~Chapter 93~
“……”
“……”
Kilian and Aisha looked at each other for a while without saying anything.
‘I had so many things I wanted to say…’
Did the Duke ever miss me? They say you don’t notice someone’s presence, but you feel their absence. Did he even notice I was gone? Or maybe he was more comfortable with me out of his life?
But Aisha couldn’t ask any of these questions out loud.
She already knew what Kilian’s answer would be, and she was afraid to hear it.
Kilian probably didn’t care about her absence at all.
But there was one thing she wanted to ask about—Hilda.
We met eyes that day… Did you take the princess home safely? How was it? Did you think she was as beautiful as everyone says…?
“Aisha.”
Kilian was the first to break the silence.
He quietly looked Aisha up and down, and then gently held her small hand. Surprised, Aisha flinched, but she didn’t push him away.
“You’re hurt.”
“……”
“Here.”
Aisha finally looked at the back of her own hand. There was a small scratch—probably from the glass shards when Kilian crashed through the window.
Kilian frowned a little and just silently brushed her hand.
“I’m sorry.”
“…What?”
“I should have been more careful.”
He paused.
“I was in a hurry.”
“No, it’s just a small scratch… But what about you?”
Aisha snapped back to her senses and looked Kilian over, just as he had checked her.
Luckily, Kilian didn’t seem to be hurt at all.
If anything, that was impressive.
“Still, you crashed through a window. I’m glad you’re not hurt…”
“It’s fine as long as I’m not injured.”
She had to agree.
“…But you got hurt.”
“It’s not really an injury, just a scratch. If anyone really got hurt, it was probably only the Emperor.”
She hadn’t checked on Belmore, but he’d been right by the window, so he probably got hit by the glass, too. She’d even seen some blood.
“Then that’s a good thing, in its own way.”
“……”
“So… have you been well, Aisha?”
Not at all. She’d worked herself to exhaustion, and even after finishing her article, she couldn’t rest. She kept thinking about Kilian—his face wouldn’t leave her mind.
Because she missed him.
“…And you, Duke?”
So instead of answering, Aisha asked him a question.
“Kilian, have you been well?”
“Me?”
“Yes, you.”
“…Not really.”
Kilian hadn’t been well either.
You have no idea, Aisha Ashton.
Just because you disappeared, just because you left the mansion—how much I…
How much I…
“You look thinner than when I saw you in town before.”
“So do you.”
“Did work keep you busy? I bet Theorn was worried. You always skip meals.”
Aisha joked, and Kilian finally smiled a little.
Aisha smiled softly, too.
“Anyway, about the concubine thing…”
Kilian, who had been staring at Aisha’s face, suddenly looked away and muttered.
“What did you say to the Emperor?”
“…Huh?”
“I’m just asking. I was curious.”
“Am I crazy? There’s no way I’d say yes to someone like him… Well, is that too harsh?”
“Honestly, it’s too late to be polite, Aisha. And you’re not wrong.”
“Yeah, you’re right. Do you really think I’d agree to be the concubine of a crazy guy like him? My mind is still perfectly fine, you know.”
Aisha grumbled angrily as she remembered Belmore’s proposal.
“Who does Belmore Ellington think he is? Does he really think just because he asks, everyone will agree to be his concubine? That’s a big mistake.”
Aisha kept ranting, saying he was just like Roselia—or maybe even worse—and he wasn’t even that good-looking anyway.
Kilian just listened quietly, then finally said with a little laugh,
“I finally feel alive again. Really.”
“…What?”
“Nothing.”
Aisha looked confused, but Kilian just kept smiling to himself.
He meant it.
He really felt alive for the first time in a while.
He had missed the sound of Aisha’s endless chatter so much.
His world had been so quiet and empty without her.
“……”
Kilian continued to watch Aisha in silence.
She was still the same Aisha Ashton—hair messy, not wearing a dress but a man’s shirt and pants, not a hint of makeup or fancy jewelry.
He liked that she hadn’t changed.
It meant she was safe and okay.
But at the same time, he felt a little sad—
like maybe he was the only one who hadn’t been okay.
‘…If I said that, Aisha, you’d just run away, wouldn’t you?’
He didn’t want that.
All he wanted now was to look at her and talk, even if all she said was nonsense.
But things couldn’t stay peaceful forever.
“Hello, Kilian Winters.”
A familiar voice came from behind Kilian. He slowly turned around.
Til was standing by the broken window, and behind him were members of Rune.
“Til.”
Kilian called his name in a much colder voice than he used with Aisha, and Til looked at him with a serious expression.
Til walked over and stepped between Aisha and Kilian.
“No need to glare at me. I don’t like sharing space with the Duke either.”
Then Til surprised them both.
“Anyway, we need to talk. All of us.”
“A talk?”
“But first, let’s move somewhere else. None of us have any reason to stay here now.”
With that, Til gestured for them to follow and gently pulled Aisha to his side, ignoring Kilian’s sharp glare.
