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Chapter : 36
I’ll Change the Male Lead This Time
Boom, boom—!
I wanted to believe that everything was because of those fireworks exploding into the night sky.
“Hyperion, look at that. Wow.”
“……”
The woman pointed at something, but Hyperion couldn’t turn his gaze away.
“Huh? You’re not impressed?”
It was as if time itself had stopped—only the light pouring down over her head existed.
“Didn’t you come to hang out with me? Shouldn’t you at least pretend to be grateful?”
She widened her eyes, looking almost sulky.
“Kaella Veritas.”
Hyperion, who had been leaning against the window watching her, finally spoke.
“Run away. Even now.”
Half of him wanted to trap that dazzling woman in his grasp.
The other half feared that if he did, even she would be stained by the darkness of this place—making her untouchable.
“Run away?”
She blinked.
“Is this somewhere I’m not supposed to be?”
One… two…
He counted the moments in his mind—each second stretching unnaturally long.
“Am I not allowed to stay here?”
Three.
Only then did a strange smile bloom on Hyperion’s lips.
“I clearly gave you a chance.”
Without hesitation, he jumped out the window.
“Oh my god.”
Her face, staring at him in disbelief, rushed close.
“How did you just jump down from that height? Are you okay?”
“You said you came to play with me.”
Hyperion spoke as he slowly walked toward the light.
“If you play with someone, you should take responsibility.”
It was a summer night, brilliant with fireworks.
How on earth did he jump down from up there?
I stared at the suddenly-close Hyperion with wide eyes.
“When did I ever… play with you?”
Hyperion let out a low laugh.
“You’re doing it right now.”
His golden hair fluttered in the wind, revealing his refined eyes.
Somehow, he’d gotten even more handsome since the last time I saw him.
“I’m completely out of it.”
“Ah, were you sleeping?”
“No.”
“Then why are you so distracted?”
“Who knows.”
Hyperion turned his head and looked up at the sky.
“All day long, you—”
Boom!
A firework exploded, muffling his voice.
“All day long, what?” I almost asked—but boom, boom! fireworks bloomed one after another, stealing my attention.
“Wow, it’s so pretty.”
“You said you’d hang out with me… so this is what you came to see.”
Hyperion replied, narrowing his eyes.
“Isn’t it beautiful?”
“I see it all the time.”
Well, when you live a life where festivals last a full week every birthday, I guess fireworks wouldn’t feel special.
“Wow!”
The layered explosions felt like clusters of stars pouring down to the ground.
“Didn’t expect you to like this sort of thing.”
“I haven’t actually seen them much in person. I heard them a lot, but…”
“Why?”
Hmm… why…
—From now on, this is your room. Don’t draw attention. Stay quiet.
In that enormous mansion, my room was at the very bottom—underground, where not a single ray of light reached.
A fitting place for a bastard child abandoned at the front gate.
On days when laughter filled the living room and garden, I wasn’t allowed to step outside.
All I could see from my window was damp earth. There was no way I could look up at the sky.
I can’t exactly say this happened in my past life.
Just as I was about to brush it off, a forgotten memory surfaced.
“Oh—right. I did see them once.”
Yes. After possessing this world, I’d seen fireworks once.
“At a village festival. It was small, so not this flashy, but it was really beautiful.”
“Yeah? With who?”
Still watching the sparkling sky, I answered absentmindedly.
“With Marquis Karl Beite.”
“……”
“It was the neighborhood where Karl grew up.”
Karl’s figure—standing in warm sunlight—flashed through my mind.
—Kaella! I wanted to show you this.
Back then, he wasn’t the commander of the Holy Knights, nor the powerful Marquis he is now.
—This headband is a gift. It’s not a precious jewel or anything, but… if I make it into the capital’s political circles someday, I want to give you something better.
At the very least, he’d been a hundred times better than the Karl of today.
“It was fun…”
Thinking of those days that had eventually turned into mud left a bitter taste in my mouth.
It wasn’t longing for Karl—it was grief and anger over memories that had been tainted.
“……”
Maybe because the fireworks had stopped all at once, leaving sudden silence—my cheek stung oddly.
When I turned my head, my eyes met Hyperion’s.
“Why are you looking at me like that?”
Leaning against the castle wall, he tilted his head slightly. His gaze was strangely cold.
“This is a breach of contract.”
“Huh?”
I froze for a moment.
A breach of contract…?
—No other men.
Surely he didn’t mean that?
“You said you’d clear things up first.”
“No, I mean—”
“With such an outstanding fiancé right in front of you, you’re thinking about some half-witted bastard?”
A laugh slipped from my lips in disbelief.
The more I looked at him, the more childish he seemed.
“Haha, anyway—getting some fresh air helps, right?”
“……”
When I hurriedly changed the subject, one of Hyperion’s eyes narrowed.
“Where are you going?”
“Come with me.”
Hyperion stepped forward and lightly grasped my hand, pulling me along.
“I want to show you something better.”
As I followed him, I quietly looked down at our joined hands.
Thump, thump—
It felt like my heartbeat was echoing where our warmth met.
“So from now on, whenever you see fireworks, you’ll think of me.”
Hyperion glanced back at me, raising an eyebrow.
He’s impossible. Seriously.
Under a night filled only with stars and light, fireworks crackled with every step we took together.
The Hyperion before my eyes, his hand holding mine—
Just a few months ago, I couldn’t have imagined any of this.
“From here… you can clearly see even the fireworks exploding down below.”
“I didn’t know the imperial palace had a place like this.”
Hyperion stopped in a small garden hidden between the castle walls.
Unlike the other lavish gardens, this one was quiet—only a small swing swayed gently.
From here… the vast Ignis spread out beneath us in full view.
“How did you find a place like this?”
“You could call it my secret spot.”
Hyperion’s still gaze settled on the swinging seat.
“When I was a child, sitting on that swing alone was my only rest.”
“……”
I quietly watched his profile, half-submerged in darkness.
For the first time, emotion flickered across his usually numb, bored face.
—What are you staring at? It’s not like you can see anything from a basement window anyway.
—Even for a moment, it feels like I can breathe.
Did my face look like that too, back when I stared out at the wide world from a basement window?
“Well, now there are two of us. I’m here.”
“……”
Hyperion’s eyes, filled with sparkling Ignis, slowly turned toward me.
“Doesn’t that mean you can forgive one contract violation?”
“You really are… impossible.”
The smile he gave me was as refreshing as a summer breeze.
“I should head back now.”
For some reason, that smile made my chest ache slightly. I turned my head away.
“Amy will be shocked if she notices I’m gone.”
“It’s already late. I’ll walk you back.”
Before I knew it, we’d arrived at the castle where I was staying.
“Thank you. I said I’d hang out with you, but… it feels like you were the one playing with me.”
“This kind of thing isn’t bad.”
“Then I’ll see you at the opening ceremony tomorrow—oh, right.”
Just as I turned around, a memory I’d forgotten surfaced.
“Earlier, Babil’s fever seemed pretty high. Are you okay?”
“So… Babil really was there again.”
“Well, you don’t have a fever, at least.”
I lightly touched Leon’s forehead with the back of my hand, then pulled away.
He definitely looked better than when he jumped out of his office window.
Maybe the night air helped.
“Babil’s probably sleeping in your room right now. He looked exhausted from training.”
“…What? Sleeping?”
As soon as I finished speaking, Hyperion’s face twisted.
“I seriously can’t control this.”
He muttered something under his breath, like a curse.
“He’s so cute.”
Thinking of Babil sleeping peacefully made me smile. He’d been terrifying at first, but now he felt like a big cat.
“Cute… huh.”
Suddenly, Hyperion took a step back, as if trying to put distance between us.
“Don’t let your guard down, Kaella.”
“…What?”
“Babil is the most dangerous one.”
Those red eyes I’d seen beneath the night stars darkened.
“At least to you.”
