Irene worried about feeling heavy after lunch, but fortunately, she got through it unscathed.

“I still feel a bit uneasy.”

She told Jessie that because she didn’t want to have dinner with Carlos. She felt like it would definitely weigh on her then.

“Should I bring you the digestive medicine the doctor gave us yesterday?”

“It’s not serious enough for medication; I think I’ll be fine after some rest.”

“Do you want to go for a walk? They say walking helps with digestion.”

“No, I feel a bit tired today, I’d rather rest in my room.”

She did want to take in the fresh air on a walk, but the concern that she might run into Carlos weighed heavier on her.

She also had a book she wanted to read.

“Call me whenever you need.”

Left alone, Irene sat on the sofa and opened her magic book. She had read the early parts in the library, but she read through them carefully from the start.

She spent most of her time reading, yet progress was slow.

“Ugh, it’s difficult.”

The book was hard, and there were too many unfamiliar words. She could guess the early words but as she read on, guessing became impossible.

“I’ll look up the dictionary in the library tomorrow.”

She wondered if she really had to go to this length just for the possibility of using magic, but she wanted to read it to the end.

Irene noted down the unfamiliar words for future reference.

And so, it grew late.

Tap, tap.

Closing her notebook and getting up to sleep, Irene heard a tapping noise on the window and moved towards it, pulling aside the curtain.

“It’s raining.”

The downpour was so heavy it felt like the whole world would get soaked.

Irene usually disliked rainy days. Her father would be home all day as he couldn’t go hunting.

Instead, he would treat her and her mother like animals, abusing them both physically and verbally. There was no reason for her to like rain.

“It’s not so bad.”

But now, she didn’t mind the rain. The sound was almost musical, lifting her spirits. It even had its own charm.

How beautiful a rainy day could be. She felt this for the first time.

Wanting to feel it more vividly, Irene opened the window wide and stretched out her hand. The rain fell softly on her delicate fingers.

“It’s cold.”

But it was a good kind of cold. Irene, oblivious to her sleeve getting wet, kept her hand out the window for quite some time.

How long had it been?

“It’s dropping.”

“……!”

The careless voice came from behind her. When a long arm reached out, Irene was startled and turned around.

“Yo, Your Highness.”

Why was he in my room? Seeing Carlos, she lowered her head in dismay. She tried to distance herself from him, but there was the window behind her, limiting her retreat.

Carlos closed the window, muting the echoing rain sound.

Unsure what to do, half-sitting on the windowsill, Irene was shocked when a cold hand touched her cheek.

“Your cheeks are cold.”

Carlos frowned as he removed his hand from her pale face.

“How long have you been like this?”

“……”

Too nervous to speak, she lowered her head again.

“Your clothes are wet.”

So tensed she had clenched her hands, her wet sleeves were revealed.

Considering her cold face and wet sleeves, she must have been by the window for quite a while.

Indeed, she had been there even before he had left for patrol.

Carlos discovered Irene when he left the castle for his patrol.
On days like today, when the sky was overcast and the rain poured heavily, the boundary between the human world and the underworld often became blurred, creating a passage known as “Abyssos.”

Normally, Abyssos was smaller than a palm, so it was no concern. But occasionally it grew large enough for a person to pass through, which was why Callis was out on patrol.

Only the lord of the underworld could eliminate Abyssos, after all.

Thus, leaving the castle, Callis wandered around in search of Abyssos and came across Irene standing in front of a window.

At first, the window was closed, so he just glanced and moved on. But after circling the castle once, he found the window wide open.

Irene was standing precariously near the open window, as if about to fall.

Fearing she might fall, Callis hastened to her side.

Yet, another issue arose. Callis sighed and looked down at Irene.

What were you thinking, catching a cold like this?

So frail she could barely digest the food of a small bird.

Callis wanted to reprimand Irene but kept silent upon seeing the deep fear in her golden eyes.

Lunchtime conversations with Zerdei crossed his mind.

If you want to open Irene’s heart, be more tender than you are to your subordinates, Zerdei had said.

What exactly was meant by “more tender”? Callis exhaled and shook his head.

His demeanor reminded Irene of her father before he struck her mother. She closed her eyes tightly in dread.

“…”

Confused by Irene’s reaction, Callis gave her a puzzled look before turning away.

“It’s late; go to sleep.”

Though he had much to say, he felt any further words would frighten Irene, so he left her bedroom.