Terdeo looked at me with a bewildered expression, his strength draining away as he heard the unbelievable story. The arms that had been holding me went limp, and I nearly rolled off and fell. Of course, I was so tightly wrapped in the blanket that even if I rolled, it wouldn't hurt.
“What... What did you say? The witch who cast the curse is still alive?”
Fortunately, Terdeo quickly regained his composure and held me again, preventing me from falling. He shook his head and chuckled.
“The curse was cast a thousand years ago. It’s impossible.”
“Have you ever heard that the witch is an immortal being?”
“...Uncle Phineas said so.”
Though he said it, it was actually written by Dodorea, but anyway. Terdeo's eyes flickered.
“You're right. She is alive, that witch.”
Terdeo's face lost its color, and uncontrollable anger washed over his face.
“She’s around us and was someone we knew very well.”
“...What?”
I had been waiting so long to tell him this.
“Princess Dodorea.”
Terdeo's pupils dilated.
“Yes, Dodorea is that witch.”
“What? Who, the witch?”
He seemed to be trying hard to hide his agitation, but it wasn't easy. I could feel his trembling through the thick blanket, a sight I had never seen before.
“Princess Dodorea, the witch?”
“Yes. She seemed to know the first Duke of Laphireon. The reason for the curse on the family probably started from there.”
I thought it would be better to mention later that Dodorea had been seeing the first Duke in Terdeo. He already looked quite confused with the information he had.
“But, but she’s a princess.”
“I know.”
“Of course, I don’t doubt your words... but she was born to Her Majesty the Queen. The day Princess Dodorea was born, the entire empire celebrated. I remember crying and throwing a tantrum because I wanted to go to the festival, but I was locked up on my mother's orders.”
Terdeo, bewildered by the unbelievable reality, rubbed his lips as if trying to figure out what to say.
“If the witch is immortal, and if the witch is the princess... then the princess must have been alive from before, right? If she was born anew, she wouldn’t be immortal.”
“I didn’t hear the rest because I was trying to escape.”
More precisely, I didn’t hear because Aedus carried me and ran away. Terdeo looked at me with a confused expression. I wriggled my body and burrowed into his embrace to comfort his anxiety.
“I can’t believe it either, but it’s true. I’ll be by your side so you won’t be confused.”
“...Phereshti.”
“Don’t worry. You’re not alone.”
Terdeo, who had been staring blankly into space, pulled me tightly into his arms. He buried his face in my shoulder. Or rather, in the thick blanket pretending to be my shoulder. I rested my chin on his shoulder and said,
“We should tell the family, right?”
“...Before that, I’ll go to the princess and confirm it first. Confirmation first. The family meeting will come later.”
Terdeo’s grip tightened.
“Every time we thought we had found a way to break the curse, everyone just got more tired. I don’t want to drag everyone back into the depths of despair with false hope.”
“That’s a good idea.”
There’s nothing as disheartening and despairing as a false hope that’s right in front of you. I understood Terdeo’s feelings.
“Thanks to you going to the temple, I found out.”
“You were scolding me for going there on my own just a while ago.”
“No way. I was talking to the foolish me who wasn’t by your side. Nothing you do is unimportant.”
I felt good hearing Terdeo’s praise. As I smiled, he murmured softly.
“...Thank you for letting me be selfish.”
“It’s not certain yet. And if you’re grateful, could you let go of my arm from under the blanket?”
As I wriggled my body, Terdeo laughed softly and released my arm.
“This hand.”
“Yes?”
Terdeo looked down at my wrist, which he had just freed from the blanket.
“What’s wrong?”
Thinking something might be on my wrist, I poked my head out, and Terdeo’s jaw tightened.
“That’s the wrist Fortunus held.”
I realized he was upset because of Aedus.
‘He must be upset because he heard I wanted to take revenge. He probably feels bad whenever Aedus is mentioned.’
Terdeo looked at my wrist with an unpleasant expression. Then he lifted it to his eye level.
“I need to make one thing clear.”
“What?”
Without waiting for my response, Terdeo pressed his lips, stained with possessiveness, onto my wrist. Precisely where Aedus had touched.
“No one else’s mark should be on you. Your every end must be mine, Phereshti.”
Terdeo’s lips, which tickled my wrist, were hot. He kissed the area where Aedus had held my wrist persistently. As Terdeo looked up at me with his raised eyes, my heart felt like it was being hit by a downpour. When he lifted his head and gently brushed my hair, I stiffened. Should I close my eyes, or push him away? As I hesitated, Terdeo slowly approached. He stopped just a hair’s breadth away, and whispered sweetly like cotton candy.
“For a while, it’s better to sleep so tightly wrapped in the blanket.”
“...What?”
“I warned you, didn’t I?”
The red warning signal grew larger.
“I was hungry.”
I held the blanket tightly to keep it from unraveling. Sleepless nights were just beginning.
***
I woke up from the suffocating feeling of something heavy pressing down on my body.
“Ugh...”
It seemed the maids hadn’t come to wake me up yet, so I could sleep a bit more. As I tried to shake off the feeling, the thing pressing down on me wouldn’t budge. No matter how I tried to escape, it held me tightly.
“Ugh... Brr...”
My mumbling, almost like sleep-talking, was tickled by a joyful breath from right beside me. Then, a gentle hand brushed my hair.
“I could hear your stomach growling just now.”
The sweet voice, which tickled me, made me open my eyes wide. Terdeo’s face was right in front of me, too close.
“Of course, I’m fine staying like this all day.”
“...A dream?”
Terdeo always washes up and leaves the bedroom before I wake up... he shouldn’t be here. Terdeo laughed softly and held my hand. The sensation was vivid.
“Does it feel like a dream?”
He brought the hand he held to his face and rubbed it affectionately.
“Does it still feel like a dream?”
The bridge of his nose, his lips, his warm breath... everything was vivid. Even the sensation of his fingers interlocking with mine was clear.
“Eh...”
I blinked my eyes and poked my head out. The sunlight behind Terdeo shone like a halo. I hadn’t noticed the sun had risen so high, blocked by his large body.
*Rumble.* My stomach growled loudly in the bedroom. Terdeo chuckled and asked,
“Did you sleep well? Shall we go have breakfast now?”
“Huh...!”
It’s not a dream! As soon as I realized it was real, I shook off the interlocked hands and hurriedly sat up. The sun had risen high enough to illuminate the entire bedroom except where I was lying.
‘W, what time is it now?’
Terdeo, following my lead, sat up and said regretfully,
“You can lie in a bit longer if you want.”
“W, why are you here? W, what time is it...”
“Calm down, slowly.”
Terdeo brushed the hair from my cheek and explained gently.
“Don’t you remember yesterday?”
“Yesterday?”
I quickly looked around. The first thing I noticed was Terdeo’s arm, which was red and pressed.
“D, did I do that to your arm?”
“It’s fine. Your head wasn’t heavy.”
“You... You used your arm as a pillow all night?”
“You fell asleep while holding my robe and sitting on my lap. I managed to lay you down, but I didn’t want to wake you, so I fell asleep too.”
He hadn’t changed out of his robe from yesterday.
‘When did I fall asleep yesterday?’
I searched my memory with a perplexed look. The story of going to the temple to save Lady Verdict, the fire, the conversation with Dodorea, and the talk with Aedus. I seemed to have fallen asleep halfway through the detailed story, exhausted.
“E, exhausted, that’s it!”
Yesterday? Wait, yesterday? Suddenly, the memory of Terdeo’s confession, the passionate kiss, and the warning from yesterday came to mind. I pulled the blanket up to my chin.
“You must have been tired. I enjoyed watching your peaceful face for a long time, so no need to apologize.”
Terdeo, with a sore neck, stretched and pulled the blanket lightly.
‘Not good for my heart.’
I tried to calm my busy heart, which had been working hard since morning.
“H, hurry and get ready, and then... to Selphi Academy...”
“Selphi is probably already at the academy.”
“Huh?”
“Look at how high the sun is.”
Indeed, the sun was already high in the sky. I stared blankly at the window, and Terdeo laughed softly.
“Selphi will understand if you skip a day. I’ll have breakfast prepared for you since you must be hungry.”
There’s no point in arguing now. I nodded briefly, and the knock on the bedroom door sounded immediately. When I told them to come in, the door opened with a bang. At the same time, Terdeo walked closer to me.
“Her Highness, we’re here to help you get ready...”
*Peck.*
“What... What!”
“Good morning. It’s not morning, but...”
Terdeo pressed his lips firmly on my forehead, as if stamping his ownership. The maids who had come in to help me get ready bowed their heads in surprise at the scene.
“See you later.”
Terdeo smiled slyly at me and then fled the bedroom. The maids, who had been peeking at Terdeo’s back, blushed.
“Wow...”
“H, Her Highness... A, after a passionate night, the best thing is to soak in a bath...”
“Y, you only wore a robe when you came back last night! C, clothes are too troublesome!”
And I, whose face was the reddest of all, quietly buried my face in my palms.