ODEN 14

Chapter 14

Tap.

Calix ignored Yucar’s intense stare and picked up the purple sheet of origami paper.

“Mm.”

Lubellin had given it to him as if she were doing him a favor, worried that someone might take away her frog origami.

Where had she even gotten the idea that he would want such a trivial thing?

Thinking about it again, it was absurd.

But even more absurd was Lucina.

She had hidden Lubellin behind her back and looked at him with caution.

No matter how many times he saw it, he could not get used to the sight of a weak human trying to protect an imperial royal, someone everyone feared.

Calix put the colored paper down and looked at the heart-patterned blanket lying beside it.

He remembered Lucina wrapping herself in that blanket, shivering from the cold, and slowly closed his eyes.

That rainy night.

From the time the pale moon rose, magic had surged through his veins like violent waves.

Because of it, he realized the time had come again.

Once every six months, the enormous amount of magic sealed inside his ring would explode.

He would only transform into a monstrous form for about a day while burning with a high fever.

But because he never knew the exact time, he was always anxious whenever he sensed the signs.

Unable to stay still, he wandered through the palace garden.

The climbing roses covering the wall caught his attention.

Perhaps the gloomy rain had soaked not only his body but also his mind.

For once, he acted unlike himself.

After confirming no one was nearby, he carefully removed his ring.

The thorns growing from his fingers slowly shrank away, and the magic inside his body began to whirl violently.

“Ugh…”

Groaning, he suppressed the overflowing magic and hurriedly plucked a rose with his trembling hand.

Soon, the petals in his hand darkened and lost their original form.

Tap… Tap…

Dry petals slipped through the gaps between his fingers.

“Nothing has changed.”

Calix looked bitterly at the withered rose lying at his feet.

He already knew it was impossible.

Yet he still tried.

It was simply stubborn pride.

Only the strong can control supernatural power.

He wanted to prove that the ancient book was wrong.

That he was not weak.

Calix clenched his fist tightly, his face twisting.

“Damn it.”

But he was still weak.

Swallowing the curse under his breath, he turned away without hesitation and stood beneath a tree.

He had been staring at the shaking leaves for quite some time when—

Splash.

Someone stepped into a puddle.

It was Lucina Langport.

The moment he saw her running through the rain, time seemed to slow down.

He stared blankly until she finally stood beneath the tree beside him.

Only then did he look away.

She held out a blanket.

A blanket.

Something completely unrelated to him.

When he only stared at it, she urged him several times before suddenly shivering herself and snatching it back.

“If you’re insisting that much, then I have no choice.”

Her shameless remark left him speechless.

If that was how she felt, why had she come all the way through the rain just to bring him a blanket?

She stayed beside him for quite a while.

Even though he wasn’t wearing the ring and the overwhelming pressure of his magic should have frightened her, she merely flinched like a startled little animal before stubbornly placing the blanket over his shoulders.

As she approached, he desperately suppressed the magic surging up like a spring until he bit the inside of his cheek hard enough to draw blood.

Did she have fear or not?

“Flowers are meant to bloom and wither. So… so don’t worry about it!”

Even someone as indifferent to other people’s emotions as Calix realized she was clumsily trying to comfort him.

He found it unbelievable.

She was such a fragile creature that she caught a cold just from standing in the rain.

Who was comforting whom?

Yet…

For some reason…

That single sentence was as warm as the blanket resting on his shoulders.

After renewing their contract, Calix deliberately avoided the classroom.

As long as they did not meet, he would not have to think about things like a “happy family” or “pretending to be husband and wife.”

Besides, she had suggested that, in order to fool the princess perfectly, everything should remain confidential except for the princess’s personal attendants.

That made things convenient.

Hadn’t he himself said she only needed to attend his lessons whenever she felt like it?

Lucina never tried to pressure him.

Every day at exactly noon, she came to his office, gave her report, and quietly left.

Now that she had officially declared herself Lubellin’s teacher, she worked with incredible enthusiasm.

According to Mebern, she was so active that it became almost troublesome.

According to Rinel, she had shown no suspicious behavior and could be trusted.

“Today we played with clay!”

“Today she touched flower petals!”

“Today our little Lubellin—!”

Every single day without fail, she began her report with,

“Today…”

But today…

Calix raised his eyes toward the grandfather clock shaped like the Golden World Tree.

The clock had just passed 12:05.

His gaze followed the swinging pendulum before moving to the office door.

“Why hasn’t she come?”

Crossing his arms, he leaned back in his chair.

He had thought her daily visits were annoying.

Yet now that she had failed to appear on time, it strangely bothered him.

“Achoo!”

He vividly remembered the sound of her sneeze.

Did she catch a cold?

Tsk.

That’s what happened when she did unnecessary things.

“Your Majesty?”

Holding today’s pile of documents, Yucar secretly watched his master, wondering when he should begin his report.

Meanwhile, a devil that looked suspiciously like himself floated over his head, whispering,

“If it’s now, you could probably steal that piece of origami paper and His Majesty wouldn’t even notice.”

After a fierce internal struggle, Yucar finally resisted the temptation and looked down at the first document.

“Ahem! Your Majesty, please hear today’s report.”

No answer came.

Still, Yucar assumed he had permission to continue.

“Your Majesty, the Kingdom of Raonel has requested a trade agreement. They are currently suffering from a severe mineral shortage and wish to exchange their silk—”

“I need to check.”

Bang!

Without warning, Calix slammed both hands onto the desk, stood up, and headed straight for the door.

“Your Majesty?”

Yucar blinked blankly.

“Your Majesty, where are you going in the middle of state affairs?”

Before he could receive an answer, the enormous golden doors swallowed Calix.

“Your… Majesty…?”

Yucar was left alone in the office, completely confused.

Cough.

Lubellin watched me coughing repeatedly before making a worried face.

She gently patted my back with her tiny hand.

“Mommy… you okay?”

“Yeah, I’m fin—”

Cough!

No.

Actually, I wasn’t okay at all.

They say love and coughing cannot be hidden.

That saying was completely true.

I turned my head and continued coughing until it finally stopped.

Ah…

I really shouldn’t have gone out yesterday.

He had looked so pitiful…

At the very least, if I hadn’t brought him that blanket, I wouldn’t have caught this cold.

Cough!

Leaving my regrets behind, I coughed so hard it felt as though it came from the bottom of my stomach.

Only after quite a while did I calm down.

“Now then… let’s continue folding the paper…”

Wait.

How far had we gotten?

I stared blankly at the paper in my hand.

No.

What were we even folding?

My fever made my mind so hazy that I couldn’t remember anything.

Seeing me simply blinking in confusion, Lubellin grabbed my collar and shook me.

“Mommy! Wake uuup! You can’t die!”

“Ugh!”

She shook me around like a balloon at a festival.

As my vision swayed left and right, another hand suddenly appeared between us.

Startled, my eyes widened.

“Mebern?”

Mebern glared at me furiously.

“Please step away from Her Highness! I was only a little late, and what are you doing? As a teacher, your mental attitude is completely unacceptable!”

Maybe because I had a fever, Mebern’s sharp words hurt even more today.

Ever since I officially signed the contract, he had become much stricter toward me.

After all, I had declared to Ken, Rinel, and Mebern that I would become Calix’s fake wife for Lubellin’s emotional well-being.

Unlike Ken and Rinel, who strangely accepted it almost immediately, Mebern had exploded in anger, insisting those contract terms were ridiculous.

Eventually, however, he realized he had no authority to oppose Calix’s decision.

He also admitted my reasoning made sense.

Still, he clearly disliked my teaching methods.

“Get up immediately! You’re only causing trouble for Her Highness!”

Unable to argue with his perfectly reasonable words, I accepted the scolding.

To be fair…

I had been perfectly fine until breakfast.

Only afterward did I start feeling feverish.

I thought I would get better with time.

Instead, the moment class began, my fever worsened and my coughing became nonstop.

I should have canceled class the moment I suspected a cold.

But I couldn’t bear disappointing Lubellin.

As I blinked weakly, Mebern’s flushed face filled my blurry vision.

“I’m sorry, Mebern… Are you very angry?”

My voice came out rough and hoarse.

“I’m not the one you should apologize to! You should apologize to Her Highness! That’s enough! Class is over! Over!”

He grabbed my arm and tried to drag me away, looking ready to haul me out like a dog.

I twisted my arm.

“Ow… Mebern, my arm’s going to fall off.”

“Mommy!”

Hearing my painful cry, Lubellin jumped to her feet.

She glared fiercely and raised both hands as if to push Mebern away.

“Don’t pull Mommy!”

“No, Lubellin!”

I quickly hugged her with my free arm.

“Eek!”

Nearly shoved over by Lubellin, Mebern panicked, let go of me, and fell onto his backside.

He even scooted backward until he hit the wall.

If Lubellin pushed me around, nothing serious would happen.

But if she shoved Mebern…

He would probably end up with broken bones.

Still in my arms, Lubellin shouted,

“I don’t like you! Mommy’s sick, so stop bothering her!”

Looking troubled, Mebern desperately waved both hands.

“I-I’m not bothering her, Your Highness! I just…”

“Hmph!”

Lubellin puffed out her cheeks and glared.

Mebern looked as though he might cry.

“I-I was only worried that I might catch Her Highness’s cold…”

Lubellin put both hands on her waist, puffed out her little belly, and spoke sternly.

“Mebern! Don’t cry! Adults aren’t supposed to cry over things like this!”

“Y-Yes…”

“If you get between Mommy and me again, we’re done!”

“Sniff… Yes…”

He looked like he might burst into tears and run away at any second.

Proud of herself, Lubellin turned toward me.

“Mommy! I did good, right?”

“You did.”

Smiling gently, I nodded.

After today, Mebern might dislike me even more.

But how often in life do you meet someone who stands on your side with this much passion?

“Shall we end class for today?”

I began tidying the scattered origami paper.

Lubellin looked at it regretfully before nodding firmly.

“Okay! Mommy’s sick!”

“Such a good girl.”

She helped me clean up with her tiny hands.

Smiling at how adorable she was, I reached for the storybook.

Suddenly, a beautiful hand appeared behind me and covered my vision.

Before I could react, an ice-cold hand rested against my forehead.

Huh?

Who was that?

“Rinel?”

I asked weakly.

“…”

The owner of the hand said nothing.

Feeling only silence, I placed my own hand over theirs.

The hand was larger than I expected.

It trembled slightly.

As I gently rubbed it, I felt thick knuckles and prominent veins.

Definitely a man’s hand.

Was it Ken?

Whoever it was, the cold hand stealing away my fever felt wonderful.

Holding the hand, I slowly lowered it and turned around.

“Don’t worry. We were just about to finish class…”

My words stopped.

I simply stared.

Had my fever become so high that it was affecting my mind?

The person standing before me looked exactly like Calix.

To make sure he was real, I poked his cheek with one finger.

His soft cheek dented beneath my fingertip.

It even felt real.

Wait…

Is it really Calix?

“Oh my goodness!”

I immediately came to my senses and leaned backward.

Before I could fall, Calix casually caught me by the waist.

His face twisted into a deep frown.

“Are you so desperate to crack your skull open?”

“W-What?”

My gaze slowly dropped to the hand supporting my waist.

The place where his hand touched felt strangely hot, almost as if it had been burned.

I awkwardly twisted my waist.

“C-Could you let go of me…?”

“If I let go, it’ll be quite a sight.”

“Huh?”

“Watching you smash your head against the marble floor would be entertaining.”

“…”

Quietly, I grabbed hold of his sleeve.

I’m not letting go.

Calix glanced at my hand and let out a faint chuckle.

Then he pulled me upright with ease.

Our faces drew so close that our breaths almost mixed.

The moment I met his crimson eyes, I flinched and quickly lowered my gaze.

“Y-Your Majesty… what brings you here…?”

Calix looked me over with an expression that clearly displeased him.

“I take it back.”

“…Pardon?”

Take what back?

“I take back what I said.”

“…?”

“About you being capable of taking care of yourself.”

With those words, Calix slipped one arm beneath my knees and the other around my waist.

In an instant, my vision tilted as my body was lifted into the air.