Iver's Mental Therapy

Iver slept surprisingly soundly.

Although he knew he might be attacked tonight, he was incredibly relaxed. He wasn't finally woken up by Lily until 5 a. m.

When he woke up groggily, he found himself sleeping in an unfamiliar bed.

Iver was startled and regained his composure slightly. He looked around and realized that this was Isabel's room.

Only then did he see that Isabel was wearing a simple white dress, curled up on the sofa, fast asleep. In a blur, she looked like a little white puppy curled up in a ball.

Why is Your Princess sleeping on the sofa today?

Iver thought to himself.

Oh right, I think I slept in her bed... Did I push her out? I'm a pretty quiet sleeper, right...?

... Ah, I remember now. I was teleported here by Master Agnes.

As he continued thinking, Iver's brain gradually started working.

"Such a smooth teleportation, I didn't feel a thing... As expected of Yanis..."

Iver murmured to himself, then Lily helped him sit up. She picked up a cup of warm honey water and fed it to Iver slowly. After drinking the warm water, Iver gradually regained consciousness.

Has Ms. Meg returned?

That was his first thought. After all, it was something he had agreed upon with Meg beforehand.

Otherwise, Lily wouldn't have woken her up at this hour.

Upon hearing this, Lily nodded. "Yes, I'll wait next door."

"... Did you bring my clothes?"

Iver looked down at his clothes, somewhat troubled.

It wasn't that his clothes weren't presentable—unlike Isabel's simple white pleated skirt, Iver wore pure white Fox Fur Pajamas. These were Iver's favorite pajamas, and also a New Year's gift from his adoptive father last year.

Not only is it expensive, but it's also extremely rare... after all, white Fox are seldom seen in Avalon. Many knights' formal attire doesn't even come close to the prestige of Iver's pajamas.

... Iver's main concern was that if others saw him appearing in Princess Isabel's bedroom in his pajamas and the news got out, it might negatively impact her reputation.

After all, such a grand ceremony couldn't be held in a side hall or bedroom; they always had to go to the Ritual Room. Although the Moriarty Manor didn't have a dedicated Ritual Room, the Silver and Tin Palace had everything.

"Obviously not."

Lily shook her head.

Iver asked, "Could you ask Master Agnes to send me back so I can take a shower, change my clothes, and come back later?"

Lily added in more detail, "I'm afraid we can't take a shower anymore. The second floor of 14 Ronin Street has been basically demolished and will have to be repaired. We probably have a lot of personal belongings and other things damaged as well... Someone reported this three hours ago, and the Bureau of Supervision should be collecting evidence now. They'll give us a list later."

The implication is that you shouldn't go back and cause trouble.

"... With the walls reinforced by a preservationist, could the aftershocks of a battle still damage the house?"

Iver was immediately shocked.

Judging from Meg's words, at least Yanis and Meg went to stake out yesterday. The Grand Guardian might have gone too... that makes three Fifth Level. Who could possibly demolish his home in front of three Fifth Level? There aren't many hostile Fifth Level near Glass Island, are there? Did the leader of the Noble Red come in person? That's unlikely... Of course, if it were true, that would be wonderful.

Or is it that Bone Carver whose name I can't quite remember?

Iver remembered that Sherlock had checked the other person's identity. The report indicated that he was also a master of the Path of Beauty, a prominent figure from the Iris Flower Kingdom.

If it were him, she shouldn't have offended him. However, if he came from the Iris organization... could he be a member of the Hawkeye Organization? Was he that Assassin Miss's superior? Nevertheless, Iver accepted the situation.

He could only blame himself for being unprepared and underestimating the enemy—if he had known it was such a formidable foe, he should have told Lily to take the important items with her when she left.

But if 14 Ronin Street is being renovated... where will I stay during this time?

Why don't we go find Ms. Mina? Since Sherlock is alive now, we can just send him off to be "resurrected" and take that guest room ourselves...

While Iver was lost in thought, Isabel was awakened by the sound of the two of them chatting.

Noticing that he was being watched, Iver turned around and saw Isabel lying on the sofa, quietly watching him.

Iver was neither shy nor reserved; he simply smiled and greeted her, "Good morning, Isabel."

"...Good morning."

Isabel's voice was a little hoarse, and she seemed listless, clearly having slept poorly. Although it was unclear what time she went to sleep, given that Iver had managed to kick her out, it must have been at least after Iver had been teleported over.

Lily immediately brought over honey water. Isabel didn't ring the bell to call her personal maid—in fact, before Iver arrived, Isabel's maid had already been sent to the next room.

"Sorry, Isabel. I took your bed."

"Iver said softly."

"It's okay... I've already taken the day off."

Isabel simply shook her head gently—because she hadn't slept well last night. Shaking her head too hard would give her a headache.

She was excited for the first half of the night, and then chatted quietly with Lily for the second half. She didn't fall asleep until almost 3 a. m., and had only slept for two hours so far.

She looked at Lily with some confusion. "You didn't sleep well either, Lily. But now you..."

"Just take a nap when you have time."

Lily shook her head. "Personal servants can't sleep too soundly, otherwise it will be troublesome if they can't reach their master when the master is in danger or has an emergency. So our sleep time at night is usually short, and we usually catch up on sleep during the day."

"... But that's not good for your health."

Isabel looked at Lily with some concern in her eyes.

Lily just smiled and said, "It's okay, I'm used to it."

Hearing Lily's words, she also thought of her personal maid.

She could tell that Iver and Lily had a close relationship and often went out or ate together.

But Isabel's relationship with her maid wasn't so good... Her maid was mainly responsible for tidying Isabel's bedroom and personal clothing, bringing her breakfast, and doing chores like dressing and grooming. She was devoted and impeccably polite.

Lily was able to become Iver's friend, but Isabel's maid treated her with the same rationality and distance she showed to a worker.

That's normal, since Iver only has one personal maid. But every year and a half, Isabel's personal maid and servants are all replaced... She herself doesn't even know who the latest one is or what her last name is.

"If I treat the maid a little better, will she be willing to become my friend?" This thought popped into Isabel's mind.

But that probably won't work. It might cause her to lose her job.

Although Isabel didn't know much about politics, she did know this—he was responsible for preventing members of the royal family from developing feelings for court servants and for preventing anyone from indirectly controlling the royal family by influencing servants. This was the responsibility of the Minister of Royal Affairs, and His Excellency Mycroft had done his job diligently.

... While she knew and understood, she still felt a deep envy for the close, open relationship Iver and Lily.

Lily had mentioned to her earlier conversation that Iver would tell her all his secrets. Some of these secrets, however, couldn't be told to Isabel because Iver had asked her to keep them.

This even made her a little jealous—partly because she was jealous that Iver had such a trustworthy friend, and partly because she was jealous that Lily was trusted so much by Iver.

Don't get used to it.

Iver yawned and casually said, "Long-term sleep deprivation is bad for your health... Come here and let me pat your head. Lie down on the bed... Isabel, are you alright?"

"... Ah, it's okay."

Isabel paused for a moment before realizing that Iver was asking her, and then hurriedly replied.

She watched all of this intently.

Lily walked to Iver's side, lay down on her back on the edge of the bed, and put her head on Iver's lap.

"Close your eyes."

Iver spoke softly, his left hand rested gently on Lily's forehead, radiating a warm light.

His right hand was also glowing— Iver's fingertips traced a path from Lily's collarbone down to her heart, then to her stomach, liver, and kidneys, examining her condition. He then placed his right hand on Lily's chest for a second.

The treatment lasted less than ten seconds before the light faded.

Lily immediately perked up, and her eyes lit up again.

"Your liver and kidneys weren't in good condition, but I've healed them. Your energy has also been replenished... but you still can't rely too much on the Illumination Spell. How about I give you a day off tomorrow?"

"Half a day, young master. Who will take care of you if it's a whole day?"

Lily said with a smile.

Isabel, standing to the side, widened her eyes.

She wanted to say it, but was too embarrassed to. And she didn't really dare to.

—This seems far too intimate! Iver looked at her thoughtfully.

He quickly understood Isabel's thoughts and waved to her with a smile, "Want to give it a try? You'll wake up instantly."

"... Ms. Meg is still waiting, isn't she?"

Isabel spoke hesitantly, but she stood up from the sofa and slowly shuffled over.

"Very soon."

Iver smiled gently, "Trust my skills."

"Waaah..."

Isabel looked somewhat shy and resistant. But she didn't say anything; she simply climbed carefully onto her bed and gently lay down next to Iver's lap.