AME 48

CH:48

A New Phase

Fifteen days later, the group that had headed to Bellium returned to Ferdinand. The carriage barely arrived at Ferdinand Castle before sunset. Exhausted from the long journey, they all had a light dinner and then dispersed to their rooms to rest.

“……”

Kaon and Alessia didn’t exchange a single word on their way to the shared suite. They didn’t meet each other’s eyes, acting as if the other didn’t exist. Even as they entered their respective rooms through separate doors connected to the same suite, the silence remained unbroken.

Kaon, unbuttoning his shirt irritably, ran his hands through his hair in frustration. He hadn’t even eaten properly, yet he felt a tight, suffocating pressure in his chest.

“Even if I did meet someone, what business is it of yours? It’s not like we’re in that kind of relationship.”

“You and I… We’re just holding each other’s weaknesses. Don’t get the wrong idea.”

The reason was obvious. Alessia’s whispered words from that night at the banquet still echoed relentlessly in his mind.

If someone asked what kind of relationship they had, he’d say they were engaged, and as Alessia had pointed out, they held leverage over each other. The engagement was more or less forced upon them by their families, but the secrets they protected were a matter of mutual consent—so there was a subtle difference.

‘What exactly did I get wrong? I just asked a simple question.’

Whatever the beginning had been, Kaon believed that, as Alessia’s fiancé, he had the right to ask at least that much. Sure, he had asked a bit too harshly in the heat of the moment, but he still couldn’t understand how it warranted such a sharp response.

And Alessia hadn’t even answered. Thanks to that, the princess’s comment about her being with another man kept gnawing at him.

‘It’s not even that strange, really…’

Kaon sighed. Honestly, it wasn’t unreasonable. There was no way Alessia hadn’t stepped outside before meeting him, and she must’ve attended multiple banquets. She probably had short or long connections with people in the past.

Even at the palace banquet, several men had approached her while Kaon had stepped away. Assuming there was no one was more unrealistic—and hoping so was downright absurd.

It wasn’t like Kaon could say anything even if Alessia did have someone now. Secret relationships were common—especially among nobles.

Men and women alike often had lovers. In fact, not having one was rarer in this era. And Kaon and Alessia’s engagement was purely political—there was no love, so there was no reason to interfere.

Still, despite all that, Kaon couldn’t stop himself from caring. He wanted to know who that man was and desperately wanted to confirm that nothing was going on between them.

‘Forget it. There’s no point.’

But Kaon had his pride. Even if part of him wanted that reassurance, he didn’t want to admit it—especially not out loud.

Instead, he turned his attention to another matter that had been bothering him.

‘Why is she so inconsistent?’

A person should have consistent behavior, but Alessia Ingellos was the opposite. She’d talk to him when she felt like it and then completely ignore him the moment something didn’t go her way. It was a habit.

Because of that, Kaon spent his days constantly thrown off balance, just like now. Sharing the same room only made things worse. Even in the carriage, the awkward tension had nearly suffocated him.

Alessia, on the other hand, looked completely at ease—as if she could go on living as if Kaon didn’t exist at all. She seemed fully prepared to live that way, and that indifference irritated him.

He didn’t mind when she acted snarky with him, nagged, or even looked down on him slightly—just not this cold indifference. What really got under his skin was how she seemed completely unbothered.

‘So that’s how it is, huh.’

If her problem was that she kept ignoring him, then he just had to make sure she couldn’t.

While mulling over his options, Kaon’s eyes suddenly lit up.

Alessia lay on her bed with a tense expression. Since the banquet on the second day in Bellium, she hadn’t had a moment of restful sleep.

That night, she had seen Rishar.

The moment she saw the red eyes staring at her from a distance—eyes that looked so much like her own—her heart dropped. He pointed upward with a finger, signaling her to come to the second floor. She had hurried after him, only to find him stepping out onto a balcony.

Alessia hesitated endlessly before stepping through the curtains. What if he had come to take her back to Ingellos? The thought filled her with anxiety and dread.

Then a familiar wave of fear crashed over her—and its strangeness startled her. Fear was nothing new to her. It shouldn’t have felt strange… yet it did. She couldn’t seem to adapt to it anymore.

“You look like you’re living well.”

When they finally faced each other, Rishar looked down at her with a blank expression. Only then did Alessia realize how comfortable she’d become at Ferdinand. Seeing him made her blood run cold, her hair stand on end—just like it always had back in Ingellos.

“…I’m only doing my best not to bring shame to Ingellos.”

“Do you actually think someone like you could disgrace the family?”

Rishar simply stared at her. It would’ve been better if he had sneered or struck her. But he did nothing.

And whenever he looked at her like that, bad things always followed. On days like those, her cousins would torment her more than usual—as if they’d been given permission to do so.

“I was being arrogant. I didn’t mean it that way. I’m sorry. I guess I’ve gotten complacent while being away.”

Her head bowed instinctively in fear. Her shoulders curled inward and her body began to tremble. After a moment, she heard him click his tongue quietly. Alessia let out a small sigh of relief. That small sound of contempt was a sign that his anger had passed.

“Any strange symptoms from the ring?”

“Not yet. If anything happens, I’ll send a letter immediately.”

“You haven’t been found out, have you?”

“If I had, I wouldn’t even be standing here. No one knows.”

“Fair enough.”

It was hard to lie in front of Rishar—so much so that she could barely breathe. But he didn’t seem suspicious. After all, this was how Alessia always acted in front of him when he was angry.

Besides, he had no idea that someone with an unseen eye was watching her from within Ferdinand.

If he had known, he never would’ve let her go there in the first place. And he definitely wouldn’t believe she was still there after being exposed.

“The mana in that ring won’t last a full year. Come back to Ingellos before next summer. There are things we need to confirm.”

“I understand. I won’t forget. If anything happens before that, I’ll report it right away.”

Next summer. The words felt like a death sentence. It wasn’t even an order to leave Ferdinand right away, but it felt that way. No, it was worse—not knowing for sure drove her mad.

She had thought she had at least two years left. Now, that timeline might be even shorter. Alessia began to reflect—had she let herself relax too much?

‘I need to act faster. Figure out where I’ll escape to…’

Remembering that night made it hard to breathe. Alessia forced herself to take deep breaths and closed her eyes.

Even though she was training physically now, she’d had almost no base stamina to begin with. Everything she’d gained so far was through sheer grit. But after a long trip with hardly any sleep, she was completely exhausted.

Still, just the fact that she felt sleepy again now that she was back in Ferdinand meant something. Alessia was surprised at how comforted she felt. It was as if the place itself was telling her she was safe.

And that was ridiculous—feeling that way about a place she’d eventually have to leave.

As she lay still, drowsiness began to wash over her. It felt like she might finally be able to sleep deeply for the first time in a while.

Just as she was about to fall asleep—

Bang, bang!

A noise echoed from beyond the curtain.

At first, Alessia tried to ignore it. Whatever it was, it had to stop soon.

But the strange sound continued. It was like fabric being beaten or laundry being dried—and it kept disrupting her sleep.