Chapter 31
Levi silently pushed through the bushes, the red of the setting sun fading between the leaves.
He had probably noticed my footsteps ages ago.
My eyes narrowed at the unyielding back in front of me.
Sure, I’d teased him and maybe gone a little too far, but come on. We’re heading to his family estate, which is currently swarming with monsters, and instead of cutting me some slack, my so-called fiancé is still sulking?
The more I thought about it, the more my irritation dug back into history.
This guy almost stepped on me and killed me the first time we met, I complimented him on being cute, practically turned an empty tin can into a person—and he still holds a grudge?
That first meeting, sharp as thorns in my mouth, resurfaced in my mind, and I couldn’t hold back the itch in my hand any longer.
“…Wait, there’s a mosquito on your back!”
Smack!
A crisp, satisfying sound. The feeling of my palm connecting was perfect.
I stared at my hand in surprise.
W-What was that?
This… thrill…!
I wasn’t the only one startled.
Levi finally turned around, and even though his expression barely changed, I could see it—he was flustered.
Still grinning from the electric sensation, I quickly asked, “Oh, did that hurt?”
“…No.”
If anything, he looked more like he was wondering why I’d hit him for something ticklish and called it pain.
How annoying. I should have smacked him harder.
I resolved that next time, I’d hit hard enough to set my palm on fire.
“Wow.”
Over Levi’s shoulder, I caught sight of a spring.
Clear water glittered in the sunset, and on the far side, small woodland creatures were drinking—an honest-to-goodness spring deep in the mountains.
Beautiful. And if he’d gone to the trouble of dragging me all the way here…
“You brought me here to show me this?”
Levi nodded.
I gently stroked his back, my tone softening.
“There really was a mosquito.”
“…”
“I’m not lying. You believe your wife, right?”
Before he could make a skeptical face, I took the lead.
It was hot, so this was perfect—maybe I could dip my hands in for a bit.
The rabbits and deer drinking from the spring perked their ears at the sound of my footsteps.
They seemed like they wanted to come closer, but the moment they saw Levi behind me, they froze and bolted.
I waved after their retreating tails and then lowered my hand into the crystal water.
“Oh, that’s nice and cool.”
“Careful.”
Levi sat down beside me, perhaps worried I’d fall in, and extended one arm in front of me.
I clung to that arm like a safety bar—no way I was letting go now.
It twitched, but it felt like the kind of arm that would never let me fall into the water. Resting my head against it, I said, “Sorry about earlier. I was just joking around.”
I swallowed the because you’re cute part—probably wouldn’t help right now.
Instead, I tried to smooth things over with gentle conversation.
“Are you still jealous?”
“…Jealous?”
It had been a while since I’d seen that tin-can reaction—he understood the dictionary definition but stumbled in applying it like a normal human.
Yeah, this one needed occasional oiling.
“You were jealous because I said I wanted to see the young master, weren’t you?”
Levi thought it over, then slowly nodded.
So that’s it.
And… that’s it? Normally when you admit to jealousy, you play hard to get afterward, don’t you?
“You’re admitting that too easily.”
“Because you said so.”
Ugh. He really has a way of making me lose my train of thought.
I cleared my throat and tried to sound prim.
“…Since we’re on the topic, let’s get this straight. Listen carefully. Couples can fight or sulk over small things, but disappearing without a word is never okay.”
Ah, here we go—tin-can overload.
Seeing his puzzled face, I crouched to meet his eyes.
“Imagine this: I get mad at you. So I avoid you, don’t talk to you, and run away every time you come near. How would that feel?”
“I’d hate it.”
“Exactly, you’d—wait, huh?”
“I’d hate it.”
I’d expected him to agree, but his firmness surprised me.
Still holding his arm out for me, Levi looked down at our reflections in the water.
“A lot,” he added.
He’s young.
The side of his face suddenly looked younger to me.
I shifted my grip, sliding down to hold his hand.
Warmth twined between us, gentle and firm.
This boy, who used to fumble every time I pulled him along, now took my hand easily.
“Right? You wouldn’t like it?”
“Mm.”
“Me neither. I hated when you avoided me. It made me sad.”
I pulled our joined hands to my face, pretending to sniffle.
Levi, clearly unsettled, quickly offered an apology—the same words as the first time we met, but with a completely different feeling.
“Sorry.”
“So what will you do from now on?”
“I won’t do it again.”
Good. Step by step.
He might be tiring to teach, but once he learns, he follows through well.
This time, I smiled and made my own promise.
“Okay. Then I’ll only want to see you from now on. Deal?”
“…Mm.”
“Let’s go back.”
Ah, much better. Cold wars don’t suit me at all.
Feeling like I’d had a bad tooth pulled, I cheerfully dragged Levi back with me.
Later, I realized that if I’d turned around then, I might have learned sooner how he smiles when he’s satisfied.
Riding in the carriage with Asha, Levi continued, during every rest stop, to bring her to one beautiful spot after another.
On the fifth day, standing before a wild rose vine in full bloom, Asha asked, “How do you even know all these places?”
“They were places my mother liked.”
Catrine, who rarely went out otherwise, loved this long journey between the estate and the townhouse.
With her eyes bright behind her stifling mask, she sought out hidden corners of nature to enjoy.
After a moment of thought, Asha said, “Then starting today, I’ll pick places I like, too.”
“…”
“It’ll make for happier memories.”
“Right?” She looked at him, and Levi glanced away.
Asha had learned by now—that was what he did when he liked something but felt awkward about showing it.
She smiled warmly. “I really do like this. Feels like a treasure hunt.”
Of course—his mother had loved treasure hunts.
He remembered the last one he’d done with her at the townhouse.
Levi had found the hidden handkerchief first and won. Catrine had built suspense with a drumroll, then threw both arms up.
The prize is Catrine’s love! Everyone applaud—hey, who just laughed? Was it you?
Wolfgang, caught laughing, nearly got his collar grabbed, but the prize came first.
Catrine pulled Levi into her arms.
You get a hug, my handsome boy.
…
I love you. I love you so, so much, you know that?
Levi nodded silently.
He knew what love was. He had learned it. He knew that he and his family loved each other.
But he couldn’t cry freely in that embrace.
It was supposed to be the “heart-warming hug” he’d read about in books.
Instead, he smiled faintly—and that alone made Catrine so happy.
When Franz and Wolfgang soon squeezed in as well, Levi’s smile deepened just a little more.
A happy memory.
“Hey, Levi! Come quick! There’s a huge, weird-looking mushroom over here!”
And just like that, he had a feeling this moment might become another.
On the exact 14th day after leaving the capital—
I was dozing against Levi’s shoulder after bantering with Benjamin when I suddenly woke with a jolt.
Cold.
A chill ran down my spine.
What the—? How could the temperature drop so suddenly?
The sweltering summer heat was gone, replaced by a strange, clammy cold that seeped into my bones.
“Ah, you’re awake. We’ve just passed through the gates,” Benjamin said.
“…We’ve arrived?”
“Yes.”
I quickly peered out the window.
“This is Bastion territory.”
So this was Bastion.
It looked… ordinary.
It did look a bit different from the capital and the other territories we’d passed, but it didn’t exactly scream “monster-infested.”
Not rich, but still a place where people lived their lives.
Maybe the stories about a demon duke’s land and monster dams had been exaggerated.
Still…
I’d heard the North was cold, but this is weird.
I rubbed my arms.
It wasn’t just cold—it was damp, oppressive…
Fwoosh.
A blanket settled over my shoulders.
I turned to Levi, smiling brightly.
Even if I wasn’t going to catch a cold, it was sweet that he cared about me being cold at all.
“Thanks. Aren’t you cold?”
“Not really.”
Well, he grew up here, so maybe he was used to it.
I’d better get used to it too—this could be my home for life.
As I wrapped the blanket tighter, I glanced around the otherwise ordinary village—
“…Huh?”
Something strange flickered at the end of the street.
It was rushing toward us fast.
At first I thought it was a big dog, but no—its entire body looked like it was coated in thick, black, sticky tar. And the closer it came, the heavier that eerie feeling grew.
I recognized it instantly.
“A monster…!”
I cried out and leaned halfway out the window.
Wolfgang, riding beside the carriage, grabbed me by the back of the neck.
“Father!”
“You’ll fall.”
“No, look! Over there—!”
A monster was charging!
And right in front of it, a woman and child stood.
An ordinary lady in an apron, broom in hand, scolding the little boy standing before her.
I had no idea what the kid had done wrong, but—Lady! Please, look to your side!
I flailed so wildly that the carriage finally came to a stop.
“Please, hurry and save them!”
I was about to have a heart attack.
But neither Wolfgang, nor Levi and Benjamin holding me back, nor any of the many knights around us moved.
Why?
In that split second, everything seemed to slow down—
My companions’ indifferent faces.
The monster galloping closer, drooling.
Its gaping jaws and sharp teeth.
And just as it pounced toward the helpless mother and child—
“If you keep ignoring your mother, then…!”
The woman gripped her broom tighter.
“Mommy’s going to spank you!”
Wham!
A perfect swing.
Home run—no, out-of-the-park home run.
Like something out of an old cartoon, the monster became a twinkling star in the sky.
As I stared after it in shock, Wolfgang gave me a wicked grin.
“Welcome to Bastion.”
So began my welcome party… in this so-called monster-slaying den of demons.
