Chapter 7

Demius nodded slowly.

“That child cannot speak.”

Shilen.

That name, in an old tongue long forgotten by most, meant “silence.”

The boy could neither speak nor write, and so there was no way to learn anything about Asellion from him.

A bitter curve formed on Demius’s lips.

“The rest of the family avoided him, but I chose to take him in. I felt that if my brother ever returned, I might finally understand who that child really was.”

A fragment of his brother.

Even the faintest trace of resemblance was something he would cling to without hesitation.

Though Shilen’s presence was faint to the point of being forgettable, for some reason Natalianne had not only avoided him but had gone so far as to hate him. Yet in the end, Demius had taken him in.

However.

“My brother never came back.”

Demius’s face fell into an emotionless calm.

After a long silence, his lips parted again.

“Even so, I will find him.”

The rest of the household might have abandoned his brother, but he had not.

At least not him.

‘Stop wasting your time, Demius.’

‘Asellion is dead.’

The voice of his mother still echoed clearly in his mind, making his eyes tighten in pain.

That was the reason he had left home.

A mother who had given up on his brother, and a younger sibling who had left early in disgust at that same mother.

Among them, he was the only one who could continue searching for his brother.

So he had left.

Every time there was a rumor about someone who resembled Asellion, he went himself to confirm it.

He crossed rivers and plains, and climbed many mountains that were known for being treacherous.

And while attempting to cross the tallest and most dangerous of them, he had fallen from a cliff in an accident.

Demius slowly opened his eyes again. Within his vision, one figure stood clearly.

Eyes the color of new spring leaves. Skin so pale and dewy it almost seemed transparent, and faintly flushed cheeks.

Soft pink lips that looked warm and gentle.

Thump.

Was she the same as that first time they met?

…Ah.

He suddenly realized something.

The person who had given him a new beginning when he had already been walking toward the end, the one brighter than the sun itself, was now here with him.

Inside his own room.

“…You must be tired.”

Feeling a sudden, burning thirst, Demius quickly looked away.

“I will sleep on the sofa. Please rest comfortably on the bed.”

He turned away, face flushed, and started toward the window couch.

No, that would not do.

Realizing something, Demius quickly spoke again.

“I will sleep in another room instead. I can return before the servants wake up in the morning.”

“I’m fine,” Melissa answered lightly.

“We’ve shared a room before, haven’t we?”

That was true, but…

Demius stopped himself before saying anything further, caught in deep conflict.

To call that “sharing a room” was misleading, to say the least.

When he had first fallen from the cliff, Melissa had stayed beside him night and day, tending to him while he was half-dead.

What she meant as “sleeping together” had simply been the moments when she had dozed off beside him as he clung to life.

‘It stings a little.’

A dry bitterness spread across his tongue.

The fact that she said it so casually meant she saw nothing romantic between them at all.

‘Though I can’t blame her.’

Demius hid a wry smile in the shadows.

There had even been a moment, when he had just regained consciousness, that he had almost attacked her out of fear.

Even if he had been on guard then, it was still something unforgivable.

He still carried guilt for that incident, but now…

“…I will,” he began quietly after a long inner struggle.

“stay on the sofa, if that’s all right.”

The uncertain tone was the smallest act of self-control he could manage.

His conscience insisted that he should leave the room altogether, but another voice whispered sweetly in his ear.

‘What if someone finds Melissa alone in this room?’

That voice tempted him further.

‘Wouldn’t people think she was abandoned by her husband?’

…Damn it.

Demius gave in to his weakness.

But not completely.

“I will not go anywhere near the bed.”

He muttered as if making a vow to himself.

The spot he chose was the farthest corner of the room, as distant from the bed as possible.

Yet perhaps that choice was not made from conscience at all.

Perhaps it was simply a desperate attempt to hide the darker thoughts he did not want her to see.

If Melissa ever realized what was in his heart, she would surely recoil and run.

And if she ran before the year was up…

‘No.’

Just imagining that made it hard to breathe. His chest tightened painfully.

That would be unbearable.

Utterly unbearable.

“I really don’t mind,” Melissa said cheerfully, completely unaware of his turmoil.

Her bright smile filled him with guilt.

‘I’m sorry.’

Demius swallowed the apology and slowly lay down on the sofa.

He wished the moonlight spilling through the window would dim and hide her from view, but instead it only illuminated her more clearly as she walked to the bed.

His bride, with whom he had never even held a proper wedding, lay down on his bed, pulled up his blanket, and smiled at him.

“Good night.”

“…You too.”

His lips curved faintly in a helpless smile.

There would never be a real wedding ceremony between them.

A trace of sorrow flickered at the edge of his eyes.

Once, he had dreamed of the grandest wedding imaginable.

An exquisite gown crafted by the finest artisans, priceless jewels that even nobles would envy. He had been prepared to offer anything.

‘That was my own selfish dream.’

He prayed silently that when she left this wretched place after a year, her path would be filled with peace.

Turning slightly on the sofa, Demius let out a quiet sigh.

He knew he would not sleep tonight.

* * *

“Good morning.”

When I opened my eyes the next day, Demius was already dressed neatly in his uniform.

Yet despite his tidy appearance, there were dark circles beneath his eyes.

Puzzled, I asked,

“Did you sleep at—”

“I have urgent matters to attend to, so I’ll be leaving first. I’ve told the servants to bring breakfast to your room, so please make sure to eat.”

“Ah, wait…”

Before I could finish, Demius had already left the room.

He really must be busy.

Well, that made sense. Yesterday there had been monsters, and it was his first day back home in a long time. There must be plenty of work to handle.

‘Even so, he still thought about my breakfast. How kind of him.’

I placed a hand over my chest and silently thanked him.

Then, after neatly arranging the bed where I had slept, I opened the wardrobe.

“…Huh?”

My eyes widened as I looked inside.

My clothes were gone.

‘Where did they go?’

Demius had told me yesterday that my things were kept in this wardrobe.

So where was the dress I had worn?

“That’s strange…”

There was no reason for him to lie about it.

As I tilted my head in confusion, there came a knock at the door, followed by a small voice.

“I’ve brought breakfast.”

“Ah, yes!”

I hurried to open the door.

A young servant wearing a white apron stood there, hands gripping the handle of a food trolley. He looked startled to see me.

The boy stared at me with wide eyes, then suddenly bowed deeply, his voice trembling.

“Th-thank you for opening the door, ma’am. But from now on, please don’t trouble yourself to open it.”

“But you’re carrying something heavy, aren’t you?”

“?!”

A large question mark practically floated above his head as he lifted his face in shock.

Then his expression crumpled, as if he might burst into tears at any moment.

Seeing that, I asked gently,

“Are you all right?”

“Y-yes, of course! I’m sorry!”

The servant hurriedly pushed the trolley into the room.

While he arranged the plates, I tried to find a handkerchief but realized it had been in the pocket of my old dress.

So I asked him,

“Excuse me, do you happen to know where my clothes went? It was a yellow dress with frills…”

“Oh, that? It was thrown away.”