ATTNH - Chapter 8

- Episode 8

Adelheid visited Dominic every day under the pretext of reading outdoors. And she kept talking to him.

She had already read the books in the study until she was sick of them.

Without a proper conversation partner in the palace, books were the only means of communication.

Furthermore, Anton did not like smart women, so she did not bring in any more books except for the ones she already had.

According to him, meeting a smart woman at a conference is enough.

There were quite a lot of books in the study, but they were far from enough to fill Adelheid's long hours.

She read the same book over and over again until it was worn out. It was the same in the next life. In a lonely and boring place, she ceaselessly read, wrote, and lived reluctantly.

That was all there was to do.

She was sick and tired of the book she had read until it was worn out. While Anton was part of the reason Adelheid had been so distant from the guards, she also stood there to hold onto her sanity. She felt suffocated if she didn't talk, even in that way.

"Doesn't your leg hurt? Sit here and let's talk."

“I’m on duty.”

"Does the Captain enjoy reading books too?" 

“Yes.”

“I don’t really.”

She was too sick of it to enjoy. For Adelheid, reading was not a hobby, but a matter of survival.

She stared blankly, tapping the book with the tips of her fingernails. Suddenly, she asked.

"Are there any women in the Captain's Order of Knights?" 

"Yes."

"What about commoners? Are there only nobles?" 

"Legenon does not discriminate based on status." 

"I suppose that makes them the greatest knight order. They've been to a lot of wars, haven't they?"

"Yes."

“I’m jealous. You must have traveled around a lot. I want to be a knight too.”

If she became a knight, she wouldn't be stuck inside a palace with high walls like this; she would be seeing the world.

She will enter the Mountain of Time and see the dragon. She will meet the dragon and get rid of this damn blessing.

"...War is fought when you never know when you might die."

"Is it so?"

Unfortunately, Dominic's words did not move Adelheid at all.

Their deaths would surely end there. She was incredibly envious.

"...If I become a knight, or even if I am not a knight but whatever, I will enter the Mountain of Time."

"..." 

"There is a dragon I want to kill." 

"..." 

"...There is a dragon that must be killed."

After a moment of silence, he spoke coldly.

"You do not necessarily need to be a knight to enter the mountain of time. If you want to go, go." 

"I can't go." 

"..." 

"I cannot go in this position."

If she could go, she would have gone long ago. However, as Anton's concubine, she cannot go anywhere.

She can do nothing. Although she herself cannot do it, Dominic—he already has a history of killing a dragon.

"...Captain, do you intend to kill other dragons in the future?"

"No."

“Why?”

"Why do you ask?"

"If you intend to do so, ask them to kill the dragon. I said there is a dragon I want to kill. Since I can't go, ask them to kill it for you instead."

"...I have no such intention. The reason I killed the Dragon of the Nine Heavens was that it was the only solution to the war. Had there been even a single other way, I would never have killed the dragon."

"What is the way to avoid war?"

"I have no authority regarding that. The decision rests with the King."

"Then why.. if there had been another way, wouldn't you have killed the dragon?"

" Because blessings are great things."

“It is a great thing...”

Adelheid laughed. Blessings are great? Do you even know what that damn blessing gave me?

Her hands trembled with rising anger. She closed and opened jer eyes a few times.

"Anyway, does that mean you have no intention of entering the Mountain of Time again? Forever and ever?"

“Yes.”

Adelheid closed her mouth and struggled to compose herself. Even though she was used to it, it was quite arduous, so it took a little time.

He said he had no thoughts. Then what should we do? Becoming extremely anxious, she plucked a flower from her feet and broke the stem into pieces.

As she watched the flower stem snap between her fingers, her mind gradually calmed down.

The wind blew a little harder. Adelheid raised her head to break the silence.

Then, seeing the hook-shaped cut on Dominic's forehead, she tapped her left forehead with her finger and asked.

"You know what I mean. Is this something that happens in war?"

"Yes."

"It has a slightly unusual shape." 

It felt somehow familiar. However, she had no way of knowing what that sense of déjà vu was.

Adelheid soon put aside the worry that had briefly crossed her mind.

"...I don't like being in pain."

Anton was a man with severe mood swings. Fundamentally, he was cruel and ruthless by nature.

When he was feeling down, he did not hesitate to lay a hand on Adelheid.

Adelheid also had suffered considerable pain from death. She had gone through it, but she could never get used to the pain.

Rather, she was afraid of pain because she had suffered so much. She hated being in pain, no matter what it was.

As she thought about it, jer heart sank heavily. As Adelheid fell silent, the conversation stopped right there.

Adelheid finished breaking the lifted flower stem into pieces.

It was a meaningless habit she did when lost in thought or trying to soothe a restless mind.

She didn't like her fingertips getting stained; however, the sensation of life being cut and the faint sound brought a strange sense of calm.

"What book will you bring tomorrow?" 

Dominic did not answer.

***

The King came exactly ten days later.

As soon as she heard the news, Adelheid neatly combed and braided her hair, put on the clothes Anton liked, and applied makeup.

The woman in the mirror was as beautiful as a flower. Her long eyelashes fluttered, following the movement of her blinking eyelids.

As she went to the front of the palace gate to greet Anton, Dominic was standing there neatly.

His gaze was still like that of someone looking at something unpleasant.

She had lived a long life and endured too much humiliation to dwell on such things. Honestly, she didn't care at all.

"Your Majesty!"

Adelheid smiled broadly as if she had encountered the most lovely thing in the world and hugged Anton.

As he hugged her, warmth seeped into her shoulder. She got goosebumps.

“Your Majesty, my King, why have you not come all this time?”

"I was busy cleaning up after the war." 

"I thought you had forgotten me." 

"Hmm."

"I waited. Forever." 

She didn't look at Anton's face; she didn't even want to look at Dominic's face, so she just buried her face in his chest.

Whether she was doing this or seeing his face, she hated it just the same, but at least this was more familiar. Anton's voice rang out above her head.

“Sir, how have you been? Have you been doing well?”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

"Is everything okay?" 

"Yes."

"It is a quiet and beautiful place. You have worked hard, so take a rest for a while." 

Anton briefly greeted him and walked away with his arm around Adelheid's shoulder.

When she had taken about five steps, she slightly turned her head to look behind her.

Dominic was slowly lifting his lowered head. Their eyes met in the air.

Adelheid avoided eye contact.

***

Lying comfortably on the bed, Anton said in a cheerful voice

"So, did Dominic fall for you?"

"Fall for me? I have no one but Your Majesty."

Anton seemed amused by the sight of Adelheid smiling sweetly and speaking shamelessly.

He pushed the sitting Adelheid over to lie down next to him.

“It won’t be easy.”

"Well, I'm telling you, Your Majesty is the only one for me."

"Captain Legenon is straitlaced and wise. He detests sly, stupid women like you." 

" Your Majesty likes it, you know."

"It's not bad."

“Then that’s it.”

"Where is he usually after work?"

"Ah..."

He is wary of Dominic.

Adelheid had an intuition. Based on the long time she had known Anton, she was certain. 

But why? No matter how much Dominic was a Slayer, Anton was a King. No matter how powerful a knight's forces grew, he was still just a knight. Not a high-ranking noble, nor royalty, but a knight—just a knight loyal to the King.

"It's probably in the study. I don't really know."

" A study? Just like him."

"...Why do you only talk about other people? It's been a long time since you've been here."

Adelheid grumbled as she stroked Anton's arm and kissed him.

She didn't want Dominic's name to come up. She was afraid that Anton might tell her to try and win Dominic's heart, or say something like that. Because if she failed, he could kill her.

But I feel like I will fail.

Adelheid closed her eyes, feeling the touch of arms wrapping around her waist.

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