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Chapter 20: I Want to Live
Hernan shook his head.
Linzel guessed nothing had happened so far. It was fortunate.
She remained silent for a moment. She had no idea how to respond.
After a few minutes of silence, Hernan looked down at the woman in his arms.
“Linzel.”
“Yes, Your Highness,” she replied quietly.
“Gatt is a man I trust, but

 I will not listen to a word he says.”
“Your Highness

.”
“So, I hope you are not too disappointed.”
Hernan seemed to mistake the silence for disappointment. It was far beyond the kindness of a war demon.
Linzel smiled softly and rubbed her cheek against his chest. It was a subtle way of saying she was moved by his consideration.
With every rub she made across his chest, Hernan let out a hoarse, “Hmmmmm

.” sound.
Linzel could see the nape of his neck growing redder and redder.
* * *
As soon as the two of them entered Linzel’s room, Mini served tea.
Linzel had instructed her earlier to serve them tea when they entered the ducal residence.
They accepted all of it. Mini and Gatt then went out into the corridor without a word.
Soon it was just them two in the room.
Hernan stood there, still carrying her. His searching gaze darted around the room.
He didn’t seem to know what to do or where to start. It made sense to tell him.
“Put me down on the bed.”
Then, with a slight tremor in his voice, Hernan asked, “In

the bed again?”
Linzel chose the bed for the same reasons as last time.
For one thing, the couch in her room was small. It would be uncomfortable for the big man to sit on.
And she was more comfortable on the bed than on the couch.
She’d be able to sit closer to him, face to face.
“Don’t you want to?”
Instead of answering, Hernan started walking. His destination was the aforementioned bed. Hernan set her down carefully, as if he were handling fragile glass.
Linzel sat down on the bed first and gestured to Hernan.
“Your Highness, Hernan, please come up here as well. I don’t think the couch in my room will be comfortable for you.”
“If you’ll excuse me, then.”
Hernan took his place on the bed like a man who knows how to accept no for an answer.
His discomfort was palpable as he sat upright. Even though the space was wider than the couch.
He fumbled with his trousers with his big hands, apparently uncomfortable with the somewhat tight fit.
He was uncomfortable, but he still looked good.
Wasn’t that just adorable?
“Your Highness.”
“Uh.”
“So, what are you going to wear for me next?”
Hernan considered the question seriously.
“I don’t know. I haven’t decided yet.”
“Then why don’t we decide together?”
“That’s a good suggestion.”
By the way–
Cloak, shirt, trousers

 Was there anything else that would look good?
Linzel wondered whimsically what it would be like to put a fancy hat on Hernan.
For a moment, Hernan’s gentle face hardened. His eyes narrowed as he became serious.
“

Linzel.”
His voice was small as he called her name.
“Yes, Your Highness?”
“It seems that someone is near the door.”
“Huh? Really?”
It was something she hadn’t felt at all. But that didn’t mean she doubted Hernan’s words.
He was a naturally good hunter. At the very least, his senses would be far more acute than hers.
“Wait.”
Hernan slid quietly down the bed, his large frame belied by his size, and walked with catlike strides to the doorway.
Seeing him like that made her even more nervous.
Hernan brought his ears to the doorway and looked like he was weighing something up. There was an unexplained tension in the air.
All Linzel could do was hold her breath.
It wasn’t long before Hernan approached again.
“I don’t know who it is, but it looks like they’ve gone somewhere else.”
“Well

. Perhaps it was one of my maids or an aide of yours?”
Hernan shook his head.
“They went elsewhere as soon as we sent them away. Perhaps they went to the parlor.”
Despite the absence of any evidence, this time, Linzel trusted him.
Hernan’s serious face, his vivid red eyes, his firm voice, they all made her trust him unconditionally.
“Another servant, then?” Linzel asked.
Hernan muttered out a vague answer.
“I don’t know.”
He didn’t end up giving a definitive answer. Still, why did Hernan seem to know something?
* * *
Letty had taken Linzel’s maidservants away, so to speak. They would not return for some time.
Letty checked the corridor a dozen times. The corridor was deserted, and a sickly silence hung in the air.
Letty stepped cautiously. She stopped in front of Linzel’s room, next door to hers.
Letty put her ear to the door.
As she listened, she could hear the conversation between Linzel and Hernan.
Linzel has a loud voice, so her words were quite clear. She could hear Linzel giving Hernan permission to sit on the bed

.
They sat on the bed and seemed to be talking about something.
‘You two. Things are going well, everything is going according to plan.’
Letty continued to listen to their conversation.
Of course, if she asked Linzel what she and Hernan had been talking about, it’s not like Linzel would lie.
Still, Letty wanted to overhear their conversation, every word of it. Vividly.
‘Because I have to succeed this time.’
Just then, there was a small shuffle down the corridor. Letty jumped, startled like a burglar caught off guard.
She stopped eavesdropping on their conversation and hurried back to her room.
On the way back to her room, she didn’t see any servants. That was a relief.
Leaning back against the doorway, she breathed a sigh of relief.
“Whew.”
Once she’d calmed down, the next thing she did was open the bottom drawer of her desk.
The drawer she could never open without a key.
Inside was a red-covered notebook. It was a red-covered notebook that Linzel had never seen before.
Letty opened the notebook and wrote down everything she had heard and seen today.
When she was done, the words slipped from her lips, almost to herself.
“I want to live

.”
No matter the cost.
* * *
After the strange incident, Hernan and Linzel made small talk.
It was mostly her who kept the conversation going, as Hernan was a master of short answers.
But it didn’t feel like hard work. Hernan was a great listener.
He listened intently to whatever Linzel had to say, even when she ranted about how chubby Mini’s cheeks were.
If there was only one problem

.
‘Did I mention Mini? Her cheeks are really fluffy. The more I look at them, the more they look like dough.’


..Should she say that’s what she actually told Mini?
‘Linzel. When I was a young boy, I used to train by pounding my fists into the dough. Because a child’s hands are so fragile.’


..He raised his fist in the air as he said this.
Linzel knew, of course, that he didn’t mean to intimidate Mini. But Mini’s face turned an ashen color and she trembled. She looked like a mouse in front of a cat.
Eventually, Linzel stepped in and mediated the situation.
Nevertheless, Mini, who had offered them refreshments, never visited the room again after that.
While Mini was being Mini, she was also worried about Hernan.
He had a pitiful look on his face as he watched Mini run away in fear. He was obviously devastated that he had unintentionally threatened Mini.
Linzel had to say, she understood the reason why Hernan asked her if she was scared.
Wouldn’t other people have been avoiding or scared of Hernan like that?
This is a young Hernan, pounding down flour dough with his hands like a cotton bat.
She thought he was adorable.
The good news was that once we started talking, Hernan’s mood changed.
While he was still listening to her story, Hernan said he had to go back to the palace before dinner.
Linzel asked, “Can’t you stay?” in a way that any lover would. She almost choked up, but it was worth it.
Hernan stroked her hair. Then he said, “Today is not the only day.”
It was a very adult thing to say.
She felt a little like a child begging for candy.
“And the Emperor’s nagging is immense. He is a very punctual person, and if you are late or don’t show up for a scheduled event, you don’t know what bad luck will come your way. Whew.”
Hernan sighed heavily.
‘Delta, I didn’t see it that way, but you’re hard on your children.’
When he had talked to Linzel, he was all smiles.
Before she parted ways with Hernan, Linzel said what she’d been meaning to say to him when she saw him.
“Hernan, do you think it would be possible for the four of us to meet, me and Letty and you and Izekiel?”
Hernan raised an eyebrow. At precisely the point where she blurted out ‘Izekiel’s’ name.
“The reason is?”
“Well
. shall we call it a friendly gathering?”
It was a double entendre, a way to socialize and openly clear up misunderstandings.
“A frien

dly?”
“Yeah. We’re all going to be a family later, so it doesn’t hurt to get acquainted beforehand.”
Hernan repeated the phrase family several times. The more he did, the better his expression became.
It was clear that he liked the word family.
“

 Okay. I will try to arrange something.”
“Thank you, Your Highness!”
Hernan smiled sheepishly. As if he thought Linzel was cute.
“I really should get going. You don’t have to see me off.”
“Thank you for your consideration. Have a safe trip.”
“Mhn.”
Hernan turned around.
Then, the narrow waist contrasted with shoulders as wide as the open sea caught her attention.
‘Broad shoulders and a slim waist.’
Linzel hastily called out to him.
“Your Highness

!”