Chapter 234
Chapter 234
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Translator: Vine
Chapter: 234
Chapter Title: Confirmed Affection
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***
*Clink.*
Even as he set down his teacup, Cheon-seong felt a little dazed.
He was now spending a quiet moment with Kalli at a tea table in a corner of the training room.
The situation of having tea alone with her was unfamiliar enough, but... Cheon-seong's heart was stirred for reasons beyond that.
“...”
He took in the sight of Kalli across from him, who seemed completely at ease.
Even now, she showed no signs of hesitation or concern.
She accepted his words without a hint of doubt. Having watched her since he entered the training room, her composure struck him even more profoundly.
*I didn't think she'd accept it so easily.*
I had come to realize that facing crises alone was dangerous, which led me to think about finding an ally to help me.
I needed someone who could support me, someone I could rely on in situations like yesterday's. And the person I deemed a suitable ally was not a fellow cadet.
A woman known to be among the strongest in the Empire, who had also expressed her feelings for me.
The most ideal ally I could think of was Kalli Ishtar. It was her.
But when she accepted my request more readily than I'd expected, I found myself broaching a slightly deeper topic.
*Clink.*
Kalli gently set down her teacup and looked at me with curiosity.
“So, you're saying that even you, Cadet Han Cheon-seong, can't quite understand how you sense the presence of an Apostle. And that's why you're asking for my unconditional help?”
“...Yes. That's one way to put it. I wasn't confident I could explain a reason I don't even understand myself. It's a hard story to believe... I was actually hoping you wouldn't ask for a reason, Instructor.”
And yesterday, I felt it clearly.
—I can sense the presence of an Apostle.
The fact that I could sense an Apostle that even an instructor far stronger than me couldn't detect.
It was the same when I was with Anastasia, and sensing the Apostle's presence yesterday wasn't a fluke either.
*There's something about me that even I don't know.*
I couldn't define what it was. It was too vague to be called simple intuition, but I could feel it distinctly.
“I would have believed you even if you had just said that, Cadet Han Cheon-seong. Thank you for telling me now. And while we should do our best to avoid getting caught up in incidents like in the past, Cadet Han Cheon-seong... you must never do something like yesterday again, seeking out an Apostle on your own. I need you to promise me this. If you sense an Apostle's presence, you come straight to me.”
“Yes... I will.”
“And you don't need to speak in such a pleading tone. I'm only doing what I'm supposed to do.”
Kalli accepted my words without hesitation.
No questions, no objections. It was as if she was showing me she believed me simply because it was me who was speaking.
*Srrk.*
Stroking the warm teacup, my heart fluttered once again.
*This was Kalli...*
I felt a bit foolish for having tried to worry and overcome things all by myself until now.
I didn't have to struggle so much trying to face crises alone.
Just like Anastasia, who had readily offered to help me before, I could have asked Kalli for help as well...
“...”
Looking at Kalli, who was still gazing at me, I felt that she might have accepted my words from the very beginning.
Even without her affection for me, she was an upright and honest person who would have helped me, saying it was simply the right thing to do.
“But you know, while I'll accept what you're saying, Cadet Han Cheon-seong...”
“Yes.”
“May I ask something of you as well?”
“If there's something you want from me, you can ask.”
“I thought you'd say that. It's nothing major, really. It's just that, from what I've seen of your personality, I feel like you'd carry it as a burden if I were the only one giving.”
“Did I seem... like that?”
As I spoke, I unconsciously stroked my face.
I didn't think I was the type to wear my heart on my sleeve, but Kalli spoke as if she could see right through me.
“You know how I feel now, don't you, Cadet Han Cheon-seong? And I know how you feel, too. I could sense it from the way you struggled to ask me. I knew you'd feel burdened if you were only receiving.”
Kalli, who was speaking to me so calmly, wore a gentle smile.
Seeing that, I nodded awkwardly, but my heart felt much lighter.
Whatever Kalli asked of me couldn't be a difficult request. In fact, just her saying that made me feel her kindness, and I was grateful.
“So, with that said. I'll make my request right now.”
"Yes. Please, speak freely."
“When we're alone, don't be so formal. That's my first request of you, Cadet Han Cheon-seong.”
I blinked at her words.
*Formal words.*
The difference between how I acted when I expressed my affection for her and now was the deliberate etiquette I was observing.
Just because I knew her feelings didn't mean I intended to treat her casually.
“Formal words...”
“I'm not asking you to speak informally to me. But you don't have to put me on such a pedestal... We both know now, don't we? How we feel about each other as we spend this time together...”
As Kalli averted her gaze and carefully expressed her feelings, a laugh escaped me.
She seems so composed, but when it comes to matters of affection, she hesitates and wavers. I found that endearing... and nodded lightly.
“I'll do that. Is this better?”
I distinctly softened my tone and replied in a gentler voice.
“Yes. That's... probably fine.”
Watching her reply as if she was pleased with my voice, I was struck again... by how strange our relationship was.
Both she and I now had feelings for each other. And we both knew it.
But if you were to ask if we were lovers, our relationship wasn't something we could publicly announce.
Moreover, Kalli was asking me to maintain a boundary, telling me 'a little'. And I fully intended to respect that line.
Before we could express deeper affection for each other... it was a very strange relationship, as if we had placed restrictions on our own actions.
Lost in thought, I slowly reached my hand across the table.
*Srrk.*
I felt Kalli's eyes flick to my hand, but I continued and clasped her hand, which was resting on the table.
“...Why?”
Kalli asked, her hand in mine, without the slightest resistance.
I met her gaze and relaxed.
“I thought we could stop with the heavy topics now.”
I replied gently, stroking her hand.
...*Stroooooke, stroooooke.*
My hand tracing over the back of hers felt a little embarrassing, but I wanted to show her my affection.
“Ah... I see.”
“I'll respect the 'a little' boundary. So you don't have to be so tense.”
“Who said I was tense... Hah, you say the strangest things sometimes, Cadet Han Cheon-seong.”
Watching Kalli's awkward reaction to my touch, I felt a stark difference.
Just a moment ago, she had seemed like the most reliable person, someone I could depend on.
But now, here she was, reacting clumsily to my touch, hesitating.
That difference alone... made her seem lovely.
*Is this Kalli's charm?*
Beyond her physical beauty, the way Kalli reacted to me seemed to be slowly coloring my heart with affection.
Just as I was gently expressing my affection by caressing the back of her hand.
*Grasp.*
She grabbed my hand. When I met her eyes, Kalli gave an awkward smile.
“It tickled a little...”
A laugh escaped me without my realizing it.
“Oh, really?”
I gently moved the hand she was holding and interlaced our fingers.
Kalli flinched in surprise but accepted it, and I savored the warmth from our joined hands.
*Squeeze.*
When she gently squeezed my hand, my heart fluttered again.
An impulsive thought suddenly came to mind.
“I'll try to graduate from the academy as soon as possible.”
I voiced the thought as soon as it appeared.
“...Huh?”
“Because we can't stay in this kind of relationship forever.”
The reason she set the 'a little' boundary.
And the reason I couldn't cross that line to get closer to Kalli.
It was largely due to our respective positions.
The age difference was truly trivial. But we couldn't ignore our immediate circumstances or the opinions of others.
In this world, I was a commoner, while Kalli was the eldest daughter of a noble family—and not just any family, but the historic House Ishtar.
On top of that, she held such a high reputation that she was considered a pillar of the Empire, a woman so formidable that the imperial family had bestowed upon her the title 'Crimson Dawn'.
“...This kind of relationship.”
As she blankly muttered my words and met my gaze, I slowly nodded.
“Because I want to become a man worthy of you, Instructor Kalli.”
It was a truly impulsive thought; originally, I had no intention of graduating from the academy early.
I believed I still had things to do here, that I needed to progress further at the academy.
But now, I had a clear reason.
I no longer had any fear of standing on the front lines, and I needed to elevate my own status significantly.
With someone who liked me so much right in front of me, I wanted to become a person worthy of her.
*So I won't be ashamed to stand by Kalli...*
And so I can approach her with my head held high.
“...”
I could clearly see Kalli's gaze waver.
Then she gave a faint shake of her head, and I wondered why she was reacting that way.
“You don't have to... push yourself so hard. I think the person you are now, Cadet Han Cheon-seong, is already more than... worthy of me.”
When Kalli replied so carefully, I couldn't help but smile.
"Then I won't make you wait too long."
As I replied, my resolve hardened.