Felix waited for Khalif all day. Setting out to meet Evelia at the Prince’s Palace, he didn’t think about returning until late at night.

Due to his impatient heart, he even thought about heading to the Prince’s Palace directly. However, he couldn’t bring himself to interrupt the time of the lovers who had just confirmed each other’s feelings.

Moreover, if he appeared and returned with Khalif, it would undoubtedly puzzle Evelia.

Although going to the Prince’s Palace seemed like an unwise choice in many ways, he endured it, but his patience was running out.

He stubbornly closed his eyes and clenched his fists in frustration. At that moment, the bedroom door opened, and Khalif entered.

Felix stared at him as if to say he had been waiting. A subtle smile on his lips indicated that he was in very good condition.

Khalif, as if he hadn’t seen Felix sitting in front of the table, rolled up his sleeves and cracked his neck from side to side. He seemed to be savoring the pleasant fatigue.

Seeing that, Felix’s heart twisted strangely.

“Have you been with Evelia all this time?”

“Yes.”

“It looks very good.”

With an unusual tone, Khalif turned his head sharply to look at Felix. At the same time, Felix bit his lower lip tightly.

Although he knew that he shouldn’t act out his frustrations on Khalif, the anxious feelings he had harbored all day burst out like this.

“Hu.”

Felix took a deep breath, trying to calm down. Then, he looked at Khalif again.

“Sit for a moment. I have something to say.”

The twisted emotion was somewhat relieved in his tone. Finally realizing the seriousness of the situation, Khalif promptly sat across from Felix.

“Speak.”

Khalif spoke with a face that had even lost the lingering feelings of the good mood. This made Felix even more uneasy.

Although he felt an unmistakably strange energy, and despite thinking that he should share this fact with Khalif, he couldn’t grasp how to start the conversation when facing him.

Every time, he breathed heavily. In a moment when Khalif seemed to be trying to fathom the meaning of Felix’s abrupt words, Felix spoke in a heavy, sinking voice.

“Do you remember the story I told you before? About why I was sealed.”

Khalif’s eyebrows slightly arched diagonally. Felix’s words seemed out of place. At the same time, the certainty that the topic he would deal with was by no means a light story rushed in.

“Yes, I remember.”

“…Even if just for a moment, I felt that energy again today.”

“What?”

Khalif’s forehead wrinkled uncontrollably. Felix’s harsh words were confusing, seeming to be understandable and incomprehensible at the same time.

“I felt that energy again—the energy I held just before being sealed.”

“Stop beating around the bush and speak accurately.”
Khalif stared at Felix with heightened sensitivity, his eyes coldly scrutinizing. However, Felix, wearing only a confused expression, didn’t readily respond. It was the first time Khalif had seen him like this since getting to know him, which puzzled Khalif even more.

The chilly Khalif searched his memories with urgency. It took quite a while for him to recall something Felix had mentioned before.

It had been about a month since Felix unintentionally unsealed him and they started traveling together.

“The kingdom I ruled was an incredibly peaceful place. Until one day, evil energy began to descend upon the entire kingdom.”

“Evil energy?”

“Yes. They lived off vile emotions like envy and jealousy that humans feel. Humans who gave them an opening were devoured in the blink of an eye, and eventually, even their lives were sacrificed. As their influence grew, the kingdom began to be destroyed.”

“Huh, does that make any sense? Beings living off disgusting emotions?”

“Of course it does. I was the one who harbored them until now.”

“What…?”

“I chose to seal them forcibly. There was no way to eliminate them as their power grew. And because I chose to seal them while still harboring them, the descendants, like you, can dismiss their existence as nonsense.”

Felix, who was always good at jokes, spoke seriously and even emitted an oppressive atmosphere, a first for him.

Remembering that, Khalif quickly asked, “If you mean the energy you held just before being sealed… Could it be that you’re talking about the spirit that brought the kingdom you ruled to ruin?”

Hoping it wasn’t true, Khalif’s voice was filled with an earnest desire. Felix stared at him intently, not saying anything, and then nodded with closed eyes, as if acknowledging Khalif’s accurate guess.

“Huh.”

Khalif couldn’t suppress the sudden disappointment. The spirit Felix had mentioned was a powerful being that even he couldn’t obliterate.

At this moment, Khalif couldn’t tolerate the irritation that surged within him. He questioned Felix with a voice full of hope.

“When did you sense that energy?”

“…A little after noon.”

“Wasn’t that when you were carefully examining the book? Are you sure you felt it? Wasn’t it just your hypersensitivity causing a misunderstanding?”