‘Can a snowman be handsome?’

While I was looking at the white, huge, and handsome snowman with suspicious eyes.

Twitch.

The white, huge, and handsome snowman moved.

‘…!’

I opened my eyes wide in surprise.

‘A moving snowman…?’

No. In this world, there can be white and huge snowmen, and even giving the benefit of the doubt, there might be handsome snowmen, but there’s no such thing as moving snowmen.

‘Then this is…!’

As I stared with trembling eyes, the white, huge, handsome, and even moving snowman twitched once more.

Then the snow pieces covering the snowman’s face fell away with a swoosh, revealing the hidden features underneath.

The first things visible were those seductively sculptured eyes and straight, sharp nose.

The moment I met those dawn-sky blue eyes, I realized the identity of this suspicious snowman.

“C-Cail?”

When I unconsciously raised my voice, he smiled whitely.

“I’ve been waiting, Jella.”

“…!”

It really was Cail!

As I tried to step back in surprise, he held me back with a choked voice.

“Don’t go.”

I hesitated.

My heart ached to see him unable to grab me with his snow-wet hands, just staring at me with moist eyes.

“No, why did you become a snowman… Don’t tell me you’ve been standing here all night like this?”

“I had something I absolutely needed to tell you…”

“How could you stand there getting covered in all that snow? And I told you yesterday I was going to bed early.”

“But you weren’t sleeping.”

When I scolded him, upset at seeing him frozen like a snowman, he responded in a calm voice.

That innocent response, without a trace of resentment, made my conscience sting.

“…Come inside first.”

I brought him in and lit the fireplace. His clothes were completely soaked, and he looked like he might catch a cold if left like this.

“Felitz, bring some warm water and clothes to change into.”

“Yes, Sister!”

While Felitz went to get a change of clothes, I vigorously dried his body with a towel. Water droplets kept falling from his wet hair.

Cail just stood there blankly, watching the water droplets fall.

“You should take off your shirt.”

“Yes.”

Cail nodded obediently and started unbuttoning his shirt.

However, perhaps because he had been buried in the cold snow for too long, his trembling fingers kept slipping and failing to undo the buttons.

“Ah…”

After several failed attempts, he slightly blushed and glanced at me.

“Come here. I’ll do it for you.”

Finding it frustrating to just watch, I gestured for him to come closer, and Cail came trotting over like an obedient puppy.

Pop.

Pop.

Pop.

The buttons came undone easily.

‘Was this difficult?’

Tilting my head in confusion, I pulled off his shirt.

This revealed his magnificent upper body that looked like it had been carved by a master craftsman.

As my eyes were naturally drawn to the old scars scattered here and there.

“Wait.”

I unconsciously grabbed him and stared intently at his left chest.

I definitely felt Helasio’s energy near his heart just now. You know, that cursed little dragon that once parasitized my heart.

But the energy disappeared quickly.

‘Did I feel it wrong?’

I narrowed my eyes to focus, but couldn’t feel anything.

‘Right. That dragon brat must have died with me.’

While I was lost in thought, glaring at his chest with suspicious eyes.

“Gasp!”

Felitz, who was bringing clean clothes and warm water, made a strange sound.

“What is it?”

When I turned around with a frown, Felitz waved both hands with a completely flustered expression.

“N-Nothing, Sister! I-I just think pouncing is much more wholesome than assassination…”

“Pouncing?”

Only then did I realize how this situation might look strange to others and my face turned bright red.

“W-Who’s pouncing on who!”

First, they treated me like a thug who goes around beating people up, and now they’re treating me like a pervert who pounces on innocent men.

Just as I was raising my voice to scold Felitz.

“I’m fine with either.”

Cail, who had been standing quietly, said to me.

“Huh…?”

As I stared at him, not understanding his words for a moment,

Whoosh!

Suddenly he wrapped his thick arms around my body.

In an instant, my body was completely embraced against his firm bare chest.

“Whether it’s assassination or being pounced on. If it’s by you.”

“Cail?”

As I looked up at him with bated breath, surprised by his sudden action, he slowly tilted his head toward my ear.

Then he whispered in a moist voice.

“Please pounce on me until you feel better.”

“Kyaaang!”

…That horrifying scream that followed came from Felitz’s mouth.

Felitz covered his bright red face with both hands, yet still managed to peek through his fingers at us. The added ‘Kyak!’ sounds he made while his lips quivered were just extra.

Where on earth did he learn to make such strange screaming sounds?

“I-I didn’t see anything, Sister!”

“You, get out!”

I first chased away the noisy Felitz.

“And you, back off!”

Then I threw the clean new clothes Felitz had brought at Cail while shouting.

“If that’s what you command.”

He chuckled lowly as he stepped away from me.

Then he picked up Felitz’s shirt from the floor and started putting his arms through it.

I watched him with deliberately serious eyes and thought.

It seems certain now.

I had felt it before when he suddenly offered to take responsibility for the night by the fountain, but during these 5 years I didn’t know about, Cail Aleret has…

‘Definitely become a frivolous man who meets any woman.’

Otherwise, there’s no way he would casually say such… such ticklish things.

By now, Cail had changed and turned to look at me.

Due to their size difference, Felitz’s shirt was a bit small on Cail. Especially around his chest area, which looked like it might burst at any moment…

“….”

My eyes unconsciously drifted there, but when I noticed his head tilting questioningly at me, I quickly rolled my eyes away and changed the subject.

“What exactly did you want to say that made you stand there like that?”

Remembering him as a snowman made my voice naturally turn sulky with concern.

He chuckled at that.

Just as I was about to say something more, not understanding why he was laughing when I hadn’t said anything particularly amusing.

“I hate that woman. That’s what I waited to tell you.”

He answered in a calm voice.

“That woman?”

“Yuria.”

I blinked in surprise at hearing Yuria’s name from his lips.

This was the first time Cail had directly talked to me about Yuria.

“I hate her. So much I want to kill her. No, I’ve always wanted to kill her.”

“Hmmm…?”

“Because that woman, to you…”

Cail spoke with a twisted expression and an uncharacteristically crooked voice.

“She kept trying to slander you.”

“…?”

This time I truly couldn’t understand his words and just stared at him blankly.

Cail hates Yuria?

That can’t be.

I knew he had special feelings for Yuria.

No man lingers outside the bedroom of a woman he hates.

No man suffers when a woman he hates disappears.

Yet now he says he hates Yuria.

‘Could it be…’

Did he come to hate her because she suddenly disappeared 5 years ago?

But saying that would paradoxically admit that he liked Yuria, so he’s using me as an excuse…

“In case you misunderstand, I’m not using you as an excuse to hide my feelings.”

“Uh, uh…?”

“You sometimes think too much about unnecessary things. There’s no other reason. I hate that woman. Because she tried to slander you. That’s all you need to know.”

Cail looked straight at me and spoke in a clear voice, as if inputting each word into my mind one by one.

“Uh…”

As I nodded as if enchanted, I suddenly found something odd in his words.

“No, wait! Wait a minute!”

I hurriedly grabbed him and protested.

“T-That’s impossible!”

“…Are my true feelings not reaching you?”

He bit his lower lip and looked at me with reproachful eyes.

“No, that’s not it…!”

I shook my head vigorously and exclaimed.

“I’m just an ordinary apothecary and I only met Lady Yuria yesterday?”

“…Ah.”

Cail’s face instantly deflated.

“That’s right. You met that woman for the first time yesterday.”

Then he chuckled and added.

“Still, just know this. I don’t like that woman. I hate her. I want to kill her.”

“But why are you telling me this…?”

As I asked in a still confused voice, he gave a faint smile.

“When that woman appeared yesterday.”

“….”

“You looked so lonely.”

“I did…?”

I unconsciously touched my face, stroking my cheek.

Did I really?

As I looked back at Cail feeling dazed, I wondered if it was just my imagination that his face looking down at me seemed even lonelier.

“By the way, Jella.”

It was then.

He gently grabbed my hand which was still scratching my cheek and held it.

Then he leaned toward me and asked in a low voice.

“When will you pounce on me?”

T/n: And with this, it’s official. Jella has nerves of steel. Or should I say, she’s got a backbone made of titanium and a side of pure unadulterated NOPE! ʘ‿ʘ