IMT 35

Chapter 35

“Alright then. Now that Rin is conscious again and the mage has returned, shall we have dinner together tonight?”

At Michael’s words, I was reminded of the previous meal I had with Eunsoo.

“Your Majesty, will Empress Eunsoo also be joining that gathering?”

Michael paused and looked at me.

“No. She will not come.”

His tone and expression had completely stiffened, as if his mood had suddenly soured.

“I see.”

“Do not worry. You will not have to meet that woman.”

From the way Michael spoke, it seemed his feelings had completely turned away from Eunsoo.

A development completely different from the game’s storyline. I hadn’t expected things to diverge like this, and it made me uneasy.

What if Michael wanted to grow close to Cassian in a deeper way?

That thought alone made my mood sink.

Michael and Cassian actually suited each other like a painting. It wouldn’t be bad if the two of them supported each other’s emotional wounds and maintained a deep bond. But if that became the reason a family broke apart, then I was against it.

I imagined Michael breaking up with Eunsoo. And then I pictured Michael and Cassian standing side by side.

No, no. That’s not it. Should I start preventing Cassian and Michael from getting closer now?

“Yes. Thank you.”

I swallowed my complicated thoughts and smiled brightly.

“Your Majesty, now that Lady Rin seems fine, perhaps you should relocate for state affairs.”

“Oh, yes. I should.”

Michael immediately approached me and gently took my hand.

“Rest well. I will send someone for you this evening.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

After hearing my reply, Michael turned to Cassian.

“Mage, I apologize for saying this, but there is currently no one available to take care of Rin. The previous attendants were quite unsatisfactory, so we are hiring new personnel, but I have not yet found suitable candidates.”

“Ah, I understand. I will stay by Rin’s side.”

“Good. Thank you. I will leave her in your care.”

After Michael left, silence settled in the room.

“Torio, lock the door.”

“Yes, sir!”

Torio—who had been standing like a decorative statue until now—quickly ran outside.

Once the door closed, Cassian grabbed my hand and quietly began chanting a spell under his breath.

A cooling sensation spread across my hand, as if ice water had been poured over it.

A clean spell? Why suddenly a clean spell?

I stared at my hand, then remembered that it was the hand Michael had just held.

Ah! So that’s it. He’s jealous because Michael touched my hand while he didn’t.

Realizing Cassian’s reaction made my heart feel even heavier.

He liked me so much that even small things like this made him jealous, and yet I had to stop him.

I swallowed my thoughts and snapped at him with a sharp glare.

“Cassian! If you don’t like me being in contact with the Emperor, then just say so!”

Cassian’s eyes widened instantly. He looked like someone whose deepest secret had just been exposed.

“What! You knew?”

I shouted again, glaring at him, and Cassian looked away while muttering,

“No… I thought you didn’t know…”

Seeing him rub the back of his neck while his ears turned red made me even more dumbfounded.

What was this guy?

“Wait, so you thought I didn’t notice?”

I couldn’t believe it.

Cassian had always been calm, detached, as if nothing in the world bothered him. And now he was acting like this?

“I thought you would deny it at least once.”

I teased him, and Cassian glanced at me before smiling faintly.

“Why would I deny it? It’s true.”

Ugh. Culture shock. I got goosebumps.

Maybe it’s because I’ve never experienced love before, but seeing this kind of change made me uneasy. What if I changed like this too?

At the same time, I worried what would happen if I pushed Cassian’s feelings away. What if he said he didn’t want to be friends with me anymore?

“Haah. Fine. It’s true, so what am I supposed to do about it?”

When I sighed, Cassian carefully studied my expression.

“You’re not… upset?”

I froze for a moment.

Was Cassian thinking I would be upset because he liked Michael?

A sudden realization made me flinch.

Don’t tell me… he misunderstood and thought I liked Michael?

In situations like this, the best option was a strong denial.

“Why would I be upset over your feelings? I’ve already told you I have nothing going on with the Emperor. Don’t you remember?”

I stared at him flatly, and Cassian’s softened expression hardened again.

Why now?

I couldn’t understand him at all.

“Why? Are you disappointed that I’m not reacting the way you expected?”

Cassian blinked repeatedly, then looked away as if deep in thought.

He’s thinking about something. Now that I didn’t reject him, is he worried about what comes next?

Well, it was obvious Michael’s situation was complicated. It must be frustrating to confess feelings in a situation like that.

At least it was good that Cassian was thinking rationally.

Once again, I decided I should clear up the misunderstanding between Eunsoo and Michael before Cassian’s feelings grew any deeper.

But that wasn’t the priority right now. First, I needed energy to do anything at all.

I quietly stood up and pulled open the curtain, looking for the food bags I had left on the terrace.

“My little treasures!”

Holding the bags in both hands, I felt like I had reunited with something precious.

I quickly opened them.

But a large hand suddenly snatched the bags away.

It was Cassian.

“Hey! You’re eating too?”

He walked to the table and glanced at me lazily.

“Yeah.”

“What?”

I asked in shock, and he tore open both bags and placed them on the table.

I rushed over and checked the contents.

One bag was filled with bread—panettone, grissini, and focaccia. The other contained bottles of bicerin—hot drinks layered with coffee, chocolate, and milk—five bottles in total.

“Why bicerin? It’s getting warm these days.”

I frowned and picked up one bottle. Even though it had been on the terrace, it was still slightly warm.

Cassian took it from me, shook it twice, opened it while muttering something, and handed it back.

“You’ve been coughing blood and your condition isn’t good. I brought it on purpose. Stop complaining and drink it.”

I pouted but took the bottle.

It had been lukewarm before, but now it was warm enough to heat my palm.

“You said I was better than before, didn’t you?”

I blew on the bottle and took a sip.

“You’re better than when your mana was misaligned. But that doesn’t mean you’re fully stabilized like when I first met you.”

“Oh, I see.”

I had thought I was safe now that my mana circuits had stabilized, and I wouldn’t cough blood anymore. But apparently I wasn’t fully healed yet.

As I sipped the bicerin with a slightly bitter feeling, Cassian handed me a piece of grissini.

“You can’t expect everything to heal at once. You’ll need care for a while. So don’t worry about anything else and focus on your body. Understood?”

His expression had turned cold—so much so that it was hard to believe he had been blushing moments ago.

Maybe he was disappointed because he thought his love wouldn’t end well.

He probably already understood there was no future between him and Michael.

In situations like this, the best thing I could do was stay quiet.

“Yeah. I will.”

When I accepted the grissini, Cassian watched me for a moment, then looked toward the door.

“I’ll step out for a bit. Eat.”

“Okay.”

Meanwhile

As soon as Cassian left Evelyn’s room, he leaned against the wall and exhaled sharply.

His hands and feet were trembling. His mind was in chaos, and his body had no strength left.

Slowly sliding down the wall, he buried his face in his hands.

It was almost miraculous that he had maintained his composure in front of Evelyn.

“Your feelings… I have nothing to do with the Emperor.”

“I thought she was just drawing a line…”

“Are you disappointed that I’m not reacting?”

“That meant she can’t accept my feelings…”

Cassian let out a long sigh. Everything felt white and distant. He had rushed here only to confess his feelings, and now he felt completely lost.

“What should I do? What now?”

Evelyn had always been someone who listened to anything he said. Someone who understood even his unreasonable stubbornness and overlooked the things he wanted to hide.

Because she had always been warm and endlessly accepting, he never imagined she would reject him so directly.

He had expected confusion, surprise, maybe even hesitation. Maybe she would say she needed time to think. Or even that she liked him too.

But this—

“I didn’t expect this at all…”

He hit his head lightly against the wall again.

And still, nothing cleared.

“Excuse me.”

He looked down.

Torio stood there, staring at him.

“Are you looking down at me right now?”

“Ah! My apologies, Your Highness!”

Torio quickly bowed his head, thinking to himself.

‘Why is his mood so low again? He seemed fine earlier…’

Torio glanced at Cassian again.

Unlike before, Cassian looked dazed.

‘He looks like someone who just got rejected—W-wait?!’

Torio widened his eyes.

“Did… you fail?”

Cassian’s eyes sharpened instantly.

But Torio cut in quickly before he could speak.

“You rushed into confessing without preparation. That must be why. I think your method was wrong.”

He waited for a reaction.

None came, but Cassian didn’t get angry either—so he continued.

“The princess seems a bit… unaware of subtle feelings. With someone like that, you have to be very direct. Half measures won’t work.”

Cassian looked at him silently.

Torio swallowed.

‘He’s listening… good.’

Encouraged, he continued.

“I think Her Highness is a bit… oblivious. So you need to make it absolutely clear. You can’t rely on hints or assumptions.”

Cassian tilted his head slightly, thinking.

‘So… she might not even realize my confession was about her.’

“…Then she might think I confessed about someone else entirely.”