kscans

Chapter 7 - Danger, Do Not Remove! The Teleportation Ring That Forges a Bond

Leonhard and Mireille gasped at the same time.

Their eyes met, and all that was there was surprise and confusion.

(...Why is the girl from the Moonshadow Teahouse in front of me! And where is this place!?)_ _

(W, who is this person...! And he looks scary!!)

With a man who could be friend or foe appearing suddenly, and with nothing to protect herself, Mireille’s heart leaped into her throat.

The memory of yesterday’s lynch like interrogation resurfaced, and her shoulders trembled uncontrollably.

"U, um... w, who might you be...? I, I really don’t know anything...! I don’t know anything, so please forgive me...!"

As Mireille stumbled backward, Leonhard was breaking out in a cold sweat internally.

...It’s her, the girl I saw at the Moonshadow Teahouse, no doubt about it. But this looks exactly like I’m threatening her. Of course, I have no hobby of scaring women. But I can’t just "hand over the item and retreat" either...

This was a problem.

"C, calm down. I am Leonhard, captain of the First Knight Order."

He showed her his open hands and continued in as low a voice as possible.

"I apologize for startling you. Actually... my superior was in a relationship with your mother. I was asked to deliver something..."

He stopped breathing. His gaze fell to his own left hand.

(...The ring... I’m... wearing it...?)

The blood drained from his face. Far from delivering it, appearing with the ring already on his finger. He looked like nothing but a suspicious person.

(...What am I doing...)

Mireille’s gaze was also drawn to Leonhard’s left hand.

"Th, that ring...!"

"S, sorry. I’ll take it off now."

"No! Don’t take it off!!"

Mireille placed her hand over his as he tried to remove it.

The moment their hands touched, Mireille’s warmth transferred to Leonhard’s fingertips.

(...Ah, warm.)

But... for two people with little romantic experience.

They both stared intently at their overlapping hands.

--And then hastily pulled them apart.

They were red up to their ears.

(Are we children!!)

"Th, that’s not it. It has a spatial teleportation formula embedded in it!"

Mireille’s face was beet red, and while she clenched her hands tightly in front of her chest, she didn't take her eyes off the ring.

Leonhard asked timidly.

"...You can tell?"

The ring he was offered had a band that was a centimeter at its widest point. An oval magic stone was set in it. A dull red color glowed faintly, but to Leonhard, it just looked like a stone.

"Excuse me, may I take a look?"

Mireille took a breath, first asking permission before taking Leonhard’s hand.

Her gesture naturally conveyed a sincerity in how she handled things.

"...The ring... there are many things I’d like to ask, so please don’t take it off for now. If you do, you might return to your original location."

"I see."

Mireille gently released his hand.

Leonhard felt a sense of relief that his hand was free and that Mireille herself seemed to pose no threat, but inwardly he was screaming.

(Supreme Commander! Why did you give me a ring like this!!)