Chapter 45
“Enough. I’m not going to trouble you with unnecessary questions.”
I stopped Richard’s answer, afraid I might hear a reason why he couldn’t love me. Wanting him to keep loving me even when it seemed like I liked Kyle was probably too selfish. I had no choice but to change the question.
“Instead, you can promise me this, right? Even if I act like I like another man, you’ll believe that the only person I truly love is you.”
“Why do you keep assuming such situations?”
A shadow seemed to cross Richard’s face, as if he were worried. I felt a pang of self-reproach for having to assume such a scenario, but what could I do? Our love, trapped like it was in a prison, wasn’t going to be smooth.
I shrugged, trying to keep the mood from becoming too serious.
“It’s just in case. I’m also curious about your answer.”
A low groan came from him.
“Honestly, I don’t understand why we have to assume such things. But if giving you a promise will ease your mind, I have no choice but to answer. Yes, I promise.”
For ordinary lovers, this might have been a cute quarrel or a romantic vow. But unfortunately, this was just the minimal safeguard to prevent our escape plan from being ruined.
So even exchanging a love promise with such a strikingly handsome knight, I couldn’t feel moved—because of the looming threat of death.
Instead of revealing my complicated feelings, I smiled faintly.
“Thank you for answering.”
“I’m glad it’s an answer you like.”
“But you’ll have to try harder. Make more effort to keep that promise.”
Richard repeated the word “effort” with a puzzled expression.
He would need to try harder. Keeping the promise to trust me wouldn’t be easy.
If I asked him to trust me, he would. That’s the promise. But how strong that trust would be remained uncertain.
I wasn’t reckless enough to put him to the test. Trust is fragile.
If I wanted to deceive him, Richard would need to disappear from sight.
“Richard.”
Richard, who had been studying the map again, turned around belatedly. He had no idea how cynically I was weighing his trust.
I raised a finger and pointed at the ceiling.
“When you return to the first-floor cell, don’t come down for a while. Most importantly, don’t get hurt—otherwise we can’t escape.”
Soon, Richard would return to the first-floor cell. And I had something to do while the underground prison was empty.
Solitary punishment didn’t last long. Richard returned to the first-floor cell.
He had felt regret seeing me so preoccupied with escape plans. Even though he didn’t want us apart, he said he would follow my instructions. I couldn’t know when he might descend to the underground cell again.
Before leaving, he gave me a pleading warning:
“If possible, refuse any meeting with the warden.”
“I can’t outright refuse if it’s an order. But why?”
“If you can avoid it, make up an excuse and refuse. Partly because it’s unpleasant, but mostly because I worry about sending my lover alone to another man.”
“You’re afraid of him torturing me?”
“Not exactly… Inferior men sometimes take advantage of a woman even if she refuses. If I’m not there, I can’t protect you. Sending me to the first floor doesn’t seem like a good idea either.”
It was the chief guard who moved Richard to the first-floor cell. Seeing how maliciously Richard viewed Kyle made me uneasy.
Of course, Kyle was a master manipulator, but having risked his body to save me in the carriage accident, and knowing his circumstances, it was hard to hate him as I used to.
Besides, I needed Kyle. Even if it were the prison building itself, escaping Fortress required more than Richard’s help alone.
Since Kyle was necessary, I couldn’t avoid meeting him, no matter Richard’s concerns. Even if the situation Richard feared arose.
After silently seeing off the guards taking Richard away, another group came for me.
It felt almost deliberate that my turn came immediately after Richard’s disappearance, making me tense.
“Being called suddenly makes me nervous.”
“You’re not going to the torture room.”
The guard paused while handcuffing me, then spoke. Following the chief guard’s instructions, the guards now treated me with less hostility than before.
Though my prisoner status hadn’t changed, the difference was noticeable.
As the guard dragged me outside the iron gate, he muttered as if to himself:
“No need to be afraid. Honestly, treatment like this is rare. The warden seems to pay special attention to this prisoner…”
Normally, prisoners might never even see the warden.
He peeked at me with curiosity, wondering what in a prisoner’s dull uniform and steady walk attracted the warden’s attention.
Perhaps satisfied with my appearance as an explanation, his gaze dropped. Beauty can conveniently justify attention. I wore a faint smirk.
“I’d worry less if I knew the reason. Do you really have no idea why I was called?”
Kyle had summoned me to his private space on the fourth floor. It felt different from previous summons or invitations.
Of course, I had no reason to enter the fourth floor without the warden’s direct call. Yet my instinct told me something significant was about to happen. Perhaps my mindset made me feel this, but still…
The guard reluctantly answered with a grumble:
“I don’t know either. Stop asking. It’s unnecessary chatter.”
Apparently, he was forbidden from speaking casually with prisoners, keeping a stiff demeanor.
Kyle had summoned me to the fourth floor before, but never gave preparation time. When he called, I had to stop what I was doing and follow him immediately, often waiting when I arrived.
But now he gave me time to prepare? I couldn’t shake a subtle sense of unease.
Until now, he never ordered me to be “escorted” rather than dragged along. The guards treated me strictly as a prisoner, reinforcing my status.
Still, it was a good opportunity for me. I was looking for the right moment to change our relationship. Change always carries anxiety.
“Why call me here? You have offices and a reception room.”
“You never know when a guard might open the door. It seemed better to talk quietly without interruption.”
I swallowed dryly at his meaningful gaze.
“So, what do you want to say?”
“Isn’t it time to make a decision?”
I met his gaze without answering. Our eyes locked like a silent duel.
“You should be the one in a hurry. The death sentence is already set. If you’re not just waiting to be executed, there’s only one choice left. You haven’t given up hope of escaping Fortress Prison, have you?”
Kyle snorted as if amused. I lowered my gaze, pretending to contemplate. I had already accepted the fact that I couldn’t escape without his help.
“What are you doing?”
Startled, I widened my eyes. Kyle didn’t answer but threw me onto the bed.
As I hurriedly tried to sit up, he leaned over me.
“If you can’t decide just by thinking, feel it directly. See if you can be my woman.”
His chin lowered as if to kiss me. I turned my head to avoid him. He paused briefly, then pressed his face to my neck.
The warm touch of his lips on my sensitive skin sent shivers down my spine. My body flushed at his brazen closeness. His teeth grazed sharply against my neck.
“Ugh…!”
I scrunched my brows in pain but stubbornly bit the soft flesh of my mouth. Every brush of his lips left a burning mark. I didn’t want to admit it, but I felt it.
My body slowly slid backward. Struggling not to fall, I braced myself.
Then, the persistent lips left my neck, and a small voice whispered in my ear.
“Answer me.”
“…”
“I’m giving you a chance. Pretend you can’t resist and come over.”
