At that moment, Reus spoke to Dwin, who was standing alone in the center of the office.

“Tell the King of Leveren that I accept his invitation.”

After regaining his strength, Reus wanted to spend as much time as possible with Roel for the next six months or so. Thus, he postponed or outright canceled more than half of his scheduled events… no, almost all of the major events and more than half of the minor ones.

One of those minor events was the invitation from the King of Leveren.

King Claude was a rather bothersome person who, once you set foot in the Leveren Kingdom, would not let his guests go to an irritating degree. That’s why it was at the top of the list of events to cancel.

However, when the Emperor comes out like this, the story changes.

I don’t know what kind of wind blew for him to take an interest in Roel, but all I have to do is not leave her side for a single moment so that he dares not approach her.

It was a perfect opportunity to leave the Empire and avoid any unnecessary fuss, as it was an official event that had been scheduled in advance.

Dwin, who had been unable to make sense of his master’s whims lately, was unconditionally on Reus’s side this time.

* * *

Today, I had breakfast alone for the first time in a while.

Usually, if Reus couldn’t have a meal together, he would always let me know in advance. However, today, Rotheo belatedly informed me of that fact.

I started eating casually, thinking that for the first time in a long time, I would be able to eat comfortably without being nagged.

But strangely, a corner of my heart felt empty. By the end of the meal, I even missed the low voice that used to chant, “Just one more spoonful.”

‘I must be crazy…’

With a troubled heart, I was blankly staring out the window from my bedroom when I heard the sound of the door opening. When I turned around, Reus, whom I thought I wouldn’t be able to see all day, was standing there.

‘Did he forget something?’

I thought there was no reason for him to come to the bedroom unless he forgot something, as he was busy enough to not even have time to eat.

But Reus approached me as if his business was with me from the beginning.

“What’s that in your hand, Reus?”

Reus placed two cases on the table and naturally sat down next to me.

“The two luggage bags you mentioned.”

“Ah.”

It’s the birthday present I mentioned then. I had completely forgotten about it even after answering.

As I silently stared at the cases for a moment, Reus spoke.

“You can open them if you’d like.”

At those words, I carefully opened the case closest to me. Inside, a calm camel-colored bag was revealed.

It was a sturdy cloth bag, with the bottom and handle parts made of leather that was slightly lighter in color than the camel base of the cloth.

However, the bag was so sturdy that even when it was lying inside the case, it maintained its proper shape.

‘It’s amazing. The cloth feels exactly the same as the cloth I usually know.’

Soon, my eyes were drawn to the handle. There, anyone could see that my name was engraved on it. Seeing my name inscribed made me realize that it was truly mine.

This was the first time I had received such a meaningful gift in my life. A smile naturally flowed out.

“Do you like it?”

“Yes… very much. It’s really pretty, Reus.”

Then, I opened the remaining case as well. As expected, a bag with a design identical to the one I saw earlier came out. However, inside this case, there was a piece of paper that I hadn’t seen before.

‘Huh? What’s this?’

Wondering what it was, I stared intently at the paper. Soon, my eyes were drawn to a long string of numbers. No, this wasn’t just a sequence of numbers… it seemed to be the price of the bag.

As soon as I saw it, I could roughly figure out how much it cost, but I deliberately slowly counted the units again from the beginning in my mind.

‘Thousand, ten thousand, hundred thousand, million, ten… million?’

Isn’t the unit a bit strange?

‘Did I see it wrong?’

I counted again calmly. However, no matter how many times I repeated it, nothing changed.

‘A bag in the ten million won range…?’

While I was blankly staring at the paper with a dumbfounded expression, Reus swiftly pulled the estimate out of my hand and very naturally threw it out the window.

However, as I mentioned, I was already half out of my mind, so I couldn’t even think of pointing out that action. I vacantly kept my hand suspended in the air and blankly stared at the spot where the estimate had been.

‘How can a travel luggage bag cost ten million won…?’

Even if it were gold-plated, I don’t think it would be this expensive. Either the estimate is wrong, or my eyes are wrong; something is definitely wrong.

“…Reus, I saw it wrong, right?”

“No.”

“…”

Oh my. I saw it correctly.

‘So, this bag really costs… in the ten million won range.’

When I was saving money to buy a new identity, I couldn’t save ten million won even if I saved for a full year.

That’s why I was more shocked by the price of the bag.

With my mouth slightly open, I blankly turned my head towards Reus. Soon, a somewhat unfair voice popped out without warning.

“I, I didn’t want something this expensive. What I meant was a luggage bag that can be easily found on the street and used roughly…”

“No matter what, how could I give you such a thing as a gift? Especially as a birthday present.”

“Wh, why? Why not? It’s just something you use temporarily when moving, so wouldn’t that be better? But this… this, no matter how much I think about it, the price seems too high. There’s no way I can use this bag as a luggage bag.”

Even though I conveyed my feelings while stammering, only a nonchalant voice was heard, as if it wasn’t a big deal at all.

“I purchased the cheapest one from that workshop.”

I don’t know if what he said is true or not, but it was clear that the bag was made in a workshop run by a craftsman with a very high reputation, even without asking for more details.

I kept moving my lips aimlessly because I had too much to say. However, the man sitting next to me seemed to have the attitude of just moving on as if everything had been explained.

“No…”

No matter what, it’s too much for a travel luggage bag to cost in the ten million won range!

When my mind was becoming distant and I was blankly staring at the bag with a dazed expression, a somehow dejected voice was heard from beside me.

“Do you not like it that much?”

“…Pardon?”

“I… I really had no idea you would dislike it to this extent.”

It wasn’t a misheard. The disheartened voice definitely came from Reus.

“Uh, uh…”

“I’m sorry for making you uncomfortable, Roel.”

“Uh, no… no, that’s not it…! I don’t dislike it, I wasn’t saying I dislike the bag…”

But Reus’s gaze, which had fallen dejectedly with an apology, did not turn towards me.

“Re, Reus?”

“…”

“Reus, I’m sorry… It wasn’t because I didn’t like the gift. Really…”

“You don’t need to apologize. It was my lack of consideration.”

I hurriedly grabbed Reus’s hand. Then, I repeatedly added that it really wasn’t like that.

“I really like the design. That reaction earlier was truly because I was surprised by the price. It absolutely wasn’t because I didn’t like the gift, so I hope you don’t misunderstand.”

“…”

Even after saying this much, seeing his desolate expression, it seemed that he was quite hurt by my reaction.

‘What should I do…?’

Come to think of it, I feel like I complained too much before even expressing gratitude to the person who prepared it with sincerity.

‘Complaints…? It wasn’t quite complaints, but… anyway.’

“Are you very upset…? I’m really sorry, Reus…”

“No. You have nothing to apologize for. And what is there for me to be upset about? If there’s any fault, it’s all mine.”

Every time Reus spoke, it seemed like sadness was seeping through. It was the first time I had seen him so deflated, so I was at a loss.

Seeing him leaning on my shoulder and crying like a child not long ago made my heart ache even more.

‘Now that I think about it, it seemed like he went through a difficult time recently.’

I was just going to let it pass without saying anything, but I made a fuss for no reason. How should I handle this situation…?

At that moment, Reus said,

“I will take care of this bag myself.”

“What? Take care of it? Why…?”

“Since it was custom-made for you, it would be meaningless for someone else to use it.”

Surely, taking care of it doesn’t mean throwing it away recklessly.

I was rolling my eyes back and forth in bewilderment when Reus immediately started putting away the bag. Seeing his decisive movements, I was convinced that if I didn’t stop him now, that bag would go straight into the trash can.

“Reus, don’t throw it away…!”

“I’m not throwing it away. I will literally dispose of it properly and then get you what you want again…”

“I don’t want that either! How can you dispose of a gift you received?”

I tightly grasped both of his hands that were about to close the case. Reus, still not letting go of the case, spoke in a slightly dejected voice.

“You don’t need to receive a gift that you don’t like because of me.”

“No, I told you I don’t dislike it… I’ll… I’ll accept the gift.”

At those words, Reus finally looked at me properly.

“Really?”

“Yes, of course…! It’s a gift I said I wanted to have, and you prepared it with care.”

As I said that, Reus’s eyes curved beautifully. It was the first time I had seen him smile so prettily, so I unknowingly smiled along with him. But…

“Then, you can use this bag today.”

Huh? What does that mean…?

Suddenly, the scene from the day when Reus came to the Yvelle Estate and abruptly told me to pack my luggage came to mind.

“It was such a hastily scheduled event that I couldn’t tell you in advance, but we’re leaving for the Leveren Kingdom today.”

“…”

It’s always what I think, but Reus is really…

‘Nothing about him is ever ordinary.’

The funny thing is, I must have adapted to it a bit, as I just nodded my head and said nothing.