“Demimore?”
The person knocking on the door was someone completely unexpected.
The reality of Demimore being here felt so surreal, to the point where it was more surprising than welcoming.
Oh, am I still dreaming? Unconsciously, I slowly raised my hand to pinch my cheek, but Demimore urgently grabbed my wrist.
“It’s not a dream.”
“Who is it that came like this?”
As I stared at Demimore, holding my hand, I sensed Arsene slowly approaching from behind. I tried to tell Arsene that Demimore had come, but my lips trembled and no words came out.
Is this really Demimore? Is this some kind of illusion that would vanish if I open my mouth?
“You bastard.”
As I stood there stunned, looking back and forth between Arsene and Demimore, Demimore released my wrist and punched Arsene in the cheek without giving him a chance to retaliate.
Arsene didn’t even have time to resist, and the punch sent him sprawling to the floor. Blood appeared as his lips burst open.
“Now you know it’s not a dream anymore.”
“Huh? Uh, yeah.”
Demimore glanced at me and asked. Did Demimore really throw a punch like that? I couldn’t assess the situation properly.
I didn’t want to know that this situation wasn’t a dream through someone else’s suffering. Suddenly, Arsene, who took the punch, burst into laughter as if he found it ridiculous.
Demimore’s eyebrows twitched as if he found his laughter annoying.
Demimore’s intimidating stride towards Arsene was alarming.
I grabbed Demimore’s waist in a panic.
“Stop it now! I know it’s not a dream anymore!”
When I hugged him, my body, which had momentarily stiffened, relaxed again.
I squeezed my eyes shut and slowly opened one. Is it finally calm? I loosened my grip on Demimore’s waist.
At that moment, Demimore turned abruptly.
Demimore’s expression as he looked at me seemed so pained. His mouth was tightly closed as if holding back something, and his chin had small creases from clenching his teeth.
Seeing him like that, it felt both heartbreaking and endearing, as if I could glimpse the young Demimore from the past.
With the desire to comfort him, I raised my hand to caress his head, but Demimore was a bit faster.
He trapped me in his arms.
“Really, Mary……. I’ve missed you so much.”
My right shoulder, where Demimore leaned, was getting damp. Yes, when I first opened the door, Demimore was crying.
Feeling sorry for him, I gently patted his back with a careful touch, hoping he would calm down.
Demimore, with a voice as damp as my shoulder, kept calling my name, Mary, over and over again.
His breath tickled my ear, and unconsciously, I instinctively shrunk my shoulder, trying to avoid him. But Demimore tenaciously stuck to me.
‘He must have been through a lot…’
While patting his shoulder again, I noticed Arsene behind Demimore, looking at him with a bewildered expression.
He spread his hands, as if demanding an explanation for how this situation came about, but I could only shake my head helplessly.
While Arsene and I communicated through gestures, Demimore, who had buried his face in my shoulder, raised his head and looked at Arsene behind her.
“You’re trying to intimidate me with that beaten-up face, but it’s not scary at all.”
It seemed like he didn’t just look but actually glared at him. I could almost see a taunting expression on the back of Demimore’s head in response to Arsene’s provocation.
Demimore raised his right hand and wiped his face in a careless manner. Then he hugged my shoulder tightly again.
“You’ve taken a beating.”
“That was a surprise attack! Do you want to fight again?”
“Yeah, let’s take it outside.”
“Stop it!”
What the……. I pulled myself out of Demimore’s arms and stood between him and Arsene, who were now squabbling like little children.
Then Demimore started crying again.
“Why, why are you crying again?”
“I’m just so happy to see you…….”
He reached out his arms as if wanting to embrace me again, but I prevented him from doing so.
Of course, I was also delighted to see Demimore, but I need to know how he ended up here first.
“How did you find this place?”
This place is far away from the palace, not easily accessible. It’s not a place one can easily find.
Finally, I noticed Demimore’s clothes, covered in dirt and tattered.
He had dressed up like a commoner child to disguise himself. Yet, her inherent nobleness couldn’t be hidden.
“……Are you here with someone?”
“No, I came alone.”
Alone? Without any escorts?
“Oh, Jasper is busy with a task I assigned him…”
Realizing my astonishment, Demimore glanced at me cautiously.
“No, you should have brought some other guards with you!”
“I came with someone until near here. I came alone when I climbed this mountain.”
“What if something happens…….”
“What? Should I have brought all the royal guards with me to find you? That’s not possible.”
“Yeah, Mary, stop it. You know very well that we can’t let this village be found out.”
Arsene stepped forward and took Demimore’s side. When I thought about it calmly, Demimore and Arsene were right.
Still, it saddens me that Demimore had come all the way here alone.
Thanks to Arsene, I arrived here comfortably… But I worried that Demimore might have faced unnecessary danger because of me.
No, Arsene took Demimore’s side after being beaten like that?
“By the way, what I’m curious about is how you found out about this place.”
Arsene asked Demimore with a cold gaze.
The anger in his voice was enough to make me flinch, but Demimore didn’t back down. Demimore seemed lost in thought and mumbled to himself, seemingly unable to answer.
“My mother knew this place.”
“Your mother?”
At Demimore’s words, Arsene and I exchanged quick glances. Demimore’s face hardened, as if he was bothered.
“Who’s that next to you?”
“Oh, it’s your first time meeting him. His name is Arsene.”
“Arsene? Isn’t he a dog?”
Arsene casually shrugged his shoulders. His expression seemed to say, “Think what you want.”
Meeting Logan before meeting Demimore seemed like a kind of preventive measure. Since he met Logan first, Demimore’s provocations would probably seem cute.
“That jerk told you to come here with him, didn’t he?”
“…Arsene did suggest that we come here, but it was my choice to come.”
“Well, it worked out. I came here by my own choice too.”
I was at a loss for words at Demimore’s statement.
I hoped it was just my misunderstanding, but for some reason, Demimore seemed like he would stay here indefinitely… No, he didn’t even have any luggage, so it must be my misunderstanding.
“By the way, what is your mother’s name?”
“Will you know her if I tell you?”
“I usually know most things. Anyone who knows this village would.”
“…My mother forgot her own name. So she’s currently living under the name given by my father.”
“That’s complicated.”
Arsene scrutinized Demimore’s face with an intense gaze. As if trying to discover something. But soon, he stopped staring intently at Demimore’s face, muttering to himself, seemingly comparing him to someone.
“How does someone who forgot their own name know the way to this village?”
“At first, she couldn’t remember… but”
Demimore hesitated as he spoke, as if he thought it was unbelievable.
“I know it’s ridiculous, but when she prayed to the gods through a charm, the path to the village became clear to her…”
His ears turned red. Demimore seemed to have doubted her mother’s words. .
Even though he didn’t believe it, he held onto a fragile hope and came all the way here. Truly remarkable.
Speaking of charms, is it the one with the picture of the saint? Did Demimore see that charm too? Just the thought of Demimore seeing that picture made me feel embarrassed.
Although I didn’t feel any real connection to that saint, it still made me feel ashamed, as if a childhood photo of mine had been exposed. Even though the concept of photographs didn’t exist in this world.
“Father told me…”
However, Arsene muttered to himself, accepting the unbelievable words from Demimore.
“Father?” Demimore asked with a puzzled expression. The son of the Emperor in front of the son of God.
I smiled, unable to answer Demimore’s question.
“Well, now that there’s nothing left to say, why did you come?”
“Mary, let me make it clear beforehand. I didn’t come here because I pity you, nor did I come to take you back.”
Then why did you come?
As I pondered how to persuade Demimore to return, his answer left me feeling blank.
“I came because I wanted to help, that’s why.”
His words caught me off guard.
