EVHE 52

Chapter 52

“I… do have a worry…”

I hesitated for a long time. I could have flatly said I had no such concerns, but I couldn’t bring myself to do it.

Maybe it was because Lake carried such an honest and upright image—he was the kind of person you couldn’t easily lie to.

“I want to run away.”

And perhaps because of that, the rawest part of my true feelings slipped out.

Of all the things I was struggling with, I had blurted out the one I most wanted to hide.

“I mean… I want to move somewhere outside the Empire.”

Even to my own ears, it sounded strange. I hurried to tack on other words.

But in the end, it all boiled down to the same thing: fleeing from the Empire. It didn’t help much.

“Are you weary of the life you’re living now?”

“Not exactly.”

I scratched the back of my head, instinctively denying it, then quickly corrected myself.

“…A little, maybe.”

Not entirely. It wasn’t that I wasn’t enjoying my current life. I just… wanted an ending where survival was certain.

“There are many times in life like that. Moments when you just want to escape a difficult routine.”

Lake spoke as he continued trimming the branches.

The soft sound of snipping drifted together with his gentle voice.

“What about Pendleton?”

Pendleton? I barely recalled the name from some reports I had skimmed earlier.

“I heard it snows all year round there.”

“That’s true, but because of that, it’s one of the safest places around. Their law enforcement is second to none.”

Lake explained steadily, as though earnestly listening to my troubles.

“On top of that, Pendleton has a rich culinary culture. I’m sure you’d find many dishes to your liking.”

Information poured smoothly from his lips, as if he had lived there himself.

“You seem to know quite a lot.”

“I was preparing to be dispatched to Pendleton until just a year ago.”

I pictured Lake standing tall in a bleak, snow-swept land.

Of course, the vivid colors of summer suited him best—but winter didn’t look unfitting either.

“But you didn’t go?”

“There was no longer a need to move, so I stayed.”

That made sense. I nodded and quietly listened as he continued.

“If you really wish to leave for Pendleton, I can contact people there for you. Even if not there, it’s fine. As long as there’s a temple, even outside the Empire, I have connections.”

His voice was sincere. He seemed ready to help wholeheartedly, even if I decided to run away immediately.

“That’s… unexpected.”

I tilted my head, genuinely surprised.

“I thought you’d say something about facing hardships head-on. You know, knightly spirit and all that?”

To me, Lake had always been the image of a proper knight.

The type who never idled even during breaks, who never took vacations, who never backed down until every task was complete. That was why his words caught me off guard.

“Running away is not shameful.”

He finished pruning and walked toward me, speaking softly.

“We are not gods but ordinary humans. We cannot shoulder everything with ease.”

His eyes curved gently with warmth.

“Still… if you weren’t in the Empire, I fear I’d be gloomy all day.”

His kind words were paired with emerald eyes gazing down at me.

“Wherever you go, please don’t forget me.”

He smiled lightly, as though it was the most natural thing in the world.

I blinked, looking at his face again.

The butler had told me Lake seemed dispirited lately.

But what I saw was the opposite—he looked brighter than ever. His energy sparkled like summer sunlight.

“I don’t think you need to worry about that.”

The thought slipped out of my mouth before it passed through my head.

“You’re not the kind of person one could forget.”

How could anyone forget someone so kind and gentle? I truly felt grateful to have him as a friend.

I gazed at him quietly. He was someone you could easily fall for—so much so that escaping might be impossible.

“…Thank you.”

Lake answered with a subtle, mysterious smile.

“You seem to have a natural talent for saying things that make people’s hearts flutter, my lady.”

“Oh, but in that area, you’re the unrivaled master, Sir.”

I bantered back with mock indignation.

But honestly, it wasn’t unfair to say so—hadn’t he just told me I was someone he liked earlier?

We chatted lightly a while longer before heading toward the carriage. More time had passed than I expected, but thanks to our talk, I had regained my spirits.

“I’m sorry I can’t escort you all the way home.”

“It’s fine. You should be by your sick brother’s side.”

With a final farewell, I boarded the carriage.

“Hmm…”

I sat quietly on the sofa, sorting through the confusion of recent events.

The sudden appearance of a man named Tane. Olivia’s absence from the Ruben Festival. The inexplicable relationship between Saint and Olivia. And the fact that there had been no casualties at Nolton.

The ball might have changed because I deliberately avoided the staircase—but the rest were beyond my influence.

‘The original events wouldn’t just change for no reason.’

That’s how novels worked. No matter what, things usually followed the events set by the author.

Changing them required an enormous driving force.

‘Which means… the changes must have centered around the heroine.’

Because a story exists only for its protagonist.

‘And when I think about Olivia’s attitude too…’

From the very first time we met, she had greeted me strangely warmly. As if she’d known me for a long time.

“No way…”

Two possibilities came to mind.

First: Olivia is the original heroine who regressed.
Second: someone else has possessed Olivia’s body.

“That’s a leap.”

I shook my head, dismissing the wild assumptions. It was too rash to conclude anything based on such uncertain hints.

But if it was true—if Olivia really was a regressor or a possessed heroine—then there was only one reason for her to approach me, the villainess.

‘Revenge.’

The thought that surfaced last was chillingly terrifying.

Meanwhile, as usual, Luschel sat in his office, receiving reports on the movements of key figures.

“That candidate for High Priest… he’s bothersome. I’ll have to deal with him soon.”

To anyone listening, it would sound threatening, but his reaction was almost mild.

What truly irked Luschel came right after: the news that Calix had once again escaped the Imperial Palace and caused trouble.

“What in the world is Philip doing?”

His irritated question snapped at poor Cain.

Philip was the head of the watchers tasked with keeping Calix confined inside the palace.

Despite the many spies stationed in the First Prince’s palace, Calix slipped past them with ease. Replacing them repeatedly made no difference.

Again, a stabbing headache flared. Just thinking about that thorn in his side—Calix—always brought on migraines.

“Shall I summon Philip?”

“No. Leave it.”

Luschel took a deep breath to rein in his temper.

‘It would be easier if I just killed him.’

But he knew full well he couldn’t.

Ever since childhood, Lilith had never liked Calix. Yet every time Luschel considered killing him, she always opposed it.

‘Even now, if I killed that bastard, Lilith would hate me.’

He could almost see her disdainful expression before his eyes.

‘I don’t understand why.’

To Luschel, Calix was inferior in every way. He couldn’t fathom what Lilith saw in him.

‘With me, she suddenly cuts ties. Says she doesn’t want to come to the palace anymore.’

He recalled the words she had spoken over half a year ago.

That she didn’t want to harm him anymore. That she had matured. But it was obvious she was hiding another reason.

‘If I won’t be loved anyway, perhaps being hated is fine too?’

The stray thought startled him.

“…I must be losing my mind.”

He scrubbed his face with both hands, embarrassed by his own impulses.

He laughed hollowly at himself, always quick to doubt and grow jealous of Lilith.

‘How foolish.’

She had always been that way.

Love? She never even gave him the most basic affection.

Even though she often stayed by his side, she had never regarded him as anything more than a tool.

Only in the past few months, when she strangely acted meek and docile—as if she really had matured—did he foolishly let himself imagine otherwise.

“Cain. What about Oz’s Garden?”

Oz’s Garden—the prison where Luschel had been confined throughout his childhood.

It was also the place he had long petitioned the Emperor to reopen.

“It is expected to open next week.”

At that answer, his subdued golden eyes sharpened with light.

After so long, at last, the time to clear his head was drawing near.