AME 50

Chapter 50

“Let’s see who wins.”

Two months after that thought took root—and roughly three months since returning to Ferdinand—Kaon finally decided to seek out Alessia first.

“Hey!”

Alessia sat at her desk, her gaze fixed on a map. Joseph’s claim that the young lady was fascinated by the continent didn’t seem wrong.

“What.”

“What?”

Still immersed in studying the map, she replied absently, not even bothering to glance at Kaon.

“Seriously, isn’t it a bit much to mess with someone’s sleep like this?”

Kaon, completely fed up, burst out in frustration. Sure, he was the one who had provoked her first—but as time went on, it felt more like he was on the receiving end of everything.

He’d only disturbed her sleep on the first day. Just once. Yet Alessia had made it her mission for nearly two months to rouse him from his morning slumber every time he had a day off.

It had become so frequent that even on days with no scheduled morning training, Kaon would wake up early out of sheer fear. He was essentially being forcibly awakened.

“And why do you keep using my name, anyway?”

And that wasn’t the end of it. With her unnecessary knack for observation and annoyingly dexterous hands, Alessia had mastered his handwriting and signed him up for every kind of training under the sun. Now, Kaon barely had a moment’s rest, as if even ten bodies wouldn’t be enough.

When he tried to skip group training sessions that wouldn’t raise much suspicion, she’d go out of her way to report his absence. She even dropped hints to Leonidas, saying she was “concerned for Kaon’s health.”

“I merely cracked the curtains open a little because the weather was nice.”

“Then why don’t you open the curtains in your room?”

“I must’ve pulled too hard and tugged yours a little by accident.”

“…There’s a whole wall between our rooms. Do you even hear yourself?”

Unbothered, Alessia kept her focus on the map. It was so infuriating, Kaon couldn’t imagine anyone more exasperating than her—but that side of Alessia was something only he knew.

To everyone else at Ferdinand Castle, Alessia was the kind, mature young lady of a ducal house, a dedicated magician, and Kaon’s sweet fiancée. The very picture of perfection. Which meant the only one truly suffering was Kaon.

By now, his original plan—to test her patience—had completely backfired. His own endurance was running dry.

Honestly, the old days, when she simply ignored him, seemed preferable. Who knew a person could find such creative ways to torment someone? Even demons would be impressed.

Maybe it would’ve been better to just be ignored…

Of course, if she actually started ignoring him again, he’d probably lose it. Still, Kaon couldn’t understand why Alessia had no in-between.

“Are you really going to keep this up?”

“Who started it?”

At last, Alessia folded the map and turned to face him. Her crimson eyes, catching the light, shimmered even more brilliantly as they locked with his.

“You started it, Kaon Ferdinand.”

“…So now you want to see it through to the end?”

“If you want to, I don’t see why not.”

“You…”

Kaon opened his mouth, then closed it again. As he looked into her indifferent gaze, he found himself reflexively searching for the girl she used to be—and suddenly felt ridiculous.

It had been a year since the young lady of Ingelos had first arrived in Ferdinand the summer before. No one understood better than Kaon that the Alessia he once liked was merely a facade. The woman standing before him now was the real Alessia Ingelos—known only to him.

After discovering her secret and watching her act like a completely different person, Kaon had been confused, even shaken. It had taken effort to adapt, yet he couldn’t let go of the belief that both Alessias were the same person. He knew it was foolish, but that hope lingered.

He couldn’t forget the Alessia who used to smile at him so warmly—who sometimes looked at him with eyes he couldn’t quite describe. He had clung to that image out of sheer attachment.

But now, he understood. No matter what he did, she would never go back to being that version of herself. That girl had never existed in the first place.

Which meant it was time he stopped chasing ghosts—and faced the real Alessia.

“…Fine. Let’s see it through.”

Kaon, finally prepared to confront the true Alessia, declared his intent and turned away. Her gaze followed him in silence, lingering on his retreating back.

The sky was cloudless, and summer birds flew in formation overhead. The world, once lush and green, had begun to take on the many colors of fall. Now it was unmistakably autumn.

Kaon nodded as he listened to Joseph’s report on personnel changes within the Order. Fortunately, the number of squires was about the same as usual, and quite a few new applicants had come forward.

He looked away from the documents and out the window, his eyes tracing the shifting landscape of the season. Just then, he caught sight of a lone figure running with great effort and frowned.

“What’s wrong now, sir?”

“What do you mean?”

“You were looking at Lady Alessia again, weren’t you?”

Even from afar, her silver-white hair—tied back in a tight ponytail—stood out clearly. Joseph, too, had instantly guessed who Kaon was watching.

“You used to be so obvious with your feelings. As a fellow man, I must say—I can’t make heads or tails of you, Kaon.”

“When was I ever obvious?”

Kaon snapped back immediately. Joseph flinched a little at his tone but pressed on, determined to make his point.

“You couldn’t even make eye contact with her at first.”

“That was ages ago.”

“So you admit it, then?”

Kaon clamped his mouth shut. Damn this man and his silver tongue. He almost walked right into that one.

Lately, Kaon had been making a conscious effort to see Alessia as she truly was. It wasn’t as difficult as he’d expected—after all, the time he’d spent with the sweet version of her had been relatively short.

And now that he’d let go of old hopes, he found himself bickering with her even more than before. Sometimes they even exchanged crude remarks—though “idiot” or “fool” was about as harsh as it got.

Alessia had vanished from sight, likely rounding a building. Kaon turned from the window.

“I heard you’re planning to return the inspection schedule to normal next year?”

“The other knights are more than capable.”

“Lady Alessia might be disappointed.”

“Hardly.”

Kaon scoffed. Alessia Ingelos wouldn’t be disappointed over something like that. She had no expectations—no feelings—for him. It stung to admit, but it was the truth.

“Everyone’s quite fond of her. Why are you always like this? Did the two of you have a big fight?”

“No, nothing like that.”

“Then… were you rejected after confessing?”

“What? Of course not!”

Kaon shot back even more sharply. That was impossible. He hadn’t confessed—so how could he have been rejected?

…Though, come to think of it, it did feel a bit like that.

The idea alone was infuriating.

“You must not have enough work, since you’re running your mouth like this.”

“Oh, I still have reports to finish. I’ll leave you to it, then.”

Joseph quickly retreated, leaving behind a silence that felt almost unnatural. Kaon walked alone toward the Order’s building. Tomorrow, they’d be welcoming new members.

The real recruitment and exams happened at the beginning of the year. These newcomers had entered through connections, but that didn’t mean they were completely unqualified. He figured he’d better give the others a heads-up.

“On the night of the banquet, you were going to talk to me about this day, weren’t you?”

“My goodness… I didn’t think you’d still remember that. I’m honestly delighted.”

Kaon had just arrived near the training grounds when he overheard a conversation and instinctively halted.

Alessia and someone else were speaking, their tones light and cheerful. Kaon’s brows immediately knit together.

“Oh, then you must’ve seen the young lady in her dress?”

A moment later, Morris chimed in, probably beaming with excitement. Kaon didn’t need to see him to know.

“Y-yes. I did. She was… absolutely stunning. Of everyone there that night, no one shone brighter than she did.”

The soft, hesitant voice of a nervous man stumbled over his words, but still managed to shower Alessia with praise.

Kaon folded his arms, looking thoroughly displeased. They were really enjoying themselves, weren’t they? The banquet had nearly a hundred guests—at least.

Even if you cut that number in half, it was still hundreds of people. There was no way that guy had seen everyone.

Who’s to say someone else didn’t stand out more? Nothing came to Kaon’s mind, but that wasn’t the point. The flattery was excessive.