Chapter 36
Kyle spoke as if he had completely forgotten that I might soon be leaving Fortress Prison.
“You accepted Reinhardt’s confession while I was away, right? Did you just ignore our promise?”
“Promise? Did we even make such a promise?”
I tilted my head teasingly, and Kyle’s brow furrowed sharply, glaring at me.
Hmph, does he think I’d get angry just because I’m dating Reinhardt? I snorted and said casually,
“Anyway, the trial is the day after tomorrow. What good will it do? I’m probably going to be sentenced to death.”
“…Did your lawyer say that? That you’re going to get the death penalty?”
Kyle couldn’t hide his skeptical expression, but when I shamelessly acted indifferent, he had no choice but to believe me.
If he knew there was a chance I might be released, who knows what he might try to do to interfere, so I had to deceive him for now.
Kyle rubbed under his chin with his finger, attempting a trivial maneuver.
“Aren’t you going to accept my proposal?”
‘Say you’ll be my woman.’
“….”
I simply shot Kyle a glare.
He snickered. I clenched my fists, wanting to smack his face.
“No matter how much of a warden you are, can you really smuggle out a prisoner whose trial is the day after tomorrow? Even if I clung to you, you wouldn’t be able to do anything.”
“Well, you’ll see if I try. So, will you accept my proposal?”
“No.”
Kyle’s expression darkened at the short, definitive answer.
“Would you rather die than love me?”
Kyle’s gaze deepened ominously. Leaving him unchecked could mean disaster, so I hurriedly cut off his thoughts.
“Why take it so seriously? I’m just saying I’ll decide after seeing the trial result.”
Kyle’s eyes returned to their normal state.
‘That annoying guy… his gaze keeps acting weird.’
I crossed my arms and leaned back in my chair. The warden’s reckless behavior had been irritating, and having the prison director right in front of me was convenient.
“Speaking of Reinhardt… the head guard moved him to a different cell on his own. Put him back where he was.”
“Really, completely on his own. If it’s about him, I won’t comply with such requests.”
At least when it comes to Reinhardt, Kyle is unyielding, which is troublesome.
I bit my lip in annoyance, and Kyle reached out, lifting my lips off my teeth as he asked,
“If you’re going to be executed anyway, does it matter whether the traitor is in the cell opposite you or not?”
“I might not get the death penalty. I could get life imprisonment instead.”
“So you want to live your life with him right in front of your eyes?”
Kyle’s eyes burned with jealousy again. Talking to him was exhausting.
Seeing my fatigue, he stopped pestering me with jealousy and spoke soothingly,
“Honestly, this might even be a good thing. It wouldn’t be strange if you asked for it yourself.”
“…What do you mean?”
“If by any chance you are acquitted and leave Fortress Prison, he’ll be left alone in the underground cell. The first-floor cells aren’t solitary, and while they hold Class 1 prisoners, not all of them are dangerous criminals; there are commoners too.”
“So it’s better than the underground?”
My ears perked up. I hadn’t thought about Reinhardt being left alone after I was gone. Imagining him lonely and isolated in the underground cell made me sigh.
Maybe Kyle was right. Moving him to the first-floor cells might be for the best. If he mingles with others, he’ll forget about me quickly enough.
“Are you sure there aren’t any dangerous criminals in that cell?”
“They’re not violent or murderers, so it should be fine.”
I nodded. For Fortress Prison, that was acceptable.
I eyed Kyle suspiciously, but his smooth face showed no sign of hesitation.
“Fine. Leave him in the first-floor cell.”
Kyle smiled reflexively. I guessed he didn’t just want to separate me from Reinhardt, but his reasoning wasn’t wrong.
Seeing him frequently would only make me more attached. After leaving Fortress, it’s better for me to forget him.
I sighed, feeling slightly disappointed but resigned.
“Did everything go well in the Glück estate?”
The head guard asked while studying Kyle’s expression.
Since Veronica entered Fortress Prison, Kyle had changed remarkably from the superior the head guard had known.
Having served closely under him since he inherited the position at a young age, the head guard had never seen him like this.
Though his mood fluctuated, his eyes sparkled with life, and sometimes he smiled to himself.
Seeing him smile gently used to make me quietly happy, but now, knowing the deeper context, it was impossible to welcome such change.
Seeing the shadowed look on his face today sent a chill through me.
Had something happened with #14356 again?
“The matter has been settled,” Kyle replied.
“That’s a relief.”
Had he shown too much relief? Kyle glanced at the head guard. The guard tried to control his expression, but it was too late.
“You think I’m acting strange, don’t you?”
“No, sir.”
Though he immediately denied it, Kyle didn’t seem convinced. Seeing Kyle’s expression darken, the head guard grew nervous.
“You think I’m mesmerized by a woman and lost my mind?”
Kyle’s sharp gaze made the head guard falter.
From what he had seen over the past month, Kyle seemed like a man overwhelmed by his first love, desperately trying not to be swept away by strong emotions.
But even if he said it outright, Kyle would neither admit nor accept it.
The Kyle the head guard knew had lived as though he didn’t need love.
Trying to hide his concern, the head guard replied with a neutral face,
“Absolutely not!”
“Your response is hardly believable after your overreach. If you didn’t think I was a fool playing into a woman’s hands, why did you move the prisoner’s cell on your own?”
“…I apologize. It was a mistake.”
“I won’t punish you, so that’s fine. But this is the only time I’ll overlook your overreach.”
As Kyle took out some documents, a small box fell from his suitcase. The head guard recognized it as a jewelry box women use for valuables, widening his eyes.
Sure enough, the lid opened, revealing a ring studded with a large jewel. Judging by the size of the blue stone, the ring could easily be worth a house.
Noticing the head guard staring, Kyle snapped the lid shut.
“I can read your thoughts. Should I guess?”
“Ah… no, sir.”
Kyle frowned at the flustered answer.
“If you’re asking if it’s a gift for Veronica, no.”
“Oh… I see.”
Luckily, Kyle didn’t suspect I had momentarily mistaken it for a proposal ring.
The head guard let out an awkward laugh.
“Then the ring must belong to someone else.”
“…It’s my mother’s.”
The head guard, who had been laughing heartily, froze mid-smile.
‘Oh no, it’s more serious than I thought!’
Kyle looked at the ring with an unreadable, deep gaze, carefully caressing it. The guard’s smile faded entirely.
As far as he knew, Kyle’s mother and former warden’s wife…
“Your mother… she passed away…”
“Yes, it’s one of her keepsakes.”
“….”
If not for Kyle being there, the head guard would have covered his mouth. He genuinely wanted to shout,
‘Why, why did it have to be the witch of Fortress Prison!’
It seemed Kyle had truly fallen in love. Of all women, he had to fall for one imprisoned in Fortress Prison…
He let out a deep sigh. It seemed Kyle’s heart had already gone too deep to be stopped.
Yet, having kept her in Fortress Prison until now, why bother trying to win her favor now? Wasn’t it too late?
Perhaps he wanted to give her a gift because Aberdeen had appeared as a rival.
If he was going to fall this hard anyway, he shouldn’t have framed her or sent her to prison in the first place. Those actions were nothing but digging his own grave.
“You were married, weren’t you? Did you propose with a ring?”
‘Could it be he’s planning a proposal?’
