RODH Chapter 41

41.

Then you shouldn’t have killed me.

I know I’m taking it out on the wrong person.

I also know that the Seor in this life won’t kill me—he wouldn’t even leave a scratch.

And yet, I couldn’t forgive him.

In my first life, he protected some omega and killed me miserably.

If you like omegas that much, then go ahead—have your fill.

Because I’m not an omega. I’m Ian Pearl Ruben.

Once again, I gave the order for expulsion.

“The door is to your right.”

---

After that explosive argument, Seor didn’t visit the estate for quite some time.

It was a good opportunity.

If I couldn’t sever my feelings now, when would I?

Even hatred breeds attachment—they say even resentment is a form of affection. I found myself occasionally remembering how we exchanged elegant curses during our imperial etiquette lessons.

But as summer deepened, even those memories faded to the point of being nearly forgotten.

Maybe once—when I heard his one-month probation had ended?

Aside from that, I hadn’t thought about a single hair on Seor’s head.

The reason was simple.

It was because of the letter in my hands.

[…The fact that the Winstol tree has blossomed is nothing short of a miracle. I was caught off guard when this was unexpectedly brought up during the monthly council meeting.]

Nevan’s handwriting was still atrocious.

How did ‘caught off guard’ become ‘caught off port’?

Swallowing the laughter that bubbled up, I returned to my seat and pulled out my own stationery.

Back when I was part of high society, I never understood why people bothered writing letters when they could just meet face-to-face.

But now that I’d been exchanging letters, I realized it had its own kind of addictive charm.

What must the other person feel upon receiving the letter?

When might their reply arrive?

That ticklish anticipation always made my heart flutter.

It was through these letters that I learned it was possible to be happy every single day.

And finally, I was able to address Nevan by name.

[To the esteemed and beloved Nevan,

Here in the central region, it’s the height of summer. During the day, the farmers doze off and the children’s skin is burnt dark. I’m terribly curious about how summer feels in the North.

Also, if I had known the blossoms of the Winstol tree were so rare, I wouldn’t have picked them. This morning, Bain told me the flowers were in full bloom.

It’s hardly large enough to be called a tree, but it seems to like our land.]

Though I shared all kinds of trivial stories, Nevan never seemed annoyed.

After I was no longer the Crown Princess-to-be, my etiquette tutor was replaced. According to the new one, northerners don’t even bother replying if they find something truly bothersome or tedious.

But since Nevan answered every single time, it felt like he, too, was looking forward to my letters.

“Northerners don’t write more than two lines in a letter unless they’re very close. For you to have such a friend, my lord, is quite the blessing.”

The new tutor had his biases, but he also said that once you became close with a northerner, there was no one more trustworthy.

I fully agreed. I placed the letter into the magical device tied to the hawk’s leg.

“Bain!”

“Yes, young master!”

When I called, Bain handed me a dish of meat pieces.

Starting with the smaller bits, I fed the hawk by hand and murmured softly like I was speaking to myself.

“Stay healthy, okay?”

Bain spoke beside me.

“I’m glad you and His Grace have grown close, young master.”

“Why?”

“Do you remember when you came home drunk from the party? You kept saying how lonely you were because you didn’t have a single real friend.”

“Oh… Did I?”

Bain nodded slightly.

My embarrassment passed quickly, and I reassured him that things were different now.

“I have a friend now. Not a fake one—a real one.”

“A boyfriend and a friend, right!”

Of course it didn’t pass quietly.

“It’s not like that yet.”

“Oh, come on. It’s written all over your face, young master. It’s not a lie.”

“Where does it say that?”

“In your eyes.”

“There’s no such thing.”

“There really is. You don’t even realize it, do you? Whenever you write or read a letter, the corners of your lips lift, and your eyes go all soft.”

“Bain, that’s enough.”

“Yes, my lord.”

My face was burning.

I must really be thinking about Nevan a lot.

Suddenly, I missed those pigeon-blood ruby eyes that held no trace of lies.

Even the snow-white skin that someone once said looked like a corpse—I wanted to see it again.

His silver hair, fluttering in the wind of Ferost, looked just like snowflakes.

‘I probably shouldn’t write things like that in a letter, huh?’

I finished feeding the hawk and sent it flying.

No sooner had I done that than Bain let out a loud gasp.

“What is it?”

“Y-young master! There’s a hole in the ceiling!”

“A hole?”

Looking up, I saw a portal forming, darkening into a deep blue as it widened inward.

It was a portal only a mana master could open.

Just as I expected, the ones who stepped through were Alvis, the blue mage, and Lucian, the Crown Prince of the Dragon Clan.

They descended onto my plush bed like it was the most natural thing in the world and greeted me.

“Have you been well?”

“We heard your probation ended, so we came! And congrats on the broken engagement!”

“What in the world do you think you’re doing?”

Of course I was furious.

Lucian tilted his head, confused.

“Why are you so angry? We just wanted to see you.”

I was boiling inside.

Trespassing, muddy boots on my bed—what kind of shameless bastard does this?

At least Alvis, noticing my expression, offered a quick apology.

“Lord Ruben—no, Lord Ian… I apologize. We got curious because you hadn’t visited the tower in so long.”

“Curious enough to be swayed by Lucian, is that it?”

“……”

“Don’t be so harsh. Alvis is a good guy.”

“I am not a good guy.”

Alvis smacked away Lucian’s arm when he tried to throw it over his shoulder.

Lucian pouted and gave him a side-eye.

“So, why are you here?”

Get to the point, you bastards.

“The date voucher. I’m here to use it.”

Damn date voucher.

I turned to Alvis and asked the same thing with a look.

He mumbled something nervously before speaking clearly.

“Please be my partner for Samhain.”

Sigh…

I let out a long breath.

Honestly, I’d rather they split me in half with an axe and take a piece each.

When I said what I really felt, both of them stared at me in shock.

“How could you say something so horrible…?”

“Ian, are you okay? Don’t tell me you have a fever?”

Lucian tried to touch my forehead, but I slapped his hand away.

“Don’t both of you need to do this on the same day?”

“No, no! My date’s tonight at the night market, and Alvis’s is in autumn.”

“Yes, that’s correct.”

“I don’t have much stamina. I actually fainted not too long ago.”

“What?!”

Both Lucian and Alvis looked alarmed.

I was about to say it happened in early summer, but it was too fun watching them worry, so I kept quiet.

Bain stood beside me, wearing a face that said, ‘What on earth are you planning now?’

What do you think? I’m going to tease these alphas until they never want to come near me again.

“Then let’s go to the night market!”

“I…”

“You can hang out with Ian during Samhain. Today’s my turn.”

Lucian’s violet eyes sparkled.

Alvis must’ve not wanted to mess with a dragon’s eccentricity—he backed off easily.

“Understood.”

“Let’s bring Bain, too.”

“Can’t it just be the two of us?”

“No.”

“Tch.”

Bain probably had never seen the night market either.

When I said that, his face, which had looked worried until now, brightened.

---

Lucian grabbed Ian’s hand and ran through the brightly lit night streets.

It seemed the part about Ian collapsing wasn’t a lie—his stamina was indeed poor, and he kept lagging behind.

Still, Lucian was desperate to win his favor, eagerly buying him street snacks.

“This is really good, Ian. Eat a lot!”

“I’m full.”

“Eat more anyway.”

“Yes, yes.”

Soon, the dragon clan would be selecting their future crown princess.

Lucian was planning to use his wish voucher to nominate Ian as a candidate.

If Ian ever heard that, he would definitely throw a fit. But once some affection had been built up, maybe he’d go along with it more willingly.

On a busy and chaotic night like this, when holding hands didn’t feel awkward at all, Lucian felt it wouldn’t take long to win him over.

Like all other alphas with their hidden motives, Lucian grinned, keeping his true thoughts to himself.

Just then, a line of people dressed in all manner of ball attire began to parade down the street.

It was the perfect setup to get separated.

Lucian turned back and said,

“There are a lot of people, so make sure you stay close to— Ian?”

“Young master?!”

In that brief moment of distraction, Ian had slipped away.

“Ian!”

While Lucian struggled against the swelling crowd, Ian was walking back toward the alley where they had bought snacks earlier.

“Where am I even?”

He was heading back toward the procession, hoping to find Bain, when he heard a familiar tune.

A song that made the hair on the back of his neck stand on end.

“The one who brings spring sat upon the wall. The one who brings spring took a great fall. No matter how hard everyone tried, they could not restore him to what he was. But there was a secret no one knew…”

It was the same song a prisoner in the cell next to his had sung endlessly during Ian’s fourth life.

“The one who brings spring cannot die before the curse of Kirias is broken.”

“…Huh?”

A fortune-telling old man, seated cross-legged on the bare ground without even a stall, looked up.

Glossy black hair, eyes like fresh spring leaves.

A face that clearly said, ‘I am of noble birth.’

Someone who had to be a noble’s son spoke to the old man in a demanding tone.

“Have you seen me before?”

“Ho ho, this is the first time I’ve seen your face. Why do you ask?”

“…That’s fine, then. That song you were singing earlier—where did you hear it?”

As if the song carried some kind of curse, the young man’s voice trembled.

The old man chuckled at first, but then suddenly cried out as if he’d seen a vision.