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Chapter 19
“Killian!”
The door opened, and Selitias walked in, her golden hair flowing as she approached Killian.
“You have come?”
Killian greeted her while looking out the window. It was already afternoon.
“Why are you so stiff? You must be very tired today.”
Oscar noticed the mood and quietly left the room. Selitias slowly walked toward Killian.
He did not seem to be in a good mood. Even though he had called for her, she thought it would be better to approach him carefully.
“Shall I prepare some warm tea?”
Selitias stepped closer.
But Killian waved his hand, keeping a certain distance from her.
“No, my lady.”
“You were the one who called me. And you did not even reply to my letter.”
Selitias had gained experience over time. Even though Killian’s eyes made her slightly afraid, she still carefully approached him.
“You don’t seem to be in a good mood.”
She tried to ease his fatigue with her special eye-smile, the one that had charmed every man before.
But Killian was the only man it did not work on.
She knew when men fell for her. She believed love could be seen in the eyes. That was why she clearly knew Killian had never fallen for her. And yet, she did not understand why he kept her by his side.
Still, he was the number one groom in the empire. There was no reason for her to refuse staying beside him.
“Why did you call me?”
Even though he did not move at all as she came closer, Selitias did not give up.
“How pathetic.”
The words Killian finally spoke were like a mutter to himself.
“Killian?”
Selitias asked in surprise.
She wondered if she had heard wrong.
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
Killian shook his head.
When she moved closer to him, she saw many torn pieces of paper piled up on his desk.
‘What is this?’
Selitias trusted her instincts. A woman’s intuition was not something to ignore.
“Killian, what is this? There’s so much trash on your desk.”
Killian usually did not care much about what she did.
And she knew which documents were important, so she thought it would be fine as long as she did not touch those.
She reached out naturally, pretending to clean up the trash while planning to glance at the contents.
That was when—
“Do not touch it.”
It was the lowest voice she had ever heard from Killian.
Startled, Selitias tried not to show it.
“I just thought your desk looked messy. I was trying to clean it for you.”
“You know I do not repeat myself.”
Killian’s voice was firm.
In the end, Selitias pulled her hand back.
‘Could it be a letter he started writing to that so-called fiancée?’
Selitias lifted the corners of her lips and pretended nothing was wrong as she looked at him.
She knew he had a fiancée chosen long ago. He had told her when they first met.
But he had added—
‘She is only a nominal fiancée.’
And was that not proven by the fact that Killian was seeing her?
“Instead—”
At that moment, Killian stood up with a sigh. He grabbed the pile of torn papers and roughly threw them into the trash bin.
“Shall we go out?”
Killian asked.
His face was calm again. The same face she always saw.
“All right!”
Once again enchanted by that face, Selitias nodded and held out her hand to him.
Killian stared at her hand for a moment, then slowly placed his own hand over it.
“Let’s go.”
Meanwhile, in an alleyway, Floheta was firmly warning Yuse.
“Listen carefully. This is the city. It’s very busy and full of people. You could easily get lost. So you must follow me closely.”
Floheta spoke with steady eyes.
Killian did not like Floheta going out alone with Yuse. If Frederick or Sir Alec found out, Killian would surely hear about it.
Yuse did not want Killian to get angry, so she decided to sneak out.
‘Then just don’t go out!’
Beila had tried to stop her anxiously.
‘Of course that’s true. But I want to go outside. On a day like today, I can’t stay inside. And I want to proudly take Killian somewhere beautiful too.’
Beila knew Yuse was impossible to stop when she became playful like this.
‘…All right. But you must return quickly. Lady Floheta, please take good care of my lady.’
After warning them five times with wide eyes, Beila finally received Floheta’s promise.
“I won’t get lost. I promise. Really.”
And now—
Yuse looked at Floheta just as firmly as Floheta had looked at Beila.
“And since we must not attract attention, we should change our clothes first.”
“Really?!”
Yuse’s eyes sparkled again.
She was excited to have another new experience.
“Hahaha.”
Floheta laughed at Yuse’s clear and honest reaction.
“Come on. I know a place.”
Floheta held out her hand, and Yuse took it with an innocent smile.
They headed to a clothing shop not far from the alley.
“Hey! Madam Ridley!”
Floheta turned another corner and boldly opened the door of a shop without a signboard.
“Lady Floheta?”
Yuse was startled at the sudden shout of her name, but soon a woman who seemed to be the owner came out with wide eyes.
“Oh my! What brings you here?”
“Just out for a little fun.”
They seemed to know each other well.
“How do you two know each other?” Yuse asked.
“You can see status through clothes. So I often buy clothes here that won’t make me stand out.”
Floheta shrugged and stepped aside.
“Let me introduce you. This is Madam Ridley, the owner of this nameless shop.”
“A nameless shop?”
Yuse had wondered why there was no sign. It truly had no name.
“Nice to meet you, my lady.”
Madam Ridley asked no questions. She bowed politely.
“Please follow me. And young master, you may choose from your usual place.”
“Thank you.”
Floheta gently pushed Yuse forward.
Yuse followed Madam Ridley.
She arrived at a section filled with neat and simple dresses—very different from the heavy, frilled dresses she usually wore.
“Would you like to choose?” Madam Ridley asked softly.
Thirty minutes later, Floheta had already changed and was sitting comfortably on a sofa, watching people pass by the window.
She hoped she would not run into him today.
Just then—
“Flo!”
Yuse’s voice came from behind.
When Floheta turned around, she saw Yuse standing there, looking shy.
Her appearance was completely different—simple and pure.
“How is it?”
Yuse was wearing a khaki dress that matched her hair color. Instead of her usual styled hair with many pins, she wore a simple black bandana, which made her look even cuter.
“You’re so cu— I mean, it’s nice. You look so natural that no one would believe you’re a noble.”
Floheta almost spoke her true thoughts but quickly corrected herself and gave a thumbs-up.
“What was that? It’s a compliment, right?”
Yuse made a strange face, then lightly hit Floheta and laughed.
“Of course. Let’s go.”
Floheta took Yuse’s hand again and led her outside.
