Chapter 25
The mountain range Daphne had to cross was to the west of the castle. She had a gut feeling that he knew all of her plans.
“But to be honest, I don’t really recommend crossing that mountain range. It would be difficult to cross with an untrained body. If I were you, I would look for another way.”
And when Johannes said this in a nonchalant tone, Daphne’s lips finally parted in a daze.
“…Johannes.”
He turned to look at her without a word. Leaning her back against the sturdy tree trunk, facing his unwavering eyes, Daphne somehow felt it was easier to speak.
“…When did you figure it out?”
Johannes seemed to ponder for a moment, then asked.
“That you were pretending to have lost your dagger?”
Daphne’s lips quivered with surprise and bewilderment.
“Or are you asking about when you were using me to find your way?”
Daphne couldn’t speak easily, overwhelmed by the feeling that the magical time had ended without warning. Finally, Daphne managed to ask.
“…How.”
“I saw the dagger you hid under the rock. It reflected in the moonlight… I saw it.”
“Wh-when…”
“Let’s see. Probably the day we found the shimmering cave.”
That early? Then why until now… For a moment, Daphne found it hard to understand the situation. After barely managing to organize her chaotic thoughts, she asked.
“If I run away… wouldn’t you be in trouble?”
“……”
“You said you don’t wish for the Allied Forces’ victory. But why…”
Why did you help me? Daphne couldn’t finish her sentence, filled with a vague fear and hope.
Johannes, who had been answering without hesitation, fell silent. He looked down as if lost in thought and remained quiet for a moment.
When he had stumbled upon the dagger, he hadn’t been particularly surprised, nor had he felt betrayed. He had already sensed that the dagger was just an excuse. He had merely thought that hiding it in such a place was just like her, somehow clumsy.
So Johannes pretended not to have found the dagger. Because around that time, he too had come to wait for the night.
Helping her get accustomed to the forest? That was the part that was truly difficult for him to understand. For a while, Johannes silently looked into Daphne’s eyes, which were watching him, holding her breath as if awaiting a verdict.
Daphne, thrown into confusion, whispered in a trembling voice.
“You said you weren’t on my side.”
“…I am not.”
“But, why…”
Johannes paused as if lost in thought, then opened his mouth.
“I think I want to see you… survive. I want to see it.”
The only thing that was certain was that he didn’t want her to die. He wanted her to run away and survive. For as long as possible, if she could. The reason he had impulsively brought up his own story was because of that. Perhaps it was pity, perhaps it was encouragement…
Daphne’s lips parted slightly, as if she had realized something, yet hadn’t. Johannes continued, gazing at her.
“…And this is confidential.”
“……”
“The commander-in-chief of the Allied Forces, Henrik, is an idiot.”
“…What?”
“And my reputation, in fact… is already sufficient.”
“Johannes, wait a moment. What are you saying…”
“Across the sea, my Itium, my people, they know me now as the God of War. So it means it’s fine for me to act a little selfishly, and it won’t be a problem even if some trouble arises.”
His eyes were straightforward, and his expression was blank. It sounded like a joke, but it also sounded completely sincere.
Thanks to that, Daphne became confused. In any case, it seemed she didn’t have to worry about losing him just yet, but she couldn’t rejoice freely. After a long silence, Daphne asked hesitantly.
“Can I keep coming out to the forest?”
“You said you were the one who couldn’t be stopped.”
Johannes then laughed as if to say, is something like that important? Daphne, with her brow still furrowed, unconsciously raised the corners of her mouth along with him. She felt the tension that had unknowingly stiffened her body slowly release. Just then, Johannes said.
“Telling you to find another way was not a joke. Think about it carefully.”
Daphne, who had been staring at him intently for a moment, muttered unconsciously.
“…Johannes. I think you’re a little strange.”
“As if you’re one to talk.”
The sound of their soft laughter echoed alternately through the forest.
Then, Johannes suddenly stared at Daphne. To be precise, at the silver hair that cascaded over her shoulder and onto her chest. Daphne, noticing his gaze, asked in a puzzled voice.
“My hair? Why?”
Johannes tilted his head slightly and leaned his upper body just a little toward her. It was an instinctive action. Daphne, who thought he was about to bury his head in her shoulder, froze solid for a moment.
“…Johannes?”
His downcast eyes looked up at her.
And Daphne realized why he was doing this. Daphne suddenly gathered her hair and clenched it tightly. But there was nowhere to hide her long hair.
“……”
In that moment, Johannes was certain. It wasn’t a delusion that she smelled of the same scent as him. Johannes moved away with a slightly awkward motion. Daphne felt her face flush. He probably knew, too. Letting out a small sigh, Johannes slowly ruffled the back of his hair and forced himself to look forward.
“……”
For a while, the two of them just stared ahead in a tense silence. It was now rare for silence to fall between them. Daphne hesitated and hesitated, waited and waited for an opening, then stealthily turned her head. It was because she was curious about his expression.
He was looking at her. She couldn’t tell since when. Then again, come to think of it, Daphne had rarely heard him move unless he deliberately made his presence known. Daphne let out a long sigh without realizing it.
Soon, she felt him lean forward. It looked as if his firmly closed lips were slightly parting. That’s how it felt to her, truly. Feeling an unfamiliar sense of crisis, Daphne called him.
“Johannes.”
“…Yes.”
“It’s difficult for me to come out tomorrow.”
“…Ah.”
“The Summer Festival I mentioned before. I have to start preparing at the crack of dawn, and security is especially tight on that day.”
Somehow, her pulse seemed to quicken. Her head was dizzy, and Daphne couldn’t tell what she was saying.
“Anyway, for that reason, tomorrow is difficult, so two days from now. I’ll try to come out somehow in two days.”
There was no particular response from Johannes. The silence began again. For some reason, Daphne found it hard to bear that void. Her mouth grew dry with anxiety, and she became conscious of the sound of her swallowing, which seemed particularly loud. In the end, Daphne spoke up again.
“By tomorrow, I’ll officially be an adult, and I can get married. To be honest, my body isn’t in a state to do so, but…”
Just as she was about to frown, unable to understand why she had said such a thing, he muttered.
“I didn’t know you wanted to get married…”
In truth, it was common for women around Thisbene’s age to have their marriage arranged and marry as soon as they had their coming-of-age ceremony. Of course, a so-called normal marriage was a story that had nothing to do with Daphne. If there was a marriage in her life, the partner would probably be Equilla, and even if a miracle happened and she became someone else’s wife, her own incomplete womb would be a problem.
It must have been a simple thought to himself, but Daphne answered anyway.
“…It’s not that I want to get married. It’s just, that’s how it is.”
Then Johannes averted his gaze from her. As if to say, then that’s settled.
And in the same moment, Daphne suddenly remembered a fact she hadn’t thought of until now.
“…Come to think of it, Johannes.”
Daphne realized, as if for the first time, that Johannes was a king. In the forest, there had been no time to think about his background. But still…
“Do you have a wife?”
The marriage of a man close to the throne was bound to be early.
He looked to be around her age or a year or two older. In that case, he wasn’t young. He had been on the battlefield for a long time, but he might have already married before coming here.
At the out-of-the-blue question, Johannes made a dumbfounded expression, and Daphne’s face was even more bewildered than his.
Johannes studied Daphne’s expression carefully and asked.
“…If I do. Will you stop bothering me?”
Yrv1011
Omg! Still so good. More please and thank you! Is the original novel completed?