EEA Chapter 13

For the knights who had fought in wars, imperial palace duty was usually simple. They just had to take turns patrolling around the imperial palace a few times and that was it.

But now, with the victory celebration party coming up in a few days and the half-day knighthood ceremony to prepare for, there was no time to rest between tailoring clothes, memorizing ceremonial procedures, and learning dances.

They even had training before their duties, so the knights who returned to the outer castle were all exhausted.

The knight order that returned from the imperial palace at night saw beds laid out with clean sheets that Ailea had washed during the day, one for each person, and made serious expressions. It seemed she felt sorry that they were living too filthily. Kaiton subtly asked Tarren.

"Captain, we should wash up, right?" 

"Hmm..." 

"Ailea will be angry if we don't wash..." 

"Yes, let's wash. We're human beings too, so we should wash sometimes."

Though it would be hard to just lie down as they were, the sheets were so clean that it felt wrong to lie down in their current state. Eventually, the knights dragged their bodies that felt like they'd been beaten all day toward the bathhouse on one side of the castle.

Ailea, who had thought they would be happy about the clean sheets, realized as she watched the men coming out of the bedroom with troubled expressions that she had actually made things bothersome for them. She should have noticed from that rich foot odor. That they weren't unable to bathe—they just didn't...

A while later, they all came out after finishing their baths. The knights, having changed clothes for once, flopped onto their beds and exclaimed.

"Wow, this is heaven..." 

"Ailea, didn't you do too much work..." 

"Really..."

Soon only snoring sounds could be heard, and Ailea, who had been eavesdropping from behind the door, looked into the bedroom with an incredulous gaze. They had all fallen asleep exhausted without even finishing their sentences. Seeing them sleeping soundly in the clean bedroom for once, Ailea made a satisfied expression. She felt like she had found her calling.

After confirming everyone was asleep, Ailea soon headed to the bathhouse to wash herself. Since this outer castle had hot spring water flowing through it, warm water was always abundantly available.

Living with men was inconvenient, but once they fell asleep, they would never wake up unless they heard a woman's voice, so there was nothing to worry about.

Still, just in case, she went to the bathtub with curtains, carefully drew the curtains, hung her clothes on the wall after undressing, filled the tub with water, and got in.

Getting into the warm water made her drowsy. She had worked too much with her already weak stamina.

Ailea, who had been dozing off, leaned her head against the wall.

She kept feeling sleepy and had dozed off when she opened her eyes wide in surprise at the sound of curtains being opened. Ailea in the bathtub and the man who opened the curtains made eye contact. Fortunately, she was submerged up to her neck, but she was still naked nonetheless. Clint was also shirtless. Ailea hurriedly turned her body toward the wall. She was so surprised that no thoughts came to mind. She hadn't expected anyone to be washing at this dawn hour.

On the other hand, Clint didn't seem particularly surprised. Though he was slightly flustered at not expecting someone to be inside, he didn't panic with "Aaah! A woman! She's naked!"

Clint, who had closed the curtains again, said matter-of-factly. 

"Sorry. There was no sound of water." 

"I, I had fallen asleep. I'm sorry."

"You seem to bathe often. Though I suppose that doesn't mean you're actually getting clean."

Ailea's shoulders trembled slightly. His blunt voice made her feel cold.

In reality, after the spots began appearing on her body, Ailea had begun bathing frequently to an almost obsessive degree. Wondering if perhaps these spots might wash away if she bathed.

Clint's left hand, which she had glimpsed briefly, was also pitch black, and those black spots had already climbed up to his forearm. Perhaps because she thought of herself whenever she saw that hideous thing. Seeing how polite he was, she thought he definitely knew who she was.

"I'll be out soon."

Ailea said quietly.

She should have been more careful to avoid him. But she had to encounter him at such a bad time.

Ailea quickly got up and put her maid's clothes directly over her wet body from where they hung on the wall. She wanted to get away from there as quickly as possible. When Ailea opened the curtains, Clint was visible, still shirtless as he found it bothersome to put his shirt back on while waiting. As Clint moved toward the bathtub to close the curtains, Ailea asked.

"Do you remember me?"

Then Clint turned to look at her. The look in his eyes as he gazed at Ailea wasn't very good. Rather than disliking her, it was a gaze mixed with awkwardness and discomfort.

Ailea, who had lived alone for 9 years—7 years plus 2 years after her return—couldn't possibly handle the gaze of someone who had cut down countless soldiers on the battlefield beyond measure. She shrank back and turned her head away.

Seeing him say she bathed often, he seemed to know that I was in this castle, but why didn't he particularly question it.

As Ailea tried to leave in discomfort, Clint grabbed her arm and turned her body to face him. At his seemingly irritated expression, Ailea wondered if she should run away, but Clint covered her head with the towel he had brought to use. Ailea flinched in surprise and looked up at him. Clint's frowning golden eyes were visible.

"When did I rush you to come out quickly? Dry yourself before leaving."

As if venting his anger, he roughly rubbed Ailea's hair covered with the towel, then went inside and closed the curtains.

Ailea blinked her eyes blankly. Then her face reddened as she gripped the cloth covering her head tightly with both hands. He seemed to have changed tremendously, but there were still gentle aspects remaining. She placed a new towel on the shelf.

"I put a towel on the shelf. Sleep well."

The sound of her leaving through the door was heard. Then Clint sighed once more, feeling frustrated inside.

"Getting married..."

By the emperor's command, he was going to marry a woman he didn't even love.

Well, it wasn't just any woman—it was Ron's daughter. Her father had saved Clint's life several times on the battlefield. Even at the final moment...

But what about her? Would a woman whose original goal was to become empress really want to marry me? Moreover, it was obvious what kind of disagreeable husband I would be.

Clint's mind was complicated.

The twenty knight orders certified by the imperial palace had to stay at the imperial palace for 30 days out of the year.

During those 30 days, Ailea had almost ended up taking care of the household affairs for twenty men, but fortunately Clint ordered "Ailea only manages the outer castle, so each person should handle their own affairs," so there wasn't much she had to do.

Blue the cat, who had initially been wary of the bustling unfamiliar men, soon realized they were nothing special and began ignoring them.

Living with others is such a joyful thing. Ailea was thinking this. However, living with men inevitably caused occasional problems, and in such cases, Clint would step forward to resolve them.

Like now.

When the wind blew and threatened to lift the skirt of Ailea, who had come out with laundry, extending slightly below her knees, all the men's gazes instantly turned to her automatically. Then Clint approached and took the basket from Ailea's hands, saying.

"We said we'd handle it ourselves." 

"Still, while I was doing mine..." 

"Your skirt is lift—"

Clint, who had been speaking, changed his words when Kaiton approached. "Your skirt is lifting."

Ailea nodded and held her skirt properly with a slightly reddened face. Kaiton spoke to her.

"Ailea, can you be alone tomorrow? When we go to the victory party, no one might come in." 

"Yes, I'll be fine."

I was always alone anyway, so what's there to worry about. She smiled and nodded. Then after thinking briefly, she said.

"When you come back, please tell me how it was. I'm curious."

"Didn't the maids also prepare for parties when you were at the imperial palace?" 

"Ah, they wouldn't let me in..."

Even when she reached the age to debut in society, there was no opportunity for Ailea. She always lived like she was dead in the most remote corner of the imperial palace. Though she thought it didn't matter much since even if she debuted, the most important thing would be finding a husband, and she already had a prospective husband.

From the time she was thirteen, occasionally drunk men and women would come looking for dark places where she was, confessing their feelings, and she could hear music or see noble young ladies walking by in beautiful dresses. Each time, the girl found it hard to take her eyes away from that sparkle. The girl's imagination became increasingly more glamorous and warm.

Kaiton answered. "Got it. I've never been either, so I don't know, so I'll observe carefully and come back to tell you." 

"Wow, thank you."

Ailea greeted him with a happy face.

Clint's expression hardened slightly as he listened to that conversation. Even two years ago, Clint had never seen her at any kind of party. Still, she would have dresses... Surely she'd have a few. Maybe this worry is a bit excessive.

Now that he thought about it, Rollins's warning not to meet with Ailea was probably meant to keep him from discovering her illness.

‘But what to do. That woman is already with me.’

Watching her enter the castle with light footsteps made him feel somewhat refreshed, as if he were hitting Roylin on the back of the head. Even if she's treated like a useless object now, if he later found a good doctor to treat her and dressed her up to at least the level of an ordinary noble lady, Roylin might feel some jealousy.

Maybe someday I'll take her to a ball dressed prettily. Clint had a mischievous thought.

Clint rested from duty for the first time since coming to the outer castle. Thinking he might read books all day, he headed to the study.

When Clint opened the study door, a cat slipped past his feet and glanced at him briefly. Blue was showing an attitude of "the other guys are beneath me, but I consider only you equal to me."

Seeing this cheeky cat here meant Ailea was probably inside too. As Clint walked into the study, he could see Ailea taking books from between the bookshelves.

"What are you doing here?" 

"Eek!"

Ailea was startled and dropped the book she was holding. Her gentle-looking eyes met Clint's fierce eyes that even wild beasts would avoid.

Standing right in front of her, the height difference was seriously significant. Ailea briefly thought she would need to wear extremely high-heeled shoes to dance with him. Would he make a softer expression than that then?

Ailea bent down to pick up the book that had fallen to the floor. 

"I'm sorry. I'll put it back." 

"It's fine."

Ailea stood up. Clint pulled out a book from the bookshelf that Ailea had bound firmly with leather.

"Did you do this?" 

"Ah, yes." 

"It looks expensive. Is it okay for me to just take this leather?" 

"Instead, I borrowed and read quite a lot of books."

She had read books to her heart's content for two whole years. At her answer, Clint asked in a low voice.

"This doesn't seem like a normal price. Isn't this fire-resistant leather?"

Ailea smiled without answering. It was leather she had bought by selling her dresses.

Clint stared at her expression intently. He recalled the memory of her being particularly afraid of fire. She had been so terrified that it remained in his memory.

Recalling that memory, Clint naturally thought of the barrier he had cut away with his sword when he came to this outer castle after two years. The moment the barrier disappeared, small flames crackled in the air. He thought of those flames and the book he was holding.

No way. That can't be. It must be unrelated. That kind of thing couldn't be possible.

Clint's expression as he was lost in thought was so frightening that Ailea stepped back.

She thought he was angry because she had taken books. So she carefully tried to put the book back, but Clint sighed. When she flinched in surprise, Clint clicked his tongue, ruffled his hair, and asked.

"Can't I speak casually too?"

At the unexpected question, Ailea looked up at Clint. With a sour expression, he continued.

"The other guys all call you by name without any honorifics, but it's ridiculous that only I use formal speech." 

"That's... that's true."

That was true, but Ailea felt strange when Clint, who knew she was engaged to the crown prince, said he would speak casually. She felt like she was no longer a woman engaged to the crown prince, nor really a maid, becoming someone who should have disappeared originally.

"Then do that."

Ailea considered this an excessive thought and answered as if it didn't matter, keeping her gaze on the floor. Then she heard Clint's voice as he thought briefly.

"If you don't like me speaking casually."

At his words, Ailea raised her head that she had lowered. Clint was leaning slightly against the bookshelf, arms crossed, close to her and bending his head down to match Ailea's height. When their eyes met, he smiled slightly, crinkling the corners of his eyes. Gently. And continued speaking.

"Then, you call me by name too."

Ailea couldn't give any answer and just stared at him.

Why was it?

What thought was it, what emotion was it—she couldn't understand the reason at all, but strangely, the moment Ailea saw him smile, for the first time.

I want to live.

She had that thought.

From Clint's perspective, Ailea was ultimately a woman he had to marry by the emperor's command.

On the other hand, from Ailea's perspective, it was awkward to call a man who wasn't even her lover by his name. Even though the knighthood ceremony hadn't been held yet, he was a man who would have power equivalent to royalty in the future.

When she didn't open her mouth, Clint leaned his upper body down further while keeping his arms crossed, approaching her closely and said.

"Don't want to call my name?"

As he approached, Ailea stepped back another step. It was strange. The knight order members had come this close before, but she felt much more nervous and trembling than then.

"Wouldn't it seem rude?"

When she asked, Clint shrugged and answered. "If I say it's okay, who's going to say anything?" 

"We're not even lovers..." 

"Who knows. We might become that kind of relationship."

He said mischievously. Then she, who had been avoiding his gaze by turning her head, looked directly at Clint.

How could he say such wicked words so nonchalantly?

Ailea knew that the affection he was showing her now would be the same for all women in the world.

"Playboy."

In her annoyed mood, Ailea muttered quietly.

At her small rebellion, Clint belatedly realized that he had unconsciously treated her as if she were already his person.

It was because he knew this marriage couldn't be refused anyway since it was the emperor's command. However, from Ailea's perspective, who hadn't heard any explanation, it might feel like flirtation without any feelings.

This way, I'm no different from the crown prince. Clint took out the book that Ailea had tried to read but put back.

And he pulled his chair over and placed it in front of Ailea. 

"Read here." 

"Clint... where will the captain read?"

Still not used to dropping the formal title, Ailea asked hesitantly, and he plopped down on the floor, leaning his back against the desk.

"Here."

He answered nonchalantly. He gave up the chair for her and took the floor for himself. He was truly endlessly gentle with women. Ailea finally smiled again to show her gratitude.

The two people silently read books in their respective, slightly separated places. Doing nothing, quietly. Clint briefly looked away from his book to look at Ailea. Her small frame and the slender hand turning pages caught his attention. It seemed like she could be lifted like a doll with one hand grabbing her arm. Clint said.

"Your hair looks pretty tied up too." 

"What?"

The compliment was so unfamiliar that Ailea was actually wary. Clint hurriedly continued.

"But isn't it too long? Why don't you cut it a little?" 

"Ah! I'll do that."

When Ailea finally relaxed and sighed with relief, Clint felt frustrated.

Why does she feel relieved when I criticize her!

He wanted to grab her shoulders and shake her vigorously, telling her to try being cute.

If Ron were alive and she had continued growing up at Yuliana Castle, what kind of personality would she have had? There surely would have been parts that resembled Ron too.

Would she also have some of those queen-like traits—decisive, cool-headed, and strong self-esteem?

Clint became a little curious about her inner self, which seemed only weak.