To My Beloved, I Present My Exquisite Nightmare - Chapter 26

At his sudden question, Laila felt her mind go blank.

What was he truly worried about, was he really asking that now? Of course it was the latter.

Becoming the wife of a prince, though she couldn’t know for sure, would be no different from standing before everyone and declaring “I am a witch.”

She wouldn’t be able to wear a hood to cover her hair, and would have to become a spectacle wearing uncomfortable clothes she had never worn before.

“I’m not some three-eyed beast. I’m not a jester performing tricks in front of noble lords! Your thoughts may be different. You may think a witch’s existence is the same as that, but I’m not! I’m human. I’m human, I tell you!”

Laila’s scream rang sharply through the desolate garden where sunlight was gently breaking. It was like glass shards randomly flying and cutting ankles.

Tears finally fell from her tightly shut eyes. Her shoulders wouldn’t stop shaking, and her fists were clenched so tightly that her knuckles stood out white.

Eustar quietly listened to Laila’s sobs, then carefully wrapped his arms around her shoulders.

“Laila, look at me.”

“No. Go away. Leave me alone.”

“I can’t do that right now. Look at me. Now.”

Look at him. Laila was going mad from another voice she heard in her heart.

The unidentified voice that made it impossible to disobey Eustar’s words was becoming clearer. It was like a plant taking root in Laila’s heart and growing greedily.

Laila’s gaze slowly moved. Her red, tear-filled eyes sparkled like pomegranate seeds.

Eustar said:

“No one will be able to treat you like that. Even if you become my wife, even if you don’t hide that hair and those eyes. I won’t let anyone laugh at you like that. I promise. I’m saying this again because you seem to have forgotten, I am the only brother of the king who rules Sierou. The only person who can command me is His Majesty the King, and him alone.”

“What if that one person mocks me? Then you won’t be able to stop it. What if he tells me to imitate a beast and crawl in front of others? You won’t be able to stop it!”

“My brother is not that kind of person.”

“Your brother is mad!”

Laila screamed and tried to push Eustar’s body away. But he didn’t budge at all.

“Laila, believe me. My brother is not mad. I don’t know what he’s thinking in trying to marry you and me. He probably wouldn’t answer even if I asked. If he was going to give a reason, he could have said it back there. But I can swear. My brother, His Majesty, will never unfairly mock you or make you an object of ridicule. And if he does, I will stop him.”

Laila stared blankly at Eustar’s face, devoid of any smile. She could tell his words were sincere.

For some unknown reason, she could tell… It wasn’t because she wanted to believe it. It penetrated Laila’s mind like a clear truth, like knowing that stars will soon rise when the sun sets.

Eustar continued:

“But from your perspective, you probably don’t want to marry me. We’ve only known each other for barely a week, and as I said before, you’re someone who doesn’t need love. So let’s make a promise.”

Laila didn’t want to answer. She didn’t want to hear any more of his words. But her lips moved on their own.

“What kind of promise do you want to make?”

“Follow my brother’s words. Marry me and become my wife. But you don’t have to fulfill any duties as a spouse. We’ll only act as a couple when necessary, and other than that, I won’t approach you privately.”

“You said you needed me.”

Eustar nodded as if to say “that’s right.” His long hair fluttered in the wind, lightly brushing Laila’s face.

“Of course I need you. But that’s for Tentinella’s work, it has nothing to do with us being married. So let’s set a time limit. The purpose of Tentinella is to make the anomalies occurring in Sierou disappear. Syncs didn’t exist from ancient times. They suddenly started being created one day. We’re looking for the cause, and once we solve the fundamental problem, Syncs will no longer be created.”

“And then?”

“And then…”

As his words trailed off a bit, Laila unconsciously reached out her hand, almost caressing Eustar’s cheek. Maybe because his downcast eyes looked sad. Or maybe because of his strangely lonely smile.

Eustar continued:

“When the day comes that this country no longer needs Tentinella, Laila. I’ll set you free. I’ll make it so you can go anywhere, so you won’t be persecuted anywhere. If you want, I’ll give you a piece of land where no one is around. I’ll build you a nice house there, and let you live peacefully doing what you like. I’ll make sure no one can point fingers at you.”

“That’s impossible.”

“No, it’s possible. It’s possible.”

Laila tried to deny it once more, but her thoughts and actions were at odds. The desperate appearance of her screaming and wailing was now gone. She still looked confused, but much calmer.

—Please, Laila. Do it for me.

Eustar said.

No, he didn’t say it. Eustar’s lips remained tightly closed, not moving at all.

In that moment, Laila pushed him away and widened her eyes. But Eustar’s lips were still closed, and he rather looked surprised at Laila’s action.

Laila said in a trembling voice:

“What did you just do?”

“Me? What did I do?”

“You just spoke in my mind! What did you do? Are you really not a magician?”

Laila was flustered, but Eustar seemed even more bewildered than her. He stared blankly at her as if he couldn’t understand what she was saying at all… Suddenly, he frowned.

“Did you read my thoughts?”

“Thoughts? You’re saying I read thoughts? Me?”

“What did I say?”

Laila exhaled roughly.

“For me… You asked me to do that. You said please.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“I know! I don’t mean you said it out loud. In my head…!”

“It’s true that I thought that. But to you…”

Suddenly, Eustar stared at Laila with a look of realization.

“You saw my core.”

Laila couldn’t understand his words.

“Saw your core? What do you mean? You’re a living person, Eustar. You’re not a ghost!”

“That’s right. But cores exist in ghosts, and of course, in the living too. Maybe your eyes and ears have started to open even towards the living.”

“Then I… Am I able to hear other people’s thoughts now? From now on?”

Eustar shook his head. But his expression looked more serious than ever. Laila was not much different from Eustar.

Reading other people’s thoughts, could such an ability suddenly appear? She hadn’t even wanted it!

“Now…”

Just as he was about to speak, hurried footsteps were heard from the corridor, and an unfamiliar man ran towards the two of them.

Laila could recognize the clothes he was wearing at a glance. It was the same uniform Eustar had worn when they first met.

“Lord Eustar.”

Eustar turned towards him.

“Barens, what’s the matter?”

The man called Barens quickly bowed his head and glanced at Laila for a moment. Laila unconsciously turned her head away when she saw the surprise that flashed in his eyes.

“Lord Eustar, we’ve received a message from the 2nd Branch. A grade 3 sync has appeared around the Kizel River, in Kizel Gorge. Three villages around the gorge have completely disappeared.”

“What? What were they doing while three villages disappeared!”

Barens swallowed dryly with a tense expression.

“The creatures that appeared from the sync are beast-type demons. They’re very fast and cunning, and we’ve lost five members who were dispatched to deal with them. So, the head of Habaschuka wants to meet with you to discuss the situation.”

“Olga must be under quite a lot of stress. I understand.”

“Shall I prepare the portal?”

Eustar nodded and tied up his long hair that had been loose.

“Prepare it right away. And insert one more temporary pass coefficient. Under the name of Laila Kristrad.”

Laila turned her head abruptly and stared at Eustar. Barens seemed somewhat perplexed, as if it was an unexpected order, but there was no time to delay, so he hurriedly left.

“Demons, you say?”

“Yes. We don’t have time, so I’ll explain briefly as we go.”

“You want me to go wearing this?”

Laila lifted the voluminous skirt of her dress. Eustar looked chagrined as if he had forgotten about it, but soon nodded.

“It’s alright. There will be clothes to change into when we get there. And you won’t be participating in the battle today. But you need to see what it is, that’s why you’re coming along.”

Eustar moved quickly. Laila also walked briskly, following him as he strode away.

As the dress cumbersomely caught on her feet, she wrapped the skirt around herself to the point where her calves were almost visible and practically ran after him.

“If it’s grade 3, is it dangerous? You said syncs go up to grade 5, right?”

“It’s said to be grade 5, but a grade 5 sync has never appeared yet. Last winter, an terrifyingly powerful sync appeared near the magician residential area located below the Del River. Members from two branches were dispatched, but we suffered massive losses, losing nearly half of them. Even that wasn’t grade 5.”

“Then…”

“Grade 3 means it’s quite dangerous.”

The two entered the castle and soon entered the Sercita headquarters. When they first arrived, there was no one, but now there were five people.

Their gazes turned to Laila for a moment, but she was so overwhelmed by the urgent atmosphere that she didn’t notice the gazes of the strangers.