Back at the estate, Lavi found herself reading Allen’s mood—and Akkad’s too, since he still looked downcast.

Allen was, of course, scolding her for shaking him off and going to play with Akkad, and Werner had run into them as they got out of the carriage together.

Seriously. Was she not allowed to have a little fun? How long were they going to keep smothering her like this?

Unable to take it anymore, Lavi snapped, “Why is everyone glaring at me like that?”

“Lavi, it’s fine to be close with Akkad, but do you have any idea what time it is? This brother of yours is absolutely against it.”

Akkad’s shoulders seemed to droop even more.

Lavi’s eyes went wide, and she smacked Werner on the back.

“What nonsense are you spouting?”

“Ow. Lavi, don’t tell me you and Akkad already did something—”

Werner trailed off when he noticed Akkad quietly taking Lavi’s hand and checking it. Everyone else in the room followed his gaze, their confused expressions settling on Akkad.

Tilting his head, Akkad spoke as if explaining himself to Lavi. “I thought your hand might hurt.”

“Oh…”

Lavi looked down at the hand she’d used to hit her brother, as if to say he wasn’t wrong.

“Akkad, you—! How dare you touch our Lavi like that!”

Lavi raised an eyebrow and looked straight at Werner. “Why are you yelling at him? Get out.”

“You’re not children anymore! Casually holding hands like that—between an unmarried man and woman—!”

Watching Werner stammer, his face flushed red, Lavi let out a snort. Exactly when it would happen, she didn’t know, but he’d soon be meeting another man behind Rose’s back, so this definitely wasn’t something she needed to hear from him.

Felix’s face from earlier flashed through her mind, souring her mood even more. Rose was way better—and Akkad was way, way prettier than Felix.

“So what if I hold Akkad’s hand? Or kiss him? What business is that of yours?”

“……”

“Miss……”

“W-what? O-our Lavi—!”

Akkad’s lips parted soundlessly, and Allen let out a tired sigh. Werner stood there dumbfounded, pointing at Akkad, his face draining of color.

Only then did Lavi realize she might have gone too far and glanced at Akkad. From his perspective, her brother suspecting something between them could only make things worse.

Looking at her poor friend, who was already suffering from unrequited love, Werner’s reaction only made her angrier.

“Get out.”

Lavi curled one corner of her mouth into a thin smile and shot Werner a look that clearly meant leave now, while I’m still being nice.

When Werner stubbornly stayed put, Lavi turned her gaze to Allen. With a resigned sigh, Allen grabbed Werner by the arm and pulled him out of the room.

“This way, young master.”

“Allen! Aren’t you worried at all?”

“No. Not even a little.”

If anything, I’m worried about Lord Akkad.

Allen shook his head firmly and dragged Werner away.

Feeling utterly drained, Lavi walked over to Akkad, who was sitting stiffly in a chair.

“Akkad.”

“Hm?”

“Don’t take it too hard.”

Akkad gave her a look like he didn’t really understand what she meant.

“Honestly… this is getting too frustrating.”

“What is?”

Lavi was starting to feel awkward with the situation. She’d have to keep seeing Akkad around her brother going forward. How long was she supposed to keep watching her words and worrying about this?

“I told you before that I know who you like. Remember?”

“What?”

Akkad’s face reddened as he looked at her like she was lying.

Lavi grabbed his chin when he tried to turn away and forced him to meet her gaze. “You can express anything you want with me, you know. I’ll accept it because you’re my friend.”

“W-what?”

“Anything. If you want to complain or vent about being upset, go ahead.” Whatever you want. She added it with a faint, lopsided smile. She meant it as a friend—she’d accept whatever she could, for his sake. Wouldn’t it be better if he just opened up to her instead? For both of them. “If you’re worried about my brother misunderstanding us, I’ll explain it to him—”

“It’s fine. I don’t care about that.”

“Really? If you say so…”

Akkad hesitated, then caught Lavi’s wrist—the one still holding his chin.

“Truly? Anything?”

What’s this? Something about the expectation in his silver-gray eyes made Lavi frown. 

With his free hand, Akkad reached up and grasped a handful of her hair.

“Anything I want?”

“Yeah, anything.”

How cute. She couldn’t help wondering what on earth he wanted so badly to react like this. She watched his trembling silver eyes, waiting for his next words.

“You’re saying that knowing what I might want? Are you sure?”

“Huh? Yeah, I’m sure.”

Lavi didn’t know it then, but shortly after the war ended, she would regret those words for a long, long while. If she’d known what lay ahead, she never would have said anything you want.

“Before that, there’s something you should say first. Tell me, about Werner—”

“Lavi.” Akkad interrupted. The redness around his eyes vanished in an instant, returning to their original color. He pressed his lips together, abruptly expressionless. “Why are you bringing up Werner now?”

“Huh?”

Akkad tugged on her wrist. Even with so little force, Lavi was pulled forward. She braced a hand on the table to keep some distance between them.

“It’s fine if you don’t know, but don’t tie me to other people like that.”

His voice was soft but carried a subtle edge as he leaned his forehead against her shoulder.

Lavi frowned, unable to understand where things had gone wrong. His pink hair tickled the back of her neck.

“Hm? Answer me.”

Seeing Akkad act uncharacteristically insistent, Lavi let out a small, strained sound before replying. “Okay.”

“But why is it always Werner’s name coming up when this happens…?”

“Hm?”

“Haa… never mind.”

Akkad lifted his head to look at her.

Seeing Akkad biting his lip, Lavi reached out to stop him, “I told you not to bite your lip like that. Just say what you want to say.”

“Lavi, it’s not the person you’re thinking of.”

Lavi had no choice but to nod. “Fine. Tell me when you’re ready, then.”

“…Okay.”

It must have been a difficult confession, after all. Waiting a little longer was the least she could do.

---

Lavi sat at the table, looking over the letters she had written, then opened the box beside her.

That made yet another long letter she hadn’t been able to send.

Taking out a fresh sheet of paper, Lavi wrote a single, short line.

I hope you return safely.

It was an unbearably stiff sentence, like a formal inquiry about someone’s well-being sent to a near stranger.

She folded the paper, slipped it into an envelope, and wrote the recipient’s name. Then she handed it to Jenny without another word.

“Miss… are you going to leave the sender blank again?”

“Yeah. I’m counting on you this time too.”

Sending a letter with no sender listed to the commander-in-chief on the front lines was no easy task.

Lavi knew exactly how much effort went into getting even one such letter delivered—and yet, all she could do was ask.

When Lavi woke up, she stared blankly at the canopy above her bed, blinking slowly.

“What was that…? Such a strange dream…”

She felt as though she’d dreamed about writing a letter to Akkad, but she couldn’t remember it clearly.

“And why does my head hurt again?”

Sitting up, Lavi pressed her fingers to her temples as a pounding headache washed over her first thing in the morning.

Maybe it was because she hadn’t seen Akkad for the past few days, but she felt completely drained.

Moving sluggishly, Lavi reached out and tugged on the bell pull.

“My body feels kind of chilly, too…”

A moment later, she peeked her head out from under the covers at the sound of Jenny’s voice as she entered the room.

“Miss, you’re awake?”

“Mmm.”

Jenny drew back the curtains and opened the window, then froze mid-sentence and rushed over to the bed.

“Miss, what’s wrong with your face?!”

“Huh? What about my face?”

“Did you have a nightmare or something? Your eyes are so swollen. Oh my goodness—your forehead is burning up, too.”

Lavi picked up the hand mirror she’d left by the bed and looked at her reflection.

“…What is this.”

No wonder her eyes wouldn’t open properly—they were puffed up and swollen. She wasn’t sure whether it was because of the dream or because she’d cried from the pain.

“Is it a cold?”

“Please wait just a moment. I’ll call the physician right away!”

Jenny raised her voice, and Lavi winced as the sound made her head throb even more.

It had been a long time since she’d last been sick, but the fact that she’d fallen ill just because she hadn’t seen Akkad for a few days only made her mood sink further.

The physician came and went, diagnosing her with a bad cold and leaving behind some medicine.

All day long, Lavi drifted in and out of sleep, waking only to take her medicine.

“Miss, you need to eat a little more.”

At Jenny’s words, Lavi frowned. Her whole body ached as if she’d been beaten, and it made her irritable without her meaning to be. This was her condition even after a priest had already come by.

“I don’t want to. It tastes bad.”

“You still need to eat.”

“I’ll just take the medicine.”

She figured it would be better to take the medicine and sleep than to stay awake feeling like this.

“Did Akkad say he’d be coming today?”

Jenny hesitated, then shook her head.

He seemed to be especially busy these days, so it didn’t feel right to insist that he come.

Besides, the last conversation they’d shared had been lingering in her mind.

She couldn’t help feeling that she’d overstepped, pressuring him to confess his feelings for Werner, telling him to be honest with himself.

Saying once more that she really couldn’t eat any more, Lavi asked Jenny to bring her the medicine instead.

---

At the same time, at the imperial palace.

Werner, who had been working late into the night, was startled when Rose came to his office.

“It’s been a while. Has it been a month?”

“I’m sorry. I’ve been so busy lately.”

The time they’d agreed to meet had long since passed.

Rose didn’t seem particularly displeased. Smiling, she said, “I suppose that’s fair. That’s actually why I came. I have something to say.”

Werner stood, gesturing for her to sit so they could talk.

While a servant brought in tea, the usual quiet silence drifted between them.

Maybe it was because they’d been meeting regularly for quite some time now, always on scheduled dates—but the silence wasn’t uncomfortable.

“If it’s because of that… are you talking about the war?”

“Yes. And since I’m busy too, I’ll get straight to the point. I want to postpone the wedding.”

If everything went as planned, the ceremony was six months away.

“The wedding?”

Werner frowned, a sudden, ominous thought forming.

“I’ve decided to join the campaign. I’m sorry I didn’t discuss it with you beforehand.”

Werner couldn’t understand why she’d made that choice.

It wasn’t exactly strange—she was a knight, after all—but still.

“I told you before. Even after we’re married, I intend to keep working.”

“What does that have to do with going to war? Miss—no. Sir Rose—did someone pressure you into enlisting?”

“No. This is my decision. Every knight under my command is deploying. I can’t be the only one who stays behind.”

For a moment, Werner shut his mouth as if he’d forgotten how to speak.

Rose still wore that unhurried smile.

“I’m a knight.”

As if that were explanation enough, she left it there, and Werner found himself answering almost as if he were bewitched.

“I know. And I know it suits you. That role suits you perfectly.”

As though she hadn’t expected that, Rose’s eyes widened.

Werner dipped his head and rubbed at the corner of his eye.

“But I want to stop you. It may be presumptuous to say this, but isn’t this a war whose outcome is already decided?”

He said it as though he couldn’t help it, even if it irritated her.

Rose’s smile sharpened slightly. “Is that you speaking as my fiancé? Or because you’re sitting in that chair?”

“Both,” he said.

“If it’s as my fiancé, then I’ll say thank you for worrying about me. But if it’s not… you’re mistaken. This is a war we have every chance of winning.”

Rose curled her lips, as if thinking he was completely off-base.

Werner let out a short, incredulous laugh. When Rose stated something, it always hit him like that—like it was simply reality.

That bold confidence was part of her charm, too.

“You remember what we said—that I can’t hand over the position of head of the house until we’re married?”

“Of course. Honestly, that’s the real point.”

At first, he’d accepted it because his parents wanted to transfer authority quickly. But now it wasn’t that simple.

Even with power formally handed over, there were limits, and he’d been chafing at them.

All the work he was doing was work meant for after he became marquis—yet he was still only the heir.

Rose knew that.

If she was determined to deploy, the date would be pushed back indefinitely.

“May I ask you something first?”

At the very least, she’d probably thought about this longer than he had.

“What?”

Rose tilted her head, playing innocent.

“Do you want me to wait?”

“Do you want to wait?”

Their tea times always included this kind of playful contest of nerves. But today, it didn’t feel like a joke.

Maybe Rose sensed it too, because she let her teasing smile fade and asked seriously, “Do you want to break off the engagement?”

“I’ve never thought that. Not even after hearing you say all this today.”

It was a little impulsive—but it was also the truth.

“My. I didn’t think you’d say something like that.”

“…Is that so.”

They’d spent no small amount of time face-to-face. It made him wonder what, exactly, she’d thought of him until now.

Werner remembered how Lavi so often scolded him—“Be nice to Rose”—and a small smile tugged at his mouth.

“Good. I feel the same.”

Rose rose and stepped closer. Werner flinched and leaned back without meaning to.

“Then wait for me.”

“I—I will.”

Overwhelmed by Rose’s forcefulness, Werner nodded, still looking a little dazed.

“And stop assuming I’ll lose.”

“…Yes.”

“Oh, and for the record—once you decide, you don’t get to back out. I can’t stand watching someone put their shoes on the wrong feet. If you change your mind, tell me before I deploy.”

As she spoke, Rose gave his shoulder a couple of brisk pats.

“And soothe Lavi, too. That adorable pink—no, I mean, Lavi’s friend is deploying as well, right?”

“It was decided today. You work fast. Yes, that’s right.”

“Good, then. I should go. I’ve got a lot to do.”

Werner watched her walk away and let out a long sigh.

“Haah… what is this situation?”

There hadn’t been the slightest sign the war was about to start again. The fact that things had turned out like this was only the beginning of what was bothering him.

He’d already been worried about how he was going to tell Lavi—and now it felt like Rose had left his thoughts in even more of a mess than before.

---

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Translator comments: The text I made blue is a different color in the original as well. Also, if anyone wants to pick this up – PLEASE DO. I’m going like over a year in between posts and there are still three volumes….

Translator notes:

• In this exchange, Lavi’s line “나한텐 다 해도 돼” is a bit ambiguous in English, since Korean often relies on contextual verbs and “뭐든” (“anything”) floats without an explicit verb here. On its own, this can sound like “You can do anything with me,” which is why Akkad reacts the way he does. In Korean, her meaning is clarified by the following examples (“show that you miss someone,” “complain when you’re upset”), which indicate emotional expression and speaking freely, not physical action. Akkad’s reaction comes from interpreting the phrase as permission to do something, creating a deliberate misunderstanding that drives the tension of the scene.

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