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~ Chapter : 15 ~
“Abandon me? You can’t abandon something you never had.”
“Perfect timing. I was just in trouble.”
A low, husky voice drifted out of the darkness.
From the deep shadows of the night, a black silhouette straightened.
“I seem to have lost my way.”
Under the dim glow of a lantern, the man finally stepped into view.
The first thing that caught my eye was his dark crimson hair, as though dyed in blood.
He was lean, his build sharp yet fluid, every line of his body refined.
Blue-gray eyes, cold as moonlight, were fixed on me.
The way they gleamed felt like a predator locking onto its prey.
After scrutinizing me with that persistent gaze, his lips curved into a smile.
“Hey. Which way out from here?”
“……”
I couldn’t say a word.
Hey? Was he talking to me?
For a moment I glanced around, wondering if he meant someone else—but there was no one.
“The imperial palace is needlessly complicated. If you don’t mind, could you show me the way?”
Flustered, I stared at him.
His eyes narrowed.
“Can you not hear me?”
…Is he drunk?
With a banquet scheduled for tomorrow, quite a few nobles had already entered the palace tonight.
This red-haired man must be one of those who came to the capital to drink and party without restraint.
Yet despite his disheveled demeanor, his attire was anything but ordinary.
A coat adorned with red tassels and flamboyant decorations.
Free-spirited—completely unlike the neat, restrained fashion of the Empire.
Only then did I recall that distinguished guests from foreign lands had arrived late.
So he must be a foreign envoy.
That aside… he looked very drunk.
Setting aside the rudeness, his clothing was downright indecent.
Between the boldly loosened buttons, the solid contours of his torso were clearly visible.
I had no idea where to look.
Just ignore him.
Pretending not to know anything, I kept a blank expression and started walking away.
“Hey, where are you going? Damn it—can you really not hear me? This is troublesome.”
The lazy voice calling after me soon turned into footsteps following behind.
Why is he chasing me?
A creeping sense of unease made me quicken my pace.
But the footsteps clung to me like a shadow, refusing to fall back.
“Hey. You seriously can’t hear me?”
The rough question rang out again.
My heart lurched.
A dark night.
A deserted path.
Footsteps pursuing me from behind.
The sudden fear that a hand might cover my mouth at any moment sent shivers down my spine.
I should’ve brought maids with me.
I regretted coming out alone far too late.
What do I do?
Then, just around the corner, I spotted a small building with a green roof.
A guard post where knights and soldiers rested.
I ran toward it and flung the door open.
“Help me!”
“Pardon?”
“What’s going on?”
The knights inside looked up in alarm.
It must have been a shift change—there were four of them crowded inside the narrow post.
Pointing urgently outside, I said,
“There’s a suspicious person!”
Their expressions hardened instantly.
“A suspicious person?”
“How dare he! Inside the imperial palace—!”
Weapons in hand, the knights rushed out.
“Hm?”
Surrounded in an instant, the man looked genuinely puzzled.
Only then did I finally turn back toward him, my composure returning.
A cloudless, brilliant moonlit night.
The man stood beneath the pale blue glow of the moon.
Still dressed improperly.
But this time, his crimson hair caught my eye more than his clothes.
Under the moonlight, the deep red shimmered mysteriously.
“What kind of situation is this?”
He looked utterly confused.
Glancing between me and the knights encircling him, he suddenly broke into a bright smile, as if realization dawned.
“Ah—are you all here to guide me out?”
His lips lifted casually as he spoke.
The answer he received was cold vigilance.
“Enough nonsense. State your identity!”
“Kneel down. Now.”
Before I knew it, the knights’ drawn swords were aimed at his throat.
“Hah.”
He glanced indifferently at the blade pressed against his neck.
“Well. This is unexpected.”
Then his gaze shifted back to the knights.
The moment I saw the strange flicker in his eyes—
‘This man…’
My heart sank.
Don’t tell me he has no intention of surrendering?
“And if I refuse?”
He provoked them in a languid voice.
“He’s hostile!”
“On your knees!”
“Subdue him!”
The enraged knights charged at the red-haired man all at once.
Not a single attack so much as brushed his collar.
With controlled, economical movements, he evaded every strike.
Thud. Crack. Boom.
“Ugh!”
“Ghk!”
Groans of pain echoed between dull impacts.
‘…What just happened?’
I thought the man and the knights had only just lunged at each other—
But it was already over.
Under the dark moonlight, only his dark crimson hair remained vividly etched in my vision.
A red as deep as blood.
Suddenly, another man came to mind.
The one who destroyed a fountain, staining his hair red with his enemy’s blood.
Their personalities, temperaments—everything felt different.
So why did someone so utterly unrelated come to mind?
“The imperial palace has quite a unique way of welcoming guests.”
His calm voice snapped me back to reality.
“Tonight has been entertaining in more ways than one.”
Under the moonlight, the red-haired man looked at me with the same enigmatic smile.
At his feet lay four knights, sprawled unconscious, unable even to groan.
Tap. Tap.
He brushed his hands lightly and turned his head.
Those blue-tinted gray eyes seized my attention.
The moment the curiosity in that strange gaze vanished—
“You…”
He had already stepped right up in front of me.
Close enough that I could feel his warm breath.
My frightened reflection trembled in his cold eyes.
Thump. Thump.
My heart raced.
What happens now?
Revenge? Retaliation?
Will he accuse me of setting a trap?
Should I reveal my identity as the Empress?
No—would that even keep me safe?
What if he sees it as an opportunity and draws his blade instead?
After all, an assassin had infiltrated the imperial palace not long ago.
As the worst possibilities flooded my mind—
“What is it?”
Looking down at me, he stretched his lips into a lazy grin.
“So you can talk properly after all.”
* * *
Under the gentle moonlight,
I walked forward calmly.
Behind me, another set of footsteps followed in silence.
The situation was exactly the same as before we reached the guard post.
The reason was simple.
The knights who had rushed out at my request had all been defeated by him instead.
Fortunately, what followed wasn’t as disastrous as I’d feared.
Though things did take a slightly… strange turn.
I glanced back.
The red-haired man was walking behind me.
“What is it? Is there a problem?”
A problem…
Perhaps the fact that I was now guiding a complete stranger whose identity I still didn’t know?
Judging by his clothes, he didn’t seem to be from the Empire.
“You don’t look like an imperial citizen. Where are you from?”
He answered shortly.
“The Kingdom of Callus.”
Callus?
I remembered Countess Chloe mentioning that this was the nation requiring the most caution among the visiting guests.
“You don’t seem like an ordinary person.”
“Of course not. If they didn’t know me at the royal palace of Callus, I’d be a spy.”
I snorted lightly at his jest.
“You’re very confident.”
“Not really. I get scolded by Momo sometimes for not making it obvious enough.”
Momo?
Perhaps a caretaker or nanny who looked after him.
“If you’re from Callus, you must be an honored guest. How did you manage to get lost without even a guide?”
“I drank a little too much.”
“So you just asked a passerby for directions? What if I were someone important to the imperial family?”
“For example?”
“Say… the Empress?”
I asked lightly, testing him.
He froze for a moment.
Then he burst out laughing.
My brows furrowed.
“Why are you laughing?”
“At first I thought you couldn’t speak. Now I see you’re not only capable of talking, but joking too.”
“So you think I was joking just now?”
“You weren’t serious, were you?”
…I was.
I really am the Empress.
“How could the Empress be wandering around alone at this hour, without guards, dressed so plainly?”
It’s a long and complicated story.
“If you really were the Empress, you could call someone right now.”
He stared straight at me.
Should I actually call them?
After a brief hesitation, I shook my head.
“No.”
“Why not?”
“Even if they come, more people would just get hurt…”
To deal with him properly, you’d probably need the knight commander himself.
I didn’t want unnecessary injuries.
And—
I glanced at the red-haired man.
“You don’t seem like a bad person.”
“I’m not a bad person?”
He had already stepped closer to my side.
“You saw me take down those knights, didn’t you?”
“I did.”
“And you still say that?”
“You only knocked them out.”
“…What?”
His eyes twitched, as if he hadn’t expected that answer.
“That’s it? That’s your reason?”
“Yes. That’s all.”
I nodded.
Honestly, I didn’t know any other reason myself.
He was rude, and if he wanted to, he could easily take my life.
Yet strangely, I wasn’t afraid of him.
“Really?”
He bent down, meeting my gaze.
For a moment, I felt as though I were being drawn into those jewel-like eyes.
After silently studying me, he chuckled.
“Interesting.”
…What exactly is interesting?
I looked at him with suspicion.
What a strange thing to fixate on.
I thought to myself—
Just get him to his destination and run.
Right then, the road split into two paths.
Thankfully, from here on I vaguely knew the way.
“This way leads to the guests’ quarters.”
“Already? Are you abandoning me?”
Abandon you?
I never had you in the first place.
“…Shall we part ways here?”
“Hm. I’m not so sure.”
He stroked his chin with a straight finger.
“I don’t think I can let us part so anticlimactically.”
“Why not?”
“I’m worried about you.”
With a faint smile, he added,
“You’re my benefactor now. If you were to meet someone with ill intentions after leaving me and get hurt, I wouldn’t feel at ease.”
“That’s unnecessary concern.”
“You saw how skilled those knights were. With guards that incompetent, how can I be at ease?”
“Have you considered that being with you is even more unsettling?”
“Don’t worry. Like you said, I’m not such a bad person.”
Despite my repeated refusals, he showed no sign of backing down.
What do I do?
I couldn’t exactly return to the Empress’s palace with this drunk man in tow.
As I was agonizing—
“There you are.”
A low voice cut through the air.
From the darkness, a hand reached out and gently pulled me back.
When I came to my senses, a tall man was shielding me protectively.
My startled reflection was mirrored in his eyes.
“Sir Leonard?”
“I’ve been searching everywhere.”
His breathing was rougher than usual, as if he’d been running for a long time.
His calm, settled gaze shifted to the red-haired foreigner.
“Is that the man who behaved rudely toward Her Majesty the Empress?”
His blue eyes flickered with sharp hostility.
