Chapter 105
“Didn’t you say you took a vacation?”
“Yes.”
“Then why are you here?”
Ares asked curiously, still not grasping the situation.
Instead of answering, Kirine studied Ares carefully before slowly speaking.
“I took it to come here.”
“Here? Why? Do you know someone here?”
“…”
“…?”
Finally sensing something unusual, Ares looked at her questioningly. Kirine slowly approached and suddenly grabbed both his cheeks.
“What are you doing?”
“Ha, I can’t believe this.”
“What?”
“You still don’t understand?”
Thinking how dense he could be sometimes, Kirine pulled Ares’s face closer. Caught off guard, Ares stared at her blankly.
“W-why are you suddenly doing this?”
“You still can’t tell even looking this close?”
As they drew close enough for Ares to see his reflection in her ruby eyes, he tried to pull his head back in embarrassment.
But the more he tried to retreat, the closer Kirine pulled him.
“Look carefully.”
“Look at what?”
Though they had occasionally kissed this closely when emotions ran high, they had never faced each other like this otherwise, making it both bewildering and embarrassing.
As he kept trying to pull away, Kirine finally relented and let go.
Just as he was letting out a relieved sigh and looking at her—
“Have you been well?”
“…?”
Ares tilted his head at the friendly greeting and smile. Just as he was about to ask what she meant—
“Aria.”
“…”
He heard an unexpected name from an unexpected person.
Too shocked to respond even after hearing it directly, he just stared blankly as Kirine smiled even more brightly.
“For the record, I’ve been doing well. Well, it was tough at first. Someone gave me a really hard time.”
He didn’t need to ask who that “someone” was referring to.
“I wanted to tell you to scold that person when we met again, but I didn’t expect it would be you.”
“…”
As she clicked her tongue saying how unfortunate that was, Ares began to realize things one by one.
“You… could it be…”
He couldn’t quite get the words out. Seeing his struggle, Kirine spoke plainly.
“That’s right, I’m the Kaen you know.”
“…”
“I had no idea you were a man.”
Though she didn’t understand why there had been a death certificate for Aria, it made sense now why he couldn’t find her. And given that Ares was here, it seemed he had been looking for her too.
“Similarly, you wouldn’t have known I was a woman.”
“Of course not. I…”
Ares, who had been running a hand over his face, suddenly pulled Kirine into an embrace.
“I searched for you for so long.”
She had been his only breath of life, his strength, his hope in that hell. He had always wanted to meet her again, but never imagined she had been so close all along.
“I’m sorry, there were so many rumors about young girls being kidnapped back then, I had no choice but to dress as a boy.”
Thinking about how Ares must have searched for her, she felt somewhat guilty and buried herself deeper in his embrace. Seeing her just hiding her face, Ares let out a small laugh.
“I’m the one who should be sorry. For not recognizing you sooner.”
To think he had picked fights with her and pointed his sword at her with killing intent.
Contrary to his worries about being forgiven, Kirine seemed unbothered.
“It would be stranger if you had recognized me right away. I’ve changed so much. Wait.”
“…?”
As something suddenly occurred to her, Kirine peeked up at Ares.
“Was your recent bad mood because you couldn’t find me?”
“…”
Instead of answering, Ares avoided her gaze. But he soon turned the tables on Kirine.
“You were in a bad mood too. Was that because you couldn’t find me?”
“…”
The coincidence was so remarkable it wasn’t even funny.
***
“Can I ask you something?”
They were heading back to the market from the white mansion, which had become little more than ruins.
When Kirine carefully brought up something she had always wanted to ask if they met again, Ares nodded.
“What is it?”
“That woman…”
“That woman?”
“The one who imprisoned you…”
“Ah…”
Unlike Kirine, who was watching his reaction carefully as she asked, Ares remained calm.
Relieved by his composure, Kirine continued.
“Do you know what happened to her?”
“…”
It was an important question. Though she was a horrific existence Ares would rather not remember, they needed to know whether she was alive or dead.
Fortunately, Ares answered calmly without showing any displeasure.
“I actually tried looking for her but couldn’t find her.”
After safely escaping the white mansion and returning to his family, his first priority had been finding Kaen, and the second had been finding that woman.
But no matter how much he searched, locating either of them proved difficult.
“So you don’t know if she’s dead or alive?”
“Given there’s been no news all this time, I assume she’s dead.”
He had seen her in the mansion when it collapsed, and even if she had survived that, he didn’t think she would have lasted long.
“Shouldn’t we try to find out for sure?”
“That’s why I’m still looking.”
Having entered a decent-looking restaurant, Kirine sat down and studied Ares sitting across from her.
Still finding it hard to believe even after several looks, she muttered unconsciously.
“It’s amazing.”
“What is?”
“I never imagined Aria would change like this.”
“Is that a good thing?”
“Well…”
In her imagination, Aria would have remained delicate and proper like before, seeming to need her protection.
But now she felt like the one who needed protection.
“Well, let’s say it’s the opposite of what I imagined.”
“So is that bad?”
“Not bad.”
As Kirine hedged her answer, she suddenly became curious and asked:
“What about you? How do you find me?”
“Similar, I guess. I never imagined you’d change like this.”
“So is that good or bad for you?”
“Hmm…”
In Ares’s mind, he had believed Kaen would have grown to be as tall and strong as himself. But the reality was the opposite.
She was about a hand span shorter than him, and the body he had imagined would be sturdy was slender, making him feel like he needed to protect her.
But he didn’t dislike that.
“I think I like it.”
Unlike before when he only received protection and help, now he could be the one protecting her.
“If you like it, just say you like it. What’s with the ‘I think’?”
Though she glared at him sulkily, Ares suddenly burst out laughing.
“Why are you laughing?”
“It’s just amusing.”
No wonder he couldn’t find her when she had been right in front of him all along.
Though he felt some regret about not finding her sooner, he was also grateful to have found her now.
At the same time, his heart swelled with the feeling that their connection had never truly been broken since their parting.
‘It almost feels like fate.’
As if it was saying they were meant to meet again.
“Kirine.”
“Yes?”
Before the main dish arrived, warm soup was served. It was mushroom soup, Ares’s favorite.
As Kirine was setting the mushroom soup in front of Ares, tilting her head curiously—
“Will you live with me?”
