* * *
“Ah…”
It dawned on him too late how his words, born of his own insecurities, might have struck Isa.
‘That’s not what I meant to say. I just wanted to postpone the conversation, that’s all.’
Kaindel bit the inside of his cheek hard—an unconscious act.
The sharp, metallic tang of blood filled his mouth, snapping him back to reality.
His heart pounded loudly, and worry crept over him as he looked at Isa.
The wounded expression on Isa’s face etched itself onto his mind’s eye.
‘Should I apologize?
But what should I even say?
That I didn’t know such an article would be published?
That I was shocked too?
That I’m sorry for letting him see this, but he needs to understand that I have to pretend to marry Kerelona?
Should I ask him to believe that everything I’ve done has been for him?’
None of the options that came to mind felt right.
There seemed to be no solution to fix this.
It was too late to plead innocence, and evading responsibility wasn’t an option either.
In the end, Kaindel could only open his mouth, then close it again without a word.
He left the room, overwhelmed by a weariness he thought he’d already shaken off.
It felt as though he might collapse into sleep the moment his eyes closed, but he knew he couldn’t.
Not with his heart in such turmoil.
But he couldn’t let it end like this.
Even if he had to grovel, even if it was pathetic, he needed to kneel and beg for Isa’s understanding before their relationship fractured any further.
No matter how unexpected the circumstances were, he owed Isa the truth.
He needed to tell him everything—about his deal with Kerelona, the terms, and what he hoped to gain.
All of it.
But Kaindel, who had always been adored by others, only knew how to offer himself to achieve his goals.
He never truly understood what consequences his version of “doing his best” might bring.
He had forgotten a simple fact: to make promises about the future, he needed to ensure that the present was stable enough to build on.
“What is this?”
“No greetings? Straight to the point?”
“I asked what this is supposed to mean.”
Kaindel thrust a copy of yesterday’s daily paper at Kerelona.
Her gaze barely landed on the headline before he dropped it onto the table.
“An article about our supposed marriage has been published. I don’t know who leaked it, but wasn’t the timing supposed to be later? Or am I mistaken?”
“You’re not mistaken,” she replied with a calm smile.
“Then why—”
Kaindel cut himself off, drawing in a deep breath to steady the rage bubbling in his throat.
He almost spat out something unbefitting.
No matter his feelings toward Kerelona, she was still a princess, and he needed to maintain decorum.
As Kaindel struggled to find his words, Kerelona skimmed the article, her brow furrowing slightly.
“It seems like my father’s doing,” she said.
“Your father?”
“Yes, the great king himself. He must have overheard how often we’ve been meeting and decided to announce it without consulting us. Apparently, the topic of our marriage was even raised at the last noble council meeting.”
“But even as king, he can’t just declare something like this without our consent.”
“Probably because of me,” Kerelona said with a shrug, brushing her hair back lazily.
“I may have mentioned that I was considering marrying you and that you were open to the idea.”
“Why would you say that on your own?” Kaindel demanded.
“Well, if I hadn’t, I’d probably be engaged to some other nobleman’s child by now. My father seemed determined to settle the matter that day.”
Her justification felt hollow, like an excuse.
Kaindel blinked slowly, suppressing the nausea that rose in his throat at the thought of everything spiraling out of control.
“Doesn’t this bother you, Princess? Don’t you have someone else you’re seeing? What will he think of this?”
“I don’t care.”
“But I…”
I do.
Kaindel swallowed the unspoken words, haunted by the memory of Isa’s pained expression.
The image of Isa baring his emotions, after holding them in for so long, lingered in Kaindel’s mind.
“Since you’ve decided to marry the princess, it seems you’ve made your choice. Then we…”
Kaindel’s mind was clouded by the unfinished words Isa had tried to say before being interrupted.
It was clear they had intended to end their relationship.
Observing Kaindel’s face grow darker as he reflected on the memory, Kerelona spoke up.
“Did your lover say anything after seeing this?”
“Not exactly.”
“You should’ve picked someone more understanding.”
“…”
Kaindel suppressed a sigh trying to escape his lips.
Though Kerelona’s tone was playful, her words grated on him, likely because of how close things had come to ending with Isa the night before.
Even as a joke, some things should never be said, and this was one of them.
He had only come to ask about the article published in the daily newspaper, yet he found himself holding back a wave of frustration bubbling up inside.
Then, without fully realizing it, Kaindel grabbed the glass bottle in his hand and threw it.
The bottle—Kerelona’s perfume—had been resting in the corner of the table.
Aimed at the wall behind her, it shattered into pieces, releasing a sharp, overwhelming rose scent that quickly filled the air.
“Princess.”
Grinding his thoughts to a halt, Kaindel finally opened his mouth, his voice low.
“I’ll only say this once, so listen carefully.”
“Go ahead. I’ll hear you out.”
“You started this mess for your own safety, so fix it yourself.”
“…What?”
“Since it’s your doing, you should handle it yourself. If you can’t, consider our deal null and void.”
“Du—”
“I’ll still cooperate with your plan to the extent of my abilities, Princess.”
“Even so—”
“As for the things you promised me in return, they may take longer to achieve alone, but they’re not impossible.”
Each word from Kaindel’s lips felt like biting into something hard and spitting it out with force.
A mix of satisfaction and discomfort coursed through him as he let everything he’d held back pour out.
The stifling rose scent only made him more nauseous, almost to the point of retching.
“Yet, here I am, obedient as a dog, doing everything you want.”
“…”
“So please, stop running your mouth.”
“…”
“Every word you utter disgusts me to the core.”
Having said his piece, Kaindel rose abruptly.
Heron, who had been silently standing behind Kerelona, reached for his sword, as if preparing to intercept him.
Glancing briefly at Heron’s tense grip, Kaindel forced a stiff smile.
“I’ll take my leave. Have a pleasant day.”
He couldn’t stay any longer.
If he did, he wasn’t sure what else he might say.
He already recognized his current emotional state as unstable, teetering on the edge of control.
For now, he had another priority: clearing up Isa’s misunderstanding.
Resolving to address that first, Kaindel turned away from Kerelona, whose expression remained dazed, and left.
Returning to his estate, Kaindel handed his coat to the butler at the entrance and immediately asked, “Where is Isa? In his room?”
“That is…”
“Hm?”
“…”
“I asked where he is.”
Kaindel, rolling up his sleeves in frustration, stared down the hesitant butler.
It wasn’t often the man struggled to answer, and that only made Kaindel feel uneasy.
He was on the verge of questioning the butler’s strange reaction when, after a brief pause, the butler lowered his head and said, “He’s stepped out for a while.”
* * *
