Time passed.Not loudly. Not in ways that demanded attention.It moved the way wind does through an open corridor—unnoticed until you realize something has changed.
The days after our arrival at the palace blurred into one another. Training resumed, as it always did, because stopping had never been an option for me. Morning drills in the outer yard. Evening practice until my arms burned and my breath turned shallow. The body remembered faster than the mind ever could.
At first, eyes followed me everywhere. Guards stiffened when I passed. Servants hesitated before speaking. Nobles measured every word, every bow, every glance. It wasn't fear exactly—but it wasn't comfort either.
Then, slowly, that too faded.
People began walking normally again. Conversations resumed when I entered a room instead of stopping. Laughter returned, hesitant at first, then genuine. I became… present, rather than observed. Not invisible. Just accepted.
Normal.
I wasn't sure when it happened. There was no clear line where things changed. Only the realization one evening that no one was watching me anymore—and that realization felt heavier than being watched ever had.
Amane noticed before I did.
"You've stopped flinching," he said casually one afternoon, leaning against a pillar while I wiped sweat from my face.
"I was flinching?" I asked.
He laughed. "See? That."
Alisa watched quietly from a distance, the way she always did. Her eyes didn't miss things. They never had. When our gazes met, she smiled—not proud, not relieved. Just calm. As if this outcome had been inevitable.
Training with them felt… different now. Less instruction. More expectation. They corrected less, observed more. When I made mistakes, they didn't step in immediately. When I succeeded, they didn't praise me. It was subtle, but unmistakable.
They were letting go.
The palace itself began to feel less like a cage of marble and more like a place people lived in. I memorized the timing of the guards' shifts. Learned which corridors were quiet at dawn. Discovered which courtyards caught the evening light just right. Familiarity replaced tension.
And through all of this, Tesselia remained… careful.
Not distant. Not cold. Just aware.
We spoke more than before, but rarely about anything important. Small exchanges. Shared silences. Occasional accidents—ones neither of us acknowledged beyond a glance or a muttered word. Whatever unease lingered between us didn't deepen, but it didn't disappear either. It simply existed, unspoken, like a thread stretched too tight to ignore.
Tomorrow was her birthday.
The thought surfaced unexpectedly, settling in my chest with quiet weight. A reminder that time had not stopped for anyone—not even her.
That evening, Amane and Alisa called me to their chambers. No formality. No guards. Just the three of us.
"You know," Amane said, arms crossed loosely, "we won't be stepping in much anymore."
I nodded. I already knew.
Alisa spoke next, her voice soft but unwavering. "You're a Count now. You have land. People. Responsibility."
Silence followed. Not uncomfortable. Just final.
"You won't fall under our wing like before," Amane added, not unkindly. "Not because you can't. But because you shouldn't."
I felt it then—not pressure, not fear—but something settling into place. Like armor fitted properly for the first time.
"I understand," I said.
And I did.
Later that night, alone, I stood by the palace window and looked out over the lights below. Somewhere within those walls, preparations were being made. Tomorrow would come whether anyone was ready or not.
Time had passed.And without realizing it, so had I.