I told Callius everything except that in my past life, Hillen was with Kavala.
Lhasa's prophecy and what she did to Andrew.
Also, the sharp gaze Andrew sent to Callius at the altar.
Finally, Andrew met Sernia.
“...”
Callius' expression became serious.
He immediately summoned the knight commander and gave him an order.
“Have the knights bring the criminals and Andrew imprisoned in the dungeon before me. Immediately.”
“Yes, my lord!”
After Knight Commander Hawick received his orders and left, silence fell between us, the two of us left alone.
Callius seemed deeply heartbroken.
He must have felt bad when he heard that his trusted subordinate was suspicious.
I carefully broke the silence.
“I'm sorry to have to tell you this about your knight, but I thought you should know.”
I felt sorry for no reason, even though I didn't do anything wrong.
“I’m sorry. I told you something unpleasant. Are you... upset?”
“I’m upset. I’m upset, but it’s not just Andrew who’s upset.”
"Then...?"
He let out a short sigh.
“Why didn’t you tell me this story before?”
I cringed a little, as if it were a rebuke, asking why I was only talking now.
"Callius trusts your subordinates very much. So, I thought I shouldn't do anything rash until there was concrete evidence. But then I heard that Sir Andrew had met Sernia..."
“That’s not it.”
Callius cut me off.
"Then?"
I tilted my head and looked up at Callius.
But then suddenly, Callius lifted both his hands and grabbed my cheeks.
“...? Why is the child doing this? (Why are you doing this?)”
My cheeks were pressed, my lips were protruding, and my pronunciation was slurred.
I looked up at him with wide eyes, and he leaned in close to me with the same scolding expression he used to give to the mischievous snow cats.
"No matter how much they trust and care for their subordinates, would they trust and care for their wife more than they do? If we were drowning, they'd save their own wives before me. And if it were the other way around, I'd do the same."
I held back the thought that I wanted to say to myself, 'If Callius falls into the water, he'll be able to get out on his own, so of course... On the other hand, if I fall in with the knights, I'll probably be the only one struggling, so of course...'
What he wants to talk about now is probably not such a realistic story.
"So don't suffer alone. Before I'm the lord of the knights, I'm your husband. Don't you understand what that means?"
I pursed my lips and waited for Callius to speak.
He spoke forcefully.
"The one and only companion who will be with you for life, the person closest to you, the one who is as one with you. That's me."
I was speechless at that grandiose adjective and just stared blankly at him.
I never thought about it that way.
To me, Callius was a wonderful person, a very good person, and the one who brought me to Ronheim.
Besides that, I have many other positive thoughts about him, but I never thought of him as my one and only companion, as he said, or as being closest to me, or as being like one body.
It would be more correct to say that I never dared to try it.
Wasn't he the leader of all, loved by all?
As I looked confused, he frowned and pressed my cheek a little harder, as if he realized that I had different thoughts from him.
“That’s what marriage is!”
“Oh, it hurts...”
He let me go with a pained expression on his face.
“So, please trust me. That I am on your side more than anyone else.”
Then he added in a small voice.
“I’m sorry for hurting you.”
“It wasn’t that painful.”
“That’s fortunate.”
I cupped both cheeks and glanced at him.
'I've heard such great things that I can't believe what he's saying.'
I can't tell you how many times I've heard Andrea say things like, "I do everything for you," "No one cares about you like I do," and "I care about you so much."
When Andrea said things like that, he would gently and gently dig into my heart and make me believe that whatever he said was right.
But now Callius was so different.
This is the first time I've heard someone say something so crudely.
Moreover, Callius wasn't making this confession to convince me that he was right, but to tell me that he trusted me and that I should speak my mind without hesitation.
I muttered blankly.
“I didn’t know marriage was like that.”
“Yes, I think so.”
“We didn’t date and get married...”
“Even if it’s not a love marriage, marriage is still marriage.”
“I had no idea that Callius was thinking about me for the rest of his life...”
One of Callius' eyebrows rose slightly.
“Have you ever thought about divorce?”
“Oh, no, that’s not it. It’s just the thought itself...!”
He raised his hand in front of me and spoke clearly, folding his fingers one by one.
“Let me be clear: in Ronheim, divorce is not possible except for reasons of spousal violence, infidelity, gambling, fraud, or neglect of the family.”
"Ah..."
“But I wouldn’t be violent towards Chloe, I wouldn’t cheat on you, I wouldn’t gamble or cheat, I wouldn’t neglect my family, and even if Chloe did all of those things, I wouldn’t ask for a divorce, so we’d never get a divorce.”
Why did you suddenly start talking about divorce?
The conversation kept seeming to take unexpected turns, but I couldn't help but ask a question before I could correct it.
“Even if I do something wrong, you won’t ask for a divorce? Why?”
“If Chloe did something wrong, it would be my fault for letting you do it.”
“That might not be the case. What if I’m just doing it out of bad intentions?”
“If I had treated Chloe well in the first place, you wouldn’t have harbored ill feelings toward me.”
"No, I mean, this is just an example. No matter how well you treat someone, there are still people who harbor ill intentions!"
“Because Chloe isn’t that kind of person.”
“So this is just an example...”
“The person who likes you more usually loses.”
"Yes...?"
I was left speechless again.
Callius coughed and looked away slightly.
“What I’m trying to say is that divorce is impossible.”
"Yes..."
I nodded, wiggling my fingers.
Callius looked somewhat relieved.
He reached out his hand to me.
“Then let’s go to the audience room and wait for the knights to bring the sinner and Andrew.”
"Yes."
I put my hand on Callius's.
Then, a little impulsively, I grabbed his hand.
“...?”
I wanted him to be pulled towards me, but he didn't budge, and instead I ended up approaching him.
'There's nothing I can do.'
I lifted my chin and kissed his cheek as he looked down at me with a quizzical expression.
“...!”
"I have no intention of getting a divorce. I certainly have no intention of making excuses."
I pulled his hand, which was looking at me in confusion, with force.
“Let’s go. The family is strong, so now we must protect Ronheim!”
In the audience room, all the knights except me, Callius, Hawick, and the knights who had gone to capture Andrew were gathered.
The knights' expressions were not good, as if they had heard that Callius had ordered them to capture Andrew.
Even though they didn't know, everyone had a gloomy expression on their faces, sensing from the atmosphere that Andrew had made a terrible mistake.
They didn't act rashly or make a lot of noise, but they were quietly whispering with their expressions.
Andrew colluded with a Kavala spy? That can't be true. Something's wrong. Isn't he crazy? Someone, please, tell me this isn't a misunderstanding.
The expression on their face revealed their true feelings. The atmosphere was gloomy.
At that moment, the door to the audience room opened.
Then the knights even adjusted their expressions perfectly.
“I brought you the sinner, Sernia!”
While the knights went to find Andrew, Sernia, who had been imprisoned, came out to us first.
Sernia's appearance, which I saw again after a long time, was miserable.
A body that was dirty and thin from not having washed for a long time, pale skin, chapped lips, and hands and feet covered in black grime.
She was dragged in, writhing, her hands and feet bound in shackles.
"Why are you like this! Why! Save me! Why are you suddenly doing this? Save me! Save me! I can't die like this!"
She seemed to think that Callius had summoned her to execute her.
Even though she looked like she was about to die, her will to live was amazing.
As soon as the Knight Commander had Sernia kneel before Callius, Callius asked sternly.
“Is it true that you had an affair with Empress Kavala while you were in prison?”
Sernia glanced at Callius.
I watched Sernia with the determination not to miss a single reaction from her.
Lhasa's prophecy and what she did to Andrew.
Also, the sharp gaze Andrew sent to Callius at the altar.
Finally, Andrew met Sernia.
“...”
Callius' expression became serious.
He immediately summoned the knight commander and gave him an order.
“Have the knights bring the criminals and Andrew imprisoned in the dungeon before me. Immediately.”
“Yes, my lord!”
After Knight Commander Hawick received his orders and left, silence fell between us, the two of us left alone.
Callius seemed deeply heartbroken.
He must have felt bad when he heard that his trusted subordinate was suspicious.
I carefully broke the silence.
“I'm sorry to have to tell you this about your knight, but I thought you should know.”
I felt sorry for no reason, even though I didn't do anything wrong.
“I’m sorry. I told you something unpleasant. Are you... upset?”
“I’m upset. I’m upset, but it’s not just Andrew who’s upset.”
"Then...?"
He let out a short sigh.
“Why didn’t you tell me this story before?”
I cringed a little, as if it were a rebuke, asking why I was only talking now.
"Callius trusts your subordinates very much. So, I thought I shouldn't do anything rash until there was concrete evidence. But then I heard that Sir Andrew had met Sernia..."
“That’s not it.”
Callius cut me off.
"Then?"
I tilted my head and looked up at Callius.
But then suddenly, Callius lifted both his hands and grabbed my cheeks.
“...? Why is the child doing this? (Why are you doing this?)”
My cheeks were pressed, my lips were protruding, and my pronunciation was slurred.
I looked up at him with wide eyes, and he leaned in close to me with the same scolding expression he used to give to the mischievous snow cats.
"No matter how much they trust and care for their subordinates, would they trust and care for their wife more than they do? If we were drowning, they'd save their own wives before me. And if it were the other way around, I'd do the same."
I held back the thought that I wanted to say to myself, 'If Callius falls into the water, he'll be able to get out on his own, so of course... On the other hand, if I fall in with the knights, I'll probably be the only one struggling, so of course...'
What he wants to talk about now is probably not such a realistic story.
"So don't suffer alone. Before I'm the lord of the knights, I'm your husband. Don't you understand what that means?"
I pursed my lips and waited for Callius to speak.
He spoke forcefully.
"The one and only companion who will be with you for life, the person closest to you, the one who is as one with you. That's me."
I was speechless at that grandiose adjective and just stared blankly at him.
I never thought about it that way.
To me, Callius was a wonderful person, a very good person, and the one who brought me to Ronheim.
Besides that, I have many other positive thoughts about him, but I never thought of him as my one and only companion, as he said, or as being closest to me, or as being like one body.
It would be more correct to say that I never dared to try it.
Wasn't he the leader of all, loved by all?
As I looked confused, he frowned and pressed my cheek a little harder, as if he realized that I had different thoughts from him.
“That’s what marriage is!”
“Oh, it hurts...”
He let me go with a pained expression on his face.
“So, please trust me. That I am on your side more than anyone else.”
Then he added in a small voice.
“I’m sorry for hurting you.”
“It wasn’t that painful.”
“That’s fortunate.”
I cupped both cheeks and glanced at him.
'I've heard such great things that I can't believe what he's saying.'
I can't tell you how many times I've heard Andrea say things like, "I do everything for you," "No one cares about you like I do," and "I care about you so much."
When Andrea said things like that, he would gently and gently dig into my heart and make me believe that whatever he said was right.
But now Callius was so different.
This is the first time I've heard someone say something so crudely.
Moreover, Callius wasn't making this confession to convince me that he was right, but to tell me that he trusted me and that I should speak my mind without hesitation.
I muttered blankly.
“I didn’t know marriage was like that.”
“Yes, I think so.”
“We didn’t date and get married...”
“Even if it’s not a love marriage, marriage is still marriage.”
“I had no idea that Callius was thinking about me for the rest of his life...”
One of Callius' eyebrows rose slightly.
“Have you ever thought about divorce?”
“Oh, no, that’s not it. It’s just the thought itself...!”
He raised his hand in front of me and spoke clearly, folding his fingers one by one.
“Let me be clear: in Ronheim, divorce is not possible except for reasons of spousal violence, infidelity, gambling, fraud, or neglect of the family.”
"Ah..."
“But I wouldn’t be violent towards Chloe, I wouldn’t cheat on you, I wouldn’t gamble or cheat, I wouldn’t neglect my family, and even if Chloe did all of those things, I wouldn’t ask for a divorce, so we’d never get a divorce.”
Why did you suddenly start talking about divorce?
The conversation kept seeming to take unexpected turns, but I couldn't help but ask a question before I could correct it.
“Even if I do something wrong, you won’t ask for a divorce? Why?”
“If Chloe did something wrong, it would be my fault for letting you do it.”
“That might not be the case. What if I’m just doing it out of bad intentions?”
“If I had treated Chloe well in the first place, you wouldn’t have harbored ill feelings toward me.”
"No, I mean, this is just an example. No matter how well you treat someone, there are still people who harbor ill intentions!"
“Because Chloe isn’t that kind of person.”
“So this is just an example...”
“The person who likes you more usually loses.”
"Yes...?"
I was left speechless again.
Callius coughed and looked away slightly.
“What I’m trying to say is that divorce is impossible.”
"Yes..."
I nodded, wiggling my fingers.
Callius looked somewhat relieved.
He reached out his hand to me.
“Then let’s go to the audience room and wait for the knights to bring the sinner and Andrew.”
"Yes."
I put my hand on Callius's.
Then, a little impulsively, I grabbed his hand.
“...?”
I wanted him to be pulled towards me, but he didn't budge, and instead I ended up approaching him.
'There's nothing I can do.'
I lifted my chin and kissed his cheek as he looked down at me with a quizzical expression.
“...!”
"I have no intention of getting a divorce. I certainly have no intention of making excuses."
I pulled his hand, which was looking at me in confusion, with force.
“Let’s go. The family is strong, so now we must protect Ronheim!”
***
In the audience room, all the knights except me, Callius, Hawick, and the knights who had gone to capture Andrew were gathered.
The knights' expressions were not good, as if they had heard that Callius had ordered them to capture Andrew.
Even though they didn't know, everyone had a gloomy expression on their faces, sensing from the atmosphere that Andrew had made a terrible mistake.
They didn't act rashly or make a lot of noise, but they were quietly whispering with their expressions.
Andrew colluded with a Kavala spy? That can't be true. Something's wrong. Isn't he crazy? Someone, please, tell me this isn't a misunderstanding.
The expression on their face revealed their true feelings. The atmosphere was gloomy.
At that moment, the door to the audience room opened.
Then the knights even adjusted their expressions perfectly.
“I brought you the sinner, Sernia!”
While the knights went to find Andrew, Sernia, who had been imprisoned, came out to us first.
Sernia's appearance, which I saw again after a long time, was miserable.
A body that was dirty and thin from not having washed for a long time, pale skin, chapped lips, and hands and feet covered in black grime.
She was dragged in, writhing, her hands and feet bound in shackles.
"Why are you like this! Why! Save me! Why are you suddenly doing this? Save me! Save me! I can't die like this!"
She seemed to think that Callius had summoned her to execute her.
Even though she looked like she was about to die, her will to live was amazing.
As soon as the Knight Commander had Sernia kneel before Callius, Callius asked sternly.
“Is it true that you had an affair with Empress Kavala while you were in prison?”
Sernia glanced at Callius.
I watched Sernia with the determination not to miss a single reaction from her.
Comments
Post a Comment