The princess, who was looking out the window, turned her head. White blonde hair shone white in the sun.
âYou came?â
He couldnât see her face well because of the light, but he could tell she was looking straight at him.
âIâm sorry to call you all of a sudden. But I have something to tell you⌠can you listen if you donât mind?â
âOf course, you are my master.â
Aran tilted her head. She seemed to be trying to gauge out whether his reply was sarcastic or not. Enoch burst into laughter. The time he spent wondering if she had had a change of heart was a waste.
However, as it had been a long time since heâd seen her and since she did something to be thanked for today, he decided to be kind to her.
âI was so rude the other day. I apologize.â
âHuh? Oh, no. Iâm sorry. I wasnât thinking right.â Aran glided toward Enoch. Her long hair gave off a subtle fragrance. She murmured, looking down at the floor. âIâve been thinking about it.â
âWhat did you think about?â
âHow to keep you close without making you uncomfortable.â
It was quite a commendable thought.
âWhat conclusions did you get?â
âIâm ashamed, but I didnât get a conclusion. I think itâs just me whom youâre uncomfortable with.â
Enoch slightly corrected the idea that the princess was stupid. Now that she could see through it, he was quite lost.
âSo what are you going to do?â
Aran clenched her little fist.
âIâm sorry. I just decided to keep you by my side. I⌠I⌠canât be without you.â
âHaaa.â
He didnât expect her to come up with a plausible solution in the first place, but it was amazing to hear such a brazen answer.
âI know you donât like me. You donât have to pretend to like me. Just let me protect you.â
Aran looked up at Enoch with wide eyes. He never had much interest in the young princessâs appearance, but her green eyes, which were close to light green, certainly added a strange air to her.
âHow do you intend to protect me?â Enoch asked, hiding his ridicule.
âI wonât let anyone bother you. Iâm going to⌠Iâll make you happy.â
It was an annoyingly naive answer.
Enoch gave up his mind to be nice. She needed to face up to the reality a little. The relationship between the two had long since been in ruins, and he decided to teach this stupid woman that the princess and her servant, who was also the son of a traitor, could never be together.
âHappiness. Can I feel it? With the daughter of the man who killed my parents?â
Aranâs eyes grew bigger. He said it in such a cold voice that it made what he said the last time he visited sound romantic. Enoch was always friendly when he was with his fiancĂŠ, so she never imagined he would be the one to speak so acrimoniously.
What made her heart ache more than that, however, was that all his words were true. Enoch smiled looking up at the hardened face of Aran.
âYou donât have to feel guilty. If my parentsâ treason was successful, the one who lost his head would have been the emperor and empress. I wouldnât be able to guarantee your life either. Of course, I wouldnât have skipped meals to save you. It wouldnât have worked in the first place.â
â.â
Aran couldnât speak, but her lips were quivering. Her fine eyebrows and lovely lips were distorted and she was about to shed tears.
âI will have nothing to say even if I was sold as a slave.â
Enoch, looking at her face brimming with tears, thought that he kept saying hurtful things whenever he was with the princess.
It was strange. There were plenty of sc*mbags around him who were more deserving of this treatment. But he didnât know why he felt this way only for the princess. He wanted to say more hurtful and painful things to her still.