* * *

The silence that followed stretched too long, and I started to feel anxious.

Then Jerome burst out laughing, his laughter echoing strangely through the room, almost unsettling.

He wiped a tear from his eye, catching his breath before checking the teapot.

“Sorry, sorry. You’re just too cute.”

“…”

“Perfectly steeped. Here, drink.”

He poured the milk tea into my cup, and I took a sip, letting the warmth soothe my sore throat.

Lost in the comfort of the tea, I nearly forgot the question I’d asked him.

Then he dropped another bomb that made me choke.

“Would you like to be engaged? To me.”

I glanced at him, confused.

He looked like someone casually suggesting lunch rather than proposing an engagement.

He propped his chin up with a faint smile.

“I’m the only one who knows your secret. You could use me, you know. It’d be an excuse to refuse the Imperial family’s proposal.”

“…”

“So, naturally, I thought you’d suggest it first. But instead, you ask me an adorable question and make me laugh. That’s why I knew you were perfect for me.”

I gave him a long, hard look.

Sure, using Jerome, who knew my secret, made sense.

But that wasn’t the answer I was looking for.

“That doesn’t answer whether or not you actually like me.”

At my cold response, the laughter faded from Jerome’s face. Tapping his fingers on the table, he replied evenly.

“I’m different from you. I don’t feel the romantic attachment you’re hoping for. My feelings are closer to… desire, ownership, maybe curiosity.”

“Curiosity?”

“Yes, curiosity.”

Jerome swirled his teacup, a slight smirk curling on his lips, and I felt an irritation rise as he held up a single pinky finger, motioning for me to go on.

With surprising patience, he elaborated.

“When you observe people from afar, they each seem unique. But up close, they fall into predictable patterns. I trained myself from a young age to recognize them.”

“…”

“So after a few words, I can tell what a person will do next, what twisted secrets they hide, even what they’re lacking. It’s not something I even have to try to see.”

Jerome’s words were flat, devoid of exaggeration, but an inexplicable chill ran through me.

He continued speaking without a hint of expression, then slowly lifted his gaze.

“But you always defy my expectations.”

I instinctively flinched as Jerome reached toward my face, brushing away a crumb near my mouth.

Then, as casually as before, he leaned back into his chair.

“That’s something unique and entertaining to me. You keep things interesting. So I enjoy being with you. I don’t want to lose that—I want to treat you well.”

“…”

“But it’s probably not the kind of affection you’re thinking of.”

In other words, Jerome didn’t feel affection for me.

From the start, he wasn’t capable of such emotions.

To him, I was merely an unpredictable toy.

I suppose it made sense—someone who would annihilate a village to summon a demon couldn’t possibly feel love for just one person.

Jerome, now reading his newspaper, posed a question.

“Disappointed it wasn’t a love confession?”

“No, actually, it made you seem a bit more trustworthy. If you proposed an engagement just for gain, you would have lied about loving me—but you didn’t.”

“…”

“So, whether it succeeds or fails, this engagement brings you no benefit. Now that I know it’s not some dubious scheme, that’s enough.”

Jerome folded his newspaper in half and scoffed.

“You were testing me all along?”

“This is a matter of life and death for me.”

Our gazes locked intensely before Jerome turned back to his paper, sighing with mock regret.

“I was hoping you’d whine about why I don’t love you.”

“Let’s go ahead with the engagement. I’ll inform the Duke as soon as we return to the capital.”

“No, it would be better if I were the one who seemed desperate. Just act like you’re reluctantly obeying your father’s orders. Don’t forget to lock yourself in your room for a few days and pretend to cry.”

Though the engagement was progressing rather unremarkably, I couldn’t ignore how much it worked in my favor.

The Duke, who valued reputation above life itself, would be eager to align with the Howard family, and I’d have a reason to reject the imperial marriage proposal while keeping my secret safe.

Chewing on a piece of bread, I thought it was a good arrangement for me.

‘Strange, why does it taste so bland?’

Something rare and beneficial had finally happened, yet my appetite vanished.

Leaving the unfinished bread, I sipped my milk tea instead.

Jerome, flipping through the newspaper, murmured to himself.

“They still haven’t caught that serial killer. This country’s a mess.”

“A serial killer?”

“The so-called Black-Haired Witch.”

Ah, the one who only killed men.

It seemed the killer was still on the loose.

Jerome sighed deeply, his voice tinged with an eerie humor.

“Guess that means we’ll have to delay our family vacation.”

---

Back from the North, Luke went straight to the orphanage within the temple.

Today was the day of the reading event—a popular occasion where the Saint Revulin read fairy tales to the children.

With a child on his lap, Revulin read aloud in a gentle, affectionate voice.

“At the time when all despaired at the monster’s appearance, Maya appeared.”

The child on Revulin’s lap swallowed nervously, prompting him to laugh gently.

Looking around at the children gathered around him, he continued reading.

“Maya spoke to the warrior whose soul was corroding from the monster’s curse. ‘Oh, warrior adrift in the void, fear not.'”

Revulin caught Luke’s gaze and winked, and Luke gave a slight nod.

Urged by the impatient children, Revulin read the final line aloud.

“On the day you awaken to true love, a miracle shall surely be there…”

Thunderous applause ended the reading, and after thanking each child clinging to him, Revulin departed.

Sensing his cue, Luke quietly followed Revulin down the orphanage hallway.

Suddenly, Revulin stopped, his tone turning stern.

“I heard about the Parak incident.”

“…”

“What, exactly, were you doing while she was sealing away Parak?”

“I have no excuse.”

Revulin, back to his stern demeanor, clicked his tongue.

Staring out at the children playing on the lawn, he finally spoke.

“Well, it doesn’t matter. We can always come up with a reason to impose punishment.”

Revulin’s words stirred a rare flicker of emotion in Luke’s otherwise steady gaze.

He bit his lip in contemplation and then blocked Revulin’s path.

“Lady Jeanne played a crucial role in sealing Parak. Without her, many guild members would have lost their lives.”

“…”

“I’d ask that you reconsider any punishment.”

Luke had always been indifferent toward Jeanne.

From the rumors circulating in high society, he thought he understood her character.

But that day, she had shown wisdom and bravery surpassing even that of the heroes.

This only left him feeling more conflicted.

‘It would have been easier if she had remained an annoyance…’

Luke held some leniency toward selfless people.

It was one of the reasons he liked Carlisle.

To him, a hero was someone who saved others at great personal sacrifice.

Watching Jeanne risk her life to lure Parak, he felt conflicting emotions.

He didn’t want to know anything about Jeanne, but ever since the archery contest, he couldn’t suppress a budding interest in her.

He realized that after witnessing her actions, he could no longer despise her as he once did.

Though he still found her irritating, he felt he couldn’t kill someone so selfless through underhanded means.

Clenching his fist, Luke sighed.

Revulin, watching him with curiosity, raised an eyebrow.

“What are you saying? Don’t tell me you’ve taken an interest in that woman?”

“No, it’s not like that.”

“Don’t be embarrassed. She’s rather easy on the eyes. But Luke, remember—you have a duty that far surpasses her.”

Even as Revulin taunted him, Luke remained silent.

He had always punished the wicked and encouraged the good.

To him, the Sacreans who destroyed his hometown were inherently evil.

But if Jeanne was genuinely good, killing her would taint his sense of justice.

Justice could not be served by killing the innocent.

‘What is it that I want from Jeanne?’

A shadow flickered across Luke’s face.

Since his loss in the archery contest, she had lingered in his mind.

He kept thinking that if he had a rematch, he might truly win this time.

Jeanne was all he could think about.

“Luke, are you listening to me?”

Revulin grabbed Luke’s shoulder, snapping him back.

“Yes?”

“We proceed as planned.”

“…”

“Don’t let meaningless feelings ruin this. You haven’t forgotten that Aileen’s future depends on you.”

Luke’s lips parted slightly.

In the sunlight, he saw the children from Aileen running freely across the grass. Revulin was right.

He had no time for trivial emotions now.

After a long silence, Luke nodded.

“Understood.”

For a fleeting moment, hesitation glinted in Luke’s eyes.

* * *