CH 94

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

“Are you crazy?”

The thin eyes under the hair that was as black as a crow curled gently.

The feathers that sprouted from the earlobe, evidence of the ‘Requilus tribe’, were turning red.

It was proof that this man was quite, no, very angry.

“You should bring some useful information rather than nonsense like that.”

“…I am ashamed.”

“My master has almost run out of patience.”

Gerard’s lieutenant, Avilus Theses, recently received orders from Gerard and thus, he released his men.

“Find out where the Crown Prince has gone now. As long as he is a human, he will leave traces. Be sure to find it.”

Gerard ordered not only to dig up the trail of the crown prince, but also Grand Duke Hyacinth’s.

“Follow them like dogs.”

“…….”

“Until the bitch comes out.”

However, after a few days, his subordinates only uttered disappointment.

The man in front of him, too, had feathers, and was of the same Requilus tribe. He bowed his head deeply as if he had no face.

(TL/N: too ashamed to meet his face.)

“I’m sorry. But the Crown Prince is not a human being. There really wasn’t a single trace.”

“…The Crown Prince must be in the Fris Empire, but there is not a single trace of the him on that piece of land that’s like the size of the palm of his hand?”

“That’s right.”

The subordinate in front of him was quite capable.

So far, Avilus Theses had found everything he wanted.

―But this time, only the same words were repeated. Disappointingly.

“Then what about Grand Duke Hyacinth?”

“…He’s a man who uses magic to erase his traces. I can’t believe it… Ugh!”

Grrr, unable to bear it any longer, Avilus grabbed his arm roughly.

His eyes widened, revealing blue-green eyes.

—His pupils were vertically long.

Those creepy, reptile-like eyes glared at the man as if he was going to eat him alive.

“I told you, his patience is ‘almost’ exhausted.”

The subordinate’s eyes trembled.

“I will keep that in mind. Next time, for sure!”

“Next?”

Avilus’ lips rose coldly. That moment.

“…Argh!”

The subordinate screamed in pain and struggled. The man’s essence was sucked into Avilus. As if all the moisture had drained from his body in an instant, all that was left of his skin fell to the floor.

“…It is my master who has ‘almost’ run out of patience.”

The body was silent.

“I’ve been out of it for a long time.”

Avilos looked at the skin on the floor and tapped his chin.

‘Otherwise, I will end up like this.’

Gerard probably wouldn’t even give him the fortune to be put to sleep so quickly.

‘Should I ask the master for forgiveness and go directly to the Fris Empire to search through it all?’

In fact, he had already been there once, but he had no results either.

Besides, he had already scoured the entire continent with his mighty manpower.

“Shit.”

It was then that he spat out curses.

Tok tok—

A knock sounded at the door.

“Come in.”

As soon as another subordinate came in, he was surprised to see the corpse, but as if he was used to it, he ignored it and held out a letter.

“There was a child who asked me to deliver this letter.”

“A beggar?”

How dare you, to Prince Gerard’s closest aide?

He must have bought a beggar on the street. To leave no traces.

—He’s a meticulous person.

It was a suspicious letter without any emblem or sender written on it.

It was not the material of the expensive paper used by the nobles.

‘It looks like it was sent by a commoner or a back alley wrangler.’

Avilus thought and opened the note.

Kriish.

Inside, there was a message that would completely save him.

「I know the location of Annette. I’d like to meet with Prince Gerard.」

“……!”

Avilus’ eyes widened.

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

Behind me was a door that was no different than a wall, and in front of me was Sislin.

My eyes widened nervously, as if caught in a trap.

I absolutely couldn’t raise my head.

‘Our bodies are too close.’

The gap between the two of us was narrow enough to hear the beating of a pounding heart.

I could feel an unfamiliar gaze from above.

“Why do you keep avoiding me?”

“…….”

He lowered his broad shoulders and tilted his head, followed my gaze and with persistence, made eye contact.

Those tenacious red eyes locked on and wouldn’t let go.

“If you’re trying to tease me, it’s very successful.”

“…….”

I then looked up at him. As much as possible, trying not to look at the body wearing a loose fitting shirt.

“…I did not avoid you, Your Highness the Crown Prince. You must have misunderstood something.”

“A misunderstanding.”

“Yes. I just thought there would be no one, but there was someone, so I was a little embarrassed.”

I saw a huge back out of the blue.

That would surprise anyone who saw it.

“Misunderstanding…”

Sislin, who saw me run away twice today, smiled and smoothed his chin.

‘Please just let it slide, Sislin.’

“I believe you, so don’t leave this room. Until I’m done changing.”

“…….”

‘I’m screwed.’

But I smiled nonchalantly.

Feeling embarrassment and running away; these would make him more inclined to have it in the palm of his hand and get excited.

―These were words from the original work.

“Okay.”

I smiled gently and replied softly.

If I get out of this embrace, I just have to pretend and get to leave later .

Only then did he walk away from me.

“If you run away again, I’ll think you are avoiding me, and I’ll take you to the Imperial Palace and keep you in my room.”

“……!!!”

I met red eyes that bore a strange smile.

“What happens if you go to my house… Remember?”

In an instant, I remembered the voice of Sislin that had whispered in my ear in the carriage.

That tickling, playful whisper.

“I may not even give you clothes.”

“……!!!”

‘Crazy.’

My face reddened.

Then, seeing the reaction, he chuckled softly.

‘You made fun of me on purpose.’

‘That’s really bad taste, Sislin.’

I narrowed my eyes as if glaring at him slightly.

“Oh.”

His lips twisted violently with a hint of joy.

“I’m being hated again.”

“…….”

Sislin slid the shirt loosely over his wide shoulders and looked at me as he fastened the buttons on his wrists.

Even though we were together in this small space, he never took his eyes off me for a moment.

—A little bit, I’m a little out of breath.

I deliberately tried to keep my eyes on the things around me.

The table, the empty vase on it, the sofa and the bed.

For some reason, I didn’t think the bed and Sislin should be together… For some reason, that furniture and that man seemed to be a dangerous combination.

In the end, I couldn’t overcome the silence, and this time too, I spoke first.

“But I have a question.”

It was only natural to lose all the time in the fight ‘to keep quiet’ with that madman.

‘You look so happy just looking at me, Sislin.’

“Ask me anything.”

“Did you come to Bayonaire just to find me?”

“…….”

Perhaps. It seemed like that.

But if he came to take me… and now that he couldn’t take me?

He couldn’t stay here indefinitely without any purpose.

‘Anyway, Sislin is the Crown Prince of El Dorado.’

—But.

A rather unexpected answer came.

“I didn’t just come to find you. I didn’t just come to pick you up.”

“…Then?”

The tired red eyes, whose inner thoughts were unknown, slowly narrowed in their view and laughed.

“Well.”

“…….”

“After the party today, I’ll tell you where you’re going with me tomorrow.”

…I wanted to ignore it. But I was very curious.

He said he wanted to take me and lock me up. Wasn’t that the end?

“You breathe by my side, laugh only by me, cry only by my side… You will eventually die by my side.”

As far as saying that. But there was another reason?

When I was in agony, Sislin asked in a subtle voice.

“Do you want to go with me?”

—Can I go.

‘No matter how much I liked Sislin, I have no idea now. What kind of unexpected action he will take.’

At that moment, a handsome, huge, beast-like man slowly turned towards me. He whispered in a voice sweet and seductive, like drugged hallucinogenic candy.

“Let’s go.”

“…….”

His red eyes were tenacious yet gentle.

“Together.”

It was a whisper that was difficult to refuse.

‘…Anyway, if there is a purpose, he’ll definitely reveal it.’

This was not an avoidable problem.

Above all, I was curious.

“Okay.”

“…….”

When I allowed it, Sislin smiled just like a boy.

Like the boy I liked.

‘…I guess my Sisl wasn’t completely gone.’

I was lost in that smile, and belatedly, I brought my gaze to his chest.

―Since the previous encounter, there was a wound that caught my attention.

The sharp scar across his muscular chest didn’t look like it was made by a sharp sword.

It was a scar that looked like it had been bluntly torn by something, and must have been really painful at the time it was created.

“…What is that scar?”

He didn’t fasten the button. He replied,

“A wound from Crevasse.”

“Crevasse?”

“Mhm.”

Crevasse, I knew that place. I heard about it in class in the Forest, but… Rather, I read about it in the original.

There was only one scene that described the inside.

A hell filled with that terrible pain. What happened there, and how people collapsed and died.

“…….”

‘To such a place, Sisl went there?’

Suddenly, my eyes became dark and my heart felt like it was crushed.

I suddenly wanted to ask him how he had been living.

‘…Why did you go to such a place?’

‘Even after going through such a terrible thing, how can you smile like you used to?’

‘Sislin…’

I thought he was only living happily, but I guess I didn’t know too much.

‘The wounds from Crevasse…’

When it comes to reality, it completely disappears.

Like a mythical story where you get punished again even after being eaten by birds all night.

However, there was only one case where the wound remained on the body.

In a trembling voice, I asked,

“…Why did you hurt yourself like that?”

Why… why. I couldn’t believe it.

In front of the girl, who was shaking from the pain in her heart, Sislin exhaled softly like a deep river.

“I was going to die. Because it hurts.”

There were moments where he would rather dig his heart out.

It wasn’t because of the physical pain Crevasse gave him.

From the moment he lost her, there was only one great pain that haunted him all along.

—Losing Annette.

The moment when he despaired that he would never see her again.

“Annette.”

He couldn’t even die because he wanted to see her again.

“Don’t make that face.”

Sislin’s hot hand caressed Annette’s cheek.

The expression on her face was as if it was her chest that had been torn instead.

He, who would rather take out his heart and die, longed for her so deeply that he endured the longing and survived, and eventually tied his heart to her.

—So that she couldn’t leave forever.

“If you make a face like that, I’ll go crazy for you even more.”