The Arrow of Destiny Cuts Through the Night

#63

“What do you mean?”

Kain replied with a slightly dumbfounded expression. He couldn’t determine exactly which part of what he had just said had offended Jersian.

“…”

There was a deep furrow between Jersian’s brows. He stared at Kain, who looked confused, for a moment before finally speaking.

“… Are you saying it’s not something I should care about, so I should stop caring?”

Kain’s eyes widened slightly at the quiet voice. Stop caring? That wasn’t at all what Kain had meant. But Jersian muttered that sentence several times before sending a sharp glare.

“Why shouldn’t I care? Are you saying I shouldn’t worry about you either?”

“That’s not what I meant-“

Kain immediately shook his head, but Jersian didn’t seem to hear.

Ha, he laughed shortly and twisted his lips upward.

“Even if our engagement ceremony was rushed, an engagement is still an engagement. I’m your fiancé.”

“…”

Kain wanted to say, “But you know better than anyone that this engagement is just a facade,” but he felt that adding anything would only make Jersian angrier. Kain chose to keep his mouth shut and slowly rode his horse right next to Jersian.

“As an engaged couple, I should be able to worry about you at least.”

“…”

“Don’t you think?”

Ah, this is a question. Kain belatedly nodded weakly in agreement. There was nothing wrong with what Jersian had said.

“… You’re right. But-“

“But? If you’re going to say something useless like it’s better if you get hurt, you’d better not say it.”

“…”

If that’s the case, there’s nothing more to say. As Kain rode silently, Jersian spoke again.

“You’ve been inadvertently caught up in my affairs because of the engagement… but I don’t want you to be too deeply involved in this.”

Jersian’s eyes, sitting atop the black horse, were still facing forward. Even though he must have felt Kain’s gaze, he didn’t turn his eyes.

“My connection with the Arkner Empire has more cruel and dark corners than you think. I don’t know all the details yet, but I clearly feel that I’m missing something. I have no intention of giving up until I find out the truth. Even if it means I have to shed blood to get it.”

Kain glanced at Jersian’s face as he poured out his true feelings. His resolute gaze was sharp enough to cut through anything right in front of him. Perhaps because he was in his growth phase, he had clearly been growing taller and bigger every day since Kain first met him, but in Kain’s eyes, Jersian was still a very young man.

Come to think of it, this was the first time Kain had heard Jersian describe himself as a “fiancé.” They both knew well enough that their current relationship was false. That’s why Jersian had never shown a truly “fiancé-like” attitude until now. Of course, Kain Starchis didn’t expect that either. That resolution hadn’t changed since they decided to wait until Jersian became an adult and received his mark.

“But this is entirely my problem to solve. I don’t want to drag you into this.”

Jersian’s eyes, seen from the side, seemed to be shining sharply. Kain, who had been silent for a long time, opened his mouth.

“What if I want that?”

Jersian’s brow immediately furrowed.

“What exactly do you want, Kain Starchis? If you want me as your destined partner, shouldn’t you just wait quietly by my side as you’ve been doing until now? Do you really want to be used by me more actively than you are now?”

Jersian, who had been steadfastly looking forward until now, suddenly turned his head towards Kain.

“Don’t you understand? Just being engaged to me is already enough of a loss for you. You heard what Marchioness Elmerila said. What the Marchioness wants is beyond the Fiokhim Mountains. If she can start interactions with that place, she’ll do it even if it means killing you. Compared to that, all you want is your destined partner, right? It would be better to focus on just that. Rather than trying to help with someone else’s business that has nothing to do with you.”

As the sentence progressed, Jersian’s emotions seemed to intensify. The area around the mark reacted hotly to Jersian’s emotions. A vague fear from Jersian flowed through it.

This must be the emotion Jersian had felt throughout his short but entire life. Although he looked solid on the outside, as if not even a needle could penetrate, Kain already knew Jersian’s weak points.

Kain slightly closed his eyes and then opened them as he spoke.

“It’s not a matter that has nothing to do with me, Jersian. I’ve already made a vow to you from the beginning.”

I don’t want Jersian to fear because of this stubbornness. But I hope that my firmness will be of help to Jersian. Kain wanted to be a partner that Jersian could trust and lean on.

“That I would protect you forever.”

“…”

“So, I only ask that you respect my pride and allow me to keep my vow. Please use me without hesitation. Jersian, you have the right to do so.”

He conveyed his sincerity as much as possible to reach him. It seemed that Jersian had been thinking internally about gains and losses, even though Kain was not in a position to consider such things.

That thought is unnecessary. Just by being allowed to come down to the human world, find his destined partner, and stay by Jersian’s side, Kain’s task was almost accomplished.

“…”

Jersian’s eyes, meeting Kain’s, were shaking. He seemed to have forgotten to adjust his grip on the reins in his hand. For a long time, Jersian was silent.

Clop, clop. The sound of two horses’ hooves resonated on the ground.

Kain’s vision was filled with the image of Jersian riding a splendid black horse against the backdrop of blue sky and green prairie.

Whoosh- As a light breeze blew, his jet-black hair swayed, revealing and hiding a glimpse of his round, white forehead. Along with his thin lips tightly closed, as if in deep thought.

It was quite a while before those lips of Jersian opened.

“…it is. Well, so…”

The voice was so small that an ordinary human would have missed it. But fortunately, Kain’s ears were not ordinary.

Having heard Jersian’s muttering clearly, a smile leaked from the corners of Kain’s mouth. Hahah, the short laugh seemed to have reached Jersian. He looked at the laughing Kain with a grumpy gaze, as if asking why he was laughing.

…I tried to laugh inaudibly to avoid this. Ahem, Kain cleared his throat shortly, putting his fist to his mouth. A moment later, when he lowered his hand that had come up to his mouth, Kain’s face became as coldly expressionless as always.

“…”

Seemingly displeased with the reaction, Jersian looked Kain up and down, then abruptly turned his head forward.

However, there was one thing Jersian overlooked. When he turned his gaze forward, Kain, sitting beside him, had a better view of the tips of his ears. Staring at Jersian’s reddened ear tips, Kain recalled in his mind the answer he had just heard.

‘What a foolish answer. Well, it’s just like you…’

He had heard it as clearly as if it had been spoken right next to his ear. Kain slowly pulled up his thin lips. No matter how many times he replayed it, it was quite a cute sentence. Especially coming from Jersian’s mouth.

Jersian, who was riding his horse ahead of Kain, seemed to have read this mood and muttered in a grumpy tone, “…Will you stop laughing?”

Neigh-!

Unlike when following the carrier pigeon, the return journey took much less time. Jersian and Kain entered the Gerold mansion and lightly jumped off their horse saddles. A servant waiting for them at the main gate took the reins to lead the two horses into the stable.

Behind the main gate of the Gerold family, several carriages were lined up waiting. The carriages bore the emblem of the merchant guild that handles requests when ordering goods from outside. There were six of them stopped, suggesting it was more than usual orders.

Moreover, the first-floor lobby visible from the main gate was extremely noisy. It was so crowded with people carrying goods, people organizing them, and cousins of the family that there was hardly any room to step.

“What’s all this commotion about?”

When Jersian gestured towards that direction and asked, the servant leading the horses nodded and explained,

“An invitation for a hunting competition just arrived from the imperial family.”

The servant’s face was filled with envy. The imperial hunting competition, which only the imperial family and nobles could attend, was always an object of admiration.

‘…So it has finally come.’

However, upon hearing this news, Jersian’s expression hardened, as if he had heard an unfavorable fortune.