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152 Chapter

“Shall we head out soon? I’d like to show you the temple.”

Maybe I had been staring blankly at El, but he suddenly shifted the atmosphere with a strange vibe after swiping his thumb across the deep red stain a few times. He smiled nonchalantly, but the corners of his eyes were still red.

It felt like he was holding back something.

Though there was an awkward tension in the air, I nodded, feeling a mix of ticklishness and embarrassment.

We made our way through the garden, filled with an overwhelming scent of lilies, towards the exit. El walked briskly ahead, and I caught a glimpse of his ears peeking out from between his long sky-blue hair—they were red as well.

Clack!

As El stepped out of the garden, he suddenly stopped, blocking my view. Even without seeing his face, I sensed a cold shift in his mood. I could also feel a familiar energy nearby.

Biting my lip to suppress a laugh that threatened to bubble up, I slyly peeked over El’s shoulder like a meerkat.

“Ugh… What’s with that shy expression? I totally hate it…”

What caught my eye was Julian, making a face like he had just seen something he shouldn’t have while looking at El, his features twisted in disgust.

‘Long time no see.’

We had communicated through our connection, but it had genuinely been ages since I had last seen him. As much as I wanted to greet him with a warm hello, I found myself more intrigued by the situation at hand, choosing to observe quietly so Julian wouldn’t notice my presence.

“Don’t you care about people’s eye health, oh benevolent divine representative? Making that terrible face everywhere will scare passersby! My vision, which was perfectly fine, plummeted just from looking at you! I can barely see now! Of course, it’s a relief I can faintly make out your face because of it!”

Julian, babbling away like a sparrow unaware of the hawk circling above, made me bite the inside of my cheek to stifle my laughter.

“……Julian, the Deputy.”

“What’s with that forced tone? I can’t believe you’d actually respond like this. Surely, you didn’t meet Lady Kashmir or something?”

Julian poured oil on the fire of El’s suppressed anger.

Catching on to my presence at the end of their conversation, I felt a reminder of Julian’s chaotic nature yet sharp instincts. He could go from madman to laser-keen just like that.

“With that tongue of yours… You really think you can keep running around like that?”

El took a deep breath and let out a low growl. Though it sounded quite fierce, I could feel it was just his way of holding back.

‘This isn’t right, but this situation is pretty fascinating.’

“Are you worried about your friend’s well-being too? If you just stay still, my tongue will be fine; it’ll be spry enough to slap your cheeks when it turns a hundred, so no worries there.”

I couldn’t help but admire Julian’s wild way with words and his reckless bravado. Given as evidence for the hypothesis that imperial citizens were excellent talkers, Julian’s mouth could easily be submitted.

“You left only your head above ground when you were buried in that potato field last time… Want to flip it around this time and bury only your head again? Let’s see how well it grows! If you leave it there for three hours, you’ll turn into a blood-red potato from all the blood pooling in your head. Then we’ll have to…”

“Julian! It’s been a while!”

El spat out the ominous words, feeling uncomfortable around me. I wanted to get used to all his quirks, so I stayed silent, thinking I might not see Julian again after today if I didn’t intervene.

I quickly cut El off and peeked my face out in front of him.

Since El was pretty tall, I had to tiptoe just to show my face to Julian. When Julian jumped at my voice, he looked around nervously until he spotted me peeking out from El’s shoulder.

His expression was one of a person catching a glimpse of a flickering light in the dark.

“Lady…! You’ve finally come to punish this devilish scoundrel…!”

Julian rushed over, energetically greeting me while positioning himself between El and me. He struggled a bit to shove El aside but clearly didn’t manage to budge the solid wall that was El. It seemed he was content to communicate through the barrier that was El.

“Julian… You seem… a bit thinner…”

I did my best to suppress any pity and urgency, trying to speak without sympathy. However, seeing his state was far worse than what I had expected through our connection, my compassion crept in unbidden.

“Lady! Cough… sob… hic! Ahhh!”

At my one remark, he broke down as if a dam had burst. His lilac eyes turned glassy with tears. Julian, trying to stifle his cries, buried his face in his arms and sobbed loudly.

“No, Julian, don’t cry… El, could you step out for a moment?”

It was quite a shocking sight to see a full-grown adult weeping in the temple. I pushed El away, enveloping Julian in my arms. El seemed to hesitate for a moment but quickly retreated.

“I… hic! How… severe my… humiliation has been…!”

“Try to breathe while you talk…”

While wiping away Julian’s tears with a handkerchief, I consoled him.

I felt a little chilled when he snatched the handkerchief without permission and blew his nose into it, but given that he had already been through a lot, I let it slide.

“If I were to write a book about that scoundrel’s misdeeds, it would reach Kaisha’s place! I tell you, that guy is hopeless! A deputy like me, who is kind and diligent, you’d be hard-pressed to find even in the solar system! I worked like a dog for him! He truly tormented me!”

Julian, who hid behind me, began to whine like a child tattling to his parents about his troublesome friend, pointing at El. El’s silver eyes narrowed dangerously as they glinted at Julian.

‘Should I just… leave it as is?’

For a moment, I was torn. Looking at the atmosphere, it wouldn’t be strange if tomorrow Julian gathered priests for a coup d’état or if El discreetly buried Julian behind the temple without anyone being the wiser.

‘But they’ve been friends for quite a while… Is this really just their way of being together?’

I couldn’t even imagine El and Julian asking each other about their well-being. Their relationship seemed to be one of love and hate—simply their way of existing together.

“Lady! Quickly punish that wicked dude! He only listens to you!”

If he was scared, he should just stay quiet, but Julian hid behind me, trembling yet still managing to verbally poke fun at El. The expression on El’s face turned utterly cold. Glancing back at Julian, I held my own expression flat.

“Julian, El’s not the only problem… honestly, you are too…”

“Tch! Hic!”

Without taking the time to elaborate, a controlled bitterness flickered on my face, and Julian buried his face in his hands. While letting out sobs, he evidently didn’t have any rebuttals left, as if he realized he was acting like a maniacal moth.

“El, try not to torment Julian too much, will you? You’re friends after all.”

Seeing the state of Julian’s face, which had turned out like that, I felt the need to add a word of caution. El, with eyes drooping like a scolded puppy, nodded pathetically.

“Julian… for someone who wants to live, your way of speaking is rather rough, don’t you think?”

“Ugh…”

It was awkward to say something to someone who was crying, so I wrapped up my criticism instead, but Julian started crying again, looking hurt. I was really at a loss when it came to comforting people.

“Alright, stop that and come here.”

Glancing at me, El narrowed his eyes and suddenly reached out, grabbing Julian by the scruff of his neck. Julian appeared to resist for a moment but was soon dragged along by El.

“Sorry for showing you something embarrassing.”

“Am I the one being embarrassed? You awful, ugh…!”

As El apologized to me, she pulled a handkerchief from her pocket and shoved it into Julian’s mouth. All I could do was watch Julian muffling his cries, unable to make a sound.

“I wanted to show you the temple, but it seems like the sun’s going down, and this little rascal, or rather, Deputy Julian, has his own set of problems, so we need to leave first.”

El had a face like she was about to throw up blood. Caught off guard, I nodded, feeling a bit concerned as I saw Julian sending me a pleading gaze that was blocked by El’s large hand.

“El, no killing.”

I was serious.

My firm words made El stop for a moment, a smirk forming on her lips. It was an oddly crafted smile, different from her usual demeanor.

“I’ll try to make it work.”

“Umpf! Hmph!”

“Well then, I’ll contact you once the ring is ready.”

With an incredibly pitiful expression, El whispered. As he stepped away, he looked back at me several times, showing he didn’t want to part ways, all while Julian kicked and squirmed in a panic.

“Goodbye…”

I stood there half-dazed, waving them off. I simply hoped I wouldn’t hear Julian’s obituary tomorrow.

As I gazed at where they had just been, my sight drifted to a window beyond the empty hallway. Was it hard for the sun to stand tall? The light, slowly bending as it seemed to set, began to paint the sky red.

‘Let’s return home.’

Given all the commotion, I felt fatigued in my mind. I smiled faintly, looking at the setting sun.

Exiting the temple, I headed toward the mansion. While I could call for a carriage anytime, I felt like taking a walk for now.

‘The capital seems to be getting lively.’

With the swordsmanship tournament approaching, it made sense.

I watched travelers who had clearly come from far away enlivening the streets of the capital, then turned onto a secluded alleyway—a shortcut to the mansion.

I chuckled a bit at the footsteps that continued behind me.

“Hey, noble brat over there.”

And the voice calling out to me from the secluded alley was unexpected.

I blinked dazedly, squinting to identify the owner of the voice.

The group of four clearly looked like a ruffian gang. The dingy-haired man who spoke to me grinned. With a hunch that they were about to put on a cliché act, I narrowed my eyes.

“Your pockets seem pretty heavy; need some help lightening them?”

The guy who remained within the bounds of my expectations stepped forward with his gang.

‘How… do I deal with this?’

I fell deep into thought. The four had no muscle, just the blubber of petty thugs. If I failed to control my strength even a little, it could cost me my life.

As I deliberated on whether to throw a punch or not without even touching the sword, suddenly—

Gak!

A killing intent engulfed the alley in an instant. It had no effect on me, but it was enough to sever the consciousness of thugs who lacked real power. The gang approaching me collapsed to the ground like marionettes with their strings cut.

For a brief moment, I glanced at them before turning towards the familiar owner of the absinthe-colored aura.

“Long time no see.”

I worried my voice might tremble slightly, but thankfully, it came out smooth as I wrapped my mind around the figure I had missed.

As my voice called out, a man in a black robe slowly removed his hood. The strands of unfamiliar-colored hair blew gently in the breeze, and I widened my eyes in surprise.

Members of the Solarit Imperial Family were typically born with golden hair, while the Atara royal family also had their inherited colors.

Members of the Atara royal family were born with white hair.

A blank canvas that could accept anything. The remnants of a shattered ruin, the ashes of desolation. The color of moonlight.

The vastest color embodying countless meanings—white symbolized the Atara royal family.

‘This is your true form.’

I gulped. The hair, not the familiar beige but an infinitely pure white shimmered in the dying sunlight. Watching him handle that distant whiteness as if it belonged only to him, I whispered softly.

“Leo.”

The absinthe flickered brightly.

 

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