Episode 8
The duel with Charles also ended in Leopold’s victory.
It was only natural. As long as he wielded a sword, there was no way he could lose to anyone else.
The problem was inside Leopold’s head. Pain that had piled up layer upon layer had coiled itself up and was stabbing at his mind.
Annoyed by it, he pressed his opponent a little harder, and the duel ended rather anticlimactically.
Before he could even satisfy his heated blood, the emptiness that surged in made him lose his patience.
Thus, Leopold, who had recklessly come after Eliza’s whereabouts, stopped when he found her.
“After coming all this way to find you, this is what I get to see…….”
The corner of Leopold’s mouth twisted in displeasure.
The dim flickering of candlelight illuminated the somewhat dark corridor.
Transparent jewels embedded here and there among the white lace draped along the walls shot out sparkling lights like stars.
Amid that romantic atmosphere, two shadows were quietly walking toward him.
A man politely escorting a well-dressed lady.
It was a scene straight out of a painting.
“Your Highness.”
“You are Sir Leopold of Hagen.”
Magnus did not waver in the slightest despite seeing Leopold in such a disheveled state.
The only thing that fluttered like a butterfly was the eyelashes of the woman who had discovered Leopold.
When Leopold stared intently at Eliza, Magnus stepped in front of her as if to shield her from his gaze.
Leopold suppressed the foot that instinctively wanted to rush forward and belatedly showed proper respect.
“I pay my respects to Your Highness, the Crown Prince.”
“Yes.”
Having accepted the greeting casually, Magnus glanced at Eliza.
Even though she had managed to erase most of her expression in the meantime, she still could not hide her stiffened demeanor.
It was understandable that she would be shaken when the heir of the family she had just reported had appeared before her.
“Do you have any other business?”
“Would it be all right if I took my friend with me?”
“That is a matter for the lady to decide.”
The two men looked at Eliza at the same time. She looked at Leopold with a sharp gaze, thinking this.
‘Is he bleeding? No, right?’
Her startled heart pounded loudly. At first, it had raced from recognizing Leopold, and then it began to thrash upon discovering his wounds.
“I’m hurt, Eli.”
Leopold complained without knowing what Eliza was thinking. He did not forget to droop his shoulders as much as possible, with a very deliberate intention behind it.
Even after spending days pondering over it, he still could not understand what sort of whim had arisen in her heart.
So Leopold had decided that he might as well ask her directly and had come to find her himself.
He had even deliberately stuck his face into the path of the blade and gotten himself scratched.
“……Your Highness, I’m sorry, but. May I leave for a moment?”
“Go ahead.”
Magnus readily let Eliza go.
As soon as he left first, Eliza roughly grabbed Leopold by the sleeve and dragged him toward an empty space.
“What happened?”
“That’s what a duel is like, isn’t it? Since you’re fighting with your life on the line.”
The moment they were alone, Leopold smiled cheerfully again. His voice was shameless as ever.
Eliza silently examined his face closely. Upon discovering his wound, Eliza furrowed her brows.
Compared to the bloodstains smeared all over him, thankfully, the wound on his cheek did not look serious.
“I’m going.”
“I’m hurt, though. You’re just going to leave me?”
Eliza stopped and bit her lip lightly. Then, as she unconsciously looked around, it seemed she was searching for somewhere that might have medical supplies.
Leopold’s long, narrow eyes curved again as he smiled.
“See? You’re worried about me.”
That girl could not abandon someone who was hurt. No matter how much she pretended to keep her guard up, she had a habit of inevitably becoming soft-hearted.
That point would occasionally make Leopold’s heart tingle painfully.
“……Apply some medicine or disinfect it, whatever. Take care of it yourself.”
Eliza shook her head repeatedly. And just as she was about to turn away, Leopold suddenly pulled her hand toward him.
Eliza tried to pull free, but remembering that he was still injured, she could not put any strength into it.
Leopold buried his nose into the hand that fit neatly in one of his hands.
“What are you doing right now…….”
“It was hard because you wouldn’t see me.”
Leopold buried his face in her palm and inhaled. Only now did he feel as though he could finally breathe again.
The man’s low voice carried a whine that did not suit him.
“Why are you suddenly avoiding me? Before we’re fiancés, we’re friends.”
“Ha…….”
Eliza sighed and squeezed her eyes shut. Only after the glittering hair disappeared from her field of vision did it seem that her mind finally regained its composure.
When Eliza opened her eyes, she coldly pulled her hand away. Then, as she walked toward the door, she spat out the words as if chewing them to pieces.
“It’s because you act like this.”
“You’re saying I’m the one who did something wrong?”
“Yes.”
In truth, Eliza had thought Leopold would merely get annoyed by an ordinary notice of breaking off the engagement.
If he was as simple as that, she thought he would openly get angry and, even if only because his pride was hurt, would let her go soon enough.
But when Leopold tried to hold on to her more than she had expected, her heart began to pound.
‘What should I do? It’s a little…… scary.’
Liking obsessive men was something that belonged to her past life. Besides, she had only enjoyed them because they were characters in novels; in reality, she did not want to get entangled with such a lunatic.
Even if she was merely a substitute until the heroine appeared, what if his obsession ended up hurting her?
“Take care of yourself and go.”
“Eliza. You can’t leave me behind.”
Leopold caught up to Eliza’s back with his long legs. Blocking her escape route, he reached out and fastened the lock.
Click.
An inexplicable tension poured into the room. Leopold lowered his face close to hers and whispered.
“Breaking off the engagement? Fine, I can do that. If my father permits it. But even after we break off the engagement, we’re still friends.”
“Then I guess we have to end our friendship, too.”
The veins on the back of the man’s hand before her eyes stood out sharply.
Seeing his tensed hand, Eliza swallowed dryly and pushed against his shoulder.
“Move.”
Seeing Eliza slip out from beneath his arm, the corner of Leopold’s mouth twisted.
“Ah, this is annoying.”
Eliza desperately hid her tension. However, the hand that unlocked the bolt and turned the doorknob was trembling slightly.
“If you run away like this all of a sudden without even telling me why…….”
She went outside and closed the door with Leopold on the other side.
His figure slowly disappeared beyond the door. Only then did Eliza release the breath she had been holding.
‘A reason?’
What could Eliza possibly tell Leopold Hagen?
That she knew what his family was plotting?
That she was afraid Hagen would kill her, so she had reported them to the Crown Prince first?
“Either way, it ends in disaster…….”
She had made the decision she needed to make.
Eliza took heavy steps as she repeated those words to herself.
***
That day, after returning to the mansion, Eliza had to wash her hands for quite some time.
Because Leopold’s blood remained on her palms.
However, even long after a bloodstain has been wiped away, if one looks at the place where it once was, it sometimes shows a dark shadow like a hallucination.
Even at this very moment.
“Is there something in your hand?”
“Ah.”
Oh no, Eliza groaned inwardly. Before her eyes, Magnus elegantly lifted his teacup.
This was her third meeting with him. Unexpectedly, the Crown Prince’s side had summoned her first, and Eliza had willingly come to the meeting.
“It looked like something had gotten on it.”
“If you’re done checking, I’d like to get to the main point.”
“Of course.”
Eliza clenched and unclenched her fist, shaking off the illusion in her palm. For now, facing that blunt man was preferable.
Compared to the dull, sticky traces of blood, the red of his eyes, which seemed to glitter as though holding rubies within them, was far more beautiful.
“Your words sounded absurd at first, but…….”
The deep voice continued slowly. Eliza did not avoid the gaze staring intently at her.
“I have judged that they have merit.”
“I’m glad you believe me.”
“But what I don’t understand is why you are so desperate.”
Eliza merely blinked silently as if she did not understand what he meant. She hid her briefly startled feelings inside her clenched palm.
“Everyone knows of the friendship between Waluer and Hagen. So why would the only daughter of Waluer have to report Hagen?”
Magnus thought of her as a woman made of glass.
Not only because of her delicate, shimmering colors, but because she looked so fragile that it seemed she would shatter from the slightest impact.
Yet, every now and then, the way she pretended to be strong and showed a face that completely concealed her true feelings unexpectedly captured his attention.
It was the same now. Her delicate features blinked several times without a word before forming a quiet smile.
“Is there something you haven’t told me? About what Hagen is plotting.”
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