10.
“I didn’t expect you’d want to dine with me.”
Freia, who had hurriedly come downstairs as soon as she finished getting ready, entered the spacious dining hall as if nothing had happened, speaking with a composed tone.
The man sitting at the far end of the long table momentarily set down his utensils.
But seeing Argent still wearing his mask, Freia felt an invisible wall rise between them. It was clear that he had no intention of showing his face under any circumstances.
Perhaps that was why.
Like cloth fluttering in the wind, her swaying emotions suddenly solidified into cold stillness.
“Do you dislike it?”
“No. I was just asking.”
“If you’re ever uncomfortable, speak up.”
She had thought something might have changed when he invited her to eat, but he was still drawing a line between them.
Kind, yet unkind—that strange in-between.
‘What is this uncomfortable feeling?’
“Have a seat.”
Argent looked at her, signaling for her to come closer.
Only then did Freia move, and Clyden pulled out the chair to Argent’s right for her.
In the silence, the sound of tableware being set filled the room as dishes were placed before Freia.
Since she had gone to bed early the previous night and missed dinner, she didn’t refuse the meal.
Of course, dining across from someone she found uncomfortable meant she couldn’t eat quickly, but she carefully chewed and sampled a bit of everything.
Their conversation resumed once Freia had eaten a decent amount.
Argent, seeming to think she had eaten enough, was the first to speak.
“Are you adjusting well?”
Was that it? Was that why he wanted to eat together? For a moment, Freia wondered if he had invited her to a public meal like this—for the sake of appearances.
She wasn’t the future Empress of the Intellia Empire, just a woman he had brought with him.
But if she didn’t at least make an appearance, no matter who she was to Argent, others might look down on her.
‘No… That can’t be it.’
Freia quickly shook off the thought.
He had no reason to care about her. In fact, he clearly disliked her.
Still, her emotions remained mixed. Even if Intellia was different from Ezan in every way, it was unusual for so many attendants to be present at a royal meal.
She’d only been here a day, but the staff seemed relatively few. Yet now it seemed like nearly all of them were here.
“Do you not like it?”
“No, not at all. I was actually surprised. For a moment, I thought I was back in the Kingdom of Ezan….”
“You’ll need to adapt.”
In the meantime, the dishes were served one by one in front of them.
What had begun as a simple soup and bread quickly progressed to a main course, then dessert. It seemed prearranged, as the attendants quietly exited once everything was served.
Only then did Freia set down her utensils and look at him.
“But no matter how I think about it, the reason still isn’t clear.”
“Not clear…? What do you mean?”
“The reason you brought me here. And the reason why you expect nothing from me or Ezan.”
“…Originally, I intended to make you my wife. But honestly, it could have been anyone.”
Her large eyes stared intently at him.
That gaze made him uncomfortable.
In every repeated life, he had never failed to make her his wife.
Each time, he brought her here, placed her at his side, and bound her with the title of Empress. And every time, Freia withered, like a bird with its wings torn off.
No matter what he did, he couldn’t save her.
So this time, he didn’t even try to begin that path.
He hoped that avoiding the same mistake might be the one small way to save her.
“Then why didn’t you do it?”
Her voice finally pierced through him like a blade.
“I wonder.”
What excuse could he give?
The excuse he fumbled for a question he hadn’t expected was far from perfect. So instead, he gave a hollow laugh and set down his utensils.
A long pause would only cause suspicion, so Argent was about to answer—but Freia spoke first.
“Is it because of the woman I saw yesterday?”
His brow twitched slightly.
“That woman? Do you mean Irina?”
“Yes.”
“She’s the one who brought me back here. She saved my life. That’s all.”
“Do you… like her?”
He had never been asked such a question before.
No—up until now, the Freia he had known had never cared about him. Not about Irina. Not even when other women were near. But now she was asking if he liked someone?
The unexpected question froze his expression.
“Why do you want to know?”
Exactly. Freia herself wondered why.
Why did she care so much about someone who didn’t even like her—someone who had no interest in her at all?
‘But I keep getting curious about him. Over and over again.’
These primal questions and feelings continued to grow inside her.
“Just because. Can’t I ask that kind of question?”
“She… you don’t need to concern yourself with her.”
He wanted to say they were nothing. That she had saved his life and helped stabilize the empire.
Irina was Ian’s mother, and the one who had revived this land.
She found this country—his mother’s homeland—and saved him from the brink of death. But that was all.
“Can’t you tell me? If she’s your lover or someone important… I need to be careful, just in case.”
If that were the case, then everything would make sense.
Freia was filled with thoughts about how she should treat Irina—neither guest, nor slave, nor a cherished woman of Argent’s—just someone who needed to survive.
Freia waited only for his answer.
“It’s nothing like that, so don’t worry. It’s not because someone else is in my life that I didn’t take you as my wife. It’s just… that’s how I feel.”
When the day comes that you want to fly away from me, I don’t want you to be burdened with the title of Empress of the barbarians. In the end, the only way for you to be happy… is to leave me.
Having finished his meal, Argent looked darker than before.
“I don’t understand. I really can’t understand your heart.”
I really can’t understand your heart. That’s why I hate you.
Freia’s voice from the past overlapped with the present, and the eyes hidden behind the mask closed tightly. A weight settled in his chest.
He had tried so hard to make a change, and yet he heard the same words again.
‘No matter how hard I try, is our future destined to stay the same? Like a wheel spinning endlessly…’
Regret washed over him. Was the desire to see her again just a selfish wish that only ended up hurting her? Argent swallowed a sigh.
As she stared at him, Freia opened her mouth again.
“If you didn’t want me by your side because you dislike me…”
“That’s not it.”
“If it’s not because you dislike me, and it’s not because of another woman, and there’s no other reason—then make me your wife.”
The unexpected words sent a jolt through Argent’s chest.
‘Don’t come to me. Stay away. That’s the only way you’ll survive.’
He wished she would go far away. Yet he couldn’t bring himself to reject her outright, and he hated that weakness in himself.
He should’ve been cruel and cast her out.
But just because he wanted to see her face again, hear her voice, check that she was eating well, and wasn’t uncomfortable—he had invited her to dine. He was ashamed of himself.
He didn’t respond for a long while. His surprised eyes just stared at Freia.
“Do you not want to?”
“Why? Why do you want to tie yourself to me like this?”
“Because in this state, I feel too uneasy. I know. I know I’m in no position to say this. I’m just a hostage you brought here. But still, I’m asking.”
“You’re asking me?”
It was a phrase he’d never heard before.
The only times she’d ever made requests of him were to let her go. Always negative. So his lips twisted into a strange smile. Argent unconsciously repeated her words in his mind.
“A request…”
Freia’s eyes, as she looked at him, were firm. She had to survive. Here, right now.
But she wasn’t a guest, a slave, or even someone Argent cared for. So her means of survival were limited.
She had to secure her footing. That was the only way she’d have a rightful place here. She had no great skills, no academic excellence, no enlightenment. So if she was here because of a transaction, then she had to fulfill that role.
‘Yes. This is the right choice.’
“If you want… I’ll do whatever it takes as your wife. Just don’t throw me out.”
“Whatever it takes? You don’t even know what I might want, yet you say that? It’d be better to just accept the comfortable life I offered you.”
“Who knows when your heart might change? Honestly, I’ll tell you. Even having just the title might give me a weapon—so that when you do try to cast me aside, I can protect myself.”
Her bold words disarmed him completely.
‘You always manage to surprise me.’
Words he hadn’t expected.
Now, she finally seemed alive. No longer a doll staring at him blankly—now she was someone who wanted to live.
