After glancing outside the door unconsciously, Brynn stepped in front of Lilica at an slant.
It was too conspicuous if she blocked him head-on, so this much was appropriate.
âWâWhat is this?â
Atilâs face was filled with shock, betrayal and anger.
Atil entered with large strides.
Before Brynn could stop her, Lilica quickly blocked his way.
âAtil, wait a minuteââ
âGet out of my way!â
Atil pushed her aside. Lilica grabbed his arm.
âIâm sorry, but let me tell you my side of the story first.â
âGet lost!â
Atil shook his arm off roughly.
Lilica was much smaller than him, so she stumbled backwards when his arm struck her face.
Normally, she would have fallen back with an, âAck!â
Normally.
Lilica paused. She covered her mouth with a hand.
Rollingâ
White front teeth fell into her hand. At the same time, blood began flowing out from her mouth.
âPrincess!â
Fjord ran over with a shout.
Atil was so surprised that he couldnât even stop Fjord. Lilicaâs eyes were also wide in surprise.
âFront tooth? Ah!â
It was the tooth that has been shaking since two days ago.
It was going to be extracted today or tomorrow.
Afraid that Atil would blame himself, she spoke quickly.
âIâm owayââ (Iâm okay)
As she didnât want to swallow blood, the blood accumulated in her mouth and her pronunciation became awkward.
When she spoke, blood began flowing out.
Actually, it wasnât entirely blood, but saliva was mixed within and so it looked rather dismal.
Brynn, who was well aware of the situation, was the only one that remained calm.
She came over and held out a folded handkerchief.
âPlease bite on this tightly, Princess.â
âUng.â
As she nodded, Lilica wanted to speak with Atil again, but she looked at Fjord.
The hand holding her shoulder was trembling.
His reddish-gold eyes quiver with nervousness.
Lilica patted the hand on my shoulder.
âIâm oway.â (Iâm okay)
She couldnât speak clearly while biting on a handkerchief. She swallowed down a sigh.
âThis isâŚâ
Atil clenched his fist.
His voice was trembling. He jumped towards Fjord.
âThis is all because of you!â
âIâm not the one that hit the princess, itâs you!â
The furious Fjord responded immediately in retaliation.
The both of them grabbed the otherâs collar, and it seemed like they were about to grapple at any moment.
The panic-stricken Lilica looked at Brynn, while Brynn smiled at her.
As long as the princess is safe and sound, it doesnât matter.
At the sight of her relaxed look, Lilicaâs jaw dropped without realising it.
So, at times like this, that is to say.
Lilica raised her voice.
âLauv!â
Bang!
The door slammed open roughly.
Everyone turned their startled gazes over towards Lauv, who was standing there.
Lilica looked over in delight, but her eyes soon widened in surprise.
At first glance, Lauv looked like he had been rolling around in a pile of fallen leaves.
He strode in with a rarely seen angered look.
He spoke through gritted teeth.
âYour Highness, youâre taking your joke too far.â
Unaware of the reason, Lilica looked at Atil and Lauv alternately.
âIâm sorry, Iââ
Lauv ran over to Lilica upon catching sight of the state of his master.
âPrincess!â
Lilica intended to say that she was fine, but she smiled at him reassuringly instead, while internally thinking how many times has this been.
But her smile didnât help Lauv in the slightest.
Her teeth came out.
Heâd easily spotted that.
To hit someone and cause their teeth to fall out, a relatively large amount of strength would be required.
While he was away, his lord suffered an attack that caused her teeth to fall out.
Someone had hit Lilica with that amount of force.
That fact caused Lauv to tremble all over.
If someone had actually hit her like that, Lilica wouldnât be able to stand normally like this right now, but he didnât think that far.
âWho the hell was it?â
His words came out from between gritted teeth.
It was hard to control his anger. The blood of the wolves that run within his body boiled.
Heâd almost lost his master.
Fear was invoked instinctually.
His pupils contracted and the colour of his eyes became brighter.
Fangs could be seen through his slightly parted lips.
Surprised, Lilica called out to him in a loud voice.
âLauv Wolfe!â
The handkerchief fell out, but she didnât care about that.
âIâm fine. I wasnât attacked. Calm down.â
âBut.â
âReally, my teeth fell out because it was time for them to drop. Atil, you were also surprised, werenât you? My teeth were loose, so thatâs why this happened.â
Blood gushed out again as she spoke, so Lilica closed her mouth.
Brynn took out a new handkerchief, wiped the corners of her mouth, and made her bite on it again.
Lilica thought that everyone would go, âOh, I see,â after she explained the situation. She thought that they would become relieved, but the atmosphere didnât change in the slightest.
While she was stewing in puzzlement, Brynn offered an answer readily.
âBut if it werenât for what had happened, the princessâs teeth wouldnât have fallen out.â
The words that summed up the entire situation made Lilica feel rather troubled.
She patted Fjord and pointed towards the sofa. Then, she ran over and grabbed Atilâs hand.
She scanned his mood furtively, but it didnât seem like he would shake her off.
When she pulled him by the hand, Atil let himself be dragged by her obediently. He seemed to have lost his will to fight completely.
When she came out of the cabin while holding Atilâs hand, she spotted the two previously chosen guards standing side by side.
The two looked this way and greeted each other with a bitter smile.
Lilica was startled by their messy appearance and they greeted each other.
âTheyâre much more of a mess than Lauv was.â
She took Atil to the table in front of the cabin.
Lilica took out the handkerchief she was biting and said.
âIâm sorry, Atil. I know that you value this place a lot, and that you hate Fjord, but I still brought him here.â
âWhy are you apologising?â
âWhat?â
Lilica looked up in surprise. Atil gritted his teeth.
âWhy, why are you apologising?â
The intermittent questions caused her to be rather bewildered. Turquoise eyes began wandering about.
Even that pushed him into a whirlwind of uneasiness, or was it anger, no, it was an unknown emotion.
âBecause I made a mistake?â
âWhat?â
âAs Iâve mentioned previouslyââ
âIâve given you this place. Whoever you chose to bring here is up to you.â
âItâs not completely mine. We agreed to share ownership.â
âBut you have the right to bring whoever you want.â
As he continued, Atil felt despondent. Why were they arguing about this?
This wasnât what he wanted to talk about. He wanted to talk about something completely different.
However, the more Lilica apologised, the harder it became to mention it.
He grabbed Lilicaâs hand and made her bite the handkerchief. He hated the eyes that looked at him puzzledly.
He said.
âWhy arenât you telling me to apologise?â
Blink, blink.
From her eyes, it looks like she hadnât even thought about it. He became angry.
Atil raised his chin and used the handkerchief to stop her from saying anything.
âItâs okay to be angry. You can be angry. Even if I was agitated, itâs ridiculous of me to hit you like this. IâŚâ
He had something more that he wanted to say, but he stopped and sighed.
Why did he have to explain this personally?
I didnât intend to hurt you.
Those words didnât come out. Instead, rebarbative words came out of his mouth.
âYouâre the one that got hurt, so why are you apologising while telling me that itâs alright? Donât be obsequious. It makes your origins evident.â
The moment he uttered that final sentence, he went, âOops.â
Lilicaâs face turned red.
She slapped the hand that was holding her chin and spat out her handkerchief.
âIâm not ashamed of my origins at all!â
âIââ
âIâve never been servile! Yes, getting hit hurts, but Your Highness was also surprised, werenât you? You seemed so bewildered, and my teeth were shaking. Besides, ptui!â
Atil stiffened when she spat out saliva.
Lilica wiped the corner of her mouth and uttered a short swear.
That short yet harsh word caused Atil to hold his breath.
As Lilica stared straight at him, her eyes burned brightly.
She was a child from the slums.
But she had never felt ashamed, and this was her pride and dignity.
âAlthough I knew how much Your Highness hates Barat, I still made this decision. I knew that youâd be angry, but I still did that.â
Her turquoise eyes sparkled.
âThatâs why I apologised. My feelings of apology havenât changed. Because.â
Earlier, when Atil came in, his face and voice was filled with anticipation.
He sneaked in after making the two escorts throw Lauv out.
Lilica promised to beautify the garden and return it to him, and Atil couldnât have been unaware that there was activity going on here.
Additionally, perhaps heâd noticed that she wasnât present in the morning.
Thatâs why heâd come straight to the cabin.
Thinking that Lilica was definitely preparing a surprise party or something.
But what would he think when he saw her and Barat there?
He must have felt betrayed.
Nevertheless, Atil wasnât furious with Lilica, but expressed his anger towards Fjord first.
Lilica knew that itâs because he cared about her.
âItâs because I like Your Highness.â
Itâs because she liked him, so she worried about any harm heâd suffered, and felt extremely apologetic.
She thought that getting slapped was still considered cheap.
Those words were rather simple-minded.
Atil deflated instantly. He sank into a chair and wrapped his hands around his face.
Why was this weak little sister so good at saying the things that he canât say?
Isnât it scary?
Isnât she afraid?
Liking someone was akin to grabbing a hold of oneâs weakness. It was easy to exploit goodwill.
How many people had thought of profiting from anotherâs affection?
Those people would only end up hurting him.
âYour Highness?â
She was calling him that again, and Atil immediately felt scared.
Since earlier, he was being called âYour Highnessâ, and not âAtilâ.
He looked up hesitantly. A worried face came into view.
When he saw that she was still worried, the words weighing on his mind flowed out easily.
âIâm sorry.â
He spoke briefly, and Lilica smiled.
âIâll accept that apology for now, Your Highness.â
Atil pulled her closer by her arm. He sighed and asked.
âWhat in the world do you like about that punk?â
âHmm⌠heâs really pretty, and good at curtseyingââ
âFace? Itâs because of his face? Ah, thatâs true. What else is there thatâs worth looking at a Barat for aside from their faces?â
Anything else can be gossiped about, but when it came to looks, Barat was untouchable.
Atil even acknowledged that point.
Atil looked at his sister, dumbfounded.
Lilicaâs face flushed.
âUh, itâs not because of his looks. And for some reason, uhm. Thereâs a place that bothers me.â
âIâm saying, his looks?â
âOh, I already said itâs not. It really isnât because of that. My mother is the most beautiful person in the world!â
Atil was at a loss at the sudden and baffling declaration.
Lilica spoke triumphantly.
âThatâs why I wonât be brought down by a pretty face.â
Is he considered just a pretty face?
Atil swallowed the words that were on the tip of his tongue.
* * *
Fjord felt like he was sitting on a thorny cushion.
He looked down at his arm while sitting upright on the sofa.
When he rolled up the sleeve of his chiffon blouse, he spotted a bandage wrapped tightly around his arm.
He clenched his fist, opened it, and rotated his shoulders.
He didnât feel any pain whatsoever. He couldnât see his wound, but he could tell that it had healed completely.
The bandage was just a formality.
âIn the span of a night?â
He should still be suffering from the wound for at least a week.
It raised a question, but he didnât bother to express it. He didnât even ask.
Itâs because old families would have a secret recipe or two, and three or four hidden artifacts.
He glanced at the window anxiously.
He couldnât see them while seated, but Lilica and Atil were talking somewhere outside.
âAtil Sau Takar.â
He closed his eyes.
When he was young, he hated him blindly.
Itâs all because of Atil that he had to go through such suffering, and that his father had to die.
He grew up listening to those kinds of poisonous words that were everywhere.
Especially from his mother.
His shoulders couldnât help but shrink at the thought of his mother.
His mother, who tried anything and everything to raise Barat to the highest position.
His mother, who always did her best
She mixed flesh with Takar, who she hated so much, by having a direct descendant of the imperial family marry into her family.
Thanks to such a mother, he became Baratâs greatest masterpiece.
âItâs funny, isnât it?â
His mindset was only broken when Atilâs birthday party was being held.
As he was turning ten, and his first birthday in the double-digits, a grand birthday party was held.
It was also an occasion to introduce the child to everyone.
As such, Fjord met Atil for the first time.
He remembered his motherâs fingers digging into his hair and turning and fixing his gaze in Atilâs direction.
âThatâs your enemy.â
Her whispering voice surfaced in his mind vividly.
So that was Atil, who he bore such hatred againstâŚ
When he recalled it now, a bitter laugh would flow out from between his lips.
He was just a kid.
He was just a child that stared at him desperately, bearing a similar hatred and anxiety.
âHe was just like me.â
Fjord came to a realisation.
It wasnât Atil that caused him agony. It wasnât Takar.
It was the person with her hand placed on his head.
It was a Barat.
The desire to become Takar, to become the best, the one who didnât have any qualms about the means, even if she had to rack her brains and gulp down her tears.
Baratâs desire to rise to that position.
Thatâs the reason that he cries in pain.
Ever since then, Fjord has never hated Atil. When Atil stared at him, he merely gave a bitter smile.
He could fully understand why Atil hated him so much.
He wouldâve cursed someone out when he saw what Barat did. Unless he himself wasnât a Barat.
But he was a Barat.
Thatâs why he constantly avoided him, and always turned around and took the longer route.
âBut.â
But Fjord met Lilica.
Her caring actions,
Her affectionate words,
Her ingrained kindness,
Her unconditional goodwill
All that sheâd done were little things.
Akin to the crumbs of a sugar cookie that glimmered like glass.
However, he was fascinated by the sweet taste heâd never tasted before, the aroma, and the iridescent colours, so he was unable to avert his eyes.
He wanted to be a little closer.
He wanted to collect the crumbs that kept falling.
It was akin to a drop of water falling on the lips of a person that has never drank water before.