Chapter 43
“Don’t tell me… this is mine?”
I looked back and forth between the coat in the box and Sion as I asked.
Sion nodded.
“It’s made from the fabric we bought last time. Think of it as a winter outfit for going out.”
“No way!”
I stared blankly at the coat, my body trembling with emotion.
“Sion—Sion himself—made clothes for me!”
“…Just so you know, I can’t sew. Elda made that.”
Well, obviously I knew that.
Even I couldn’t imagine Sion crouched somewhere, sewing.
Still, it’s the thought that counts.
“Sion gave me clothes as a gift…!”
With hands trembling from emotion, I carefully picked up the coat.
It was perfectly sized for me—a robe-like design that covered my whole body, with a thick lining that made it nice and warm.
Watching from the side, Elda smiled warmly.
“Try it on, Lady Rin. It’s my first time making something in this size, so it might need some adjustments.”
“O-Okay!”
I set the coat down for a moment and vigorously dusted off my shabby sleepwear.
Since I’d only had one outfit this whole time, it had practically become my uniform—and it was pretty worn out in places.
Leaning against the sofa, watching me, Sion casually asked,
“Come to think of it, do you wash that outfit regularly? Judging by its appearance… I have some doubts about its cleanliness.”
That was… a difficult question to answer.
“…W-Wow! It fits perfectly!”
Pretending I hadn’t heard him, I hurriedly slipped on the coat.
It fit me surprisingly well—snug, soft, and warm. There was even a slit in the back so I could move my wings freely.
“Ohhh! It’s so comfortable and warm! This will be perfect for the expedition!”
I spun around in the air excitedly.
Now I wouldn’t have to shiver and sniffle from the cold while walking around the estate or outside.
I flew straight to Sion and wrapped my arms around his neck.
“Thank you! I’ll treasure it!”
Sion pulled me off his neck and set me on his palm, examining me closely.
“At this level, it should sufficiently retain body heat outdoors. But you’ll also need winter footwear. With shoes like those full of holes, you’d get frostbite within half a day.”
He frowned at my fluffy slippers.
“Yes, Young Master. I’ll prepare proper winter shoes for Lady Rin according to your departure schedule.”
“If possible, include a spare set of everyday clothes as well.”
“Understood.”
Given a new task, Elda left the room with an enthusiastic expression.
A brief silence followed.
“…Lady Rin?”
When I turned around, Genevia was staring at me, her eyes shaking as if there’d been an earthquake.
“What do you mean by that? What expedition?”
Carefully taking off the coat and placing it back on Sion’s palm, I said,
“Oh, right—I forgot to mention it. We’re planning to leave on an expedition in a few days.”
“…Where to?”
“Where was it again…”
I trailed off, glancing at Genevia.
“Mm, somewhere… it’s called a border region. A place pretty far from here.”
“…A border region?”
Genevia’s face stiffened.
“…Don’t tell me—the northernmost border region?”
It seemed she had heard about it before.
I gave a slightly apologetic grin.
“Yeah. That’s the one.”
“…!!!”
Genevia rushed forward, snatched me off Sion’s hand, and grabbed me.
“Y-You scammer fairy!”
“Ghk—!”
She shook me vigorously in both hands as she shouted,
“You lured me in with talk about the future, and now you’re dragging me to a place like that?! This is a fraudulent contract! It’s invalid!”
“To achieve a happy future…! You have to go through hardship and trials…! Just trust me…!”
“I don’t need that! Forget the future—if you die, that’s the end! Even rolling in mud in this world is better than dying!”
“Ghk… someone save the fairy…”
Just as I was starting to get dizzy from being shaken—
“Stop.”
Sion grabbed Genevia’s wrist and took me back, my head spinning.
“The expedition will proceed as planned. Everyone on the list will go.”
At his firm words, Genevia said with a pale face,
“Y-Young Master, I’ll just stay here! I’ll go back to the main residence!”
“Too late. The moment Garen took the list, you became a member of the expedition.”
“No…! The northernmost border region—it’s the most dangerous place in the north, no, in the entire empire!”
“It’s one of the few remaining battlefields against demonic beasts on the continent. So yes, probably.”
At Sion’s dry confirmation, Genevia staggered and collapsed to the floor.
Then, with a blank, devastated expression, she muttered,
“Ah… what have I done…”
I tried to comfort her gently.
“Don’t worry too much, Genevia. It might be tough, but I’m sure it’ll be a journey you won’t regret.”
“…Regret.”
Staring into space, she muttered,
“Regret… I’d be lucky if I even have a future where I can regret anything. The northern border… a terrifying place where I don’t even know if I’ll make it back alive…”
“Come on, it’s not that bad~”
Despite my reassurance, Genevia just kept mumbling things like “my life is over” with teary eyes.
I gave up trying to comfort her and went back to Sion.
“Hmm, I guess she needs some time to mentally prepare. Let’s go eat, Sion!”
I shrugged as I said it.
Sion sighed and muttered,
“She doesn’t seem particularly useful anyway. Should we just leave her at the estate, if that’s what she wants?”
“Leave Genevia?”
Seeing the openly annoyed look he gave her, I shook my head firmly.
“No, we have to take her.”
There were plenty of reasons.
For one, we definitely needed a healing priest like Genevia for Sion’s safety—but more importantly…
‘For your sake, Sion—since you keep treating the heroine like she’s just some weed!’
Through this expedition, I absolutely had to connect Sion with the heroine so that my fangirl dream—Sion finding love—would come true and his fate would change.
For that purpose, a small expedition and life in the borderlands weren’t a bad setting at all.
‘You know—love blooming dramatically in extreme circumstances!’
I recalled the story I’d recently heard about Sion’s parents and began solidifying my plans.
If we returned from the expedition a year later, the main male lead would definitely have arrived at the Grand Duke’s estate by then—so I had to make something happen before that.
‘Alright. We leave as two, but when we return… let’s make it three!’
I looked at Sion and nodded resolutely.
‘I’ll try even harder, Sion!’
