IATAOTHKG | CHAPTER 31

CHAPTER 31

As she waited for an answer, the woman looked Meyna up and down.

Meyna gathered herself and replied.

“He’s the superior I used to serve.”

“Are you perhaps… a sodomite?”

“…What?”

This time, it was impossible to stay calm.

“Who are you talking about?”

What did that word even mean again?

It wasn’t just that she’d never said it aloud before—she could hardly recall ever hearing it.

And among all the many fancy titles attached to Caliph, “sodomite” had certainly never been one of them.

“Who else? Caliph, of course.”

The woman answered as if it were the most obvious thing in the world.

“Are you busy?”

“A—A little?”

In truth, she wasn’t busy at all, but her instincts made her answer that way.

“Not too busy, right? Then listen to me for a bit.”

…I should’ve said I was busy!

It was too late for regret.

The woman grabbed Meyna firmly by the arm and started walking briskly across the street.

“I work over there.”

She stopped abruptly and pointed with her chin.

<Red Taste>

The sign glowed a deep red.

It suited her perfectly.

“We sell food and drinks to citizens, and secretly sell hallucinogens to holy knights.”

“…I see.”

“Over the years, hundreds of holy knights from all over the Empire have found their way to our shop, but Caliph? Never once.”

“Yes. He never used hallucinogens.”

“But that day, he burst through the door and demanded the strongest one we had. Said he wanted to sleep without nightmares.”

“…”

“The moment the famous Caliph Lennox appeared, the place went crazy.”

She spoke calmly at first, but then her tone shifted to anger.

“And then, do you know what he said to me after picking me out?”

“…What did he say?”

“I hate redheads. Disgusting redheads.”

“Gasp.”

Meyna quietly gasped in shock.

The woman spat on the ground and continued, her expression twisted in disgust.

“Anyway, he wanted the strongest hallucinogen, so I had to give it to him.”

“…”

“But those are supposed to be sold in secret, so I went with him to Lennox Castle.”

“…”

“Do you remember the blonde woman who was with me that time?”

“Yes. Vaguely.”

“She said she’s a mage. Something about healing and recharging—I didn’t really get it—but apparently she helps with insomnia and trauma.”

The woman snorted.

Meyna couldn’t respond.

Her thoughts tangled messily, impossible to sort out.

“With all those rooms, he went straight to the bedroom, so I’ll admit I expected something. You know how women are—see a pretty guy, and your body just reacts.”

“…Ha ha…”

“But that bastard—”

She cursed just as boldly as Caliph himself.

“Didn’t lay a single finger on this pretty body. Just took the drug, smoked it hard, and then guess what.”

“…”

“He made me and that blonde woman play patty-cake.”

***

Meyna returned to Lennox Castle, helping Bavred prepare dinner.

Her hands were chopping onions, but her mind was elsewhere.

“He burst through the door and demanded the strongest one we had. Said he wanted to sleep without nightmares.”

“She said she’s a mage. Helps with insomnia and trauma.”

“He made me and that blonde woman play patty-cake.”

Strange, senseless stories she’d just heard from that red-haired woman.

“Advisor.”

“Yes, Bavred?”

“What are you doing?”

“Chopping onions.”

“You’re not punishing them, are you?”

“What?”

When she looked down, the cutting board was piled high with what used to be onions—now reduced to fine shreds.

They were about to turn into onion juice.

“Ha ha. I just wanted to help with digestion, so I chopped them a little finer.”

“Maybe you should rest in the parlor.”

“Yes, sir.”

***

Late that night, Caliph returned from the hunt.

He, Kurden, Adonis, and Meyna shared dinner together.

The atmosphere was no different from usual.

Kurden and Adonis still didn’t know Meyna was resigning, and both she and Caliph behaved as though nothing had happened.

After tea, Kurden and Adonis returned to their rooms.

“Then I’ll get going now. Rest well, Sir Lennox.”

“Wait.”

As Meyna rose calmly from her seat, Caliph stopped her.

“How was it yesterday?”

The first meeting with the new Class-X holy knight she was supposed to serve.

While Meyna sat in that wretched meeting, Caliph had been inside the dungeon.

For two whole days of hunting, he’d thought of her endlessly.

“He was quite impressive.”

Meyna’s answer was odd.

Too vague—so vague it left too much room for the imagination.

“What kind of person?”

Caliph asked, and Meyna’s lips twitched.

He’s a hidden prince and a Class-X holy knight, so I expected him to be skilled, but he’s also perfectly mannered. I’m glad things ended between us, because now I’ll serve my new superior happily, and you can try living without me, you fool!

“I know the right answer, but I don’t think I can say it—it doesn’t suit me.”

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“Actually, I haven’t recruited the new holy knight yet.”

If Banze found out she’d confessed the truth, he’d probably scold her for being a fool.

But Meyna decided to stick to her way.

She knew who she was.

A fool whose lies were always transparent.
Someone who couldn’t bear to act dishonestly—rigid, stubborn, hopelessly upright.

So instead of mixing lies for revenge, she chose to speak the truth.

“But I’ll try.”

“…”

“Once I succeed in recruiting a holy knight, I’ll serve as his advisor. I’ll give it my all.”

She didn’t mean to, but her words unsettled Caliph even more.

He pressed his lips together, unable to speak.

It felt as though a massive beast had seized his chest in its claws and was shaking him violently.

It hurt.
And it made him dizzy.

“I only spoke with him once—just for a moment—but I could tell he was a good person.”

“A man?”

Caliph couldn’t stop himself from asking something pathetic.

And he didn’t even have the composure to pretend otherwise.

“Yes. A man, but he looked almost like a woman.”

Meaning—he was handsome.

“If he weren’t so tall, I might’ve mistaken him for one.”

Meaning—he was handsome *and* tall.

“He treated me so carefully that it almost made me nervous.”

Meaning—he was handsome, tall, and kind.

“Are you going to keep going?”

“Huh?”

Meyna’s puzzled face carried no hint of teasing or provocation.

That only made it worse.

“Sir Caliph.”

She spoke softly.

“At first, I didn’t really understand what Mr. Banze meant. Why he gave me two weeks. What he meant by ‘shake as much as you must.’ Oh.”

“…”

“He said it’s only natural that I can’t end seven years all at once. So I should let myself be shaken by you as much as needed.”

As she recalled her teacher’s words, Meyna’s gaze drifted briefly into the air.

“I didn’t understand it completely back then.”

“…”

“But now I think I do.”

Her eyes returned to Caliph’s face.

“When I first told you we should stop, deep down I already knew I couldn’t really do it.”

“…”

“But now… somehow…”

She trailed off.

For Caliph, that silence felt like hell.

He could have grown old and died waiting for her next words.

“I think I can really end it now.”

To say something like that with such an innocent face—

She might be the cruelest person alive.

When she finished, Meyna stood up.

Lightly, as if she truly had nothing left to say.

“Where are you going?”

Caliph asked the pointless question.

“To Gillingham Square.”

“What? At this hour?”

“I have a drink appointment with Lady Beririch.”

“Are you crazy?”

“Do I look it?”

No.

She looked perfectly sane.

The one going crazy was him.

He was just doing his best to stay composed.