Episode 18

Before Russelin could finish her provoking words, Aydin seized her wrist roughly.

“Ugh! A-Aydin!”

“Stay still.”

Despite Russelin’s short gasp of pain, Aydin pushed her against the wall.

Holding her down physically was no easier to endure than the emotional shackles he’d placed on her.

Trapping Russelin under his shadow, Aydin growled.

“I waited quietly, and now you say things you never dared before.”

“…You.”

“The priestess belongs to the protector. Naturally, that means you’re mine.”

“What… are you saying?”

“The priestess of Ragnar exists solely for the protector.”

It was a line he had often forced upon Russelin.

Once, she would have simply nodded along.

“…Don’t delude yourself, Aydin.”

“What?”

This time, she didn’t want to comply.

Whether it was a fleeting defiance or something more…

“Just as there are two priestesses you claim to possess…”

Russelin paused, looking directly at Aydin with slow but unwavering eyes.

“…I, too, have more than one protector to choose from.”

“You… do you even understand what you’re saying!”

Russelin didn’t answer Aydin’s outburst.

He took her silence as he wanted, gritting his teeth in frustration.

As his grip tightened on her shoulder, Russelin frowned reflexively.

But even then, Aydin, unable to control his fury, pressed her further.

“Why do you provoke me?”

“What do you mean…”

“If you waited quietly, I’d treat you well. I’d accept even a half-baked priestess like you! So why?”

“…Because that’s not what I wanted.”

What I wanted…

Even the hazy words floating in her mind faded and scattered.
What did I truly desire from Aydin?

What had I been hoping for from him…

Russelin sighed shortly and, as if to show him, shook off the hand holding her shoulder.

As Aydin looked at her with rare surprise, Russelin let her body relax as if drained of energy.

“Haa… What was it that I wanted from you?”

“Russelin, you…”

“What was it, exactly?”

Why couldn’t I let you go? Russelin murmured with self-mockery.
In the momentary silence that followed, her voice grew firm.

“Fine, now answer me.”

“…”

“If you won’t answer…”

Freeing herself from his grip, Russelin lightly pushed against his chest.

“I won’t accept this proposal.”

At her resolute declaration, Aydin looked more shocked than ever, as if he hadn’t expected her to refuse.

The sight left her feeling even more unsettled.

She hadn’t expected an answer from Aydin, nor had she ever intended to accept his forced proposal.

Turning to distance herself, Russelin attempted to step away.

“Stop.”

Thud!
Aydin gripped her shoulders tightly and forced her back against the wall.

“Hah… I was hoping it wouldn’t come to this.”

“Aydin…?”

Russelin looked at him with a startled expression, but he only stepped back from her.

Confused, Russelin had no idea what was happening until, from behind Aydin, the knights of Bert emerged in a swarm.

“Wh-what is this!”

“I told you, I won’t tolerate your reckless wandering anymore.”

Through the wall of knights surrounding her, Celia, in a white dress, walked forward gracefully.

Standing beside Aydin, Celia’s lips curled into a mercilessly cruel smile.

“There, see? Didn’t I say she’d act insolently?”

“…Indeed. You were right.”

“Of course. You let her run too freely, and now she’s forgotten her place. Isn’t that right, Aydin?”

…So, all this time, the silence had only been the calm before the storm.

As a blue glow began to rise beneath Russelin, her face turned ghostly pale.

“It would be wise to stop any futile resistance. There’s no way a mere half-baked priestess can withstand my divine power.”
“What… are you saying!”

Russelin looked urgently toward Aydin, but he merely watched her coldly.

“You never had a choice to begin with. Whether you accept the proposal or not, you belong to me.”

“Aydin!”

Despite Russelin’s desperate plea, Aydin didn’t move.

As Celia’s power seeped into her, Russelin felt her strength drain from her fragile body.

“Ugh…”

When Russelin finally collapsed onto the floor, Aydin stepped forward, as if he had been waiting, and lifted her into his arms.
Against her will, Russelin’s head fell against his shoulder.

“Don’t expect to leave until you give me an answer to the proposal.”

* * *

Under the cover of night, Russelin was taken by Aydin to an unfamiliar room, without even knowing where she was.

‘You won’t be able to stall long. By tomorrow, I expect the answer I want.’

Leaving her with that ominous threat, Aydin departed.

The way he left so easily suggested he had some hidden sanctuary of his own nearby.

‘I expected this, but to think he would go as far as to use Celia’s power…’

Russelin gave a bitter smile, accepting the situation.

She had feigned surprise in front of Aydin and Celia, but she had foreseen even this extreme outcome.

Perhaps it was a relief that her preparations hadn’t been in vain.

“Ugh…”

Russelin winced as a throbbing pain struck her head.

But a sound near her quickly drew her attention.

“Sniff, sniff…”

“Don’t cry, Lilly. Remember, we promised not to be surprised, no matter what happens, right?”

“B-but, my lady… What are we going to do…”

Unlike Russelin, who took things relatively calmly, Lilly had been crying her heart out since earlier.

Watching her, Russelin gave a bitter smile and held her hand tightly.

“But is it really okay for you to be here, Lilly?”

“Sniff… The duke himself sent me. But I didn’t know it would come to this…!”

“…Aydin sent you?”

She didn’t need to guess his intention.

He was likely using Lilly as leverage to threaten her.

Russelin bit her lip in frustration, then glanced briefly at the window.

A strip of blue fabric tied to the white window frame kept drawing her gaze.

Turning back to Lilly, Russelin spoke carefully.

“Lilly, I have a favor to ask.”

“Anything, my lady! I, Lilly, am ready for anything!”

“It’s not quite that serious…”

Russelin whispered something to Lilly, who tilted her head in confusion.

“All I have to do is retrieve that from your room…?”

“Yes. There’s no one else I can ask but you.”

“Understood! I’ll go get it right away!”

With a determined spirit stronger than Russelin’s, Lilly left the room.

With her gone, the spacious room grew even quieter.

Russelin looked around with a cold expression, then let out a soft sigh.
Her expression hardened subtly.

“…It’s dangerous.”

Tap-tap-tap.

The quiet of the night was broken by a faint sound.

Then, with a creak, an unfamiliar yet unmistakable voice pierced the silence.

The cold night air seeped in through the wide-open window, rustling the blue fabric tied there.

“Isn’t it a little late for worrying?”

The man holding the strip of cloth, carrying Russelin’s complicated feelings, sat precariously on the windowsill, staring at her.

His violet eyes, tinged with mockery, gleamed sharply, like a predator observing its prey.

Furthermore, he radiated a red aura, as if daring her to react.

“…Leonard Estere.”

Russelin deliberately spoke his full name, as if challenging him.
Though she appeared calm on the surface, there was a hint of urgency that she couldn’t quite hide.

Leonard, after glancing around the room briefly, frowned slightly.
Following his gaze, Russelin let out a soft exclamation.

“A marriage proposal, I see… So, after rejecting the Bert name once, you’ve changed your mind?”

“…”

“Well? Answer me. I’m far too intrigued to step back now.”

Leonard fixed his sharp gaze on Russelin, stepping closer.
The red aura surrounding him surged powerfully, as if it would devour her whole.

Russelin took a deep breath to steady herself, then extended her pale hand toward him defiantly.

“Thank you for accepting my invitation, Grand Duke Leonard Estere.”

“…”

“I am Russelin Lavrenti.”

It was a simple greeting, yet it conveyed everything Russelin intended.

As she anticipated, Leonard looked quite satisfied.

Then he grasped her small hand and placed a kiss on her white knuckles.

The hot, soft sensation on her cool hand felt strangely surreal.

“How could I refuse such an enticing invitation?”

At his intentional words, Russelin glanced down at the envelope he held.

Just as she felt something peculiar, Leonard lifted her hand slightly, drawing her gaze back to him.

“Truly, you’re impossible to ignore.”

So guarded like a fierce little cat at times, and then so utterly clueless at others.

Even the dilemma of how to respond to her added to his amusement.

After a moment’s consideration, Leonard decided to give Russelin exactly what she wanted.

“You seem to have a lot of questions, so shall we begin slowly?”

Releasing her hand, Leonard tossed a black envelope onto the table.

It was familiar, yet Russelin found herself frozen.

“This is…”

“The invitation you sent me. Why?”

There was an odd hint of amusement in Leonard’s voice.

The letter he handed her was pristine.

“Of course, I haven’t read it yet.”

“…!”

The Lavrenti family seal was still intact on the sealed letter.
Russelin’s mind raced, thrown into disarray.

Seizing the momentary distraction, Leonard stepped closer.

“Whatever the letter may say…”

Russelin was fully ensnared by Leonard’s gaze.

He bent down to meet her eye level, his voice deepening.

“…we would have met again.”

Russelin Lavrenti.

Leonard’s voice was smooth, yet his eyes, locked unshakably on her, held a threat that seemed as though he might consume her whole.