Chapter 23
“I was just following Duke Royce’s orders.”
“……”
That left her with nothing more to say.
Wait a minute. That old man had already kicked her out after slapping her.
Why would he go so far as to have her followed? Wasn’t this spying on a civilian?
A heavy silence filled the air. Anette started feeling awkward.
Well, at least she no longer suspected him of being a pervert.
But she still wasn’t convinced he hadn’t stolen her money.
She had been in the middle of escaping, so she had to keep going.
But Edwin had just saved her and brought her here…
If he realized she was trying to run away, he’d probably stop her.
“So you’re saying you didn’t see my money? Alright, I understand. You can be on your way. Go on, leave first.”
Anyway, she still had some small jewels in her pocket. That was enough.
Thinking about it that way, even if Edwin had taken her money pouch, it wasn’t a huge problem. It was still annoying, though.
But despite her words, Edwin stood there like a statue, making no move to leave.
What’s his problem? Just go already.
“Why are you suddenly acting like this?”
“Huh?”
“Why are you treating me this way all of a sudden…?”
Is this guy serious? What did I even do? If someone heard him, they’d think I was bullying him or something.
I even let it slide when he stole my money.
Anette scoffed in disbelief. But she had no time to waste standing around. She had to escape.
So she tried again to politely send him on his way.
But at that moment—
“Who’s there? What was that noise?”
A shadow appeared from around the corner, carrying a lantern.
It was probably a servant.
No way!
Without thinking, Anette grabbed Edwin and pulled him into a hidden spot.
Her reaction was quick.
Edwin let himself be pulled along. He had thought she was weak, but she was unexpectedly strong.
Of course, compared to him, her strength was nothing. He could have easily pushed her away.
But for some reason, Edwin didn’t.
Even though he despised her, he had no intention of using force against her.
It was contradictory, especially considering he had once thought about killing her.
Even he didn’t understand himself.
“……”
“Stay still.”
Not only did Anette shove him against the wall, but she also pressed herself close.
They weren’t touching, but it was close.
Edwin had never been this physically close to a woman before.
With no experience in such situations, his body froze in shock.
Anette placed one hand on the wall and looked up at him with sharp eyes.
Since she was much smaller than him, she had to tilt her head up. Her breath brushed against his skin.
“What are you—”
“Shh.”
Before he could finish his sentence, Anette covered his mouth with her hand.
Her palm was soft and warm against his lips.
Holding her breath, she watched as the servant’s footsteps grew closer.
“I swear I heard voices… Is someone there?”
The servant hesitated, then seemed too nervous to go further, and eventually walked away. But he might return with others.
Anette grew anxious.
“He’s gone now.”
“……”
Edwin couldn’t say anything. He was still stunned by the sensation of her hand on his lips.
And it wasn’t just anyone’s hand—it was Anette Etheled’s.
Shock after shock.
He had never experienced this kind of physical contact with anyone before.
His heart was racing—more than it had when he had been knighted by Heine Royce.
Berndt had always suspected that Edwin had feelings for Heine.
But Edwin had never thought of Heine that way.
To him, she was someone to respect, someone to protect as a knight—nothing more.
Anette, however, acted like nothing had happened.
She simply looked around and then glanced up at him.
He was standing there, frozen in place, looking completely stunned.
‘Why’s he so freaked out? Did he sneak out too?’
For some reason, Anette felt a little sorry for him. He always tried to act tough.
She vaguely remembered Edwin’s backstory from the novel.
She had only skimmed through it since she had started reading for the R-rated scenes, but she knew the basics.
They had something in common—both were orphans.
That made her feel a bit of sympathy for him.
He had grown up as an orphan, struggling his whole life as a mercenary.
Eventually, he became one of the most famous mercenaries on the continent.
But all he had ever wanted was to be a knight.
Then he met Heine, saved her life, and finally achieved his dream.
But what was the point of becoming a knight?
Even after that, he had to endure endless verbal abuse from Anette.
Of course, she hadn’t been the one bullying him personally, but still—she had to admit he had it rough.
‘He must have hated me so much if he stole my money. Even though it’s a lot for me, maybe taking it made him feel a little better.’
If stealing her money had given Edwin a sense of justice, so be it.
It still pissed her off, though.
She would never forget it.
“Well, take care.”
“……”
Anette patted Edwin’s cheek like she would a little brother before walking away.
She didn’t have a younger brother, but at that moment, Edwin felt like one.
Of course, there was no way he was younger than her.
Not that it mattered.
She had never dated a handsome younger guy anyway, so it wasn’t like it made a difference.
Anette smacked her lips in frustration.
She turned and quickly headed toward the escape route she had found earlier.
Meanwhile, Edwin remained frozen, barely breathing.
When he finally exhaled, fresh air rushed into his lungs.
Only then did his mind start working again.
The sensation of her hand on his lips was so unfamiliar.
Edwin slowly lifted his rough hand to his face, touching his lips and cheek.
It felt completely different from his skin.
As he stepped out of the shadows, the moonlight revealed his face—his ears were red.
“……”
Looking around, Edwin realized Anette had already disappeared.
Something about it felt strange.
Now fully alert, he turned toward the side of the mansion where Anette’s room was.
The window was open, and the lights were off.
He quickly scanned the balcony railing.
Without hesitation, he climbed up.
For someone who had grown up among mercenaries, scaling a balcony was nothing.
Of course, normally, no one dared to do this in the Royce mansion. It was heavily guarded, and Edwin was the one in charge of security.
He landed silently on the windowsill and peered inside. The room was empty.
The door was shut tight, and the bed was untouched.
Anette was gone.
This was no ordinary nighttime stroll—she had run away.
Edwin’s expression darkened.
“……Why.”
No matter the reason, Anette had fled.
With a blank face, Edwin climbed back down.
Then, without hesitation, he started heading toward the mansion’s exit.
Anette ran as fast as she could toward the temple.
As she passed through the busy streets, she saw the inn where she had spent her first night.
Since she had been there before, finding her way back was easy.
But instead of stopping, she kept moving toward the temple.
That was her home.
As she neared the temple gates, she glanced behind her to make sure no one was following.
“Ugh, I’m exhausted.”
Her legs ached from running.
The temple was dark, and the large doors were shut.
Luckily, guards were stationed outside.
“Sir Knight!”
One of the guards turned. It wasn’t the one she had cheerfully greeted when leaving earlier.
Good.
It would have been too embarrassing to return like this.
But she still recognized the knight—he was the one who had first guided her to the temple.
His eyes widened in surprise.
“D-Did something happen to you?”
“…Let’s just say I had a rough time.”
The knight glanced at her from head to toe, taking in her dirty, torn uniform.
“Were you being chased?”
“No, nothing like that.”
Anette sighed and gave him a small smile.
“I’ll head inside now. Take care.”
“Rest well.”
As she walked away, the knight watched her go.
Her unusual hair color shone under the moonlight—a mix of platinum blonde and soft pink.
No wonder so many male servants had fallen for her.
Feeling strangely proud, he returned to his post, scanning the surroundings with renewed vigilance.
