Episode 7
“Once I arrived at the Royal Palace… you were nowhere to be found.”
“Why would I come to a place like this just because you said so? A noble lady who knows nothing about the world, coming here and asking where she is, unbelievable!”
As soon as he heard my response, Khalid erupted in anger. He forcefully gripped my hand, stained with dried blood.
Watching his actions, a fire ignited within me, disrupting the calmness that was present. I resisted and raised my voice.
“If that’s the case, you shouldn’t have been in a place like this in the first place. It’s been three days since the funeral of Izzar.”
“…”
Khalid tilted his chin as if to say, “Go on, say what you want.”
Rather than a Crown Prince who would rule a vast empire in the near future, he exuded an ominous atmosphere more fitting for a boss in a harem. With his imposing stature and threatening gaze, anyone unfamiliar with him might be intimidated by the current Khalid.
However, my circumstances were different. Having seen Khalid for twelve years, he did not appear as fearsome to me.
Even though an intimidating air surrounded him, suggesting he might strike if provoked, he had never laid a hand on me. I confronted him with a probing question.
“You seem well aware of how the situation is unfolding. Yet, how can you afford to be nonchalant and play around in a place like this?”
“Why does it matter to you?”
He mocked me as if incredulous. His shameless tone momentarily left me speechless.
Despite the various mistreatments I had endured while coming here to find him.
Suppressing my boiling anger, I opened my mouth with the utmost politeness. At this moment, I needed to set aside my emotions and follow my father’s instructions.
…Of course, I hated it, really hated it.
“Well, as I mentioned before, I’m no longer willing to…”
“I said I don’t like it, Renata Carneluti. I will not marry you.”
“Who said things would go as you please? … Hah, and what about me? What good am I?”
“…”
Interrupting Khalid’s momentary pause, I forcefully thrust my foot into the dirt floor.
“I’m not doing this because I want to marry you. I hate it too. I really hate it!”
“…”
“Why, just because Izzar died with his unfortunate looks!”
As I shouted almost like having a fit, Khalid hurriedly approached me.
Then, inexplicably, he gently grabbed my shoulders and shook me slightly, as if trying to calm me down.
“Hey, Renata. Calm down… This isn’t the palace.”
Despite his hand, covered in a fox fur cloak, being large enough to completely wrap around my shoulders, it couldn’t quell my excitement.
I continued to speak as if a dam had burst, “If anyone’s going to die, let it be you or me, not Izzar. Why did he have to die! I wish, regardless of what father or brother say about the family’s prosperity, to just sweep it all away and bear it alone. Honestly, the one who can’t stand this situation the most is me…”
I bit my lip after glancing maliciously at Khalid’s chest.
Suddenly, I realized that Laura was listening to our conversation from a mere few meters away.
Oh, damn. This is bad. If this reaches father’s ears…
Engulfed in self-reproach and a sense of defeat, I covered my blurred face with my hands.
But for now, I observed Khalid’s reaction more than Laura’s. In the heat of my rising emotions, I might have unintentionally uttered words that could hurt him.
“Hey, using such vulgar language. Where did you learn such lowly words?”
However, Khalid didn’t seem particularly affected by my verbal attack.
His response was quite unexpected. Instead of being looked down upon by him, as he had done until now, he was suddenly meeting my gaze.
Despite the apparent superiority I had, Khalid was now looking directly into my eyes.
With a slightly bent waist, he stared intensely at my face. I raised an eyebrow and asked, “Do you have no conscience? Is this the kind of place you should be in?”
“Ah, okay. Okay, I get it. I understand. Just calm down for now.”
Only after hearing my words did it seem to sting a bit. Khalid grimaced as he looked at me and fell into deep thought.
Upon hastily uttering those words, Khalid subtly avoided my gaze. I took a deep breath.
“I’ll calm down when I see Izzar alive instead of you.”
“…What sudden change in mindset happened in just a few days?”
“…”
“Now, to be honest. I thought you were just blindly being dragged around, doing whatever others told you without any thoughts.”
Red lips once again traced a curve. Khalid coolly smiled and, shamelessly, unexpectedly poked my cheek with his fingertip.
No way, is this for real?
I tried to cool down my feverish head, which had been rising since earlier.
However, suppressing the excitement that had already surfaced was no easy task.
Why are you laughing? What’s so enjoyable?
I raised the boot and kicked Khalid’s shin with all my strength.
“Ugh.”
As Khalid bent his head in pain, a slight satisfaction crept over me.
* * *
“Ugh.”
The man opened his eyes with great effort. His vision was blurry, and his mind was foggy.
A dreadful earthquake-like roar echoed as if the earth had gone mad. Moreover, his entire body was in excruciating pain, as if it would shatter.
“Oh, you’ve woken up.”
In the midst of this, the sound of water gently flowing could be heard, and then a soft voice spread around his head.
His arms and legs didn’t move as he intended, almost as if they were paralyzed. Thus, the man managed to shift his relatively free eyes to the side.
He barely confirmed the presence of a person nearby. Looking at him with what seemed like joy was a girl with long, watery hair and deep green eyes.
“Who… are you?”
His voice came out pitifully weak. The moment he spoke, a splitting headache surged.
The man momentarily sensed something strange. His mind turned as white as blank paper.
Incredibly, he couldn’t recall how he ended up so severely injured, and no memories came flooding back.
The man felt a massive confusion. Who am I? What’s my name?
“Who am I, exactly? I’m the one who saved your life,” replied the girl with a smile.
“Save me?”
The man couldn’t quite grasp what the girl was saying. Furthermore, the oddly low pitch of the girl’s voice was somewhat unsettling.
Although she appeared to be a girl, it was possible that she might be a boy. Due to this ambiguity, he hesitantly asked, “Did you save me?”
In response, the young one, whether a girl or a boy, confidently replied, “Hey, you. Do you have a lot of money?”
“…”
“Why suddenly no response? I saved your life, so I expect to be properly compensated for it.”
“Fine. But… do I have a lot of money?”
Maybe the girl didn’t know much about herself. The man suddenly became suspicious of the girl’s identity.
He cautiously asked, eyeing her warily, “But do I have a lot of money?”
The girl, seeming surprised, widened her eyes as if she had just realized something. Then, quickly adjusting, she narrowed her eyes as if to play it off.
“Uh, no way. Seriously? Isn’t that too cliché?”
“What’s cliché about it?”
“Wow, really. Are you seriously saying this right now?”
Regrettably, it was sincere.
The man couldn’t even remember his own name. He nodded his head blankly.
The girl, with a glint of interest in her eyes, observed the man’s complexion. Eventually, she burst into laughter, saying, “My name is Fel.”
* * *
“I’ll take you to where the carriage is. From there, you can find your own way back.”
Khalid, who had distanced himself from me, grimaced while clutching his shin.
Perhaps it was due to the lingering effects of the alcohol.
He looked quite pained. Feeling lighter, I raised my head.
“Fine, I can handle it on my own.”
“What if it doesn’t work out? Do you even realize how dangerous this place is?”
“I don’t want your help.”
With a snort, I estimated the distance to where the carriage was stationed.
If I walked quickly, it wouldn’t take too long.
By the way, Khalid seems to view me as if I were some delicate flower raised with great care in a greenhouse.
If that’s the case, he’s under a big misconception.
Living as the daughter of one of the most prominent figures on the continent, occasionally unwelcome incidents would find their way to me.
Since childhood, I had been kidnapped several times by criminals targeting the family’s fortune.
The first time was around the age of 8.
Then, at 11, 14, and most recently at 17.
However, as revealing such events wouldn’t do any good, my father always took proactive measures to prevent even the slightest rumors from spreading.
So, even Izzar, who was my closest childhood friend, didn’t know about it.
Therefore, does Khalid even have a clue?
After the second kidnapping incident, my father decided that I needed to be able to defend myself to some extent.
Thus, he secretly hired a tutor to teach me martial arts and marksmanship.
“Anyway, you’re quite shameless, aren’t you?”
