* * *
“Then why are you trying so desperately to run away? Even after I said I’d take care of what’s real and what’s not?”
“It’s not that simple. Siwoo has a way to reclaim his magic. I don’t even know what that method is, or how it works.”
“That’s easy. You just make sure he can’t use any method.”
“You can’t just harm the Tower Lord like that.”
“You’re the Tower Lord.”
“…”
When I stared at him in disbelief, Ateol shrugged and rephrased.
“Anyway, he’s just an ordinary human now, isn’t he?”
“And you’re saying I should kill him and take his place? That’s insane!”
I ended up shouting.
Even if he was just a character in a book, the thought of killing Siwoo to take his place made me feel sick.
And it wasn’t just about Siwoo.
There was also the fake Tower Lord—the soul who’d vanished, whose whereabouts were now unknown.
What if he returned?
“Yuri, I originally planned to rebel. I considered countless ways, including slaughtering my own siblings and parents to sit on a bloodstained throne.”
“…”
“That’s how power is claimed.”
I looked at Ateol in stunned silence.
His way of thinking was so different from mine.
But I couldn’t call him immoral or cruel.
That’s just how this world—this book—worked.
The strong shed blood to get what they want.
It was a world ruled by strength.
If Ateol really had taken the throne that way, people might have called him monstrous or a parricide, but he would’ve become a powerful emperor feared by all.
But that’s him.
I’m just an ordinary person.
Killing Siwoo and becoming the true Tower Lord—that’s not even a real option for me.
I’d rather…
“Then just hide me.”
“…What?”
“Let Siwoo become the Tower Lord again, and just hide me. Wherever you want. That seems safer anyway.”
“…”
Ateol had a strange look on his face.
His eyes even seemed to waver for a second, but then he returned to his usual expression.
“Setting that aside, didn’t I already explain the rational reason? Having you as the Tower Lord benefits me more.”
“Because marrying me would strengthen your claim to the throne? Then marry Siwoo.”
“Haha.”
“What’s so funny?”
“With just a few words, you’ve completely flattened everything I tried to explain.”
He let out a dry laugh, adjusted his posture, and moved over to sit on the edge of the bed.
“Let me say it again. Siwoo is the Grand Duke Roanes’ lackey. He acts dumb, but who knows his true nature? Maybe it’s true he’s lost his memory and knowledge, but I don’t like the way he’s always scheming. I do like the Grand Duke, but not enough to trust someone just because he does. And there’s no guarantee Siwoo would ever side with me.”
“I think Siwoo really likes the Grand Duke… And even if he stays with him, it’ll take a long time to get back his power. But if you reach out to him, it could happen fast. Siwoo loves power. If he thinks he can get it back quickly, he might come around.”
“You think very kindly of him.”
“It’s not kindness—I’m just scared of this situation! I don’t want to mess with Siwoo. Not because I’m nice—because I’m terrified!”
His condescending tone made my chest tighten, and I raised my voice.
It was true.
I wasn’t protecting Siwoo or giving up my place because I was a good person or had a moral compass.
It was because I didn’t want to be the one to destroy this world.
Even if it was inside a book, this was still a real world.
And I didn’t want to be the outsider who rewrote everything for myself—killing existing characters to suit my needs.
It wasn’t just distasteful.
It was frightening.
I was the one who’d stepped into this world with muddy boots, and yet I felt like I was the one being violated.
“…Alright then. On to the second reason.”
“…”
“I said I wanted to keep you with me. Not hiding you like a fugitive—but by my side.”
“Why do you want that?”
Ateol took my hand again, stared quietly at my fingers, then gently placed a kiss on the tip of one.
“What if I told you I love you? Would you believe me?”
My mind went completely blank.
What did he just say?
The words had floated through my ears and started drifting through my head before I could grab onto them.
But even when I tried to think them over again, I couldn’t fully grasp their meaning.
“What… did you just say?”
“Shall I repeat it?”
“No need.”
Hearing it once was enough.
When I scowled, Ateol just shrugged and said,
“I guess there’s no point in waiting for an answer. You don’t believe me.”
“Would you believe it?”—the words were at the tip of my tongue.
I scowled harder and pushed away Ateol, who had leaned in far too close.
“You always lie.”
“Not always.”
“From what I’ve seen, it’s always…”
My tone ended up sounding like I was whining, so I shut my mouth.
Whining—to Ateol, of all people.
“It hasn’t been every time.”
He even said it in a soothing voice, as if comforting me.
I turned my head away.
Sure, he didn’t always lie.
No one could lie all the time.
But when it mattered most, he always did.
And I was never sure what he truly felt.
His affection meter never moved past 99%.
Well, maybe that was because the system required me to raise Siwoo’s affection instead, so I tried to understand but… still.
Just as I thought that, the status window flickered.
[Tip: Remember everything the system has said so far!!!!!]
What the… Why are there five exclamation marks?
Must be pretty urgent.
Well, this status window has been trying to get me and Ateol together no matter what.
[Event Triggered!]
It seems Ateol is being sincere.
Why not hear him out?
Even with those words, doubt lingered.
I was staring at the status window with hazy eyes when I glanced over at Ateol—and our eyes met immediately.
He must have been looking at me the whole time.
My mind was a mess.
Love, a proposal…
Even though I did like Ateol, it all felt like empty, fleeting clouds.
Like I was being manipulated by something labeled an “event.”
Slowly, I shook my head.
“I don’t believe you.”
At that, Ateol’s eyes curved faintly.
“I thought you wouldn’t.”
“……”
He was clearly smiling, yet the temperature around us dropped sharply.
That, too, was a kind of talent.
I instinctively shrank back at the chill creeping over me, and Ateol continued speaking.
“I knew you wouldn’t accept the proposal.”
“Why?”
That “why” carried layers of meaning.
“Then why did you even ask?” or “Why did you assume I wouldn’t accept?”
… But Ateol didn’t press further.
“You’re the kind of person who…”
He suddenly stepped closer, closing the distance I thought he’d just created.
His large hand reached for my face, gently brushing around my eyes.
“…always has the expression of a bystander.”
“What does that mean?”
“But your eyes… they don’t say the same.”
His fingertips stopped at the corner of my eye.
I flinched, my eyelid trembling slightly from the tension.
Ateol leaned in.
His lips brushed lightly against the corner of my eye before pulling away.
Without realizing it, I’d closed my eyes.
With lips hovering near my lashes, his voice followed.
“Your eyes are saying, ‘I want to melt into this place.’ That’s why…”
“……”
“I want to pull you in.”
As he said that, his arm wrapped around my waist.
His warmth, his heartbeat, I felt it all.
His heart beat slower than mine.
Was I really making eyes like that?
…That I wanted to melt into this world?
* * *
