The Tyrant Won’t Let Me Go

 

Everyone who was nearby turned to face Kashuel’s cries.

 

Some had shocked or expressionless faces.

 

Furthermore, it was annoying to see some of them smiling sweetly as if they were witnessing their daughter dating.

 

“No, what the hell are you talking about!”

 

“What have you just done?”

 

Kashuel pounded his chest and screamed.

 

“I– I haven’t thought of anything like that with you yet!”

 

“It’s the same for me…”

 

Ciel tried to rebut, but Kashuel didn’t seem to be listening.

 

‘He’s freaking out…’

 [Oh no! That’s too bad. Marrying that cute little devil.] 

The suffering of others was Caliberne’s happiness.

 

And my pain was the driving force of Caliberne’s life.

 

For Caliberne, this would have been an enjoyable scenario, like taking a sprite shower with your mouth open after eating a lot of sweet potatoes.

 [Well, I’m sorry. I prefer the Crown Prince.] 

‘Please shut up. If you don’t want to melt into the furnace.’

 

Why are you yelling at me? It’s no different from getting rid of the prince’s obsession and being decapitated in a war.

 

“I’m not yet… mentally ready to…”

 

Kashuel, who said so, was rolling his green eyes sideways.

 

However, why are his ears so red and his body so contorted?

 [Hey. This cute boy, it looks like he doesn’t hate you after all?] 

For a split second, I entertained the far-fetched notion that if I returned after handling this kind of crisis, I would hand Caliberne the sword and have the blacksmith hammer it into pieces.

 

Kashuel, in the midst of all this, has been battling for a long time, resisting voicing a lot of comments that start with

‘you dare!’,

which he would typically spew out.

 

My soul was torn as his eyes locked with mine, and he then started talking again.

 

“If that’s the case, there’s nothing I could do. I’m going to—”

 

That was then…

 

Without a chance to turn around, someone came right up to me.

 

At the same time, as a familiar scent wafted, I felt an unknown hand grabbing my right hand strongly.

 

“No, Kashuel. You don’t need to do that. You don’t have to be serious.”

 

Ciel turned her head to the side at the noticeably cold voice.

 

Cedric, whose eyes had sunk uncomfortably cold, was holding my hand.

 

“Because Ciel won’t marry you!”

 

His mouth was smiling, but his eyes were not.

 

Unlike his warm left hand from our clasped hands, his eyes looked very cold.

 

Those eyes were filled with warning and pressure.

 

“Uh…? Yo-your hand…”

 

Pointing to my hand and Cedric’s hand intertwined, Kashuel muttered blankly.

 

Cedric smiled as he looked at Kashuel.

 

“Kashuel, you didn’t think that you should get married just by holding hands, did you?”

 

At Cedric’s words, Kashuel’s pupils shook violently.

 

From the look on his face, he seemed to have believed without a single doubt what his mother had said.

 

“Uh…”

 

Cedric smiled and spoke softly, “You have to get married just by holding hands? There’s no way there’s such a thing. If you’re a kid, you might think so.”

 

But why do I feel the chill coming from somewhere?

 

‘For some reason, Cedric seems to be holding my hand a little harder than usual.’

 

Am I mistaken?

 

“Right, Ciel?”

 

“Yes?”

 

Suddenly I felt like a bomb came back to me.

 

Cedric, who was smiling next to me, seemed to put a weird pressure on me to say,

‘Yes,’

strangely.

 

“Oh, well, yes! Not everyone gets married just by holding hands.”

 

And I quickly added a few words to Cedric’s gaze, which seemed to be hoping for a stronger answer.

 

“Well, I don’t know. Shouldn’t we hold hands like two thousand times before getting married…?”

 

“Look, Kashuel, I think Aunt was playing tricks on you.”

 

“Huh…”

 

Kashuel, who was staring blankly at us, scratched his cheek awkwardly.

 

Then he answered in a very weak voice,  “I guess so…”

 

“It’s okay, maybe you didn’t know.”

 

However, Cedric, who comforted the sad Kashuel, seemed strangely smiling.

 

“Oh, that’s right. Kashuel, we have a class, so we’ll go first.”

 

Cedric said as he took my hand and led me.

 

Somehow, it seemed that Cedric was particularly emphasizing the word

‘class’

, but he didn’t necessarily have to say it.

 

“See you later.”

 

Then, until we arrived for the class, Cedric wouldn’t let go of my hand.

 

 

⚔️

 

“Thank you, Your Grace.”

 

“Well done, Ciel.”

 

It wasn’t until sunset that the class was finished.

 

Still, there was still some time until dinner, so I decided to take a breather and send Cedric back to the Palace.

 

“You know, Ciel.”

 

Holding his hand, Cedric opened his mouth with his red eyes half closed.

 

“Yes, Your Grace, Cedric.”

 

“Do you like blondes?”

 

Ciel nodded at his random question, but Cedric seemed to be asking sincerely.

 

“Uh… I don’t?”

 

“You really don’t like blond hair?”

 

“If I have to say, I like silver hair.”

 

Then Caliberne mumbled and snorted. 

 [What a narcissist, you’re such a narcissist?] 

Needless to say,

‘Shut up’,

I quietly ignored Caliberne’s opinion.

 

Cedric seemed to be trying to pretend that he didn’t care, even though he had a rather distant look on his face.

 

“Oh, really…?”

 

“Yes, it’s true.”

 

Despite my answer, Cedric still looked suspiciously as if he did not believe me.

 

“But why did you hold Kashuel’s hand earlier?”

 

Now I understand why Cedric was saying that.

 

“You promised me last time. You’d only hold my hand.”

 

“Well, to be honest, I didn’t…”

 

Ciel lowered the corners of her mouth and protested to Cedric, who had a sullen expression on his face.

 

“He was swinging the sword, but the angle wasn’t right, so I’m trying to adjust it…”

 

Anyway, that blonde devil. He’s never a help in my life.

 

‘Every time Kashuel reacts like this, I feel like Cedric became obsessed…’

 

I don’t think he showed this when we first met and worked together.

 

After hearing my response, Cedric gave me a blank visage before laughing jokingly.

 

“Yeah, I knew it. You did it because Marquis Farbe asked you to help him, right?”

 

“No, since when have you been listening?”

 

Are you saying that you’ve been hiding from the beginning?

 

Cedric’s obsession, which was only seen in the original, seemed to be rising, and a cold sweat ran down my back.

 

‘Please, tell me I’m just mistaken…’

 

Ciel prayed so earnestly.

 

“But, why are you asking if you already know? And I really don’t really like blond hair.”

 

“Just, I’m afraid you would really marry Kashuel.”

 

Cedric said, reaching out to the red sky…

 

“Just in case.”

 “…” 

For some reason, his expression staring up at the sky looked so uncomfortably different from before that I couldn’t argue anymore.

 

‘Was that why you were so anxious?’

 

I thought, glancing at his bright red eyes under the sunset.

 

“By the way, Ciel.”

 

“Yes.”

 

Cedric turned his gaze that was fixed on the sky to me.

 

And he whispered as he wrapped his left hand around my hand.

 

“I have a question.”

 

Cedric’s shiny black hair fluttered softly in the breeze.

 

The eyes that were revealed through his scattered hair resembled rubies and sparkles.

 

It was a small hand, but I could feel the warmth from his hand, which was bigger than mine.

 

“You also said that earlier.”

 

I could see his white teeth through his lips.

 

“If we hold hands about two thousand times, we would get married.”

 

Oops…?

 

We need to hold hands a lot, I just wanted to make that clear to Kashuel earlier.

 

I wanted to avoid a situation like that, so I just picked a large number and said it.

 

“We hold hands every day, don’t we?”

 

“Uh, Your Highness, what I mean…”

 

“There are 365 days a year.”

 

Cedric raised the corners of his mouth and said with a smile.

 

“If we calculate it, two thousand days are five years and about 6 months.”

 

‘Such a scary child…’

 

I couldn’t believe you’re calculating it in your head.

 

For a moment, my eyes went blurry.

 

Cedric remarked, his eyes blazing furiously, without taking notice of how I had hardened in many ways.

 

“So we’re getting married in five years and a half?”