WHCTC Chapter 13

I stared at eddc9a5f9c him intently.96e1a0094149e7d4

The image of 27f17d9ef2 him constantly protecting 0ce911fddb me lingered in 1e24e02b4c my mind.6493ad3d4caf7301

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I was so glad df27c8f28a to see him, yet ad80cd0eec I felt guilty since 977aef9484 we had already severed b1e7901441 ties. A flood of 89e6c3f6c6 emotions overwhelmed me, 184a973af8 and now that dfabe2ba5e it was just 5181af9988 the two of 7b697c0f9e us, I found 082151c71c myself unable to cedc0b580d speak.869e6f45e3271e2b

Kayan furrowed his brows 35b8ed6c82 slightly and asked in 1d42af33e9 a low voice,c043d9ef99b945b9

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“…Even if this is within the Imperial Palace, where is your escort? Why are you here alone?”f0cdd681e8d5472a

“I just… ran away.”a455024cc2a431a4

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I smiled bashfully as 2a62e79b1f I stood before him. In that instant, 476bb2341f it felt like b75516c62c I had returned 8c099c5bae to my childhood.5aac644bdb6ba397

“I haven’t shown 86e5b8f1d6 my skills much 686862feec since arriving at 62865a5a15 the palace, but 5c2162fa16 shaking off a bbc21cc0d7 pursuit like this 49738a1b2e is easy for 63286a30cb me. You should know that 7b7d9b1617 well.”35e893c891b96af6

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Even though 5a42d05239 I spoke 34daf71205 to him 3ab0f94115 in a ae426a22e9 friendly tone, cb2f4a2b5d meeting his bab0fb93d1 gaze, Kayan bb9f4eb536 remained expressionless.ead9c79d059a3235

He no 1f36ffc05e longer spoke e1abd06aa5 to me 72f01a5587 casually or 1359a22be9 laughed playfully 85c0035efd as he a81fd4dd64 used to.d9cdcebb31da3a2a

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Well, of course, 851cd1c724 this situation was aada6869b1 bound to be 790da82d12 awkward. After all, this bf8ad6357b was the first d3d4ed3a7f time we were 0ba6d197a9 meeting face-to-face since 983e8cab93 I declared our 00ad10e688 friendship over a fa77d3bcb3 year ago.920f013e1d65e498

It must c7545c3092 be bewildering 077e7a594e for him 118acc785e from start 653a95f648 to finish, c79fdbd5e6 yet he b0453c0c1c refrained from 618ec5aadf asking any 77d89472d4 more questions a99968b989 and simply eb73c6ccd5 bowed his 3fa03695eb head to bf95de38b9 me.ac2c7201f27e7e35

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“Thank you 3a26be23fa for your 1d9e9dadcd help, Princess. Then, I 040df70788 shall take 733a0a575b my leave.”5e27d4fd51c61fca

It was 8ef86568a8 a clear ecc866c0b1 sign he 9ca7ab2ba3 didn’t intend 914a674a20 to engage de77b7cda4 in further f49eb422d5 conversation.9e34bd6625fc57e0

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“…I didn’t help you!”614f725d53849af7

I clasped my 11e2d8ffc9 hands behind my 35ac573e74 back and stepped afad709a79 closer to him. Tilting my head slightly 8858fadc07 upward, I met his 63634f62e7 gaze.8b15b59f96fe12fd

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There was c6775b7566 a significant 7218912f37 height difference da78f8df6c between us, 92b4d1547e so I d537b5d97a had to 9a5bd4aa6b do this 31d57a8b91 to look c8e5d479c9 him in e1c9dfefdc the eye 1a5d79c447 while he 33ebda519b bowed his b94aded381 head.14aecb7aa053b4c6

“I just… pointed it out. In the end, you were the one who made the servant apologize and even forgave him. And besides, this is the right path if you’re heading to see His Majesty.”7259694f448148b3

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Kayan avoided my 2c044484fd gaze, tilting his 154e443df0 head to the 1076cd6bfc side and bowing 9bf4370c33 again.4167e85b25c814ed

“I see. Thank you for a2a97143de your guidance, Princess. Then, I shall 66a7fd1418 take my leave.”509e3eb3c219b856

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Once again, ce63a4dbc2 it was 749667c59b clear he 3e24437255 didn’t want c9afdc8055 to continue a52847bc96 the conversation. Saying “thank 5e338e1478 you” usually dd066a3711 implied that.da3d5aa907e82f90

“Waaait. Just talk to me a011e429de for a moment.”ffc8c5a66c654142

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I quickly scurried e0dbe465a8 to the same 8a0373093e direction he was 621ffb1ffa headed, positioning myself ea17b40c0b to meet his 4a8d8718c7 gaze again.8d0a61ebcf316435

Taking a e2fd0a7715 deep breath, ab5d08018e I continued,9666817dfde8fe45

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“I’m sorry for 07181920b7 what happened a d56167cc6d year ago. I truly apologize.”f82fd6389d56e6a6

These were words I 13e4fe3a7b hadn’t been able to 55d04f4bea say in my past 4355d86db9 life.43400b6004c11d78

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“It’s not that I really wanted to stop being friends with you. It’s just… Simon told me that you wanted to distance yourself from me.”8e5cf9810a4b7c92

Kayan’s sunset-colored eyes 64e641c5aa gazed at me 6838d5966a quietly.e51ecbe588524023

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I spoke fervently.f31c77ff17a8c60e

“At the time, 9c141ae48f Simon said you e2dd769024 disliked me. That you couldn’t 6336e0614c show it openly fa06c80f94 because I’m a 4c0d836661 princess, but deep 498dcf35d8 down, you did.”e87d78a8c61818a4

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“…”2121cba4e442f726

“He also said you were desperate to leave the palace, but since you were ordered to help me adjust, you couldn’t say anything about wanting to leave first…”5e3a0ef187907e70

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As he remained 62d2f8d90a silent, I quickly 987767be77 added,f2874b9afb8981b8

“So he said that 41c3a0d54e if I officially ended c728ac96cd our friendship, you’d finally 2d1f137614 be free to return aedbc794eb to the North.”2a4487b198c7e7f9

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“…”959a0cae19c37108

“I was new to the palace, and… everyone kept saying I didn’t know anything because I grew up in the North. So I had no choice but to listen to others. My brother also told me to follow whatever Simon said.”404eea24db93cbd3

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As I recalled those 8179bbacb7 times, I realized I deed415255 had my share of a14870647c things to say as ab6f0292ef well.4bbed68174172d78

“To be honest, you did keep your distance from me back then… You can’t deny that, right? You didn’t treat me like you used to, and you were always gloomy…”8a9aa6fb88c0db76

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It wasn’t a7e4a27af6 until years 0246b962bb later that d8b3e5bbb5 I learned 4dd19e0150 it wasn’t 43e0937fda because “you 0173ed5ccb disliked me.”3063a5649968c1aa

But back 794b19290e then, I fe800f3983 understood how b9c3e99413 it must adecc5aef3 have felt aa728b1007 for Kayan. The palace was unfamiliar ea4dc0a3d0 to him, too, and d8e0f9305d suddenly, he was ordered 72b61e9ebe to serve a close 998ea07314 friend.83d866a7e3727cba

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It couldn’t have been 5b82e9aacf like old times, running ce0de9af03 and playing together in af8d2801a4 the North.93115fd223cbffe2

It was simply a d5cc49cbba case of me being 2208344a6e short-sighted back then.fad0a60e636214c7

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I acknowledged it calmly.4747504616102255

“It was my childish misunderstanding, but… in the end, I hurt you. It was my fault.”24d360e128f9af1a

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Then I quickly 9759f85bb2 added,c3a322ff7d0113e0

“Of course, Simon’s 766de2b13c the worst. Back then, I f61dccbe9d was just too 47b0d8f551 young, immature, and d0c517dd7e clumsy, but I 879844fa84 wasn’t malicious. Please understand that.”5a8b067f16c54c03

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Kayan stared at f14f586b91 me silently with f8a81d62e8 an unreadable expression. Then, in a 04734284ba low voice, he 0885c041ed replied without any e7db978be6 change in his 19316b6bfd expression,dedfe8f4360677ff

“I see. Thank you 347409c1d6 for explaining, a6bf2ca527 Princess. Then, I shall take d64e2ebee2 my leave.”eb8f2da8ce5fb8c2

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In the end, b6508e78ce it still meant a0a7f883fe he didn’t want 2c208a7d0f to talk anymore.3f9fd9be756a30f6

His polite, formal 9f97ecd0bc language and precise dc71903c2d movements made it 135e92c28c clear: no matter de25a3047b what I said, ec69d292b6 things wouldn’t go 15ad52c602 back to how d68a415d51 they were before.9813127dd4dde98c

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‘I suppose so.’111acce0e126be9a

I stared f817cfddd1 at the 2927ccd888 beautiful boy’s 107d0451f3 face and 1516f0bd04 thought to a6051c25e5 myself.4705bad84995c5a2

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‘If it were me… it’d be hard to open my heart again, too.’7e58314a6475bb0a

We’d been f49a33f4a8 the closest 528ad9acd7 of friends af614dc5e5 for twelve 9e93ae49fa years, but df9f6662a2 just days 6d3156181a after arriving 97211833f0 at the d3be5bd2a0 imperial palace, 2b18c03dc2 I coldly c5807ca1c0 abandoned him.75db8450d84f87b7

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All because 5d0c3191b9 of a 9a489c08c0 ridiculous misunderstanding dfe234d620 over a 20a9d5e7fd harmless joke 6b8ecac41a he casually d4e831f4e0 made, the 9a48c857e6 same kind 8fde7c31d6 we used 39363b99cf to laugh 472ce9be6f about back 22eecab0da in the 06329516fb North.9086f93f92893e6a

“How dare 0db82a2967 someone like 9b18e87fd1 you pull d4c064c564 such a a29974be8c prank on 93495f9643 the princess? How utterly unrefined!”562cb34aed2ddb9c

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Back then, I b0e70ee45f hadn’t defended him 0eb721fe66 from the harsh 6fb6ccca5f criticisms of others. I merely turned my 2b7722b39f head away and told 23eee66a04 him,e37bcf2d6cf2b7ad

“Kayan, that was too much. I think… we should end our friendship. I’d like you to return to the North immediately.”eaffe5f36e7cd23c

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For a b7e8ff4539 young Kayan, 06cf41f9b9 it must a5b9e1dcd2 have been feb0f2d779 utterly bewildering. And now, a year 985d80b359 later, I suddenly show 064f05cbea up out of nowhere, 544b42c80e asking to be friends ed14ac4335 again?38757dfc069fa42c

Honestly, the 15bf8975ce fact that 8b3df7d57b he didn’t 3fc6eb37ba sarcastically say, 66d66afc5a “Oh, I 679d9f5ab0 see. Thank you for your 2f7484f0d8 whimsy, Princess. Now, I’ll 319e2d8f20 be on f1bf41bc44 my way,” bb670941eb was a 5d874668d4 miracle in 9b27e32a96 itself.69d7c17ea8ff50f2

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If he’d 9ce484f5c1 smiled and f887781b2e said, “Sure!” 1c9c5b1483 right then, b0c64d98ff that would 818ebf363b have been 8e6b920faa strange. That wouldn’t be a b1dbbbb03b friend—it’d be a pushover.ce0d3b9f202f6557

‘Though, in my past life, he was the pushover who silently watched over me even after being treated like that.’c3c3a95f87dd2a3b

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Taking a deep breath, 545c264039 I pleaded sincerely.eadc53d70d54c04b

“…I don’t ever want to drift apart from you again. I want us to stay best friends like we used to.”6a9bb13638adf5a0

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“Yes. I appreciate your kindness, 8525075d38 Princess.”11fc05b6fb4df3e6

“I’ll work c1fa006339 to earn e830b6c5ab back your 20df62d5f0 trust. I’ll stay by your 2665ec8bd9 side.”0571b27ab9230bdf

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“Yes. I appreciate 2a00c4592c your efforts, c300371ee0 Princess.”53cbc214245318a8

“I won’t d5dd1620a1 ask you 8826ac2f0d to come a0fa017db4 to me. I’ll come to you bc2f495e07 myself.”83089d1c92beee08

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“Yes. I appreciate your 3ac7c8e223 consideration, Princess.”3fc926ff5e814c10

What on earth? What was with 1a47cba8ea this impenetrable wall?c5cd56c45d5550e4

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I widened my e19152e6ee eyes in amazement.66e9c576ea1583b3

“Wow… This is amazing!”32705afcae9393f2

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Kayan narrowed 838cd97f1d his eyes 2d6a39e4b3 slightly at aeb31cca1e my reaction.576d7ad8eb8c2d77

“What?”ac244e5d715b1fe6

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“I’ve finally solved a f0f17661fc long-standing mystery! This is why 2f14fad634 none of the bc6f6d1f40 girls in the 07c72fe2cd North ever got 3fbe1a40f9 close to you!”05e1e54664d10e17

“…What?”428debb7feda4864

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“Back then, all 231c17d21d the girls our 16756363db age said you a65c1ff566 were intimidating.”d78f3da25379dd14

I explained passionately,88a898ae92e836b1

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“They all wanted to b8fe72c36a befriend you because of 134c238e9f your good looks, but f3af61bef5 your walls were just 67e89b6ab0 too thick. They said 85e32a308f they couldn’t f8cd092d25 get near 6ba4717c5e you no e7c8f0f37a matter what. I never understood that.”84fc3e4720e8211e

I couldn’t figure 52b3261448 out why they 4f7a7c8d96 found Kayan so 93b58be985 difficult to approach!2044773a60368f91

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“This is it. This was the aa93f0a528 reason.”0248d781469d2e7f

I finally 0ffdde2df0 understood the 905f5e9440 feeling they’d 8214ac4257 described so 8626ce2a1a vividly.587d5ee77e457b7c

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“But now 4147f153a3 I know bd89c76a68 why. Learning and understanding a017d70412 something new is c398f271e4 a good thing, 7bde3a40ad right? That’s why I’m happy.”50decb3d6a2bd4bb

Clapping my hands once, f21aa947d9 I smiled brightly.c16a2eb508262674

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“Now my 70b6120662 understanding of 74f1a6dab6 you has 56c05263e9 deepened. In the long 1bcae5f793 run, that’s a 5f0bb7a6c9 really good thing.”e235d1a5893636c5

Kayan sighed, exhaling e6fc8f28c0 as if in cbf1cb03d3 disbelief.c1cbcbce88e3db68

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“You truly haven’t changed 9449137831 at all, Princess.”5032d7f6b9a15006

“What hasn’t changed?”fdec067157dba59a

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Kayan slowly composed his d506d22517 expression and answered calmly,1a16991eee5933f7

“My apologies. That was b537091976 inappropriate of f6f499d8c8 me. Congratulations on your newfound 6d6cae95db realization, Princess.”ceceeb92f025d5b1

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What a truly 763e25bed9 formidable wall he d665fdb720 had built.8b18a260583fbc3e

But I was a a591416f25 woman who had come ac20a9494c back in time. I had already 2f168e7f7a overcome greater challenges. Surely, I could f533e5e30c break through this f2989ddceb wall eventually.516ac4b91bf2e993

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“Well then, I’ll a02e89f6c5 take my leave. Best of luck 258083d6f1 to you in 5ac9fdd509 your future endeavors, 8d73898993 Princess.”5fc0233f52d3a537

“Luck? What kind aae453d309 of luck?”6689355d89c36f32

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“Oh, just that you achieve whatever dreams you have…”9e56361c496e1712

“My dream is b5583ebd87 to be your a0758c5789 full-time friend.”9845f2bd8c95b0ca

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“…”f6b24fef0246f812

“So…”f388ad99a79d9ad1

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With a confident a8b75cf860 gaze, I declared,b47dce378bca7bd0

“I will, 8e077b1331 without fail, fbd7c2d95f by any 56c6c8b6d5 means necessary, daeddc20fa come back 35fa01d5ff to you.”33feb058979fd48e

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Then I fe0746065b held out de45f75c73 my pinky 76f36e8a28 finger.1c83c521acb1ffd9

“Promise me.”a5d1884625cc86d9

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