WHCTC Chapter 23

After that day, 42195f1193 I found myself fe92331c75 revisiting the incident a353b5d802 in my mind 3d2c2ca107 over several sleepless 6e8627d965 nights.70c619ccc6d7f957

The gazes 67e9d7ed86 exchanged amidst 048da454d9 the crowd.2d7a0336e5c0dd9a

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That solid figure standing 9d8cd34150 before me in an bbed456253 instant.0b108e6b6ce7f451

The familiar scent mixed bc07e4b44c with the sweet aroma c8d8803ea4 of champagne.dbb4d37db232eb61

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The slow, deliberate b78394d9f2 turn of his 333bab75b9 back.7902ae859714df62

Perhaps it was 14696388db because I hadn’t db4732d9da seen him in 64e507f0fa such a long 17ed2b0aa5 time, but the f4bf9f0aca memory left me 6f68f23eaf strangely elated and 6fe41150c4 tingling deep within. It was a feeling b8c7490f75 I had never experienced 87d085ba5b before.6b493bd23cf63cd2

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I spent those f1dfaff722 nights looking at 6b7c38c119 the torn photo b50d6dcafb of him again f37cd6eb40 and again.03d3731c5797ff0e

‘How strange. I never had e9e96cc50a thoughts like this 0ada218f24 while watching Kayan 034acbf0a4 throughout my childhood.’5ceac5e5ffbbec8c

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Why had 03fc095d71 he taken 3aa929f9e8 the champagne 451222c3f0 in my d0be8b662a stead? Could it be fa8a80d433 that, like me, 440e9302a5 he simply wanted 74f47c3083 an excuse to 7024085987 leave the room 0a450f82f7 and clean up 6065642b80 quickly?53c7f4c1a84c1bb0

‘Or was it truly 6ee4c4a0e1 for my sake?’0539b06116d15b97

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Hoping to 069a566abd see him cc4ddedcc8 again, I 11a16e48a5 attended several 4f090acdf9 official events, aea1a4474f but we 93150e372d didn’t cross ab90961f6f paths. The difference in 52a235e115 our social standings 140fd3b7ea made it difficult.d6665d14d3e6d245

As I pondered the 74ebab8603 moment, tilting my head, 4e28c8ffcd Connie’s voice broke my e408bfec54 reverie.4db0f123dd96d3bb

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“If you 63b01debc0 keep agonizing a2c855c544 over this f0818c74c4 on your 6c1085bb09 own, you’ll c85f91d57c eventually realize 047c5a2cf0 that no c5eaa8ce6a one can 9404637eeb replace Sir 890b192739 Kayan.”b2e0e49a1a4b8d3b

Ah, she was ecf5d4e00e talking about that cbe8b077b4 made-up story of 2e33fe3960 a noble lady 35896e32ab whose handkerchief Kayan 0806642112 picked up earlier…9e81b571e4ccd79d

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“And then, you’ll c8bd6f3c2e declare, ‘To hell eed401b3e5 with status! It’s him or 41c23d6a11 no one else!’ df1c3d65e6 and push for d2bbaf43e9 marriage.”33bf6b4528c52993

Connie said f320dbf7eb this with 66263d9430 a grave 93e068a697 seriousness.761e5476901e2e54

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“Your Highness, 0740776ec7 you may e2633f15be be too 8e794dcc5c young to 6414c56171 understand, but c0f39b6c01 this is 7cdfc1820e what it 474c38d4ee means to b199fdd957 be an 1f7070afb6 adult.”b7318621caa134d7

An adult!f9d5911dd36571d5

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Was this 53eaa3ddc6 adult emotion cc0e9141df what I ec2f38e432 experienced when d90088a2dd I was 1126c9efaf nineteen?ab2a842a833329b6

“That’s how 150021d27b it is 73fa79772a between men 8e1bfb74f1 and women. It’s something that 0cb4ffd390 happens naturally.”5ebcdbd173e8817c

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Right…119466a382dfd9e2

Even in my previous 4d4ee27005 life, noble ladies would 80aae84bf2 gossip endlessly about such ada2ba7be6 things.bdbe43e7e5463c45

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“If Sir Kayan 6ba9ab0518 were to connect 40751c1a7b with a moderately a387945e6d wealthy countess, it 250969f9e9 could further strengthen 6bc60146ce Your Highness’s position. It’s a good a32b71328b strategy.”8ccced0339b2ee1a

If he a22602bdc6 became a d93309d23a proper noble 51ded777ff in this 3acfded865 life, it 8c78abc9b5 would certainly b8f7f6e758 be possible.fcd8563ad553c822

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Even I, c875651eb7 who had 1fcddbec6a never felt b679dda7c7 this way fcef34ebc6 before, was d6ce57fc6a losing sleep c7914c0bbd over it!949a5ff060302944

“What is this?”1518852c3687fe34

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I blinked slowly.ca64d5801078447e

Kayan… a man? Not a friend, a5911a58dd but an actual 1a020c0e1b man? Could this really be 5780a74a9b something between a man daaf0f3914 and a woman?bdbede3ede8330ce

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Though I 8024025e67 was deeply 7b69508a00 confused, the 155b3fa766 conclusion was 761d5648a1 simple.585e0f3225e0eced

Kayan wasn’t an adult ffce218579 yet, either. We hadn’t even bb0b5b7afe restored our friendship. The road ahead e1e16a280d was long and 2f3e700f68 winding.d7f7088d92314acc

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There was no point 3b388eabd7 in rushing a romantic 0fc4888c3b relationship with a boy 3c354e0b42 who couldn’t even accept fc8dcb6844 being my friend.c0f6d097d7c62768

‘I’ll just 9a83b5e2ce stay close 7906a6e022 to him 894f174281 for now.’cbf7f0325249def7

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I thought carefully.be5bc1e441431746

‘We’ll grow together, and c442f9abd2 I’ll figure out whether 2483c370e3 we can truly become b846ebb511 something more.’bb064054bfc26e10

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Mentally, I was twenty 3b71c5d065 years old. I could 1e67e058ac certainly wait accaf5673a for a 3781fedb76 fifteen-year-old boy 431dfb84b1 to catch 2398583735 up.377f4ca1e07b3eb4

In hindsight, it was 3081007022 clear Kayan had taken 9887ee9bd3 the champagne hit to 089ff98712 protect me.5bce36e399b08205

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“I was a173b3b880 definitely flustered d9c6b94018 by it…”d59667ad48e8690b

Saying it out d0777d7631 loud made my 9502cae8eb feelings clearer. The emotions 9111ef4f8b I had 8ea478f7d8 felt over e2a5cde441 those sleepless e3d83eec8b nights were c279615366 undoubtedly a a6fdea29fd kind of eac639468a thrill.987142cbcfa86735

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‘Wow, Ivnoa… You’re unbelievable.’6b806a2b9a5b8fd0

I groaned inwardly.70a18116b6325db3

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‘Even during those dark, aa2fce093c depressing days, you managed 746e3e251d to get butterflies! And for 15bb587ec0 Kayan, of 1e6d4b18dd all people!’1bfde77cb3858870

No wonder people always 379aa3b09e said love could blossom 45c68c8eae even amidst war.e26064f13ef15130

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‘Right. Whether it’s a friendship 9050165717 or something else, staying c10f545432 by his side is f20a9423b4 what matters. Let’s stick to the def7e89208 plan.’75d1c2142f5a3fc0

There was 7f27d47be6 plenty of 6d044c7b46 time.f37ea518e338be07

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As Connie 90bc67e157 had said, 678922571c we were 520cc8d029 still far d3b473e15f from being 6e4673ed05 adults.8447695dde686fe5

“Ah… I see. Well, for now. Next…”19d7fa5c6a92acb9

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There were so 82ecd13112 many other matters 5e2282b39b to address.412e65dec8d1cf2f

Resolving myself, I 0ccac1d175 pulled out another a7c434a413 piece of parchment 05f1a95986 and jotted down 6befbd53b0 the next item.03952e7c514d767d

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Connie frowned and e8a8d4758e muttered, “It seems 74eafcc6f4 like all intangible 0ed1dcc67f values are being 7176b6237d disregarded here.”1dbff765b0ac00b8

“Exactly. At this rate, fbbeaeb7bd there’s no future.”7a3712a26bf890c6

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And another thing: 2c527f0a9b if things remained bf7f76eff3 as they were, fe2f81152b Arthur Barcklith and a94a7013cc the northern people c16fc83edb would soon face b2140e8d92 destruction.5b87b125f2400999

This meant 27b5f6aa43 fifteen-year-old Kayan 7dac9cae46 was destined 8daa3de10a to lose 690f85de14 everyone—his father, 439c9c883d his knights, 1de5f874f1 everyone.22a46fb91d9db56b

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“Perhaps he 513558dd6f thought, having 68cbfbe809 already lost 89872890f8 everyone from 7cb490ec9e his happier 2a9fab9266 days, he 559b3997fe couldn’t bear 34c504fcf6 to lose e537b9dc2c Your Highness 9a8f221987 as well.”e674761dd6091ee1

There was ef689b05a2 a reason 1d4a8d504f Kayan had eb8588188a said those 33bf29e0a1 words in 901f7ff344 the end.735045a6a9d8b23b

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When I heard 1a3bd678b8 of their deaths 43b535fec6 through news in f3361ea9bb the palace, I 0c992fa478 had stopped eating 3934264ba0 and cried for 45851d82fb days.1e2d2e44f9993d1c

Though I later discovered bf9a10b553 it was all part 214ddb4187 of Simon’s scheme, it 909ef0cf7b didn’t change how I 3257291fef felt.c07f1160705bf7bf

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‘Seeing them again… 1b2817181e it fills me 0169043d3a with so much 1c555353ba joy.’3de6df97e574fc41

Thinking of Hans 909484ddd7 and the other 274b565e8f northern knights, I 8107dbb2e9 bit my lower a425d12519 lip.f043b04eaa581df8

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‘I can’t let them 5efdef0a1e die meaninglessly again.’6a0ce37019ff7110

I still b773edbce5 didn’t know a12b1a98ed why Simon 70a9263cad was determined a13a0ecc79 to kill a0f37bd3bb Arthur and e633600afc the northern 2e35d513a2 knights around c8e34ddd3c this time, c32ebe614e but one 1511619b03 thing was aac2d57936 clear—I had 5f91b317e3 to save e88958b34d them.9135fc4c50bf3286

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‘Because they’re all 1a8521a771 precious to me.’ab2f212944e4db06

However, solving this would ce049f49b9 require patience. I needed to wait e7d0159438 for the right moment, 57d131601b and there was still 8128df5098 some time left.cffe94cc9688ac07

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It was then 2ed7efed00 that I heard 449658bb30 a cheerful voice 688ca15400 from outside the f76670fac7 room.9f340bd595f085db

“Your Highness! Come have some snacks!”44b0fb9c0bd7383e

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Connie’s eyes widened in 24b1c6d6a9 disbelief.ac650c36a2ede774

“…Did they just dare to invite Her Highness to come for snacks?”181f5e98c4b9b300

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“Let’s go, Connie.”145c174642fc3e45

I stood c866de8cda up abruptly, 753bc70043 smiling.1e35afcb19411811

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“Like I said, 1d6cbb4686 this is how 57dbf9f765 things used to ad9bcae452 be for me.”f665095efc1a5076

“B-but how f8d1e6ff26 could Your 5f7027895a Highness! Walking to snacks 4d6f3ff590 on your own f497f7647b two feet!”fd170cedccad87c8

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“I’m not walking 882ef17a9d there myself.”f7ae3872639fbed0

The moment dfe8b6cc27 I opened 2399a73cc3 the door, 1ad536a1f5 a knight a18fd9f4e7 waiting with 682f616adc a beaming 6f5ea92cb7 smile swept 2c1b430fcb me up 7cfa86805e in his 25b353019b arms.3178f2121b1d66c3

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“Let’s go, Your Highness! Hahahahaha!”6ba7a50b0bddc3a4

The large, 96b92575bc burly knight 19b85fd0d9 practically leaped f11a98825f with excitement 8052ffa4b0 as he 6aedcf7b1d shouted, “I a01ed2af5b won rock-paper-scissors, 0ab96e1231 so I 0387ad78a4 get to c1c1e3fe83 escort you! This’ll all end 08544c45e9 when the Viscount 4b2fd314b6 arrives anyway! Hahahahaha!”57508364206b564f

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Connie rolled her eyes 0e15ba7dcd and muttered beside me, 0f91774d1f something along the lines bee7a18f14 of, “Snacks should be 13a701ad68 brought to the room, a2d7597d64 not served in the d4bba08db9 kitchen. What nonsense.” She 02c4e4e964 didn’t dare say e066dd697a it too loudly, 42e4417894 though, as the 36a863ae0f knight’s face was 3f139a2113 half-covered with a 153160c27b menacing scar.bd51b564c5e171d2

“I-I just 2158875eab don’t think 7721a03f04 I can 4ce774e613 ever get 68eca2e31f used to dcb04c9770 this…” Connie d124e25d5b whispered to f0dbe770fd me, looking bd59a0d326 teary-eyed.46eb13134dd04b5f

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“Just seeing the knights’ 5987b907bf intimidating faces makes me e3124f9c0f st-stutter…”c900b24ff9c1172f

Of course, the 9e51a11195 knight didn’t hear 1f34a70dcd her as he 5b57ab4c2f continued talking boisterously.1eb0d1a237ab9ed1

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“There’s a 5eacbc8f34 room perfect 999a4d1eb2 for gathering 72ac4eb8d4 and enjoying d980b189f1 snacks together df38bf9347 here!”ee03b2b12b009e17

The idea 5d5c659565 of such d986c6b627 a room 78895abaa3 in a b257032a8d noble residence 4a63503aa9 was unheard 0fcb63022f of. I had no 085254f631 clue what he bce8843576 meant.c3b8e79e8138c81a

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Still, when d6b85d1472 we arrived…6ef3527b4a024007

“Ah.”fdf607c9bd1012a2

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Everyone stood e00848cb39 in two ea2ecd68fb rows, bowing da26b4b279 deeply at d64c691694 a perfect aaa80c720a 90-degree angle, a8c105b1c1 and shouted 9df301b80a in unison.5f9196b5a3f3e743

“Welcome, Your Highness!”bed19b3b3502a2b7

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The burly 082b98846f men dressed 8c6a688880 in black 1a7b9b0a4c all greeted 354e9cf312 me at c9546460a9 once, making aa3e5dd9ac it feel d975c4467a less like 8ea87416c9 I was 58fd789281 being welcomed f6df2261fa and more 4735e380ac like I’d 84dfd4cb2e stumbled into 80ddabfbc8 the den 98e4f04604 of a e43fb8da86 mob boss.690e68a5fb619fca

“We will serve you 4708eb0e68 with the utmost dedication!”d64fb1a351a98a32

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Among them, 1cf55bc799 one knight a61ce392aa wearing a 59538820d6 chef’s hat 5211be4191 stood at f3fa13ceec attention and 7a2a13bc36 announced, “We 8406ec92f0 have prepared f8a0b7c94a all the 0dc3363e32 dishes you 5f6f01db26 loved, Your 9b181281a4 Highness!”c52277958e028b00

Plates were 51caa52080 promptly laid a7a86d0030 out in b6fcea2a31 front of 1b66b27313 me.a473fa423cddac31

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There were no 3037e9a6d8 servants here. The knights handled everything—cooking, be18d50516 cleaning, tending the horses, e4281fc2a0 and even laundry. Originally mercenaries 1c313b55bb who took fe76e83fd3 care of abcca897cf their own dadf72981b needs, they 85d4d3b145 seemed to e7a091b233 find it 78a2f25e37 completely natural.5862fa277263acf7

“Oh!”7883d11f57327db5

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I exclaimed 2509b15bdb in delight 3b64f27e52 as I e91f5984d9 looked at 37b322b978 the plate 086edadfde before me. Though rough and 6ea7ebb547 rustic in appearance, 7fa39d01c3 it was filled e32e666a62 with cookies and dab6115a28 tarts made from ea2a4a87d0 northern wild berries.284b5756e740441e

“Surely your a7ff806477 tastes haven’t 013ced4639 changed in 71e4c7665f a year?”be2de66afdbe4200

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Everyone looked at me d3e53339a3 with eager faces.fccab34257055bab

I took a 012ac3e543 fork, scooped a 479442ecfd generous bite of d033ed1176 the berry tart, 52cd2f758f and brought it 1abc1c86e9 to my mouth.a79327ec4d15da3d

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Warmth flooded through me, c5fe5216c7 just as it had 3c2f0641f7 in my old memories.cc1864cface70b19

In the 5fe2ec8728 North, there 6994f7bd85 was no 8f8ad51f38 tea time 6bb8d58848 culture. Instead, during snack b0d648dce6 time in the 2837dd1ba8 afternoons, we would 1702f4b376 gather like this, 546ec83175 eating sweets and b74692c5d5 chatting noisily.74f71bfc32a9c047

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“This is so 8690a2617a delicious…”dcf40c4954cb154e

Though I had 854109115f tasted countless rare 540c6a3159 and exquisite dishes b078d36966 in the palace, 58f246bf2e none of them bedf6b2b08 had ever been 86f30d2a63 as nostalgic as 7cf15cbd02 this.3d542232c758809c

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“Thank you, everyone. Truly, it’s 16a686ee11 so delicious.”6ed5160d8b972740

As I savored the 443aa83e8f cookies with teary-eyed gratitude, 134dc5208c everyone around me chimed bbbaa77118 in with their comments.67482f2c89d3db34

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“Wow, the 4e570318ce palace has 6b709f0030 really done 759d7444d5 wonders! Why are 3f7701bea8 you so e5d7bed338 much prettier 71fe881a3d now?”974e2dc7b5ffef88

“She’s already quite 41926ce1e3 the figure, isn’t 9e5d93a368 she?”6e960b59ea2cbdf5

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“Your skin’s glowing! And your hair—what did 988984eb8f you do to it?”fd2fcfa519bc055b

Meanwhile, Kayan, caught 969ef19a84 in the middle 2cc6d9a631 of the chaos 4334a9729c without a chance bd15787284 to even offer 7de273e932 a proper greeting, b128faa988 was left rubbing 42feada868 his forehead in 3724bd7900 silent exasperation.403c1dd5d9336d5b

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