Chapter 45
Chapter 45
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 45
Chapter Title: The Protective Necklace
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"There's just one thing to keep in mind."
Darsi hesitated as he handed me the necklace.
"What is it?"
"Ryan's looking for this."
"No surprise there."
With Darsi—who was supposed to have vanished—still alive, Kies must have grown anxious again.
Since he was scheming to drag Darsi down, it made sense he'd need a necklace that prevented brainwashing, something he wouldn't have to worry about.
It was sheer luck that it had fallen into our hands.
"Could you make another one, just in case?"
"It's a magic tool that blocks spells. Even if I made one myself, I couldn't guarantee the quality, and I wouldn't know how long it would take."
No wonder it was known as a treasure. That would only make them search harder. It was clear why it had to be mine.
"This will protect you from any potential brainwashing... but it could also put you in danger."
Darsi's warning posed no threat to me. I gripped the necklace tightly.
"It's fine. In fact, it might just catch them off guard."
Ryan would never suspect I had an imperial treasure in my possession.
"He wouldn't even dream it ended up in your hands."
He'd assume it was with Darsi, if anywhere.
He couldn't search the Etwar Marquis House without cause, so this was safer.
To dispel any possible misunderstanding, I spoke up.
"I know you won't brainwash me."
"...We'll see."
Darsi trailed off slowly.
"Anyway, I just think me having it is the best option."
He shrugged at my words.
"You're the only one I can show weakness to."
I didn't know exactly where his blind faith came from. But it stirred a sense of responsibility—I never wanted to shatter that trust and expectation.
"If I have this, does that make you invincible?"
"Not quite... but it would definitely make Kies and Ryan sweat."
"Sweat bullets? Perfect way to put it."
I giggled as I examined the necklace. No matter where they searched, they'd never find this treasure.
"Wear the necklace. Hide it under your clothes normally, and no one will see it."
"Do I have to? Wouldn't it be safer hidden in the mansion's treasure vault?"
"No, it's better if you wear it."
I tilted my head at Darsi's insistence.
The chain was long enough to conceal it under most dresses, but did it have to be me wearing it?
It could be discovered. I didn't want to take that risk. Not for Darsi's sake.
"You never know when I might brainwash you."
I tried to laugh it off as a joke.
Until I saw his utterly serious face.
"..."
His dark eyes looked ready to cast a spell right then. But I wasn't scared. I knew he was exaggerating on purpose to frighten me.
Because Darsi didn't scare me.
"Darsi, if you're trying to intimidate me, it's not working."
No matter what face he showed from now on, his true nature would always be the same to me.
The Darsi who had listened to my story for the first time, who had truly seen me—he would always exist within. It was the infinite trust I could show the one I believed in.
I thought he would smile again.
But shadows still lingered in his gaze as he looked at me.
"This isn't a joke."
He was looking at me, but not really seeing me.
"What are you thinking?"
"You don't know how things might change once I fully understand my feelings for you."
"That's exactly why you won't."
"I'm capable of being crueler than you think."
For a fleeting moment, I glimpsed something beneath his warning expression. His pale blue eyes seemed to pull me into a deep abyss.
Was he testing me?
"Darsi, you wouldn't."
The man I knew had never crossed that line.
Darsi pressed on.
"What if that greed crosses the line? I can't swear I have complete control over my emotions."
His eyes trembled. He was afraid.
Of what?
"Marso, people in love are rarely in their right minds."
My mother had been the same.
I realized from his murmur that the reason lay with his mother.
"I'm pretty honest about my desires when no one's watching."
Darsi laughed self-deprecatingly. Those words carried so much weight.
I sighed.
"So for my sake, at least, wear the necklace. Nothing bad will happen."
What on earth had happened between his mother and Kies?
I knew nothing of Kies's romantic history. After the previous empress who bore Ryan, he'd taken in women now and then, but that was it.
Kies the Emperor had completely hidden both Darsi's mother and Darsi's existence.
I wanted to ask today, but he seemed to need time to think.
"Yeah?"
"Got it."
Begging like that was unfair. Those trembling eyes erased his usual sharp aura, making him look heartbreakingly vulnerable.
I glared at him intensely. Of course, it was a futile rebellion against Darsi.
If it stemmed from trauma born of experience, stepping back was the right move.
In the end, I decided to follow his advice.
"This isn't because I don't trust you."
But I wasn't letting it go entirely.
"I'm doing it because you want me to. So put the necklace on me yourself, Darsi."
He moved behind me at my words.
I tilted my head slightly to make it easier for him.
"You turn me into such a coward around you."
There was a mesmerizing power in his grasping voice. An irresistible force.
"I'm not like this normally."
His hand touched the nape of my neck. The heat from his much larger hand stung the spots where he'd held my hand before.
His hot breath and fingers brushed against my skin up close.
'What's this about?'
I sucked in a breath and clenched my fists.
The music swelling behind us reached its climax, and my tension peaked.
"All done."
His voice, announcing the end like the music, came with a ragged exhale.
'Thank goodness.'
I was relieved he couldn't see my face.
I'd been sulking just moments ago, and now I was flustered like this? Even I found it ridiculous.
But Darsi had a way of shattering my composure at the most unexpected times.
"Marso."
Just hearing him say my name made my heart race. To hide it, I turned my head.
"Yeah."
Darsi looked into my eyes. A flicker of fire lit his. My face burned as if scorched. The heat in my cheeks conveyed the fluttering in my chest.
"...There's something I want to do to you right now."
He hesitated. Something held him back. Conscience? Desire? I couldn't tell.
I knew the tension and thrill I felt weren't just from friendship.
I could tell him to stop. I'd thought I wasn't ready to get close to anyone yet. It was one reason I'd rejected Rido outright.
Reject him. Re...
"I told you to do whatever you want."
But what slipped from my lips was encouragement.
...Was I being too obvious?
Feeling my face flush crimson, I hurriedly added,
"I'll say no if I don't like it."
Darsi gazed at me intently.
"The necklace suits you."
He smiled faintly and took my hand slowly.
"...I wish the feelings I have for you were nothing but noble and beautiful."
Darsi stepped in front of me and knelt.
"This... it's too impure."
Where? What part? No matter what you do, I could never think of you that way.
He pressed his lips to the back of my hand.
The sticky, lingering kiss was reverent.
Like he was branding me.
He held my hand tightly for a long while. When he finally pulled away, our eyes met. I barely blocked his gaze heading to my lips. My lost eyes wandered.
A soft chuckle escaped him.
"I'll let you go now."
Darsi rose and turned his back to me.
"Or I might do more."
His voice had sunk distinctly from before.
"Take care, Marso. The servants will guide you out of the palace."
Completely calm unlike me, Darsi finished his farewell and turned away. He refused to show me his face.
As if he had to.
'Is he sorting through confusing feelings like I am?'
I needed time to gather my thoughts too.
The back of my hand still burned where his lips had touched.
Following the servant, I looked up at the night sky.
"Wow..."
The stars embroidered beautifully across it cleared my mind.
It had been ages since I'd attended a ball, and though much had happened, it was fun.
...I'd gained something from it too.
'I wonder what Darsi's doing.'
Thinking of him brought back the press of his lips on my hand.
...If just the back of my hand felt like this, what would it be like elsewhere?
My face, cooled by the night air, heated up again.
I hoped I wasn't the only one feeling this way.
The prince of the ball, Darsi, never returned to the hall.
Kies was displeased. He grumbled about punishing him later, but the nobles sensed the tension.
The newly appeared prince possessed something that had the emperor under his thumb.
Nobles who had only had Ryan as an option began to divide.
Rumors even spread that Marso, who had vanished with him, was clearly his lover.
Complete with the limited-circulation magic crystal as a gift.
People speculated on why Marso—who was known to have longed for Ryan for so long—had finally cut ties with him.
And so a new rumor was born.
Marso ended things with Ryan because of Darsi.
Because he had a higher chance of becoming crown prince.
Ryan had something unfit for a crown prince.
What could it be?
The rumors once aimed at Marso shifted course and began to flow elsewhere.