Akkad was waiting when he heard Lavi was coming to see him.

He’d made up his mind that the next time they met, he would confess how he felt—but now that the moment was actually here, he didn’t know what he was supposed to do. Of course, he’d already decided he wouldn’t confess anymore. Not when he was about to depart. He didn’t want to leave her with words like that as he went off to fight.

What worried him was whether he could endure it.

“Is she going to be really mad?”

If she was coming, that meant she’d heard the news.

Lavi didn’t usually go out alone in the first place, and she was normally the one telling him to come visit when he had time.

Today might be the last time he saw her before he left. What if she came all this way just to turn around and leave in anger?

Even though he hadn’t been able to go to her himself, the moment he heard Lavi was coming, every possible worry rushed in. He worried that if he met her eyes, he wouldn’t want to leave. He worried about Lavi’s health. And he worried that, while he was away at war, someone might try to line up a political marriage for her. He knew that wouldn’t happen as long as Werner hyung was around, but the anxiety still wouldn’t let go.

It didn’t help that wherever she went, people’s attention always gathered.

If there was any comfort at all, maybe it was the fact that Prince Felix was going with him.

Even so, Akkad couldn’t stand the way the prince looked at Lavi.

If his memory wasn’t wrong, Felix was famous for being rude to nobles regardless of gender. It was nothing more than a common greeting—a simple kiss to the back of her hand—so was it really worth getting this worked up over? He thought it was pathetic, but he couldn’t help it. The way someone stared at Lavi. The way their sleeves or shoulders brushed her by accident. Even the coachman taking her hand to help her down.

He knew it was unavoidable, but he still hated how often she ended up leaning into Sir Allen’s arms, too.

“…If Lavi knew, she’d probably be disgusted.”

At the sound outside the window, Akkad got up and went to the window.

He could see a carriage pulling in, stamped with the crest of House Diaz.

Sir Allen climbed down, and then a slender hand appeared.

The instant he saw her hop down, his own hand twitched.

What if she sprained her ankle doing that?

As if he’d never been worrying about how he’d face her at all, Akkad left the room at once.

Lavi’s eyes widened when she saw Akkad come out to greet her. His hair was a complete mess, as if he’d run over.

She only froze for a moment before the emotion that had been building surged up, and she stared hard at him.

“Akkad, you…!”

“I’m sorry.”

“I haven’t even said anything yet?”

Lavi grabbed Akkad by the wrist and led him toward the back garden. She walked ahead of him and sped up, and a cool, refreshing energy flowed in through their clasped hands.

Was she hurrying because she was worried about her body? When he was the one going to the battlefield?

She had told herself nothing would happen to Akkad, but once she saw his face, she couldn’t pretend she believed that anymore.

Lavi whirled around and let go of his hand.

“Lavi. What happened here?”

Akkad frowned and gently brushed his fingers over her forehead. When he saw the bruising had faded to a faint shadow, he let out a sigh. If he kept seeing her like this…

Akkad tried to shake off the thoughts flooding in and checked to see if there were any other injuries.

Then he noticed it—about a handful of her hair had been cut unnaturally short.

“Lavi. What is this…?”

It looked like it had been cut clean off.

What on earth had happened?

Akkad reached out and touched the section where it had been cut.

“Is that really what you’re worried about right now?” Lavi stepped in close, raised her hands, and planted them firmly on her hips.

Seeing the worry in those blue eyes as she looked at him, Akkad gave her a faint smile.

“You’re smiling?”

“Because you’re worried about me?”

“That’s not even something you should be asking.”

Come to think of it, Lavi always worried about him. A lot of it still didn’t make sense to him. Sometimes it made him wonder if she found him that unreliable, and yet at the same time, her feelings for him made him happy.

Lavi rummaged inside her clothes and pulled out the charm she’d made, placing it on Akkad’s open palm.

“This is…”

Akkad blinked slowly.

Now he understood why part of her hair had been cut short. Compared to how much hair she must have used for the charm, she’d cut far more than necessary, and the thought made a laugh slip out.

“Don’t laugh. And especially once you’ve departed—never, ever laugh like that.”

“But it’s making me laugh.”

Lavi lifted an eyebrow.

“You’re not laughing because of this, right?”

“Mmh. No.”

No matter how you looked at it, though, it really did seem like he was laughing at the decoration she’d made.

Lavi told herself what mattered was sincerity—truly wishing him good fortune in battle—so why should appearance matter? But then she saw him smile, dimples showing, and her thoughts shifted all over again.

…Yeah. That’s on me. I should’ve made something that suits you—someone this pretty.

Lavi was watching Akkad admire the charm when she suddenly felt someone’s gaze and looked up.

“Father-in-law…?”

On the third-floor terrace, a large figure—clearly spying on them—was peering down. Lavi couldn’t hide her fluster.

What is he doing up there?

The moment he seemed to realize he’d been caught, an arm that looked like Akkad’s mother’s shot out.

With a sharp shove, she pushed Akkad’s father out of the way, then leaned her head out with a little peek and waved her hand.

“Oh my, don’t mind us. Just keep doing whatever you were doing.”

Right after, the sound of her scolding him drifted down.

They hadn’t even done anything, but now that she’d said that, it made Lavi feel like they were supposed to do something. She hesitated, trying to figure out what they were supposed to do, then realized they were in the middle of giving him a departure charm. She rubbed her chin, thinking hard. 

Besides giving someone a charm before they departed, was there anything else people were meant to do?

“Oh! A kiss!”

The moment she said it, a loud crash came from the third floor.

Akkad’s face flushed at the word that had come out of nowhere. He glanced up and let out a long sigh.

His father and mother were far too interested in what was going on between him and Lavi. Not long ago, they’d been nagging him—what was he doing, when he still couldn’t even win Lavi’s heart?—but lately, their tune had completely changed. Now they were telling him not to confess since he was going to war.

And yet they still spied on them like that. The irony was unbelievable.

“Anyway, Akkad, let’s go inside first.”

Lavi could feel what she’d brought tucked against her body getting heavier, and she urged him to go in so they could talk. She should’ve just gone straight to his room from the beginning. Coming out to the garden had only made things harder.

“Okay.”

Akkad tucked the charm Lavi had given him into his clothes and started walking.

Trailing behind her at an unhurried pace, he realized her steps were a little strange. Remembering the way she’d climbed down from the carriage, he called out and stopped her.

“Lavi? Does your ankle hurt?”

“No. I’m fine.”

“Then why are you walking like that?”

Lavi’s eyes rolled as she glanced around, checking their surroundings. Then she motioned for Akkad to bend down.

The whispered voice at his ear tickled, and he pressed his lips together.

“This is too heavy. Will you carry it for me?”

“Huh?”

What was she even carrying?

When Akkad lifted his head again, Lavi carefully pulled something out from inside her clothes.

“Wine?”

“Shh. Quiet. I snuck it in.”

“To drink?”

“Of course. Why else would I drag it all this way?”

The firm set of her mouth and the look in her eyes made it clear: don’t say another word.

She was already seventeen. She knew that other young ladies and young lords her age drank a glass or two of wine even at family meals. Of course, she wasn’t planning to stop at one or two. For her health, she ought to abstain for life—but Akkad was here today, and he was leaving for a long time. Shouldn’t she at least do this much?

Lavi started to hand the bottle to Akkad, then stopped.

There was nowhere in his clothes that looked like it could hide it.

As if he’d realized the same thing, Akkad suddenly swept her up into his arms.

Lavi smiled, satisfied as the feeling that she was about to sink to the ground finally disappeared.

Resting her head against Akkad’s shoulder, she let her scattered thoughts continue on.

The duke and duchess watched the two of them with twitching cheeks.

They couldn’t hear what Akkad and Lavi were whispering about, but they certainly looked close.

“My goodness. I can’t tell whether Akkad is starting to resemble Lavi, or Lavi is starting to resemble Akkad.”

“Not caring about other people’s gazes—that’s something they both already had in common, wasn’t it?”

“That’s true.”

“But still… is it really all right to let them go off to the room together?”

The duke watched their retreating figures with a worried look.

They were already seventeen, after all.

“Oh, honestly. If you were going to worry about that, we wouldn’t have been spying on them like this in the first place. He must take after you—he hasn’t even managed to confess yet. How can he be so lacking in initiative?”

“……”

“I’ll send one of the maids over later, so don’t worry. And besides, Sir Allen will be standing guard right in front of the room anyway.”

With that, Fedora turned sharply and headed into the bedchamber.

The duke followed after his wife, his expression gloomy.

---

Lavi was waiting in the tea room attached to Akkad’s bedroom while he went to get fruit.

You needed something to snack on with alcohol, didn’t you?

It was her first time drinking with this body, so she was a little worried—but still. If she felt bad after a bit, she could just stop. With a human antidote sitting right beside her, it would probably be fine.

If you drink while holding hands, does it go down more easily?

If they started out holding hands while drinking, would she even get drunk? The thought made her briefly curious, but not enough to actually test it, so she dropped the idea.

With a soft clink, Akkad came back in, carrying a plate.

Lavi’s eyes lit up as she checked what fruit he’d brought. How many years had it been since she’d last had a drink?

“Lavi… are you really going to drink?”

“Don’t want to? Then don’t. I’ll drink alone.”

Akkad frowned slightly.

Was it really all right to let her drink? She’d been so weighed down by his departure earlier, but that mood was already long gone. Even so, his hand was already doing as she’d asked, filling the wineglass. What exactly was this situation?

“Hold my hand.”

“What if you still get drunk even holding hands? What if something—”

Her heart rate spiking dangerously. What if she went into shock? All sorts of worst-case scenarios flashed through Akkad’s mind. This really didn’t seem like a good idea.

“Let’s just not drink, Lavi.”

He heard the sound of wine being swallowed.

Akkad hurriedly grabbed her hand.

Lavi boldly drained the glass in one go and set it down. Then her face scrunched up all at once.

“What is this? Why does it taste so bad? He said it was the best one.”

Akkad asked in a slightly lowered voice.

“Who did?”

“Huh? Someone did. The escort guy who slept here”

She’d expected Caleb to bring something mildly sweet and easy to drink—something that barely tasted like alcohol at all. But this was bitter to an absurd degree, with a harsh scent that hit all at once. Thinking of Caleb, who had recommended this wine to her, Lavi smiled crookedly.

“How dare he scam me.”

Akkad quietly moved the wine bottle out of reach.

“Then let’s not drink it.”

Feeling her excitement deflate, Lavi shifted over to the sofa behind her. She hadn’t expected the wine to be like this. If it had been more like a drink than alcohol, she’d thought Akkad might eventually drink with her too, just for the mood—but that plan had failed completely. Then again, maybe now really wasn’t the time.

Still, she didn’t want to sit there looking gloomy, like something bad was about to happen.

Lavi patted the space next to her on the sofa and called to Akkad.

“Come closer.”

When Akkad obediently sat beside her, Lavi took his hand and laced their fingers together.

Then she closed the distance as much as she wanted, kneeling on the sofa and lifting herself up.

“You, listen. Be really careful. Don’t smile carelessly, don’t act overly kind, and don’t follow someone just because they say they want to talk for a bit.”

“Lavi, that’s what I want to say to you.”

“I’ll take care of myself, so don’t worry about it. And also, um…”

She had so much she wanted to say, but when she tried to put it into words, not much came out.

Staring at Akkad’s pale skin, Lavi reached out and tugged his cheek.

“Come back without a single scar on your face. Got it?”

“Mmh.”

Lavi blinked as she looked at Akkad’s cheek, now marked with a red spot where she’d pulled it. Even just poking him like that left a mark. It would fade right away, of course. Still—did that mean he bruised easily? Probably unrelated.

“Answer my letters as soon as you get them.”

“Okay.”

“And what else…”

Akkad looked up at her, dimples showing. No matter the reason, he couldn’t stop the corners of his mouth from lifting.

Her cool hand easing the heat in his face.

Those clear blue eyes filled entirely with him.

The lips voicing all that concern for him.

It was hard to keep swallowing the words that wanted to spill out.

With his head full of thoughts, he’d completely forgotten he was supposed to be channeling energy into her.

“Lavi. Laviette.”

Focused on retracing her thoughts, Lavi didn’t hear Akkad calling her.

Then, as if something suddenly clicked, she let go of his hand and clapped.

“That’s what was missing.”

The thought she’d had in the garden came back to her. Lavi gently lifted Akkad’s chin, and sunlight-colored blond hair spilled down over his face.

With a soft sound, their lips touched briefly.

“Ng—Lavi. That was so sudden…”

Lavi looked at him as if she didn’t see what the problem was.

“Aren’t you supposed to kiss someone when you’re wishing them good fortune?”

“…?”

Usually you did that on the forehead—and besides, you didn’t kiss someone on the lips if you weren’t lovers.

Akkad couldn’t find any words to respond, his lips parting uselessly.

Watching him, Lavi tilted her head, then lazily curved her lips upward.

“Oh. Is it because this wasn’t a kiss, just a peck?”

“Lavi? Don’t tell me you’re drunk—mph.”

---

“Ugh…”

Lavi let out a groan and clutched her head.

Why did her head hurt this much?

On top of that, her stomach burned and she was terribly thirsty—it felt exactly like a hangover…
No, it was a hangover.

Unbelievable. All this from just that small amount…

Realizing that this room was neither her own nor Akkad’s, Lavi struggled to sit up.

“A guest room…? Ow, my head.”

She stared blankly ahead, trying to think back on what had happened the night before, then grabbed at her hair in frustration. She couldn’t remember how she’d gotten here at all.

“What, did I black out?”

She remembered giving Akkad all sorts of warnings, and then—nothing.

Absolutely nothing. Had she just collapsed and fallen asleep like that?

Pressing hard at the bridge of her nose, Lavi tugged on the bell cord.

When the door opened after a knock and Allen came in instead of a maid, Lavi tilted her head.

“Allen. Good morning?”

“It’s three in the afternoon.”

“Really? Then good afternoon.”

For some reason, the sharp edge in Allen’s tone made Lavi realize she’d been found out. Otherwise, there’d be no reason for him to smile so thinly, his lips twitching in a way that sent a chill down her spine.

“I only had one glass. Just one!”

“That’s not the problem… Don’t tell me you really don’t remember anything.”

“I was just trying to piece together how much I remember.”

Lavi looked at the glass of water with bright eyes, glancing back and forth at Allen.

With a complicated expression, Allen filled the glass and handed it to her.

“D—n Caleb.”

“Pardon?”

“Nothing.”

As he watched the young lady drain glass after glass of water, Allen found himself recalling what had happened the night before.

It had been late, and at the duchess’s suggestion that it was time to take Lavi back, Allen had headed for the tea room.

The moment he opened the door, what he saw was—

The young lady, just on the verge of pouncing on Lord Akkad.

She had Akkad pinned on the sofa, arms wrapped around him, saying something to him, and his reaction was anything but normal.

The veins stood out over his tightly clenched fists, and his breathing was ragged.

Every time the young lady moved, he flinched, and Allen hurriedly made his presence known.

Just how desperate must Lord Akkad have been to ask Allen to pull her off him?

Allen didn’t know what had happened between them, but he sincerely hoped he’d arrived before anything truly dangerous had occurred.

Still… if there was one thing—no, several things—that troubled him deeply—

It was Lord Akkad’s lower lip, swollen to the point of looking split.

“But did something happen last night?”

Lavi set down her water glass and asked Allen, who had drifted off into thought.

“Who knows. I’m curious myself. Or rather—maybe I’d rather not know.”

“Hm. I gave Akkad the sword charm, went to his room, had exactly one glass of wine, and nagged him about being careful. After that, I don’t remember anything at all. I’ll have to do the good-luck kiss later.”

“Milady.”

“Hm?”

“You do know that kind of kiss is usually done on the forehead or the back of the hand, correct?”

“I didn’t know that.”

“…Then were you planning to give him a real kiss?”

Lavi narrowed her eyes slightly as she listened to Allen.

“Oh, come on. I have some sense. How could I kiss him? I was just going to give him a peck. Still, it’s a good thing I found out beforehand.” Feeling relieved, Lavi decided she’d do it on his forehead instead. “Why are you looking at me like I’m some kind of villain? Knowing now is good enough. Anyway, this is the ducal residence, right?”

“Yes. The duchess personally contacted your mother, so you needn’t worry.”

Lavi stretched, declaring her mother the best.

She’d only had a single glass of wine, yet her whole body ached. At times like this, what she needed most was—

“Akkad?”

“He should be in his room.”

Lavi tugged on the bell cord once more.

She planned to wash up quickly and go see Akkad.

As she turned to follow the maid toward the bath, she noticed Allen hesitating, his lips parting as if he had something to say, and shot him a questioning look.

“…It’s nothing. This is something the two of you will have to sort out yourselves.”

“What are you talking about?”

“Never mind.”

---

Lavi changed into the indoor clothes the maid had prepared and went to Akkad’s room.

She knocked lightly and called out to him, but there was no response.

Just wanting to check if he was sleeping, she grabbed the door handle—but Allen suddenly grabbed her waist and pulled her back.

“That is rude.”

“Oh come on. Between us?”

“Yes. It is rude.”

“Allen. You just don’t understand how desperate I am for Akkad right now.” Lavi wiggled her brows, shooting Allen a look that said, ‘Then check for me instead.’

“I fail to see the correlation between your hangover and Lord Akkad. Let us visit him later.”

Allen’s reaction was unusual. Normally, he would have agreed to check for her or knocked on the door himself. Wasn’t he blocking her a little too firmly? Anyone watching would think she was planning to do something untoward to Akkad.

“Haa… Allen. You’re not acting like yourself.”

“I am behaving exactly as I always do.”

“Liar. Is this because of something I did yesterday?”

I didn’t do anything to Akkad… did I?

Given how terrible she felt, it seemed entirely possible that her stomach had rejected its contents.

Hadn’t Akkad healed her? Come to think of it, other than holding hands briefly at the start, maybe not. Then if something went awry, the fault lay with Akkad, not her.

With that shameless thought in mind, Lavi reached for the doorknob again, but couldn’t reach it.

“If you aren’t going to tell me, then don’t block me.”

“I do not know the exact details either.”

“Just tell me what you saw.”

“The young lady, on Akkad, was just about to poun—”

Before Allen could finish his sentence, the door burst open.

Akkad stood there, disheveled, his shirt still undone in places. Several buttons remained open.

Lavi, admiring for a moment and thinking ‘my, how nice,’ quickly snapped to her senses and called out to him.

“Akkad?”

She smiled brightly and reached out toward him. However, since she was still dangling in Allen’s grasp, she couldn’t reach him. She shot Akkad an urgent look, silently telling him to take her hand, but he wouldn’t meet her eyes.

“I feel like I’m going to die.”

“Come in.”

Lavi glanced back at Allen, grinning as if to say ‘let me go this instant.’

Inside the room, Lavi watched intently as Akkad finished fastening his buttons, then held out her hand.

“Your hand.”

Akkad hesitated before grasping Lavi’s hand.

‘Wait, what’s wrong with his lip?’

Lavi tilted her head, staring at Akkad’s split lip.

Realizing her gaze was fixed on his mouth, Akkad’s face turned bright red in an instant.

Seeing the color spread all the way down his neck, it was obvious something had happened.

‘Did I…hit him…?’

Maybe because I was annoyed he didn’t tell me he was leaving beforehand?

It was a plausible enough theory that she couldn’t bear to look at Akkad and averted her eyes.

“Um… Akkad. About yesterday, did I…”

Akkad hurriedly cut her off.

“You don’t remember, do you?”

“Yeah. That’s true, but…”

“Nothing… happened.”

Lavi let out a sigh of relief.

Then, as if nothing had ever been wrong, she confidently laced her fingers through his.

Seeing Lavi’s urging gaze, Akkad let his energy flow into her.

As her head cleared, Lavi pressed the back of his hand to her cheek.

“I feel alive again. Haa… But you won’t be here soon. What am I going to do?”

Lavi pouted gloomily.

As expected, the only way to survive without Akkad was the Temple.

Pondering when she should pay them a visit, she reached out and brushed her finger over Akkad’s lip.

It was the first time she had seen Akkad with a split lip, and she wondered what on earth had caused it. When she ran her finger down the side without the scab, it was soft. It didn’t seem like it had cracked from dryness.

“What happened here?”

“……Huh?”

Akkad wore a look of grievance, his eyes turning misty.

Lavi blinked rapidly.

Aside from his slightly boyish features, Akkad was a grown man; seeing his eyes glisten with tears created a dangerously intense atmosphere. Seeing him disheveled with reddened eyes, worry suddenly seized her.

“Akkad. Don’t cry. Absolutely not. You are never allowed to cry, unless it’s in front of me. Got it?”

At the request she must have repeated countless times, Akkad bit his lower lip hard and nodded with difficulty.

He looked so pitiful that Lavi raised an eyebrow.

Are you sure nothing happened yesterday?

Did I yell at him or something?

Why is he making a face like a wounded puppy?

Feeling uneasy, Lavi used her finger to pry his lip free from his teeth.

“Don’t bite it.”

“……Okay.”

“When do you leave?”

“In two days.”

It wasn’t a precise question, but she got the answer she wanted.

“Can I see you off?”

“No, the situation isn’t great. Just the knights are leaving early at dawn.”

It meant they were departing without a send-off from the people of the Empire.

Lavi lifted one corner of her mouth bitterly.

Wasn’t that all the more reason for people to cheer them on in times like this?

After all, who were they going out there to protect?

Lavi stood up and stepped closer to Akkad.

She wrapped her arms around his waist and buried herself in his embrace.

She wanted to be the one to hold him properly, but the difference in their builds made that impossible.

She would be staying a little longer before heading home, so she wondered if she was doing this too early.

But she just wanted to do it now.

“Come back safely.”

Akkad flinched, stiffening for a moment, before hugging her back—one hand wrapping around her shoulder, the other around her waist.

This had never happened before, so Lavi’s eyes widened, but she let it slide given the circumstances.

As Akkad held her tight, she felt like she couldn’t breathe.

“Lavi.”

“Mm.”

“Laviette.”

“Go on. Why are you calling my name?”

Akkad didn’t answer, simply lowering his head to bury his face in her shoulder.

The long breath he drew in tickled her neck.

It’s not like I can tell him not to breathe.

Deciding it didn’t matter, Lavi rubbed her face lightly against his chest.

His immediate flinch sparked a desire in her to tease him, but the weight in his earlier voice stopped her.

“Akkad.”

“……Hm.”

“I’m not going to worry.”

“Mm. You don’t have to.”

When she pushed him back gently, Akkad yielded without resistance.

His head was still bowed, so she couldn’t see his face.

Lavi cupped Akkad’s cheeks and stood on her tiptoes.

Her lips touched the crown of his pink hair with a chu, then pulled away.

Akkad placed his hands over hers, which were still holding his face.

Half-lowered eyes, framed by pink lashes, cast soft shadows.

Akkad pressed his lips firmly against the back of Lavi’s hand.

“I’ll be back.”

---

---

Translator comments: *stares into the abyss* have I mentioned what a NIGHTMARE parsing out POV is in this novel!? This section seems to drift in and out of Akkad and Lavi’s thoughts willy-nilly and while I LOVE love LOVE getting the ML POV it also makes me want to tear my hair out. One more chapter in volume 1.

As always, if anyone else wants to pick up this project, it’s yours. Otherwise I’ll plot along at my like, chapter every other year pace.

Also wow Lavi has NO self-preservation.

Translator notes:

• Most important note first! The final line here is “다녀올게.” (danyeo-ol-ge) While “I’ll be back” is the most functional translation, there’s some nuance here. Literally, it’s made of two pieces “I will go 다녀 (Danyeo) and come 올게 (Ol-ge).” so it’s much closer to “I will go [do what I need to do] and come [back to you].” It is an informal goodbye but given the context in romantic fantasy (Rofan) or K-drama tropes, it’s heavily coded as: “I promise I will survive this battle specifically so I can return to your side.”
• Lavi calls Akkad’s dad 아버님/abonim which does literally translate to father-in-law but it can also be used as just a respectful way to address someone else’s father. Like, I grew up in the American South and as a kid you called your friends’ mom either ‘Miss (first name)’ or ‘Mrs (last name) – it’s kind of like that? So a more localized translation if this were a modern story would be closer to something like ‘Mr. Enoch’? But LBH we all know where this relationship is going so it amuses me to keep the literal translation.
• With regards to her “How many years had it been since she’d last had a drink?” line, I assume she’s referring to her past life.
• When Lavi wonders if she did something to Akkad, context makes it clear she thinks she threw up on him. Non-explicit verbs strike again…

---