* * *
“You’re not the type to be that irresponsible, so I’ve never thought about it.”
“That’s why I said if. A ‘what if.’”
“……”
“What if?”
The more someone avoids answering, the more you want to dig.
I closed the book I hadn’t been reading and set it aside.
Klen let out a quiet sigh and looked like he was thinking deeply—then frowned.
“The oath hasn’t been fully completed yet. Wouldn’t it affect the other two?”
‘Well… that’s true.’
It was a difficult answer to respond to.
I asked what he would do, and this wasn’t really an answer to that.
He was only talking about the consequences of my escape, not his own reaction.
And somehow, it sounded like once the oath was complete, he’d let me go without stopping me.
‘So he is just too lazy to act, huh?’
It was a bit disappointing that he dodged the question.
Not that I was hurt by it.
There was no reason to be.
Just as the attendants had never fully grasped his true nature despite being by his side for so long, they didn’t truly understand him.
In the end, there was nothing for them to worry about.
As if reading my thoughts, Klen smiled.
And the atmosphere around him subtly shifted.
“And first, I’d have to punish the attendants for failing to stop you.”
“…?!”
Klen’s eyes suddenly emitted a light unlike anything I’d seen before.
That glint vanished almost instantly, but it sent a chill straight down my spine.
Cold sweat trickled down my back.
My fingers, cold and stiff as if I’d been thrown into the middle of winter, clenched tightly.
Only then did some warmth return to my body.
“After that, I’d go find you.”
“……”
The stifling air in my lungs slowly eased.
‘He’d come find me?’
Seriously?
“Wouldn’t that be too much trouble? How would you even know where I went?”
“Why would it be troublesome to go bring back my wife?”
“…And if I really meant to run away?”
“I wouldn’t drag you back by force. If you like it there, I’d settle down with you.”
His arms tightened around my waist.
He buried his face against my stomach, which had nothing soft or comforting about it.
‘So if I ran away… he’d follow me.’
I used to think he’d never bother to move, simply because it was too much effort.
But now, that felt like a distant memory.
If someone like him decided to chase after me, I knew he wouldn’t stop until he found me.
But instead of dragging me back, he’d be willing to stay by my side.
Living with Klen in some quiet village didn’t sound too bad.
Even if he hated hassle, he always did what needed to be done.
‘But… how do I sleep like this?’
It’s not like I’ve never fallen asleep sitting before, but never in this position.
Should I push him off?
But my hand, instead of landing on his shoulder, ended up resting atop his red hair.
I gently stroked it.
The soft strands tangled around my fingers felt unexpectedly nice.
“……”
For a while, I focused solely on stroking his hair.
He clearly wasn’t asleep yet.
And yet, Klen remained completely still, eyes closed.
In the end, the predicted confrontation—storming the West Tower with Levatein in hand—never happened.
It had already been several days since I stayed put, going nowhere and behaving myself.
Clack!
All I did was try to stab a piece of meat, but the fork hit the plate with a sharp sound.
Unlike last time, I must’ve misjudged the force.
That sound… the plate was definitely cracked.
“Please calm down.”
Linda, standing beside me, poured cool water into a glass I had already emptied.
I chugged it down immediately.
The chill spread from my throat all the way up to my scalp.
All the attendants around me were now hyper-aware, their focus entirely on me.
But it wasn’t because someone delicate like me had cracked a plate.
Even a child could break a dish like this.
“Lord Adrian.”
“What?”
“I believe… something urgent must have come up.”
“……”
There was only one reason they were treating me so carefully.
Klen, who left yesterday morning saying he had business, hadn’t returned since.
Over a full day had passed—and then some.
Ever since we started sharing a room, he’d sometimes come back late, but he’d always returned before bed.
This was the first time he hadn’t come back at all—without even a message.
As his partner, wasn’t this a perfectly acceptable reason to be upset?
“……”
I chewed slowly on the meat I had stabbed earlier.
I believed there wouldn’t be any other problems, but this was a full-on, unannounced overnight absence.
If something had happened to him, I would’ve been the first to know.
But more than anything, the fact that we lived in the same castle and yet he hadn’t sent even a single message—it was utterly outrageous.
“Is he working while sleeping or something?”
There should be a limit to how much one can exploit another person.
My anger inevitably turned toward Lord Fabian.
Time passed, dusk settled, and evening arrived.
My patience, which had been wearing thin, finally ran dry.
At this point, regardless of the reason, hadn’t I earned the right to show my irritation directly?
I sat tapping on the table anxiously before suddenly springing to my feet.
“I’m going to see Lord Fabian.”
“Pardon? At this hour? Without any notice?”
“Get ready. Now.”
So what if it was already late?
Whether it was early morning, the middle of the night, whether we were alone or bumped into each other in the large shared baths of the castle—none of it mattered.
We weren’t in a relationship where such things should be awkward.
Visiting at this hour might be considered rude, but it wasn’t forbidden.
He himself had summoned Klen at late hours, and wasn’t he still making him work now?
I had more than enough to say.
“Understood.”
My voice came out colder than usual, and the attendants, unable to object, hurried to prepare.
I didn’t have the energy to feign any delicate image.
I changed clothes, strapped Levatein to my waist, and walked with a heavy, unyielding stride—even I could feel the weight in my steps.
The knights I passed fixed their eyes on me.
Their nervous glances, marked by dry swallows, held tension.
Sensing the grim air as I strode with a sword at my side, several even looked like they wanted to follow.
But Vis gave a rough signal and drove them off with a glance.
Before long, I arrived at Lord Fabian’s office.
The guard at the door quickly bowed and cautiously looked my way.
“I have business with Lord Fabian Valuncio.”
“Y-Yes! I-I’ll inform him at once!”
He rushed inside.
Through the slightly opened and quickly closed door, I couldn’t see who was inside. I only knew it was quiet—unnervingly so.
Not a single voice could be heard.
Within seconds, the guard returned.
Unlike me, he must have seen inside through the crack in the door.
Or perhaps… they had already anticipated my arrival.
“He says you may enter.”
Permission to enter was within expectations.
I told Vis to wait outside and stepped in.
The first thing I saw was Lord Fabian seated at his large black desk, eyes turned toward me.
But Klen, who I’d assumed would be with him, was nowhere to be seen.
It was just Lord Fabian and me—and his knight, Neser.
Their gazes met mine calmly.
But in Fabian’s eyes, there was a faint, unreadable guilt.
No… guilt, or perhaps regret?
Either way, it was a look as if he had wronged me.
“It’s alright. Just wait.”
“What do you mean…?”
“It’s concern for your fragile state. If you keep pushing yourself this late, you’ll collapse. Wouldn’t it be better to return to your room?”
“…”
Rude of him to cut me off. I glared at Neser.
I had thought he’d been rather quiet lately.
So he still disapproved of me?
* * *
