Chapter 67
Fulfilling the Promise
“Did you run into a bear or something? Play dead.”
“…Leon?”
Even the teasing tone was such a welcome sound, it nearly made me cry. I quickly turned around.
Under the pouring moonlight, the silhouette of a man as dark as the night sky came into view.
“Yeah, it’s me. Can you stand?”
“Ah, huh…”
Maybe because the tension suddenly drained from my body, the pain I had forgotten about all came rushing back at once.
I pushed against the ground and barely managed to sit up, then looked up at him again.
It was the dead of night with not a single source of light, so I couldn’t see him clearly—but I knew it was Leon just from his dark silhouette.
“Take my hand.”
He bent low and reached out to me.
I tried my best to put strength in my legs, but I couldn’t stand.
So I raised my torso as much as I could and stretched out my hand toward him.
Just a little more.
My trembling fingers reached toward him desperately, barely brushing his.
He did the same.
Even with all his effort, our hands didn’t quite touch, so he leaned down until he was nearly falling.
Finally, our hands met, and he grabbed my wrist and pulled me up like uprooting a radish.
I was now sitting with my legs dangling through the open doorway, and those vivid blue eyes looked at me with a bright smile—
As if we’d just run into each other by chance on the street.
“Hey, Sienna.”
“…Hey, Leon.”
“Are you that happy to see me? Why are you crying?”
He wiped away the tears I hadn’t even realized were falling with his large, calloused hand.
His sword-worn hand felt warm and comforting, like the softest reassurance, and before I could stop myself, I grabbed it and buried my face in his palm.
Startled, he paused—but then he offered me his broad chest to lean on.
He even gave me gentle pats, as if to soothe me.
“It’s okay now, Sienna. It’s okay.”
That low, quiet voice ringing in my ear settled softly on my head.
As soon as we got home, I ran upstairs and came back down holding the Imperial Seal and The Crimson Rose of the Valley—both carefully hidden until now.
Leon was on the floor, furiously rubbing Leonardo’s belly, which had flipped upside down.
“Leon. Come here for a sec.”
“What is it?”
He sat Leonardo up and came over.
Leonardo trailed behind him, waddling along.
“I have something to give you.”
“Hm?”
Leon took the book and the worn cloth pouch from my outstretched hands, looking puzzled.
He flipped through the book first, and his expression changed.
When he opened the cloth pouch, his face grew even colder.
“Where did you get these?”
“The Imperial Seal—I found it with Leonardo at His Majesty’s request. And the book—I came across it at Countess Charat’s ball. I stole it.”
“Sienna…”
His voice, heavy with a sigh, turned stern.
“I told you not to do anything dangerous. Why don’t you ever listen?”
“It just turned out that way. Will it help you, though?”
I’d originally kept them to use at the right moment to quickly raise Leon’s affection level.
Also, they were a way to win the trust of Eugene, who still clearly didn’t like me.
But after tonight’s attack, my mind changed.
If the Marquess of Pites came after me again or tried to search the house for the ledgers, there was a risk the seal could be taken.
So I figured I’d better give it to Leon as soon as possible.
The Crimson Rose of the Valley seemed to be a code of some sort. I’d tried my best to decipher it, but I hadn’t succeeded. And the seal…
The emperor had only asked me to find it—not to whom I should give it.
Handing it over to Leon was entirely my decision.
“I’ll come up with an excuse for His Majesty.”
Who knows when he’d come to his senses again enough for us to even have a conversation.
If he asked for the seal, it might break the trust I’d earned through that mission—but I didn’t care.
More important to me than the bedridden emperor, clinging to his seat and manipulated by the government, was the trust of the man in front of me.
Still, Leon looked deeply displeased.
“Why the face? Is it not that important?”
“No, it is important… But is this what tonight’s attack was about?”
“Probably.”
“Sigh… Sienna.”
If I left him alone, he’d probably let out a full lecture, so I quickly got up from my seat.
“I’m hungry. Shall we eat?”
“You haven’t eaten until now?”
“I’ve been fiercely cheering for the future of a promising young man.”
“…What?”
It was absurd, but still, Leon stood and followed me.
When he stood in front of the sink, the already cramped kitchen felt even smaller.
“Sit down. I’ll cook.”
“Really? Thank goodness. I didn’t want to lift a finger—wait! No, don’t! Stop!”
Something suddenly struck me, and I grabbed his arm with all my might.
It was because of the promise I’d made to the empress—his mother.
A promise with a ghost, a dead person—it felt like a dying wish, and I had the sense that something terrible would happen if I didn’t honor it.
“It’s fine, Sienna. Cooking’s a hobby, remember? Besides, I bought a new kitchen knife.”
“…You didn’t forget.”
“Of course not.”
So annoyingly dependable.
He laid the newly purchased knife—its blade visibly sharp—on the cutting board.
“If I hadn’t come to bring this today, you’d probably be dragged off somewhere by now.”
“Ah… thank you. I owe you again.”
“Then sit down and behave. Don’t get in the way of my fun.”
He started to head toward the pantry, but I grabbed him again.
He gave me a puzzled look, like he was thinking, “What’s with you today? You usually just accept it and eat shamelessly.”
“Let me cook today.”
“Why are you being so stubborn?”
“I made a promise. That I wouldn’t let you touch water.”
“To who?”
Oops. It slipped out.
I hadn’t told him until now, afraid he’d take it the wrong way—either that I was making it up or being insensitive about the tragic accident that had taken his mother.
Leon’s blue eyes urged me for an answer, and I stiffly attempted to leave the kitchen like a broken marionette.
“Oh dear, did we even have anything to eat? Should I go dig up some potatoes or onions from the garden?”
“Don’t change the subject.”
“P-put the knife down first.”
“Ah.”
Leon lowered the knife back onto the cutting board and added that he hadn’t meant to scare me.
“Now talk.”
“Will you believe me if I do?”
“I’ll listen first.”
He leaned back slightly and grabbed the sink behind him, standing at an angle.
He clearly assumed I was talking about Joshua or Eugene—something trivial.
“Um, I made a promise to the late Empress Elizabette.”
“…”
I explained how I’d encountered her while searching the Empress’s palace with Leonardo for the seal.
As I spoke, his expression gradually darkened—so visibly that I swallowed hard between sentences.
This was exactly why I hadn’t wanted to tell him.
“You don’t believe me, do you? I figured.”
As I dropped my head, crestfallen, Leon turned away for a moment, gathering his emotions.
When he looked back at me again, he wore the usual mischievous smile.
It didn’t feel like full belief—but it wasn’t full disbelief either.
“So? What else did she say?”
“She… actually asked me to pass something on…”
“What was it?”
It wasn’t just words—it came with an action, and that made it harder.
This was all my fault.
I’d blabbed like I was in a grand romance instead of a fake engagement.
“She wanted me to do something. Please don’t get upset.”
“What is it?”
With a deep breath to settle my nerves, I reached out my hand and gently stroked Leon’s head.
As softly and kindly as I could—like his mother must have done.
His silky black hair slid between my fingers, and below it, his wide, startled blue eyes—so much like Empress Elizabette’s—trembled beautifully.
“I always wondered how you would’ve grown up. Thank you for growing up so well, Aiden.”
“…”
“Do you remember the story of the mischievous god Hessen? The one I used to read to you before bed?”
