CH 54

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“Oh my gosh. Why are your eyes so swollen! Were there bugs in the room?”

The next morning. Roana, who woke Canaren up, shrieked. Wasn’t both sides of Canaren’s eyes puffed up?

Canaren replied casually, pale white.

“No. I was dreaming.”

“You were dreaming? What dream did you have that made your eyes look like this? Tell me!”

“Just… It was a terrible dream.”

It was really a terrible dream. If it had been a nightmare, she would have struggled to wake up quickly. It was a dream that she did not want to wake up from at all, and a dream that lingered after waking up.

Look. It’s morning, but Yulif wasn’t there. Canaren smiled sadly. Roana turned her head when she saw that smile that even made her distressed.

“Do you feel uncomfortable everywhere?”

“It’s okay. The snow will soon subside.”

“Then shall we go out for breakfast? We can take a walk, I will give you a tour of the castle.”

“Yes, I’ll like that.”

Canaren’s eyelids were swollen and so her field of vision narrowed, so she couldn’t see the sly smile on Roana’s lips.

During the meal, Roana gently rubbed Canaren’s eyes with ice-cold marbles. Thanks to this, by the time she finished eating, the swelling went down considerably.

Roana helped Canaren into a light, comfortable dress, and braided her fine grain-colored hair into two ponytails. Canaren in her mirror looked the most lively Roana had seen of her recently, and she really liked it. As Canaren saw how happy Roana was to see her, she felt better as well.

“Shall we go?”

Canaren and Roana left the room. It was the first time she came out of her room after going from Robelheim to Pionia.

But Roana suddenly stopped in front of the central staircase.

“Right. Could you wait a minute? There’s something I forgot… I’ll bring it to you soon!”

“I will be waiting. Go slowly.”

“Heh, look forward to it!”

‘Look forward? Are you going to bring something magical?’

Canaren tilted her head and soon lost her attention to the majestic sights all around her.

Yulif’s castle had a completely different atmosphere from the Imperial Palace. The pale blue-gray wall, a color which was not often seen, was painted smoothly without a single flaw, and it seemed as if she had entered another world. On the high ceiling, a mysterious painting that looked like a scene from a myth or legend was drawn.

The elegance contained in the not-too-excessive splendor went well with Yulif. Canaren imagined an elegant Yulif standing in the hallway. A perfect landscape and a more perfect man.

‘It’s going to be really cool.’

Unknowingly, she smiled bashfully, and when she turned her gaze away, she was startled.

Yulif, who had only existed in her imagination a while ago, was coming down the stairs.

In reality, he was so beautiful that she was speechless. As he came down the stairs, there was no disturbance in his straight and dignified posture.

This man was just this perfect from the moment he was born. Canaren was ashamed of how she seemed to have insulted him with her own impoverished imagination. Even though she had imagined to the very best she could.

“Are you going out already?”

The voice she heard in her dream overlapped. Her back trembled with a chill at the low cracking voice, and strength was released from her legs in an instant.

Yulif quickly wrapped his arms around her waist and caught her falling body. He frowned.

“You don’t seem to be feeling well yet.”

“Oh, no. Everything was fine. This… It is not like that.”

She didn’t know what to say. Canaren bit her lip. Yulif looked at her like that, staring down at her, and then released his arm.

At this rate, it was clear that he would go away just like in her dream. She hated that. If they parted like this, she doesn’t know when they would meet again. Canaren exclaimed urgently.

“Good morning! Is it a good morning?”

“…Yes. You?”

“I-I slept well. Did you have breakfast?”

“Not yet. You?”

“I ate with Miss Roana. The soup, salad and steamed salmon were really good.”

“All right.”

Their conversation didn’t continue on and Canaren bit her lip again.

She didn’t mean to recite the breakfast menu and felt she sounded like an idiot.

‘I have to stop Yulif from giving a short answer.’

“Have you not seen Miss Roana?”

It was a desperately squeezed question. Then there was a slight change in Yulif’s expression. It was a strange expression of frustration, embarrassment, and resignation.

“Canaren, answer honestly.”

“Yes?”

“Isn’t Orcard bothering you too much? I’ll change your escort if you want.”

“Oh no. She doesn’t bother me. She is a fun and friendly person. I like Miss Roana.”

“…It’s because you looked troubled.”

“Yes? What did you just say? I might not have heard it right…”

“No. It’s okay if you like her.”

Yulif looked tired. He seemed to have a bad complexion. Canaren looked at him worriedly.

“Yulif, you look tired. Is it okay? You’ve been very busy these days… So is it?”

“I don’t mind. I will wait until the Orcard arrives.”

Canaren, who was about to habitually say yes, covered her mouth with her hand and nodded her head. If she had said okay, she would have gone to Yulif.

Yulif quietly stood next to her.

But no matter how much they waited, Roana did not appear. Canaren glanced at Yulif. Rather than feeling guilty about keeping a busy person like this, she was slightly more happy to be able to be with him.

In the end, Yulif, who could not wait any longer, spoke first.

“Ocard will not come. Let’s go back to your room.”

“What? How do you know?”

“…By sense. I’ll take you to your room.”

He seemed to know something. Canaren realized that he had a habit of pressing on his temples whenever he encountered embarrassment or troublesome task. Just like right now.

“Yulif.”

Canaren grabbed the hem of her robe and turned. Yulif turned his face to her. Her heart pounded as soon as she looked into the very beautiful shining face.

In the dream, Yulif was sweet enough that her tongue ached, but in the end it was just a fantasy that disappeared after waking up. But now, the real Yulif was right next to her. Canaren wanted him to be with her a little longer.

It’s foolish to miss such a great opportunity. She would never know when she would be able to see Yulif again.

Her mind, once there was awareness, persuaded her nonstop. Canaren spoke with courage.

“Um, if it’s okay for a while… I’d like to tour the castle together.”

Yulif was quiet. She wanted him to tell her if he liked it or not, but as usual, he just looked down at her without saying a word. The emotionless eyes were not plain and felt cool.

‘Love me’. His desperate voice that tormented her last night came to her vividly.

It’s a dream too. There’s no way Yulif with eyes like that would confess his love mournfully. To her too. It’s never going to happen.

She became anxious. She was afraid he would push her away.

She didn’t dare ask him for love.

‘Well… I don’t mind if he likes me, but anyway, it’s okay if he doesn’t love me.’ She just wanted to be with him a little longer, just a little bit longer. She was now with Yulif, whom she met a week after coming to Pionia. She didn’t want to be separated like this.

Canaren swallowed dry saliva. She tugged at the hem of his robe.

“I know you are very busy. 10 minutes… Even 5 minutes is fine. If you can’t go anywhere else, we can just walk from end to end of the hallway.”

“The castle is quite spacious.”

There was a random answer that wasn’t good or bad.

Canaren tilted her head slightly and let out an ‘Ah’. She nodded her head, her eyes gleaming as she said,

“I heard it. Yulif is a very rich man… They say you have enough money to spend even if you do nothing your whole life. It’s amazing.”

This time Yulif was the one who tilted his head. A slightly strained forehead was showing his uncomfortable feeling.

On the contrary, Canaren was confused.

Isn’t this it? She complimented him, praising him for having a lot of money.

‘He must have been too bored with my reaction.’

“There are even paintings on the ceiling! Wow.”

Canaren clapped her hands as if she had never seen a ceiling painting before.

Yulif’s expression remained unmoved. His mouth slowly opened as he looked at her with a subtle expression.

“Did Orcard do it?”

“Huh? What?”

“It’s nothing. What I meant was that the castle is so large that it would be difficult to see it all in one day.”

It wasn’t self-pride. After all, Yulif wasn’t the type of person to show off in the first place. Canaren figured it out with a little thought.

‘Did I say something strange… How embarrassing. I must have looked like an idiot?’

Canaren slowly turned her head to hide her burning face. Suddenly, a short, low laughter sounded in her ears.

When she looked up in surprise, Yulif, still expressionless, was there. He didn’t look like someone who had laughed out loud.

‘Did I hear it wrong?’

“Anywhere you want to go.”

“Where is Yulif’s favorite place in the castle? I want to go there.”

As soon as it popped out of her mouth, she blamed herself again.

According to Roana, Yulif hated sharing personal stories very much. From the matter of liking or disliking something to a twisted family history. She said that if she somehow puts it in her mouth, he would reply with a chilly look.

“I don’t know… When I ask a question, he usually gives me a good answer.”

“It’s because Miss Canaren is special. Have you never heard the lord tell one to turn it off? How scary. Even the devil wouldn’t be that scary.”

Never. In the first place, Canaren could not imagine him putting harsh words in his mouth, saying, ‘Get out of here.’

However, she kept worrying about the words of Roana, who had been close to Yulif for a long time as an aide. ‘If you ever meet Yulif, don’t ask him anything personal.’ She promised so.

“I don’t know much about things… I thought Yulif might know some great places…”

“Is that so?”

She added as if hesitating, and a light reply came back. She was glad he didn’t feel offended.

A big hand was extended to her. Inwardly, she sighed and swept down her chest. 

“Let’s go.”

Canaren smiled broadly and she took his hand. She liked Yulif. After acknowledging that fact, she seemed to like him more and more. She couldn’t control her overflowing heart.