WTSP - 57

I instantly held my breath at Serdel’s words.

Was I the subject of the weighing in his dream? If so... a corner of my heart kept aching and tickling as if it were being torn apart.

It felt like someone was taking the fluttering tip of a feather to a heart that had been butchered.

Serdel lightly furrowed his brow as if he didn’t want to recall it. He seemed calm, but perhaps not entirely.

The ends of his finely arched eyebrows drew a diagonal line.

“You know it was a dream. It’s something that won’t happen in reality anymore.”

“At that time, I confused dream and reality. Why did you appear? In the dream, you were...”

He didn’t elaborate on what happened after that. There was no need to make him relive his nightmare. I carefully touched Serdel’s cheek and whispered quietly.

How wonderful would it be if I could erase all the remnants of the past that tormented him. If that was impossible, I wanted to at least stay by his side.

“Please sleep now, Your Majesty. I’ll be here.”

“......Do not leave my side. That is an order.”

“I’ll be here even without an order, so don’t worry. Besides, this is my room, isn’t it?”

I threw in a light joke to change the atmosphere. Serdel didn’t laugh out loud, but he seemed more relaxed.

He slowly closed his eyes. His pupils, holding the deepness of green, were hidden by his eyelids.

Not long after, Serdel fell asleep, breathing rhythmically. I stared at his face endlessly.

‘This is the first time I’ve seen him sleeping. Was his impression always this soft?’

I carefully examined his handsome features and distinct facial structure. I had thought his face was only sharp and charismatic, but with his eyes closed, a surprisingly gentle side was revealed.

Not many people would have seen this side of him.

‘Why do I keep being so concerned...?’

The more time I spent with Serdel, the more new aspects I discovered about him.

Was it greedy of me to want to know everything about what he thought, what emotions he felt, and what kind of life he had lived? I wasn’t used to this feeling.

“......Haa.”

Just lying next to him, a languid warmth traveled through the air. Wishing for his remaining night to be peaceful, I took a deep breath.

The hooting of an owl echoed from beyond the window. I had a feeling it would take quite a long time for me to fall asleep.

________________________________________

“Your Highness! Are you all ready? You need to leave now. You might be late at this rate.”

“Yeah, I’m ready. Just a moment, Lena.”

Contrary to my thought that it would be difficult to fall asleep, I quickly fell asleep by Serdel’s side. And not long after, Serdel woke up with the chirping of a lark.

No attendant had come to wake him, yet he woke up so precisely. I had never expected him to wake up before sunrise.

Before five in the morning, Serdel said one word to me and left the Empress’s palace. It was a greeting I heard in my sleep-drenched daze.

‘I think I heard something, but what did he say...?’

After Serdel left for work, I sat on the edge of the bed for a long time. It was as if the ghost of someone who had died from not being able to sleep in their past life had possessed me; the sleepiness wouldn’t go away for a long time.

Even if he was the Emperor, did he really need to start his day at such an early hour? I inwardly clicked my tongue.

But more important than that was the fact that I had spent the night with him. Of course, it was just literally sleeping together, but I couldn’t believe what had happened last night.

‘Why does this feel so strange...? I can’t explain it in words.’

I had definitely slept soundly, but I didn’t know how I had slept through the night. Just then, I heard Lena’s urging voice from beyond the door. It was a voice that seemed frustrated because she couldn’t openly rush me.

I quickly draped a thin shawl over my shoulders and spoke to Pompo. Pompo, who had been rolling around on the bed, perked up its ears and looked at me.

“I’ll be back, Pompo. Be a good boy and wait.”

“Pom? Poom, phoo!”

“You want to go together again? Do you even know where I’m going?”

“Pom pom!”

“Where are we going?”

Pompo, who had been wagging its tail with a proud expression, burrowed into my hair as if to say, ‘So what?’ It looked like it would follow me by any means necessary, even if I said no.

At least, the Pompo I knew was a stubborn child as strong-willed as an ox. With a quick surrender, I muttered to myself.

“......I know you understand everything. You’re just quick-witted.”

A long sigh escaped my lips.

It felt like raising a four-month-old puppy that didn’t listen. Could it be the existence that best exploited the feeling of ‘it’s okay if it’s cute!’?

“You have to be quiet today too. Can you stay still?”

“Poom!”

“Honestly, you’re really good at answering.”

It was an attitude so brazen it made me shake my head. I let out a soft chuckle and left the Empress’s palace.

Was summer already approaching?

A warm breeze brushed against my cheek. It felt like humid weather would arrive in a few days.

“Haa, I’m not late, am I? I made it just in time.”

Thanks to my brisk pace, I was able to arrive on time for the appointment. A maid with straight black hair greeted Lena and me.

I could feel Pompo wriggling around in my hair. I should have just left it behind.

“Your Highness Ophelia, Her Majesty the Empress is waiting for you.”

The maid bowed her head politely to me. She was a familiar face, as I had encountered her often in the past few days. I nodded lightly instead of replying.

“Let her in.”

As the maid knocked three times, Brillin’s voice echoed from beyond the door. Lena smiled brightly at me as if to wish me well.

I let out an unnecessary breath and entered Brillin’s room, closing the door behind me.

The interior of her room had an excessively austere feel for the Empress’s bedroom. There were no ornate curtains or furniture, and the overall tone was close to monochrome.

Was it because she wasn’t from a noble background? It felt like a place devoid of any trace of human habitation or warmth.

Turning my head straight ahead, I felt a sensation as if my whole body had stiffened. Something was wrong.

“......?”

What on earth was going on?

The person standing before me was clearly not Brillin Carlot.

The other person had their back turned, but it was a fact I could know without seeing their face.

The physique and posture visible from behind were not those of a woman in the first place.

‘A man...?’

Deep confusion strongly pressed down on my whole body. Who was this person to be in the Empress’s bedroom?

I quickly looked around. Could it be a man Brillin had been spending time with?

The thought that I should immediately open this door and call the attendants and knights dominated my brain. But perhaps because I was too flustered, I moved my lips, but not even a sound came out.

“......Brillin?”

After hesitating, I spoke her name aloud as if talking to myself. I furrowed one brow to identify the stranger.

Then, the man slowly turned around to face me.

Dark purple hair that I seemed to have vaguely encountered in a dream sometime, a pure white shirt, and...

“Hello, Ophelia.”

The man, having turned his body completely towards me, opened his mouth with a gentle smile. His violet eyes, tinged like the petals of a violet, sparkled.

I narrowed my brow, wearing a confused expression.

‘What is this...?’

Flawless white skin, a firm upper body, and even handsome features.

The beautiful man, like a painting, had a relaxed expression as if he had known me for a long time. There wasn’t even a hint of surprise.

Was I dreaming right now?

No, the sensations in my whole body were too clear for that. The man in front of me was definitely the man who had appeared and disappeared like a mirage on the night I had a high fever and was severely ill.

I had an intuitive certainty.

“Just who......”

The man shrugged, fastening the buttons of his shirt from the very bottom. I didn’t even have the mental capacity to worry about Brillin’s sudden disappearance.

It was then.

Pompo, who had been perfectly blended into my hair, sprang into the air with a ‘pom!’ sound.

Instinctively, I reached out and embraced Pompo in my arms. I couldn’t reveal this child to someone I didn’t even know.

However, one thing I had overlooked was that Pompo was a surprisingly quick-witted spirit, like a loach. I raised my voice with a shocked expression.

“Pompo, please! Stay inside...!”

“Still a playful one, Pruina.”

“Pom! Phoom!”

Pompo rapidly wagged its fluffy tail from side to side, looking at the man. It was an attitude like a puppy welcoming a beloved person.

My brain seemed to have stopped thinking about what on earth was going on.

The man, his eyes curving into crescent moons, smiled at me. I didn’t feel even a trace of hostility. No, perhaps it was closer to goodwill.

I tried hard to hide my tension and asked the nameless man a question. The end of my voice trembled faintly.

“Who... are you?”