Chapter 10
The forest belonging to such a prestigious noble house was every bit as vast as Cecilia had claimed.
Warm spring sunlight streamed through the dense canopy, casting dancing shadows across the back of Eliana’s hand. She knew there was no chance of finding a Litberry in this season, yet she kept walking anyway—with no destination, no purpose.
Whenever a pleasant breeze brushed against her skin, she followed it.
Whenever birdsong echoed from somewhere in the woods, she drifted toward the sound.
Eventually, the endless trees gave way to a wide meadow. Mesmerized by the open landscape that seemed to free even her suffocating heart, she wandered onward until she found herself standing at the edge of a steep cliff.
It wasn’t that she was unbearably miserable.
It wasn’t that she was drowning in despair.
The spring sunshine was simply too gentle.
The clouds drifting overhead looked impossibly soft.
The breeze carried the sweet fragrance of blooming flowers.
Perhaps that was why…
For one fleeting moment, she thought it might be all right to take one more step.
Even if she disappeared like a speck of dust, the world would remain this beautiful.
Maybe… that would be enough.
Crack.
The sudden snap of a branch shattered the silence.
Startled, Eliana spun toward the sound.
A man was standing there, watching her.
He looked as though he had walked straight out of a battlefield. His armor was splattered with blood, staining the steel in chaotic crimson streaks.
She had no idea how long he had been standing there.
The shock stole even her scream.
The man glanced down at the cliff below, where she had been staring moments earlier.
Then his gaze slowly returned to her.
The instant their eyes met, she froze.
It felt as though she were staring into an abyss that no human should ever look upon.
She couldn’t tear her eyes away from those dark crimson irises.
“W-Who… are you…?”
Swallowing nervously, Eliana managed to ask.
He gave no answer.
The breeze tousled his dark hair before brushing gently against her cheek.
After silently studying her for what felt like an eternity, the man let out a quiet sigh.
Then he simply turned around and disappeared into the forest.
Eliana stood there for a long time, watching his retreating figure.
Finally, she shook her head.
It felt as though she’d seen a mirage.
Still, the strange encounter had snapped her back to reality. Picking up the empty basket lying at her feet, she prepared to head back.
Just imagining the scolding Cecilia would unleash made her stomach sink.
But regardless…
She had to return.
Not knowing how far she had wandered from the estate, she decided to retrace her steps.
If I turn right at that giant robur tree…
Seeing the enormous tree she distinctly remembered, she quickened her pace, convinced she’d soon find her way back.
Then…
A faint sound drifted through the woods behind her.
Splash.
Something heavy had fallen into water.
It seemed to have come from the lake she’d passed earlier.
Without warning, the image of the blood-covered man flashed through her mind.
His armor had been soaked in blood.
No… surely not.
He looked perfectly capable of walking…
Even so…
Her feet were already carrying her toward the lake.
By the time Eliana reached it, she was gasping for breath.
She frantically searched the quiet shoreline.
Nothing.
Not even a single bird.
Only the occasional breeze rippled the otherwise peaceful surface.
Did I imagine it?
Just as she turned to leave—
Something glittered across the lake.
Squinting into the sunlight, she realized what it was.
Silver armor.
Scattered carelessly on the shore.
The armor was there.
Its owner wasn’t.
“Hello! Are you there?!”
Her desperate shout echoed over the lake.
There was no reply.
Not even a bubble disturbed the calm water.
Before she could think twice, she threw herself into the lake.
Beneath the swirling foam, she found him.
His jet-black hair floated gently with the current.
His eyes were closed.
He looked as though he were peacefully asleep beneath the water.
Without hesitation, she swam toward him.
As she reached him, his eyelids slowly lifted.
Their eyes met beneath the crystal-clear water.
For a single endless moment…
Time itself seemed to stop.
Entranced by the strange feeling, Eliana hesitated only briefly before grabbing his thick forearm—easily twice the size of her own arm—with all her strength.
She pulled.
She didn’t know where the strength came from.
Even she couldn’t believe it.
Yet somehow…
She managed to drag them both safely onto shore.
“A-Are you all right?”
Still coughing violently as she spat out lake water, Eliana asked between ragged breaths.
The man coughed for a long while himself before finally speaking in a rough, hoarse voice.
“…What are you?”
Eliana blinked.
“…What?”
“I asked what you are. Didn’t you hear me?”
“No, I… You fainted in the lake, so I—”
She stopped mid-sentence.
For someone who had just escaped death…
His face was unbelievably calm.
So calm that she briefly wondered if she had misunderstood everything.
But she quickly dismissed the thought.
No one could stay underwater that long.
Besides…
His armor had been drenched in blood.
“If I’d left you there… you would have died.”
After calming herself, she spoke as evenly as she could.
The man simply stared at her with the same unreadable expression.
Eliana was dumbfounded.
She hadn’t rescued him expecting anything in return.
Still…
Wasn’t a simple “thank you” common courtesy?
Not wanting to stay any longer than necessary, she squeezed the water from her hair and stood.
With a small sigh, she turned to leave for the forest.
Then his low voice stopped her.
“So you’re willing to save a stranger…”
“…but not yourself?”
Eliana whipped around, glaring at him as though he’d just uttered complete nonsense.
“What are you talking about?”
“The cliff.”
He spoke matter-of-factly.
“You were one step away from jumping.”
A brief pause.
“Though I suppose you couldn’t go through with it.”
The moment she understood what he meant, Eliana’s face flushed scarlet.
It felt as though a complete stranger had uncovered the most shameful corner of her heart.
She wanted to disappear from sheer embarrassment.
Meanwhile, the man remained perfectly indifferent as he calmly gathered his scattered armor.
“That’s none of your business.”
“I never said it was.”
“What is that supposed to— Ah!”
Before she could finish, something flew through the air and landed over her head.
A hooded cloak.
Her vision disappeared beneath the heavy fabric.
“Getting angry in those clothes isn’t going to help much.”
His words made her finally realize it.
Her cream-colored early summer dress was completely soaked, clinging tightly to every curve of her body.
Mortified, she hurriedly wrapped the cloak around herself and turned away.
But there was no hiding the face that had turned so red it felt ready to burst.
“And…”
His quiet voice reached her once more.
“…You could have left me there. It wouldn’t have mattered.”
Eliana clenched the cloak tightly in her fists.
She shot him one last glare.
Before he could say anything else, she hurried into the forest.
The man watched her small figure disappear among the trees.
Then, expressionless once again, he resumed collecting his armor.
The sticky blood of the monsters coating the steel had already been washed away without leaving a trace.
It wasn’t until a few moments later that the first crack appeared in his impassive expression.
As he reached for a gauntlet, his hand stopped.
His gaze fixed on a tiny bloodstain.
Drip.
A drop of blood landed on the silver gauntlet.
Fresh blood trickled from his wrist, running slowly down his fingers.
His face was no longer expressionless.
Like a man whose world had suddenly broken, he simply stared at the wound without wiping away the blood.
Clear nail marks were etched into his skin.
That woman…
His dark crimson eyes sank into an even deeper silence.
The place where she’d stood moments ago held nothing but damp footprints.
Eliana never learned that after she left, the man searched the forest in pursuit of her trail.
To her, it had simply been a strange, bewildering encounter.
Nothing more.
She returned to the estate, where Cecilia was undoubtedly waiting.
That had happened a full year ago.
She had never learned who the man was or where he’d come from, and before long, the memory faded away.
Besides…
After secretly taking Eliana out that day, Cecilia had been punished by their father with a month-long ban from leaving the estate.
Cecilia, naturally, directed every ounce of her resentment at Eliana.
A month of relentless torment buried the memories of the cliff, the lake, and that mysterious man beneath layers of suffering.
And yet…
Now, that very same man had suddenly appeared before her.
Holding the marriage contract she had crumpled up and thrown away.
Signed with the name:
Tristan Carlisle.
“…Ha…”
“If you’re trying to make the ground collapse with your sighs, you’ll need a few more.”
She looked up.
Tristan was leaning casually against the doorway.
Tall.
Broad-shouldered.
His powerful frame, long arms, and long legs were balanced with almost unsettling perfection.
Recalling the innkeeper’s description—“that absurdly well-built lord”—Eliana forced herself to remain composed.
“Shouldn’t you knock before entering someone’s room?”
“I did.”
His lips curved ever so slightly.
“You didn’t seem to hear.”
Embarrassed, Eliana cleared her throat twice.
Meanwhile, Tristan walked into the room as though he belonged there and took a seat beside the fireplace.
“Feeling better?”
He glanced at her.
“I heard you finished every bite of your meal. You’re recovering faster than expected.”
His tone remained calm.
“We’ll leave early tomorrow morning.”
“…For Carlisle?”
“For Carlisle.”
He paused.
“But before that…”
He gestured toward something.
She didn’t even need to follow his gaze.
She already knew.
The marriage contract.
“I’d like you to finish signing it.”
His eyes met hers.
“Assuming you aren’t planning to run away again.”
“W-Wait… just a moment.”
Eliana’s voice rose in panic.
Everything happening to her already felt impossibly confusing.
But this…
This was the one thing she understood least.
“So…”
She looked at him in disbelief.
“It was true?”
She hesitated before asking the question.
“The one who proposed this marriage first… was really…”
Tristan frowned slightly.
As though he couldn’t understand why she was even asking.
His reaction only made Eliana’s thoughts grow even more tangled.
