Chapter 19. After the Interrogation

At the question, Ain quickly looked away, a guilty expression on his face.

Serenia, following his gaze, continued speaking.

“Your running speed, your movements, even your arm strength… It’s not just a result of casual training, is it?”

“Eh? I appreciate your compliments, but it’s really nothing that impressive.”

Ain awkwardly changed the subject, clearly flustered, and Serenia narrowed her eyes as she responded.

“You think you can just brush this off? I may not know much, but I’m good at reading bodies.”

With that, she took a slow, deliberate look at his exposed upper body.

It was a body covered in toned muscles, without an ounce of fat—flexible, agile, like a sleek predator from the cat family.

This kind of physique could only be achieved through rigorous training.

“Just looking at your back, I can tell you’re not a normal host.”

Ain’s shoulder flinched at her words.

Serenia, still eyeing him with narrowed eyes, muttered almost to herself.

“You’re not a spy from the Arzentum Kingdom, are you?”

As she imagined him using his looks to seduce clients and extract information, she laughed at the absurdity of her own thoughts.

“…Cough.”

Her laughter stopped abruptly when she heard an awkward cough.

Serenia’s expression froze.

“Cough. Ah, I mean, cough, cough. That’s just… a tickle…”

Ain, his face flushed from holding back the cough, scrambled for an excuse. Serenia, surprised, raised her voice.

“No way! Why would you suddenly cough like that? This is too suspicious!”

“It’s just a coincidence… cough.”

“I don’t think so!”

“Cough. Cough.”

Serenia grabbed his collar and shook him, barely holding back her urge to continue, then shouted at him.

“Come on, tell me the truth! Are you really a spy?!”

“No, cough, I’m not!”

“Liars!”

“I’m really not…”

“Then what are you? Why do you have a body more trained than most operatives?!”

Ain, unable to answer her difficult question, nervously rolled his eyes.

And then,

“Ah, I’m suddenly so sleepy…”

Using his legendary acting skills, which were praised as once-in-a-lifetime talent, Ain pretended to fall asleep.

Seeing through his clear intentions, Serenia was left dumbfounded and gaping.

Meanwhile, he began breathing steadily, like a sleeping angel, still wearing his colored glasses, clearly pretending to sleep.

But despite the awkward situation, his expression and gestures were those of someone truly asleep, causing Serenia to briefly become confused.

She considered shaking him awake, but the bruises on his body, which had become more pronounced and redder over time, made her hesitate to touch him.

Not knowing what else to do, she stood by, helplessly pacing and then, after a long pause, sighed and slumped her shoulders.

“…Ugh. What does it matter? Finding out his identity won’t change anything. It’s better not to stir things up and get entangled in something weird.”

She mumbled to herself while swapping out the now lukewarm ice pack with a fresh one.

She continued to care for him, her gaze flicking over Ain, unsure if he was truly pretending to sleep or had actually drifted off.

By the time she was changing the ice pack for the eighth time, Serenia sat down on the wooden floor beside the bed and gave her stiff legs a light shake.

Maybe it was because she’d been running around since three in the morning, or perhaps it was the rare use of her muscles.

Or maybe it was just her body finally relaxing after all the tension, but she felt a general weariness throughout her body.

In the warm, quiet, and peaceful room, with no one to talk to, she found herself sitting still, gradually becoming drowsy.

‘…I wonder if sleep, like yawning, is contagious.’

As she thought this, her eyelids slowly began to close.

Before she knew it, Serenia had fallen asleep.

Ain, who had been fidgeting with the ice pack on his back for some time, noticed the sudden stillness in her movements and subtly cracked open his eyes to survey the room.

When he saw Serenia sitting next to the bed, having fallen asleep, he slowly opened his eyes completely.

‘…There’s a limit to how defenseless you can be.’

Ain clicked his tongue inwardly and silently raised his head.

Serenia was sound asleep, using the pillow as a cushion.

Propping his chin on one hand, he lay on his stomach, staring at her.

After a while, she shifted in her sleep.

“…Mmm.”

Her long, dark hair got tangled slightly as she turned, covering half of her pale face.

It seemed the hair was bothering her a little, as her peaceful expression twisted into a slight frown.

Seeing this, Ain hesitated for a moment, then slowly reached out with his other hand.

Even with his gloves on, he skillfully smoothed her disheveled hair.

He paused for a moment, then gently patted her head.

When she didn’t react, his hand lingered a bit more boldly.

His gloved hand lightly caressed her left cheek.

The faint scar that had crossed it not long ago still lingered as a faint trace.

He carefully stroked the scar, which would likely vanish soon, for quite a while.

“Ugh…”

She seemed to be disturbed by the touch, as she frowned slightly and murmured in her sleep.

Startled, Ain quickly pulled his hand away and pretended to be asleep again.

After a while, she shifted again and mumbled as she lifted her head.

“Ah. I must have dozed off.”

Clearing her throat awkwardly, she quickly got up and grabbed the ice pack.

She hurried out of the sitting room, carrying the lukewarm ice pack, and threw the melted water out the door.

She crouched by the steps, filled the empty pouch with fresh snow, and grumbled to herself.

“Why are you messing with me like that?”

Her ears and neck were bright red, as if they had been burned.

* * *

Later that Morning.

Perhaps it was from handling the cold snow.

Serenia soon regained her composure.

With a face as if nothing had happened, she stood up and began to climb the front steps.

“Excuse me, but are you Serenia Barishart, the Count’s daughter?”

The voice from behind startled her, and she quickly turned around.

There stood a man wearing a feathered beret and a short cloak that reached his waist.

He had a friendly smile on his face—he was a royal messenger.

Serenia, startled, took an involuntary step back.

When the royal messenger was sent to deliver a message, there could only be one reason she thought of.

A royal decree about the punishment for ruining the Founding Day banquet and fleeing.

‘Title revocation? Or maybe execution? Immediate judgment? Or even complete destruction of the family?!’

In that brief moment, her mind flashed through the royal dungeons to the afterlife. She swallowed hard and scanned her surroundings.

Ready to flee at any moment, she nervously replied to the messenger.

“I am Serenia Barishart, but… why are you here…?”

Despite her nervousness, the messenger looked at her curiously, still smiling.

“I have a document to deliver.”

He handed her an envelope made of stiff, high-quality paper.

While Serenia took the envelope, flipping it over to try to guess what it contained, the messenger bowed shortly and said,

“Then I’ll take my leave.”

He crossed the small yard, mounted the horse he had tethered outside, and disappeared toward the royal palace.

Watching him leave, Serenia let out a small sigh of relief.

“…Looks like it’s not an immediate judgment or destruction.”

Opening the front door, she stepped inside and, with an unwilling expression, tore open the envelope.

Inside was a single sheet of paper.

As she pulled it out, she froze, standing still in the doorway, her eyes widening.

“This…?!”

“A proposal letter.”

The words she couldn’t bring herself to say were echoed from behind, and Serenia screamed in shock, almost fainting.

“Ah! What’s going on?!”

However, Ain, unfazed, leaned over her shoulder to glance at the letter and continued.

“It’s an official proposal, authorized by His Majesty the King.”