Chapter 48
‘I really need to find a way to separate Roy.’
“Alright. But since you’ve waited patiently, I’ll give you a reward.”
Roy perked up his ears at the unexpectedly gentle voice, having expected a scolding.
“A reward?”
“Yes.”
While Dalia had been lying in bed, Khalid had brought her all sorts of good things to eat. There were still more than a basketful of herbs he had saved, known for their calming effects and promoting deep sleep.
“Roy, you must be getting hungry by now, right?”
‘If I make a salad for him to eat, he’ll probably sleep like the dead for half a day or more.’
She intended to use this opportunity to slip away to the Temple of Tempus without Roy noticing.
“So, let’s eat first.”
When Dalia offered with a sweet smile, Roy quickly nodded.
“Yes!”
Elzenon trudged along the road.
In his mind, the shame he had suffered at Ahmad’s mansion kept replaying endlessly.
The final scene in this recurring memory was of himself, unable to protest properly, bowing and fleeing as the lady faced the royalty she had intended to meet.
That man had everything one could want.
So why would he covet someone like Dalia, someone meant for people like him?
“Stop whining and get in already.”
The carriage driver, having already received his fare, grew irritated as he had to repeatedly catch up to Elzenon and wait.
“……”
As if completely oblivious to the driver’s annoyance, Elzenon suddenly threw his briefcase to the ground.
“This worthless thing!”
The papers scattered across the dirt were ruthlessly stomped underfoot.
Tears blurred his vision, and over the scattered papers appeared the face of the black-haired man who had easily subdued him in an instant.
Anyone who knew him would hardly believe the sight. Elzenon was always composed and proper in demeanor.
Though the driver, unfamiliar with him, was not swayed.
“Looks like this guy really is full of himself, huh?”
The driver lashed his whip against the dirt.
Driving a carriage was a risky job, easily attracting disputes or robbers. Hardened by rough experiences, the driver’s expression grew fierce.
“You city fop, thinking you can act out! I gave you exactly what you owed, and it’s not even much! Get in!”
When Elzenon still didn’t move, the driver cracked the whip even closer.
“Hey! Not getting in?”
The wind from the thick leather whip brushed threateningly past Elzenon’s ear.
Only then did Elzenon, as if half his senses had returned, gather his briefcase and climb into the carriage.
“You should’ve done that sooner.”
The driver smirked and used the whip as intended.
“……”
Still, Elzenon seemed unable to contain his frustration, and soon the sound of fists hitting the carriage’s inner wall echoed.
“This bastard…!”
The driver finally cursed. When Elzenon struck the spot where he had climbed in with a force incomparable to the thuds inside, the carriage finally fell silent.
“Tch, what a nuisance.”
“……”
The carriage carried Elzenon and his misery toward the Bourbon estate.
“Was it really too much to receive visitors back-to-back?”
Khalid came with a worried expression to check on Dalia, who had fallen asleep early and skipped dinner.
“This is nothing.”
Dalia smiled faintly at him.
After feeding Roy, she had accidentally tasted some herself, and ended up sleeping straight through until late evening.
‘I’ll have to go to the temple another time. There were times when I was weaker than this, and yet I had to endure false smiles at the ball hall all night…’
Living comfortably here had softened her mind.
“Were you worried?”
“You still look pale. I guess you haven’t fully recovered.”
“No, I’m completely fine.”
“Still, you should rest a bit more…”
Seeing her move her arms to show she was fine, Khalid tried to keep a serious expression but soon gave up. Her gestures were unbearably endearing.
Noticing his expression soften, Dalia lowered her arms and smiled awkwardly.
“I guess I’ve been too comfortable lately. Even something like this tires me a little.”
“Your standards are too high.”
“Compared to yours?”
“My standards are for noblewomen, not my stamina.”
Dalia tilted her head at his confident statement.
“How do you know the condition of other noblewomen?”
Khalid froze at her question, realizing he hadn’t considered it.
“……”
“……”
Dalia’s clear face was half teasing, half jealous.
“You’ve met other women before, haven’t you?”
“The word ‘met’ can be interpreted in various ways, so it’s hard to answer.”
“I mean, have you ever courted a woman?”
“Even the word ‘courted’ has multiple meanings among humans…”
Khalid tried to deflect, but Dalia tugged his sleeve, forcing him to meet her gaze.
“This one you can answer, right? Have you kissed any woman besides me?”
“……Where?”
“Here.”
Dalia tapped her lips with the hand not holding him.
Khalid, staring blankly at her red lips, suddenly realized her meaning and shook his head in alarm.
“No. That didn’t happen.”
“So if that didn’t happen, then something else did?”
Dalia didn’t feel particularly upset.
By his nature, he wouldn’t have met another woman while seeing her. She had vaguely imagined that before they met, Khalid, having lived for countless years, might have had a lover.
Curiosity outweighed jealousy.
“What kind of woman was she?”
Noticing a trace of amusement, Khalid relaxed slightly and began speaking.
But as soon as he did, Dalia’s expression stiffened.
“She wasn’t really a woman… more like a child…”
“……”
“Don’t look at me like that.”
“Explain.”
At her firm tone, Khalid sighed and carefully chose his words.
“I think I’ve said something wrong again. It was before I came here. Many of the mistakes I made with you were influenced by that child.”
“What mistakes?”
“Physical contact… things I learned from her.”
“You’re blaming a child for your physical contact?”
Seeing Dalia’s expression about to turn accusatory, Khalid hurried to add:
“That’s probably just me misunderstanding. Let me explain, just a moment.”
Dalia let out a small laugh at his flustered state, anticipating some interesting story.
“Alright, tell me step by step.”
“It was when I went north at the temple’s request… she was supposed to serve you, originally…”
“Wait. Step by step!”
Khalid’s stories about the past were fascinating.
“So you were the only one managing monsters? I thought there’d be more.”
“There are more. As you know, only a few beastmen remain. I’m the only dragon left in this land.”
She also learned a lot about his work. Each new piece of information sparked more questions, and the story was so engaging she didn’t want to skip even though ‘that child’ hadn’t come up yet.
“So that’s why you were so busy.”
“Yeah… I wasn’t able to explain before. I was too concerned about Aaron.”
Right. Dalia recalled the past.
‘I thought Aaron would eat Khalid, so I had to stay there and guard him.’
Not long ago, it already felt like a distant memory.
“Thank you.”
It felt natural now, given how much their relationship had changed since then. Her miserable past barely felt like a memory.
“For what?”
She had only been listening, not doing anything to warrant thanks.
Dalia’s mind churned with words she couldn’t express properly. Eventually, she stopped trying and said lightly:
“Everything. I wondered what would have happened if I had escaped the forest alone without meeting you.”
“And?”
At his raised eyebrow, displeased by the thought alone, Dalia laughed.
“It might not have been bad, but I like now much better.”
“Me too.”
Holding Dalia in his arms, Khalid murmured:
“And I would have been terrible.”
‘Perhaps this was the arrangement of the gods.’
Dalia thought of Tempus, the god who had revived her unconsciously, and her eyes widened.
“By the way, I need to tell you the most important story.”
“Hmm?”
She suddenly pulled away from him, and though Khalid looked dissatisfied, he couldn’t object. This was not the time.
“I couldn’t at first because I was cautious, and then I kept missing the timing. I… mentioned that someone asked me to save you, right?”
“That’s right.”
At Khalid’s indifferent reply, Dalia paused.
‘I didn’t realize it at the time…’
Strangely, this man had never seemed curious about her story. He had only said to explain later, after she recovered. That “later” never really came.
“Isn’t it surprising? The timing was too perfect to be a coincidence. Why didn’t you ask then, or even now? About the one who asked me to protect you…”
“Dalia.”
Khalid’s voice carried a sigh.
She felt a sudden sense of foreboding.
“Why?”
“You don’t need to know.”
His calm tone sounded like a command to stop asking.
