Chapter 40
The mention of running away darkened Benen’s expression.
The first person that came to mind upon hearing those words was the eldest of the three brothers, Ignatz—the one who had stormed out of the ducal estate in rebellion against their father’s methods.
If the eldest had done it, the youngest could, too.
“Well, yeah. If Father is scary, and there’s no one at home to rely on… being outside might actually feel more comfortable.”
“But Sol has us!”
“What’s the point of having two older brothers when all they do is bicker and fight?”
“Don’t talk like it doesn’t involve you.”
“It’s called being objective. Sometimes, you need to put your own behavior under a magnifying glass.”
Benen ended the conversation with a faint smile. But the satisfaction of his witty remark was quickly cut off by his younger brother’s sharp retort.
“You’re not observing with a magnifying glass—you’re using it to focus sunlight and burn.”
“…….”
“Like the other day. You said you don’t know because you’re not the heir and don’t have talent? You always say your strength is being smart! Do you think I can say something like ‘I’m too dumb to know’ in front of you?”
“Elber…”
“It just feels like we’re both suffering for nothing! It’s not like we chose to be born this way… I, I…”
Elber mumbled a few words before finally managing to form a full sentence.
“To be honest, I think you’re creepy sometimes… but I still don’t want to be apart from you.”
“You little…”
“You don’t like me either!”
“Of course not! You were only cute when you were in the cradle. You were such a scaredy-cat, you’d just cry whenever I tried to play with you!”
“You mean like the time you told me ghost stories to ‘play’?”
“Ghost stories?! I tried to read you fairy tales, but you cried over the bear illustration—”
“You read me fairy tales? You?”
“…….”
Benen clamped his mouth shut. He tried to keep a straight face, but his ears had turned red. Elber spoke in a dazed voice.
“You… you actually acted like a big brother?”
“Sh-shut up! When you’re little, you have these ideals about being a big brother—just like you do with Sol!”
“There you go again, talking like it’s someone else’s business. You’re doing a great job being a big brother to Sol!”
“I don’t use baby talk in front of my little sibling like you do!”
“Well, your voice goes all soft around Sol too. It’s just as cringey!”
“…Did I really? No way!”
Their childish argument got louder and louder. There was no winner. Only a few servants passing by the greenhouse wore soft smiles at the scene.
Since both of them weren’t used to shouting, the quarrel ended quickly. Benen cleared his throat.
“Ahem… Let’s just look for Sol. He couldn’t have gone far alone.”
“…Agreed. But what do we say if Sol asks whether we made up? It’s not like we actually did.”
“Don’t give him the chance to ask.”
Elber admired the idea. His second brother was indeed clever.
“Still, it’s kind of a shame. Since Father threw out all the old fairy tale books, the one I supposedly cried over is probably gone too. I wonder what book it was.”
“…We might find it.”
“Huh?”
“You were so scared of that book… I hid it somewhere you couldn’t even see the cover.”
“……”
“Never mind. Don’t worry about it. A maid probably found it by now.”
With that, Benen ended the conversation and took the lead in searching for Sol.
Elber followed behind, imagining a young Benen burying the teddy bear book somewhere to protect him—and a small smile crept onto his lips.
Koreans must remember: March is not spring. Especially in the mountains—it’s full-blown winter. Even in the central region it’s cold, and it’s worse up north.
In this world, the northernmost region is Plogel. So in April…
“Kai, if you’re cold, you have to tell me! We’ll go back right away!”
“I’m f-fine! The view is amazing!”
Kai and I were both shivering, even before we’d climbed halfway up the mountain slope, each in our own way.
The scenery really was stunning! But with every step up, the temperature dropped drastically—it felt like walking into a refrigerator.
Since I was the one who suggested going out, I couldn’t exactly tell the guest we should turn back.
…Right, he’s a guest. He’s also mentally younger than me. I need to protect him!
“Kai, do you want to wear my shawl?”
“Why suddenly?”
“…I thought it’d suit you!”
“You don’t need—mmph!”
I quickly wrapped the shawl around his face.
Through the pink fabric, his big green eyes peeked out, and above it, his soft blond hair. Ah, he looked just like one of those grass-headed dolls… though much prettier.
When I smiled bashfully, Kai ended up smiling back too.
“Your shawl smells nice.”
“The maid sprayed it with floral scent…”
A sudden gust of wind made my voice tremble. Kai widened his eyes and hastily took off his gloves.
“Here, wear these.”
“Huh? Oh, no—!”
“I just want to touch the shawl with my bare hands.”
“……”
“Here, your hands.”
Without waiting for a reply, Kai gently held my hands. The outside of the gloves was cold.
But when he took them off and our bare skin touched, his body heat was so warm I nearly screamed. Kai was just as startled.
“Sol, your hands are freezing! Why didn’t you say anything?”
“Well… I’m the northern lord’s child. I can’t show weakness in front of a guest!”
“Pfft!”
“Why are you laughing? I’m serious! You were pretending not to be cold too!”
“You said you weren’t cold. It’d be embarrassing if I said I was.”
“What’s embarrassing about that, you idiot!”
Was he about to say he didn’t want to seem weak in front of a girl? If so, I’d call him an idiot again.
But Kai kept looking at our hands and murmured,
“You’re right. I should’ve just said I was cold, then taken you back down. That would’ve been less embarrassing.”
“Oh…”
When I looked down, I realized Kai was holding my hand tightly. My hands felt like they were melting. I couldn’t even open my fingers properly.
“Kai! Let go, your hand will get cold!”
“I’ll warm up your hand just a bit more. Even if you wear gloves now, it won’t help much.”
“And what about your hands if you give me your gloves?!”
“I’ll just stick them inside your shawl.”
“Then we didn’t need to trade anything at all!”
“Oh, right?”
Kai looked briefly thoughtful through the pink shawl… then met my gaze with a gentle smile.
“…No, I’m glad we traded. I really am.”
“……”
“Here, put the gloves on.”
“Oh, okay.”
Before I could answer properly, Kai slipped his gloves onto my hands. They were a bit big, but it felt like being hugged by a teddy bear.
“They’re made to fit me, so they’re a little loose. Not too uncomfortable?”
“I’m fine.”
“Then should we go a bit further? I hear water!”
Oh, he’s right. There was the gentle sound of a stream nearby. And since our bickering had warmed us up… maybe we could keep going?
My feet naturally turned toward the sound of water, and soon our laughter echoed along the soft earth.
In April, the sound that marks the late spring of Plogel isn’t sprouting buds or sunshine—it’s the sound of flowing streams. As the permafrost melts, it signals the true start of the agricultural season.
To know that spring has come through sound—it’s beautiful, I thought.
“Wow…”
But it wasn’t just the sound that was beautiful. I was left speechless by the view before me.
What trickled over the gray stones wasn’t just water—it looked like silk woven from light. No matter the angle, it sparkled like shattered moonlight.
Dozens of such streams flowed down from the mountain, like a daytime Milky Way.
…Wait! I’m not the one who should be in awe—it’s the guest! Gah, I’m so rustic!
“A-hem. Kai, what do you think?”
“……”
“Kai?”
“Honestly, I thought there was no land more beautiful than Lafrande. But seeing this place…”
Seeing it? What comes next? Tell me already!
Ugh, have I already grown attached to this land? I was itching to hear compliments about Plogel.
Finally, Kai spoke again.
“Even if just for a moment… I envied the people who get to live here.”
“Right? It’s really beautiful, isn’t it?”
“Yeah. I’d hang a picture of this in our mansion if I could. Will you show me again next time I come?”
“Of course…”
“Yay, thanks!”
Wait! I was supposed to tell him not to keep visiting, but I got swept up! But Kai was already holding my hand and hopping with joy. What now?
“It’s a promise, Sol! You have to show me again!”
“Geez… Do you like it that much?”
“Of course! I told you, I’m overprotected. Even on vacation, I’m swarmed with attendants. I can’t even eat wild fruit without a servant taste-testing it first.”
“That sounds exhausting—hey, where are you going?!”
“There’s still snow over there! I just want to step on it once!”
He looked just like a puppy freed from its cage, and I couldn’t bring myself to stop him.
Patches of snow still lay unmelted on the slope. Kai left footprints there, dipped his hands into freezing water, and even scooped up handfuls of sand like it was treasure.
Of course, there were no gems—but he smiled at smooth round stones like they were precious jewels.
Before I knew it, the shawl was hanging loosely on his shoulders. His nose and ears were bright red. He was definitely going to catch a cold.
I quickly wrapped the shawl around his face again. Kai burst into laughter at the blindness. Perfect, now’s my chance!
“Huh? Sol, the gloves—I told you to wear them!”
“You need them more than I do! Your fingers will freeze!”
“But you’re cold too!”
Like a wet puppy shaking off water, Kai stared at me with serious eyes.
“Think logically! You have the gloves, I have the shawl. If I get cold, I can tuck my hands into it!”
“Are you deciding everything with ‘should’ and ‘can’ again?”
“Yup!”
Wow. He’s so logical, I can’t even argue!
I obediently wore the left glove. Kai, satisfied, reached out to give me the right one again.
But instead of taking the glove—
“Gotcha!”
—I grabbed Kai’s left bare hand with my own and shoved both our hands into his jacket pocket. So warm.
“S-Sol!”
Now his whole face turned red, not just his ears. But he didn’t pull away.
“You’re warm too, right? Let’s go back down like this.”
“But I can’t just steal someone else’s body heat—”
“You said earlier you decide things based on ‘should’ and ‘can,’ right?”
“Yeah.”
“Add one more criterion to that.”
“…What is it?”
“‘Do I want to?’”
“……”
Gripping Kai’s fingers tightly as the warmth spread, I smiled brightly and said,
“Sol wants to keep Kai’s hands warm.”
