Chapter 101
“Haah…” Kirine sighed softly as she waited to bid farewell to Vincent, who was finally returning to the Holy City after the New Year’s festival.
‘Dead…’ she lamented, tilting her head back to look at the sky. Despite the beautiful weather, her mood was undeniably bitter.
In truth, she hadn’t known Aria for very long. They rarely met and hadn’t shared many conversations. Yet during their brief time together, Aria had given Kirine courage and hope to live again. She had provided great comfort, making her uniquely significant to Kirine.
That’s why she had desperately wanted to meet her again. She believed that even though Aria might be surprised to see her as a woman now, she would still treat her with the same kindness and gentleness as she had in their childhood.
However, part of her had worried that Aria might not want to see her—afraid that meeting would only remind her of that time when she was forcibly confined. Even if they couldn’t meet, Kirine had at least wanted to hear that Aria was living well. That would have brought her peace of mind.
But after all that waiting, all she received was news of the child’s death.
“Huu…” she sighed again. What made it even more devastating was that Aria had died exactly one year after the day she had barely managed to escape. The fact that she hadn’t lived long after returning home made Kirine feel even more dejected.
“Kirine.”
As she continued sighing repeatedly, a voice called out right in front of her. When she looked up, Vincent was half-kneeling, looking at her.
“Why are you sitting like that?”
“It’s nothing. Are you leaving now?”
Shaking her head as if it were nothing, Kirine slowly stood up. Vincent was already dressed neatly and properly, just as he had been when he first arrived at the Imperial Palace.
“Yes, it’s really time for me to go.”
Vincent moved forward with a melancholic smile. Kirine walked beside him, with the priests following closely behind.
“I wish I could stay longer. It’s disappointing.”
“The people of the Holy City must be waiting for you. Should you really be saying that?”
When Kirine added that the others would feel hurt if they heard him, Vincent laughed out loud.
“I suppose so.”
Upon reaching the palace gates, Kirine stopped and lightly patted Vincent’s shoulder.
“Travel safely.”
Who knew when they would meet again after today? It had never been easy for Kirine, an Imperial magician, and Vincent, a Holy City priest, to meet. They had maintained their close friendship through frequent letters.
But now that one person’s feelings had changed and that fact was known, it was hard to guarantee when they would meet again. She had a feeling it would take even longer than before.
“Take care of yourself and stay healthy.”
Kirine waved at Vincent with a silent smile. However, Vincent seemed to have something left to say, standing still and moving his lips before slowly speaking.
“What if… If we could go back to when I first came to the Imperial Palace, would you still like that person then?”
Kirine blinked at the unexpected question. But Vincent didn’t take his eyes off her for even a moment. His expression suggested he wouldn’t move until he got an answer, making Kirine slightly furrow her brows before tilting her head.
“Well, I’m not sure myself.”
Having never considered such a scenario, it wasn’t easy to answer. But one thing was certain.
“Does it even matter though?”
It seemed pointless since they couldn’t go back to that time anyway, regardless of the intent behind the question or her answer.
Just as she was carefully studying Vincent’s face, wondering if she had answered wrong—
“I thought you’d say that.”
Vincent chuckled as if he had expected this response and gently brushed Kirine’s cheek.
“Thank you for answering.”
Kirine looked at him quizzically at the sudden expression of gratitude, but Vincent’s expression showed genuine relief.
Yet somehow, that face bothered her.
“Just get going already.”
Due to an inexplicable anxiety, Kirine forced a smile and pushed Vincent’s back.
Finally, Vincent reluctantly stepped forward. The priests followed behind him as they left the Imperial Palace.
[If we could go back to when I first came to the Imperial Palace, would you still like that person then?]
As she watched their retreating figures, Vincent’s words echoed in her ears. She couldn’t understand why he would ask if she would still like Ares even if they went back to when their relationship was bad.
But soon Kirine turned away, dismissing it as nothing significant.
***
Lately, the weather had been nice, and she had been enjoying tea outside whenever she had free time to refresh her mood. But today, that proved difficult.
Noticing her state of mind immediately, Reilly asked curiously, “Is something wrong, Kirine?”
“Pardon?”
“Well, you’ve seemed down for the past few days.”
Faced with his worried gaze, Kirine was caught off guard but tried to maintain composure.
“It’s nothing.”
“Nothing? Come on, you can tell me what’s bothering you.”
“Really, it’s nothing. Just…”
As she struggled to find the right words, it suddenly dawned on her why she felt so down.
“I’m just… sad.”
She felt foolish for only realizing it now.
“Someone I knew… died.”
She finally understood that she was grieving and hurting over the child’s death.
“Was it a close friend?”
“…”
After a moment of silence, Kirine nodded.
“We were close.”
Even as she spoke, Kirine tightly gripped her teacup.
“I wanted to meet them again. I wanted to hear that they were doing well, and I wanted to tell them that I was doing well too.”
She had been waiting for the day to hear and say those words, but receiving such news instead left her too devastated even for tears.
“Try not to dwell on it too much. It’ll only hurt you more.”
“Yes, I know, but it’s not that easy.”
If things had worked out well, she wouldn’t be feeling this dejected now. The more she tried to calm her mind, the more she blamed herself for not finding them sooner.
“You’re meeting Ares soon. Are you going to keep that face?”
“Is it that bad?”
“Yes, anyone can tell something’s wrong.”
“…”
Kirine wasn’t sure whether to be grateful or not for his characteristically blunt honesty.
***
“I really can’t get my expression right today…”
Still bothered by Reilly’s words, Kirine tried using her fingers to lift the corners of her mouth. But they would drop right back down without constant effort.
‘Ares will definitely ask what’s wrong.’
She needed to manage a natural smile before then, but it was frustrating that she couldn’t get it right.
Though she wanted to practice more, thinking of Ares waiting for her made her steps quicken.
“Ares.”
As soon as she spotted Ares, who had already arrived at the training ground, Kirine ran over while barely managing to lift the corners of her mouth.
“Ares.”
“…”
“Ares?”
After calling several times with no response, Kirine tapped Ares’s shoulder.
Only then did Ares startle and turn around, finally noticing her presence.
“Oh? Ah, you’re here?”
“Yes.”
As she sat down next to Ares, something seemed off about his expression.
“Did something happen?”
“Hm? No.”
“…?”
For someone claiming nothing was wrong, Ares’s eyes looked too pitiful. The redness under his eyes suggested he had been crying.
“Don’t tell me you were crying?”
