Pr: Helen
“Ah. Right.”
To be honest, Erhart had completely forgotten about the existence of Karel Isaac.
Shortly after he returned to Djerba, he encountered a minor problem with the Fort castle, that was, if the sudden death of a manager can be considered trivial. Fort was Olivia’s hometown and where he briefly went into hiding and laid his foundation after the accident. Since it was placed as a fiefdom under the direct control of the imperial family, the position of the lord of the castle was not hereditary, and someone was needed to fill the position until the newly appointed manager could grasp the overall situation.
Karel Isaac had stayed with him at Fort. As he knew the ins and outs of Fort, he judged him to be the right person and sent him there. Since it was a place that he paid a lot of attention to, he thought he would check the reports sent every day at first, but at some point he had forgotten about it.
“I reported every day, but since there were matters that required me to meet and speak face-to-face, I returned to Djerba and immediately entered the palace upon my return. I heard that you went to the main palace.”
There was no specific way to determine when the matter had been pushed onto the aide Karel.
After placing Rayan in the palace, all of Erhart’s attention turned to him. Not only Karel’s report, but also Karel himself, and even Fort Castle, which he’d been working so hard on, were pushed to the side.
“It would have been okay if you had stayed in the main palace.”
Instead of showing it, Erhart returned it with a subtle rebuke.
“The Fort is where His Majesty puts his efforts. Moreover, he entrusted me with a task for the first time. So I guess I was a little in a hurry.”
Karel laughed as if he was embarrassed and continued speaking hesitantly.
“… I also missed your Majesty.”
“…”
“Your Majesty.”
It was a subtle expression. Karel often expressed unrequited feelings in this way. Nevertheless, because he did not quell it himself, it was spread as a rumor in social circles.
“… Isaac.”
When Erhart referred to him by his last name rather than his first name, a slight tension appeared on Karel’s face.
“Would you like to sort out the rumors circulating in social circles? Or would it be better for me to do it?”
“Your Majesty?”
“You must have enjoyed it enough, and it may be a needless pretense for what you currently need.”
Erhart did not go out of his way to help Karel when he was having difficulty adjusting to social circles, but on the other hand, he did help some by lending him the title of emperor’s lover. Carrying that on his back, Karel Isaac slowly adapted to the social world and had now gained some ground. In that way, he guessed that he had paid a heavy enough price for saving his life.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Qts jgf sbe vblcu atja jii bo j revvfc?”
Bjgfi aklrafv bcf bo tlr fsfr jcv lcjvnfgafcais abbx j rafq mibrfg.
“P atlcx cbk lr atf gluta alwf.”
Ktfgf kjr cb qjgalmeijg gfjrbc. Pa pera ybatfgfv tlw atja tlr cjwf kjr yflcu rtjgfv klat rbwfbcf firf… Qfii, tf atbeuta rbwfbcf kbeiv yf tfjgaygbxfc lo tf tfjgv atlr ecobecvfv gewbg.
Erhart was surprised by the thought that followed without thinking. Why was he…
“… When you decide on an answer, tell me. It should be as soon as possible.”
Erhart informed the other while trying to control his disoriented emotions.
Would he be the one initiating the farewell or to be the one hearing the declaration of separation? Just as Karel enjoyed the title of the emperor’s lover, Erhart also used Karel’s presence as a shield, so he was considerate in his own way.
“I will listen to your report on the way.”
After finishing what he had to say, Erhart walked past Karel, who was biting his lip.
* * *
Rayan looked at his empty seat and made a sullen expression.
“I worked really hard to make it…”
He worked hard to do as Marielle told him. His hands felt like they were freezing and his fingertips turned red, but he didn’t pay any attention to them and worked hard.
At first, it was amazing how his snowball grew as he rolled them aimlessly. Later, as he thought about Erich, he thought it would be a good idea to mold it to resemble him, so he gently touched the rolled pieces and shaped them. He made pretty eyes, a nose, and ears.
Erich answered his expectant question coldly. It wasn’t a harsh rebuke, but there was still no comfort to be found. It was disappointing because he had expected praise, at least a little.
Rayan wished he could make it up to the next time, but he couldn’t. Rayan eventually had no choice but to swallow his overwhelming disappointment and regret.
Instead, he engraved Erich’s name in its place.
Erhart.
Erhart Hesseles. And, Erich.
He tilted his head as he spoke the name, and he couldn’t help but think back to the day Erich had first told him his name.
‘Erich. Call me Erich. I even gave you permission to call me by name.’
He could still clearly remember that he muttered dissatisfied, asking why Rayan, who was still inwardly wary and calling him a human, didn’t call him by his name when he especially told him of it.
Today’s Erich didn’t even remember why, but the things he did compared with the past were similar. Rayan was once again left alone to ponder his memories and deal with the longing and bitterness.
“Ah…”
Rayan, who was trying to deal with his unresolved emotions, let out a short moan like a sigh due to the dizziness that was swirling around him, and leaned against the wall. Even though he knew that there was no one in this room, he looked around for no reason and checked once again. He listened for signs outside, but there were no sounds of returning footsteps.
Only after making sure he was completely alone did Rayan stumble and slowly let his body fall down.
He felt weak.
Is it because he had not been near water? Ever since he met Erich at the lake, he hadn’t dared to go there, and needless to say now, quite a long time had passed.
He had to go. His body would soon reach its limits.
“…”
But how should he go? He may have been in the place where he originally stayed, but it was not easy for him to move around here because he could feel his presence everywhere. Rayan, who was trying to find his way, stopped breathing for a moment. Even time seemed to have stopped.
“Why…”
His fingertips became translucent as they melted in the warm air and slowly found their true color. This had never happened even once in the past three years. Because of that, he was filled with anxiety.
He had never been afraid of dying. His life was supposed to end three years ago and he should have become part of the sea, and the oath with Asha bound his soul from the beginning. He thought of the passing time as simply a momentary reprieve.
Rayan always took the end for granted. That was the reason why he laughed even when he was told not to be sad because it would snow like this again next winter.
He knew that he would remain resolute even when the end was truly approaching.
But no. As his vague end materialized and brought Rayan to his feet as if he could swallow him at any moment, lingering feelings arose.
“Just when we’ve finally met.”
After a long wait, he barely met Erich. The time he had been allowed was excruciatingly short.
“… I don’t want this. Just a little longer.”
Rayan clasped his hands, closed his eyes tightly, and muttered. Please. He didn’t know where the end was, or where it was hiding and trying to devour him, but please allow at least a little longer time than that. The prayer, which had nowhere to go, hovered in the air and dissipated into light, but Rayan continued to beg and pray.
“I brought you a change of clothes.”
As he was suffering from desperate anxiety, he felt Jurgen’s presence outside.
“Wa… wait a minute.”
Rayan barely opened his voice for fear that the door would open at any moment if he didn’t reply. The cracked voice trembled slightly. He heard it himself, but there was no way Jurgen could have noticed.
“Excuse me, but I’m going in.”
Before he could shout out not to come in, the door opened. Rayan turned his head and looked away. The fact that his fingertips became transparent was not normal for anyone to see.
“What are you doing on the floor?”
“…”
“Rayan?”
When Rayan didn’t respond and just crouched against the wall, Jurgen came closer, strangely calling his name.
“You’re breaking out in a cold sweat.”
“…”
“I guess it’s because your clothes are all wet. If you catch a cold, it’s a big problem, so it would be a good idea to change clothes and lie down for a bit to rest. Would you like me to bring you some brandy with honey to warm you up?”
He thought he would be startled and take a step back, but Jurgen acted as usual. He encouraged him to get up quickly and then sat him down on the couch.
Rayan, who felt puzzled by the cool yet calm response, narrowed his eyes and looked at his hand. His fingertips were intact, as if what he had seen earlier had been an illusion. Rayan was dumbfounded and stretched out his hand. It did not become transparent again
“What’s wrong, is your hand uncomfortable?”
“No, no.”
“I heard you got frostbite. Your complexion is pale. I think I should call the physician in…”
“It’s really okay.”
Rayan, who had finally come to his senses, stopped Jurgen, who was acting like he was going to jump out at any moment.
“I just want to rest for a bit. I’m tired.”
Rayan wanted to quickly send him out and check himself again. Jurgen suspiciously looked down at Rayan’s impatient demeanor carefully for a while, and only after confirming that there was nothing wrong with Rayan, he retreated.
His body then went limp.
Rayan barely managed to pull himself together and crawled into bed. He pulled the blanket all the way up to his head, curled up his body, and rubbed his burning, watery eyes.
I wonder where Asha is running around now.
Thx for the ch (ㅅ˘ㅂ˘)