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Chapter 22
After finishing her meal and returning, El found a guest waiting outside her room.
“Marquis?”
At El’s call, Felix lifted his head and strode forward, giving her a full once-over as he circled around her.
“I need to check something.”
“What is it?”
El’s voice, when speaking to Felix, carried a sense of familiarity.
Judging from his reaction, it seemed Felix was not the one who had tattled to Caron about her plan to wipe out the knights.
Still, El had to admit she had initially misunderstood and thought Felix had been the one to reveal it.
“Were you hurt?”
“No. I’m fine.”
Perhaps it was because of that guilty feeling, but El’s voice softened considerably.
Felix looked as if he didn’t believe her, but since she insisted she was fine, he had no choice but to let her go without pressing further.
“Was this part of that plan or whatever it was?”
“Most likely. Either way, it ended well, didn’t it?”
El shrugged lightly and opened the door to her room.
Felix naturally followed her inside, though his face still carried heavy concern.
“It didn’t end well, El. If you’d asked me for help, I could’ve resolved it in a few hours.”
“Why?”
“…What?”
As El set out a simple tea set on the table, she asked the question.
Felix studied her face, bewildered.
Her gaze was so innocent, as if she were genuinely curious.
“Why are you so desperate to help me, Marquis? Do I look that pitiful to you?”
Felix exhaled repeatedly, running a hand over his face, unsure how to answer such a question.
After a moment of thought, he dropped heavily onto the sofa opposite her.
“El, it’s like… I won’t deny it. To be exact, I thought it was pitiful that you ended up caught by Caron. Not your life or your status—just that.”
“I see.”
El replied lightly and offered him a cup of the tea she had just brewed.
Felix, without much thought, took a sip—then nearly spat it back out but managed to hold it in.
The taste was so bitter it felt as though he had chewed raw weeds plucked from the mountains. Even a physician’s prescription would have gone down easier.
“Marquis, what’s wrong? You don’t look well…”
“No, I’m fine. Thanks for the tea.”
Felix forced a smile, though his lips still trembled, and suppressed the nausea in his gut.
El, unaware, blinked at him with round eyes before earnestly starting to brew more tea.
“You seem like a kind person, Marquis.”
“Not really. If I were truly kind, I’d have gone to live in a monastery and devote myself to helping people instead of being a marquis.”
Felix’s smile turned bitter as his gaze dropped.
A marquis was, by necessity, someone constantly at the heart of conflicts.
By holding onto that position, Felix felt he was not so different from Caron after all.
That was why he constantly provoked Caron, teased him, scolded him. All of it, in the end, was directed at himself.
El, who had been quietly observing the ever-shifting expressions on Felix’s face, turned her gaze out the window.
The sunlight was warm. There really are more warm things in this world than I thought, she mused as she slowly spoke.
“Shame, guilt, remorse, regret… there are so many people who never even feel those things. But Marquis, you even spare feelings like that for someone like me.”
“Don’t say ‘someone like you,’ El.”
Felix frowned faintly. Then, in an almost defiant gesture, he downed the entire cup of her dreadful tea.
El followed suit, sipping her own brew—and was instantly shocked.
How on earth had he managed to drink it?
He must have forced it down just to encourage her.
Smiling faintly, El said,
“And that’s why you make me uncomfortable, Marquis.”
“…What?”
Felix’s round green eyes widened in surprise, making them shine all the more vividly.
“You make me want to rely on you endlessly.”
“You can rely on me.”
Felix answered immediately, but El shook her head with a soft smile.
“Do you know what it’s called when someone who can’t stand on their own relies on others even for food and shelter?”
“….”
Felix shot to his feet, fidgeting, as if desperate to stop her from finishing her thought.
But then, with a resolute expression, he gently placed his fingertips atop her hand, careful not to overstep.
Even in that, his gentleness showed.
“It’s called being a parasite. You make me want to be one, Marquis. Like a little white puppy curled up in a cushioned chair, snoring peacefully.”
“El!”
Felix, horrified, grabbed her hand firmly.
The way he shook his head made it clear how much he truly cared for her.
But unlike Felix’s agitation, El remained calm, as if she had already anticipated everything.
“Do you really think you can take responsibility for someone you only met a few days ago? How can you say such kind words with such kind eyes, so carelessly?”
“I—”
“Please leave.”
“…El.”
Felix released her hand, his face blank with shock. He looked utterly devastated.
“I would follow Lord Caron even into the flames of hell itself. So don’t blame me later if you let yourself grow attached.”
El smiled gently and gave him a slight bow of her head, a clear signal for him to leave.
“Wait, El. Give me time to think. I—”
Just then, as Felix carefully held the edge of her sleeve, a familiar voice cut through.
“What a melodrama. I could almost cry.”
Both El and Felix turned at once.
Leaning against the doorway, Caron smirked and strode leisurely into the room.
“Lord Caron.”
Ignoring El’s voice, Caron stood before Felix and casually slapped away the hand holding El’s sleeve.
“Felix. You’ve seen what happens when you touch what’s mine.”
Even his slow, lazy tone—and the way his fingers brushed over El’s sleeve where Felix had touched—were filled with composure.
Felix stared at him, stunned, before finally raising his voice.
“Caron! Don’t talk about people like that. El isn’t some object you can treat however you like—”
“How dare you.”
“….”
Caron’s low voice cut him off sharply. He raised his eyes to meet Felix’s.
His face was expressionless, devoid of any trace of emotion.
Those glossy black eyes didn’t seem human, and the slight curve of his lips carried only a chilling edge.
“How dare you lay hands on El. You’ve overstepped, Felix.”
“…I apologize for my rudeness, El.”
Startled by Caron’s ominous aura, Felix managed to gather himself enough to bow his head and apologize.
“It’s all right.”
El’s gentle voice eased the tension somewhat.
Caron chuckled and patted Felix’s shoulder, speaking with relaxed ease.
“I hear the carriage repairs are finished. Isn’t today the perfect weather to depart?”
“…Caron.”
“Safe travels, my friend.”
With a tilt of his head, Caron gestured toward the door.
Felix, still wanting to say more to El, looked between her and the door several times before finally leaving with a defeated expression.
“What brings you here?”
El cautiously approached Caron, who only shrugged lightly before settling comfortably on the sofa.
The way he crossed his legs with leisurely grace made him look like a sleek, elegant cat.
“Must I have a reason to visit? That’s disappointing.”
He gave her a teasing smile, and El quickly averted her gaze.
How can someone be so shameless?
“…Would you like some tea?”
“With pleasure.”
El began brewing another pot.
Chin resting on his hand, Caron watched her diligently prepare the tea.
She didn’t even check the water temperature, just threw the delicate leaves into boiling water. It would surely taste more poisonous than medicinal—but Caron only chuckled lightly, as if entertained.
When El set his cup down, she quickly tasted her own tea first—and immediately recoiled.
It was even more horrible than before.
Not even a dog would drink this.
Flustered, she reached to take Caron’s cup away, but he was faster. He took a sip, then smiled in satisfaction.
As though it truly pleased him.
“El.”
“Yes, Lord Caron.”
“Was Felix really that uncomfortable for you?”
“…You heard all that?”
El’s eyes widened. She imagined Caron had probably watched the whole exchange, amused.
Indeed, recalling it seemed to make him chuckle softly as he savored the bitter tea’s aroma.
“To some extent.”
“Well, he’s a stranger after all. Ah—please don’t force yourself to drink that. Even I think it’s terrible.”
El fidgeted anxiously, unable to stop him.
At this rate, anyone would probably throw up their last meal.
She should never have offered him tea at all, even if it meant being impolite.
But as she fretted, Caron suddenly burst into laughter.
Then, to her shock, he drained the cup and set it down.
“It may be dreadful for you.”
“….”
But his voice carried unmistakable satisfaction.
Slowly, he ran his fingers along the rim of the cup, letting the tea seep into his skin.
“But to me, it’s something rare.”
Whether it was the lazy smile in his eyes, or the sunlight falling across him, El couldn’t bear to look straight at him.
Her heart pounded faster.
(To be continued…)
