Chapter 078
‘I’m so tired…’
Lying comfortably still, my weary body quickly fell into a state perfect for sleep.
Just then.
Creak.
I sensed someone opening the door and entering the room.
As the footsteps drew closer to the bed I was lying on, they gradually grew quieter.
After a while, I heard the sound of fabric brushing against something, and I felt the blanket slowly settling over me. At that moment, my eyes snapped open.
“……”
I stared directly into the eyes of the person right in front of me.
As we lay there, silently locking eyes, Evan spoke first.
“I saw the blanket was down…”
“I know.”
I pouted in response to Evan’s excuse.
“Then please rest.”
With that, I grabbed the sleeve of Evan’s clothing as he tried to leave the room again.
He paused for a moment, and as I watched his back, I hesitated before finally asking the question that had been swirling in my mind.
“Why aren’t you sleeping in bed these days?”
I couldn’t remember the exact day it started, but recently, Evan had begun sleeping on the sofa again.
And I was sure it was because of me.
“Am I making you uncomfortable?”
I tightened my grip on his sleeve and asked directly.
Evan still had his back to me, so I couldn’t tell what kind of expression he had, which made me feel frustrated.
“Yes.”
Hearing his affirmative response as he turned away made my mouth slightly open, and the strength in my hands relaxed.
Hearing such a direct refusal from him rendered me unable to think, as if my body had broken down.
“……I’ll be going.”
Evan left the room without looking back at me, despite my silence.
☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓 ☪︎ ִ ࣪𖤐 𐦍 ☾𖤓
Tap. Tap. Tap.
Sitting in my office, I mindlessly tapped my fingers on the desk several times.
My head was quite complicated as I contemplated how to treat Evan moving forward.
“I didn’t expect him to say he was uncomfortable…”
The shock of hearing his agreement to that question hit me hard.
Moreover, he hadn’t returned to the bedroom until dawn yesterday.
“It’s difficult.”
If I could, I would want to delve into his mind to see what he was thinking right now.
While the territory was gradually stabilizing, my heart was quickly becoming a mess.
I was lost in thought, resting my chin on my hand with a serious expression.
Knock! Knock!
With an urgent knock, Vera rushed into the office, out of breath.
“Milady!”
Vera dashed up to me, panting heavily, and took a moment to catch her breath.
“Vera, what’s the matter that you came running like this?”
I had never seen Vera with such a frantic expression, so I asked her with wide eyes.
“The First Prince is on his way to the castle right now!”
“…What did you say?”
I shouted in the same expression as Vera upon hearing her words.
The First Prince, who should be in the capital, is here right now?
Upon hearing that he would arrive at the castle in just a few minutes after passing through the entrance of the territory, I hurriedly got up from my seat.
As I rushed toward the castle entrance, I was met with the sight of knights and servants already lined up, waiting.
‘He’s already here.’
I quietly approached Evan, who was standing at the front of the line.
Noticing my arrival, Evan silently turned his body to make room for me.
As we stood there silently facing forward, an awkward atmosphere enveloped us.
As I fiddled with my nails, I turned my head back toward Evan once more.
“Ah.”
Just then, our eyes met as Evan happened to be looking this way.
The moment our eyes locked, I noticed his pupils tremble slightly before he quickly averted his gaze.
It was the first time I had seen him since we parted yesterday.
For some reason, he looked haggard, as if he hadn’t slept well.
“Evan, where were you yesterday…?”
I was about to ask if he had slept properly when—
“Hey, isn’t that him coming over?”
At the voice of a nearby maid, those lined up in front of the castle began to murmur.
As she said, a carriage was approaching the castle from a distance.
‘He came with a much smaller entourage than I expected.’
This was royalty, the heir to the throne, no less.
It was only natural that his safety would be regarded as important as the safety of the nation.
The carriage, though large, looked like a higher-class one that commoners would pay extra to ride in.
Moreover, there wasn’t a single guard in sight around the carriage.
“Hey, that’s not right.”
“Yeah, exactly.”
It seemed those around thought that the person inside that carriage wasn’t the First Prince, as they relaxed and whispered among themselves.
However, when that ordinary carriage stopped at the entrance of the castle and a dazzlingly bright blonde emerged from within, everyone couldn’t help but widen their eyes in shock.
The person who got out of the carriage was indeed the First Prince.
“Ha ha, it’s been a while, Evan.”
The first prince, Bjorn, spotted Evan as he looked around and approached him with open arms.
“What’s the sudden occasion?”
Evan took a step back to avoid Bjorn and replied in a stiff voice.
Bjorn shrugged as if he were used to Evan’s demeanor.
“You’re still the same—so cold.”
Honestly, I was a bit surprised watching their interaction from nearby.
‘They must be really close.’
I had only heard rumors about their relationship in the past, and this was my first time witnessing it in person.
Bjorn, who maintained an equal distance with everyone, was showing his only friendship with Evan.
Bjorn had also been involved in the war for quite some time, so it seemed their relationship had started back then.
As I was lost in thought at that moment—
“Oh dear, I got so excited to see my friend that I forgot to greet the duchess.”
Bjorn’s gaze turned toward me, and he approached with a friendly tone.
The smiling face I had last seen on the night of the rebellion overlapped in my mind.
His cold gaze seemed to look down on something less than a bug.
Though his voice and manner of speaking were soft as he offered an apology, I felt an inexplicable chill from his face.
“Apologies are unnecessary. You must be quite tired from coming all this way, so please, come inside.”
However, I couldn’t reveal my true feelings.
I smiled and welcomed the First Prince, pushing aside the pain that felt like a throbbing in my chest.
Just then.
Whoosh─
“Ah.”
The horse that had been standing quietly next to the First Prince suddenly thrust its face toward me.
Startled, my body froze, but a large hand quickly reached out to block the horse’s face.
It was a hand scarred from familiarity.
“I’m sorry. He’s a peculiar one who likes shiny things. It seems he took a liking to your hair.”
Bjorn also seemed surprised by the horse’s sudden action, looking at it with slightly widened eyes.
I smiled lightly to convey that it was okay, then met Evan’s gaze once more.
“Thank you.”
Evan nodded silently and began to walk toward the castle first.
As I watched Evan’s figure, I felt a piercing gaze from the side. When I turned my head, I met Bjorn’s eyes, who was smiling mischievously.
Just a moment ago, his expression had seemed masked, but now it was filled with evident interest and a strange smile.
“Do you have something to say?”
I ended up speaking first due to his intense stare.
“You two seem close.”
Bjorn replied with a smile and naturally started walking inside before I could say anything more.
‘I’ve felt this before, but he’s really an inscrutable man.’
With a striking appearance that could easily win over anyone at first glance and an exceptional mind.
In stark contrast to Delos, who was always causing trouble, he had a dignified personality.
But perhaps due to the memories from my past life, I found all of the First Prince’s words and actions to feel contrived.
midori
thanks! wah! i didnt expect evan to say he felt uncomfortable! he has steeled himself! LET HER PET THE HORSE, AUTHOR