Chapter 150
She was sorry to him, but this matter was connected to the extinction of this world.
If there was anything she could do to stop the Wraith of Darkness and the Empress, she had to do it without hesitation.
Otherwise, not only the First Prince but also herself, and even Kylus, would all die.
Alice looked straight into his eyes, as if unwilling to back down, and spoke:
“As I’ve said before, holy power is my ability, and I decide where and how to use that power.”
Alice didn’t shout. Her voice was gentle with settled emotions. And that calmness highlighted her firmness all the more.
As if her resolute will had been properly conveyed, his gaze suddenly turned fierce.
Alice felt a chill down her spine at his instantly cooling demeanor, but she didn’t back down and stared intently at him.
If she retreated now, Kylus might really confine her to the Duchy.
And she couldn’t give up just because she failed to persuade him.
Saving the First Prince was non-negotiable.
Kylus looked at her standing firm and twisted the corners of his mouth.
It was clearly a cold sneer to anyone who saw it.
Just as Alice’s face stiffened at that, Kylus’s lips parted.
“You’ll do it somehow… Ah, are you planning to disguise yourself as a maid and sneak into the First Prince’s Palace this time? Like when you secretly entered the Empress’s Palace?”
Alice’s golden eyes, which had remained steady despite his sneer, wavered intensely.
His words were simply too unbelievable.
The maid disguise and the Empress’s Palace? Surely not.
Just as she wondered if she had misheard, Kylus drove the point home:
“I know everything. That on the day I searched the Empress’s Palace, you disguised yourself as a maid and infiltrated it.”
“How did you…?”
Alice was too shocked to continue. She had never imagined he knew.
She had encountered Kylus then, but she was certain she had gotten away with it. When and how did he find out?
“Transformation magic only changes your appearance; it doesn’t change your voice.”
But Kylus wasn’t finished, shocking Alice even more:
“And is that all I know? I also know that you discovered something in the basement of the Empress’s Palace and returned to the temple using an ancient magic scroll.”
Kylus truly knew everything about that day.
Alice paled and her lips trembled. Then Kylus asked in a low voice:
“What task did the Deity assign to you?”
“That’s…”
Alice couldn’t readily speak.
It was because the sudden turn of events left her unable to judge how to filter her words to him.
But Kylus, perhaps thinking she was trying to maneuver out of the situation, let out a bitter sneer and said:
“Don’t bother. I know you won’t tell me the truth anyway. At this point, I don’t want to hear lies from you.”
At that, Alice quietly closed her mouth, which had been about to speak.
As he said, what she was about to say would have been a lie.
So she closed her mouth as he wished, but this seemed to provoke him further, as Kylus’s mood sank even deeper.
Lowering his gaze, he exhaled a rough “ha” and suddenly let out a low laugh.
After laughing like a madman, he slowly raised his gaze toward her.
Their eyes met precisely.
Alice was momentarily unable to move her body at the intense emotion contained in his dark eyes.
As if she had been bound by him. Without averting his gaze from the frozen Alice, Kylus spoke:
“Isn’t it truly absurd? That even though you’re right in front of me, Alice, even though you’re so close, I know nothing about your important matters.”
“…”
“And what drives me even more insane is that even though I plainly know you’re lying to me, I don’t dare ask what it is for fear you might run away.”
“…”
“Because losing you is what I fear most!”
As if his intensifying emotions had finally exploded, Kylus shouted fiercely.
Startled by his outcry, which was like the roar of a beast, Alice involuntarily flinched. It was an instinctive move to protect herself from him.
And Kylus didn’t miss that small movement.
Seeing Alice’s fear of him, Kylus turned his head away.
And exhaled a long breath. As if trying to suppress his intense emotions and regain his reason.
But controlling such overwhelming emotions, once unleashed, was no easy task.
Yet if things continued like this, he might really imprison Alice.
So that she could never escape from him.
Then their relationship would be irreversibly damaged.
Rather than seeing her unhappy, death would be preferable, so Kylus barely suppressed his violent emotions.
“…Your Grace.”
At that moment, Alice called to Kylus. Having seen that he had calmed somewhat, she was trying to somehow resolve this heated situation.
But Kylus was faster.
As if unwilling to give Alice even the slightest opening, he stepped forward to stand before her.
Though a fierce aura emanated from him, not yet fully calmed, Alice didn’t avoid it.
No, she couldn’t avoid it.
Because despite his rough demeanor, his eyes were fluctuating pitifully.
Kylus stared persistently at Alice and slowly moved his lips, dry from the heated intensity:
“…As I’ve done all along, I won’t ask anything. I’ll believe whatever lies you tell from now on, so please, Alice. Just don’t do anything that would put your life in danger.”
Kylus carefully held Alice’s shoulders and spoke with a trembling voice she had never heard before:
“Whatever the Deity ordered, whoever dies, just pretend not to know, don’t do anything, and stay by my side. Please.”
‘I absolutely cannot lose you, I would rather die myself.’
Kylus added in a low voice and buried his face in her shoulder, as if collapsing.
He was now desperately clinging to her, having abandoned everything, including his pride.
Because he was afraid of losing her.
And the moment his desperation clearly reached Alice, she couldn’t bring herself to push him away.
She hadn’t known that his feelings for her were this great and deep.
Of course, Alice had known to some extent. That he was particularly weak for her.
He had always done whatever she asked. That’s why when he confessed his love, she could ask him to wait.
Because she had sensed that his feelings were greater than hers.
But she hadn’t realized he truly loved her more than his own life.
Alice loved Kylus deeply too.
But honestly, if someone asked her whether she could risk her life for Kylus, she wasn’t confident she could answer immediately.
Loving someone more than one’s own life wasn’t an easy thing.
Yet the man before her now was bearing that difficult emotion alone.
Perhaps that’s why his current reaction was somewhat startling, but that was just a small part of her feelings.
It hurt her more to see this man, who had seemed like a great mountain, crumble because of her.
‘I thought he would simply accept it calmly and composedly, even if I didn’t tell him everything.’
‘I didn’t realize he was so fearful and anxious inside.’
Kylus, with his face buried in her shoulder, seemed like a large beast trembling in fear of losing its young.
Alice quietly placed her hand on Kylus’s broad back, unable to hide his anxiety.
And softly called his name.
“Kylus.”
For the first time.
Kylus’s body flinched greatly.
Even his hot breath on her shoulder stopped. Then there was no movement at all. As if he had frozen in place.
Whether he was too surprised or was holding his breath, afraid she might push him away.
Either way, Alice had already made up her mind.
To end this non-battle battle with him.
So she called his name once more.
“Kylus, lift your head.”
Alice removed her hand from his back and moved her body slightly backward. Then in the small gap created, she cupped his cheeks with both hands.
The moment her hands touched his cheeks, Kylus slowly raised his head.
When Alice saw Kylus’s face, she inadvertently let out a small laugh.
It wasn’t a situation to laugh, but Kylus looking at her anxiously was too cute.
She couldn’t help but laugh because he looked like a large wolf with its ears pinned back, afraid of being scolded by its owner.
At that, Kylus’s eyebrows went up crookedly, but he didn’t say anything.
He was only looking at Alice with anxious eyes, still fearful of losing her.
Alice cleared her throat to put away her laughter and faced him with a serious expression.
And slowly began to speak:
“Well, I’m debating where to start… but let me first address what Kylus is most anxious about. As you’ve guessed, I was given a very important mission from the Deity, Lord Helios. It was a very dangerous mission.”
“…”
Kylus didn’t show much reaction to her words. Perhaps this was something he had already anticipated.
He just silently watched Alice. As if waiting for her next words.
Alice calmly continued:
“And it’s true that the mission is related to the basement of the Empress’s Palace. That’s why I disguised myself as a maid and went to the basement that day… Well, to get to the point, contrary to Kylus’s concerns, I’ve already withdrawn from that matter.”
“…Withdrawn?”
Kylus asked as if he didn’t understand. Alice explained to him in more detail:
“Yes. To be precise, it’s not so much that I withdrew first, but rather I was in a situation where I had no choice but to withdraw.”
Alice furrowed her brow and agonized for a moment with a small groan.
She wanted to tell Kylus everything, but there were things he shouldn’t know.
The Wraith of Darkness and the regression of this world.
As a result, Alice was contemplating where the appropriate line for her explanation should be drawn.
But there is… no appropriate line.
If she tried to maintain an appropriate line by being vague, Kylus wouldn’t believe her.
And Alice didn’t want to lie.
Alice finally decided to tell all the truth she could within the bounds of what she was allowed to say.
