Chapter 65
Beneath the hood fell smooth black hair, and a small frame was wrapped in a long robe.
My face froze in shock.
The person sitting on the windowsill now was undoubtedly As!
I jumped up and hurried to the windowsill.
“As… As… you…!”
“Long time no see, Einra.”
“Y-you… how could you come all this way in such a small body…!”
I quickly picked up As and sat him down on the bed.
Carefully lifting the hood that partially covered his face, I met his gaze—red eyes staring directly at me.
He blinked delicately.
“But when I opened my eyes, Einra wasn’t by my side.”
“Huh…?”
“So I came to find you. To find Einra.”
His small hand reached for mine and pressed it against his cheek.
I stared blankly at As’s face.
‘…Wasn’t all that supposed to have ended yesterday?’
He had promised to wait until my curiosity was satisfied, hadn’t he?
While question marks swirled in my mind, I suddenly remembered when As first suffered from the side effects of his fever a little while ago.
He had been feverish, speaking incoherently, unaware of what he was saying.
Eventually, his small body couldn’t withstand the fever on his right side and he fainted.
‘Could it be that this is similar to that fever?’
The cheek I felt with my fingertip wasn’t hot, but I carefully observed his face.
Sensing my persistent gaze, his crimson eyes relaxed lazily.
…Looking at him like this, his eyes seemed a little off.
‘Did he really catch a fever again?’
Is that why he came here so recklessly?
Worried, I quickly placed my hand on his forehead.
The small forehead beneath my palm was comfortably warm.
I couldn’t tell if it was a fever or not.
Just as I tilted my head, pondering,
“Einra.”
With that soft call, the hand on my forehead was gently pushed aside.
At the same time, his small hands pulled my face toward his.
“…!”
Our foreheads touched.
Startled, I gasped, and he smiled again, just a breath away.
“It’s better to check the temperature this way than with hands.”
“…”
“How is it? Am I running a high fever?”
A faint scent of soap brushed against my nose.
For a fleeting moment, I saw Aces overlapping in his gaze.
In the silence, with only the chirping of insects, my heart thumped loudly.
Snapping back to reality, I replied,
“…Ah, no. It’s just a mild fever, it’s already gone down a lot.”
“Ah…”
“Did it hurt a lot?”
Hesitating, he leaned back slightly, and a pained expression spread across his face.
“It hurt. A lot.”
“…”
“Because you weren’t there, Einra.”
His red eyes shimmered as if tears could fall at any moment.
Just as I reached out to his eyes, a voice came from outside.
Knock, knock.
“Einra, are you in there?”
A sudden sharpness flashed across As’s sorrowful eyes.
“Th-that pest…”
He murmured quietly and rose.
Startled, I quickly covered As’s mouth and pushed him back onto the bed.
“…!”
As his hood fell back, his ebony hair spilled across the white blanket.
His eyes, widened in surprise, looked up at me.
I pressed my index finger against his lips and whispered,
“As… let’s pretend to be asleep. If we stay quiet, they might just leave…”
“No answer. Hmm, I’ll come in for now.”
The moment the words ended, the doorknob began to turn slowly.
I quickly covered As’s small frame with the blanket, hiding him completely just as the door flung open.
“Oh? Einra, you weren’t asleep after all.”
“Uh… uh, I just woke up from the door noise. Haha.”
I quickly turned to face Lloyd, desperately smiling while shielding As under the blanket.
Lloyd tilted his head in confusion, then smiled and closed the door.
Click.
“Did I wake Einra?”
“Ah… well… haha…”
I wished he would just leave, but Lloyd, sitting beside me, showed no intention of going.
I forced a smile, swallowing a sigh.
“What brings you here at this hour?”
“You’ve been avoiding me since this afternoon.”
“Oh… haha…”
Flustered, I averted my gaze.
I had tried so hard not to be noticed… but he caught on immediately.
“I thought maybe you were worried about Miss Ayla… no, Baroness Kenesith. But since it’s completely over with her, I came to tell you there’s nothing to worry about.”
“Ah, I see…”
I replied, slowly shifting slightly to the side.
Lloyd had been subtly attempting physical closeness.
“Trust me. The only woman who will be my wife is you, Einra.”
With golden eyes filled with longing, Lloyd moved close to me, brushing my hair back from my shoulders.
“We’re going to be married soon, after all.”
As he lowered his head, his hand swept my hair aside.
“So… we…”
“Uh, wait!”
I jumped up, shouting.
“E-Einra…?”
Startled by my sudden action, Lloyd looked up at me.
As, seemingly sensing the situation, stirred under the blanket.
“…?”
Hearing the rustle, Lloyd turned his head slightly back.
Panicked, I grabbed his shoulder, pulling him onto the bed, and shouted,
“I’m a virgin before marriage!”
Confusion spread across Lloyd’s face as he fell onto the bed.
I climbed atop him, holding his shoulders firmly to prevent him from seeing As under the blanket.
“So! Please refrain from visiting at such late hours!”
I glared at him with wide eyes.
His face, pinned beneath me, flushed bright red instantly.
“Ah… what do I do… too cute…”
He murmured, covering his face with his hands.
‘Haven’t I heard this murmur somewhere before… on the terrace?’
While I furrowed my brows, he muttered a few more unintelligible words, then whispered,
“…This is unfair.”
“Excuse me?”
“You’re too cute, Einra. I can’t do anything more.”
“…”
A shiver ran down my spine.
I tried to retreat slowly, but Lloyd was faster, rising to his knees.
He reached out, patting my head with a smile.
“Alright, I’ll hold back until our wedding. So you don’t have to be nervous.”
“…”
“Good night.”
With those generous words, he left.
Click.
Only after the door closed did I finally relax.
“Ha… finally gone…”
Just then, a quiet, chilling voice reached my ears, cold enough to make my bones shiver.
“…How dare you.”
With a cold laugh, As brushed back his hair.
Under the strands scattered between his tiny fingers, eyes consumed by darkness revealed themselves, seemingly broken.
His crimson gaze glared toward the door Lloyd had just left.
The look was so fierce it seemed he could shatter everything in sight, and I quickly cupped his cheeks.
“As… As? It’s okay. Nothing happened. It’s fine.”
“…Nothing happened?”
“Yes, really, nothing happened. And anyway, he’s someone who will soon disappear from this world.”
“Someone who will soon disappear, huh… then it’s fine.”
Usually, this would have been a moment to laugh it off, but something about As’s eyes was unsettling.
Still sensing danger in his gaze, I didn’t know what to do, so I tightly shut my eyes.
Then I pressed my lips against his soft cheeks.
Smack.
A cute little sound, and my lips left his.
“…”
Looking at As again, he blinked with a dazed expression.
The earlier hostility had vanished completely.
He looked so cute that I couldn’t help but smile.
Clearing my throat, I spoke.
“As, I’m going to borrow the Undine’s power to check Dante’s lab.”
“…”
“If you stay calm until then, I’ll let you go to other places too.”
“…Other places?”
His crimson eyes glimmered with curiosity.
