Red rubies seemed to fill her eyes, and just like the blurry vision that drew near, Kaon felt his mind cloud.
‘What is this situation?’
In that moment, Kaon felt as if his spirit had left him. One unexpected event after another left him utterly disoriented.
If he understood correctly, Alessia was now the one pressing him, not the other way around.
His focus, which had momentarily drifted, snapped back sharply to Alessia, who was staring at him through cold eyes beyond the ring.
Her hair shimmered as if reflecting the moonlight, and her features, usually so captivating, were undeniably hers, yet the person before him didn’t seem like Alessia at all.
The Alessia who always met his gaze with a gentle smile now looked at him with an expression cold as ice. The unfamiliar chill of her gaze was suffocating.
“Just now, what did you say…”
“You see it, don’t you? You see things others can’t in your vision. Am I wrong, Kaon Ferdinand?”
Everything was different, but most notably, it was Alessia’s demeanor. Unlike her usual cautious tone, which seemed almost pleading for cooperation, she now spoke sharply, cornering him.
“Kaon, Kaon…”
Gone was the soft voice that fluttered like a gentle feather when she called his name. The addition of ‘Ferdinand’ with every reference carried an unprecedented distance.
“What are you talking about? Why are you acting like this, Alessia?”
Kaon instinctively stepped back, attempting a forced smile. His instincts told him it was time to retreat.
Whether he skirted around the issue or did something else, the right thing now was to end this confrontation and face it again later, better prepared.
“Then explain why you thought that. Why were you only looking at my ring? What were you trying to confirm?”
However, Alessia wasn’t about to let the matter drop just like that, continuing to push him into a corner.
“I hope you’re not thinking of using the mage from the tower as an excuse. He’s seen my magic several times and shown no interest. If he had noticed anything, he would have gone straight to the tower by now.”
“…”
Kaon found himself speechless, partly because he had indeed considered using that excuse. As he hesitated, Alessia smiled. It was a smile that pulled at one corner of her mouth, utterly cold.
“The only mage in this castle is him, and he hasn’t doubted me at all. Yet you, having seen my magic only twice, acted strangely right from the start.”
Alessia took another step forward, forcing Kaon to retreat until his back hit the wall with no room left to withdraw.
“…!”
Just as he was about to suggest they talk at a distance, Alessia grabbed the collar of his coat and yanked him forward. Suddenly, his upper body tilted forward, and her red eyes were right in front of his nose.
In the darkness of her pupils, Kaon saw his own bewildered reflection and realized the proximity was close enough for his image to be reflected.
He instinctively tried to step back, but the wall still blocked his retreat. Unable to push Alessia away, he faced her eyes without drawing a breath.
He needed to think of a way out of this situation, but his thoughts flew away, leaving nothing behind but the sight of Alessia.
“What exactly did you see that made you ask if I was a mage?”
Alessia’s voice was quiet, not inquiring but stating, as if she already held the certainty and only awaited confirmation.
“You’re right, Kaon Ferdinand.”
Then, a distinctly gentler voice flowed into his ears. Despite his confusion, Kaon focused intently on her words.
Ultimately, the most crucial matter was whether Alessia was truly a mage, whether she was deceiving Ferdinand and himself. His next actions would depend on her answer.
“I’m not really a mage.”
Her whisper was so faint that it would have been inaudible had they been any further apart, but to Kaon, it was unmistakably clear.
Kaon’s eyes widened. Despite this being the answer he sought, he couldn’t believe it. Alessia was not a mage, after all; she had been deceiving her family and herself.
Moreover, what was with her attitude? If this had been the Alessia that Kaon knew, she would have started with an apology for deceiving everyone. She would have explained with her usual kind face that there were reasons behind her actions and asked for forgiveness. That was the Alessia Kaon knew.
However, the Alessia before him now seemed to have no intention of doing so. For someone who had been caught in the act, she was unnervingly calm, and as time passed, she appeared even more composed.
“But how will you prove that?”
With a thud, Alessia released his collar and gently pushed Kaon back. Despite his greater height and build, Kaon found himself helplessly retreating under her push.
“People here really like you. They are so proud of you; they’ve told me a lot of stories about you.”
The word ‘proof’ etched itself into his mind. She was right. Kaon had no way to prove to anyone else that Alessia wasn’t a mage.
“But no one mentioned that you had these abilities. Isn’t that strange? If a knight had the powers of a mage, it would be something to boast about.”
“…”
“Everyone was just unaware, right?”
Alessia’s smile was that of a child who had discovered a treasure. In stark contrast, Kaon’s expression grew darker.
He would have preferred it if Alessia had denied everything, allowing him to coax the truth out of her, but her outright admission of guilt while simultaneously digging at him left him at a loss for what to do next.
“Does your sister know about this? That her brother has the eyes to see mana? If she knew, there would have been no reason to hide it all this time. Why do you think that is?”
The barrage of questions continued to disorient him. Already confused, the sharp probing made his head spin.
“I see. You didn’t know either, did you.”
Thus, Kaon was unable to deny the parts he should have and merely found himself backed into a corner as Alessia fired away. For the young master who had lived honestly up until now, this was a very foreign situation.
“She would have listened to you, though. Why didn’t you think to talk to your sister first?”
“That’s…”
Caught off guard by a question he should answer, Kaon opened his mouth but then closed it again.
Leonidas would have listened to him. Of course, eventually, he would have to explain how he came to learn these things, but at least she wouldn’t have ignored him.
Yet he couldn’t bring himself to do that because…
“Or couldn’t you?”
“…”
“Why couldn’t you?”
Alessia’s eyes, glinting red, seemed to peer deep into his soul. Just as he was about to look away, not wanting to expose his inner feelings, Alessia tilted her head slightly.
“Do you like me?”
“You…!”
For the first time since their confrontation began, Kaon raised his voice. It wasn’t intentional. It was a reaction born out of sheer surprise and confusion.
The situation was already beyond his imagination, but the last comment was truly unbelievable. He didn’t want to believe it. The question about whether he liked her was too casual. It was as if she was asking about the weather, so nonchalant and detached. At that moment, Kaon realized that the persona Alessia had shown him all this time was false. A dull pain surged through his heart.
“Was that really it? If that was the case, you could have just pretended not to know. Then none of this would have happened, Kaon.”
Alessia’s lips twitched lightly as she blinked slowly, showing the familiar demeanor of the Alessia Kaon knew and liked.
“Did you know all this?”
Kaon clenched his fists and asked. He wasn’t even sure what he was trying to confirm with his question. He felt he just had to ask. Perhaps he was hoping she would say it was all just a guess.
“How could I not know? You were always looking at me like that.”
As Alessia raised her gaze slowly, their eyes finally met when she replied.
Then why did you pretend not to know?
He wanted to ask that foolish question. If it was so obvious, if he had caught on earlier, why had she pretended not to know? If she had hinted at it, things might not have ended up this way.
Kaon truly believed in himself. If Alessia had no feelings to share with him, he was ready to give all of his. If there was something about him she didn’t like, he was willing to change it, and if she wanted him to step back, he was prepared to withdraw his feelings. Even if it was impossible, he would have tried.
He might have even covered for her secret, the one that deceived both Ferdinand and himself, if she had just talked to him or hinted at needing help. He would have done so without resorting to blackmail. Surely, he would have.
Her suspicion was right. The reason he hadn’t immediately gone to Leonidas was that he liked her. He should have used that to his advantage.
The foolishly blind loyalty in the blood of Ferdinand assured him that he was capable of all this because he liked Alessia that much. Even now, that thought crossed his mind.
Was her current façade merely a way to put up spikes to shield something?
“Let’s make a deal, Kaon Ferdinand.”
Her eyes, which had been momentarily vacant, turned cold and deep once more. Something settled in his chest.
Her gaze seemed to say that all his perceptions were a misunderstanding. Those eyes declared that his past belief that she might have cared for him a little was all a delusion, that all the rapport he had felt was merely false.
‘I’ve seen those eyes before.’
Kaon belatedly recalled instances when he had seen such an Alessia. It was only for a fleeting moment, and because she always smiled afterward, he had dismissed it as a misperception, but in reality, that was the truth.
Then, was that the real her? Was the Alessia he knew all fake? This belated realization disoriented him. Perhaps he really knew nothing about Alessia.
“It’s simple. I’ll keep your secret if you pretend you don’t know what you’ve discovered.”
The question was rhetorical, and Alessia already knew the answer. As she slowly nodded and turned away decisively, Kaon found himself unable to hold her back.
Neither of them realized that her fingertips were trembling.
🍉🍉🍉
