Chapter 18
I Think We Should Be Strangers Now
Left alone in the office after Dante Renaud departed, Erich exhaled a long, heavy breath as he recalled their conversation.
‘I’m so frustrated I could die, so I have to say this one thing before I go.’
‘…….’
‘You’re the one who brought all this on yourself.’
Do you get it, you jerk!
The way he had glared and barked until the very moment he stepped out of the office.
It was a display of audacity that warranted being thrown into a dungeon for insulting royalty, yet he’d held his chin up high.
Erich’s brow furrowed for a moment as he took a deep breath.
With the noisy presence gone, the office felt quieter than ever.
It was silent, desolate, and lonely.
“……Elly.”
Are you alone right now?
Do you know what happened in Cardion yesterday?
‘I’m told there was someone wearing a robe next to Lord Renaud.’
The report from yesterday flashed through his mind. Erich exhaled an unconscious sigh.
At first, he wondered if the person in the robe might be Elisha.
But immediately after, he hoped it wasn’t her.
Of all things, the monster that appeared in the capital was a Hide. Hides always brought back memories of ‘that day.’
‘I’m sorry, Prince.’
A voice that had sounded heavier than anything else in the world.
‘I couldn’t protect them.’
The image of the woman apologizing to him, not even caring about the blood flowing from her left arm.
Erich took another breath.
Even the air touching the tip of his nose felt damp and oppressive, as if trying to force him to relive that nightmare.
Eventually, he tapped his fingertips against the windowpane and lowered his lashes.
Is it going to rain tomorrow? Will there be thunder and lightning?
I hope it’s sunny wherever Elisha is. She’s afraid of thunder.
At times like this, I wish you were very far away, yet I also wish you were close enough to touch.
“Elisha.”
What is it that I want to do with you? How were you feeling when you left this place?
What are you thinking about right now?
“Just kill me……”
Life is so hard…….
Dante, who had suddenly appeared in the middle of the Renaud estate’s library, groaned in a voice that sounded like he was on the verge of death. His arms were piled high with documents.
Elisha clicked her tongue as she looked at the man who had collapsed before the teleportation magic circle had even fully faded.
“Build up some stamina, Dante Renaud.”
“Don’t you know that mages are supposed to be stronger the more frail and delicate they look……?”
“Seeing you groveling like that, I don’t think that’s the case.”
“Be honest, you’ve killed someone with your words before, haven’t you?”
Dante grumbled as he scrambled to his feet.
Elisha blithely ignored his remark and took the documents from his arms instead.
“There’s a lot.”
“There has to be. I’ve been dragged around all day preparing for meetings.”
And before that, he’d been summoned here and there because of yesterday’s incident.
Thanks to that, no one suspected a thing when he said he’d handle the overtime at his estate.
“How did you know I was here?”
Elisha asked as she began scanning the documents at a rapid pace. Dante naturally took a seat across from her and replied.
“Where else would you be if not the library? It’s not like you’d be sleeping at this hour.”
“…….”
“Even at the palace, you were always either in the office or the library.”
Usually with Erich.
Dante swallowed the last part of his sentence and pulled back the corners of his mouth.
It would be a disaster if he accidentally let slip what had happened today by bringing up Erich.
Though, of course, the plan had been a total failure…….
“Was I?”
“…….”
“You have a surprisingly good memory.”
Just then, Elisha looked up from the papers and fixed her gaze on Dante, her eyes curving into a soft smile.
It was a fleeting, unexpected smile.
Dante blanked for a moment, his mind going empty as he blinked.
“Well, I suppose that’s how you managed to perform your duties as the Magic Knight Commander well enough.”
Elisha added, looking back down at the papers as if nothing had happened.
Dante finally snapped out of it and frowned.
“You keep adding words like ‘surprisingly’ or ‘more than I thought’ in front of your sentences.”
“…….”
“I’ve been a very capable person for a long time, okay? When I was young, people didn’t doubt for a second that I’d become the Imperial Chief Mage……”
Wait, this probably wasn’t the kind of thing to say in front of the actual Imperial Chief Mage.
Having realized this, Dante clamped his mouth shut.
Talk about preaching to the choir.
“I see.”
Just as Dante was tilting his head at the lingering awkwardness, Elisha spoke slowly. Dante frowned slightly again.
‘I see,’ she says.
“Don’t give such a half-hearted answer.”
“I wasn’t being half-hearted.”
At that moment, Elisha’s blue eyes met Dante’s once more.
“I was choosing my words.”
“…….”
“If what I said earlier sounded like I was belittling your abilities, I apologize. It wasn’t my intention, but I find it hard to change the way I speak.”
Erich used to point that out a lot, too.
She apologized, her long lashes casting shadows over her eyes. Dante stammered, unable to find the right response.
Was she always this kind of person?
From what he knew, she was more dogmatic, and—to put it bluntly—quite rude…….
“My position has changed now, so I should be more careful.”
Elisha added casually. Dante asked back in surprise.
“Position?”
“I’m not your superior anymore. And though we have a contract, I’m the one receiving your help.”
If I’m ‘helping’ you, then what was I doing trying to sell you out just today?
Overwhelmed by a sudden surge of guilt, he avoided Elisha’s gaze, his purple eyes darting around instead of answering.
To think he tried to sell out a girl like this.
‘Somehow, I feel like I’ve done something terrible.’
It’s not like Erich is a villain.
But then again, considering the things he’d said and done to Elisha, maybe he was a villain.
While Dante tilted his head, caught in the middle, Elisha silently worked through the tasks.
Her hands moved with a practiced, swift efficiency.
A heavy silence settled deep into the library. Dante’s shoulders gave an involuntary shiver.
He found this kind of silence awkward.
“What did you do today?”
Finally, unable to stand it, Dante threw out a casual question. Elisha replied without looking up from the documents.
“I looked around the estate gardens.”
“Ah, the gardens.”
“They haven’t been maintained properly.”
All the flowers have withered.
A small crack appeared in Elisha’s otherwise flawless, clear expression. Dante watched her intently.
Come to think of it, Elisha had always liked places like gardens.
It was so well-known that Erich used to grumble, ‘If you want to find her, you have to search every single garden in the palace.’
“I can have them redone if you want.”
“White flowers, please.”
“You certainly don’t hesitate to accept.”
“It’s not a good habit to reflexively refuse things you actually want.”
“Those are very wise words.”
Dante finished with a faint smile.
If things had gone according to the original plan, he should have turned this straight-talker over to Erich today, but since that had already failed, what could he do?
For the time being, he had no choice but to stay with her and do as she wished.
Maintaining a garden wasn’t exactly a difficult task.
‘Elisha will hide herself well enough when the maintenance is being done anyway.’
More importantly, his life was on the line if he breached the contract, so what choice did he have?
“I’ll handle the rest, so why don’t you head back for now?”
As he was racking his brain over the restoration plans for the Renaud gardens, Elisha suddenly spoke.
Dante snapped back to reality and looked at the woman in front of him.
At some point, Elisha’s distinct pale blue eyes had fixed on him with an unwavering gaze.
Dante momentarily swallowed a breath of fear.
Is she going to say something like, ‘Having someone like you around is just distracting’?
Elisha had never said anything like that to him before, but for some reason, he felt like it wouldn’t be strange if she did…….
“You look tired.”
But contrary to Dante’s expectations, the words that followed were full of concern.
Dante blinked blankly again, offering a response a beat late.
“W-well, that’s true, but.”
“Erich will be troubled if you collapse during a meeting.”
“Ah.”
He’d thought she was actually worrying for him, but in the end, that was the reason.
He’d almost made the mistake of thinking, ‘The cold woman actually has a warm heart?’
“Why don’t you pick one: being warm or being cold?”
“I haven’t particularly been either.”
“I wouldn’t say that, you say and do such unfamiliar things sometimes……”
It’s almost getting scary.
Dante was about to continue when he caught Elisha’s chilly gaze and shut his mouth.
She says she hasn’t been cold, but what’s with that look? It looks like it could freeze a person solid!
“If you’re going to talk nonsense, go to your quarters and sleep.”
Elisha retorted dismissively. Dante shrugged.
Right, this was the Elisha he knew.
‘Emotionless Elisha, doll-like Elisha.’
Though lately, he felt he’d seen her look angry more often than emotionless.
“Then I’ll just close my eyes for a little bit.”
Whatever the case, the fact that Elisha was scary remained unchanged.
Having finished his thought, Dante lay down on the sofa and closed his eyes.
Elisha was about to say something, but she fell silent when she heard the sound of his steady breathing.
The way he stubbornly remained by her side reminded her of Erich for some reason.
Just for that reason.
