Chapter 379 : A Birthday Without Memories (4)

Alon Palatio had lost all memories from the past thirteen years.

In other words, Alon had no idea what kind of experiences he had gone through during that time.

Even though Penia Crycine had explained the general map of his human relationships, it was only information — nothing more.

And in that sense, it could be said that Alon’s confusion was accelerating beyond control.

He stared blankly downward.

There—was a marriage certificate, stained here and there, as if quite some time had passed.

When he lifted his gaze again, he saw the beastwoman Seolrang smiling brightly at him, her eyes sparkling excessively as if brimming with expectation.

‘…I was going to get married?’

Alon looked back and forth between the marriage certificate and Seolrang.

Of course, as someone who had lost his memories, he didn’t have any particular objection to the idea of marrying her.

After all, his current state was merely one of suppressed memory — given time, his original memories would surely return.

Besides, from what he could see, Seolrang was quite beautiful.

He had only seen her face for a few minutes, but her lively energy was undeniably attractive.

Moreover, even with his limited common sense, he could tell one thing.

At his current age, marriage proposals were not unusual.

In fact, considering the norms of this world, it could even be considered rather late.

So, in every respect, the existence of this marriage certificate wasn’t all that strange.

Still, despite that, the fact that it existed at all was undeniably startling.

Part of him wanted to blurt out, “Huh? Me? Getting married?” right then and there.

And he did have his reasons for wanting to ask that.

Alon stared straight at Seolrang.

She kept her cheerful smile, but her gaze drifted slightly to the side.

That alone was the kind of behavior one would expect from someone hiding something.

Unfortunately, Alon couldn’t ask.

To question her would be the same as openly admitting that he had lost his memories.

So, for a while, he simply stared in confusion at the marriage certificate and at Seolrang.

Then—scratch, scratch— he quietly signed the right-hand side of the marriage certificate.

He used the signature Penia had taught him, the one his current self used.

And then—

“Huh?”

As soon as Alon signed the paper, the smile on Seolrang’s face froze, and she made a strange sound.

“?”

Alon blinked, puzzled, but handed the signed document to her anyway.

Seolrang took it, stared blankly at it for a long moment, and then looked up at him.

“?”

She didn’t say anything, but her expression was full of bewilderment.

Naturally, Alon was equally confused by her sudden change in demeanor.

“?”

“??”

“???”

“????”

The exchange of question marks filled the office with awkward silence.

Neither knew how to speak first.

“Uh… why? What’s wrong?” Alon asked.

“Ah… uh—”

Seolrang looked between the certificate and his face, dazed, before finally trying to snap back to reality.

But she soon fell back into a trance.

Step… step…

Then she turned around and walked straight out of the office, eyes fixed on the paper.

“Seolrang?”

Alon called out to her.

But she drifted away like a ghost, as though hypnotized by a single sheet of paper.

Click.

Watching her disappear, Alon could only mutter inwardly.

‘What… was that?’

He felt nothing but dazed confusion.

***

Some time later, by noon, Alon had met three people in total.

The first was Nangwon — and at the sight of him, Alon nearly gasped.

In the game’s visuals, the man had easily ranked number one on the “ugliest in Psychedelia” list.

Yet the real Nangwon standing before him could easily rival a playable character like Eliban in appearance.

At that moment, Alon realized how much a person’s life choices could shape their image.

The next person he met was Radan.

This time too, Alon was first taken aback by his handsome looks — and then even more so by the “Sea King’s Pair” he brought along.

The thing was massive, nearly as large as the entrance to the outer fortress and the Marquis’ estate.

But what shocked him the most—was realizing that the cute creature that used to play by the pond in the Marquis’ garden, the one that would wag affectionately whenever he sat by the water, had been that monstrous beast all along.

Normally, Alon only saw it playing with Blackie and Basiliora by the pond whenever they were bored.

And lastly, the third person he met was Historia.

With her usual blank expression, she gently wrapped her arms around his waist and whispered, “Happy birthday.”

Then she handed him a ring and vanished like the wind.

In a way, since the conversation hadn’t lasted long, she was the easiest person to deal with — especially for someone trying to hide the fact that he’d lost his memory.

“Phew…”

“You look exhausted, my lord,” said Evan, who knew Alon’s current condition.

“Well, yeah. Pretending to know things you don’t is hard work.”

“Still, haven’t you managed pretty well so far?”

“…Maybe.”

Alon thought back on everything that had happened so far.

He supposed he’d done a decent job handling things.

“Oh, that reminds me—”

He was about to ask about Seolrang’s gift when he suddenly fixed his gaze on Evan’s face.

“My lord? Why are you staring holes through me all of a sudden?”

“Oh, it’s nothing~”

“?”

“It’s just… you’ve gotten a little older, haven’t you?”

“My lord, it’s been thirteen years. If I hadn’t aged, that would be the real problem.”

“True. Still, it’s strange, you know… For me, it feels like it all changed overnight.”

Evan gave him a mildly awkward look.

“Well—yeah, you’ve definitely aged quite a bit.”

“…Are you done talking?”

“Yes.”

“You think you’re not aging?”

“Hmm… at least not as much as someone I know.”

And right on cue, Penia cut in without hesitation.

As if on cue, the two began hurling sharp-tongued remarks at each other.

It was a sight Alon had already grown used to, having witnessed it several times since losing his memories.

After some time of casually watching Penia and Evan bicker while making do with snacks for lunch, Alon cleared his throat, intending to mediate — and to ask a question.

“How many more people am I supposed to meet today?”

“Hmm— I’ve already taken care of most of the nobles myself, so let’s see… probably four more, give or take. If we count just the ones who said they’d drop by. Right, Evan?”

“Yeah, that sounds about right.”

Evan nodded, then suddenly added as if he had just remembered something.

“Oh, now that I think about it, one of them should be arriving any moment.”

“Who?”

“Magrina.”

“Ah, her?”

Alon asked, having caught the name mentioned in their exchange.

“Magrina… as in the Elf Queen?”

“Yes. She should be here soon.”

“...I didn’t say anything last time, but is it really fine for the Elf Queen to just wander around so freely?”

“Well— I think so too, honestly.”

At Evan’s agreement, Alon gave a conflicted expression.

The Elf Queen, Magrina.

Alon didn’t really know much about her.

All he had were faint traces of a memory — that she appeared in the game’s DLC — along with Penia’s brief explanation.

“Are you worried?” Penia asked.

“...A little?”

When Alon replied that way, she smiled as if to reassure him.

“Don’t worry too much. She’s not the weird type. She won’t give you any trouble.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

At Penia’s confident tone, Alon quietly sighed in relief.

***

Later that afternoon, just as Evan had said, Alon came face to face with Magrina.

And once again—he couldn’t help but be momentarily awestruck.

It was because of Magrina’s beauty.

Of course, Alon had been curious ever since hearing she was the Elf Queen.

In fantasy, elves were called the race of beauty — so naturally, he’d wondered just how stunning their queen would be.

But the woman before him far surpassed anything he had imagined.

He was left speechless for a second before regaining composure and playing his role.

“Magrina.”

“Yes, brother. I’m sorry I haven’t been able to visit.”

“It’s all right.”

Magrina smiled brightly at his words.

Seeing that, Alon had to agree with what Penia had said earlier.

Among all the people who had come to see him so far, she was the most composed and normal in her manner of conversation.

‘So that’s why Penia said she wasn’t the weird type.’

Not that everyone who had visited had been strange, but compared to ordinary people, their reactions tended to be… unusual.

Feeling slightly at ease, Alon relaxed as Magrina took a seat.

After watching him quietly for a moment, she cleared her throat and subtly pulled a glowing orb from her robes.

The orb hummed softly in her hands.

“?”

Alon blinked in mild confusion — then quickly realized what it was.

It was a magic orb with a recording function.

‘…Out of nowhere?’

While Alon was still processing the situation—

“Ahem… brother?” she called softly.

“What is it?”

“You’re not… calling me the way you usually do.”

“The way I usually do?”

“Yes— the way you always did.”

Magrina took a sip of water, her throat seeming a little dry after just a few words.

Then, with a shy, almost hesitant tone, she spoke again.

“You always called me… my lovely Magrina.”

Alon froze.

Without thinking, he answered her in the most polite, formal tone possible.

And at that exact moment—

Penia’s voice echoed in his head.

“Don’t worry too much. She’s not the weird type. She won’t make things difficult for you.”

“...Huh?”

‘Are you sure she’s not the weird one?’