n

n

nRosenia thought he might kiss her, but he just smiled back at her. Then he pressed a very polite kiss on her forehead and slowly stepped back.

nThough he did that, his emerald eyes couldn’t hide the unmistakable longing in them.

nHer face turned red and she tried to escape from his gaze. She could easily see that he was being frank as well as considerate towards her.

nEven though he was restraining himself, he still seemed like a time bomb. She knew she might not be able to get out of this room until tomorrow morning if she provoked him a little bit more.

n“Excuse me for a moment.”

n“…!”

nLlewellyn’s big hands grabbed her shoulders and lifted her up. He didn’t even feel it absurd that he lifted her so easily. Llewellyn simply put her on his lap and smiled softly.

nRosenia noticed that the smile was just a trap to lure her. Sure enough, Llewellyn then gently stroked her cheek and asked in a soothing voice,

n“Rose, may I ask you how you came up with that thought?”

nTo be exact, he was interrogating.

n

n

nHe obviously didn’t know the details, but like a ghost, he caught on fast that something was bothering her. Either way, he was a man with a scary keen intuition.

nWhen she unconsciously tried to face away, he grabbed her by the chin and made her look at him.

nShe blinked for a moment and then stared into the sharp green eyes that seemed capable of seeing through her soul.

nLlewellyn repeated the question with a sweet smile, which was quite in contrast with his sharp eyes.

n“How did you come up with that thought?”

n“… that, that’s because …”

nShe couldn’t find the right words so she just kept quiet. Whatever she said, she knew it had to sound plausible, but she couldn’t think of anything because she was sitting too close to Llewellyn; his warmth that could be felt through his summer clothes; his steady heartbeats; his heated breaths that would tickle her now and then. Everything was so close that she felt suffocated.

nBut the hardest thing to bear were his clear and upright eyes. His eyes were so clear that she could easily discern all the emotions contained in them. She could see how persistent he was from the look he gave.

n‘At this rate, it seems I’ll have to spout some nonsense.’

nShe gulped nervously and tried to stay calm. She could neither tell him about the original story of the novel nor about the heroine. If she did, he might think that she was out of her mind.

nIt wouldn’t go well for her if she was seen as a crazy person, considering the situation where a war between the Hills and Rasaines could break out any moment. She quickly employed her mind to conjure up a plausible excuse and then opened her mouth.

n“It’s just my delusion.”

n“Your delusion?”

n“Yes, actually I …”

nRosenia couldn’t say anything for a moment. She felt guilty and uncomfortable for having to tell such a lie. But this was the most appropriate excuse that she could come up with at the moment.

n“I don’t trust you completely. That is why I wondered what it might be like if on the off chance you had met someone else, someone better than me. What it would be like…?”

n“…”

nLlewellyn’s arm, which was wrapped around her waist, suddenly tightened.

nRosenia trembled unknowingly at the feeling of being tightly locked in. Llewellyn smiled affectionately as he looked at her, but his eyes weren’t smiling at all.

nLlewellyn stroked her cheek slowly and murmured in a low voice.

n“What would make you…”

n“…”

n“What would make you have complete faith in me?”

nRosenia mumbled back while avoiding his gaze.

n“Trust is not something that can be won all of a sudden. It takes time.”

n“I see, the time we’ve spent together has not been enough.”

n

n“

n“Of course … that’s right. It wasn’t long enough.”

nSurely, it may not be true if seen from Llewellyn’s perspective, who had a crush on her for a long time. But for Rosenia, everything had happened too suddenly.

n‘Now that I think about it, it isn’t a complete lie.’

nMaybe it was because of the fact that Sierra might show up someday and steal him, she never really put her complete trust in him. Overall, it was too short of a time for trust to sprout between them.

n“I’d like to ask you to trust me…”

nBefore she realized it, Llewellyn held her hand tightly and stared at her persistently, whispering in a heavy voice.

n“I get you. Trust is something that’s hard to come about in an instant. So I will do my best from now on to gain your trust.”

n“…”

n“To do that, I’ll have to spend more time with you. I’ll make sure this engagement happens.”

nIt meant that no matter what he would never break up with her.

nOf course, Rosenia didn’t want to break up with him either, but the fervency of the feelings they shared for the other was different. So to speak, his were much…

n‘… darker.’

nAnd too deep that it seemed there was no bottom to it.

n‘If I plunge into it, what would happen to me?’

n“Just promise me one thing, Rose.”

n“…”

n“Unless my heart changes forever, you will never leave my side.”

nIt was a promise that couldn’t be given rashly. So, rather than verbally say something, she only slightly nodded her head.

nRosenia tried to get up, but Llewellyn held her tightly and didn’t let her go.

nHis heartbeats sounded erratic. It was as if he was under great anxiety.

nLlewellyn pleaded in a trembling voice.

n“Wait…”

n“…”

n“Please stay like this…”

nRosenia sighed quietly. Llewellyn whimpered like a wounded beast and burrowed himself into her arms.

nShe had no choice but to hug him tightly for a while.

n* * *

nThe rumor spread at a frightening rate. In just under a few hours, Rosenia had become a celebrity in the Ducal Castle.

n“That person over there…”

n“… it’s the first time I’ve seen her.”

n“Is it true that the Duke fell in love with her at first sight?”

n“From what I’ve heard…”

nAfter Llewellyn was once again taken away by his aide, the maids had rushed into the room like squirrels and suggested that she take a walk … which led her to end up here, in the garden.

nRosenia was curious about Rasiane Duchy’s garden and also wanted to refresh her mood.

n‘Llewellyn is making me worry over him to death.’

nPerhaps that was why she couldn’t hear the whispers of the passersby. The maids kept on glancing at her, checking to see whether she got offended.

n‘Rather, shall I look for Sierra first?’

nWouldn’t everything be clear if Sierra was found and brought before Llewellyn?

nOr should she help her get revenge without anyone knowing …? Then Llewellyn and Sierra would never get involved like in the original story.

n‘But that wouldn’t be favorable to Llewellyn.’

nThe only way for him to become a true divine power user was by using Sierra Oscar’s ability.

n‘I don’t want to lose Llewellyn to Sierra, but I also don’t want to take away his chance at becoming a full-fledged divine power user.’

nCould this be called love?

n‘Oh, I don’t know.’

nIt wasn’t a problem whose answer would come out; no matter how much she vexed over it. The most important person, Sierra, hadn’t made her appearance yet.

n‘She’s bound to appear one day. I’ll find her before then, not right now. For now, let’s calm down.’

nRosenia passed through the long corridor of the castle’s main building and reached the entrance of the garden which was full of lilacs.

nJust when she stepped lightly on the well-maintained green grass, she suddenly felt a presence nearby.

nTurning towards that direction, she saw a fairly familiar face.

nLong gray hair tied together, gray eyes which looked somewhat tired, and a lonely face. However, just as those lifeless eyes met hers, they came alive and twinkled.

nSeeing his candid reaction, Rosenia somehow felt like bursting into laughter. She had roughly guessed his identity when she had noticed him.

nHenry Lovick.

nThe present Margrave Lovick’s younger brother and Llewellyn’s mentor.

nAlso her mother,Ilunia Hill’s half-brother.

nRosenia smiled while she curtsied a bow and greeted him graciously.

n“Master Lovick..”

nHe was Llewellyn’s mentor, so she thought it would be better to call him that for now.

nFrom what she had heard, he seemed to be called “Sage” and was also addressed as “Lord Lovick”, but seeing how he stayed at the Rasiane Duchy for so long instead of going back to the Lovick family, it didn’t seem he would like to be addressed as such.

nPerhaps it was right of her to have addressed the way she did, Henry Lovick widened his eyes and chuckled.

nThe way he laughed resembled how an adult would act when they looked at a child they cherished. That was how he was looking at her. Rosenia had only met him twice, but he was very kind to her and thought of her as his niece.

nHe hesitated a little and asked her indirectly.

n“If you don’t mind, can I … call you by your name’Rosenia’?”

n“Yes, and please speak comfortably.”

nShe replied happily with a smile.

nEven though he was the younger brother of Margrave Lovick and the mentor to the Duke of Rasiane, as a titleless nobleman, he was in a position much lower than her, even though he was her uncle.

n

n

nOf course, this applied to Rosenia as well, considering how she too didn’t have a title. But the Hill family had always been a step above in the social rung, even among nobles.

nIt was not for no reason that people called her the “Princess of the Mage Tower” or “Little Master of the Mage Tower.”

n‘Wouldn’t it be too much to keep calling uncle like this?’

nOf course, it would be a different story if he didn’t think of her as his niece… but it didn’t seem so from his expression. It seemed he thought of her as his family and acknowledged her as his niece.

nSo Rosenia decided to treat him as an uncle too.

n‘But I don’t think he’s the type to ask me to call him uncle first.’

nIt may have taken his all to call her by her given name, so wouldn’t it be better if she was the one who approached him first?

nRosenia thought about it for a moment and pulled the smile that she often used to coax Adrian.

n“Then can I call you uncle, too?”

nAt this, Henry Lovick’s eyes turned as big as saucers. His lips moved slightly and there were strong emotions on his face.

n