🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter 56
“Did Peter Godwin really say that? What nonsense. That man.”
“Yes. Uh… if the clock tower is a bit much, then anywhere else is fine. I wanted to look around the market and visit an old bookstore too.”
Litricia listed the places she wanted to visit, folding her fingers inside her wool gloves.
That small, trivial gesture somehow dulled the edge of Killian’s nerves, which had been on high alert due to the mention of the tower.
‘She seems to be enjoying herself.’
As they entered the center of the square, the lively movements of the townspeople came into full view. Litricia’s cheeks were slightly raised, clearly pleased with the scene.
She must be smiling.
Lately, Litricia had begun to reveal her emotions more openly, though clumsily. Of course, she still quickly masked her expressions once she realized it—but today, it seemed even that slipped her mind.
“I didn’t realize there were so many places you wanted to go. Then let’s visit the market and the old bookstore first, then head to the tower.”
His palm injury was no longer bothering him, and if they were just sightseeing, there shouldn’t be a problem. There was no reason not to take her to the clock tower.
“Is it okay to do all that? Aren’t you busy?”
“I have more than enough time.”
Killian slowed his pace to make her feel more comfortable, guiding his horse toward the alley her gaze lingered on a moment longer.
“Huh? My lord, this isn’t the way, we should go that way…”
“This is the right way.”
“But going this way will take twice as long…”
“I said it’s this way.”
As Killian turned toward an unexpected route, a question mark seemed to pop above Mark’s head.
This path went around the square, an inefficient route rarely used during estate inspections.
He wondered why his lord would suddenly take a road he didn’t usually prefer—but then again, it made sense.
It wasn’t the first time Killian had acted inexplicably when it came to Litricia.
“Looks like Lady Litricia wanted to see that spot.”
Mark, long accustomed to this kind of thing, just scratched his head and quietly followed behind.
✧
“We’ve arrived, Litricia. This is the entrance to the Tower of Shuten.”
“Wow… It looks even taller up close. Feels like it touches the sky.”
After finishing their entire schedule, Litricia stood in front of the tower and let out a quiet gasp.
The closer they got to the tower, the stronger the magical energy became, warming the atmosphere compared to the square. Snowflakes descending from the sky appeared to be suspended in midair, as if time had stopped.
Well, not exactly—more like they were falling so slowly, it seemed as though they weren’t moving at all.
She swept a floating snowflake off with her fuzzy glove and noticed moss growing on various parts of the towering structure.
No matter how far back she tilted her head, she couldn’t clearly see the clock face at the very top.
“Ah! Cold!”
A sharp snowflake suddenly dropped directly onto her eye, as if suddenly pulled down by gravity. Litricia winced and hunched her shoulders.
No matter how many times she blinked, the flake had already melted into her eye. The strange discomfort lingered, and she squinted, trying to ease it.
Hearing no footsteps behind her, Killian turned around.
“Why are you just standing there?”
“Something got in my eye… Oh! It’s okay now.”
Pressing gently over her closed eyelid, Litricia began walking again. The snow beneath her boots crunched with each step.
“Can we go inside the tower too?”
“Yes, but don’t expect much. There isn’t really anything to see.”
He wasn’t exaggerating. The inside of the tower was completely empty. Not even stairs to the next floor.
From floor to ceiling, it was just a hollow tube—almost as if someone had propped up a giant cylinder.
The walls were partially crumbled, with large gaps in some places, wide enough for a person to walk through.
Since the tower was near the border, it was unclear if the holes were broken down or smashed open. A stream ran just outside, circling the village of Telsey.
“Oh… wow. This is…”
The unexpected scene left Litricia at a loss for words.
“Ugh.”
Feeling that irritating sensation again, she rubbed her eye and glanced around the desolate tower.
Then, in one corner, she spotted something that didn’t belong—one single flower. She walked toward it.
A beam of light from a hole in the tower wall shone down on the flower. Behind it stood a stone the size of her palm, like a small gravestone.
Upon closer inspection, she noticed something carved into it—uneven letters, likely by a child.
Whose grave could this possibly be?
As she leaned in to read more closely, she gasped.
Kendrick von Heverus.
Even after rubbing her eyes again and again, the name didn’t change. The full name etched into the stone was that of the former crown prince, Killian’s older brother, who should’ve been laid to rest in the royal tomb beneath the temple.
At that exact moment, a loud chime rang out from the top of the tower, sharp enough to pierce her eardrums.
“Killian, did you… did you carve this name?”
✧
Today was truly strange.
Everything felt like déjà vu, like she was reliving her first meeting with Killian.
From the horseback struggles earlier, to the ringing of the tower bell above her head…
‘That day, too—the day Killian announced the engagement at the ball—that clock rang just like this.’
She remembered the day she became deeply entangled with Killian. Then an odd feeling of dissonance struck her.
Now that she thought about it… why was there a clock at the ballroom? A magical clock, no less, floating at the center of the dome?
‘Was there really a clock there?’
A fundamental question surfaced—just as the second chime echoed through the tower.
“Yes, I carved it. As you can see, this poorly made tombstone belongs to my brother.”
It was merely a crude marker.
As mentioned before, Kendrick rested in the underground royal tomb. This was simply something young Killian had made, after being exiled to the north, to remember his brother by.
“I didn’t want to leave him behind in that damned capital, but… I didn’t have the power to bring him here.”
He was blamed for his brother’s death—barred from attending the funeral, even forbidden from visiting Kendrick’s resting place. Bringing his brother’s small coffin all the way to the north had been impossible.
Though none of it had been his fault, regret lingered in the way he brushed dust off the tombstone.
‘So Killian remembers his brother this way? But why place this here, of all places—not at the ducal estate…’
“This tower… my brother always wanted to visit it.”
Litricia jumped, surprised by his sudden answer—had she said that last thought out loud?
“Wh-why?”
“My brother had talent in magic. One day after class, he came home talking about how this tower grants wishes. From then on, he kept begging me to come here with him.”
“Wishes? That’s the same story the young viscount told me.”
The clock chimed again. DONG—resonating metallic vibrations echoed off the stone walls and rumbled through the ground.
“In the end, he only made it here like this. But… it’s a place he so badly wanted to see. I think he’d still be happy.”
“You’re right. And since you cared enough to do this… I’m sure he’d be glad. …But Killian… what is that?”
“What is what?”
“This.”
Litricia pointed to the empty air beside Killian’s hand.
“This smoke swirling around you.”
“…You see it? This smoke?”
“Yes. It’s blue and—kyaah! Killian?”
As Killian shot to his feet in alarm, the hem of his cloak swept up dust into a whirlwind.
“You see it? Really? How? Since when? How much of it can you see?”
“I don’t know. Maybe it has something to do with whatever got in my eye earlier. I just started seeing it a little while ago. Cough.”
Her eyes turned red as she coughed from the swirling dust.
“Actually… I think I’ve seen it before. A few times.”
She’d thought she was imagining it—the blue smoke near the tower, or what she saw just before dawn a month ago.
But now, seeing it swirl vividly before her, she was certain she hadn’t been mistaken.
“Though this is the first time it’s been this clear.”
Cautiously, she poked at the smoke. It felt like touching steam—no real sensation.
When the third bell rang, the scratchy feeling in her eyes vanished. Her vision turned completely blue for a moment, then returned to normal. That was when the smoke began to appear.
Cough, cough.
Killian brushed the dust away and cupped Litricia’s cheeks, gently turning her toward him.
“Look at me, Litricia. Look directly into my eyes!”
