“May I help you, sir?”
Leonard didn’t seem to notice the joy in her voice.
“Help with what…?”
“There you are! Oh my!”
A woman suddenly appeared behind Leonard and shouted loudly on purpose. Then she winked at Irenea without Leonard noticing.
They’re members of the Moonshadow Guild, Irenea realized right away.
She resisted the urge to blow a kiss to the women who brought Leonard to her and instead linked her arm with his.
“You’re too late, sisters. I got to this man first.”
But the words were meant more for Leonard than the women.
You can’t run away from me now.
Irenea firmly held onto Leonard’s arm and led him toward the plaza. Even though they took a long route through familiar alleys, walking beside him made the time fly.
I want to stay like this. But… there’s no point in confessing now.
She knew the only reason he once reached out to her in the past was out of pity.
A noblewoman who had lost the will to live from her abusive husband.
Leonard couldn’t ignore her because she reminded him of his dead younger sister. But the current Leonard probably felt nothing for her.
What should I say? How should I talk to him?
While she was deep in thought, Leonard finally relaxed and politely spoke.
“Thank you for your help, my lady. I was able to get out of trouble thanks to you.”
Calling her “my lady” and his polite tone meant he realized she was of noble birth.
Irenea felt nervous for a moment, wondering if he had figured out the meeting was arranged. But when she saw that his expression only showed curiosity, she relaxed.
Even if you did figure it out… I won’t let you go so easily.
With a small smile, she gently said,
“If you truly think of my help as a favor, may I ask for something in return?”
“In return?” he asked.
“Yes, a favor.”
Irenea knew she had chosen her words wisely.
Leonard, though once a mercenary, was more knightly than any knight. He valued repaying kindness more than holding grudges.
Just look at him now. He could’ve ignored everything and gone his way, but he stayed quietly instead.
Letting go of his arm, she stepped in front of him, lifted her dress gracefully, and bowed.
“You who have earned the honor of Anuph. I’ll send someone to your lodging soon. Please don’t turn down my invitation.”
“…Do you know who I am?”
“Of course.”
My love, my light, my everything.
After endlessly remembering the fading image of Leonard from her past, now that he was in front of her, she couldn’t hold back the excitement.
Irenea held back a loud laugh and made a silent promise:
I promise—I’ll never leave you behind again.
The promise you once broke… this time, I’ll make sure you keep it.
A few days later…
“I met him, Kiri! I finally met him!”
She burst open the carriage door, and Kiri, calmly reading papers, nodded.
He seemed a little cold, but there was a soft smile on his face.
“Lady Sellen just gave me the paperwork. A formal suit has already been ordered in Count Elphios’ size at a men’s tailor.”
“Really? Let me see!”
Irenea rushed into the carriage, tossed off her bonnet, and shook her head like she was trying to clear her thoughts.
She didn’t even notice her hair sticking to her face from sweat. Her eyes darted across the documents Kiri handed her.
Kiri, meanwhile, closed the carriage door and knocked on the wall to signal the driver to depart.
“Ivy Street, building number 12…”
As she repeated the address a few times, Irenea frowned slightly.
“Isn’t the cost of staying in that area around 5,000 Lark a night?”
“Yes, around that much.”
For reference, a standard room at a noble-class hotel on Velvet Street costs about 100,000 Lark a night.
The suites she usually stays in start at 1 million Lark a night.
For a moment, the price gap made her dizzy. But then she remembered how, when she was a mercenary, her lodging cost about 5,000 Lark too, and she nodded.
“Still, most nobles would stay on Velvet Street…”
But then again, Leonard was never one to care about appearances.
Besides, he was in the capital now to earn money to pay off a huge debt—30 million Lark in total with interest.
It was a gambling debt left by his father, the previous Count Elphios.
To repay it, he hid his identity and worked as a mercenary. He couldn’t be a mercenary openly as a noble.
He had to start over as a rookie, taking only dangerous jobs that no one else wanted, barely earning enough for interest.
Then, after he made a name for himself in the Weinberg Forest…
The creditor suddenly demanded full repayment.
And if he couldn’t, they threatened to take his sister as a bride for their son.
Given his situation, saving every penny made sense. Still…
I want to put him in the best suite at the best hotel with every luxury…!
But for now, she had to hold back.
They’d only just met again.
Just wait. No matter what, I’ll make you happy.
Pushing aside her frustration, Irenea went back to reading all the documents about Leonard.
Then she saw it—the item she had asked Kiri to watch for was listed in the upcoming auction.
“It’s in. That sword’s up for auction too.”
Remembering the story Leonard once told her, Irenea gave Kiri a task.
“I have to attend that auction. Get me the catalog. And also…”
Kiri looked surprised at the rest of her instructions but soon nodded with loyalty.
Two weeks later, at the ball.
“Is he here yet? Did he arrive?”
“Please calm down, my lady. That’s the 20th time you’ve asked…”
Emily, the maid helping her dress, looked exhausted.
But Irenea just looked confused.
“Why hasn’t he come if I’ve asked twenty times? Are you sure the carriage was sent?”
“You asked that twenty times too. Yes, it was sent. Now stop biting your lips or your makeup will be ruined.”
Emily motioned, and another maid rushed over with a tray full of cosmetics. She took out a red stain and pressed it against Irenea’s lips again.
Thanks to that, Irenea didn’t ask for the 21st time. But her eyes, anxiously darting toward the door, were just as loud.
Finally, a servant came running in with the news she had waited for.
“Count Elphios has arrived!”
“Really?!”
She gasped, making the paper on her lips flutter down. Emily caught it just in time, saving her white dress from a red stain.
While Emily sighed in relief, Irenea fussed in front of the mirror.
“How do I look? Am I pretty? Will he fall in love at first sight?”
“Of course. If he doesn’t, he must be blind and should be taken to the hospital.”
“Don’t worry. His eyesight is perfect.”
After fixing her dress one last time, Emily clapped her hands, directing the maids to line up near the parlor wall.
And finally—
“Count Elphios has arrived.”
The doors to the parlor opened, and the man Irenea had been waiting for so long stepped in.
Her eyes followed his every move, unable to look away.
Ah…
Ray, my love.
A blissful sigh escaped Irenea’s lips.
Everyone in the room—except her and the slightly nervous Leonard—could tell.
She was the one who had fallen at first sight.
“Ahem.”
If not for Emily’s loud cough, she might’ve kept staring like that.
Grateful, Irenea gave Emily a thankful glance, and Emily smiled back.
“Thank you for coming, Sir Leonard.”
Thankfully, her voice didn’t tremble.
Holding her skirt with both hands, she curtsied and met Leonard’s eyes, doing her best to maintain her composure.
His neatly combed golden hair looked like waves in a golden wheat field. His broad forehead gave him a strong, manly look.
His deep brows and long lashes framed those glowing red eyes—like blazing flames full of life.
Kiri and Hawk often joked that she was like a moth to a flame. And Irenea had to admit it.
Because otherwise, there’s no way she’d feel such a strong urge to leap into those burning eyes.
