~Special Side Story 7~
When Khalid stepped into the study,
Leviathan froze.
“You… has your memory come back?”
“No.”
“But your expression is exactly the same.”
His slightly pouting face looked just like always.
“…It’s nothing.”
Engaged…
Why leave him like this?
“So… what did you call me here for?”
“Hm.”
The man leaned back in his chair.
Khalid asked casually, pretending not to care, but he was slightly tense.
After all, this was the master of the Ducal House.
The highest-ranking person he had ever met.
The man sat slouched, diagonally across the desk.
Relaxed, almost lazy, but true predators carried ease like air.
Surely, hidden within was immense power or ruthless schemes…
“Look, a doll.”
It was impressive.
“…Yes?”
Leviathan, in more ways than one…
He smiled boldly and pulled a strange bundle of fur from the desk.
“Made from yarn. Age twelve.”
“…Excuse me, it looks like a twisted, poorly dried laundry bundle,”
“Oh, I skipped the subject. Rubian made it.”
“It looks soft. I like it.”
“I think so too. A bunny. Cute, right?”
Khalid tilted his head.
“A lion… isn’t it?”
“…This?”
Leviathan rotated the fur bundle as if he couldn’t believe it.
“No wonder… why it had so many ears.”
He laughed wryly.
“Ah, so you made the lion.”
Another fur bundle appeared on the desk, this one a well-made lion doll.
“Well, you wouldn’t make something different from Rubi.”
“….”
“Then how about this?”
He slid open another drawer.
A hint of pride on his face.
“Rubian’s Academy certificate. Age sixteen. Perfect attendance.”
“…Ah.”
“Unfortunately, you slacked off and couldn’t get it. Probably only an academic excellence award?”
Here, diligence seemed valued more than brilliance. Admirable.
The Duke’s eccentricities continued.
“Look. This is Rubian’s animal farm drawing. Age eleven. All the abstract elements are there. Very different from your realism…”
“That looks like a family portrait… probably the one on your desk, Duke.”
“….”
Leviathan glared at Khalid.
“Are you really without memory? How do you know this?”
If Khalid said, “I just have a sense,” he’d probably be scolded for being cheeky.
“…So, why are you showing me all this?”
“Nothing comes back?”
Khalid blinked. Now he understood why the Duke was doing this.
He was trying to help him regain his memory.
The Duke—the duke of dukes—personally.
It felt strange. Khalid stared at the trinkets on the desk.
Objects neatly paired.
Seeing them, his lips moved without thinking.
“…But…”
“Hm?”
“Even what I made… you kept all this?”
Honestly, he didn’t remember making these things, so maybe the Duke arranged them.
“Would I throw it away?”
The answer, as if obvious, made Khalid’s heart tingle.
Only then did he notice the whole study.
The children’s marks were everywhere.
Rubian’s crooked first drawing, Void’s first poem, Liam’s first certificate, Khalid’s first sword training record…
‘If that’s true, I… lived pretty well here.’
Seeing traces of himself treated like a normal child felt strangely moving.
He had always known.
The Duchess, the old Duke, both sons—all of them.
Strong personalities, but no malice.
They genuinely wanted him to recover his memory.
Following the memories they had of “Khalid.”
‘Can I… trust them?’
Truthfully, he wanted to.
‘How did I end up here?’
Rubian… what memories did he have with her?
She made dolls, drew pictures, attended the academy… and somehow, he got engaged to her?
Khalid, for the first time, wanted to know his past.
What happened. He wanted to know.
“Ugh.”
“Khal?”
At that moment, a sharp ache struck his head.
But unfortunately, not enough to restore his memory.
“I… I’ll go upstairs.”
He fled the study.
And he didn’t hesitate.
Focusing his senses, his own magic became acutely noticeable—the energy that had been bothering him for some time.
And that magic…
Seemed to connect somewhere.
“….”
A faint thrill stirred.
The end of that blue thread… must lead to you.
Khalid went straight to Rubian’s bedroom.
But it was unlucky.
He found her sitting alone with some parasitic-looking man, drinking tea…
Seeing that, all the feelings he had been piling up… suddenly exploded.
“But, what is that?”
“Hey, if you say it like that…”
Khalid lowered his head at the doorway.
“…You didn’t come yesterday after I was a little mean?”
“Khalid?”
“Were you playing with that man?”
Huh?
Rubian blinked.
‘What the…?’
The harsh kid from yesterday suddenly showed a new emotion?
Khalid bit his lip and looked down at Rubian’s round eyes.
“Engaged.”
She made dolls, drew, attended the academy with him.
Suddenly, heat rushed up his throat.
“I lost my memory… and became a clueless brat…”
“Khal?! You’re crying…?”
“Now… you’re going to abandon me?”
He covered his face with his large hands and staggered.
Rubian, surprised, grabbed his forearm.
As if waiting, his strong hand captured hers.
“Don’t abandon me.”
“….”
“…Noona.”
Gasp.
The perpetual youngest finally spoke.
For some reason, in just one day, Khalid had grown fragile.
Rubian decided to stay with him, soothing him.
Licht, as if expecting this, shook his head, finished his tea, greeted Rubian, and returned to Ipsen.
“…Hmph. What a shame.”
He left that odd remark.
Rubian rolled her eyes.
Left alone with him in the drawing room, a quiet calm settled.
Khalid sat quietly, like a well-behaved puppy, watching her.
‘I’m not burdensome to him anymore?’
That was a relief.
But… is he staring too hard? Feels like my face will get pierced.
Rubian couldn’t stand it and clapped her hands.
“It’s… just about lunch! Shall we eat? Want anything?”
“Not really… I’m not that hungry.”
“Huh. Skipped breakfast and now my stomach is growling. Did you hear that?”
“I’m hungry.”
“Good!”
Rubian smiled brightly. Khalid noticed her smile lifting her corners of the mouth.
They went to the dining room.
Somehow, an array of lavish, unfamiliar dishes was prepared.
“Khal, eat a lot.”
Rubian served food onto his stiff plate.
Like a sparrow feeding its mate.
“Come to think of it, you never ate much, always worrying about my meal.”
“….”
“Hurry up! It’ll get cold!”
“…Yes.”
Khalid forced his fork to move and glanced at Rubian.
He had never seen such a feast.
Yet somehow, his gaze went more to her fluttering eyelashes than the food.
‘I was busy feeding her?’
He couldn’t imagine himself caring for someone else.
Yet somehow, it made sense.
‘Of course.’
She was so small.
‘He naturally wanted to feed her a lot.’
Even now, he wanted her to take bigger bites.
‘Small hands. Small mouth.’
No.
“Stop carrying food to me, eat carefully yourself.”
“Why? Was I a burden again?”
“No…”
Khalid quickly added.
“If you give it all to me, there’ll be nothing left for myself.”
He gruffly moved food from her plate to his.
Rubian, watching, jumped up.
“You!”
“…What?”
“Don’t tell me… your memory came back?”
“…?”
“No… you’re carefully picking out the bell peppers from my plate. And just now, you removed them from the sandwich too…”
Oh?
Khalid compared her plate and his, then chuckled.
Rubian’s heart skipped a beat at that familiar smile.
“You could at least not make it obvious.”
“Hmm?”
“You’ve been meticulously avoiding bell peppers. Are you really that clueless?”
Rubian blinked.
‘Most people wouldn’t notice.’
From experience, she knew: most people weren’t paying that much attention.
‘Even my lab colleagues who eat together daily didn’t know I disliked bell peppers.’
Khalid noticed within five minutes of the meal.
It felt like all his attention was on her.
‘Maybe… a positive sign?’
“Mom said… Khal will feel a stronger desire to regain memory if he’s with you, Rubi.”
Mother’s words were indeed truth…
‘But…’
Rubian thought while chewing.
‘What, how much, and in what way should I stimulate Khalid so he desperately wants to recover his memory?’
Only one method came to mind.
