“After receiving a report that the elder Sirion met with Lord Jahad, I looked into what had happened.”
Aiden calmly stated the facts.
“Then you probably know what was discussed when I met him?”
“More or less.”
Aiden nodded slightly.
Erin opened her mouth to confirm how much he knew.
“What kind of business are you planning on now?”
“Just using the newly created medicine for a business.”
“That medicine destroys people even more.”
Erin had already prepared and brought the relevant information, which she then handed to Felix.
“Review this in detail, please.”
“Yes, understood.”
Felix accepted the documents and responded.
“With this, we may be able to bring down the elder Siron in one fell swoop.”
“Then only three elders will remain.”
At Aiden’s words, Erin lightly nodded her head.
“Erin.”
Aiden opened his mouth, gazing at her intently.
“Anyway, there won’t be any elders left.”
Aiden’s words were uttered quietly, but at that moment, a coldness flickered in his eyes.
“More importantly, come with me next time.”
Aiden approached Erin’s face and spoke.
“Let me be by your side to provide strong support.”
No matter how strong and capable Erin was, Aiden did not want her to meet a member of Jahad’s group alone. His sincerity was clearly conveyed.
“Yeah, I will.”
Erin said while firmly holding Aiden’s hand.
Aiden’s eyes lit up with a sense of fulfillment.
***
A few days later.
On the table, numerous invitations had piled up for Erin from early morning. Among them, there was one envelope that stood out with its unique presence.
It was an invitation from Princess Angelina Arinasta.
In the original work, upon her return, she immediately hosted a grand banquet to express her joy. So, since learning of her return to the Empire, Erin had been waiting for this.
“Finally, I’m going to meet Princess Angelina.”
Erin unfolded the invitation with an excited expression.
“It has been a long time since I returned to the Empire, so I am planning to greet everyone. Please attend and celebrate my divorce.
-Angelina Arinasta.”
***
Erin and Aiden were having a casual conversation over breakfast when Mona, filling the glass in front of Erin, said, “The sculptor Demielan returned this morning.”
“Really?” Erin reacted as soon as she heard the news.
“Julia would be delighted to hear about this.” She recalled Julia expressing her desire to try sculpting. Demielan would be a good opportunity for her.
“I should let her know,” Erin continued.
“To Julia?” Aiden asked, raising an eyebrow.
“Yeah. When I asked her last time, she seemed really interested,” Erin replied.
Aiden’s expression turned serious, and he looked at Erin. “It seems like I may have misunderstood just now.”
“Misunderstood? In what way?” Aiden’s expression became more serious.
“In any sense, it seems like she’s interested,” Erin said, trying to clarify.
“…….”
Aiden murmured seriously. Erin’s mouth twitched as if she were trying to hold back a laugh. “I always find you so cute and lovely at times like this,” Erin burst into a mischievous laughter.
It was when Aiden looked at Erin with a complex and subtle expression.
“Even though I like Julia,” Erin suddenly pushed the glass on the table aside and leaned her arm on it. Leaning forward, she stared intensely at Aiden and parted her lips meaningfully.
“You’re the only one I want to do this with, Aiden.”
Using her other arm, Erin pulled Aiden closer by the neck. Her lips pressed against his and then pulled away.
“Yet you’re jealous?” she teased.
Wiping her lips lightly with the napkin next to her, Erin smiled. In that moment, Aiden’s lips came down on hers.
Unlike before, Aiden’s kiss deepened. Before they knew it, the employees, including Mona, had left the room.
***
Erin visited the Charte in the late afternoon. Julia had been spending a lot of time in her studio recently.
Although she hadn’t started anything substantial yet, she said she felt more motivated since talking to Erin. Erin also wanted to support her and help as much as possible.
“What do you usually make?” Erin asked.
“Oh, just this and that. But lately, I’ve been thinking about sculpting people’s faces… It just crossed my mind,” Julia replied.
“Faces?”
“Yes. I think leaving a smiling face behind would be nice.”
“That sounds lovely,” Erin smiled as she looked at the sculpture next to Julia.
“By the way, Demielan is famous for his figurative sculptures, right?”
“Yes, he truly expresses them as if they were alive.”
“Perfect timing then. Demielan the sculptor has just returned,” Erin said with a grin.
“Really?” Julia’s eyes widened in surprise.
“I came back this morning and left a note. When do you want to meet?” Erin said, and Julia stared at her without blinking.
“Is now still okay?” Julia said, her eyes sparkling. Erin’s eyes crinkled.
“Yes, that would be fine.”
In fact, Erin had already hinted in her note that she could come today. Erin and Julia headed to Demielan’s studio.
***
Demielan didn’t stay in the capital for long. He always wandered around and only stayed in one place briefly when working.
When he came to the capital, he would stay in the studio for the artists supported by Erin. As expected, when they knocked and entered the studio, he was there.
“Demielan,” Erin called, and he turned around. Despite his known prickly and eccentric personality, he had a gentle demeanor that made him seem like he was in his early twenties.
“You’ve come,” Demielan greeted, slightly nodding his head, unperturbed by Erin’s contact.
“I’ve brought someone with me,” Erin introduced Julia, who was right behind her.
“Hello. I’m Julia Charte,” she said.
“I’m Demielan,” he replied.
Julia blinked slowly.
“Wow… I can’t believe it…” Her face turned red.
Seeing her feeling shy and overwhelmed by meeting someone she admired, Erin felt the need to step in and make the introductions.
“Charte recommended her as she loves sculpture and wanted to meet you,” Erin said.
“I see. But there aren’t many completed pieces in the studio right now. What should we do?”
“No, I didn’t come to see the works… Well, I do want to see them, but…”
“Huh?”
“I might have expressed myself unclearly.”
Erin intervened as she watched the mismatched conversation between Demielan and Julia.
“She came with someone interested in sculpture. She wanted to see you sculpting directly,” Erin clarified, addressing Demielan’s misunderstanding.
“I really admire your work. Your sculptures!” Julia said shyly but earnestly.
“I see. So what would you like to see?” he asked Julia indifferently.
“I didn’t have anything specific in mind… I just wanted to meet the sculptor Demielan,” Julia confessed her fervent admiration, her longing for his talent and work.
“Thank you,” Demielan replied with a face that showed no interest.
The surrounding temperature suddenly dropped, making everyone feel a bit gloomy for no apparent reason.
“Don’t worry. I’m not good at taking compliments,” Erin said, glancing at Demielan and addressing Julia.
“I’m generally not very honest and can be a bit brusque.”
“Ma’am.”
“I’ve been like that since the first time we met, so I must have seemed unfriendly to many people around me,” Demielan called, but Erin ignored him and continued speaking.
“I don’t really care about that, so I still support and get along just fine.”
Demielan clicked his tongue and turned his head. He couldn’t come up with a suitable response.
Erin let out a soft laugh.
He was only feeling embarrassed now.
“Well, I don’t have anything worthy to offer as hospitality, but should I get some water?”
Demielan deliberately made the suggestion in a sarcastic tone.
But instead, Erin relaxed and even lifted the corners of her mouth in response.
“I knew that, so I brought some,” Erin said, placing various tea leaves on the table.
“I brought them so that if other guests come while you’re here, you can serve them.”
“As always, you are thorough in your preparations,” Demielan grumbled as he picked up the teapot to prepare the tea.
Julia, who had been watching Erin smile, asked curiously, “When did you start supporting him?”
“It’s been about 5 years. I happened to see his work when Demielan needed an urgent cash flow and was putting his work up for sale.”
In reality, it wasn’t a coincidence.
The original had an interesting anecdote about Demielan. He had shown remarkable talent from an early age and became a famous sculptor.
However, he lacked social skills and struggled to make a living, since even the nobles who showed interest in his work made an effort to ignore him.
Despite that, Demielan had a lifelong masterpiece, an unfinished work that captivated even those who tried to ignore him.
After leaving that piece of work, Demielan no longer carved human figures.
Furthermore, he left the capital and never returned. Various speculations followed about the statue, but nothing was ever confirmed.
However, the nobles were convinced that there was a hidden secret about the statue that had to do with great love.
Therefore, they considered it to be a symbol of destined love.
Gifting the statue to someone who loved it was considered the most romantic confession one could make at that time, and everyone was envious.
And the one who obtained it and presented it to their beloved in the original story was none other than Aiden.
Naturally, in the original story, the person he gifted it to was Julia.
So, Erin deliberately sought him out before he revealed his potential and offered him support.
Erin had two reasons for doing so: one was a genuine desire to support a talented artist so that he could create what he wanted without worrying about making a living, and the other was curiosity.
She was curious about the story behind the unfinished statue in the original work.
She wondered if by supporting him and observing him closely, she could find out more about it.
