Chapter 84

‘My apologies, I’m afraid that I will have to delay my promise a little bit.’

The day after news of Maryam being attacked arrived in the Empire, Khalid visited Renato. They usually met secretly late at night to avoid Maximo’s eyes, but this time, he officially applied for an audience. No matter how hard he tried, Maximo could not stop Khalid’s request as the diplomatic ambassador to give his last greeting to the 1st Prince.

‘As you may have heard, a civil war has broken out in our kingdom. To be honest, the war situation is the worst.’

Khalid tried to explain the situation calmly. Maryam was seriously wounded in a surprise attack by the rebels commanded by Duke Vint and was on the verge of death. To make matters worse, the capital was also seized by internal traitors.

Marquis Ziyad, Maryam’s father-in-law, took her and his grandson and fled to his territory, but the siege defense situation was extremely serious. Some of the royal faction’s nobles cooperated with the Ziyad territory, but there were also quite a few that were watching while weighing which side would be better.

Meanwhile, the rebels, whose morale had skyrocketed, were preparing an all-out attack on the Ziyad territory at Duke Vint’s command. Marquis Ziyad was desperately fighting, but at this rate, his fall was only a matter of time, so the royal faction’s only hope right now was Khalid’s cooperation.

‘As soon as we return to the kingdom, there will be a battle. I can’t take you to such a dangerous place. I’m really sorry.’

Looking at Khalid apologizing to him, Renato fell silent. Should I say I will be okay, or should I ask if he will be okay? Renato, unable to decide, repeatedly opened and closed his lips.

‘I’m sorry to disappoint you, Renato. I should have done better…… I’m too ashamed to face you.’

Interpreting Renato’s silence in a negative way, Khalid apologized to him again. Renato finally came to his senses and quickly waved his hand.

‘No, your highness. Who would have imagined that something like this would happen? Please don’t apologize. I……’

…am okay. He tried to say so. But in the end, those words couldn’t come out. Renato clenched his fists under his table so that Khalid couldn’t see.

He truthfully wanted to ask the man to take him because it was okay even if it was dangerous. But he himself knew it was nonsense. Having no physical power, he would only be a burden if he followed Khalid.

In addition, if Maximo raised an army to pursue or follow him in this situation, it would be even more dangerous. So he had to say that it was okay, that the man shouldn’t worry about him and just leave, but his mouth couldn’t open.

Renato lowered his head to hide his gradually contorted expression. He didn’t want to show Khalid this ugly appearance.

‘Renato……’

Seeing Renato’s shoulders drooping, Khalid bit his lower lip. Before coming here, he had repeatedly pondered which direction would be better for Renato. In his honest heart, he wanted to take Renato with him.

But it was too dangerous. Every battle needed its participants to risk their lives, but this time, the scale was different.

A battle where either side must unconditionally lose their lives depending on the outcome. Although he didn’t intend to lose to Duke Vint, the battlefield was a place where numerous variables occurred. He couldn’t hastily take Renato with him when unsure about what would happen.

After much deliberation, Khalid decided to leave Renato in the Empire. He judged that the Imperial Palace would still be better than the battlefield where the danger of death lurked at every moment. Though he later found out just how foolish his thought was.

‘Renato.’

Khalid slowly rose from his seat when Renato did not raise his head despite his call. Then, the man stopped in front of Renato and knelt on one knee.

‘Your highness?’

Renato was startled by Khalid’s sudden action and called out to him. Only then did the eyes of the two meet. Khalid mustered up his courage and placed his hand on the back of Renato’s. His heart became heavy because of the tremors transmitted to his palm.

‘I’m ashamed to say this, but…… Could you please wait for me a bit? Even if it takes a while, I will definitely return to pick you up alive.’

Khalid emphasized every word, hoping that he could convey his sincerity to Renato. When the man said he would come back alive, the teary violet-colored eyes violently shook.

‘……I will wait.’

What kind of childishness was he acting toward someone ready to go to the battlefield at the risk of his death? Renato thought of himself as pathetic. Tightly clenching his molars, he forced his neck to let out an answer.

‘I will endure it somehow, so please come pick me up on time.’

He wanted to pretend nothing was wrong, but a trembling voice came out of his lips. Renato struggled to hold back the crying sounds that filled his throat.

Khalid looked sadly at Renato who was holding back his tears, and took his hand. Then, he slowly bowed his head.

‘Khalid Nur Hakan, the one who walks the path of the sword, swears to Renato El Fleurette with my heart. Until all of our promises are fulfilled, my sword will be your weapon, and my heart will beat only for you.’

Khalid gently put his lips on the back of the pearl-white hand as if handling the most precious thing in the world, then looked up at Renato and recited the oath. His red eyes, glistening with light, fluttered like blazing flames.

‘Will you make me your knight?’

‘Knight……?’

‘Yes, I have no choice but to leave to protect the liege and the kingdom that I had dedicated my sword to, but when I return, I want to live as a knight solely for you, Renato.’

Renato, bewildered by his sincere confession, did not know what to do. The heat that started from the back of his hand where Khalid’s lips touched rose to his face, burning his cheeks.

‘If you don’t like it, you can refuse.’

After finishing his words, Khalid quietly waited without urging Renato. All he could do was wait for Renato’s choice. Khalid pretended to be calm so that Renato would not be burdened. But the longer Renato’s silence grew, the more anxious he became.

After some time passed, Renato’s upper body gradually leaned toward Khalid. Soon, his soft lips gently touched the forehead exposed behind the man’s black hair. It was a kiss to accept the knight’s oath.

‘……The pledge of solidarity…… I’ll do it when you come to pick me up, your highness.’

Renato parted his lips and murmured in a small voice. When accepting a knight’s oath, it was customary to kiss the forehead of the person who dedicated their sword and respond with a pledge of solidarity. Renato only gave one of them to Khalid. It meant that the man must come to pick him up.

‘I guess I must come back to hear the pledge. It will be very difficult, but please be patient. I will come back as soon as possible so that it won’t be late.’

After exhaling the breath he had been holding back, Khalid smiled for the first time today. He kissed Renato’s fingertips one after another, and made the oath once more.

“……He promised me that.”

Recalling the vivid memories as if they just happened yesterday, Renato muttered in a resentful voice. He knew it wasn’t Khalid’s fault, but it was hard to control his thoughts.

Shortly after Khalid left, they exchanged letters three or four times through the contacts the man left behind. However, it was soon discovered by Maximo. In immense anger, he imprisoned Renato in the palace. He never heard from Khalid ever since then.

If Luna had not been able to keep up with Khalid’s current information, he would not have known that the man had suppressed the rebels, or that he had ascended to the throne in place of his young nephew.

According to the news brought by Luna, Khalid had completely suppressed the rebels about eight months ago, and he had only ascended to the throne five months ago. Therefore, it was highly likely that he still had to settle the internal chaos.

In that situation, when there was no contact yet, his rational mind understood the reason, but his heart did not.

Maybe he had forgotten about him, or he didn’t want to keep the promise made with a worthless Beta anymore after becoming King.

Though he knew Khalid wouldn’t do that, his thoughts kept flowing in the wrong direction. Renato pressed the pocket watch to his forehead, suppressing his constantly rising anxiety. He promised to wait until the man came to pick him up, but he wasn’t confident to wait any longer.

“Khalid……”

Now I can call your name properly. Feeling his vision become blurry, Renato closed his eyes. The voice he longed for rang in his ears.

‘The day we meet again, will you call me Khalid?’

Before leaving for the kingdom, Khalid asked Renato for a small favor. Even though he called Renato by name, Renato still called Khalid ‘your highness’, and it seemed the man found it regrettable. Hearing Khalid’s request, Renato promised that the next time he saw him, he would call the man by name.

“Khalid, Khalid……”

Renato continued to mutter Khalid’s name like chanting a spell. From some point on, he would call the man’s name whenever he had a hard time, and it naturally became a habit. Now that he wished to die every day, the only thing that kept Renato alive was his lingering desire to see Khalid again.

When Renato was enduring his ever-present longing, the quiet outside suddenly became noisy. Renato’s body stiffened when the sounds of rough footsteps got closer. He hurriedly put the pocket watch in his shirt pocket and looked at the closed door with frightened eyes. Immediately after that, Maximo slammed the door open and strode inside.