/
“What’s wrong?”
Renato was the one responding to Trudy’s wrath and not Khalid. Renato leaned toward the child, moving his hand to cover Trudy’s puffy cheek.
“Are you unwell?”
“Pardon? No.”
Fuuu. Exhaling the air filling his mouth, Trudy answered and rubbed his cheek against Renato’s palm. With that, the soft, warm hand gently stroked Trudy’s face.
“Then what’s wrong? Are you feeling uncomfortable somewhere?”
“No…… Rather, are you okay, hyung-nim?”
“Me?”
Renato blinked his eyes at Trudy’s question. Trudy grabbed Renato’s hand with both hands and spoke in a loud voice as if deliberately letting someone else hear.
“You seem to have a bad complexion today. Your expression also looks a bit dark…… You aren’t sick, right?”
Khalid, who was quietly listening to the two’s conversation and Trudy’s words filled with worry, twitched one corner of his eye. But he did not turn his head toward Renato.
“Uh, uhm, does it look so? I guess it’s because I didn’t sleep well yesterday.”
Furtively glancing at Khalid, Renato smiled awkwardly. Last night, despite saying he would cool his head for a short while, Khalid didn’t come back after a long time. Waiting for him to return, Renato couldn’t sleep, tossing and turning until dawn. Then, at some point, he fell asleep feeling exhausted.
When Renato woke up again, the place next to him was empty just like before he fell asleep. But thanks to the soft blanket wrapping around him and the faint warmth remaining, he knew Khalid had returned.
‘You are here.’
After last night’s matter, he met Khalid again at the luncheon with Maryam. Having arrived at the luncheon first, Khalid greeted Renato casually when they met.
‘I’m sorry I couldn’t go escort you. The Knights Order’s meeting was longer than I expected……’
‘It’s okay, you are busy with work.’
‘Thank you for your understanding. Do you remember we decided to visit my mansion this afternoon? We will be leaving immediately as soon as the luncheon is over.’
‘Ah, yes, I remember.’
Hearing Khalid’s words, Renato remembered that today was the day he was supposed to go greet Jamila. As his head was full of what happened last night, he forgot about it. Renato was glad that Khalid didn’t cancel the afternoon schedule, but he couldn’t tell if it was okay to go visit in this awkward state.
‘Then let’s go inside.’
Khalid placed his arm around Renato’s waist like usual and led him to the luncheon hall. He seemed to be acting normally at first glance, but Renato felt the man’s body stiffen. Additionally, Khalid never made eye contact while talking to him.
Seeing Khalid’s strangely averted gaze and the man’s tightly closed mouth, Renato thought the man was uncomfortable with him. Then, his nervous body became terribly stiff.
I thought we had gotten a lot closer just a few days ago, was I mistaken?
Renato became restless because of Khalid’s attitude which seemed to have returned to a few months ago. He feared that he would continue to be awkward with Khalid like this.
During the luncheon, Renato didn’t know if the food was going into his mouth or his nose. All his nerves were focused on Khalid, and he couldn’t even hear what Maryam was saying.
How should I talk to him, should I bring up what happened last night again, or is he still angry?
While he kept pondering in his head, the meal was over. As he got up to see off Maryam who left the luncheon first, Khalid slightly frowned at Renato’s almost untouched plate. But he didn’t say anything.
Normally, Khalid would have asked if he had a stomach ache or nagged him to eat more, so Renato felt strangely disheartened when the man didn’t do so. Perhaps because of that, his stomach felt bloated although he didn’t eat much.
“Why did you have trouble sleeping? Did anything bad happen?”
Trudy’s eyes gleamed as he saw Renato’s darkened face. Only then did Renato realize he had failed to manage his facial expression and try to smile.
“No…… I just woke up in the middle and it was hard to fall asleep again.”
“Is that all? I don’t think so.”
“It’s the truth. I must have worried you for nothing. Thank you.”
Trudy squinted his eyes when Renato glossed over his answer. He wanted to ask directly if Renato quarreled with Khalid, but he couldn’t.
When Khalid and Renato’s engagement was officially announced, Max, Trudy’s chief attendant, gave him various pieces of advice, saying that a lot would change in the future. And he said that one should not intervene recklessly in a couple’s matters.
Trudy had seen Max being scolded by Louis for saying strange things not long ago, but he still trusted him. Although Max was wrong the last time, he was helped by his advice many times.
“Alright, if hyung-nim says so……”
Trudy moved his lips and hugged Renato’s waist, struggling to hold back the question reaching his throat. Then, smelling the scent of the winter forest from Renato, he crumpled his face. Since their engagement ceremony, Renato’s body had been smeared with Khalid’s pheromone every day. The scent also got stronger by the day.
Max said it was because Renato and Khalid were newlyweds and he should be glad about that. Evidence that the two had an amicable relationship or something.
Of course, it wasn’t pleasant for Trudy at all. The child disliked that because it seemed as if Renato was becoming Khalid’s companion and no longer his hyung-nim.
Why does he coat hyung-nim with this much pheromone despite quarreling with him?
Smelling the scent on Renato, Trudy grunted inwardly. As a Beta, Renato probably didn’t know how much Khalid’s pheromone smeared on him.
Just what did he do for the pheromone to stick on like this?…… Ugh, he’s like a terrible beast.
Shaking his head to shake off the sordid imagination coming to mind, Trudy tightened his arms around Renato’s waist. At that moment, the carriage stopped and Nasir’s voice could be heard from outside.
“We have arrived at the grand prince’s mansion.”
Khalid rose from his seat when Nasir announced that they had arrived. Renato also stood up. Khalid got off the carriage first and reached out to Renato.
“Please come down carefully.”
“Thank you.”
Getting off the carriage with Khalid’s help, Renato nervously looked at him. The man’s face was still dreary without a single hint of a smile. Realizing there was no difference from the luncheon, Renato’s heart pounded even harder.
“This is my mansion.”
Khalid introduced the mansion to Renato after confirming that Trudy got off the carriage in his attendant Max’s arms. The grand prince’s mansion, located not far from the royal palace, had a pleasantly simple and practical appearance rather than grandiose and splendid.
“I told them to prepare for the guests, but…… It’s probably lacking compared to the guesthouse. It’s my mansion, but I only stay here for three or four months a year.”
Greeted by the butler and attendants who came to meet him, Khalid entered the mansion. He was back after a few months, but he didn’t feel like coming home. It was understandable because he never stayed here for long even when he was in the kingdom. Whenever he returned from an expedition, he would rest for a few weeks, then go to another battlefield again.
“I’m not the type to adorn my mansion, so there won’t be much to see. As I told you before, my mother’s tablet is in the back garden connected to the main building.”
Renato slowly walked, listening to Khalid’s explanation. The way he adjusted his pace to Renato’s steps, his gentle guiding hand, and his blunt yet kind tone were all the same as before, but he didn’t look at Renato. Khalid, who continued his explanation without looking at him, was cold-hearted.
Wanting the man to look at him even if he didn’t smile, Renato unwittingly tightened his grip on Khalid’s arm. At that moment, Khalid stopped speaking. He paused his steps and looked down at Renato.
“What’s wrong?”
“Pardon?”
“You just suddenly clutched my arm. Are you feeling unwell?”
“Ah, that……”
Renato hesitated, only realizing he had grabbed the man’s arm tightly after hearing Khalid’s words. Khalid, who seemed to never make eye contact with him again until just a moment ago, suddenly did. Feeling his head turn white due to that, Renato made up an appropriate excuse.
“Ah, I, I want to greet your highness’ mother right away…… Can I?”
“Of course.”
Khalid momentarily paused, then nodded his head. Then he called Nasir who was talking with the butler.
“I’ll stop by the back garden with His Imperial Highness, so organize all our belongings in the meantime.”
“Yes, your highness.”
Nasir responded vigorously to Khalid’s order. Seeing the two heading to the back garden, Trudy wanted to follow and stepped forward, but then withdrew with a pouty face at Max’s restraint.
“It is this place.”
The back garden was quiet. Khalid led Renato to a small greenhouse in the middle of the garden. The greenhouse was full of flowers and trees that Jamila liked while she was alive. On the altar in the center of the greenhouse was a portrait of Jamila and a memorial tablet.
“This is my mother, Jamila Hordad.”
Khalid introduced Jamila in front of her portrait. He picked a flower from around the altar and placed it on her portrait. The gracefully smiling woman looked very beautiful and benevolent although it was just a painting.
Dark brown hair, amber eyes, clear facial features…… Jamila and Khalid didn’t look much like each other. Renato, however, thought he would have immediately known that she was Khalid’s mother had he not heard the introduction. After all, the smiling faces of the two looked perfectly similar.
“Your highness looks just like her.”