Pierre and Sloan chatted quietly among themselves as they entered the hall. As I silently observed their departing figures, a warm sensation suddenly settled on my shoulders.

In my lowered gaze, I noticed Ian’s outer garment.

“Did you hear my thoughts?”

Instead of a reply, Ian’s hand gently rested on my cheek. He looked at me with eyes filled with concern, then wrapped one arm around my shoulders.

“Let’s go inside and talk.”

Following Ian’s suggestion, I entered the hall and stopped when we reached the stairs leading to the second floor. Despite carefully surveying the interior, there was only this quiet spot.

“Now might be a good time to talk.”

“They seem to insist it wasn’t wine they discarded. Initially, they thought if they grabbed onto the idea of it being wine, with no evidence now, it would be enough.”

“It definitely wasn’t wine, it seems.”

“They seem to be going on the expedition to dispose of something at the Red Fountain. They referred to it as ‘that thing’ and seemed reluctant to admit they would participate in the expedition, but said it was inevitable to earn a lot of money quickly.”

“What on earth are they throwing into the Red Fountain?”

It had reached the point where someone was secretly disposing of something in the Red Fountain, and someone else was taking the water from that fountain. Could there be a correlation?

Considering Gail had been with them all this time…

“Senior, Empress Hwangu is coming.”

“Huh?”

Ian gestured with his eyes, and I saw a woman with orange hair dressed in a glamorous dress.

That person is the Empress of the Phoenes Empire.

“It seems like she suspects me.”

“What should we do? Let’s go upstairs for now.”

Holding Ian’s hand, we ascended to the second floor. Upon arriving at the visible door, I flung it open. Thankfully, it seemed to be a private room where we could take a break, and no one was inside.

“You came up to the second floor?”

“Yes. The voice is getting closer.”

“Should we lock the door for now? Since it’s an empty room…”

As I raised my gaze, I froze. When we entered the room, I hastily pulled Ian’s hem, but I didn’t realize it was pressed so closely.

“Sorry.”

Apologizing as I let go of Ian’s clothes, he narrowed his eyes slightly.

“Why are you apologizing?”

“Huh? Because I pulled your clothes earlier…”

Is apologizing for this even necessary?

As that thought crossed my mind, a low laughter escaped. Feeling the gaze against my face, I discreetly raised my eyes. As if waiting for our eyes to meet, Ian slowly parted his lips.

“Earlier, when I was with the Deputy Commander of the Guardians. What were you talking about?”

“When I was with the Deputy Commander? We didn’t talk about anything special…”

“What do you think of that man, Senior?”
As I was about to respond, Ian’s hand suddenly approached my face. Whether it was tangled in my hair or not, his thumb lightly touched my cheek and then moved away.

“You think of him as the Deputy Commander of the Guardians. We went on an expedition together.”

“….”

Ian didn’t respond, just gazing at me intently. It was an endlessly quiet gaze, but the impatience seemed to be coming from me.

“The reason I was with the Deputy Commander earlier was because of the man who came to the banquet held by our family. Do you remember the man who came to the banquet? He picked a fight, and the Deputy Commander happened to help me…”

“It wasn’t a coincidence.”

“Huh?”

“What do you mean?”

Ian, still fixing his gaze on me, reached out somewhere. The moment he did, a clicking sound accompanied the locked door. The light touch that had swept my face gently became firm, and Ian, with his now steady eyes, stared at me.

“May I have your permission to call you by name?”

“Name?”

“…Can I call you Rose?”

“Of course, you can. You already did earlier.”

Ian’s trembling hand once again descended over my face. After his tender touch caressed my cheek and moved away, he slowly embraced my shoulders.

“Rose, I wish you could stay in my embrace like this.”

“….”

“Hidden from everyone. No one daring to harbor feelings recklessly.”

Did Reinhart hear someone calling me Lady Rosebelia? I pushed Ian’s chest slightly away and locked eyes with him.

“Don’t worry about the Deputy Commander. He doesn’t have any special feelings towards me…”

“If there is anyone among those attending this banquet who admires you, do you think it’s only that person?”

Lowering his eyes, he asked in a low voice.

“….”

“There are countless others. It would have been better to reveal our status and be together from the beginning. If we had done that, at least the others wouldn’t have…”

Ian bit his lower lip. Watching him remain silent, even his forehead seemed tense. His lips moved on their own.

“Ian.”

He moved his eyes to look at me. In his slightly vibrating pupils, my face was reflected.

“This might not be the right time to say this, but…”

“….”

Unknowingly, emotions overflowed, and I couldn’t contain this feeling any longer. Clenching my trembling hand, I spoke.

“Can I kiss you?”

Ian’s pupils gradually widened. Lifting my heels, I quickly stole a kiss from his lips. It seemed like my eyes were firmly closed.

Otherwise, could such a large man be so lovable?

“…I tried to endure it somehow, but you’re too cute…”

I couldn’t continue speaking. It was because his strong arm was wrapped around my waist.

When he pulled with force, our faces met in an instant. Shaking pupils swayed in front of my nose.
In the blink of an eye, the roughened breath became distinctly closer. As if my breathing was constantly disrupted, I involuntarily stopped breathing. It was then that Ian gently enveloped my face.

“…That’s not enough.”

Eventually, the warm lips descended.