* * *
As soon as Allen opened his eyes, he found himself summoned by the Duke of Enoch and dragged along for a walk.
“I’m a patient, sir.”
“Don’t be so harsh. I know you have enough strength to walk around.”
“With that strength, I will go see the lady, not take a walk with Your Grace.”
“Still as impudent as ever. There’s nothing cute about you.”
Grumbling, Allen trailed a few steps behind the Duke, who led the way ahead.
The Duke had called Allen to have a private word with him before he met Lavi.
“Lavi is safe.”
“Didn’t you say so yesterday?”
“She’s completely fine. Not a single injury remains.”
“… What?”
Allen’s expression as he asked was puzzled, as if he was wondering what the Duke meant. Even if high priests had been involved, it hadn’t been the sort of wound that could be healed overnight.
The Duke glanced around to ensure they were alone before he opened his mouth to speak.
“You’ve been with this estate since before you even took your first steps.”
“That’s true, but… why are you bringing that up now? What happened to the young lady?”
“No need to rush. She’s perfectly healthy and unharmed. Because my son made her so.”
As the words referring to Akkad became more and more incomprehensible, Allen urged, as if he was frustrated, “I’m sorry, but I don’t understand what you mean.”
“I can’t explain everything. It’s a family secret.”
“Are you really telling me that the young lady is fine and uninjured?”
“Yes. Her only wounds were manageable and healed cleanly by a priest, or so the young lord Werner believes.” 1
Allen paused mid-step, tilting his head as pieces of information began connecting in his mind. But as the idea seemed impossible, he shook his head in disbelief.
“If it’s a family secret, then I don’t even want to know. All I need is for the young lady to be safe.”
“You’ve truly become one the Diaz family’s entirely.” 2
“Isn’t that what you sent me to become?”
“It is. And let me say, we owe you greatly for this incident. Without you, it could have been disastrous.”
Allen scowled at the Duke’s sudden warmth. This wasn’t the same man who had trained him so ruthlessly, often making him run endless laps around the training grounds or endure grueling schedules.
“Your Grace, you’re giving me goosebumps right now.”
The Duke snorted, showing his true colors.
“Because you’re too weak. Are you even keeping up with your training these days?”
“… Yes, I am.”
Allen followed behind the Duke, regretting that he hadn’t stayed quiet.
* * *
Lavi woke up, squinting against the brightness that seemed like it would blind her. Why was it so bright in the mansion, where she normally slept soundly without waking up well and never drew the curtains? After struggling to open her eyes and being dazzled, she suddenly realized that the canopy above her was unfamiliar.
‘Ugh… what is it?’
Lavi suddenly shot upwards, only to immediately pause.
The moment she saw the familiar head of pink hair resting on the back of her hand, she recognized here she must be.
“How… what happened?”
Muttering to herself in a small voice, Lavi’s gaze fell to the bloodstained bandages on the floor beside the bed. Her mind cleared instantly as memories of the previous night came rushing back. She quickly examined her injured shoulder from the night before.
It was completely healed—no trace of a wound remained.
‘What about Allen and the Duchess?’
Lavi carefully slid her hand out from under Akkad’s head, doing her best not to wake him.
Her heart was demanding that she dash out of bed right away and demand answers from the first person she could find, but the sunlight shining through the window was too strong. Instinctively squinting against its glare, she glanced at Akkad. He was still asleep. First, she needed to draw the curtains and then confirm that her mother and Allen were safe.
‘I really…I thought I was going to die…’
It felt new to see the sunlight like this.
As Lavi gripped the window sill, she caught sight of Allen having a conversation with Duke Enoch in the courtyard below. Though his body was wrapped in bandages, the fact that he was walking around reassured her that he was okay.
Thank goodness. A rush of relief and joy poured over her.
“Ah…!”
Lavi, who had raised her hand to call out to Allen, hurriedly clamped it instead over her mouth. Unfortunately, judging from the faint rustling noise behind her, it seemed like she had already woken up Akkad.
As the events of the previous night replayed in her mind, Lavi smiled faintly.
She felt sorry that he must have worried so much, and she felt grateful that it was Akkad who saved her life.
It wasn’t something she could express with a simple ‘thank you’.
–
“… Lavi?”
Akkad’s voice trembled as he woke and immediately noticed that the comforting presence in his grasp was gone. His heart dropped.
The sound of her name escaped past his parted lips before he could stop it. He sensed something moving near the window, so he turned his head, and there, he saw Lavi.
The glistening sun poured in from the window, bathing her in dazzling light. Lavi’s blonde hair was shimmering, as if it would melt into the golden rays. She looked so ethereal that he felt his heart race wildly, a fear creeping in that she might disappear if he blinked.
“Thank you, Akkad.”
Lavi turned to him, her smile radiating warmth.
He understood what she was thanking him for, but his lips couldn’t form a reply. His pounding heartbeat seemed to echo in his ears.
“I’m so glad you’re by my side.”
Akkad could only stare, dazed and mesmerized, as Lavi smiled at him.
“By any chance… are you unwell because of me?”
Lavi’s hand was slightly cool–her usual body temperature–when she touched his forehead. The cool feeling seemed to soothe the heat on his face a little, and he let out a shaky exhale.
“Lavi.”
“Uh-huh. Are you okay? Your eyes are puffy again.”
“I’m fine.”
Lavi crossed her arms and looked at Akkad with a dubious expression.
“Your face is flushed, your forehead is hot, and the corners of your eyes are red. Did you cry a lot?”
At her words, his gaze instinctively dropped to her lips.
“Are you hurt somewhere?”
“… No.”
“Then why… ah,” Lavi’s gaze flicked to his lips before darting away awkwardly. “Yesterday… that…I’m sorry.”
She remembered. The memories of when she’d woken up after losing consciousness, felt the terror that she might truly die, and kissed him, half instinctually to save her life. 3 The memories of how she had kissed him, not once but multiple times, gripping his face and pressing her lips against his played in her mind like flickers of lantern light.
He must have been in shock. Hadn’t he gone home in tears even after a single quick kiss before? Kissing hadn’t even necessary for her to recover sufficiently, she realized that now.
Had she become a ruffian who robbed her deer-like friend of his first kiss?
She didn’t think she could forget, it was so vivid. She’d even kissed his cheek, at the corner of his tear-filled eye, but in its own way, it had been a way of expressing impulsive gratitude. There was a feeling of something precious, an act of feeling sorry to make him worry, something that she could hardly explain. 4
She had been so drowsy that she fell asleep without saying anything before drifting into a vaguely dreamy sleep.
She felt like she had to say something, but as soon as she opened my mouth, there was a click as the door opened.
“Miss….”
Allen, who came in quietly to check if the young lady was okay after hearing that she was asleep, came to an abrupt stop.
What greeted him was Akkad kneeling by the bed, his face inches from Lavi’s as he inhaled sharply. The young lady was looking down at Akkad, with her arms crossed over her chest.
“It was a mistake. I’m sorry. You’re not crying, are you?”
Allen debated internally over whether he should leave the bedroom or not. He felt sorry for Akkad, who was blushing with an expression of flustered astonishment.
“It wasn’t really a kiss anyway. We can’t call it your first, right?”
Allen couldn’t believe his ears.
What the hell did he just hear?
He looked at Akkad, whose face was as red as usual, but what filled his silver-gray eyes was not resentment. What filled them was so unmistakably obvious that even Allen couldn’t help but notice, yet his lady was oblivious.
Covering his mouth with one hand, Akkad couldn’t bring himself to raise his head and meet his gaze.
Allen sighed, dragging a hand down his face as he felt the heat rising to his own cheeks.
My lady, what on earth are you doing?
Once again, words he couldn’t bear to say lingered in his mouth. He watched the young lady clap her hands and smile in satisfaction.
“We can leave it at that, right?” 5
The young lady’s expression clearly demanded agreement, and Allen could only sigh again at her silent pressure on Akkad to just nod.
It seemed too cruel for a boy’s first love.
* * *
After Lavi confirmed that Akkad’s mother, Fedora, was safe, she boarded the carriage to return home. When she saw Werner getting climbing in after her, she poked her head out of the carriage door.
“Lavi?”
“Brother, what about Allen?”
“He’ll come separately.”
“I want to ride with him. I haven’t seen him properly yet.”
Werner nodded as if resigned.
A short time later, when Allen climbed into the carriage, Lavi’s expression was not very good.
Allen noticed her face and asked with concern, “Are you feeling unwell, my lady?”
He examined her intently, as if still worried.
Crossing her arms, Lavi spoke sharply, “You can’t do that again.”
“Pardon?”
“How could you not even dodge the sword that’s flying at you just to protect me?” Lavi trembled as she recalled the scene. “Do you know how shocked I was?”
“Miss, I would do it again.” 6
Of course, Lavi knew that too. However, Allen was like family to her. If something like that were going to happen again, she wouldn’t want to take Allen with her as an escort anymore. They had been together ever since she was young, so she couldn’t help but think of him as her family. What could she do?
Looking at Allen, who resolutely shook his head, Lavi answered weakly, “Even so…”
“And besides, I couldn’t even protect you properly.” Allen knelt on one knee on the floor of the carriage, bringing himself to eye level with Lavi. “And young lady, no matter how much danger I may be in, you must never rush into harm’s way like that again.”
“No. If it happens again, I will do the same thing.” 7 Lavi shook her head and threw her arms around Allen’s neck..
Allen made a pained sound, picked Lavi up, and sat back down in his seat, holding her.
“My lady, you only focus on is staying alive.”
“Nothing like that will happen again, so let’s stop talking about it.”
“… I understand.”
The carriage carrying the three of them departed, and Lavi turned her head towards Werner, who was clamoring for her to look at him too.
“Brother, you worried a lot too, didn’t you?”
“Very much.” Werner sighed softly and ruffled Lavi’s hair. “I’m sorry.”
“Huh?”
“I should have taken your words more seriously. Your older brother’s to blame.”
Lavi hadn’t expected her brother to feel that way about the incident. Realizing that she should comfort him as well, she hopped off her seat onto the carriage floor.
Both Allen and Werner reached out for her simultaneously.\
“Lavi…!”
“Miss!”
“Huh? What’s wrong with both of you? It’s just a carriage that’s barely moving.”
She might have had a weak body, but that didn’t mean she was clumsy, she thought.
Just then, the carriage jolted.
Lavi swallowed back tears as the two hands supported her wobbling body. Silently, she had to admit that even though she had a sense of balance, her legs didn’t have the strength to handle it.
With a sheepish expression, Lavi gingerly sat down on Werner’s lap, and he hugged hertightly.
“Ugh… I can’t breathe! If you keep this up, I’ll sit by myself.”
“It’s because your brother is just really shaken up. Let’s just stay like this.”
T/N: Aaaand that’s a wrap on chapter 3 (finally?) A thousand curses upon first-person, third-person narrative POVs. It’s a good reminder I have no idea what I’m doing aside from ‘trying to make a story readable because I want to know what happens’ lol. Updates will be slow through December if there are any. My grandmother passed away so in addition to holiday and end of year work stuff, I’ll be traveling for her funeral. Hope you are all doing well and taking care!
- 베르너 군은 그렇게 알고 있네 – Duke uses 군 (gun) with Werner here, used moderately in formal occasions (such as weddings), for young, unmarried males and to address young boys by an adult. Used in a similar fashion to ssi. ↩︎
- “디아즈 가문 사람이 다 되었구나.” He’s saying like, you’re completely loyal to those guys now, huh. ↩︎
- 정말 죽을 수도 있다는 공포를 느끼고 정신을 잃었다가 깨어난 탓에 살겠다고 반쯤 본능적으로 한 뽀뽀였다. I did my best. ↩︎
- Not sure on this: 뭔가 기특한 마음도 들고, 걱정했을 것이 미안해서 한 행동이랄까. ↩︎
- Not sure: “그렇게 치면 되겠다. 그렇지?” ↩︎
- Not sure on this and the line before it: Lavi says “나한테 온다고 달려드는 검을 피하지도 않으면 어떻게 해?” I think she might be talking future tense – like, ‘if a sword comes for me in the future, dodge it, don’t let use yourself as a shield for me’ kind of deal. Allen responds “아가씨. 그게 제가 할 일입니다.” More literally, “Miss, that’s what I’m going to do.” ↩︎
- “싫어. 다시 그런 일이 생겨도 그럴 거야.” Something closer to ‘I don’t like what you’re saying, even if that happens again, it will still be like that.’ ↩︎
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