Chapter 34
Early in the morning, Edith went up to the second floor, drew back the curtains of the hideout, and opened the old wooden window. For once, the weather was clear. The sunlight was transparent and pure, and the shallow breeze was incredibly refreshing.
“Mom!”
Startled by the suddenly heard youthful voice, she turned from the window.
Leon came running and threw himself into her arms. The child, just waking from sleep, carried a faint scent of sweat and his characteristic sweet smell.
“Is Uncle really coming today?”
“Yes. He should arrive around the afternoon.”
With sleepy eyes, the child smiled widely. Edith, smiling back, gently removed the sleep crust from his eyes with a tender hand.
“Then let’s quickly finish packing before your uncle arrives, alright?”
“Okay.”
The child nodded his small chin. He seemed genuinely happy that Perrel was coming. Indeed, the past few days without him had been quite boring for the child.
Edith took the child’s small hand and descended to the first floor. The old wooden stairs creaked under their feet. The first floor was somewhat cluttered with various belongings. Since they would have to move the hideout as soon as Perrel arrived, Edith had packed in advance over the past few days. If everything went according to plan, they should finish organizing by the afternoon. After all, they didn’t have that much luggage.
“Shall we start with breakfast first, Prince Leon?”
Edith prepared a simple morning meal. Though it included canned beans and potato salad—which Leon disliked—he ate obediently, and the meal finished quickly.
After washing the dishes, she began seriously organizing the belongings. As she worked busily, Edith’s thoughts wandered to the new hideout.
According to Madame Marie, it was a rural village far away from Hasmal. Since there weren’t many outsiders, they would need to be extra careful not to draw attention initially, but once the critical period passed, it would be much safer than here. Once things stabilized, she planned to meet Crown Prince Bariel and find a way to rescue Caron and Shasha.
Though she worried about Caron, Edith’s greatest concern was Shasha. Thinking about how much she must be suffering in her heavily pregnant state broke her heart.
“I hope she stays safe until we meet again.”
At that thought, Edith remembered the second-floor window she had left open for ventilation.
“I should close it soon. People will start passing by.”
Leaving the clothes she had been folding, Edith headed upstairs. Before climbing the stairs, she glanced at the living room sofa—more precisely, at the adorable face of Leon curled up and asleep on it. Just a little while ago, he had been busy wandering around and helping with his tiny hands, but now it seemed too early for him.
So as not to wake him, Edith quietly went up to the second floor. A sudden breeze gently stirred her hair.
As she reached to close the window, she felt a slightly dazed mood and extended her hand outside. Sunlight scattered over her skin like tiny particles—dazzling yet cold. As she gazed at the sunlight, her thoughts naturally drifted to a similar person. A man who was dazzling like Maximilian, yet unbearably cold.
“…Jecart.”
Edith muttered the name as if speaking to herself. Even after saying aloud the name that had lingered only in her mind every day, it still felt hollow, like a phantom. Slowly repeating it again brought the same emptiness.
She had always thought the name didn’t suit him.
The fact that a person with that face and that voice was named Jecart instead of Maximilian continuously confused Edith.
She knew it wasn’t him. Yet she still felt this way, always chasing after him. She wasn’t denying Mac’s death; he had truly died. She was sure because they had parted ways.
“Will we ever have a day like other couples, when we part?”
Once, before their marriage, Edith had asked him about parting.
“Of course.”
The answer came without hesitation, and Edith felt a bit sulky. Couldn’t he have at least said it wasn’t true, even as a comforting lie?
“Well, feelings can change anytime. I think that could happen to me too.”
Her slight disappointment immediately bled into her tone.
“For example, if my mother, who despises soldiers, opposes it, or since we won’t see each other often, it gradually fades…”
Edith started listing all the reasons why they could part, almost defiantly.
“Hmm… Ah! We might each find someone better. There are plenty of amazing men besides you.”
“……”
“Hmm… and…”
Having run out of ideas and sinking into silence, a hand with visible veins approached and cupped her cheek. Following that hand, Edith met his gaze again and realized his eyes had hardened.
“If not that…”
“……”
“Someone dies first, one of us.”
For a moment, it felt as if the air had turned cold.
“…Mac.”
The one who lifted her chin lowered his head. Their lips met, and hot breath filled her mouth. It was a strange kiss—gentle, yet somehow wild at the edges.
“It’s better not to think of any other reason.”
After a persistent kiss, he parted his lips slightly and whispered close to her ear. His uneven breaths were intensely sensual.
“Until then, I have no intention of letting go.”
At this moment, he felt different from usual. How to describe it?
Not composed and restrained, but somewhat base and disorderly… closer to Jecart than Maximilian…
Thinking of that made Edith let out a small laugh. Even now, she recalled him through memories of Mac.
With an empty expression, Edith withdrew her hand from the window. She closed the creaking old window and drew the thick curtains. Even with the light that reminded her of him blocked, the memory lingered.
“Will I ever see him again?”
She didn’t know. With men like him, Edith was generally powerless. She couldn’t decide the time, place, or even the moment of meeting. He always appeared unilaterally, at the most unexpected times. Perhaps he would do the same next time.
“Maybe then I can notice the differences from Mac more clearly.”
Thinking that, it didn’t seem bad to meet him often. The more she saw him, the more she might accept that he was Jecart, not Maximilian.
Warmth returned to her fingertips.
Edith went back downstairs.
Leon was still sound asleep. After covering him with a blanket, she resumed packing. Her thoughts wandered freely as she worked.
She thought of Crown Prince Bariel, who she would soon meet, of Shasha and Caron enduring hardships, and of Perrel arriving and the new hideout.
Like summer vines growing in every direction, her thoughts stopped again at that man. They were heading to an entirely new place, and she might never see him again… such fleeting thoughts.
It was then that the old front door announced the presence of a visitor.
Knock. Knock.
Edith, who had been moving subconsciously, froze immediately. Her eyes, suddenly filled with unease, focused on the door where the knock had come from. Of course, this visitor wasn’t entirely unexpected—Perrel was supposed to arrive around the afternoon, though it was a bit early.
But…
“Perrel doesn’t knock.”
If not Perrel, then who could it be? A visitor had arrived at the secret hideout without any warning.
Knock. Knock.
The repeated knock snapped her back to full awareness. Edith held her breath and slowly got up. Checking on Leon sleeping on the sofa, she moved cautiously toward the door. Pressing close, she peered through the spyhole. Through the round lens, the world appeared distorted, and standing outside were unfamiliar men.
Not just one, but several.
Edith covered her mouth with trembling hands. Otherwise, she felt she would scream immediately. Shock froze her entire body.
Though in plain clothes, the men carried Hasmal rifles on their shoulders. She knew who they were.
The secret police of Hasmal—Stifts.
“How… did they get here…?”
Her breath caught sharply and froze.
