EVHE 59

Chapter 59

Still, I couldn’t stay mad forever, so I sat back down in my seat. I reopened the theory book, but the words didn’t register at all.

One way or another, I kept thinking about Saint.

‘He’s not even charging me for lessons. Fine. I’ll do this much at least!’

I slammed the book shut with a thud and opened my mouth.

“Alright. You’ve got something on your mind, don’t you?”

To grab his attention, I lightly tapped the table.

“Come on, now. It’s not every day we get to talk! Tell me what’s bothering you. I’m great at solving problems!”

For some reason, he looked at me like I was insane, but I chose to ignore it.

“They say a shared worry is a halved one.”

I thumped my chest with my fist, as if to say, ‘Leave it to me!’ At the same time, I stole a nervous glance at him.

He still hadn’t said a word. It was going to take considerable patience just to get him to open up.

As expected, quite a bit of time passed before he finally spoke.

“What would you do if your first and second priorities clashed?”

He still had his head turned toward the wall, refusing to meet my gaze.

“If you choose one, the other becomes impossible.”

His question was startlingly serious.

“Hold on a second.”

I cradled my head in my hands, trying to squeeze out any advice I could.

‘Conflicting goals…’

It sounded familiar.

Come to think of it, it was similar to the situation I was in.

‘For me, my top priority is staying alive and safe. My second is living happily with the people around me.’

But the chances of achieving both were slim.

If forced to choose, of course I would pick my top priority. Even now, I kept wanting to run away from the empire.

“If it were me, I’d give up the second and go with the first.”

I declared my conclusion with dramatic finality.

“There’s a reason they’re called priorities, right? You put the most important thing first.”

It sounded cold, but it was the logical choice.

“Every decision comes with regret, so it’s better to go with what matters most…”

As I continued explaining, Saint’s expression grew darker. Apparently, that wasn’t the answer he was looking for.

“I take back what I said about being good at solving problems. I’m better at empathizing.”

I tried to mop up the spill with a weak joke, but it clearly didn’t help.

“Uuugh…”

In the end, I collapsed face-down on the desk. His mood was so gloomy, it was dragging me down with him.

As I racked my brain to find a way to cheer him up, a spark of inspiration struck.

“I’ve got a great idea!”

I leapt up and strode over to him, grabbing his hand without warning.

A smug smile crept across my face. One of his eyebrows lifted.

“When you’re stuck like this, the best thing is to forget everything and take a break. What do you think?”

I leaned in close, almost demanding an answer.

“In my hometown—no, my family—we have a saying: ‘Tomorrow, the sun will rise again!’”

Admittedly, not quite the right context for that phrase, but hey—wise words are always good.

“Maybe tomorrow you’ll think of a solution!”

I beamed at him as if trying to convince him through sheer positivity.

“So let’s go clear our heads. Today’s lesson is canceled! Let’s go have fun in the city!”

I didn’t give him a chance to argue. I pulled his hand firmly and led him straight out of the library.

If he’d wanted to stop me, he could’ve done so easily—but he didn’t. That meant my suggestion wasn’t completely off the mark.

✦ ✦ ✦

As soon as we arrived at the shopping district, I darted into an accessory shop.

After all, nothing lifts your mood like shopping and impulse buys. Plus, swapping out old things for new helps clear your mind.

“Hmmm…”

I scrutinized every option until my brain cramped. I couldn’t remember the last time I’d focused this hard.

“This one…?”

I pointed at a button-style ornament, then quickly withdrew my hand. The border color was just too odd.

“Then maybe this one?”

I reconsidered, but shook my head. The carved pattern didn’t suit his vibe at all.

“Which one looks better to you?”

I spun around and asked, but Saint was just staring blankly at me, not the jewelry.

“Alright, I’ll pick then.”

I’m terrible at this kind of decision… This might take forever.

Luckily, it only took an hour. For me, that was impressive.

“Okay, I’ll put it on for you. Hold still.”

I grabbed his wrist. He looked like he was dying of boredom.

‘Wait, how do I even put this on?’

In my past life, I’d never seen this kind of thing up close. And now, the maids usually handled it for me, so I had no clue.

I fiddled with the cuff for a while before jamming the ornament on any way I could. It ended up totally crooked, and I scratched my cheek awkwardly.

“J-Just wear it like this for today, okay?”

Feeling too embarrassed to face him, I quickly fled to another shop.

“Wow! This is gorgeous—come look!”

I spotted a glass goldfish figurine on display and waved him over.

“That one too!”

A rainbow-colored sculpture had me utterly dazzled. This shopping district was unexpectedly magical.

We wandered around until sunset—though really, I dragged him around the whole time.

I carried a paper shopping bag from our last stop on my arm.

Truthfully, I’d debated between three items before checking out. Saint must have sensed we’d be there another hour, because he actually gave me his opinion.

‘But… is this really the right way to spend our time?’

That fundamental question finally popped into my mind.

‘I had fun, for sure.’

I had asked him if he was enjoying himself, but he never answered—so I’d just kept pulling him around.

‘Maybe just hanging out with a friend is enough to lift his spirits…?’

But we hadn’t even chatted all that much, now that I thought about it.

“Wanna go grab dinner somewhere?”

Eating something delicious always cheered me up, so I made the offer. But he didn’t reply.

Only then did I start looking around.

He was gone.

“Saint?”

I called his name and retraced our steps.

If someone had picked a fight, the other guy would be in danger—not him. And since he lived here, I wasn’t worried about him getting lost.

He wasn’t a kid, so I figured he’d be fine… but still…

Just as my anxiety was peaking, I spotted a tall figure with white hair in the distance.

The bell on the flower shop’s door jingled as he stepped out.

“If you were stopping by a flower shop, you could’ve taken me.”

“This.”

He approached, holding out a pure white flower.

“They said it’s called a lily.”

A freshly bloomed lily.

Lily… like “Lilith”? It was such a surprisingly cute idea for him.

“Did you buy this because it reminded you of me?”

I asked, thinking it couldn’t possibly be true—yet he calmly nodded. Then handed me the bouquet.

“For me?”

I quietly accepted the lilies. He didn’t answer, but I knew what that silence meant.

“Thank you.”

Come to think of it, this was the first gift I’d ever received from him that wasn’t a joke. That thought made me smile for no reason.

“Do you think time really solves everything?”

I flinched at the sudden question. It seemed to be a continuation of our earlier conversation in the library.

I lowered my eyes and thought for a moment.

“Not everything.”

Of course not. If time solved everything, I’d be living happily right now with minimal effort.

“But we both know.”

I flicked a single flower poking out from the bouquet with a finger.

“People live waiting for the right moment. You can only seize success when the timing is right.”

Just like how I wanted to escape the flow of the novel, but couldn’t—not yet.

“So we wait for that chance to come.”

If a crack ever formed in the sturdy wall around me, I wouldn’t miss it. That’s why I’d endured until now.

“And only time can create that crack.”

Because only time could erode what external pressure could not.

“Don’t you agree?”

I looked up at him and smiled.

They say happiness is contagious, so I chose to believe that.

Saint stepped closer, bent slightly, and whispered above my head.

“I like this life… but it seems God does not.”

His pale blue eyes looked darker than usual today.

“I’ll pretend none of this ever happened.”

With that cryptic line, he pulled away.

And somehow, I noticed there was one more thing in my hand besides the bouquet.

“Then, until we meet again.”

There was something final in his voice, like we were parting ways.

He left me standing alone in the plaza and vanished.

Only then did I open the hand I hadn’t even realized was clenched.

Inside was the decorative button I had given him earlier.

‘Why…?’

I stood frozen in place, unable to move for a long time.