WSRN 24

Chapter 24

“You’re way too gloomy.”

…Did she just call a member of the imperial family gloomy? And from Hilberg, of all people?

‘I knew they didn’t get along…’

But I didn’t expect her to say it so bluntly.

‘Looks like their relationship is even worse than what’s known.’

If that’s the case, then the imperial palace must also be Hilberg’s enemy.
An unexpected possibility.
‘I should remember that.’

After that, the carriage fell silent.

Just before we arrived, Blair casually added,

“But—are you trying to get close to him? With Sian, I mean.”

“Yes! We decided to be friends!”

I answered without hesitation, and she looked me up and down.
Her normally expressionless face was slightly tense.

“…Really?”

Her murmur was low.

‘Does she not like it?’

Still, I couldn’t back down. I met her gaze firmly.

But then, as if it were nothing serious, Blair turned her eyes away.

“Just a tip—sometimes he hides behind doors. Keep that in mind.”

“…What?”

She burst into laughter at my confused face.

“My little brother.”

‘Her brother…’

Considering how cold and distant they’d seemed, the way she said that sounded oddly gentle.

Just as I was trying to make sense of that strange contradiction, the carriage came to a stop.

And the door opened—right on cue, as if to forbid me from asking more.

As always, I went to find Sian to have dinner together.
He looked surprised, as though he hadn’t expected me to show up.

“…I thought you left.”

“Yeah, I went out and came back.”

Honestly, it felt like the people of Hilberg knew my schedule even better than I did.
This morning, and now again—everything seemed to be shared without a word.

At this point, I wasn’t even scared anymore.
If anything, I was more afraid of how used to it I’d become.

Sian looked a little bewildered, but he didn’t refuse.
We headed to the dining hall together, just like yesterday.

‘It’d be nice if this became a habit.’

That’s what’s nice about sticking together from a young age.

I was grinning as I ate, and Sian looked at me as if I was doing something strange.

Today’s dessert was chocolate pudding—soft, smooth, and perfectly rich.
Exactly my type.

But Sian just stared at his pudding and didn’t touch it at all.

‘Does he not like sweets?’

But this pudding wasn’t even that sweet.
If anything, it brought out the pure flavor of chocolate.

“You’re not eating? It’s not too sweet—it’s really good.”

The moment I said that, Sian suddenly stood up.
So abruptly, it was completely unlike him—almost rude, even.

While I blinked in surprise, he walked out.

Worried something might’ve happened, I set down my spoon and hurried after him.

‘…He’s gone?’

I’d come out right away, but he was nowhere to be seen.
Just like the first time we met—he’d vanished.

“Hm—”

Then I remembered Blair’s words.
So I quickly turned and looked behind the door—

There he was. Sian, looking utterly startled.
Before he could run again, I grabbed his wrist.

“Gotcha.”

Still dazed, Sian let himself be pulled back to his room.

Only then did he roughly shake my hand off.

Honestly, before coming here, I’d planned to ask him—
Why he ran away again so suddenly.

But looking at the boy biting his dry lips, I couldn’t bring myself to ask so casually.

‘Let’s just say I came to look around his room. I didn’t get to last time, anyway.’

While I quietly wandered the room, Sian spoke first.

“…What.”

“What?”

“If you were just gonna act like this, why’d you stop me?”

“What do you mean, ‘act like this’?”

He grabbed my hand—the one that had been absentmindedly touching his things.
The roles had reversed.

But I didn’t pull away.
He looked at me, eyes sharp, like he was warning me not to joke around.

“You came after me because you wanted to ask something, didn’t you?”

There he goes again—talking like I only ever wanted information from him.

‘Well, technically, that’s not entirely wrong…’

When I frowned, his grip loosened.

“Sian, honestly, I think you’re kind of dumb.”

His eyebrows twitched, but he said nothing.

“Yes, I was curious. But not for the reason you think. Let me make this clear—I don’t want to hold your weaknesses against you, or hurt you. So I won’t ask right now.”

He tilted his head, still not understanding, and finally spoke with a faint, cynical smile.

“If it’s not that, then there’s no reason for you to seek me out.”

‘Ugh, this kid…’

Sian always tried to act mature, like someone who believed the world was built on malice.
As if no one had ever shown him kindness.

I looked at his small frame—so used to hiding, so hard to find.
But still, he didn’t pull away from my grasp. Just a lonely little boy.

“…Remember when I said I was worried about you? Did you already forget that?”

“What does that… even matter.”

He asked it like he truly didn’t understand.

He always ran away, yet when I approached, he didn’t push me off.
He hated being close, yet hated being far even more.

And he always doubted my motives, twisting them into something bad. Because…

‘That’s how he protects himself.’

When things end badly, he can tell himself, “I knew it,” and it’ll hurt less.

Sian didn’t seem used to confiding in others—or relying on anyone.

But I could tell—he wanted someone to talk to.
Maybe because, once upon a time, that was all I’d wanted too.

“If you don’t want to talk, you don’t have to. But when you do want to, make sure you do.
And don’t get used to enduring everything alone. That kind of thing makes you sick.”

“…You don’t get sick from something like that.”

“Feeling hurt counts as being sick, too. You can’t just ignore it, dummy.”

“But still…”

He started to protest with a frown, but when he looked at me, he fell silent.

His eyes wavered—like a child lost in the dark.

“…I don’t know. Someone like me shouldn’t be like that.”

“What?”

He mumbled as if he hadn’t even heard my question.

“Father said that’s not the right path…”

The right path?
What in the world had the Duke told him?
Whatever it was, it clearly wasn’t something good.

‘Yeah… because look how confused he is.’

He must’ve started doubting his father’s words.
After a brief thought, I made up my mind.

“Then do what feels right to you. Do what you believe in, Sian. It’s your choice.”

“My… choice?”

His carefully built composure crumbled.
In his raw, unguarded face, confusion was written so plainly that it hit me hard.

I realized then—I genuinely felt sorry for him.
And I cared.

Not because he was the male lead of this world, or because he held my future.
But because, right now, he was just a nine-year-old boy who didn’t even understand why he felt sad.

He turned away, covering his face with his hand, and mumbled softly,

“…What if I do want to talk?”

“Then of course, I’ll listen. And be sad with you.”

“That’s stupid… Nothing actually gets better from that.”

“You’d be surprised. Sometimes, feelings get lighter when you share them.”

I teased lightly and pulled his hand away from his face.

Still avoiding my gaze, he spoke slowly.

“…You’re so dense. If I’m just going to run away again, isn’t it better if you stay uninvolved?”

I intertwined my fingers with his, gripping tightly until he flinched and looked up.

“You’re the dense one. I’m literally telling you I won’t run away.”

I couldn’t live trapped like the original heroine,
but I could be the kind of friend who stayed beside him—no cages needed.

In Sian’s soft, flower-colored eyes, my reflection trembled faintly.
Then I felt his hand grip mine back.

“Are you sure about that?”

“More than sure.”

When I answered with a smirk, he gave a faint, helpless laugh.

“…Then be ready.”

He whispered it to himself. I didn’t know who it was meant for,
but at least for me, I was sure.

‘You don’t know this, but I’ve been ready to die for this from the very start.’

I swore, I’d be stronger than anyone in this world.

We ended up sitting side by side on his bed.

I settled down comfortably, while Sian, who’d been so serious moments ago, now looked awkward.
But I didn’t mind.

‘Come to think of it, his expressions have really diversified.’

That made me oddly proud. Maybe I’d really grown attached to him.

After staring straight ahead for a long time, Sian finally asked in a small voice,

“Have you ever… been ignored by your family?”

It was such a serious question that I wanted to answer sincerely—
but it was also a hard one.

So I just told the truth.

“Uh… I don’t know. My mother died before I could even see her,
and my father’s… well, you know what kind of man he is.”

He looked startled and immediately apologized.

“…Right. Sorry.”

“Mm, well, it’s pretty clear he hated me.”

It was a joke meant to lighten the mood—
but Sian’s face stiffened.

And then, in a rare expression,
he looked at me with genuine pity.