Chapter 62
“Maybe you should let go of my hand if you want me to go into my room?”
“……”
“Hey.”
“What a shame.”
Of course. That’s more like the Jeius I know. It wouldn’t feel right if he didn’t act like this…
—Not that I missed it or anything!
I didn’t understand why Jeius kept pushing his way into my head lately. Even when I tried not to think about him, he just popped up naturally, and that was strange.
In contrast, Jeius was watching me with a calm, utterly composed expression.
Then his red lips—matching the color of his eyes—parted, and his voice came out soft, almost tender.
“Wanna sleep together?”
“…What?”
Jeius just smiled faintly instead of answering.
I couldn’t tell what that smile meant, but it was definitely dangerous. My face heated up faster than anyone’s could.
I shoved him away. As our hands naturally separated, I even pointed accusingly at him.
“Hey! Are you c-c-crazy?! How can you say something so indecent so casually?!”
My voice echoed through the quiet mansion like a shout bouncing off stone walls.
So much for my vow to stay quiet at night. Even if maids or guards came running, I wouldn’t have an excuse.
I fanned my face furiously with my hand to cool down my embarrassment while glaring daggers at Jeius.
And then—what the heck. He lowered his head slightly and covered his mouth with his hand.
“Pfft.”
A soft laugh slipped out.
I knew exactly what that meant, and the heat in my face instantly vanished, replaced by irritation.
“Joking.”
“……”
“Good night, Senika. If we meet in a dream, that’d be even better.”
After saying that, Jeius gently guided me into my room and—so kind of him—closed the door himself.
“…I got played.”
I stood there blankly for a few minutes before touching my cheeks with both hands.
They stayed hot for a long time.
Morning came—the day of the White Wine Festival.
The weather was a bit cloudy, but not enough to spoil the mood. Actually, I was just glad it wasn’t raining; if it had, Rita’s entire plan would’ve been ruined.
Anyway, that wasn’t the problem. The real problem was right now.
“……”
“……”
I was on my way to the festival, sitting in the carriage after a leisurely lunch.
The air inside was… awkward. Or maybe I was the only one feeling that way.
I glanced sideways at Jeius sitting on the left. His eyes stared straight ahead—cold and indifferent, as usual.
It seemed like I was the only one still bothered by his “joke” last night.
‘He’s the one who made me lose sleep, and he’s sitting there like nothing happened…!’
It annoyed me, how calm he looked. It even bruised my pride that I was the only one who cared.
‘Fine. I’m not going to care either!’
I turned to look out the right window.
And just like that, we stayed silent until we arrived at the plaza.
“We’ve arrived…”
When Ludias opened the carriage door, he paused briefly, sensing the heavy, awkward air inside.
I stepped out first, passing Jeius without looking back.
“Wow!”
The plaza had completely transformed—it was so glamorous that I almost doubted if it was the same place I knew.
Even though it was still bright daylight, everything sparkled. How dazzling would it be at night?
My slightly sunken mood lifted right away.
“Let’s go!”
I strode forward, full of energy, into the sea of people.
Rumor had it that on the first day of the White Wine Festival, not all the visitors showed up yet, so if you wanted to enjoy everything to the fullest, you should come early.
That bit of info was crucial to me—because even though the festival lasted several days, I only had one day of free time to spend outside.
So I’d planned everything to enjoy as much as possible today.
Between successor lessons and duties, my schedule was already packed. My father had barely carved out this time for me, saying I should enjoy my first White Wine Festival.
‘Though he’s too busy to come himself…’
Anyway, today’s goal was simple: enjoy everything before sunset!
There were a lot more people than I’d expected, but still—no problem!
I walked down a long stretch lined with colorful tent booths. Then, one bright red tent caught my eye—it was unusually crowded.
“Hey, look over there—”
I raised my hand instinctively to point, but my hand met empty air. Only then did I realize Jeius wasn’t beside me.
I froze. The gesture had been so natural that it surprised even me.
‘We’ve only been together for a few days, and I already assumed he’d be right next to me…’
I frowned briefly, then relaxed my face and looked around for him.
If he wasn’t here, I’d just find him myself—not because I needed him, but because I didn’t want him to get lost.
Soon, I spotted Jeius not far away.
Wait… why was he standing that far away instead of next to me?
“Jeius.”
I called his name and walked over. Thankfully, he didn’t walk off this time.
But something felt… off.
Normally, he’d be hovering near me, claiming it was “dangerous” because of the crowd. Why was he acting so calm now?
‘Is he feeling sick or something but forcing himself to come along?’
I studied his face carefully.
He didn’t look unwell—but if he was trying to hide it, I wouldn’t be able to tell.
Fine, I’d just ask directly.
“Are you feeling sick?”
“No.”
“Then what’s wrong? You seem… weird today.”
“Are you done being mad?”
“Huh?”
What kind of random question was that?
I frowned slightly, not understanding.
“Why would I be mad?”
“I thought you were mad because I joked yesterday.”
“……”
…Wow. Maybe I’m not just simple—I’m really simple. How did I forget that so fast?
The funny thing was, I’d remembered it all the way through the carriage ride earlier.
If I had to make excuses… I’d say the vibrant, festive plaza had distracted me completely.
“Forget it. Come here.”
I sighed and grabbed his forearm, pulling him back toward the red tent that had been packed with people earlier.
It turned out to be an archery booth.
There were others too, but this one was special—the prize for first place was impressive.
“What’s the prize?”
“A golden turtle.”
Well, that was certainly fancier than the stuffed toys at the other booths. But still, my room was full of random jewels and trinkets—why would I care about a golden turtle?
No, what caught my attention was the ranking board. It triggered my competitive streak.
Even though… I’d never shot an arrow in my life.
“I wanna try this!”
You got seven arrows per round. The top score was 66 points.
If I scored 67, I’d take first place—but if I was going to do it, I wanted the perfect 70.
Unfortunately…
“Score: 12 points!”
Not a single arrow even came close to the bullseye.
Where did my confidence even come from? Of course I’d be bad at it—I’d never shot before!
Still, the miserable result made me sulk.
Jeius, watching me, calmly picked up a bow himself.
“You’re going to try too?”
He nodded. His expression was as uninterested as ever—no excitement, no nerves.
I was curious though. He was good at everything, but I doubted he’d ever shot a bow before.
I watched his back without expecting much—then my jaw dropped.
And not just me—the whole crowd gasped.
Because—
Thwip!
‘…Is he insane?!’
All seven arrows hit dead center. Every single one, perfectly in the X-ring.
The booth went completely silent for a moment—then erupted in cheers.
I clapped along before catching myself. Wait, what am I doing?!
“Seventy points—perfect score!”
Even the booth owner looked stunned. Probably the first time anyone had ever landed all seven in the center.
Meanwhile, Jeius looked as calm as ever.
“You can shoot too?”
“As a hobby.”
“Liar.”
“I told you—I don’t lie to you.”
…Whatever. Hobby or not, he was ridiculously skilled. Even if these were toy bows, a master didn’t depend on their tools.
Even if my name wasn’t the one on the winner’s board, I couldn’t help feeling a bit proud.
“Ahem! You two—come here for a second!”
The booth owner suddenly called us in a strange, teasing tone.
“Why?”
“Well… there’s a special prize for perfect scores.”
“And?”
“Sshh! Keep it down, will you?”
What’s with the secrecy?
It was suspicious, but I nodded anyway.
“Are you two… lovers, by any chance?”
“Huh? Out of nowhere?”
“Well, there’s a prize here that’s only for couples, you see.”
Hmm. That sounded fishy. I had a feeling that if we said yes, we’d only get that “special” couple prize instead of the golden turtle.
Still, I was curious what that mysterious “couple-only” reward was.
“Yes, we are!”
“No, we’re not.”
…Our answers came out at the exact same time—but completely opposite.
We both blinked at each other in silence.
I honestly didn’t expect him to deny it.
The booth owner looked from one to the other, clearly suspicious.
“Uh… you two don’t seem to agree?”
“We argued yesterday, and he’s still sulking! Don’t mind whatever he says.”
Something about Jeius denying it sparked my competitive streak, so I jumped in to cover it up.
The owner still looked doubtful, but I quickly stepped forward to block his line of sight—hiding Jeius behind me (not that my smaller frame actually covered him).
Anyway, I smiled brightly and looked up at the man.
