IATAOTHKG | CHAPTER 24

Chapter 24

Khalif, who had been laughing like a madman, suddenly turned cold.

His sculpted features hardened into something terrifying.

Not a trace of laughter remained anywhere on his face.

It was as if he had been born a man who never learned how to smile.

“Do you have anything more to say?”

Meyna asked quietly.

She waited for Khalif’s answer, calm and composed.

There was no hint of sulking or anger in her face.

None at all.

“……”

Khalif didn’t answer.

No, he couldn’t.

All he could do was stand there, enduring the moment.

Pale and frozen, like the surface of an icy river.

“……”

“……”

They stood in silence, facing each other.

The tension between their eyes stretched thin, like a rubber band about to snap.

The suffocating silence broke only when a carriage from Lennox Castle appeared.

“Get in.”

Khalif said evenly.

But Meyna said nothing.

Khalif’s jaw tightened as he grabbed her arm.

“I said get in.”

“You’re hurting me.”

“I’m not going.”

“I told you to get in.”

“I’m not. I’ll go separately.”

“What—separately?”

Khalif’s face twisted.

The startled coachman glanced at them nervously and pulled the carriage to the side.

Trying to stay calm amid the turmoil, Khalif asked again.

“Separately?”

“Yes.”

“And what are you going to take?”

“The carriage, of course.”

Meyna replied.

And at those words, Khalif’s eyes suddenly turned sharp, as if he’d seen a flash of light.

“You’re going to ride a carriage alone, and what if a monster attacks like last time?”

“……”

“Can you handle that on your own?”

That was her weakness.

Her inability to protect herself.

The guilt of always being a burden to someone else.

He hadn’t wanted to stab her where it hurt most, but when the bird in front of you is about to fly away, you grab whatever you can.

Even its fragile wing.

“……”

But Meyna’s expression didn’t change.

“What are you thinking?”

Khalif asked, his patience fraying.

“What are you thinking!”

His voice rose sharply, startling the people on the street.

Then—

Clatter. Rattle, rattle…

The sound of carriage wheels approached.

A large white carriage stopped in front of them.

“Let go of my arm, please. I have to go.”

“What?”

Meyna nodded toward the carriage.

At that moment, the door opened, and a young man in a neat suit and a well-dressed woman stepped out.

Both faces were familiar to Khalif.

They were secretaries from the Ocean Agency—highly capable ones.

“We’ve come to escort you, Lady Winslet.”

“Please, step inside.”

They bowed politely to Meyna in turn.

Khalif’s grip on her arm loosened.

“I’m sorry for the delay. The conversation took longer than I thought.”

Meyna apologized to them courteously before stepping into the carriage.

The door closed.

With a snap of the reins, the white carriage sped off through the night streets of Gillingham Square.

Khalif stood there, watching as it disappeared into the distance.

***

“I don’t know. As soon as he came in, he threw a bundle of bankbooks on the floor, and he’s been like that ever since.”

Magia whispered in a voice as small as an ant’s, nervous that he might overhear.

“Hm.”

Curden fell silent, deep in thought.

“He came home alone? Without his aide?”

Magia trailed off, worry deepening across her wrinkled face.

Khalif had returned home drunk, expressionless, and gone straight to his room.

Then he’d locked himself in and started destroying everything inside like a man possessed.

No shouting, no curses, no words at all.

Only the raw sounds of breaking furniture echoed through the long corridor.

The servants, terrified, had been biting their nails for a long while.

Now, at least, it seemed to have quieted down.

No sound came from behind the door.

“This isn’t good,” Curden muttered, his face unusually grim.

Adonis, Hoge, and the rest of the household gathered in the dim corridor, exchanging uneasy glances.

Everyone at Lennox Castle was worried about Khalif.

But when it came to Meyna, the feeling was different.

It was more than concern—something tender, unspoken.

They couldn’t explain it, but everyone felt the same way about her.

Adonis spoke first, his face clouded.

“He said he’d be having dinner with her. Maybe they fought badly this time?”

Curden shook his head.

“Even so, he’s never come home without his aide before.”

“That’s true…”

Adonis’s voice faded.

Curden was right.

Those two had their clashes—sometimes fifty sharp arguments a day—but Meyna always kept her composure.

Even when they fought, she made sure Khalif ate.

Even when they fought, she blended his health drinks.

Even when they fought, she rode with him to and from work.

So this situation was… unusual.

Curden’s face was blank as he finally spoke.

***

Meanwhile, Khalif’s room was shrouded in silence.

Broken furniture lay scattered across the floor.

The wall clock had shattered, and the wardrobe door hung loose.

It looked like the aftermath of a performance—violent, yet hollow.

Khalif stared blankly at his torn hands, the result of his rampage.

The silence was unbearable.

No one came to his door.

No one spoke to him.

Maybe they were whispering outside, keeping their voices low so he wouldn’t hear.

Some would be curious, some would frown, wondering what he’d done this time.

A few might even be worried.

But none would come in.

Leaning against the wall, Khalif stared up at the ceiling.

He wanted to sleep.

Then—

Creak…

He heard the door open.

“Lord Lennox, what’s going on?”

Meyna’s voice.

Khalif’s eyes flew open, but all he saw was the wreckage of his room.

No one was there.

“Ha.”

He let out a bitter laugh.

A dream, or maybe a hallucination.

Either way, not real.

Yes, Meyna had been the only one who ever opened his door and stepped into that darkness.

When he’d been humiliated by high officials because of his birth.

When he’d lost a comrade during the hunt.

When he’d locked himself in a cave, breaking things until his fists bled—she had come in every time.

“I know it hurts.”

“……”

“But don’t do this.”

“……”

“You’ll only get hurt.”

She had scolded him then, gently applying medicine to his torn hands.

And now, what about him?

“Get out.”

“Lord Lennox, please calm down—”

“Just get the hell out!”

The memory was so vivid it might as well have happened yesterday.

Khalif clutched his head.

If someone hurt him, he’d always made sure to get back at them.

That was how he survived the slums—and how he’d lasted as a knight.

That vicious temper had carried him this far.

But now, if the one tormenting him was his own past self…

“Who am I supposed to get revenge on?”

The question pressed down on his chest like a weight.

His hands fell limp, and his gaze went empty.

Then he started banging his head against the wall.

Thud.

Thud.

Only the dull sound broke the silence.

Outside, the faint light of dawn began to rise.