, the light emanating from its peak shone brightly, tearing through the clouds.

Even in Ruden, where massive buildings lined the streets, monuments of the scale of the Dawn’s Tower were rare. Moreover, the tower, aptly named the Magic Tower, radiated an incomprehensible aura with magical inscriptions carved into its high walls.

“It’s beautiful…”

Naturally, the sight of the Dawn’s Tower captured Noel’s attention, but it was only a fascination with its exterior mystery. She had no desire to enter the tower.

The Dawn’s Tower was a Magic Tower, a place for researching magic as well as educating wizards. For Noel, who was more interested in martial arts like swords than magic, the Dawn’s Tower was just a “beautifully built building”—nothing more, nothing less.

If she were to enter, the part accessible to her would be very limited; her status as royalty wouldn’t grant her access to the deeper parts of the tower, which meant she could only read theory books organized for low-tier magic.

But even being low-tier, the collection was undoubtedly vital to the wizards, yet for Noel, those theory books were worth less than the cheap novels sold on the market.

“Must be nice for you, brother~ You’re going into the Magic Tower…”

Noel thought of her twin, Orcus, heading towards the Dawn’s Tower. Though twins, their talents were drastically different.

Orcus was into magic while Noel preferred swords.

So for him, the Dawn’s Tower, one of only seven in the continent, was like a treasure trove.

“Hmmm…”

Though it was joyful to be outside the palace, thinking of Orcus finding something he liked, Noel couldn’t shake the feeling that she was missing out on something.

No, to be precise, she felt regret. Stepping in untouched snow and seeing unfamiliar landscapes was certainly enjoyable, but since she was already outside, she too wanted a new stimulation related to what she liked.

After a few minutes of thought, gazing at the light pouring from the Dawn’s Tower, Noel made up her mind to leave.

Although the Duke House of Edelweiss was famous for magic, it certainly also had a Knights Order. She felt that going to the Training Grounds might bring something different.

Just as she was about to head towards the Training Grounds, something caught her eye, making her stop in her tracks.

In her line of sight was a girl with snow-white hair shimmering like starlight gliding through the castle’s corridors. It wasn’t her first time seeing this girl; she had just exchanged greetings with her moments ago, so Noel knew who she was.

“Elena?”

Maybe she was enchanted by something.

As soon as Noel spotted the girl, she started to follow her to ensure she wouldn’t disappear from her sight.

Noel herself couldn’t clearly understand why she was trailing Elena. Perhaps it was because she could have just spoken to her directly. Maybe if she had just said hello right there, they would have shared a few words and parted ways. Or was it purely out of curiosity about where she was going?

Perhaps all of this was part of the reason.

In the end, with no definite answer, Noel continued to follow Elena.

After passing through the long corridor and turning a few corners, Elena finally stopped in front of a door.

As she pushed the door open, warm air spilled out from the opening, a warmth not found in the north, along with a fragrant scent that tickled Noel’s nose. Why was the flower fragrance she’d only felt in the palace garden wafting from within the Winter Castle?

Momentarily distracted by the sudden change in atmosphere, Noel forgot to call out to her.

When she looked back at the door, Elena had already vanished inside. Naturally, Noel instinctively reached for the door, but as her hand met the closed door, she felt a sudden urge not to open it.

“Ah.”

Once Elena disappeared from sight, Noel’s mind began to churn.

A fact she had neglected resurfaced: she wasn’t in the palace.

There were limits to what someone of royal status could do.

Was she seriously thinking about barging into a room she had no right to enter? The very act of following someone without saying anything was already a mistake. Ultimately, guilt washed over her too late, and she couldn’t bring herself to open the door.

If guilt was an issue, she could just leave and return outside, but Noel didn’t move.

She walked over to the door where Elena had disappeared and thought about why she had followed her. When it came to it, this problem she’d struggled with while trailing Elena was surprisingly simple once she was alone with her thoughts.

The various reasons she’d considered were nothing more than additional thoughts stemming from a singular desire.

The answer was simple.

Noel wanted to be friends with Elena.

For the first time in her life, she had met a girl her age outside the palace.

Although they had exchanged greetings during their first meeting, could it really be called a conversation? She was curious about what Elena liked and disliked, and she wanted to hear her share stories of Merohim. If Elena desired, Noel could tell her about the palace as well.

Just the idea of this made Noel feel happy. Yet, who knows if Elena even had any intention of conversing with her?

But that wasn’t something Noel needed to worry about.

Noel didn’t know what kind of room lay beyond the door or when Elena might come back out, but she had resolved to wait until she did. Leaning against the wall beside the door, Noel quietly waited for Elena to emerge.

Minutes passed by.

To her surprise, the warmth wafting from the door combined with the chilly air outside began to lull her into drowsiness. Moreover, the faint floral scent surrounding her gradually relaxed Noel’s heart.

“I mustn’t sleep!”

Every time her eyelids drooped, she pinched her cheeks to stay awake, but even that had its limits, and soon, she stopped moving her hands. In no time, Noel, who had been standing perfectly against the wall, slumped down to the floor due to the warmth.

Now completely sitting on the ground, she was fast asleep.

If someone saw her, they might rush over to wake her, but perhaps it was rare to find someone in these corridors because while she dozed off, no attendant passed by. However, that didn’t mean there wasn’t anyone who would wake her.

As the sun began to set behind the hills, painting the sky dark,

Creeeak—

The door opened, and there stood Elena, emerging from within. Unlike when she had entered, Elena was now sporting a radiant smile, like a blooming flower.

“Hmnya…”

But upon discovering Noel collapsed and sleeping against the wall, Elena’s smile faded instantly. Who wouldn’t be taken aback to find a princess sprawled out in a corridor? Frozen with a mix of surprise and uncertainty, she could only gaze down at Noel.

After what felt like an awkward standoff lasting about ten minutes, Elena seemed to gather her resolve, bent down, and gently reached out her hand toward Noel.

“Your Highness, the Princess. Please wake up.”

She spoke in a very soft voice.

Of course, Noel wouldn’t wake up with such a hushed call. It was Elena’s first time stepping up to speak to someone outside her family, but that didn’t mean her words would reach Noel’s ears.

In the end, Elena had no choice but to keep calling out to Noel until she finally opened her eyes.

*

“Ah.”

“Noel? Why are you suddenly acting like that?”

“No, it’s nothing. Just something really sorry popped into my head…”

At Noel’s words, Elena tilted her head slightly but seemed not to worry about it too much as she directed her gaze back toward the garden.

Noel, too, quietly began to appreciate the garden unfolding before her next to Elena.

Now that Noel had started to speak, there was no hesitation. However, perhaps because she was surrounded by flowers while looking at Elena, it felt just like being transported back to the moment they first became friends.

With countless questions piling up in her mind, simply sitting next to her reminded Noel of the past, and she found herself lost in reverie, forgetting to ask anything.

Beneath the wide, expansive sky, blossoms of various colors bloomed, making the world richer to behold, and the view felt refreshing, as if a hole had been blown into her heart.

But Noel recalled the opposite feeling from Elena’s garden compared to what she was now admiring.

Seeing the butterflies flitting through the flowers, Noel smiled and remarked to Elena, “It’s beautiful.”

Elena nodded in response with a small smile. Similarly, Noel beamed back at her and slowly gazed up at the sky.

A gentle breeze brushed through her hair.

What should she ask about first? How did the engagement come about? Or should she inquire about her life here?

As she looked at the sky, Noel began to organize her thoughts slowly.

There were so many things she wanted to ask Elena that deciding where to start became a dilemma. Normally, Noel would have shot questions like a machine gun, but this time, she wanted to spend her time slowly chatting with her.

Perhaps it was because she had never experienced such indecision before.

The time Noel spent pondering felt longer than expected. However, what broke her train of thought was Ellen’s call.

Getting up from her spot, Elena extended her hand toward Noel and asked, “Noel, would you like to take a little walk?”

Without hesitating, Noel took her hand. As she grasped Elena’s hand, Elena slowly began to step towards the interior of the garden.

Walking through the garden, the scenery left Noel once again in awe.

It felt entirely different from how it looked from outside; walking through the garden was akin to stepping inside a painting. With every few steps, the changing flowers felt like a blend of multiple worlds.

Elena smiled as she watched Noel’s eyes twinkle while she took in the surroundings.

“By the way, you said when you came to the Imperial Palace, you would show me the palace garden. What do you think? Is the palace garden as beautiful as this place?”

Upon her question, Noel briefly paused her exploration to look at Elena. She didn’t recall saying such a thing.

If Elena were to come to the Imperial Palace next, she thought, she would surely guide her through the palace’s garden!

It wouldn’t have been possible for her to forget a promise made with her first friend. The memory of the glass flower garden still vividly lingered in her mind.

Realizing this wasn’t just her own cherished memory, Noel exchanged glances with Elena. In Elena’s violet eyes, which met her own directly, she saw her reflection, and with a bright smile, Elena spoke.

“Of course! I’m sure if you see it, you’ll want to stay in the palace more than here!”

 

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