During a night of thunder when lightning strikes and rain falls like a downpour, he would have nightmares and sweat.
Then I would give Heinrich a side of my bed and pat him all night long, singing lullabies.
I remembered it all.
Still drowsy in sleepâ
ââŠAre you sick?â
As I rubbed my eyes and lifted my head, Heinrich, who was at the door, shook his head.
âNoâŠâ
âCome here, Heinrich.â
As soon as permission fell, Heinrich cautiously walked inside.
When I gestured for him to bow down with my hand, he quietly squatted down in front of the bed and put his forehead on it.
I realized he had a slight fever when I touched his forehead. Very faint.
Seeing that his shirt and hair were wet, he seemed to be sweating.
I sighed quietly. It was obvious.
âDid you wake up from another nightmare and canât sleep?â
ââŠâŠ.â
âHow old are you, but you still have nightmares and canât sleep?â
Heinrich looked a little shaky.
âYou really didnât grow much.â
âWhat am I going to do with you, Heinrich?â
Back then, I left with a lot of worries because of these aspects.
âDo you have the same childlike habits?â
Heinrich crouched down at my bedside.
He certainly looked pretty tall, being over 180cm, but when he lowered his body, it felt like the size of Noah with a little excess.
ââŠIâll be right next to you in a little while, Sister.â
Heinrich looked at the wall and leaned his head against it.
Dun, dun.
Then thunder roared loudly. Hmmm, I could see Heinrichâs body hardening.
Without realizing it, I laughed out loud.
ââŠWhat a baby, baby.â
Heinrich looked genuinely angry for a moment.
âSister, why am I a baby? I grew this tall. Iâm even the richest and most powerful âmanâ. Iâm probably the number one groom in the empire.â
âYes, yes~â
I smiled as I answered dryly.
What did you do while you were growing up, Heinri?
Even now, it was still a mystery how he became a grand duke when he could be defeated by thunder.
I shook my head and gave up one side of the bed, tapping with the palm of my hand.
âCome up.â
For a second, there was a gleam in Heinrichâs eyes.
His white teeth were slightly exposed as he straightened his face like he could not smile openly.
ââŠIs that okay?â
âYes.â
If possible, I would just pretend I donât know, but in fact, I actually remembered everything.
When he was young, on days when he had a low fever like this, he used to persevere by saying that he was okay, but then the fever would rise so much that he would get very sick.
âI was worried that he wasnât better even after I used all the fever reducers.â
He had a sensitive body, so there was no suitable medicine.
Surprisingly, Heinrich didnât usually have minor illnesses, but was very ill once he got sick.
How much did I stomp my feet back then⊠The 12-year-old Annette was very upset.
âŠI wished I was the one who was sick instead.
It occurred to me how much I liked Heinrich.
âItâs because youâre not okay. If you keep doing that next to me, I wonât be able to sleep.â
âOkay.â
âIs it because itâs been a while and itâs awkward?â
The tip of his ear that was lying next to me was a little red.
Heinrich lay down, clutching the blanket with his large hands and closing his eyes.
âCute.â
I smiled and patted his back.
âHeinrich, youâve been very hard to take care of since you were little.â
ââŠâŠ.â
The handsome face lying face to face with me quietly opened his eyes.
Now that I looked at it, the color of his eyes seems darker than before.
It became stronger and more profound.
It was still shining beautifully and arrogantly.
âYou liked me like that.â
âRight.â
I graciously admitted it.
âI liked taking care of you, Heinrich.â
ââŠâŠ.â
âWhen you are happy, Iâll feel happy for no reason.â
Such was the existence of the âfavoriteâ.
He didnât know.
Still, wouldnât my efforts for Heinrichâs happiness be quite successful?
âThatâs why I loved how you became so wealthy, Professor of Magic Tools, and even a Grand Duke.â
âWhat? Pfft.â
âReally.â
How pitiful you were in the original work I know.
I narrowed my eyes and said,
ââŠHonestly, I raised you very well.â
âThatâs right, Sister.â
Heinrichâs expression mirrored mine.
We looked at each other and laughed like children for a moment. Like a long time ago.
Heinrich whispered, in case I was really sleeping.
âSister, sing the lullaby.â
âHey, didnât you say youâve grown up?â
ââŠI really wanted to hear it. Every time it rained, I kept thinking of it all night long.â
ââŠâŠ.â
âWhen I couldnât sleep, I tried to fall asleep while thinking of Sisterâs voice.â
I felt a little sorry for him, and said as I brushed his soft silver hair.
âIâll sing it for you.â
I was still weak to Heinrich.
The lullaby of the dawn resounded softly.
Tock, tock.
With a hand that gently pats the shoulder in a certain rhythm.
The sound of rain and all the noises in the world were buried in that song and disappeared.
There was only stark peace in the room.
Soon, the singing voice subsided and the hand that touched Heinrich stopped.
Perfect silence filled the room.
ââŠâŠ.â
Heinrichâs long eyelashes were heard quietly at that moment.
He stroked Annetteâs cheek with a long finger.
She was sleeping soundly.
âYou donât know.â
âHow much I missed your face.â
âIf I wake up after meeting you hundreds of times, thousands of times in my dreamsâŠâ
âThat cold reality without you.â
âThat has been my nightmare all this time, Annette.â
âSister, come onâŠ?â
ââŠâŠ.â
Annette was silent, as if in a deep sleep.
He felt a constant exhalation of breath.
It was thrilling to know that this was real, that she was really there in front of his nose.
His dark eyes, as if swallowing the deep dawn, grew deeper and denser while capturing her image.
Heinrich groaned lowly, as if holding back his urge, and closed his eyes.
The moonlight shone sinfully on his beautiful face.
Ah.
He loved this moment so much that he wanted to remain like this.
âIâd be happy to die like that.â
When he opened his eyes again, they were eyes stained with obsession and madness.
ââŠâŠ.â
Heinrich engraved each part of her face into his retinas.
ââŠYou donât know anything.â
âYouâve already been punished and sent to hell, Annette.â
âI will never let you go for the rest of my life.â
The savage eyes gleamed happily.
Without a doubt, she gently put the pitiful and endearing him into her bed.
âSister, donât be so naive.â
He whispered in her ear.
âIâŠâ
His voice deepened like the devilâs.
âWhat do you think Iâm going to do?â
âââââ±ââ°ââââ
The same night.
Sislinâs aide, Owin, was watching the rain outside the window.
Rain was pouring down on only one area.
It was an artificially created dark cloud.
âItâs obvious whose work this is.â
There was only one person in this world who could make something like that.
âHeinrich Hyacinth.
Still, Sislin had already instructed him to follow Heinrichâs path.
âHow the hell did he expect that?â
His master, Sislin, already knew that Heinrich would arrive at Bayonaire.
Although he had been by his side for a very long time, there were many times when he still had no idea how far Sislin expected and knew.
âAnyway, report.â
Owin stepped away from the window and walked into the old mansion.
He wanted to choose a more comfortable and luxurious mansion, but he didnât want Sislin to stand out.
Tok tok. Owin knocked.
âCome in.â
Only after permission had been granted from the inside did Owin enter.
Sislin was lying on the bed.
He seemed to be sweating quite a bit.
âHe must be suffering again.â
Thanks to the Crevasse, he obtained the most powerful abilities, but the side effects were severe.
If he takes medicine, he would become confused, and if he doesnât take it, his senses would run so high that it would be difficult to get dressed.
Tonight seemed to be a painful night without any medication.
Sadly, he was used to it now.
âSay it.â
His master, who was lying face down with his huge and wide back exposed, gave an order without raising his head.
With each painful breath, the fine muscles and bones that were tightly attached along the deep vertebral line vibrated slightly.
âWhen will that madness disappear?
âI should report it quickly and go.â
Owin lowered his head, bowed politely to his master, and opened his mouth.
âAs I said before, Grand Duke Heinrich has arrived at Bayonaire today.â
âYou did say.â
âShall I just report it till here?â
After a slight pause, Sislin asked again.
In a deep, cracked voice.
âWhere is he now?â
âT-That isâŠâ
As if sensing hesitation, Sislin raised his sweaty face and looked at him.
Blood-red eyes that were sharply forged.
Owin carefully spit out the truth.
âTonight⊠It seems that he is staying âinâ Annetteâs house.â
At that moment, Owin saw it clearly. The way his masterâs eyes turned slightly.