IYAMD: Episode 29

As time passed, the banquet grew lively. The nobles gathered in small groups, laughing and chatting happily, enjoying the dance.

Jaha remained still behind Marsilia throughout the entire event, not moving at all.

“What will you do, Your Majesty? The Archduke would never send his knights just out of kindness.”

“Well, let’s wait and see. Let’s hear what he has to say.” Serez and Marsilia were having a conversation without moving their lips. From a distance, it might appear as though the Emperor was proudly watching the nobles enjoying the banquet.

Jaha was not really interested in their conversation. He was more curious about why Marsilia had him stand at the banquet.

From the moment he entered, he realized that some of the things being said about him were not favorable, which made him more curious.

Was this intentional? As he thought about it, he was unsure, especially when he saw Marsilia not even turning his head toward him. If Marsilia wanted to spread rumors about bringing his lover, then he would have been more proactive.

So why had he been brought here, just standing silently?

“You don’t really have anything to do at the banquet. Just introducing yourself is enough.”

Marsilia had explained this to Jaha last night. It seemed that was all there was to it.

Marsilia had said it was the best choice if he did not want to reveal that he was his soulmate. He had spoken these words while gazing at Jaha, who was looking at him quietly.

“I can’t leave you behind. That’s something I have no choice but to do, and I hope you understand that.”

After the one-sided conversation ended and Gerald went to bed, Marsilia finally shared what was on his mind.

“I know you don’t really want to live. If an assassin comes again, you’ll quietly offer your neck, right? I didn’t say this earlier, but that’s why. This operation is very important, not for me but for the innocent people in the territory, for my citizens.”

Marsilia let out a small sigh after speaking those words. Jaha had no choice but to lower his head. He didn’t want to burden the man, who would be dealing with a complicated mind before an important battle, with anything more.

Moreover, if the operation failed, he did not want to bear the guilt if it was somehow because of him. If innocent people lost their families and homes, even if it wasn’t his fault, the weight of that guilt would stay with him.

So, if possible, he was willing to let Marsilia handle things the way he wanted. He would think about what to do afterward when the time came.

After all, it would only be a couple of months. Would a little more breathing space really change anything?

While Jaha was thinking about last night’s events, Serez and Marsilia continued their silent conversation.

“What do you think the Archduke want?”

“Your Majesty’s neck, I suppose. Do you think you can fight at ease with people you can’t trust watching your back?”

“Of course.”

Marsilia answered briefly and turned to Jaha for the first time.

“I don’t care if there are thousands of them.”

Why did that answer sound like it was directed at him? Jaha and Serez’s eyes met briefly. Serez’s expression seemed to ask if he was really not annoyed.

Without realizing it, Jaha pursed his lips, causing Marsilia to furrow his brow.

“If you want to laugh, laugh at me.”

What did that mean? Instead of answering, Jaha crumpled his face, and Marsilia exaggeratedly laughed.

The man, who had been shaking his broad shoulders while laughing, casually covered his mouth with the back of his hand and asked Jaha.

“Aren’t you hungry?”

Jaha nodded. Seeing his response, the man, with a smile still lingering on his face, glanced upward and then turned his head.

From the way the man’s cheek twitched as he rested on his chin, it seemed he was still smiling.

Jaha couldn’t figure out what he was thinking. He quietly exhaled and looked up. Then, his eyes met the gaze of someone watching from across the banquet hall.

Was it Archduke Doton? He was a relative, and his face resembled the Emperor’s quite a bit. Not only was his large build similar, but his blonde hair and eye color were also alike. Although older than the Emperor, you could tell they shared the same bloodline.

As the Emperor aged, he would likely resemble that man. At least, he was fortunate that they didn’t share the same stubborn brow or disdainful gaze.

Jaha ignored the Archduke, who was observing and focused his gaze on Marsilia’s ear.

“Let’s send a gift to the Archduke, who has returned to the capital after a long time.”

“Of course. I’ll prepare it.”

No matter how you heard it, the tone made it seem like a rather ominous gift. A family of uncle and nephew sending assassins as gifts—there couldn’t be a more dysfunctional relationship than that.

The man, who had ascended to the throne at the age of 15, had lived like this for ten long years, with blood relatives threatening his life.

Ruling a nation was not an easy task, and having lost his parents at such a young age, he must have been lonely. But did that mean he had to live with the constant threat of his life from his own family?

Jaha thought that even if the man had a dark side, there was nothing he could do about it. But the man didn’t seem to have any darkness in him. He appeared more like someone with a solid, unshakable will.

That was a little surprising. Jaha wanted to ask how he managed to live like that. Having experienced the feeling of losing family, he wanted to ask him how to forget.

Then, suddenly, he realized.

Do I want to live?

Marsilia kept an eye on Jaha whenever the nobles glanced over in this direction. The vulgar conversation he was hearing would also undoubtedly reach his ears, and it made him anxious.

Serez, who knew nothing, stood there innocently with flowers blooming on his head, while Marsilia felt like he was going to lose his mind from the anxiety Jaha caused.

Honestly, he had been subtly hoping for such rumors to spread. Isn’t it better than the rumors about his soulmate?

Besides, since they had to use tents on the battlefield, it was more convenient if they considered Jaha as his lover. It was rare to share a tent with an adjutant after all.

It was out of the question to bring him as a servant, given Jaha’s stiff attitude, and Marsilia disliked the idea of him bowing to him. So, he thought it was quite a good decision, considering how quickly it had been made.

Moreover, Marsilia had anticipated that such rumors would spread. He should have felt more at ease, but why was he so anxious?

Could it be because the Archduke, whom he had thought would not attend, showed up? Or was it because of Jaha, who appeared completely unfazed despite clearly overhearing such slander?

Marsilia quietly surveyed every corner of the banquet hall with his eyes, resting his chin deeper into his hand.

“Serez, tell the Archduke that I need to see him now. Bring him to the balcony.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.”

“Sable, you come with me.” As Marsilia rose from his seat and spoke, Jaha took a step closer.

Marsilia barely held back the hand that was reaching for his head. When he looked into Jaha’s eyes, which seemed to question him, his throat went dry.

“I feel like kissing you.”

Marsilia, unintentionally blurting out his thoughts, panicked inside. Why had he thought that, and why did it come out of his mouth? As he pondered, Jaha’s reaction didn’t come.

When Jaha moved his ear closer, Marsilia blinked for a moment. Was he asking for a kiss on his ear?

But there was no trace of embarrassment, so it was clear that wasn’t what Jaha meant.

Ah. Marsilia couldn’t help but smile faintly. Did he misunderstand that I meant kissing as in speaking? Surely, Jaha must have thought that a strategy meeting was necessary before going to meet the Archduke. That must be why he so willingly brought his ear near.

Marsilia moved carefully so that Jaha wouldn’t be disappointed. As he tilted his head toward Jaha’s ear, he felt the gaze still watching him.

Marsilia placed his lips on Jaha’s ear while keeping his gaze on the other side.

“I meant that I wanted to kiss you, not speak.”

He laughed softly and pulled away, revealing the red nape of Jaha’s neck. Jaha belatedly covered his ear with his palm and turned to look at Marsilia.

Marsilia couldn’t take his eyes off the yellow eyes that trembled faintly. He stared for a long time at Jaha’s red face and the eyes deeply embedded in them.

“This is serious.”

Earlier, the words had slipped out unknowingly, but now he genuinely wanted to kiss Jaha. Though Jaha didn’t seem to understand the words, Marsilia couldn’t tear his eyes away from the lips moving toward him. He licked his own lips.

“This is the first time I’ve wanted to behave like a rogue.”

Marsilia reluctantly tore his gaze away from Jaha. Leaving him behind, he headed for the balcony alone. As he sensed Jaha moving behind him, a shiver ran down his back.

How could he explain the strange feeling of his scalp tingling with anticipation? Marsilia lightly rubbed his chest with his hand and left the banquet hall.

The sudden hunger he felt must have been because he had skipped dinner. It couldn’t have been because of the man hesitating behind him.

Marsilia, waiting for Jaha’s to calm down, looked up at the sky beyond the balcony railing.

The moonlight faintly illuminated the surroundings, bringing to mind a night from the past. That night when hot, candle-like tears soaked his chest.

Surprisingly, his eyes closed automatically, as if he were recalling the warmth he had felt back then.