* * *
He didn’t even blink as he told me the reason he had brought me here.
“No. It’s because I have no intention of returning to the mansion.”
“Huh? What does that mean?”
“I am not going back to the mansion.”
The air in the cave grew cold.
In the original story, Locke was supposed to leave the mansion shortly after the Emperor passed away.
In other words, it was an event that should have happened several years from now.
The story had changed. I could roughly guess why.
It was because I wasn’t following the original plot at all.
Even if the protagonist was Locke, the Hestian family was the one creating small ripples in his life.
Cedric occupied the largest part of that influence, and since I wasn’t following the scenario at all, it was bound to change.
‘Is it really okay to let him go like this…?’
Even though I said I would do better in this life, I had been so busy avoiding missions that I only ran away from Locke.
Naturally, there had been no time to repair our relationship.
If I had tried just a little harder, we could have been closer, even if we weren’t friends.
A lingering sense of unease remained, like a puzzle with missing pieces.
Worried that letting him go like this might leave a bad impression on our relationship, I asked tentatively.
“The reason you don’t want to go to the mansion… is it because of me and my brother? If so, I’m really sorry. I’ve truly reflected a lot—”
“Did you not see the corpse?”
“What?”
“I mean the knight’s corpse.”
I recalled the face of the knight who had died with his eyes rolled back.
That happened just before I encountered the monster.
Had Locke been watching me since then?
I gave him a slight glare, wondering why he hadn’t shown himself sooner.
“So you saw me get surprised by the body? I guess you realized I was there early on. How long were you watching me? I was so scared I called your name until my throat went hoarse.”
“Is that important?”
“Then, what is important?”
“There was only me and the knight in that space. And the knight died.”
Locke stepped closer.
“Are you not afraid?”
His eyes narrowed as he watched me.
He seemed to be testing me, but it wouldn’t work.
“What do you mean, am I afraid?”
“Being with a murderer.”
He wore a cynical expression.
“You’re not the culprit, so why do you talk like that?”
“Why do you think I’m not the culprit?”
“Because I saw the wounds on the body.”
Locke tilted his head.
“Looking at the burn marks around the stab wounds, there’s a high probability that a fire-attribute magic tool was used. Magic tools are expensive; there’s no way you could have one.”
As he listened to me, a hint of interest appeared in his eyes.
“And, have you ever learned swordsmanship? Do you know how to use magic?”
Locke silently shook his head.
“Then how could you fight and win against a knight appointed by the Count using a sword?”
If it had been a competition for who could cut grass faster with a sickle or prune more branches with shears, I might have suspected him.
“How about that? My reasoning is perfe—!”
Locke’s hand, which had been stirring the embers with the sword he held to increase the heat, paused.
My eyes widened.
There was a magic stone clearly attached to the hilt of the sword he was holding.
‘It’s a magic tool!’
As I stood there with my mouth agape, unable to say a word, he glanced at me while inspecting the magic tool that had been well-heated by the fire.
“Why is that in your hand?”
“Are you a bit afraid of me now?”
“No! Even so, you’re still not the culprit. Because you’re left-handed.”
The corners of Locke’s mouth curved subtly.
The knight’s wound was on the left side of his abdomen, near the flank.
This meant the attacker had held the sword in their right hand and subdued him in one blow.
He listened intently and then approached me slowly.
The sound of his damp clothes brushing against the floor heightened the tension.
‘Why? Why? Did I say something wrong?’
Suddenly, my throat felt parched.
As he approached, I instinctively backed away.
Even if he wasn’t as violent as in the past and hadn’t killed anyone, he was still difficult for me.
His actions—closing the distance and staring intensely into my eyes without a word—only left me confused.
Without hesitation, he pointed the sword he was holding right before my eyes.
The sharp, blue blade was dizzying.
I knew he wouldn’t kill me.
If he had intended to, he could have cleanly let me die just by leaving me unconscious in the heavy rain without getting blood on his hands.
However, his sudden threatening behavior was incomprehensible and made me anxious.
“…Why are you suddenly doing this?”
“Because I want to give you the correct answer.”
He switched the sword to his right hand.
Then, with a swift motion, he threw it.
Startled, I squeezed my eyes shut and winced.
At the same time, there was a sound of something being pierced behind me.
I opened my eyes in surprise and turned my head.
The sword had pierced through the body of a large spider and was embedded in the cave wall.
“Ugh, gah!”
As I trembled from the shock, he, who had been looking at me expressionlessly while pointing the sword, suddenly sighed and shrugged his shoulders.
Then he pulled the sword from the wall and sheathed it with a skilled hand.
“You really don’t think I’m the culprit.”
“I told you I was sure! Did you have to tell me you’re ambidextrous in such a scary way?”
All my held breath burst out at once, and I gasped for air.
“It seems you are afraid of swords,” Locke asked.
“Is there anyone who isn’t afraid of swords?”
Moreover, wasn’t I someone who had been killed by his blade once before?
Clutching my pounding heart, I looked at the servant who had lost his manners in just half a day with a dissatisfied gaze.
“I am not afraid.”
“That’s because you’re…!”
The words “bloodthirsty tyrant” almost slipped out.
“Because you’re strong. Very. Your body is solid and reliable.”
Noticing his indifferent expression, I felt relieved that I hadn’t made a slip of the tongue and continued.
“I understand that since you’ve decided to leave, you no longer need to serve me as a young master. But this is still Allure territory. So, I’d like you to treat me a bit less scarily. That is, if you want to leave the barrier.”
“What specifically do you mean by ‘less scarily’?”
“I mean, don’t suddenly point swords at me without warning or glare at me with those scary eyes.”
“Ah.”
I was annoyed by Locke’s nonchalant attitude, but to show him one more reason why I could trust him, I took a piece out of my pocket and held it out.
“I found this on the body, too.”
It was a broken piece of a blade.
Seeing it, Locke’s eyes narrowed instantly.
“The sword you’re holding has a very cool, well-crafted blade. It isn’t broken. Therefore, it means you’re not the culprit.”
“You had evidence. I almost misunderstood.”
“Misunderstood? What?”
“I thought perhaps you were taking my side because of the bond we shared while I served you.”
“That’s not wrong either. Even without evidence, I would have believed you. There’s no way someone who gifted me a beautiful rose would do something so cruel.”
“You’re quite sentimental. The rose didn’t have any special meaning. It was just a return for the ointment. I’ve only met two people in my life who worried about my injuries.”
“Who is the other one?”
“……I’m not sure. It’s been so long I can’t remember.”
Liar. The eyes of someone who couldn’t remember wouldn’t look so sad and sorrowful.
It was likely an important person from his past.
“Anyway, thanks, Locke. You might be grumbling at me, but I still like you. Because it was a first for me, too. Someone who showed consideration in that way.”
Despite my words of gratitude, he silently stirred the firewood with the tip of his sword.
His golden eyes, more intense than the burning flames, flickered briefly.
It might have been the reflection of the fire dancing in the wind.
But I thought he was shaken.
Perhaps he was thinking of that “first person.”
A silence lingered for a while.
❖ ❖ ❖
Drip, drop.
The rain that showed no signs of stopping grew thinner.
Listening to the sound of water droplets tapping against the leaves, Locke, who had been silently watching the outside of the cave, finally spoke after a long time.
“Return to the mansion before the pheromone scent gets stronger.”
Feeling a chill, I curled up as much as possible and sniffed myself.
I couldn’t smell anything other than the scent of rain mixed with sweat.
“Hey, Locke…”
He turned to look at me.
“Do I really smell like pheromones?”
He approached me.
Then he sat down beside me and brought his face close.
His hot breath slowly brushed against the nape of my neck.
The warmth spreading over my cold skin felt unfamiliar.
Having broken out in a cold sweat and being soaked by the rain, I couldn’t help but flinch.
An itchy sensation kept rising inside me, making me squirm.
“Why, what’s wrong?”
When I tried to pull away, unable to endure the awkward and uncomfortable situation, he grabbed my shoulder and pulled me back.
“The scent is still so faint that I’m a bit confused if it’s pheromones or scented oil.”
A servant shouldn’t touch a noble without permission, but this wasn’t the mansion, and it was now ambiguous to even call him a servant.
Because of that, I didn’t know how to escape this strange and uncomfortable contact.
“Hey, it’s… you’re too close…”
“I have to be close to smell it properly.”
“Ah, I guess so. Sorry.”
He, who had his nose buried in the nape of my neck, slowly lifted his face.
In that moment, our eyes met.
* * *
