* * *
“It was a multi-headed rat-type monster. It’s been dealt with, so there’s no need to worry.”
“Thank you, Your Majesty.”
“Thank the Tower Master.”
Ateol smoothly redirected the credit to me.
Honestly, I wish he’d just kept taking the spotlight. I hate being the center of attention.
I stood with my arms crossed and just gave a small nod.
That was enough for Caleus, the mayor, and everyone present to drop to their knees again.
That was the second time today.
The mayor offered to prepare a dinner banquet, but I declined and returned to the imperial palace.
I sent Siwoo back to the palace and headed toward the Magic Tower—Ateol, of course, followed like it was only natural.
We stopped in front of the labyrinth, and he halted beside me.
“Why?”
“What do you mean, ‘why’?”
“Why are you following me?”
“Hm… I heard an interesting rumor from Caleus.”
“What kind of rumor?”
Ateol clasped his hands behind his back, leaned in, and whispered into my ear.
“They say a strange rumor is going around lately.”
“Don’t drag it out.”
“They’re saying, ‘The current Tower Master is a fake.’”
“…”
“This incident should quiet things down in the Riteva region, at least.”
Seeing my expression harden, Ateol straightened up and added:
“We should track down the source of the rumor, shouldn’t we?”
“…Yeah. We should. No—”
I almost agreed without thinking but quickly shook my head.
Ateol tilted his head slightly, as if to say, “Then what?”
“Is there really any need to do that? It’s true, after all. I just have to disappear, right?”
I muttered just loud enough for only Ateol to hear.
“Well, I don’t think that’s a very good idea.”
“Why are you so obsessed with me anyway? I’m fake.”
Wow, that line was straight out of a novel.
To say something that sounds like it came from a novel while being in one—what a trip.
But Ateol didn’t seem to think anything of it (of course, he’s a character in a novel).
He just shrugged and replied.
“Watching you makes me anxious.”
“…….”
“How should I put this… It’s like climbing thousands of steps and stopping just one step from the top because something’s blocking the way—you can’t go forward or back.”
“What the hell does that mean?”
I asked, baffled. Ateol chuckled.
“It just means you frustrate me. Isn’t that odd? Still… are you really not going to let me in? Even if I said I’ll stand here until you do?”
It wasn’t just odd—it was abnormally odd.
His red eyes were clear, but there was a glint of madness in them.
Overwhelmed by his energy, I ended up letting Ateol into the bedroom.
Before the door even fully closed, he warned Cloden not to enter, locked the doorknob, and pushed me against the door—kissing me.
“…What the hell are you doing!”
“Trying to seduce you. Starting now.”
“You think that’s gonna work?! D-Don’t…!”
Ateol laughed and slipped his hand inside my robe.
And… well, he was somewhat successful.
I woke up at dawn, dumbfounded.
I kicked Ateol out of the bed while he was still asleep and lay back down, fuming.
“Okay, okay, I won’t run, I won’t run away. Please. Please, I’m begging you…”
“…….”
The words I had said came rushing back, and my face flushed.
I wanted to kick something—no, someone.
I kicked the blanket off the bed and, after a moment of emptiness, picked it back up while wishing I could erase what happened a few hours ago from my memory.
Or at least, if I can’t erase mine, could I please erase Ateol’s?
I mean, I should’ve at least not said I wanted more.
No, wait, that part was still forgivable.
But the line that came after—ugh.
“Aaaaaagh.”
Face buried in the pillow, I let out a small scream and thrashed around.
I kicked the blanket again and forced myself to fall back asleep.
Maybe because I struggled so much to sleep, I ended up dreaming something intense.
Ateol showed up in it.
We were at that fruit farm we’d visited once before.
As usual, I didn’t want to mingle with people, so I sat on a hill watching the farm.
Ateol sat next to me and handed me some raspberries.
I could taste the sourness so clearly, even though it was just a dream.
Isn’t it normal not to taste food in dreams?
“You have some too.”
“Sure.”
I offered the raspberries to Ateol, surprisingly kindly.
He didn’t refuse and popped one of the red, soft berries into his mouth.
Maybe it was too sour, because he scrunched his eyebrows a bit.
Dream-me thought that was… cute.
I even waved him closer and kissed his cheek.
Even in a dream, I wondered what the hell am I doing?
Suddenly, the sky started to darken.
“Huh, I didn’t think it would rain.”
“This season’s weather is always unpredictable.”
We hadn’t prepared for rain at all.
The knights and attendants were all far off, too far to call over.
Then, raindrops started to fall.
Ateol lifted his cloak over my head—even though he was getting wet himself.
I laughed and pushed his arm away.
The feeling of rain hitting my hair and cheeks wasn’t bad.
“Sometimes, getting caught in the rain’s not so bad.”
“Well… as long as you don’t catch a cold, I suppose.”
“You really ruin the mood when you say it like that.”
It was the perfect kind of rain—not too heavy.
As I watched people rushing about, scrambling to cover things, I also noticed the pale green leaves and the red berries soaking in the rain.
The sound of the rain falling was like music.
Ateol looked at me for a moment, then slowly leaned in.
Our wet lips touched. I didn’t pull away—I welcomed the kiss.
As our heads tilted slightly and the kiss deepened, rain streamed down my temples, nose, and cheeks.
The rain cooled our bodies, which had felt a little too warm under our robes.
Then, all of a sudden, the rain started pouring hard.
We pulled apart at the same time, eyes wide.
Soon, it was raining so hard we could barely keep our eyes open.
I burst out laughing and grabbed Ateol’s hand without even bothering to pull my hood up.
He smiled faintly and held on tight as we ran.
The temple wasn’t far.
The temple’s main waiting room was packed with people trying to escape the rain.
We peeked in, then slipped into one of the smaller side rooms to avoid the crowd.
Thankfully, it was empty.
There were towels and a heater provided for those seeking shelter.
We dried off and sat across from each other with the heater between us.
We were both pressing towels against our hair when our eyes met, and we both laughed like kids.
“Tower Master… Yuri.”
“Yeah?”
“Do you think… memories like this don’t fade, even with time?”
Ateol asked with a gentle voice, and I smiled.
“I guess… it depends on how much you love.”
“…….”
Pfft. What kind of dream even is this?
A coming-of-age romance movie?
I can name at least ten movies, dramas, or novels with scenes this fresh and sweet.
* * *
