Chapter 52.1

“Ka, Kaligo?”

Ashia stammered and gaped her mouth with Kaligo’s unexpected appearance.

“Wh-when did you arrive…?!”

“It has been a while since I arrived, though my greetings were late because I was waiting for the door to open.”

Saying so, Kaligo turned his head towards her.

The two main characters almost met again in this place. Even though it bothered her, there was something more important to Ashia than that.

– I will try to be more straightforward from now on.

– If he were here, he would have accepted my love right away and offered me to be his lover, but what a pity he isn’t.

I wonder if Kaligo heard what I said, half sincere and half said in a fit of anger.

His sudden appearance made her heart drop and jump.

Embarrassed for no reason, Ashia stepped towards the sales counter as Kaligo followed her into the store.

‘…Did he hear what I said?’

Her head was filled with fifty thousand worries even with the short time she walked towards the sales counter. And, just in time, Kaligo’s gentle voice echoed from behind her.

“What happened?”

Ashia turned to him.

He walked to the sofa and sat on its armrest while his eyes naturally set on Ashia. He saw it. He was asking this question probably because he saw Aileen. Well, it wasn’t something she should hide. That woman came because of you, and she didn’t need to hide the truth.

Glancing at the store door, she tilted her head and said, “She asked me what my relationship with you is.”

“….”

Ashia turned her head toward her door and walked over to her sofa.

“So, what did you tell her?”

“What do you mean? I told her nothing was going on between us.”

“….”

Disappointment instantly descended on Kaligo’s face at her answer.

“Kaligo.”

“Yes.”

Ashia then brushed past him and sat down on the sofa, burying her back in it. After a moment’s hesitation, she continued to speak slowly.

“I am greedy for you.”

Kaligo sat down opposite her and casually replied, “I know.”

“Huh? You knew…?”

His eyes were drawn with arcs with a big smile.

“Because your eyes don’t lie.”

“….”

…Eyes?

Ah… well, looking back on Ashia’s actions during that time, her greed was fully revealed.

‘Looking back, wasn’t I the one who kissed him first?’

Was that all? It was also her who tied the man who can barely come back to his senses while he was suffering from seizures and the one who jumped on top of him. As her words and actions come to mind, Ashia drew a deeper sigh and touched her forehead.

“Haa…”

“Ashia?”

Unable to comprehend her inner troubles, Kaligo only tilted his head.

Ashia acknowledged her feelings for him. It was also confirmed that Kaligo wasn’t swayed by the original story and didn’t fall in love with the female lead. But still, she hesitated with other concerns when that part was resolved.

…No, it would be more right to say that she had no energy to spend on an emotional game.

“I am still not thinking of dating nor marriage as I told you. I like how it is right now.”

“….”

“Moderately exciting and moderately free.”

“Yes.”

Yes?

Ashia raised her eyebrows as if she had heard an unexpected answer.

“…What do you mean by ‘Yes’?”

“I also know that.”

“….”

Kaligo laughed leisurely in a low voice. What she emphasized several times, there was no way he wouldn’t remember them.

“You‘ve said it before. My answer will not be different, then or now.”

“….”

“You can do whatever you want.”

“….”

“A moderately exciting and moderately free life… because I want you to live like that.”

Ashia gazed at him silently.

A person who didn’t push her… His honest and firm disposition could be seen in his expression and tone of his voice. Her heart was itchy for some reason. There wouldn’t be a woman who wouldn’t fall for those words with that face.

“What a total expert.”

“….”

Kaligo’s eyes widened at her sudden words.

Hmph, Ashia got up and went into the hallway before telling him.

“Let’s go have lunch.”

“….”

“I’ll make some soup for you today.”

As the hem of her dress fluttered with her each step, he gazed at her back and smiled softly.

“Yes.”

Kaligo walked into the hallway, following Ashia.

 

 

 

In the carriage returning to her quarters, Aileen burst into tears with her uncontrollable emotions.

‘Strange… why does my heart hurt so much?’

The tears that flowed to her cheeks didn’t stop even after it soaked her handkerchief. Her heart sometimes thumped against her chest painfully, and it sent shivers down her body with a sudden chill.

After crying to the point of exhaustion, she leaned against the carriage wall and remained silent for a while. She couldn’t forget the look in his eyes.

‘…Is this what love at first sight was like?’

She didn’t know she would fall in love with a man who already had another woman in his heart, and she didn’t know that she would say such harsh words to that woman.

‘How did I…’

Her mind was puzzled, as if a war had broken out.

But strangely, she knew with her mind that she was the one who stood between the couple, but not her heart. This feeling of unfairness wouldn’t go away as if it wasn’t her own.

The carriage soon arrived at her quarter but Aileen couldn’t get off straight away. She spent some more time inside the carriage even after the flowing tears had dried up. She couldn’t tell whether her emotions were of sadness, fear, or anger.

Eventually, Aileen entered the mansion with the help of an escort. She laid flat on the bed after barely finishing changing her clothes and washing herself.