Chapter – 71
Di thought to herself but kept her mouth tightly shut, unable to show her thoughts.
“So, there’s absolutely no need to worry!”
Ritauder said firmly and urged Stephanie to stop worrying and leave. Di, impressed by Ritauder’s unwavering belief without a hint of suspicion, spoke to Stephanie.
“Stephanie. Did you hear everything Prince Jason just said?”
“Yes, Priestess!”
“For some reason… he seems to think I spread the rumor that Prince Xian Clais is alive. Let me clarify before we go. Don’t worry too much.”
Di explained calmly, repeating the story she already knew Stephanie had heard.
Stephanie, clever as she was, immediately caught on, pretended to cry, and hurriedly ran outside.
Now, in the Western Temple, only Jason and Di remained.
Jason leaned back in his chair, placing an unlit cigarette on the table.
“Let’s get this over with. I can’t smoke because you hate it.”
“I hate you more than cigarettes.”
“You don’t hate me.”
Jason smirked mischievously.
“So… you’re the one who started the rumor, right? Since you can’t see Xian Clais’ ghost, people think he’s still alive.”
“Yeah, that’s right.”
“Finally, a conversation I can follow. With foresight, object reading, palmistry, astrology… now you even see ghosts?”
“I’m just… very capable.”
Her calm answer made Jason chuckle, and he asked directly.
“You think Xian is alive, right? Then where do you think he is?”
“I don’t know.”
“Tell me. I want to find out. I also regretted that he died so young.”
“Alright! Then let’s think about where Xian could be together.”
Di pretended to ponder. Jason wasn’t fooled and tapped his fingers on the table.
“You’re just stalling until someone comes to rescue you, aren’t you? Pretending to think.”
“…You’re not falling for it.”
This man never gives in easily.
Di placed an arm on the table and said with a rather fierce expression,
“Jason. You’re making a big mistake right now.”
“What mistake?”
“Admitting that the rumor about Xian being alive is important enough for you to have kidnapped me.”
Di’s serious tone made Jason stop tapping. His gaze grew cold, so Di quickly pointed outside.
“Ah! A bird I’ve never seen before!”
When Jason looked, Di was already running toward the door—but the door was locked, and he clicked his tongue.
“Tch, not so careless after all.”
“You really underestimated the locals here, huh?”
“Honestly, yes. Everyone else was fooled… but you—are you going to kill me here?”
“We’ll see.”
Di pressed against the door to maximize her chances of escape. Jason got up and moved toward the door.
At that moment, a voice came from behind the door—Kyle.
“Jason. Don’t do anything reckless.”
Jason called out,
“Kyle, I’m only talking with Priestess Diana. Don’t come in. If you do, I can’t promise I’ll let you leave unharmed.”
After his warning, Jason let go of Di’s hand from the doorknob, turned her to face him, and pressed her wrist to the door.
“Killing you would be the easiest option.”
He muttered to himself, a statement meant only for him.
Di swallowed nervously and said,
“Jason, you know that if you kill me here, it proves you are Xian Clais.”
Jason frowned.
“…Why would that happen?”
“Because the only reason you came for me is the rumor that Xian Clais is alive. If you dare kill the priestess, there’s no other reason—it must be because you are Xian Clais.”
Jason’s frown deepened. Di’s explanation made sense; that’s why she had taken the time to explain everything to Stephanie.
Stephanie Ganie of the Ganie family was known for her intelligence. Di thought if she explained the situation to Stephanie, she’d understand.
“Our Stephanie is really smart. She’ll realize that if I die, it proves you are Xian Clais.”
Di’s confident gaze made Jason sigh.
“Why did you even suspect me in the first place? You never met Xian.”
“I saw his face. In the coffin.”
“Still… we never had a conversation.”
“That’s true, but my first doubt was because you weren’t that handsome.”
“…Huh?”
“You know, your family has good genes, so your looks are decent, but sometimes you act like an incredibly handsome man…”
Jason was so taken aback by the unexpected comment that he opened his mouth slightly, flinching. Then he asked, incredulous,
“You suspected me for such a trivial reason?”
“Well… that’s a joke, but also partially true. Let’s call it a joke.”
Di stared at him fearlessly.
“There are other reasons to doubt you, too. Rumors say you were a reckless bastard, but suddenly you’re a political genius?”
“Maybe I worked at it.”
“My grandmother said that smart people can act foolish, but fools can’t act smart.”
“…”
“Priestess Renette nursed Xian, and now she’s with you. That’s suspicious.”
“I already explained that. I decided to switch factions with her help.”
“Hmm. But if all these coincidences add up, they become evidence.”
“…”
“So, I think you are Xian Clais. It’s not just suspicion. I’m certain, just lacking proof.”
Jason looked her in the eyes. Di remained composed, speaking boldly.
“If you kill me, Kyle will get the proof for sure. So don’t. I’m saying this for your sake.”
Her cunning and trembling hands, slightly wet eyes—all her actions and words captivated him.
If he had enough money, he thought, he’d also want her.
Jason smiled silently. Di, sensing something, asked,
“Why are you smiling?”
“Because I like you.”
“What part? My face? Do you like fairies? I’m actually from the fairy realm…”
Di trailed off, trying to hide her fear, her eyes wide like sunlit leaves in summer.
Jason’s mischievous smile deepened as a faint blue appeared in his eyes. He leaned closer and interlaced his fingers with Di’s against the wall.
“Even if I’m certain you are Xian Clais…”
“…”
“How will you prove it?”
His rough voice softened for a moment, gentle and sweet.
Di, shocked, watched as his eyes returned to their original brown.
Feeling fear in that instant, she noticed Jason could still tease her even in this situation.
Jason asked playfully,
“Want to come south with me?”
“I told you, no.”
“If you join me, claiming the throne would be easier.”
“You’ll kill Kyle next.”
“How can you be so sure?”
“You want to reclaim Xian’s inheritance. To do that, you’ll have to kill Kyle.”
“‘Your inheritance’?”
Jason laughed cheerfully, pretending nothing had happened.
Suddenly, a wall cracked. Di looked to her right and saw a hole filled with dust, and an arrow flew in.
The arrow narrowly missed Jason, and he shouted.
“What is this?! I almost died!”
As the dust settled, Kyle appeared, sword lowered, and next to him, Amila drew another arrow.
Kyle asked Amila, puzzled,
“Why did you miss?”
“I thought it’d be better if Jason escaped,” Amila replied coolly.
“Merciful.”
Then she drew again, adding,
“Hitting a moving target is more fun.”
Kyle nodded in admiration.
Di, stunned by the collapsing wall, hurriedly grabbed a pie box. Jason complained.
“Really? A pie first while I almost got shot? That’s too much.”
Then, when the two people Di trusted appeared, she relaxed and shouted.
“How can you say something so cruel? Comparing a pie to you? It must be delicious!”
“What? A pie is more important than me, even if you haven’t tasted it? I’ve never been treated like this in my life!”
He acted exaggeratedly as if he were offended, while Di was amazed at his acting skills.
Kyle, holding his sword, approached them. Jason quickly stepped back, pretending to be innocent.
“I was just talking, Kyle.”
Kyle grabbed his collar with one hand.
“You think I won’t kill you?”
“Eek!”
Then Jason’s men outside the temple arrived, along with Wis. Di dropped the pie box and grabbed Kyle’s sleeve.
Although she wasn’t strong enough to stop him, Kyle paused. Without even looking at her, he sheathed his sword, picked up the fallen pie box, and muttered.
“Because of that guy… the pie…”
Jason yelled indignantly.
“Why are you talking about pie too?!”
Kyle ignored him and handed the pie box back to Di.
“Tonight, you’ll sleep in the Eastern Temple. The wall collapsed anyway.”
“Agreed. Amila! Let me sleep there!”
Di ran excitedly and clung to Amila. Amila, annoyed, said,
“Let go.”
“Ah, but it’s comforting to be close to you. It’s cold, let’s stay warm together.”
“…It’s cold, yeah? Let’s go share the pie. Even though it’s squished, it’ll taste the same.”
Di chattered happily as she went toward the Eastern Temple with Amila.
Once she confirmed Di would be with Amila, Kyle looked back at Jason and said,
“We need to talk.”
