Chapter 55
“Why Aren’t You Asking?”
Roitz pulled frozen Serdin closer into his arms as he looked outside.
“Where did they go? If we get caught, we’ll be in trouble.”
He could hear the guard scratching his head and mumbling as he walked around.
While checking outside, Roitz glanced down at Serdin.
She didn’t move at all, her face still pressed against his shoulder.
Roitz had come here earlier to advise on the security arrangements for tomorrow’s charity ball.
But when he was about to leave, he saw a flash of reddish-pink hair disappear down the alley.
‘Serdin?’
The way Serdin’s hair fluttered in the wind was different from others.
Yes, many people had reddish hair, but hers was softer, like clouds, like cotton candy…
It was hard to explain, but Roitz knew it was different.
‘Why is Serdin here?’
His eyes stayed fixed on the spot where she disappeared.
“Shall we go, young master?”
The attendant opened the carriage door in front of the temple’s prayer hall.
Roitz raised his hand to stop him.
“Wait.”
He immediately ran in the direction Serdin had gone.
And then he saw her coming out of the Holy Artifact Storage, which led to this situation now.
The guard’s footsteps eventually faded away.
Serdin stayed still, clutching the hem of Roitz’s clothes tightly.
She didn’t lift her head, didn’t even release the breath he had told her to hold.
“They’re gone.”
“…Haa.”
Only then did Serdin finally let out a long breath.
But her forehead still rested on Roitz’s shoulder.
What was going on?
Recently, Serdin seemed to be doing a lot of things on her own.
She would disappear somewhere alone after missions. She was always reading something in the library.
But why the Holy Artifact Storage?
And at night, avoiding the guard’s eyes?
Serdin slowly lifted her eyes.
Peeking up, her round green eyes looked at him, her nose still buried in his shirt.
“…”
Seeing those eyes, Roitz was dazed for a moment, unable to think.
They were too close.
No, it wasn’t just close—they were practically hugging.
Her warm breath brushed against his skin, and if she lifted her head just a bit more, their faces would touch.
Roitz forced away the unnecessary thoughts swirling in his mind and said,
“It’s quite a late night, Serdin.”
At his words, Serdin lowered her eyes and gripped his shirt even tighter.
“It’s quite a late night, Serdin.”
His low voice carried so many unspoken meanings.
“…”
I dropped my gaze from Roitz’s eyes. My widened eyes didn’t even dare to blink.
The guard’s footsteps had faded, but…
Maybe this situation was worse than being caught by the guard.
‘Why is Roitz here…?’
I couldn’t stop thinking like a guilty person.
‘I wish I could go back five minutes.’
I bit my lip without answering and looked up at Roitz’s eyes.
I wanted to read his thoughts, but it wasn’t easy.
When Roitz was deep in thought, his emotions never showed.
‘He must think I’m suspicious. Strange, even.’
Why did it have to be him I ran into?
I lowered my gaze again.
My worries seemed to move into my hands, and I gripped the hem of his shirt even tighter.
I was squeezing so hard it felt like I might tear through the fabric. I didn’t know if I was holding onto my own heartbeat or his shirt.
“…Um.”
When I peeked up again, Roitz was still staring at me.
I opened my mouth but had no idea what to say.
My heart was pounding even harder than when I’d run into the guard.
Is this how it was supposed to be? The more complicated my thoughts got, the harder my heart pounded?
I lowered my gaze again.
I had to say something, but I kept just moving my eyes up and down.
‘What do I do now? What do I say?’
It was hard to lie, hard to bluff. Especially in front of Roitz.
A heavy silence passed.
‘Roitz must be frustrated too. I’m just looking up, then down, saying nothing!’
I scolded myself, but that didn’t mean I had any words to say.
‘How can I explain this?’
I couldn’t exactly tell him the truth: I came to steal something. The Dagger of Light. To kill the beast inside your body.
“Let’s get out of here. It’s too cramped.”
Roitz released the hand that was holding me and gestured toward the outside.
I didn’t even have space to nod, so I only blinked.
“…”
I stepped out of the narrow space first, and Roitz followed behind me.
As I caught my breath, I glanced at him.
He just straightened my messy collar and walked ahead.
Should I follow him?
Or should we go our separate ways?
Neither option felt right.
“Are you going to stand there forever?”
“Ah, no.”
Roitz decided for me.
I answered instinctively and followed after him.
We walked silently.
Only the sound of our mismatched footsteps filled the air.
‘What is this feeling?’
It felt… uncomfortable.
Usually, our conversations were light, trivial. But now there was only silence.
A silence that filled my head with unspoken thoughts.
‘…Why isn’t he asking? He caught me here, at night, in a suspicious situation. But he’s not asking anything?’
Roitz was someone who valued honesty.
He didn’t like lies, regardless of whether he agreed with the action itself.
I looked at him from the side. He was walking forward, eyes fixed ahead.
I still couldn’t read his thoughts.
‘Should I just tell him the truth?’
Would that be better?
But then… how much would I tell him?
If I said I came for the Dagger of Light, he would question its purpose.
And that dagger was used to kill summoned beasts.
‘Should I tell Roitz about my plan now?’
Tell him that his beast was dangerous and I planned to kill it?
‘But…’
Would he accept that?
To convince him, I’d need a reason much stronger than a vague “your beast might kill me someday.”
He wouldn’t easily agree to a plan that involved killing Velkyrente’s treasured weapon and Elche’s sword.
‘But this looks too suspicious.’
Being at the Holy Artifact Storage at night… what must Roitz be thinking of me?
Even I looked suspicious to myself.
My head was pounding from all the tangled thoughts.
But seriously, why wasn’t Roitz asking me anything?
As we walked, the question grew larger and larger in my head.
Finally, I stopped in my tracks and called out to him.
“Sunbae.”
“Why.”
“Aren’t you going to ask me?”
I didn’t know if I was feeling guilty, but my voice came out sharper than I intended.
“Aren’t you going to ask what I was doing? Why aren’t you asking me?”
He’d seen me running out of the Holy Artifact Storage, being chased by the guard. He had to know the situation looked suspicious.
If I were being rational, I’d be grateful he wasn’t asking.
But somehow, the fact that he was silent felt even worse.
Silence sometimes says more than words. And it makes you think even more.
“Hm?”
Was it because I was on edge from lack of sleep the past few days?
The more I thought about it, the more twisted my thoughts became. But I couldn’t stop.
“Just because.”
“There’s no such thing as ‘just because.’”
I grabbed Roitz’s arm and stared at him stubbornly.
Maybe it was because I couldn’t read him.
I had no idea what he was thinking about me right now.
Had he already given up on me? Was he refusing to hold on to me even if I tried?
All these thoughts and emotions churned in my head.
I knew it was showing on my face, but I was bad at hiding my feelings.
Especially in front of Roitz, who could read me so well.
“Serdin.”
Roitz looked at me quietly, then finally opened his mouth.
Seeing the stubborn look on my face, he must have decided it was better to say something.
But the moment I heard his answer, I regretted asking for an explanation.
