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Chapter 23
“Who’s supposed to become what?”
Winter, who had muttered absentmindedly, shook his head.
“The Dantal family is our enemy, but we don’t yet know Valentina Dantal’s intentions. That’s all you need to remember.”
He condensed the complicated story down to just what Tiya needed to know. After all, there would be plenty of chances from now on to confirm whether Valentina was truly the future Thorn King.
But even that much seemed difficult for Tiya to understand.
“The Dantal family is our enemy, but Valentina isn’t? Why? Because she’s too pretty?”
“…Why on earth is ‘pretty’ coming up here?”
“But Valentina really is pretty. I’ve never seen anyone that pretty before.”
Like a crow spotting a shiny marble, Tiya’s eyes were sparkling.
“You think that unpleasant face is pretty?”
Blinking, Tiya asked in confusion.
“You call something pretty ‘unpleasant’?”
No way.
This time, Winter’s voice held genuine surprise.
“You really don’t feel anything when you look at Valentina?”
“What do you mean…?”
Tiya’s face remained blank, with no sign of jealousy or agitation.
Winter scratched his cheek, speaking almost defensively.
“I thought you’d be jealous of her.”
“Me? Why on earth would I?”
Tiya’s expression clearly said the thought had never even crossed her mind. And when pressed for why, Winter only had one answer:
Because the Astiya I knew would have been.
“Never mind then. What matters is figuring out whether Valentina is Vladizef’s enemy or not. To do that, you’ll have to follow her. Can you handle that?”
“Sure! I can do that! Following her around, wow, that’s—uh, I mean… This is such a heavy responsibility.”
At that moment, Valentina herself appeared, crossing the garden outside the window.
Tiya leaned dangerously far out the window, peeking after her. Anyone outside could clearly see her, but she didn’t care.
Winter shook his head, then also tracked Valentina’s movements. Her steps, her every gesture—careful, demure.
Suddenly, Tiya’s earlier ridiculous words resurfaced.
“Why? Because she’s too pretty?”
Maybe that wasn’t entirely wrong.
When the Thorn King first appeared, people had whispered:
“A Dantal bastard? But how could a male bastard possibly have survived?”
“That family kills off every boy except the direct heir.”
The head of House Dantal was always chosen by the sacred sword Rosabella—a weapon that only acknowledged men as its master. Because of that, illegitimate sons and collateral males were eliminated early to prevent rival claims.
So how could a male bastard have survived in that house?
Back then, despite knowing of Valentina’s existence, no one had linked her to the Thorn King. The only reason was her gender.
But if Valentina wasn’t a girl, but a boy… then everything aligned. Not that Winter could be certain yet.
‘Though honestly, he’s… way too pretty to be a boy.’
Just what was Valentina’s true identity?
And had rejecting the Thorn King’s offer in the past really been the right choice?
From here on, that was what he needed to uncover.
* * *
The next day.
It had only been hours since Winter and Tiya agreed to investigate Valentina’s identity, yet Tiya had already learned something new.
“Rodion oppa is really close with Valentina.”
Wherever Valentina went, Rodion was there too.
Of course, since he was the one who had brought Valentina into the house, it was natural for him to look after a guest staying in a strange place. But still…
“Oppa, hey—”
“Ah, Tiya. If it’s not urgent, could we talk later? I just remembered a report about a problem with the east water pipes.”
Smiling warmly, Rodion explained that he couldn’t spend time with her right now.
But this had happened too many times already.
The moment he saw Tiya, he always seemed to suddenly “remember” some urgent task and hurry off.
Watching his back retreat once again, Tiya stomped her foot.
He had never hugged her, not even once, since their reunion.
‘This isn’t how I imagined meeting my oppa again.’
It felt like buttoning up a shirt after starting with the wrong button—everything was misaligned from the beginning.
No matter how she looked at it, she couldn’t shake the feeling that Rodion was avoiding her.
Lowering her head, she muttered:
“Does oppa hate that I came home?”
Her lips pouted as she whispered,
‘I sent so many letters. He never wrote back, not even once.’
‘He promised he’d come to fetch me.’
Then, a shadow stretched across the floor toward her.
“Tiya, that’s not true.”
His voice was as gentle yet firm as always.
Tiya looked up.
Rodion stood just three steps away.
After a pause, he crouched down to meet her gaze and spoke sincerely.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t be there when you returned to the capital. I had to leave for the south urgently, and I never even heard you’d come home.”
At his honesty, Tiya gathered her courage and asked:
“If you had known, would you have run to see me?”
“Of course. My long-awaited little sister had come home. But right now the manor is unsettled, and we haven’t even prepared to welcome you properly.”
His face—usually as soft as a spring breeze—was serious this time.
That single sentence melted her heart. Tiya was just about to step toward him when—
“The northern plague will subside in half a year. When that time comes, you’ll be able to return to Frost Citadel. So please be patient, alright?”
The words froze her in place.
Of course she missed her grandmother. Of course she wanted to return north immediately.
But that wasn’t what she wanted to hear.
“He’s talking like we don’t belong here at all.”
The distance between them was still only three steps. Yet in that gap yawned a sheer cliff, impossible to cross.
Rodion would not allow it to be closed.
And with that, Tiya realized: he really was avoiding her.
Her brows shot up, anger and hurt bubbling together.
“Whether I go back north or stay here—that’s up to me! You don’t get to decide, oppa!”
Upset, she turned sharply and stomped down the hall.
Just then, Valentina appeared around the corner, her arms full of blooming flowers.
She gave Tiya a shy little nod before hurrying past.
“Rodion. I heard you were looking for me.”
“It wasn’t urgent… but wait, you’ve got petals in your hair…”
Hearing their voices behind her, Tiya nearly turned her head.
“Don’t look back. It’s better not to see.”
Winter’s firm voice stopped her.
Tiya marched on, leaving the hall with stiff steps.
But as she rounded the corner, she couldn’t resist a sidelong glance.
And she saw it—
Their shadows overlapping.
Rodion, who wouldn’t even step close enough to brush her own shadow, was gently plucking petals from Valentina’s hair.
At that moment, an old memory surged up like a crashing wave.
