Chapter 207: Dragon's Eye, Human Heart (71)
Chapter 207: Dragon's Eye, Human Heart (71)
Cien could not hide the frantic thumping of her heart.
This was the meeting with Sir Ian she had yearned for, yet she felt more trembling and nervous than ever before. All sorts of anxieties and worries rose within her like the mist at dawn.
What if I can’t be forgiven?
Cien had already felt Ian’s true intentions during the 'Central Avenue Royal Family Assault Incident.' Deep down, she believed he wouldn't hold a grudge, but she couldn't help the lingering sliver of unease.
Because of that, she found herself making frequent blunders once she was actually facing him.
Startled by her own actions, Cien hardly knew what she was doing. She simply wanted to express her apologies to Ian as best as she could.
By the time she realized she might have gone a bit too far, she had already kissed Ian’s feet.
Of course, Cien didn't mind.
If asked whether it was humiliating or shameful—yes, it was. But Ian was the owner of the Dragon Blood Runes, and more importantly, Cien had done far worse things to him.
She could endure any amount of humiliation and shame.
It was merely a part of the process of washing away the sins she had committed against him.
However, it seemed Ian did not see it that way.
The atmosphere, which had been thawing nicely, turned cold in an instant. In that awkward silence, Cien stood up and could only fidget with her fingers, cautiously watching Ian’s reaction.
Ugh, I’m such an idiot…
She should have taken a more gradual approach, but her heart had outpaced her reason. Her original goal of getting on Ian’s good side seemed to have run aground.
Cien’s face, which had brightened just moments ago, slumped into a dejected expression.
The words Ian finally uttered after the long silence were a finishing blow.
“……Are you always this oblivious?”
Cien’s face turned pale at the blatant rebuke.
Hesitating, she eventually tried to bow her head to the floor once more.
“I-I’m sorr—!”
“No, don’t do that.”
Ian cleared his throat with a dry cough, as if realizing his words could be misunderstood.
“I mean, you have those ‘eyes.’ Yet you don’t seem very good at reading people’s psychology.”
Cien fell silent for a moment at those words, then eventually let out a bitter smile.
He knew.
Then again, the owner of the Dragon Blood Runes was the Emperor’s closest confidant. It wasn't strange for him to know secrets hidden from others.
Cien reflexively touched the corners of her eyes.
She knew better than anyone how much pain these light gray eyes had caused her, and yet, how much she had come to depend on their power.
In particular, the events of the past two weeks, starting from her clash with Ian, had brought her many realizations.
“……I used to think I knew people well.”
At her suddenly subdued voice, Ian swallowed a groan and shifted his gaze. He seemed to sense that a serious conversation was about to begin.
“When I look through these ‘eyes,’ I often see things I’d rather not. Mostly people’s desires. There is no emotion with a more intense color than that.”
It was no coincidence that Cien naturally compared emotions to ‘colors.’
In reality, through her ‘Dragon’s Eye,’ emotions appeared as colors. While she could no longer read every thought as she did in her childhood, she could still read the colors of their hearts.
Naturally, she couldn't help but be overwhelmed by the most vivid hues.
And the most fundamental emotion humans possessed was ‘desire.’
“It’s simple. Once it’s visible, I just have to match my pace to that emotion. It’s not rare for hostility to turn into favor, or malice into goodwill. I lived my life feeling quite proud of that.”
The self-mocking smile on Cien’s lips grew piteous.
The girl tried to act as if it were nothing, shaking her head briskly.
“But I was wrong. I realized it after meeting Sir Ian. Actually, I am oblivious. Until now, I could see everything just by looking. But now, I find it hard to trust my eyes……”
As she continued, Cien fumbled in her robes and pulled something out.
It was a small pouch.
With her head bowed low, she held out the pouch as a gesture of gratitude. Ian accepted it with a bewildered expression.
It was light. The thin pouch looked ordinary on the outside.
However, as it was a gift from a Princess, it was unlikely to be a common item.
Ian peeked inside the opening of the pouch and spoke as if he had realized its nature.
“……It’s a Spatial Expansion Pouch.”
“Yes. I noticed last time that Sir Ian carries many things during battle… A-and there’s one more thing inside!”
Upon hearing that, Ian shook the pouch. A large, light gray Cat’s Eye Stone tumbled out into his hand.
A light gray Mystic Stone.
It was the last memento left by Cien’s mother.
Cien offered a slightly sad smile.
“As you might have guessed, it’s something my mother left behind. I couldn't bring myself to part with it until now. I didn't know why, but now I do. I hadn't moved a single step forward from the memories of that day.”
Ian stared at the light gray Cat’s Eye Stone in silence.
It was of the highest quality.
The color was unique and the size was substantial, making it immensely valuable even in purely monetary terms. Furthermore, if it was something an Empress had possessed, it wouldn't be surprising if it held a hidden secret.
It was far too grand a gift for a mere token of gratitude.
However, the events of the past few days held a significance for Cien that outweighed any treasure.
“The memories of that day kept haunting me. I couldn't trust humans, so I misunderstood and tormented them… If I kept going like that, I might have lived in regret forever. So, please, Sir Ian. Accept it.”
Ian’s silence was long.
He hesitated for a moment before finally nodding.
Only then could Cien breathe a sigh of relief.
It’s finally over.
She could finally escape the nightmares of the past.
Despite everything, the bond between mother and daughter was a heavenly one, so she had kept the stone, unable to shake off her final lingering attachment.
After all, her mother had once been Cien’s only ally.
But now she had Ian, and she had found a reason to move past the pain of that day. So, while it was a bit bittersweet, it was alright.
It was time to let her mother go.
As Cien made up her mind, a bitter smile returned to her lips.
It was then that Ian, who had been silent for a while, spoke up.
“……But, do a person’s psychology and their emotions always perfectly align?”
“Pardon?”
At the sudden question, Cien tilted her head. Her eyes asked what he meant.
But Ian spoke fluently, as if expressing a long-held thought.
“It’s just strange to me. Humans often don't even know their own hearts; how can a single psychological state or emotion define a person?”
“……Is that so?”
It was an unexpected claim, but coming from Ian, it was strangely persuasive.
Cien fell into silent thought. Come to think of it, she had felt countless emotions, but she had never seen them manifest as a single, pure color.
Human emotions were revealed in more complex and diverse hues.
Cien, who had distrusted humans until now, had thought those complexities were a form of hypocrisy. Because the most intense color was always reserved for desire.
“Just because a color is less vivid doesn't mean the emotion is a lie. The same goes for one's psychology. A person can harbor one thought, while simultaneously holding another. That is what a human being is. Contradictory and complex……”
As he spoke, Ian tossed the Cat’s Eye Stone into the air and caught it.
The scenes shimmering through the stone reflected Cien’s childhood.
The bad people who had tormented her.
But also the good people she had once loved.
From the moment she was born, Cien had grown up reading the hearts of others. Back then, she could love even the shabby, unsightly parts of humans without a second thought. The idea that they were 'bad' never even occurred to her.
Wasn't that why she had peeked into their hearts so carelessly?
Suddenly, a question pierced Cien’s mind.
Then why did I end up thinking they were all bad people?
“……A certain orphanage director I met was like that, too.”
Ian took a step forward. Cien froze, looking up at him.
His pupils slit vertically.
Even though she knew what that portended, Ian showed not a hint of fear.
“And so am I.”
With those words as a signal, a flood of information poured into Cien’s optic nerves.
It was a wave of emotion.
Never before had someone’s feelings reached her so dramatically. This was likely because he had no resistance to having his heart read.
Even without knowing Cien’s power, every human instinctively tries to hide their true self. It was even more so for those who knew of her ability.
Until now, no one had ever lowered that barrier.
But now, Ian intentionally suppressed that instinctive rejection. Countless shades bled out, turning the world into a technicolor feast.
It was a visual revolution.
The atmosphere, once tinted in monochrome, was dyed in brilliant colors.
Like ink spreading through water, the colors bled out one by one, so pure and diverse that Cien was left speechless.
Is this what true ‘emotion’ is?
Those shades did not contain only bright and beautiful feelings. Dark and gloomy emotions also tinted her vision.
And yet, Cien did not find them ugly in the least.
It was beautiful.
His sincerity was being conveyed with such heart-wrenching clarity.
“……Perhaps your mother was the same, Your Highness.”
Cien’s eyes stared blankly at Ian.
Is he not afraid?
Everyone is afraid of showing their true self. Every human Cien had seen until now was like that; her mother was like that, and she herself was like that.
That was why she had never seen it before.
The fact that an unhidden heart could produce such beautiful colors.
The fact that even the ugly and dark hues were merely a part of that harmony.
In the distant past, dragons loved humans above all else.
Cien finally understood why they were able to love them.
Ian’s question reached her ears.
“How does my heart look to you?”
Suddenly, the girl’s eyes welled with tears. I’m a crybaby, so I can’t help it, Cien whispered an excuse to no one in particular.
She barely managed to squeeze out a single sentence.
It was Cien’s own unhidden truth.
“……I-I don’t know.”
There were so many colors that she couldn't tell.
Upon hearing that answer, Ian let out a bitter smile, as if he had expected it.
Then, with a soft clack, Ian pressed the Cat’s Eye Stone he was holding back into Cien’s hand.
“It’s a gift from me.”
The light gray Cat’s Eye Stone returned to Cien’s possession.
But Cien found the weight of the stone difficult to bear. Her hands trembled as she took the gem back.
Struggling to suppress her sobs, Cien asked.
“W-what should I do?”
Ian’s eyes looked at Cien steadily.
He patiently waited for the tearful girl to speak.
“About m-my mother… hic, w-what should I do?”
The girl asked because she couldn't find the courage on her own.
The love-hate relationship with her mother, which she had hated and buried for so long, came alive again, tangling her thoughts.
A single tear rolled down the girl’s cheek.
The man watching her gave a simple answer.
“First, you should go see her.”
“B-but……”
“I will go with you.”
Cien’s breath hitched for a moment.
It was because Ian had said those words while wrapping his hands over hers, which were holding the Cat’s Eye Stone.
At that warm touch, the girl’s heart began to throb once more.
Cien resented the fact that she couldn't see herself with her own eyes.
Because she couldn't possibly identify the nature of this surging emotion.
“……Later, for sure.”
The girl decided to believe in that short but firm promise.
In the end, Cien laughed through her tears.
For the first time, she felt both incredibly sad and happy.
“……Yes.”
The girl with the Dragon’s Eye came to know the human heart that day.
The room was silent after the Princess left.
Without a word, I picked up the whiskey I had left on the table. After filling the glass to the brim, I poured it down my throat without hesitation.
I didn't feel too bad.
Recalling the tear-stained smile the girl had made at the end, I let out a short chuckle.
None of the problems, including the Dragon Blood Runes, had been resolved yet.
Nevertheless, I decided to think that the path I had walked so far was worth something.
At the very least, I had made a girl who was trapped in her childhood nightmares smile.
As I drank in a somewhat pleasant mood, the intoxication soon began to set in. My eyes, reflexively pulling out the letter from the future, fell upon the sentence written on the back.
‘Those with the Dragon’s Eye do not know the human heart.’
I don't know what I was thinking.
But fueled by the alcohol, I added another sentence below the one on the back.
‘But not this girl.’
It was a short sentence, a plain statement without any fancy rhetoric. It was the limit of a drunken swordsman with no talent for writing.
But after writing it, I found I liked the words quite a bit. I stared at the sentence for a while before trying to get some sleep.
High-ranking officials from the Imperial Household would be arriving soon.
Yet, my heart was surprisingly calm. As the alcohol took hold, my senses dulled and my emotions settled.
With the feeling that things would work out somehow, I closed my eyes. The next moment—
I woke up gasping; it was still dawn. Perhaps the alcohol hadn't been enough, as my heart was making a wild racket.
As I poured more whiskey into my glass, the letter I had left on the table before falling asleep caught my eye.
Below the two sentences on the back, another one had been added.
‘Perhaps.’
That short, scribbled sentence seemed to reveal the man’s temperament, and I couldn't help but smirk.
I drained the rest of the whiskey. And so, I fell back into a deep, drunken sleep.
That night, I had a dream.
A strangely vivid dream of a certain man.
It was a familiar occurrence by now. My eyes, opening with a rough breath, immediately turned toward the table by my bedside.
The date on the calendar had moved forward, and there was a letter envelope I had never seen before.
It wouldn't even give me a moment to rest.
“……Ha.”
Feeling a throbbing headache as if my brain were being pricked by needles, I picked up the envelope.
I didn't even have the energy to curse.
It was the start of a new incident that would shake the world.