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Chapter 26
To go see the Emperor’s face and attend the party.
And to take me with him.
It was something he would’ve completely avoided in the past. Why now?
‘What are you thinking, Calix?’
I knew well enough that asking the question out loud wouldn’t get me an answer. So, I had to find it on my own.
But right now, more than that, I wanted to know why he had brought me into the middle of the forest.
“Why did you bring me here?”
To my question, Calix simply smiled and led me deeper into the woods in silence.
Eventually, guided by his hand, we reached a moonlit lake nestled deep within the forest.
It was a rather clichéd situation, but…
‘A classic.’
While I was giving a dry evaluation in my head, Calix smiled confidently at me and said:
“Isn’t it beautiful? I’ve always wanted to show this to you.”
“This lake?”
“Yeah. Especially when it’s lit by moonlight at night.”
“Why?”
At my question, Calix lowered his gaze slightly, as if embarrassed.
“Do you remember? When I was staying in Troxia.”
What came out of his mouth next was something I hadn’t expected at all.
“When you were in Troxia…? …Oh.”
After a moment’s thought, I realized what he was referring to.
“When we were watching the ocean together under a curtain and both caught colds?”
“Yeah.”
Calix nodded.
A chuckle escaped me before I realized it.
“How could I forget? We both got sick and suffered so badly…”
It was a very old memory. So old I didn’t even realize I’d forgotten it. But once I remembered, I found myself wondering how I could have ever forgotten it in the first place.
It was a week after Calix had first arrived at Troxia. We were both twelve years old at the time.
That night, I couldn’t sleep and went out to the terrace, only to catch twelve-year-old Calix scaling the outer wall of the mansion.
We’d only known each other for a week. And there he was, looking like a little thief sneaking out of the mansion in the dead of night.
I couldn’t help but speak to him.
‘Are you running away?’
Startled, Calix lost his footing and nearly fell. Even now, the thought is both terrifying and hilarious. At that point, I’d only been in this body for a week and had no magical abilities to save him.
He survived only by grabbing onto the open window’s curtain at the last second. The curtain tore, of course—but not my problem.
Falling to the ground, Calix sat dumbfounded, clutching the torn curtain.
He looked up at me, clearly thinking:
‘Who the hell are you?’
But I didn’t answer. I just leaned against the terrace railing, calming my startled heart, and asked again.
‘I asked if you’re running away.’
Young Calix responded with a grumpy look.
‘I’m not running away.’
‘Then what are you doing?’
‘Just… couldn’t sleep.’
If you can’t sleep, call a maid or attendant. Why are you scaling the outer wall like that?
I wanted to say it, but instead I decided to go along with his rebellion.
‘Wait there.’
Why I made that choice, I still don’t know. Maybe I couldn’t sleep either.
A little later, I came out through the front door with a lantern.
‘Why’d you go out the window when there’s a door?’
‘I didn’t want to wake anyone up.’
Only then did I see his face clearly in the lantern light. It was the first time we had what you could call a real conversation.
I looked at him for a moment and then said:
‘Follow me.’
Without asking the obvious question of where we were going, Calix dragged the torn curtain like the corpse of a defeated general and followed me.
You can guess the rest.
We went to the cliff, gazed at the sea all night, leaned on each other’s shoulders, and tried to keep warm under the curtain. Eventually, we fell asleep there.
The next morning, the household staff, having discovered our absence, went into a frenzy and found us sleeping side by side.
We were scolded harshly by the Count of Troxia and caught such bad colds that we were bedridden for a week.
After that incident, I started seeing Calix Axel Heretrio as a real person. Not a character from a book.
That night, as we looked at the moonlit sea, Calix had said something.
‘There’s a place like this in my territory too.’
‘You have an ocean?’
Surprised, I asked.
‘No. There’s a big lake deep in the forest. At night, it looks just like the sea—so beautiful.’
‘…’
‘If I ever get the chance, I want to show it to you.’
‘…Sure. If there’s a chance.’
I thought that chance would never come. I buried that memory away.
But now, Calix had brought me here.
That tender promise—to show me the lake—came rushing back to me.
“You still remembered that?”
“How could I forget? It was the first promise I made to you.”
To my surprise, Calix answered.
“I’m glad I finally get to show it to you, even if it’s late.”
“….”
A strange feeling welled up inside me.
But instead of speaking, I swallowed it down.
Then Calix continued.
“There’s something I really wanted to say to you here.”
“…What is it?”
Suddenly, he knelt down on one knee before me. It was a slow motion, but filled with unshakable resolve.
Because of that, I couldn’t stop him. His expression was deeply serious.
He took one of my hands and bowed his forehead over it.
I looked down at the back of his head, unsure of what to do.
“Lena. When we go to the capital…”
He began.
“No one knows what might happen.”
“….”
His voice trembled slightly.
“There could be danger.”
It was the first time he’d openly admitted danger like this.
“….”
This wasn’t like when he explained the risks of the dragon. This wasn’t reluctant honesty—it was deliberate and sincere.
He was informing me of the potential dangers ahead and seeking my understanding.
In a slow but certain voice, Calix said:
“But no matter what happens, nothing will put you in danger.”
“….”
“I swear. No matter what, I’ll protect you.”
Following his honest confession came a heavy vow.
“And you’ll never leave me. And I’ll never leave you.”
“….”
In the face of that weighty promise, I couldn’t move or speak for a while. At last, I opened my mouth.
“…I believe you.”
I gave him words that, to him, might carry more weight than anything else.
A few hours earlier.
Ishar briefly doubted his ears at what his lord said.
“You’re going to the capital?”
“Yes. I am.”
“And attending a palace banquet?”
“Is there a problem?”
At Calix’s question, Ishar paused. Then he spoke words that weren’t quite appropriate for a loyal subject of the empire.
“I thought you hated the Emperor.”
“I still do.”
Calix answered lightly, as if there was nothing to think about.
Ishar opened his mouth again.
“Then is there any reason for you to attend the banquet? You know no one would blame you for declining, as usual.”
“….”
This time, Calix fell silent. Ishar found his reaction puzzling.
Wasn’t he trying to keep that mage, Lena, as far from the Emperor as possible? It was clear to anyone with half a brain that he wanted to hide her from the Emperor to protect her.
Then why…?
“May I ask why you suddenly changed your mind?”
Unable to bear the silence, Ishar finally spoke.
“To catch a tiger, you have to enter its den.”
It wasn’t the answer Ishar expected.
But it explained everything at once.
While Ishar struggled to process his lord’s words, Calix continued.
“What’s the point of staying holed up and claiming you’ll catch a tiger? At the very least, you have to show the effort of lighting a fire inside the den.”
What he was saying was tantamount to saying he wanted to capture the Emperor. Just uttering such words could be considered treason.
Yet Calix continued calmly, spinning his teacup between his fingers.
“If you don’t want to come, you don’t have to.”
He raised the cup to his lips.
“That’s not it. I…”
Ishar began to protest.
“Why now… after all this time…”
But he couldn’t finish the sentence.
His lord, who had been staying in the shadows, was now acting boldly.
The reason was obvious.
That mage.
Now that he had found the person he had been searching for, it was time to act for her.
And once his lord had made up his mind, Ishar had neither the right nor the power to stop him.
He accepted it in silence.
As Calix looked out the window, he asked suddenly:
“…There wasn’t any mention of rain tonight, right?”
A few hours later. In the forest.
Calix turned his head to look at Lena crouching beside him.
She had stared at the moonlit lake for a long time and suddenly decided she wanted to skip stones. Now she was picking out rocks.
After searching for a while, she seemed satisfied with one and stood up excitedly.
“Found one!”
“….”
Of course, her joy did not correlate to her skill at skipping stones.
The rock Lena threw sank into the water with a loud plop, not even skipping once.
“….”
Instead of getting discouraged, she immediately sat back down and started picking through rocks again.
“…Should I do it for you?”
Calix offered gently, unable to watch anymore. But she fiercely insisted, “Absolutely not!” and returned to her search with fierce determination.
