“Wait a moment, Ren. You……”

Vivian’s lips trembled as if she couldn’t bring herself to continue speaking.

“Lady Vivian, I……”

Ren tried to explain urgently, but his mouth closed automatically when their eyes met.

Slightly parted lips. Pupils with a dim light. Eyebrows deeply furrowed.

For the first time while being with Vivian, he faced an expression clearly full of betrayal.

Explanation. An explanation…

The moment he received that clouded gaze, Ren forgot even what he was trying to say.

Was there anything to explain in the first place?

It was an undeniable truth that he had been deceiving Vivian all this time.

He hid the existence of his ability and pretended not to know.

He acted as if he didn’t know, even though he was aware that the person Vivian was looking for was Callys von Agrian, in other words, himself.

No, was that all?

When Vivian tried to find out about him through the information guild, he took control of the guild and manipulated the information that would reach her.

At first, he thought it would be fine as long as he wasn’t caught…

But after being discovered, her gaze upon him was unbearable.

Feeling as if the sky was collapsing, Ren sank into memories of the past.

Ren’s earliest memory he could recall began in an underground prison.

At first, he didn’t even realize it was a prison.

Life inside the dilapidated, rusty iron bars was so normal to him that he only learned it was called a prison after he had already escaped.

In the underground prison, all that was allowed to Ren for his entire life was a small space of about half a pyeong.

Even that was mostly spent tied up with restraints like handcuffs, so he couldn’t move easily.

There were two people who imprisoned him here.

A middle-aged woman called the ‘Empress’ and a man of similar age to him named ‘Siegfried’.

They kept him locked in that prison and came occasionally to abuse him.

The Empress was the one who visited more frequently.

She tormented him in various ways.

Not only was there violence using all kinds of tools, but starving him for days was common.

The occasional food she gave was nothing more than pig slop mixed with all sorts of things.

In fact, all of this was somewhat bearable.

What really made it difficult for Ren… were the days when Siegfried visited.

Siegfried came very rarely, but each time he left behind unforgettable pain before departing.

He would simply grip Ren’s neck tightly, but whenever they made contact, Ren felt as if his soul was being destroyed.

The unpleasant and chilling energy that entered his body through the surface of the contacted skin repeatedly showed him his miserable past.

The negative emotions that had accumulated due to the harsh environment and severe abuse stirred up his mind in a dizzying manner.

It was agonizing, as if he would suffocate from the anger and despair that violently poured out.

All Ren could do was resist by hitting Siegfried’s arm that was holding his neck, but this was ineffective.

How could his arms, which had become as thin as twigs from not even eating properly, possibly shake off Siegfried?

The demonic Siegfried always tortured him like this and then clicked his tongue.

“It’s a failure this time too. Tsk, how annoying.”

After uttering this short remark, he would leave, gesturing to the soldier guarding the prison.

It meant to torture him with even greater intensity.

In a situation where it seemed better to die, Ren’s only hope was the light pouring in from beyond the iron bars.

While all he knew was the pitch-black darkness that suffocated him, the outside of the door always emitted an amazingly bright light.

If only he could escape, if only he could get out of here. He would savor that light to his heart’s content.

He had continued to pledge this in his heart.

However, even after more than a decade had passed, the opportunity to escape was not given to him.

The soul that had pursued the light gradually crumbled.

The eyes that had chased hope lost their unique color and became increasingly turbid.

It was probably no coincidence that Siegfried’s expression when looking at Ren began to brighten from around that time.

Ren was about to give up everything. He believed that he was ultimately destined to be born in darkness and return to darkness.

But if such a thing as fate’s prank really exists…

An unbelievable sight unfolded before him who had given up. He saw a wide-open door right in front of his eyes.

For him, who had lived imprisoned for nineteen years, this was a first.

Even though it was obvious that it was a trap, Ren willingly headed towards the door.

It would be fine even if death was waiting.

He could die with a grateful heart as long as it was under that light.

After rushing out the door, he continued to run and run, following the light.

When his leg muscles, atrophied from disuse, wouldn’t cooperate as he wished, he crawled on all fours.

It was no time to be picky about means and methods.

As he got closer to the light, bustling sounds became clearer.

“Ten madeleines for 4 marks!”

Sentences composed of incomprehensible words could also be heard. The world within that light seemed to be full of things he didn’t know.

It was at that moment when he had finally made it outside with such difficulty.

Suddenly his vision went dark, and for a brief instant, he felt as if someone had embraced him.

Could it be that he had been kidnapped again?

He despaired at the thought of being captured again without even properly seeing the light.

However, what greeted him when he opened his eyes in resignation was none other than a yellowish light.

Ren slowly looked around. He realized that his situation was clearly different from when he had been imprisoned.

He was free in a spacious room without the handcuffs, ropes, or anything else that had tormented him.

The room was filled with things that looked good.

It took a long time to figure out the use of each item since they were all things he had never seen before, but he could easily notice that they were all luxury goods.

While staying there, Ren for the first time slept on a warm bed with a blanket instead of a cold stone floor.

He bathed in a tub filled with hot water and even fragrant oil.

He could eat very hot, steaming food.

In that small, luxurious space, he encountered countless firsts.

And every experience taught him the emotion called happiness.

He could finally realize that this was what the light he had pursued and longed for during those nineteen years was.

However, an end came to the happiness that seemed eternal.

About a month later, without any warning, he was suddenly thrown back onto the streets.

Realizing that the happiness thus far had been nothing more than a sweet dream, he stood there blankly in dismay.

And then someone approached him.

“Hey, what’s wrong…? Did something happen?”

He looked in the direction of the voice.

The sunlight was so bright that it was hard to see the other person’s face clearly.

However, the short, light purple hair fluttering in the wind left a clear impression.

Ren didn’t know how to answer. For him, it was the first time he was exchanging words with someone since escaping from prison.

Instead of answering, he silently stared at her.

Only then could he see brown eyes gently examining him as if caressing.

It was awkward. That kind of gaze.

He was bewildered as to why she was looking at him like that.

Had he ever received such a gentle gaze before?

That expression filled with pure concern was unfamiliar, but he instinctively sensed it. This person would not harm him.

“If you have nowhere to go, would you like to help me with my work? It’s difficult to do alone, so I need someone to handle miscellaneous tasks.”

The woman waited for his answer for a moment.

He wanted to say something in response, but strangely, his mouth wouldn’t open easily.

She observed his reaction and carefully said,

“If you keep silent… I’ll take it as a yes?”

“……”

“Alright, you’ve agreed to do it? Don’t worry, I’ll take good care of you.”

Her white, round face broke into a bright smile. Ren felt something like a flutter in his stomach.

“Oh right! What’s your name? I should know your name.”

At the word ‘name’, Ren’s face darkened rapidly. He didn’t know his own name.

While imprisoned, he had been called things like ‘bastard’ or ‘trash’, but he could tell that those were not terms of endearment but insults.

He could have honestly said that he didn’t have a name, but he didn’t want to do that.

He didn’t want this woman before him to know that he had lived a wretched life without even a name.

He didn’t want to reveal his dark past to her who lived in the light.

He frantically racked his brain for any name.

Then the word ‘madeleine’ that he had heard when escaping from prison flashed through his mind.

“…It’s Madeleine.”

“Madeleine? Did you say Madeleine?”

“Yes……”

The woman was silent for a moment, but soon raised the corners of her mouth in a grin and patted his back.

“Then I’ll call you Ren from now on! It’s a nickname. Is that okay?”

Perhaps because of that sunny smile, Ren naturally nodded.

It was a first. Someone giving him a proper name.

He later learned that in the Empire, there is a custom of not naming people after food.

He doesn’t know how much strength it gave him and how grateful he was later for her consideration in giving him a nickname when he had foolishly claimed a food name as his own.

After first starting to work under Vivian, Ren was full of mistakes.

Having never experienced a normal person’s life, he had no knowledge and couldn’t do anything.

He was such a blank slate that he couldn’t even grasp the concept of money.

What was ordinary for others was extraordinary for him. This fact made him fall into self-loathing.

Whenever that happened, Vivian would give her characteristic gentle smile and teach him slowly.

He experienced all his firsts with her. They all became memories filled only with happiness.

The darkness of the past had ended.

He found himself already situated in a world of light, led by Vivian’s hand.

The more time they spent together, the more his affection and attachment for her grew.

Tears welled up involuntarily because he loved how his life was being dyed with her colors.

Ren earnestly wished that this daily life with Vivian would continue for his entire life.

However, not long after, he accidentally found out.

That Callys von Agrian, whom Vivian was searching for even to the extent of kidnapping handsome men, was actually himself.