"It's cold…"
The words slipped from my lips in a quiet murmur, breath curling in pale mist as I stared blankly at the gray sky above.
It was nearly noon now, yet the sun was nowhere to be found—hidden behind layers of thick, wintry clouds.
Snow continued to fall in gentle waves, blanketing the world in white, erasing color, sound, and warmth.
I sat on both knees, perfectly still, as snow slowly gathered around like an offering to so miserable god of sha.
My arms were stretched forward in apology posture—palms open, posture stiff, and pride long since buried under the frozen ground beneath .
Floating lazily beside , Lavine tilted her head, her voice laced with teasing amusent.
"Master, you sure have a weird way of enjoying pain. Fufu~"
"I'm not enjoying this,"
She giggled, thoroughly entertained.
"Sure doesn't look like it from here. I'm starting to think you like being scolded by beautiful won."
I chose not to dignify that with an answer. Instead, I focused on the cold stinging my knees and the fact that my fingers were starting to go numb.
It had been a few hours now since I gave Mom and Gramps a "slightly edited" explanation regarding my relationship with the girls.
To their credit, they took it… better than expected.
Gramps just laughed and mumbled sothing about youth being a battlefield, then shuffled off to the back garden to take a nap like nothing had happened.
I guess dad managed to get through his thick skull, with their banter earlier this morning…
Mom, however…
Well, let's just say that "understanding" and "forgiving" were two very different things.
Despite nodding along to my story and even showing sympathy for the complicated ss I was in, she still punished .
Not because I was dishonest.
Not because I was tactless.
But because, in her words, I was a lecherous, disloyal little brat who needed to learn the value of commitnt—or at the very least, not flaunt his emotional recklessness like so kind of proud peacock in front of a fireplace.
Her words, not mine.
I had a feeling part of her anger wasn't even entirely directed at .
No, it probably had more to do with the fact that she'd grown quite fond of Liyana over the past few weeks.
Those two had started bonding probably while I was away from the academy last year to now.
And considering Mom's own past with Dad… yeah.
I could see how watching spiral into the beginnings of a polygamous tangle might stir up old wounds.
Maybe she wanted better for .
Or maybe she just wanted to be loyal to Liyana.
Either way, the damage was done.
And now, here I was, kneeling in the snow like a repentant monk while Lavine made it her mission to poke fun at every little shiver and flinch I made.
"When are you going to get out of this punishnt, Master?"
Lavine's voice floated in from above, lazy and half-amused as always.
She circled slowly in the air like a bored butterfly, her ethereal wings catching the pale winter light.
"Probably until late afternoon…" I muttered, shifting a little on my knees to get the blood flowing back into my legs. "Why? Do you want to go sowhere again?"
"No, it's just that… it's boring exploring without you around," she pouted, arms crossed as she hovered in front of . "No one else answers my questions. Not even the spirits. It's like they're all pretending not to see ."
"So, you just wanted a walking encyclopedia to tag along."
"Exactly," she said with a proud little nod.
I sighed. "Anyways… earlier, didn't you say sothing about a weird mana influx or sothing?"
"Oh, that?" Lavine tilted her head thoughtfully. "It was nothing major. I just saw a few peculiar-looking spirits lurking around. Their shapes were odd—flickering, unstable. Not like the ones we usually see."
"Hmm…"
"Other than that," she continued, "I just wandered around your hotown a little. I couldn't get too far, though. Our link limits my range. I tried pushing it a bit but started feeling woozy after a few kiloters."
I nodded slowly, still kneeling as snowflakes clung to my hair. "I see… well, if you're bored, why don't you go explore Han City for a while? Take as much mana as you want."
Her eyes sparkled. "R-Really!??"
"Yeah."
"Well then—don't mind if I do!"
Before I could even react, she zipped toward in a blur of glowing light and laughter.
With a tap of her finger against my forehead, I felt a sudden rush of dizziness as my mana swirled and drained into her—like water rushing out of a cracked dam.
"Whew~ that should be enough to last a few hours!" she giggled. "I'll co back later with so interesting stories, Master. Off to adventure I go!"
With a dramatic spin, she shot into the sky like a cot, her shimring silhouette vanishing into the wintry clouds. I watched her disappear with a faint smile.
"I guess… she's more excited than she lets on."
The cold wind howled gently through the empty street. Snowflakes kept falling.
And I was still stuck kneeling on the ground, my mana mostly gone, and now with a half-empty energy reserve to boot.
Closing my eyes, I let my thoughts drift.
There wasn't much else to do while kneeling in the snow like this, so I figured I might as well use the ti to think through my future plans.
Later on, when I et the Duke, I should probably explain that Alice and I… well, we've made things official a while ago.
I don't know how he'll react.
Honestly, I'm not even sure if I'm ready to face him head on I'm not that thick skinned Afterall...
But since he more or less accepted my explanation back at the imperial palace when it ca to Snow and Rose… maybe he'll understand this too.
…Hopefully.
Still, that wasn't the only thing gnawing at the back of my mind.
Liyana.
As comforting and sweet as she's been lately, there's a part of —one that knows her too well—that keeps whispering that sothing isn't right.
Because if we're talking about that Liyana… the real her… there's no way she'd take this whole situation so calmly.
Not with a smile. Not without saying sothing sharp.
And definitely not while pretending like she's completely okay with everything.
Even though we practically lived together through our childhood, even now I can barely see through her lies.
That, in itself, was terrifying.
She was unpredictable.
A whimsical, volatile force that couldn't be reasoned with through logic alone.
A loose cannon with a smile that masked too much.
There's no way I can just leave her be—not without taking so kind of precaution.
But still… as long as I'm here, I'll try. I'll try to make her understand. Or at the very least, I'll do my best to make her happy.
That's the least I can do for her.
I sighed and let out a puff of white smoke into the frozen air.
The breath curled and vanished like mist, fading away just like the warmth in my limbs.
And then there was him.
Now that I'm back, I should probably prepare for a certain old geezer's arrival.
He'll probably show up tomorrow or the day after, if my guess is right.
Ti passed slowly, and by the ti late afternoon rolled around, the snowfall had thinned into a quiet flurry.
My limbs were stiff from the cold, but I forced myself up with a sigh, brushing the snow off my knees.
"Now then… I better get going before sothing unexpected happens again—"
"What are you doing, darling?"
"W-Whoa!"
Startled by the sudden, familiar voice behind , my foot slipped, and I fell forward face-first into the snow with a heavy thud.
My face was buried in the cold white fluff, but the soft sound of stifled laughter reached my ears from behind.
"Fufufu~ I guess even darling can have so embarrassing monts of his own," she teased. "I was starting to think nothing could ever make you stumble, what with all your cool and composed little acts lately. Hehe~"
I groaned, pushing myself up with half-frozen arms, my cheeks burning from more than just the cold.
My voice ca out in a flustered mumble.
"…Liyana?"
She stood there—no, squatted beside now—with her usual palette of white and red.
Her pale white cloak fluffed around her like a cloud, a parasol-shaped umbrella shielding us both from the falling snow.
Underneath, she wore a delicate white dress that shimred faintly in the cold light.
She gently dusted snow off my head with her gloved hand, her scarlet eyes soft as she leaned closer to et my gaze.
"Why are you out here all alone, darling?"
"…I should be asking you that," I muttered, still half in disbelief.
Why was she here?
Since when?
And more importantly… why didn't I notice her at all until just now?
I squinted up at her, but she only smiled, humming a short playful tune.
"Hehe~"
"…What are you laughing at?"
"Nothing," she said, her smile widening. "It's just kind of cute, seeing you like this. You're acting more like how you used to, back then. You seed different yesterday when we went out together… colder, a bit distant. Expressionless, maybe? Like your heart was tucked away behind a wall."
She paused, her gaze turning thoughtful.
"But now, seeing this troubled little look on your face—like you're really thinking hard about sothing—it makes feel relieved. That's the darling I rember."
She tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, her voice softening into sothing quieter, warr.
"I was a little worried, you know… That maybe I wouldn't recognize you anymore."
My breath caught.
Was that… concern? Real concern?
From her?
No more importantly why am I feeling this way right now…?
-Thump…!
Shit… sothing was clearly wrong…
Standing up with graceful ease, she extended her hand toward .
I hesitated for a second before taking it, and with surprising strength, she pulled to my feet.
As I dusted off what snow I could, she gently helped brush off the bits clinging stubbornly to my coat, her gloved fingers careful and thodical.
"Your clothes are a slight ss now," she remarked, inspecting like a worried housewife. "You should really be more careful, you know, darling. I understand you've gotten stronger recently—but even the strongest people aren't immune to the cold's effects. Trust , papa turns into a complete log whenever he catches one."
"…So even the strongest knight in the world can fall victim to a common cold?"
"Hehehe~ Unexpected, right?" She twirled slightly on her heel, the edges of her cloak fluttering. "Though… I do have my suspicions. I think father lets himself get sick on purpose sotis, just so I'll stay by his side and fuss over him."
She leaned closer, putting a finger to her lips like she was letting in on a deep secret.
"But don't tell him I told you, okay?"
"…Sure," I replied, trying not to smile.
This girl... after everything that happened yesterday,
I thought I was getting used to her unpredictability.
But now, seeing her in the soft white of winter—lively, lovely, and completely unfazed—it made feel strangely... uneasy.
Not in a bad way. Just uncertain.
It was like she could casually pull the rug out from under every plan I had without even trying.
And knowing her, she probably would. On a whim.
"So, Liyana," I asked cautiously, "why are you here?"
"Hm?" She tilted her head, her umbrella shifting slightly with her movent. "Do I need a reason to visit you, darling~?"
"…No, not really. It was just surprising to see you here all of a sudden, that's all. Did you already et my mom and dad?"
"Oh, I haven't yet," she replied cheerfully. "I teleported straight to your location a little while ago. You looked deep in thought, and I didn't want to interrupt you. I figured you were ditating or sothing... though now that I think about it, why were you kneeling in the snow like that, darling?"
"…Just a light punishnt. From Mom."
Her eyes widened slightly, before narrowing with amusent.
"Mother punished you?" she said with a teasing smile. "Fufu~ I guess you were being a bad boy."
…I an, that wasn't exactly wrong.
User Comments
0 comments from readers