Chapter 164
Despite his troubled mind, Kylus hadn’t missed her words and answered naturally.
“Yes, it’s excellent news. As you said, if the Empress is driven out, the door in the basement will remain closed for a while.”
But Alice had already seen his somber face.
Alice didn’t look away and asked directly, “Did something bad happen today? Your expression seems… dark.”
Kylus’s eye twitched.
He seemed startled by her direct question. Or rather, he seemed disconcerted that she had caught his gloomy expression.
Kylus didn’t try to deny it.
“Yes. There was an issue at the palace today. His Majesty has some suspicions about the First Prince’s sudden awakening.”
“Ah…”
“Well, he couldn’t actually stop anything, but… I think we need to strengthen security to prevent unnecessary rumors from circulating in the palace until the First Prince fully recovers his strength. I suppose my expression hardened while I was thinking about that.”
It was a lie.
Though he didn’t like lying to her, he had no choice.
If he told her the truth about Prion’s letter, Alice would certainly insist on accompanying him.
His instinct told him that nothing good would come from the temple meeting, which made it even more impossible to tell Alice the truth.
Now that the Chief Deity had told Alice to stand down, he didn’t want her to become entangled with the temple again because of him.
He wanted Alice to never again step into dangerous waters.
But suddenly, Alice made a curious sound and rested her chin on her hand, staring at him intently.
‘Did she see through my lie?’
Just as he knew her well, she must know him well by now too.
Come to think of it, what he’d just said wasn’t quite like him.
He wasn’t the type to bring such trivial concerns home with him.
Plus, Alice already knew that he held nearly all the power within the palace.
‘I made a mistake, getting flustered by her direct question.’
Of course, Kylus didn’t outwardly show any of this inner tension.
He maintained his composure under her gaze until Alice finally spoke.
“It doesn’t seem like that issue alone would make you this serious…”
As expected, Alice didn’t believe him.
Just as Kylus was about to add something appropriate, Alice removed the hand that had been supporting her chin.
Then she smiled gently and said, “Well, if it’s something you don’t want to tell me, that’s fine. Tell me whenever you want to. This time, I’ll wait for you. Just as you’ve always waited for me.”
Kylus’s dark pupils trembled slightly.
It was because Alice had shown consideration for him first, as if she understood his feelings completely.
He knew they had grown closer since Alice told him all the truth, but…
He hadn’t expected Alice to approach him first.
That day too, when he tried to dig deeper, she had bounded away like a startled rabbit.
Yet now she was looking at him with such sincere eyes.
The emotion in her gaze was similar to what he felt when looking at her.
Kylus barely suppressed the surging desire he felt for her.
Otherwise, he might have embraced her tightly and… covered her with passionate kisses.
Just then, Alice’s soft voice resonated across the table, snapping Kylus back to his senses.
“Instead… since you seem troubled, would you like me to stay with you tonight?”
Tonight?
That word jolted Kylus’s mind. And without thinking, he replied quickly, as if reflexively.
“No. That won’t be necessary.”
At his abrupt rejection, the corner of Alice’s mouth twitched.
‘Really, declining so sharply… How embarrassing.’
Alice had meant it as a joke to cheer him up, in her own way.
Though it was half-sincere.
As Alice’s face grew awkward, Kylus realized his mistake and slightly lowered his gaze.
“I no longer have the confidence to merely keep you by my side and restrain myself.”
And with a deep breath, he whispered to her.
“Of course, if Lien wants me tonight… I would gladly spend all night with you.”
Alice’s golden eyes momentarily clouded at the seductive voice penetrating her ear.
‘All night, he says.’
Just as risqué images began floating through Alice’s mind…
The dining room door opened, bringing Alice sharply back to reality.
“I’ve brought dessert.”
Kylus, who had been watching her, turned to the servant.
“We haven’t finished dining yet.”
“Ah! I apologize. Quite some time has passed…”
“It’s fine. We weren’t planning to eat more anyway. Leave it there and go.”
After the servant quietly withdrew, Kylus softly called to her.
“Lien, what shall we do? Should I prepare for tonight?”
‘Prepare? What preparation? Is he going to purify himself or something?’
‘I’m not mentally prepared for that kind of deep relationship yet!’
Alice shook her head vigorously.
“No! No need to prepare! Absolutely don’t prepare tonight. I’m going to bed very early today.”
Kylus chuckled at Alice’s flushed cheeks and leaned back from his inclined position toward her.
“Then would it be alright to taste a sweet dessert instead of me?”
“…Yes.”
Alice averted his gaze, still unable to clear the flesh-colored fantasies from her mind, and took a spoonful of mango sorbet.
Though the cold sorbet refreshed her mouth, her reddened cheeks didn’t subside until she had emptied the sorbet.
‘All night.’
That phrase had been too intense.
Deep into the night, past midnight, at the Dearrut Duchy.
Strangely, there were no guards patrolling the mansion today.
Only one butler stood in the lobby.
As if waiting for someone.
Eventually, the person the butler was waiting for descended the stairs.
A tall man wearing a dark robe with the hood pulled low.
The butler bowed respectfully to him.
“Duke.”
Indeed. The tall man who had completely concealed his appearance with a hooded robe was none other than Kylus.
“As ordered, have you already dismissed all the servants?”
The butler raised his head and answered Kylus.
“Yes. I told them we would be disinfecting the mansion tonight, instructed them not to patrol, and sent all the servants to the annex early.”
“Well done. Adolf, no one must know that I am leaving the mansion tonight. Don’t tell Tessiri or Davit either. As far as anyone knows, I simply slept in my bedroom as usual. Understood?”
The butler answered quietly.
“Yes. I saw nothing.”
And as if truly intending to see nothing, he bowed his head deeply.
Reassured by this loyal display, Kylus lightly patted the butler’s shoulder and left the lobby.
In the courtyard stood his horse, prepared in advance by the butler.
The fine steed recognized its master and gave a soft whinny.
Kylus stroked the horse’s face once before swiftly mounting it.
Grasping the reins, he turned his head toward the mansion just before departing.
His gaze stopped at Alice’s bedroom.
‘I can do anything for you. If it means you’ll be safe.’
After silently repeating this solemn pledge in his heart, he finally lowered his head and struck the horse’s flank with a sharp tap.
The man with intense eyes and his black horse left the duchy.
The place Kylus had secretly arrived at after leaving the duchy was none other than the Temple of Chief Deity Helios.
Visiting hours for non-clergy were set from 9 AM to 8 PM.
After 8 PM, the temple doors were closed to visitors. Naturally, holy knights stood guard in front.
But tonight, there were no holy knights in front of the firmly closed temple doors.
Instead, a golden-haired man in pure white priestly robes stood there.
High Priest Prion Minasterio.
The very person who had asked Kylus to come to the temple alone in the dark night.
Kylus dismounted.
“Wait here.”
Kylus’s exceptional steed, no ordinary horse, understood human speech precisely.
Leaving the quietly standing horse behind, Kylus headed toward the temple.
Or more precisely, toward High Priest Prion.
“Thank you for honoring my difficult request, Duke.”
Prion greeted him with a slight bow.
Kylus spoke in a cold voice.
“Request… I thought it was an order rather than a request, given how devoid of courtesy the letter was, but apparently I was mistaken.”
Kylus made no attempt to hide his sarcasm.
While he could guess why Prion had summoned him, the manner had indeed been discourteous.
Prion acknowledged this by slightly lowering his gaze.
“Since I couldn’t provide a detailed explanation… trying to convey my intentions as briefly as possible made the form of the letter quite rude. I apologize if it was unpleasant.”
“Well, it wasn’t quite unpleasant, so let’s leave it at that. Will you now tell me about this matter that couldn’t be explained in the letter?”
“May I explain after we move to a place where we can talk?”
Prion looked at Kylus as he opened the firmly closed temple doors.
“Very well.”
Kylus walked through the temple with Prion.
Perhaps because he usually visited only during daylight, the temple’s atmosphere without its bright light felt different.
Of course, magical lamps still provided a subtle glow.
The temple in darkness certainly had a more solemn feeling than in daytime.
If the daytime temple seemed like a place bestowing blessings, the nighttime temple felt like a place judging human sins.
There was a strange, oppressive pressure weighing down on the body.
Thus, Kylus and High Priest Prion passed through the temple’s grand lobby, heading not toward the prayer rooms open to visitors, but toward the area containing the priests’ quarters and chapel.
Kylus wasn’t surprised at all when Prion led him in that direction.
He had somewhat anticipated where Prion would take him.
And his prediction was correct.
A place he had visited a few times before.
High Priest Prion stopped in front of the priests’ chapel, where a massive statue of Chief Deity Helios stood.
Prion, who had been walking ahead the whole time, turned to face him.
Hesitating slightly at Kylus’s impassive face, Prion offered a faint smile.
“You seem to have already guessed that I would bring you here.”
Kylus answered nonchalantly.
“Yes. More or less.”
“Then you probably have some idea of why I called for you.”
Unlike his casual response a moment ago, Kylus now fixed Prion with a somewhat sharper gaze.
Prion didn’t avoid his eyes and waited quietly.
Finally, Kylus’s red lips parted.
“The Chief Deity, Helios. It’s He who has summoned me, isn’t it?”
