Episode 15

As soon as the words were spoken, a knight who had been conversing seriously nearby approached Sir Jered.

“Commander, I have a report that you need to hear immediately.”

“A report? Is it urgent?”

“Yes. Just now, from the capital…”

The knight hesitated and glanced at both As and me.

Sensing that this was not something outsiders should hear, I quickly spoke up.

“Sir Jered, please feel free to attend to your duties. As and I can manage our meal on our own.”

“But…”

Sir Jered furrowed his brow in concern.

Shaking my head, I spoke again.

“I wouldn’t want to burden someone as busy as yourself. Besides, As mentioned that he knows a good place to eat nearby. Thank you for your concern.”

I drew the line firmly.

Sir Jered hesitated, seeming like he wanted to say something, then sighed and nodded.

“…Understood. If you need any assistance, please don’t hesitate to ask.”

“Thank you, Sir Jered. We’ll take our leave now.”

After bidding Sir Jered farewell, As and I left the scene promptly.

I could feel a lingering gaze from behind, as if Sir Jered regretted not being able to help us further.

“He seems like a really good person, don’t you think? Sir Jered, I mean,” I said to As once the feeling of his gaze had almost faded.

As paused for a moment, then slowly smiled.

“Do you think so?”

“Yeah. He even offered to personally show us a famous restaurant nearby, even though he’s busy.”

Some might call that meddlesome, but to someone as unlucky and directionally challenged as I am, it felt like the touch of an angel.

Besides, today was the first time I’d ever met Sir Jered.

“To be so kind to a complete stranger, he really is a good person.”

“…Maybe it’s for the best.”

“Hm?”

“It’s nothing.”

As shook his head with a bright smile.

I tilted my head in curiosity but decided not to dwell on it.

The most important thing right now was getting As something to eat.

* * *

By the time we returned home after the meal, it was nearly noon.

Between writing the report to send to the emperor and managing the household chores, the day had flown by without me realizing it.

“It’s already this late…”

Exhausted, I collapsed onto the bed.

Little Quiels began gathering around me one by one.

“Time really flies by so quickly.”

I couldn’t believe I was already twenty-five.

Absentmindedly, I petted the Quiels nuzzling against my cheeks, lamenting the relentless passage of time.

Before I knew it, I had dozed off.

Knock, knock.

In the middle of my peaceful sleep, a sudden sound woke me halfway.

‘What is that? A dream…?’

I thought absentmindedly without even opening my eyes.

Was I confusing dream and reality? Was the sound I heard real, or was I still dreaming?

Though my eyes remained closed, my mind raced with questions.

Just as I was slowly drifting back into sleep, there it was again.

Knock, knock.

This time the sound was clearer than before, and I realized it was coming from the real world.

I opened my eyes and yawned widely.

“Is it As…?”

I asked, wiping the tears from my eyes from the yawn.

For a moment, there was no response, but then the door slowly creaked open.

“…Ainra.”

It was, as expected, As standing in the doorway.

Bathed in the dim moonlight, As stood clutching a pillow tightly in his arms, looking both vulnerable and forlorn.

He hesitated, taking a few steps into the room before stopping just inside the door.

“As, what’s wrong? Are you feeling sick?”

This was the first time As had come to me at night with a pillow, so I looked at him with wide, curious eyes.

As, half-hidden behind the pillow, hesitated for a moment, then spoke softly while avoiding my gaze.

“…I had a nightmare.”

“A nightmare?”

I tilted my head in confusion, murmuring the words.

Suddenly, memories of the first night As arrived here flashed through my mind.

‘No, no… Go away….’

‘Please… please don’t come! Don’t look at me!’

His face twisted in anguish, drenched in cold sweat.

The way his small arms desperately covered his face, as though trying to ward off some terrifying vision.

Tears had streamed down his cheeks, soaking them completely.

‘Was it all because of a nightmare back then?’

What kind of nightmare could it have been to torment a child of barely ten years old like that?

My face hardened instinctively, and my grip on the blanket tightened.

As spoke again, his voice slow and tentative.

“I was scared… but I thought it would be okay if I could see you, Ainra… so…”

His mumbled words were so disjointed and uncertain that it made my heart ache.

Swallowing a sigh of sympathy, I opened my mouth to speak.

“Shall I help you fall asleep then?”

As flinched and looked up at me with wide eyes.

“…Help me fall asleep?”

“You said the nightmare was scary, right? I’ll stay by your side and wake you if you start having another nightmare.”

“…You won’t be upset if you help me sleep?”

His small hands clutched the pillow so tightly that his knuckles turned white as he hesitated for a long time before asking.

Hearing his familiar line, I hardened my expression and answered firmly.

“I told you, didn’t I? I’ll never be upset with you.”

There was no response from As.

The moonlight poured through the window, casting a slow shadow across the room.

The air hung heavy with silence, as though even a single breath would disturb it.

Just as I was considering whether to speak again, I heard a soft, quiet voice.

“…You’re the one who offered to help me sleep, Ainra.”

“Of course, I said I would, didn’t I?”

“Then, it’s no use if you regret it later.”

“Why would I regret it?”

I frowned.

If anything, I’d regret leaving a scared child to deal with nightmares alone!

‘Did someone regret it and hurt him before?’

As that thought crossed my mind, I quickly shook it off.

It didn’t matter anyway. I wouldn’t regret this!

“Come here, As.”

I smiled and reached out a hand. Slowly, As approached and slipped under the blanket.

The blanket was big, and he wriggled around for a while before poking his head out to look at me.

His translucent, garnet-like red eyes gleamed softly in the moonlight.

For a moment, I was lost, staring at those eyes, feeling as if I might be mesmerized, before snapping back to my senses.

Laughing it off, I brushed away the odd feeling and gently patted As on the chest.

“Goodnight, As.”

At my soft words, As slowly lowered his eyelids.

The moonlight reflected off his long lashes, casting a faint glow.

He blinked a couple of times before looking up at me again.

His eyes curved gently as he whispered.

“…Goodnight, Ainra.”

* * *

The sound of steady breathing filled the room.

Confirming that Ainra was deeply asleep, Akes quietly got out of bed.

There was no way he could sleep, not with Ainra lying right beside him.

His heart pounded so wildly that it felt overwhelming for his small body to bear.

Akes carefully slipped out of bed and knelt beside Ainra.

The moonlight spilled in through the window, casting a pale glow over her sleeping face.

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Akes slowly reached out and lightly brushed Ainra’s hair with his fingers.

The chestnut-colored hair he had missed so much slipped through his small fingers.

The face he had longed to see so dearly lay peacefully asleep, right beside him.

The person he had so desperately wished to stay by his side was now sleeping quietly next to him.

It filled him with a sense of joy so intense that it nearly overwhelmed him—

“…”

A child’s body, however, was weak when it came to handling emotions.

Frowning slightly, Akes caught his breath and brought a strand of Ainra’s hair to his lips, whispering softly.

“…You’re the one who reached out to me first.”

“…”

“You said you wouldn’t regret it, didn’t you? Isn’t that right?”

His ruby-colored eyes, shadowed in the darkness, curved faintly.

“It’s okay if you don’t like me. Just… even if I cross a line with you…”

“…”

“As long as you don’t hate me.”

His low, soft voice echoed quietly in the still air.

No answer came from the one who couldn’t hear him.