Chapter 43 ….
Only then could I recall which moment and atmosphere this felt similar to.
“What’s so bad about it…? Well, it’s not the first time…”
“That’s true.”
Was it awkward because we were in the same room at night?
It could happen since it was just the two of us.
But usually, he pretends to be calm, and when he gets nervous, his expression hardens, which can look like he’s angry. That face…
I said it felt off…
I… want to kiss you.
The boy whispered it.
He was staring only at me.
‘Looks like the expression he had on our first kiss.’
It was like that back then, too.
It was a dark night, only the two of us, and the lighting was dim.
He said something strange that didn’t make sense, and eventually, Erios said:
‘Maybe it’s just my imagination.’
Maybe I see him overlapping with the Erios of that time because I’m remembering him.
It’s different now.
Looking back, I realize he probably didn’t date me out of love back then.
Even so, there was nothing like “fake” or “contract” nonsense.
We just followed the mood and kissed, and it wasn’t bad, so we did it the next day as well.
‘…I’m thinking pointless things.’
After the wedding, sleeping together isn’t anything special.
It’s all just for show.
Even if they say “It’s your wedding night, have a good time,” it’s meaningless because no one really knows.
From the next day, we’ll sleep with Arthea.
Right now, nothing is different from usual.
It’s just quiet because our niece isn’t here…
“Turn around.”
“Huh?”
I hate letting my mind wander. I immediately got up.
Whether Erios was flustered or not, I strode across the bedroom in long steps and grabbed the slip hanging there.
I slipped into the blanket and threw the loosened dress off outwardly.
“Tsk.”
“Wh-what are you…?”
I didn’t like how much of my thigh was exposed, or how the thin fabric seemed to show my skin.
Even so, I couldn’t sleep in the dress or naked.
Once inside the blanket, it’s all the same anyway.
I climbed onto the bed and lay down my heavy, squirming body.
“Then I’ll sleep now. You should sleep too.”
“…You’re taking off your clothes now? Are you crazy?”
“Who’s calling who crazy?”
I replied curtly and turned away from Erios, lying down on the bed.
Still, I felt restless.
The boy from my teenage years and the Duke Kiliet lying beside me now were clearly the same person.
‘It probably wasn’t love then either. Compared to today…’
I don’t know what I’m thinking. Probably no one could.
“Velona, sleep?”
“…….”
“You’re going to sleep like this?”
I could hear Erios sighing beside me, but I barely paid attention.
My body was tired but my mind was afloat, my body heavy.
Maybe that’s why I dreamed, though I hadn’t before.
A dream from my teenage years.
From when I spent time with Erios.
Even if we were the same age, Erios in the knights’ order and I in the mage tower didn’t have that many intersections.
At least, not until that incident.
“I’m going to fall off the cliff!”
“Be careful!”
Erios and I, both the youngest in our ranks, were the last ones left to tidy up.
That’s how we got caught in an accident and fell behind.
It was the winter of my seventeenth year.
“Sir Knight! Are you hurt anywhere?”
I had used a magic shield to protect myself, but it was incomplete.
Thankfully, he helped me.
If it hadn’t been for the hand that caught me as I fell, I would have been badly injured.
‘I’d rather have died alone. Why is he risking himself for me…’
At that age, as a squire in the knights’ order, he was probably a promising talent.
What if he got hurt and became useless because of me?
My whole body ached. Even so, I tried to lift my head to look at him.
No matter how much I hurt, could I have been more injured than the boy who caught me?
The knight, noticing my gaze, asked me first. Fortunately, despite some scratches, he looked fine.
“Are you unharmed, mage?”
“I think it’s just bruises. Someone caught me as I fell.”
“I see. That’s a relief.”
I was miserable, trying to bear the pain, while the knight’s face remained calm.
‘Seventeen, and pretending to be so grown-up. You’re only making yourself suffer.’
I had heard that people his age struggled a lot.
Worried, I pressed him.
“What about you? I asked first. Why aren’t you answering?”
“I’m fine.”
“You might not feel it now, but you could be hurt somewhere. Let me see.”
As expected, his “I’m fine” turned out to be false.
I sighed.
“Why lie in a situation like this? I’m your savior, so are you leaving me behind?”
“I did nothing. It’s thanks to your shield magic…”
“It was incomplete.”
I blurted out the truth.
“If it had been complete, neither of us would have been hurt.”
Both my magic and my reflexes were terrible.
I shouldn’t have just practiced theoretical magic about truth and high concepts. I should have prepared spells for practical combat.
“That’s…”
If I had, the one who helped me wouldn’t have gotten hurt.
I hate inconveniencing others because I’m lacking.
No, negative thoughts are forbidden. Now isn’t the time.
I asked, worried:
“Forget that for now. Show me your injuries. Where and how are you hurt? You’re a knight, so you’d know better than me.”
“Hmm…”
“Tell me honestly. No downplaying—we’re practically fate-bound now.”
Erios self-diagnosed: nothing serious, but he’d need a couple months of rest without movement.
“How do you know?”
“I’ve been hurt a lot.”
“Phew… that’s a relief.”
Still, I wanted to check if his “been hurt a lot” was true, so I went to pick up pieces of the nearby broken carriage.
“Y-you’re making a splint, right?”
Startled, I ran and grabbed some wood fragments quickly.
“Next time, I’ll pick them up! Don’t move!”
“I only moved while sitting. Didn’t use my legs.”
“Then why move at all? I’m here—make me work. You call me your lifesaver and yet…”
The boy in front of me was definitely a pushover.
Even though the knights’ mission was to escort a mage, he caught me falling. I couldn’t have imagined it—he wasn’t even our hired guard.
Honestly, it would have been better to just do the minimum this time…
“You seem too kind. You probably end up losing out a lot, right?”
“I’ve never been told that before…”
“I’m serious. Are there only scammers around you?”
It was natural I hadn’t heard this before.
Back then, I didn’t know Erios’ true nature.
I didn’t realize he was a bit… unusual.
But it seemed no one else knew his nature except when he was involved with me.
Unfair…
“Call me Erios.”
“I know. Just call me Bel.”
Erios’ eyes widened.
It was his biggest reaction since the accident and fall, which surprised me.
“Did I say something wrong?”
“It’s surprising that you know my name.”
“I heard you’re the youngest knight. Honestly, you’re handsome, so I looked your way.”
I had learned that while checking around about his personality after he got caught stealing jewelry from bandits.
Of course… I admit I looked again because he was tall and handsome for a kid.
“Uh…”
“But now you look hurt, so not so handsome. I hope you heal soon.”
Once Erios’ splint was done, I got up.
“It’s too cold here. We need to report our location. From the map earlier, there seems to be a village nearby…”
Even though he was my age, he was big and heavy, so I couldn’t carry him.
And we didn’t know how far we’d have to move to reach the village.
I went over to the broken carriage pieces Erios used for the splint.
“What are you doing?”
