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Chapter 30

‘Ugh, I’m doomed.’

I blinked up at the ceiling, lying in bed. I needed to pee.

‘Just one glass of beer and it’s already getting back at me.’

Outside, the wind howled, shaking the windows. To get to the bathroom, I had to go downstairs. And that meant going through the dark hallway.

‘Maybe I should hold it…’

I closed my eyes to try to fall back asleep, but it wasn’t working. The beer really wanted out.

‘Okay, it’s not like going to the bathroom alone is a big deal. Besides, Kerman’s not coming tonight anyway.’

I pushed off the blanket, gathering courage.

“You need to go to the bathroom?”

I blinked in surprise. It was Tiago’s voice from the next room.

‘How did he know I got up?’

Pushing the question aside, I answered him.

“Yeah, I was just about to go.”

“I’ll come with you.”

“No, it’s okay.”

“I’ll just walk with you to the hallway on the first floor.”

I said no, but honestly, it felt a little less scary with Tiago. When I stepped outside my room, he was already standing at the door in a bathrobe.

Each room had a heater so it was warm inside, but the wind outside made it pretty chilly. Tiago was just in his robe, not even wearing anything under it. I could see a glimpse of his toned, dark chest through the robe.

‘Is he made of chocolate or something? Get a grip, get a grip!’

To avoid staring at his body, I kept my eyes on the floor and walked ahead.

“How did you know I got up?”

“I just woke up suddenly.”

Was this another playboy trait? But it was kind of amazing.

I’d heard similar stories before—like when parents instinctively wake up when their baby does, even if the baby doesn’t cry. My mom said the same to me once.

‘Joo-hee, you rarely cried. When you woke up, you just opened your eyes and waited for me. But strangely, every time you opened your eyes, I woke up too.’

I could almost hear my mom’s voice again.

‘Come to think of it… it’s been a long time since I’ve seen her. Is she doing okay? What happened to my body…? Am I still… alive?’

Thinking about my mom, and how she must be heartbroken right now, made me unbearably sad.

To stop the tears from coming, I clenched my fists and walked down the stairs.

‘Focus, get it together.’

By the time I snapped out of it, I was already at the last step.

“I’ll wait here. Go ahead,” Tiago said quietly.

He didn’t want to wake up the innkeepers or Frederic. He was being considerate.

“Thanks.”

I quickly did my business and came back. This time, I noticed Tiago’s staff glowing like a torch.

“Whoa…”

I walked closer to look. The tip of his staff was glowing softly like a lantern or candlelight.

“You seem to like it. A staff like this is pretty useful.”

The light reflected off Tiago’s face, making him look warm and cozy.

When our eyes met, I felt awkward and started walking up the stairs. He shined the light behind me to help me see.

“Thanks again.”

Standing in front of my room, I looked back at him. Tiago turned off his staff’s light. Only the moonlight shining through the hallway windows lit us up.

Now, I could finally look him straight in the eyes.

His skin was dark and smooth. He usually tied his hair back, but today it was loose, giving him a wild, untamed look.

He reminded me of those strong, wild heroes in foreign movies. But the way he was looking at me now—with such gentle eyes—threw me off.

That softness didn’t match his tough, muscular appearance.

‘Girls must fall for him like crazy.’

To calm my racing heart, I reminded myself: Tiago is a total flirt.

‘No way. Guys like him only cause heartbreak.’

As if he didn’t notice what I was thinking, he spoke gently.

“Sleep well. If you sleep well, I can sleep well too.”

“……”

I opened my mouth to say something but closed it again. Words felt useless in this moment.

The moonlight, his warm gaze, and this weird floating feeling… everything was happening too fast.

I avoided his eyes and slipped back into my room, hiding under the covers.

The room was so quiet, I could almost hear my heartbeat.

‘Seriously, I’m not some teenage girl. No need to get fluttery over a playboy.’

I pulled the blanket up over my head and turned away from the door.

It took me a while to calm down and fall asleep.

Morning passed in a busy blur.

Only Frederic and I ate breakfast. The innkeepers made us a nice meal, and when we went outside, Tiago had already finished getting the ship ready.

“Please come again, young master, young lady.”

Frederic paid them well, and the couple said we were welcome anytime. They were really kind, which made it easier to leave.

Tiago’s ship was bigger than I expected. I had to lean back to see the top of the sails.

Thankfully, we had good wind today. The sails puffed up proudly like a general’s cape.

The ship looked majestic as it left the port.

‘I do feel a bit bad.’

Originally, the ship was supposed to leave for the east two days ago. We delayed it.

But Tiago had thanked us instead. Apparently, there was a huge storm over the eastern sea yesterday. No ships were harmed, but if his ship had sailed, it probably wouldn’t have made it.

When he said that, I remembered Frederic was also supposed to take a ship around this time.

‘Wait… was it the same ship? What if they both got caught in that storm…?’

A bad feeling crept up on me, but there was no way to check.

I was a bit dizzy from seasickness, so I sat outside in the breeze.

“Hey.”

“…?”

Frederic came to sit next to me. He looked much healthier than yesterday—his face had some color again and his lips weren’t pale anymore.

“Feeling alive now, huh?”

“Yeah.”

He nodded, looking awkward for once. That was rare for him.

“What is it? You got something to say?”

“Well…”

He leaned on the railing, facing the wind. His curly hair fluttered around.

Even though he was wearing the same clothes as before and his hair looked oily, he still looked like he came out of a photoshoot. Good-looking people really are something else.

“Oh right!”

I suddenly remembered the pearl necklace he lent me. I took it off and handed it to him.

“Here. Thanks for letting me borrow it. It protected me from that cursed flame too.”

“….”

“What, aren’t you gonna take it?”

Frederic just stared at the necklace and didn’t take it.

“Wait.”

He reached into his jacket pocket and pulled something out.

“Here. Take this too.”

He placed a ring next to the necklace in my hand.

It was gold, no gems, but had beautiful, detailed engravings on it.

“You keep both—the necklace and the ring.”

“What? No way. That necklace belonged to your mom. You can’t just give me something that precious!”

“The necklace is happy being with you.”

“What? A necklace can’t be happy. What is it, haunted or something? If it has weird spirits in it, I don’t want it. I’m not taking either of them.”

I shoved my hand toward him with both items.

He stayed calm and said, “Take it. It’s your birthday present. And that ring—it’s an elf’s ring.”

“An elf’s ring? You mean what you mumbled when you were drunk?”

Frederic nodded while staring at the sea.

“Yeah, that’s why I went to Brunic. Deep in the sacred forest, I got that ring made by an elf. It protects the wearer. If you wear it with the necklace, most evil energy won’t even come near you.”

I looked down at the necklace and ring.

“A necklace with the sea’s blessing and a ring with the forest’s blessing… Wow, this gear is stacked.”

Frederic smiled and nodded. A gust of wind blew his hair again.

My heart skipped a beat.

‘Seriously, what’s wrong with my heart today? He’s good-looking, yeah, but still. What’s gotten into me?’

I slipped the elf ring onto my finger. It fit like it was made just for me.