A few days after the meeting with the Crown Prince.
As asked by Princess I investigated the singer"s movements.
Be that as it may, his movements aren"t particularly suspicious.
He walks around the southern town, and visits interesting shops. Compared to those who just sightsee, there"s nothing different about that slender, tall man. Certainly, he looks a little nervous, but I simply can"t see him as the Tarim tactician. It doesn"t look like he"s in contact with anybody either.
But, there"s a shop he visits every day without fail.
The curry shop whose Princess is the owner of. It"s one of the most popular shops in the Royal Capital.
The original recipe called "curry rice" that"s owned by Princess became a hit a few years ago, rumors about it have already spread to foreign countries. it"s already possible to say it"s one of the Royal Capital"s specialties.
Every day I follow the man who lines up and eats at such a shop, and then goes back to the inn.

"… And well, that"s my impression"
"Thanks. I see… Curry… huh… Ah, Cain. Tomorrow I"m going to visit Ms. Delris"
"Ha? Granny? Why again"

As soon as I finished my report, Princess smoothly informed me.
Despite my surprise at how she suddenly brought it up, she said she"d already received the Crown Prince"s permission.
… I wonder if it"s related to the singer.
I"m not sure, but she"s visiting granny at this timing. Of course I"d be suspicious.
Just in case I tried asking.

"… Can I follow you?"
"Of course. Please escort me"

I would follow her even if she told me she doesn"t want it, but she must roughly understand her social position. When I offered to escort her, Princess readily accepted. Perhaps she really only wants to visit granny.
Shaking off the excessive concern, I asked about tomorrow"s detailed schedule.

The next day I called out to Princess who was preparing to go to granny as planned.
Since I"d hate if something happened to Princess, I"d gotten in touch with the Crown Prince.
I don"t regret it. Still, I feel guilty about keeping such an important thing from Princess, so I wanted to confess, even if it was just before going out.

"What?"

There"s no way she thinks I already have a connection with the Crown Prince. Looking into Princess"s eyes filled with trust, for some reason my voice got stuck and I couldn"t say anything.
Fortunately, I heard the escort knights call out to her, so I shook my head and ultimately let it go.

… It"s shameful. Afraid of what Princess could tell me, I can"t say it.

Still, just as I told Princess, let"s talk this evening.
I won"t fail the next time. I resolved myself to speak until tonight.
When I reconsidered so, just as planned I followed after Princess.
On the way, well-timed telepathic communication from the Crown Prince came.

"… Once you enter the town, I entrust Lidi to you"
"… I don"t need to be told that. It"s my job"

I returned so without hesitation, still it was conveyed to me that the Crown Prince is concerned about Princess from the bottom of his heart.
In truth he would like to lock her up in the depths of the Royal Palace, that Crown Prince is enduring it quite a bit. I guess he doesn"t do it despite his desire because he understands Princess"s feelings for him.
If he locked her up, those feelings would fade away.
I think he only allows her some degree of freedom because he"s confident Princess loves him.
Otherwise, I feel Princess would have long ago been placed under house arrest in the Crown Prince"s private room.
This is how much that Crown Prince loves Princess.
Princess too is aware she"s loved, but I wonder if she knows to what degree. I think it"d be better if Princess was slightly more aware that if by any chance she makes a mistake and steps on a landmine, she"s quite likely to be confined.

I walked through town while escorting Princess.
Princess looks used to going to granny"s house. There"s no hesitation in her behavior.
I patted my chest in relief that after all I had been needlessly concerned.
But, the action Princess took in the next moment took me aback.

… Without listening to me trying to stop her, she ran to the singer whom she met by chance.

Prince――――ss!!

I think it"s understandable that I wanted to cry.
Usually she"s cautious, so why is she like this when it matters. Unable to chase after Princess who vigorously dashed off, I gave up and moved to a position where it was easy to escort her.
Since I"d stuck to him for several days, I know this man is acting alone.
That"s why I don"t think he"ll do something strange, still I was at wits" end from her unexpected behavior.

Weren"t you going to granny!!

Despite being fl.u.s.tered by the sudden change of plans, I somehow moved to a position where I could pick up their voices and conveyed to Princess that I"m here.
Having noticed my figure, Princess showed a blatantly relieved face.

The-re-fore, if you"re going to make such a face, don"t act with such momentum from the beginning!

Really, Princess is… She"s too vigorous, once in a while I wonder if anybody else than me would be fit to be her escort. A half-hearted guy wouldn"t be able to keep up with Princess at all.
That Princess appealed with her eyes alone whether she can go together with that man.
Thinking about my circ.u.mstances alone, of course the answer is no.
However, I couldn"t tell Princess who was looking here with a serious face that she can"t, and ultimately she"s my master.
Fulfilling master"s desires above all is how Hiyuma are.
I resolved myself immediately.

… When push comes to shove, I"ll do something.

With that thought I nodded. With an obviously delighted face, Princess conveyed her thanks with only her eyes.
Really, you don"t have to worry so much about me.
No matter how many times I say that, Princess"s att.i.tude remains unchanged. Because she"s my master, it"s fine if she unashamedly orders me. If it"s master"s wish, no matter how unreasonable it is I would grant it.
Thinking that about now she"s probably bothered by her sudden action, I could only smile wryly.
I was amazed, but I wasn"t angry, if Princess found it necessary it"s fine.
I"ll support her with all my power.
It might not be possible for others, but it"s plenty possible for me to change the plan to match Princess"s actions.

Still――――.

It"s the situation where she"s alone with the man who may be the tactician.
Recalling the Crown Prince asking me to report if anything changes, I decided to report the current situation just in case.

… Let"s start with the conclusion. I wish I hadn"t told him.

As soon as I contacted the Crown Prince via telepathic communication telling him "Princess went to have a meal with the man who"s considered the tactician", I could tell he was furious by the voice he sent through telepathic communication.

"I"ll go at once. Tell me the place"
"… Look here, just in case I"m here. In the first place, don"t you have work…"

Before I could finish the sentence, my words were interrupted.

"Lidi will have a meal alone with a man, I can"t leave that alone. It"s necessary to confirm the current situation. Tell me where they"re going"

As he pressured me, I answered while sighing.

"You don"t really have to… It"s the curry shop Princess is the owner of"
"Got it. Wait behind it. I"m moving now"
"Ha? Behind? Did you say move? Oi"

The telepathic communication was broken off.
Hurriedly I went around to the back of the shop. Before, I"d checked on Princess, and the two of them were neatly lined up in front of the shop. It should still take them a while.
When I went to the designated place, a white magic formation was already s.h.i.+ning on the ground.

"Geh…"

I recognize this magic formation.
When I hurriedly tried to read the formula of the magic formation, I understood the formula of the return art was incorporated in it. Honestly, I have nothing but a bad feeling about this.
The magic formation"s light intensified, and before long a figure of a single man appeared.

"… Aah, he really came"

Seeing the figure of the man that I"d expected, I pressed down my forehead. Didn"t anybody stop him.
Who appeared was of course the Crown Prince of this country. Princess"s fiancé.
The moment he appeared, directing his gaze at me he sharply said.

"Lidi is?"
"… Lined up in the front"
"I see…"

I roughly explained the current situation to the man who nodded as if relieved a little.

"I think you understand, but don"t get in Princess"s way. It"s not like she"s cheating. Just watch the situation"
"… Yeah"

Seeing the unwillingness written on his face I sighed.
The flawless Crown Prince? Really, just who is that about.
I can only see him as just a man madly in love who"s swayed by a single woman.
I could only be amazed as I clearly understood he leapt here from the Royal Palace.
It looks like he at least changed his hair color, but he must"ve been in a great hurry. It doesn"t look like he had time to fuss about his appearance.

"… You"re absolutely unsuited for spying"

Even if he stands silently, he"s an eye-catching man. Fortunately, there"s n.o.body behind the shop right now, but I couldn"t hold back a sigh thinking of the attention he"ll receive when we go out.

"… What do you mean"
"You stand out. Good grief, please do something about standing out… You don"t want to be found by Princess, right?"
"Obviously… It"s fine if I remove my presence, right? There won"t be a problem"
"ah!"

The moment the Crown Prince said that, his presence disappeared.
Unconsciously I gasped.
The Crown Prince stood before my eyes all the same. Despite that, what"s with this thin presence.
It"s become thin like a stone on the roadside.
Even a trained a.s.sa.s.sin wouldn"t be able to do this. As the man erased his presence in the twinkling of an eye, a groan escaped me.

"… I take back what I just said. You"re amazing. You eat Sahaja guilds for a breakfast"

When I praised him, the Crown Prince loosened his mouth just a little.

"… Why yes, thank you. I will take it as a compliment"

I"m really glad I don"t have to go against him. I feel I absolutely wouldn"t be able to directly defeat him one-on-one. He"s more of a cheat than I"ve heard.
After breathing out, I once again looked at the man.

"Whatever, I give up… And? What was that magical art. It"s the first time I see it"

When I tried asking about the true nature of the magical art just now that I was curious about, I easily received an answer.

"Aah, it"s one of my original magical arts, it"s like an application of the return art. Multiple transfer points can be set. Just in case I set it here when I came with Lidi before… And it seems I was right"
"… I see"

As the man smoothly confessed it was his original magical art, my shock went beyond surprise.
An application of the return art!
The return art is useful, but conversely it has various drawbacks. The biggest among them is that one can only set one transfer point. The face of the man, who easily informed me that he overcame that, looked like it was not a big deal. If this magical art spread, the common sense regarding magical arts would change. That"s how impossible the magical art he described is. But, the Crown Prince denied it with a difficult face.

"It"s impossible. Despite being a magical art, it consumes too much magical power. It"d be difficult without at least magical power on Will"s level. The practicality is zero"
"…"

I didn"t feel like saying anything to this man who said he has excessive magical power.
Wilhelm"s royalty is more out of the norm than I thought.
Of course, it"s called the continent"s strongest nation, thinking so my look turned distant.
I"ve heard gossip from Princess so I"ve thought he"s quite out of the norm, but this goes beyond my expectations.
Even though we"d only known each other for a little while, my jaw already dropped from the astounding information.

"… What do I say, yup, I think Princess and you are well-matched"

… In various ways.
The moment it left my mouth, the Crown Prince nodded his head to affirm.

"Obviously"
"…"

I won"t tell that to anyone, but I think that perhaps the couple of Princess and the Crown Prince is the strongest in every single way.