Chapter 52
It wasn’t until he got out that he realized how long it had taken to see this sky again.
The torture he’d thought would only end with his death had suddenly stopped, as if it had never happened—
from the moment she stepped in.
The moment Gray thought of Riana, he also remembered what he’d said to her just a few hours ago:
“I want to check something… Can I hold your hand again?”
Now he understood what it was he’d wanted to check.
Why she felt so strangely important to him, and why he couldn’t say no to the ridiculous promises she made.
The answer was something he’d already said himself:
“I came here looking for my savior, Lady… but found a maid instead.”
Pff—Puhaha!
Gray couldn’t help laughing as he replayed his own nonsense.
It had been a lie.
He’d only stuck around to scam her.
You really are my savior.
Now she had a clear definition in his mind.
The sun blazed down from the sky. He reached a hand toward the light, watching it filter between his fingers.
The first sunlight to ever shine on my life.
The first person to reach out to him.
The first kindness he’d ever received.
Of course she’d be special.
It was only natural that he’d feel a strange sense of obligation toward her—even for a promise he didn’t understand.
“…Yeah, fine. If that’s what my savior wants.”
He muttered and then felt Willie’s eyes on him.
The dog had dropped a mangled cloth ball at his feet and was wagging his tail with his tongue out.
“What? You want me to throw it again?”
Willie’s eyes lit up like he understood. They were so warm, almost loving.
“…Even if you look at me like that, it’s no use. I promised I wouldn’t love anything.”
Panting, Willie just wagged his tail innocently.
Yeah, no way a dog understood human promises. He was probably just acting weird because that weird woman’s oddness had rubbed off on him.
“Fine, fine. Let’s go to the knights’ barracks—I’ll get you a toy and some treats. Come on.”
Gray stood and tugged Willie’s leash.
The dog trotted happily after him. Even if he didn’t understand other words, he was an expert at recognizing “treat” and “walk.”
Just before leaving the yard, Gray suddenly stopped.
He looked back without thinking.
‘Ah… come to think of it…’
Maybe this wasn’t the first time?
“E-Eat up… eat a lot.”
One of the hungriest days of his life.
Along with the sweet taste of a strangely-shaped cookie—neither round nor triangular—came that voice.
Maybe his first savior had been someone else after all.
Meanwhile, right after running away from Killian, Riana realized she’d wandered all the way to the west wing of the ducal estate.
‘Why did I come this far?’
She should be heading to the main building to sleep.
Killian Droche—just looking into those eyes felt like her brain got bleached and her thoughts stopped working.
Riana turned to head back—
when she spotted Deborah.
‘Now that I think about it… what has she been doing today instead of coming to the main building?’
Riana remembered what had happened to Killian earlier.
He’d been called a monster and a murderer by children, and had frozen, unable to say a word.
In the original story, this was probably when Deborah would have comforted the hurt Killian.
‘But because the villainess butted in, instead of comfort, Killian got…’
A front-row seat to a bizarre lecture and then a demand for “payment.”
Still, that wasn’t her fault—it was Deborah’s.
‘You skipped out, so I had to step in!’
Riana narrowed her eyes at Deborah.
Just then, someone appeared in front of Deborah.
‘Allen…?’
And somehow, the weather was unnaturally perfect. Sunlight—no, stage lighting—was dazzlingly bright.
Butterflies flitted around Deborah in the middle of late autumn, like something out of a picture.
‘What is this? A webtoon scene?’
Riana instinctively hid behind a tree to listen in.
“Allen, I know you’ve stayed by my side for a long time. You’ve been a good friend,” Deborah began calmly.
“But I haven’t been a good friend to you, have I?”
“That’s…”
“I know you like me. I know you’ve been waiting for my feelings to change.”
Allen’s eyes trembled.
“…Since when?”
Riana had never seen Allen so shaken. It was nothing like the mild expressions he’d shown her in passing. This was a face filled with deep emotion—he really did love Deborah.
But Deborah’s voice was cold.
“I knew from the start. I just ignored it—because I needed you as my friend.”
In the original story, Allen had been her only safe haven in a hectic life.
Killian and the prince were vital tools for achieving her goals, so neither could just be a lover.
Only Allen was separate from all the complicated politics and social climbing. He was the one she could lean on.
“…Then why now?”
“I’m done. I don’t want to give you false hope anymore.”
She could have kept pretending not to notice and kept borrowing his shoulder. Allen wasn’t clingy like the prince; he wouldn’t have demanded her love.
But Deborah cut things off without mercy.
“We won’t meet privately again.”
She turned to leave, but Allen grabbed her arm.
“You’re throwing away the time we had as friends?”
“Can you still see me as just a friend?”
“That’s…”
“Can you watch me love and marry another man as my ‘friend’?”
“….”
Allen’s brows twisted in pain.
Seeing it, Riana felt a tightness in her chest.
In the original, Allen really did quietly watch Deborah marry Killian—
even though she knew it hurt him. She’d still kept him as her safe harbor.
‘So why is she letting him go now?’
This wasn’t a scene of cruelty—it was mercy.
If she didn’t cut him off, Allen would spend his whole life loving her without return, until it killed him.
Sure, the original plot had fallen apart ages ago, but Deborah was still supposed to be the type to wring men dry for her own gain.
‘This is going against her whole character setup.’
Riana felt uneasy.
Deborah, what are you planning?
Deborah walked away from Allen without hesitation. Riana quickly followed.
Deborah felt lighter after ending things with Allen.
She wished she could cut ties with the prince too, but that wasn’t possible yet.
Still, dropping one weight off her shoulders felt freeing. She closed her eyes and cast a spell.
Gray.
Magic to find the man she wanted to see right now.
Tracking people with magic was illegal.
But tracking a dog is fine.
Deborah traced the location of Willie, the knights’ dog.
“…Found you.”
He was in a yard near the Isolation Tower. Deborah began walking that way.
She could have used teleportation magic, but the thought of meeting him too suddenly made her nervous. She wanted to savor the anticipation.
“I’ll get you a toy and some treats. Come on,” Gray’s voice reached her.
Deborah’s lips curved in a smile.
As she entered the yard, she saw Gray and Willie.
It was the same sight she’d quietly observed many times before. She’d even made time to watch his induction ceremony, and sometimes dropped by after work parties just to catch a glimpse of him.
The last proper conversation they’d had was back at Genevieve Castle…
I like that man.
Deborah had sharp instincts and a good eye for people. She could guess a lot from small observations.
A man who could be goofy and careless, yet composed and dignified in public.
Casual and warm with his comrades, gentle with animals…
He was the kind of man worth liking.
“…Excuse me.”
Gray flinched at her voice and looked over.
“Hello,” Deborah said, lifting one side of her skirt in a graceful greeting as she walked toward him.
Her steps were calm and elegant—she knew exactly how beautiful she looked moving like that. Every time the sunlight caught her golden hair and scattered into glints, she knew how much it impressed people.
“…Oh, you’re that…”
Gray recognized her and muttered.
She smiled. “You remember me?”
“Yes, well…”
Gray scratched his neck. Hard to forget the day of that explosion.
“Then… do you remember my name?”
“Your name, uh…”
As he hesitated, Deborah’s smile turned faint and bitter. From his reaction, it was clear—he didn’t remember.
