In the photo, the two of them, still children, were both holding swords, smiling brightly.
It was from a time when their only concern was figuring out how to sneak out of the mansion unnoticed by the adults to go monster hunting again.
Kayan had never once forgotten those days.
Ivnoa likely still had a photo of the two of them together as well. Though, in her case, she might have already lost it.
‘A year ago, Simon tore it up right in front of me.’
Simon Cerno.
Even just thinking of his name made Kayan’s blood boil.
The man universally acknowledged as the “Empire’s finest noble,” heir to the illustrious Duke Cerno.
With his striking lavender hair, hands smooth and unblemished by any calluses, and attire adorned with dazzling ornaments, Simon looked every bit the ideal noble.
Kayan first met him at Ivnoa’s engagement ceremony.
“Look at that. That’s my fiancé.”
“Your fiancé? But he’s already an adult.”
“He said he’d wait until I grow up. Honestly, I’m not sure what to think about it.”
Throughout the engagement ceremony, Ivnoa wore a dazed expression.
“But I do think the engagement ring is pretty. Look at this! I’ve never seen such a big sapphire before.”
She eagerly showed off the ring to Kayan, seemingly pleased with the gift.
Kayan silently gazed at the large blue gem resting on her ring finger.
The dazzling brilliance of the sapphire felt like a heavy stone dropping into his chest.
Why had he felt that way just over a mere gemstone? He didn’t have the time to think about it. Because starting from the day after the engagement ceremony, Kayan’s personal nightmare—one Ivnoa knew nothing about—began.
***
One year ago, the day after Ivnoa’s engagement ceremony.
‘These are the new staff members for the Princess’ palace. His Highness Crown Prince Edwin granted me full authority over the personnel.’
All of the staff at the Princess’ palace were replaced.
A group of kind and sweet-smelling maids approached Ivnoa.
Looking at the gentle new faces, Ivnoa didn’t seem displeased.
However, while Ivnoa was having tea with a few of the maids…
“So, you’re that wretch from the North.”
Simon, who had been inspecting the Princess’ palace, sneered as he looked at Kayan.
“Because of your filthy blood, the Princess’ dignity sinks lower by the day.”
A contemptuous glare bore straight into Kayan.
“Know your place and hurry back to that reindeer-scented North of yours.”
But Kayan didn’t even bother to acknowledge those words. He’d heard them all before.
Edwin’s lieutenant had once called him a “bug” and told him to stay away from the Princess, after all.
So Kayan glared at Simon and replied,
“I only listen to Iv.”
He had promised Ivnoa. Their friendship was something only they could decide.
“Is the young Duke Cerno so free that he has time to meddle in children’s friendships?”
Kayan shot back without hesitation. His ability to remain unshaken and deliver biting comebacks in any situation was one of his trademarks.
Simon lowered his gaze, smirking.
“Consider this my way of showing you mercy, advising you to leave before your ‘dear friend’ casts you aside.”
His voice dripped with mockery and derision.
“You being near the Princess is a nuisance in itself, yet you remain oblivious. In time, you’ll see that I was right.”
“……”
“For your own sake, accept it now. The difference between you and the Princess is as vast as heaven and earth.”
Leaving behind that unpleasant warning, Simon departed. But the maids he had brought to the Princess’ palace remained.
Whenever Ivnoa wasn’t around, they openly mocked Kayan.
“Goodness, just look at him walk. Those strides are so large. Definitely a mercenary’s walk. Who in the palace moves like that?”
“And the way he keeps using informal speech with the Princess? It’s not just uneducated, it’s outright embarrassing. Doesn’t he realize it’s a disservice to the Princess?”
“Does he refuse to accept his place? Truly rude and ignorant.”
In defiance of their words, Kayan continued to call Ivnoa “Iv” and acted as casually as ever around her.
He couldn’t let their cruel remarks drive a wedge between him and Ivnoa.
But enduring those words for so long without it affecting his self-esteem was impossible.
“Honestly, back then, you did start distancing yourself from me a bit… You have to admit it, right? You stopped treating me the same, always seemed gloomy…”
Ivnoa’s reaction back then had been completely natural from her perspective. At the time, Kayan could hardly enjoy a single meal in peace, constantly ridiculed for his lack of table manners behind his back.
It was impossible for him to say something as cheerful and lighthearted as, “Iv, you look especially ugly today. How about we go hunting to lift your mood?” like he used to in the North.
Still, he tried to endure without showing it. Even if no one else called her “Iv,” even if everyone treated her with reverence.
Even though he was aware that his casual attitude stood out in stark contrast to theirs, he told himself that their relationship wasn’t determined by others, but by Ivnoa herself.
They had promised to stay as they were, like “before.”
Even if, over time, that promise made him feel increasingly inadequate.
But in the end, Simon’s words came true—Ivnoa was the one who pushed him away first.
And it wasn’t over anything serious—just because he’d lightly infused his aura while bumping fists with her, like they used to.
Ivnoa didn’t deliberately deflect his playful aura. The traces of it dissipated in the air around her fingers.
Her elegant maids rushed to her side, exclaiming, “Oh no, Your Highness!”
Mocking gazes flew his way, whispering behind his back.
“Escort him out.”
The calm, unhurried voice of Ivnoa’s fiancé, Simon Cerno, rang out.
At the same time, Simon tore up the photo Ivnoa had kept of the two of them and tossed it to the ground.
Why did Simon have that photo in the first place?
“Ah… Ivnoa has already cast me aside in her heart.”
That’s what the fourteen-year-old Kayan thought as he turned and walked away with great difficulty.
Even then, worried about her, he left a letter behind and departed the imperial palace.
Of course, he no longer resented Ivnoa. The misunderstanding had been resolved.
“The truth is, it wasn’t because I wanted to stop being friends with you. Simon told me that you wanted to leave me behind. He said the best way to let you go, without causing trouble, was to do it gracefully.”
When she had said those words, Kayan had immediately understood. On the day of her engagement, Ivnoa had whispered to him with a bewildered expression,
“My brother told me… Simon is my fiancé now, so I have to listen to everything Simon says. I don’t know anything about it, but apparently, Simon is really smart.”
Simon had manipulated Ivnoa’s goodwill, telling her, “Kayan now wishes to leave Your Highness. The most graceful way to let him go is as follows…”
Even so, Kayan had thought that nothing would change.
During the few days he spent at the imperial palace as Ivnoa’s companion, he had realized something.
The days they spent together in the North had been abnormal to begin with.
Ivnoa was a noble-born princess of pure imperial blood, someone far above him, whom he should never have even had the chance to meet.
He had realized, even before she officially cut ties with him, that they could never go back to the way things were.
“I have to accept my place, as so many in the imperial palace have taught me. That’s the right answer.”
Kayan reminded himself of this countless times.
After arriving at the imperial palace a year ago, the lively, mischievous cub-like demeanor Ivnoa once knew vanished. In its place, he adopted proper posture, demure eyes, and a quiet tone of speech.
He had observed the increasingly unfamiliar Ivnoa from afar for quite a while. That’s why, when she finally severed their friendship, he was able to turn around and walk away calmly, even if he was deeply hurt.
Even now, after they had reunited, he continued to act respectfully toward her.
It wasn’t because he couldn’t forgive her or because he still held resentment.
It was because he knew that maintaining these formalities was the only way he could stay by her side for longer.
“If I just devote loyalty instead of friendship… like everyone else does…”
Then perhaps, like everyone else, he could remain by her side.
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