Chapter 41
“And… I don’t even know when my birthday is.”
Even after hearing Kyle’s words clearly, I wondered if my ears had broken for a moment.
“What…?”
“No one ever told me, and no one celebrated it either….”
“Impossible! Didn’t you ask your parents?”
“I didn’t ask Father. Mother only said it was the middle of a harsh, cold winter….”
His faint voice couldn’t finish the sentence.
The Duke of Selphius, the trash human who only realized Kyle existed after he was born, probably didn’t know Kyle’s exact birth date.
And the Duchess would surely have looked annoyed and uncomfortable if she heard that question.
It was obvious that after that, Kyle could never speak the word “birthday” in front of her again.
Now I understood why Kyle had been so irritated during Darius’s birthday party.
What Kyle said wasn’t an exaggeration. There must have been many worse things than today.
These detailed stories were not in the original novel The Golden Oath, and it made my chest feel tight.
In my past life, I also lived lonely, but at least I knew my birthday.
When I imagined how lonely this child of only a little more than ten years old must have been—and how much he would continue to hurt—my eyes grew hot.
This time, I let the falling tears flow quietly.
I didn’t want Kyle to notice me crying. If it looked like pity, it might make him feel even more miserable.
Luckily, both of us were soaked, so I could hide my tears as rainwater.
Kyle walked on without speaking.
After I calmed down, I forced myself to speak in a bright voice.
“Kyle. Then let’s decide your birthday!”
“What are you talking about?”
“If you don’t know the exact birthday, people usually just choose one. How about December 25?”
“Why that day?”
“I like how it sounds. It’s right before the new year starts, so it feels exciting.”
In the world I used to live in, that day was Christmas, a romantic holiday.
It would also be easy to remember.
Kyle laughed softly as if he didn’t care.
“If you have no objections, then it’s decided. From now on, the birthday of Kyle Diarne is December 25. Done.”
“What changes just because you decide that?”
“A lot changes! I will celebrate it every year. With all my heart!”
“….”
“Friends are supposed to be like that. Comfort each other when things are hard, and celebrate when things are happy.”
“….”
“It means you should tell me when something happens like today! Even just talking about it can make you feel better and depend on someone!”
“Depend…? On a kid who looks like this?”
Kyle moved his arm that was holding my legs and asked.
“Hey. Even if I wasn’t very helpful, didn’t you feel a little better and grateful when I came to find you?”
“Not really.”
So honest.
Ah. Come to think of it, the swelling on his face was almost gone.
The redness and hives had calmed down so much that I couldn’t notice them unless I looked closely from this distance.
Good.
When we passed the fourth cloth piece tied to a tree branch, Kyle spoke.
“Hey. I have a question.”
“Yeah. What is it?”
I leaned my head slightly forward and asked, and Kyle cleared his throat quietly.
After hesitating for a long time, Kyle finally spoke again.
“What exactly do you like about me?”
“What?”
I was speechless.
What kind of romantic drama male lead line is that!
I almost burst out laughing but held it back.
From his serious tone, it didn’t sound like he was teasing. He really seemed curious.
And the “like” probably meant “like as a friend.”
I decided to answer honestly.
“Does a person need a reason to like another person?”
Instead of giving detailed reasons, I threw a simple, clear answer—because it’s you.
To let him know that there is at least one person in the world who supports him unconditionally.
“I just like you! I’ve said it many times.”
Another long silence followed. I thought he was too moved to speak.
But Kyle’s voice sounded annoyed.
“Even while saying that, you seem to follow Darius that bastard more.”
“Uh?”
Why was Darius mentioned here suddenly…?
“You said you don’t like Darius romantically.”
“Ah?”
“You even swore you would shave your head if you were lying.”
The pitiful child who had been quietly talking about his inner feelings was gone.
I felt cold while being carried on his back. I felt like I should jump down immediately.
“What I meant by not liking him is that I don’t love Darius oppa romantically. As a human, I do like him. He is kind and cool.”
“Hm.”
Kyle made a cold, sarcastic nose sound.
How should I explain this?
Maybe I should say that my feeling toward you is similar? But friendship affection and fan-like admiration were too different.
Would a child still young understand that there are different kinds of love?
“Hey. About the bet we talked about.”
While I was thinking about how to explain, Kyle changed the topic.
“Yeah?”
“Let’s make it like this. The person who reaches 100 wins first will have their wish granted by the loser.”
That was sudden.
“Why a wish all of a sudden? Do you want something from me, Kyle? Then just ask directly.”
“No. But… maybe I will want something later.”
What strange words. Was this like insurance for the future?
But the idea of putting a reward on the meaningful record of 100 wins wasn’t bad.
Right now, we were just accumulating numbers back and forth.
“Well, okay. As long as it’s not something unreasonable like asking me to give all my money, become your slave, or kill someone.”
“Do I look like a psychopath?”
……Not yet. But I didn’t know how he might change in the future.
“Anyway, remove anything too extreme that anyone would think is over the top. Deal?”
“Yeah.”
By Kyle’s agreement, our simple bet evolved into a 100-win wish bet.
Thinking about it, Kyle opening his heart and talking like this to me felt surprising.
It felt like my hardship of wandering in the rain had been rewarded.
Unknowingly, the raindrops completely stopped.
The dark clouds parted, and the dark blue sky showed itself.
Like the world had been washed clean, the air carried the smell of soil, grass, and water.
Kyle’s Perspective
Kyle only planned to hide in the forest for a couple of hours.
The allergic reaction on his face and body usually disappeared after that time.
He never imagined someone would desperately search for him, breaking through the rainy forest path.
Riez cried and called him stupid for being stubborn, then complained about how hard it was to come here.
Was she that worried?
A strange, tickling feeling scattered inside his chest like floating feathers.
It felt excited, a little hot, and somehow like he wanted to cry.
Kyle kept his head down because he didn’t want to show his red, swollen, hives-covered face.
He also wanted to hide this strange emotion he couldn’t understand.
Then, when he raised his eyes for a moment, he saw Riez’s ruined skirt, hands, and knees.
‘Did she search for me so desperately that she ended up like this?’
Why? Why do you care about me that much?
An unknown emotional storm burst inside him.
But more important was the judgment that he must go back immediately and treat this child’s wounds.
Whether the allergy symptoms remained was no longer important.
Riez followed slowly like a crawling worm, whether she knew his impatience or not.
When he looked back, she was pale and limping on one foot, and seeing that made his anger rise. Who was really the foolish one?
He carried Riez on his back and walked as if nothing was wrong…… but honestly, she was heavy.
He almost resented his small body.
Still, he walked without showing it.
When he almost got lost on the path, the cloth pieces from Riez’s skirt tied to tree trunks showed the direction like signposts.
The heat from his swollen skin slowly cooled as it touched the colder body temperature behind him.
Kyle found himself pulling out memories hidden deep inside his heart—memories he had never told anyone.
Maybe it was because listening to the worried voice beside his ear made him want to act spoiled.
And then…… the child cried.
Even though the person concerned did not cry, she cried very sadly.
