“Don’t cry, Elishia.”

When she couldn’t stop crying, Illeon muttered awkwardly.

“Don’t cry, okay?”

Elishia laughed at Illeon’s comforting voice.

“What’s with crying and then laughing?”

He asked as if he was uncomfortable.

“That’s not how you write it.”

“Really? It sounded like you were speaking a foreign language to me, so I thought it could be written that way.”

“A foreign language… you say?”

“Yes.”

Looking at Elishia, who was sobbing, he smiled as if he found her cute. Suddenly, Illeon, who had been brushing a chill down her back, asked,

“Are you cold?”

“Yes, a little cold.”

Illeon smoothly lifted her body, holding her as if Elishia’s weight was no burden at all, with swift movement.

He headed straight to the bed, laid her down, and covered her with a blanket.

“Sigh.”

Was there a shock when she thrashed to survive as if she had fallen into the water? Or was it because of the tension and surprise due to Illeon?

Every joint of her body ached, as if crying out for relief.

“Go to sleep quickly.”

Illeon’s words had barely left his mouth when her eyes closed.

But Elishia suddenly came to her senses. This was Illeon’s bedroom. No matter what, this seemed a bit off, and that thought overcame her fatigue.

“Sleep here?”

“Where else would you sleep?”

“In, in my room…”

“In that maid’s room?”

Illeon made a slightly mischievous face.

“I don’t have a hobby of laying a hand on a working servant. But if you want, I will oblige.”

“What, what do you mean?”

“You’ll soon be the mistress of the dukedom, so behave and sleep here.”

Elishia’s face turned red. Mistress of the dukedom? Wasn’t that jumping the gun?

‘Illeon’s strange.’

Seeing him so smooth, he felt unfamiliar, as if he wasn’t the person she had known so far. A different feeling from earlier when she felt vaguely scared.

Furthermore, lying next to each other, looking into each other’s eyes, brushing her hair behind her ear, or caressing her arm that was covered in goosebumps from the cold. Or playfully tickling along the shallowly indented line of her back.

You’re mine.

It felt like that.

‘I said earlier it was okay, so arguing about this now seems a bit wrong.’

Elishia felt the suddenly narrowed distance between them was awkward, but she did not shake off or reject Illeon’s hand.

With a nod.

In this way, Illeon endlessly pampered her, and in the end, she couldn’t bear it and fell fast asleep.

“Sleep well.”

Once Elishia had fallen asleep, Illeon hugged her tightly with a sigh.

“I don’t seem to be ready to close my eyes.”

Illeon’s face, as he muttered, was filled with joy.

Whether Elishia lied to him, deceived her status, or pretended not to be Lona, none of it really mattered to him. That’s why he neither asked nor questioned.

Why did she disappear from the duke’s house as if running away?

Why did she pretend not to know him when she opened her eyes?

What was the reason she, once a priestess, became Lona and worked at the duke’s house?

He was not completely uninterested, but it wasn’t important.

To Illeon, bringing her to his side was what mattered.

There had been a few moments before when he felt upset because of Elishia.

Like when she had purposely avoided him to introduce herself to Carina.

But that was only for a moment. Illeon himself wanted to see Elishia desperately. If he didn’t see her for even a day, it felt like a disaster, and he ended up going to Duke Uter’s house. And after seeing Elishia, his anger and upset feelings vanished immediately, as if nothing had happened, and his smile returned.

“I’m sorry, Your Highness. I can’t accept this.”

“Don’t come to find me anymore. I can’t marry.”

“We’re not meant to be. You and I… it would have been better if we hadn’t met.”

This time, he was genuinely angry.
Ileon hated liars. What he couldn’t tolerate even more was lying to himself to escape from his own reality.

If it was the Rona he knew.

The girl who would hold me, crying and writhing in pain, and try to comfort me.

If rumors spread that I could not see, she would surely not overlook it.

She would come back. Most likely crying.

‘If she stays by my side because I’m lacking. Alright.’

He deceived her with a twisted heart.

“……I, I’m here.”

“So. So…….”

She was a weak woman.

At his few words, she willingly walked into his arms.

“I’m grateful, but.”

If she were to meet a truly wicked man, it would be disastrous.

Not that there’s anything to worry about now.

Elysia Uter was scheduled to meet the worst man, Ileon Clevent.

“Stay here. Beside me. Elysia.”

Ileon tenderly brushed her disheveled golden hair and kissed her white, beautiful forehead.

(This is a time separator.)

It was another dream.

Ileon in the dream still looked tormented, scratching his eyes.

“I’d rather die.”

He was clearly fully healed, so why was he in such pain in the dream?

‘Does it mean his eyes aren’t completely healed yet?’

Even in a dream, seeing Ileon’s miserable appearance again was painful.

Elysia approached the sobbing Ileon.

‘Don’t hurt. I’ll be beside you.’