AME 32

CH:32

The flames that shot high into the sky dyed not only the black sky but also the faces of those watching in a warm orange glow.

In the moment when everything was devoured by the color of the flames, Alesia’s red eyes captured that scarlet light and shone even more vividly.

Kaon stared blankly at Alesia’s side profile as if entranced. To him, Alesia sparkled more brilliantly than the multicolored fireworks lighting up the night sky.

“Kaon, look at those fireworks. Aren’t they so pretty?”

Sensing his gaze, Alesia turned and asked. Her smiling eyes sent a twinge through his heart.

“…Yeah, they are.”

Despite not sparing a glance at the fireworks, Kaon nodded. The uneasiness he couldn’t explain seemed to melt away with just that one smile.

‘Uneasiness?’

Kaon hesitated. Come to think of it, his chest felt oddly heavy, as if something was pressing down on it. It was strange. He had no reason to feel uneasy. Especially not when Alesia was smiling at him so brightly like this.

“Really? You think they’re pretty?”

Ah, it must’ve been nothing.

Kaon quickly shook off the stray thought. Seeing Alesia with her wide eyes like a rabbit, his heart pounded faster.

“Yeah, it’s pretty.”

Kaon answered shyly. Alesia had only asked about the fireworks, but the thing he found beautiful was Alesia herself. Still, he meant it. He wasn’t sure if the fireworks were beautiful—but Alesia certainly was.

Her smooth, round forehead, the long lashes that trembled ever so slightly, her perfectly shaped nose, and the eyes that gleamed delicately like they held a jewel—everything about her was beautiful.

Unable to take his eyes off her, he continued to stare. Then, after silently watching him for a while, Alesia smiled faintly.

And suddenly, she raised her hand.

“Even though that firework was made by this ring?”

“…Huh?”

Her sharp gaze fell on the large ruby ring. Kaon, who had been about to laugh along, dumbly repeated her words. Alesia added a final remark as if to seal the deal.

“Even though it’s not a spell I cast, do you really think those fireworks are pretty, Kaon Ferdinand?”

Gasp.

Kaon suddenly jolted upright, breathing heavily. He looked around in a panic—everything from just moments ago had vanished.

‘A dream?’

Kaon downed a glass of water in one gulp and ran a hand through his sweat-drenched hair in frustration.

“Damn…”

He had tensed up so much his back was soaked in sweat and cold beads ran down his forehead. And yet it had just been a dream? He let out a hollow laugh.

Letting out a long sigh, Kaon glanced at the curtains. There was no sign of movement from the other side. He worried he might have woken her up with all his rustling, but Alesia seemed to still be asleep. That was a relief.

Kaon lay back down. There was no morning training tomorrow, so he still had plenty of time to sleep. If he could sleep in and wake up late, everything would probably feel fine again.

He mentally sketched out his schedule for the next day. Rest in the morning, go on inspection with Alesia in the afternoon, and soon it would be evening.

It would be just another ordinary day. That stupid dream would fade away soon enough.

Reassuring himself, Kaon closed his eyes—but then suddenly opened them wide.

‘Which one was the dream?’

Kaon ended up staying awake all night. His heart felt too unsettled to sleep.

Right after waking from the dream, he didn’t think much of it. Sure, it had startled and confused him, but telling himself it was just a dream calmed him down quickly.

But then another memory surfaced. In it, Alesia had transformed into a completely different person, threatening him and eventually using his weakness to silence him.

It was far too vivid to be just a dream, but also too ridiculous to be real.

‘There’s no way Alesia would do that.’

It must’ve been because he had been obsessing over her ring too much—it ended up seeping into his dreams, not just once but twice.

Though the unsettling dreams had left him in bad shape, he at least walked away with one lesson: when bringing up a sensitive topic, one must be thoroughly prepared.

With that in mind, Kaon resolved to think things through carefully and talk to Alesia in private. Then he opened the door to leave his room.

“…Ah.”

Just as he stepped out, he froze in place. The clicking noise he heard had been coming from next door—Alesia was stepping out of her room as well.

She, too, stopped in her tracks upon seeing him. It was a bit awkward, likely because of the rough dreams. Just as Kaon hesitated, Alesia spoke first.

“Kaon, did you sleep well?”

“…Yeah. You?”

“Of course I did.”

Alesia replied cheerfully with a soft smile in her eyes. She looked exactly like her usual self. There was no trace of the cold-eyed girl who had threatened him in his memory.

Ah, so it really was a dream. Finally feeling relieved, Kaon let out a breath. Thank goodness. Truly, thank goodness. He placed a hand over his chest to calm down.

“But I didn’t expect you to sleep so well. If it were me, I would’ve tossed and turned all night.”

A completely unexpected statement caught him off guard. He looked up, stunned, and Alesia took a step closer. She was still smiling.

“…What?”

“Our deal—don’t forget it. Don’t even think about going to your sister. Got it, Kaon Ferdinand?”

Her voice, though whispering sweetly, was anything but kind. The mismatch between her tone and words was so stark, Kaon’s mouth fell open.

“You didn’t actually think it was all a dream… did you?”

Alesia yanked Kaon back into reality. The disdain was clear on her face even though her words feigned innocence.

Sighing outright, she shook her head a few times before suddenly switching back to her angelic face.

“Oh my, Lily! Are you heading down? Let’s go together.”

As Kaon stared in a daze, Alesia called out to a maid with a cheerful tone, gently pushed him aside, and walked past him.

Kaon stood there, mouth agape, watching her walk away.

“Thank you for your hard work today, everyone.”

“Oh no, miss! You’re the one who’s worked the hardest. It’s been over two months now, hasn’t it?”

“I’m just tagging along. It’s the knights like Nils who are really doing the hard work.”

“Not at all. We’re all grateful to you. Hearing such words from you humbles us.”

Alesia’s thoughtful remark, giving all credit to the knights, deeply touched the middle-aged knight Nils. The other knights, who had witnessed the dispatched magician’s tyranny firsthand, felt the same.

“I still have a lot to learn. I’ll be relying on you, Nils.”

“You’re already doing more than enough.”

“It’s true!”

“Thank you, everyone.”

It was a heartwarming scene of knights and a mage showing mutual respect. Beautiful and ideal as it was, Kaon stood off to the side, frowning, unable to join in.

“And we mustn’t forget Kaon, either. He’s been with us every day, too.”

Right. That mage wearing the world’s sweetest smile wasn’t even a real mage. Just a con artist pretending to be one.

“Let’s all give Kaon some encouragement too—Kaon, are you feeling okay? You don’t look well.”

As if that wasn’t absurd enough, she even pretended to be a caring fiancée, fussing over him.

If someone asked what was wrong with him, he could truthfully answer: “My stomach turns every time I look at that fake smile.”

“Nils, as much as I hate to say it, I think everyone should head back early today. Kaon doesn’t seem well, and I’m worried.”

“Of course. You’re quite the lucky man, sir. To have such a caring young lady already! You two make a great couple. Haha.”

Before Kaon could say a word, Alesia had already taken the lead. As Nils laughed heartily, laughter rippled through the group. Occasionally someone would shout, “So jealous!” or “You’re one lucky guy!”

‘Damn it…’

Kaon swallowed the hundredth curse of the day amidst the cheerful atmosphere.

He began to ponder what words might surpass even “utter trash” in describing how miserable he felt. Even falling face-first into the snow in wet clothes with a broken nose would be better than this.

A month had passed since their so-called “deal.” In that time, Kaon had completely revised everything he thought he knew about Alesia Ingellos.

First of all, Alesia was not kind in the least. Well—she was, but only when people were around.

“Hey, can’t you control your expression?”

“What did I do?”

She was just like this even now.