Chapter 65
The fiancé trusted by the adults was actually trash.
His friends who hung out with him were the same.
The day they gang-raped her and left.
She became Medusa. And she turned her fiancé into stone first.
Her shadow reflected in the moonlight writhed just like a snake.
* * *
That day, Michael, who attended the dinner, doubted his eyes.
“Try this too.”
It was because the Duke of Crencia, famous for being blunt, was personally cutting meat and feeding it into Reina’s mouth.
Even more surprising was Reina, who looked quite accustomed to it.
She calmly accepted the meat he gave her.
“It’s delicious.”
“Right? I instructed them to grill it to the doneness you like. You like it a bit undercooked, don’t you?”
“How did you know that?”
“I’m more interested in you than you think. You know that, right?”
At Kaiden’s nonchalant words, Reina’s cheeks flushed.
To anyone, it looked like a couple sprinkling sesame seeds.
‘Could it really be that they married just for love?’
At the unbelievable sight, Michael completely lost his appetite.
This was truly unexpected.
“Ahem.”
When Michael cleared his throat, only then did Kaiden’s gaze turn to him.
“Does the food suit your taste?”
“Yes. The food in the north is warm, so it’s comfortable for the stomach.”
“When do you plan to leave?”
Even at the attitude as if telling him to leave as soon as he arrived, Michael gave a polite smile.
“Since the entourage is tired, I’d like to rest a few more days before going.”
It meant he had no intention of leaving yet.
Since it was already expected, Kaiden didn’t add any further words.
At that moment, Michael said.
“I heard you had urgent business, is it perhaps related to monsters?”
At the probing question, Kaiden smirked.
“Come to think of it, you probably haven’t seen monsters before.”
“The capital of the empire is a peaceful city. If you need help from the Fromm family, please contact me anytime. As the husband of the princess, I will help as much as I can.”
The Fromm territory was located inside the empire, so the risk of monsters was relatively low.
He heard they had a lot of sacred stone mines and frequent exchanges with the holy kingdom.
Kaiden mulled over Arteon’s words. It was a separate message he had given before leaving.
“I heard the delegation representative is the eldest son of the Fromm family. Keep a close eye on him. When investigating Jeffrey, that family often interfered.”
Perhaps he was someone who might know about Reina’s brother’s whereabouts.
It wouldn’t be bad to build a connection if possible.
“It just so happens that I needed sacred stones.”
“Sacred stones, you say?”
“There’s something to purify. I want to get them right away, is that possible?”
At Kaiden’s question, Michael responded positively.
“Of course. How many do you need?”
It was an enthusiastic attitude as if he had been waiting for this.
* * *
Upon checking, besides Gomel, there were cases of women or men missing in several villages.
Of course, it couldn’t be concluded that all of this was Medusa’s doing, so a large-scale confirmation was needed.
Reina issued a notice to hire additional servants at Crencia Castle to gather the women from the villages.
It was to ensure that the parties involved didn’t know this was related to monsters as much as possible.
Reina, who had been examining the women lined up one by one, shook her head.
“There’s none among these.”
It was already the umpteenth dead end.
At first, she met those who were suspicious, but there was no gain.
“How many people are left?”
“This was the last.”
At Celine’s words, Reina’s face became haggard.
“That’s strange. That can’t be.”
Could it be that it wasn’t a variant?
If so, that would be fortunate, but knowing the past, she couldn’t relax.
“Could you check again if anyone was missed by mistake?”
“Understood, madam.”
When Celine left, Reina let out a deep sigh.
Perhaps because she used too much power at once, her eyes were tired.
Rose perceptively handed her an ice pack.
“Thank you.”
Reina half-reclined on the sofa, closed her eyes, and applied the ice pack.
How much time had passed?
As she was about to doze off, she heard a presence.
“Is that you, Rose?”
“It’s me.”
At the familiar voice, Reina startled and raised her upper body.
Kaiden had come at some point and sat beside her.
“Rose came to me. She said you seem to be overdoing it.”
“Ah…….”
“You get tired when you use your power, right?”
Kaiden asked while touching her eye area.
It was a light touch, but somehow her insides tickled.
Reina quietly looked at him and said.
“This much is fine.”
“You always say it’s fine, so I don’t believe it at all.”
“But it’s true…….”
When Reina whined like a complaint, Kaiden chuckled.
She acted mature, but the occasional childlike side was adorable.
“Did the talk with Lord Michael end well?”
“The Fromm family is indeed different. Carrying that many sacred stones as travel expenses.”
“Since they didn’t use portals, they probably had more than usual.”
“As you said, I asked for everything they have. We might need a lot in the future.”
“You did well.”
When Reina smiled brightly, he gave a strange look.
“Just with words?”
“Huh?”
“You can’t skimp on praise with just words.”
At his attitude as if wanting something, Reina also became serious.
“Do you want something from me?”
At Reina’s question, Kaiden grinned.
“Give me some of your time. These past few days, you’ve been searching for the core and not even glancing at me.”
He scrunched his nose as if blaming her. Reina rolled her eyes with a dazed expression.
“That’s because I want to be of help to you somehow.”
“It doesn’t matter if you’re not helpful. As long as you’re by my side.”
Kaiden easily uttered embarrassing words.
And Reina was easily swayed by his words.
She turned her head away, unable to withstand his fervent gaze.
“Still…….”
As she stubbornly insisted, he gently held her chin.
The carefully pulled head faced his face.
“Show me your pretty face too.”
“…….”
“It would be even better if you smile.”
When Kaiden smiled refreshingly, Reina moved her lips.
Her face was reflected in the intense purple eyes peeking through the black hair.
Reina was startled by her reflection in the eyes.
‘Was I making that expression?’
It was a dazed face like someone enchanted.
Suddenly, she recalled him comparing her to the blank expression of a snow fox.
It must have been said after seeing that expression.
Reina awkwardly pulled up the corners of her mouth and smiled.
“Like this?”
“That’s a forced smile.”
“But you said to smile, so smiling became hard.”
“It’s okay. I can make you smile.”
Kaiden shrugged as if saying what’s the worry.
Then he called the butler, who came in pulling a tray.
On the tray was shaved ice with red fruit syrup sprinkled over crushed ice.
It was a common snack in the north. It was also a snack Reina had recently taken a liking to.
He held the shaved ice bowl and picked up a spoon with one hand.
“You need to eat a snack.”
Reina mumbled as she gulped down the shaved ice placed in front of her mouth.
“Michael isn’t here either.”
“It has to melt into daily life for the acting to be natural.”
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By Anna 💓
