Al is 10/10 husbando material. And we all eat dog food again today. But isn"t that what you came here for? xD

TL: clover

ED: clover

"Here. I hope it calms you down."

"……thank you."

Seeing my shocked state, Al, who couldn"t leave me like this, notified my father and suggested to take a break for the time being.

I returned to my room while feeling stunned. My steps were unsteady. I didn"t know where I was heading. Al, who was worried seeing me like this, also came along as a matter of course.

Luke also showed no concern that Al would accompany me, though he looked worried as he saw my strange state.

I sat down on the usual sofa in my room and drank the herbal tea which was brewed by Luke. The orange blossom tea has a unique sweetness that calmed down some of my confusion.

"No way……I failed……"

I murmured. The moment I said it, I became aware that what happened just now was real.

"What should I do……"

I never thought that I would fail.

Because contracting a spirit should be easy.

If one does it correctly, and if one reaches the location to summon the spirit, virtually no one will fail.

The moment they are summoned, the spirits are already willing to form a contract. One shouldn"t fail.

But I failed. What"s more, it is unheard of for one to be refused after summoning the spirit. It"s only natural that I was shocked.

"What did I do wrong……?"

No matter how much I think about it, I don"t understand the reason at all.

I should have summoned the spirit in the right order. I can say proudly that I didn"t do anything wrong.

However, I was rejected by the spirit I summoned.

Since usually I never experienced failure, I feel greatly shaken.

"Lily, calm down."

Al, who was sitting next to me, drew near and rubbed my back as if to comfort me. I felt more relaxed due to the kind gesture, and my tears welled up.

"Al……I—"

"Don"t worry. You just had a bad luck today. You also think so, right?"

"—yes. Certainly. I also think so. Milady."

Luke who looked at Al agreed.

They were being considerate so that I wouldn"t be bothered by my failure. I knew that.

But I couldn"t do that easily.

Because—

"If this is the case, I won"t be able to marry Al……"

That"s right.

This is a well-known story, but in Roseblade royal family, there are three conditions for one to be able to become the prince"s bride: 『A royalty or t.i.tled n.o.bility, have magical power, and have a contracted spirit.』

Being a royalty or t.i.tled n.o.bility is so as not to draw opposition from the n.o.bles, and having magical power is because magical power is heredity.

There are various state affairs and duties of a royalty that cannot be done without magical power.

What if the child has no magical power because they marry someone without magical power carelessly?

Then the child, if they are indeed inferior, will be born with the possibility that they will not be recognized as a royal family.

In order to prevent that, the marriage partner has to be someone with magical power.

And last but not least. Having a contracted spirit.

In this regard, I don"t know the detailed reason, but I learned from my tutors that it is directly related to the defense of the country. Any more than that is a royal secret, and the details are only known by the royal family.

At any rate, these are the conditions that cannot be conceded by the royal family.

It was because all the conditions were met that I could become Al"s fiancée.

If I cannot make a contract with a spirit as is, it is certain that our engagement will be called off.

"No way, such a thing is……"

Even though I finally became lovers with Al.

Who could have imagined that something like this would happen, just when we were about to spend time as betrothed both in name and reality. My field of view is blurred with tears due to the tremendous shock.

I pursed my lips. Hanging my head down, I desperately endured the tears that were about to fall.

Just thinking that I would be separated from Al makes my mind and body feel like they are freezing.

"Lily, calm down."

"But!"

"It will be fine. Alright?"

When I raised my face, there was Al"s face nearby. He stared at me with a serious expression.

"Contracting a spirit is not something that you can only do once. If making a contract is possible, it is fine for you to do it over and over again. So calm down."

"Al……"

"Just thinking that I will not be able to marry you is unpleasant. We"re finally become lovers. It will be fine. Let"s think this over in simple terms. We have about two years until we get married. It would be nice if you could contract a spirit by then. Alright? I will also help you to make a contract with the spirit. I will be your strength. So, let"s do our best together, okay?"

Hearing Al"s words, the feeling of confusion was somehow reduced.

Yes, as Al said, there is still time. Even if I failed, I just have to calm myself down and try again. A spirit contract is not something that ends if you fail at it once.

I stared at Al as if depending my life on him. He smiled to calm myself down.

"You were able to summon a spirit. So, I think that you definitely have an apt.i.tude for the spirit. If that is the case, you should do your best and try again. I will try to find out the cause before then. So, how about we give it some time? And then we can try again. What do you think?"

"Yes……let"s do that."

Hearing the sincere voice that seems to understand what I was thinking, I feel grateful.

Al always helps me. When I get stuck, he"s the one who always reaches out his hand for me to get up again.

"Al……thank you. I……I will not give up. I will do my best many times."

Looking at Al with determination, I held his hand which was on my knee.

It is at times like this that I realize Al is a man. His hand is large; it easily wraps my hand.

I was terribly embarra.s.sed by the heat which wasn"t my own that was transmitted through my hand.

"Al, um……"

"I love you, Lily."

"Eh……"

Hearing the words that were suddenly announced, I blink my eyes in surprise. Al stared at me with a gentle smile. His eyes were filled with a lot of affection, and I felt shy that those eyes were directed towards me, so I looked down again.

He didn"t allow me; he raised my jaw with the hand that wasn"t holding mine and forced me to look at him.

"Ah……"

"Don"t turn your eyes away just because I said I love you. We are lovers, right? Or are we not? Did I misunderstand?"

"N-no way……something like misunderstanding is……"

I can"t say that we"re not lovers. I was really happy that I was finally able to let him know my feelings.

Even now, I was suffering because I thought that I had to break up with him.

With my jaw still in his grasp, I shook my head and he said, "If so, I"m glad."

Then he opened his mouth while staring at me.

"To tell the truth, I think I love watching you doing your best. When I look at you who continues to move forward without slacking in your effort, my heart trembles. You"re so cute, so lovely, and I think I want to become your strength."

"Al……"

"This was an unfortunate event for you and me. But we shouldn"t give up. This is not the end. I"m sure that we will find the best solution and we will reach the future that we seek. Right?"

"Y-yes……"

The future that we seek. I realized that he meant our marriage and my cheeks became hot.

Al also wants me. When I realized that, I feel very happy.

—Alright. I can do my best.

If Al is by my side.

I don"t want to break my engagement with him. I absolutely hate the future where I cannot marry him.

To avoid that future, I will stand up even if I fail many times.