‘Could Calix really be in a place like this?’

Even as she followed Callios, Selina could not shake off her unease. Although they had agreed to meet in the garden, they soon left the castle and went to a secluded place. The dark, silent surroundings reminded her of the day she had been trapped in the underground labyrinth.

What if the promise to let her meet Calix had been a lie all along?

Each time this reasonable doubt surfaced, Selina consciously pushed the thought aside.

‘Callios isn’t the kind of person to stab someone in the back. If he’d intended to kill me from the start, he wouldn’t have saved me in the underground labyrinth.’

Having observed Callios closely, she was certain that he would not devise unnecessary schemes. Strangely enough, it was precisely this nature that inspired a certain degree of trust in her, even in such deeply unsettling circumstances.

Callios led her further into the forest. The path was rough and overgrown, winding through dense woods as though no human had set foot there in years. The trail was barely discernible. After forcing her way past tangled branches and walking on for some time, a lone cabin came into view. Its presence was jarringly out of place against the untouched wilderness surrounding it.

‘Is Calix in there?’

It was an easily overlooked place. It was the kind of place where Calix might have been hiding.

As her suspicions turned to certainty, her heart began to race. Gripping her chest, which felt as though it might burst, she forced herself towards the cabin.

Callos opened the door, and she followed him inside.

The instant the door swung open, a stale odor — a mixture of dust and aged wood — wafted out. The cabin was small and steeped in darkness. The only thing visible in the pale moonlight streaming through the narrow opening was a large mirror.

In its reflection, she could see a single bed. Beyond the vague silhouettes of a few bulky pieces of furniture, the rest of the interior was consumed by shadow, leaving everything else indistinct and unseen.

“C-Calix?”

Believing that Calix must be somewhere inside, Selina cautiously called his name. Whether he would welcome her or not was a secondary concern.

‘I want to see Calix.’

She had endured three long years, clinging only to the hope that he was alive somewhere.

The thought of missing Calix again and never seeing him ever made her longing all the more desperate.

“Calix.”

She called his name again and looked around inside the cabin. But there was no one there. There were signs that someone had lived there a long time ago, but no indication that anyone had stayed recently.

Once again, unease reared its head.

Unable to suppress it this time, Selina turned to Callios and asked.

“Where is Calix, exactly? You promised you’d let me meet him.”

However, Callios ignored the question. Leaning against the window, he took out a cigarette and held it to his lips. Having raised her expectations only to remain silent, he left her speechless.

“…Was it a joke?”

“……”

Seeing him remain silent to the very end, what welled up was not anger, but sorrow.

“Why would you do something like this…? If you didn’t know, you should have just said so. If that were the case, I—I…”

Then at least I wouldn’t have hoped.

She could have gone on living as before, thinking that Calix must be alive somewhere.

“I had hope…”

Her heart, brimming with expectation, shattered instantly, falling to the ground. Sorrow overwhelmed her and tears spilled from her eyes. She had vowed countless times never to cry in front of others, preferring to show them a stronger, more resilient side of herself. But in that moment, the emotions she had been holding back consumed her and she could not stop the tears from falling.

“I never said it was a joke.”

At these words, Callios slowly turned towards Selina. With one arm braced against the window, he looked at her as he exhaled a thin, pale stream of smoke. The sharp scent stung her nose, causing her to flinch and draw in a breath instinctively.

‘This….’

Someone once said that a scent can evoke old memories.

Selina recognized this scent.

It was familiar — ordinary, like lying in bed just before falling asleep — and so familiar that it felt comforting. However, as she tried to trace the memory, it felt as hazy as drifting smoke.

“You said you were hoping to meet Calix.”

Callios stood up straight and walked over to Selina from the window. Gripping her shoulders firmly, he pulled her upright. As she staggered into his arms, he turned her to face the mirror.

“I’m curious. What did you plan to do if you met him?”

Callios murmured, laughing quietly. The deep, weighty sound was an unfamiliar one for him, sending a shiver down her spine.

His fingers slowly brushed the hairs standing up on her neck before sliding down to her wrist. Dangling from her slender wrist was the moonstone bracelet, its once brilliant glow now dimmed.

Fixing his gaze on the small stone, he let out a brief, humorless chuckle.

“Interesting. I didn’t expect it to be this much.”

“W-what do you mean by that?”

“It isn’t even imbued with magic, yet it’s a rather clever stone.”

He nodded as if impressed, then held out the ring. Set in the ring was a gemstone that resembled black obsidian. Unlike ordinary stones, however, there was something within it that rippled like waves.

“Have you ever heard of rings imbued with magic?”

“…No.”

“I thought someone who handles spirits would know.”

He muttered with a hint of disappointment, then added.

“There are many strange things in this world. Tools that, when infused with magic, allow things that ordinarily wouldn’t be possible. For example—”

Callios spoke as he toyed with the ring on his finger.

“A ring that completely changes one’s appearance and aura, turning them into someone else.”

“…What?”

At that moment, Selina felt a sharp pain, as though something had struck her in the head.

She had never even imagined that such a thing could exist.

But if—

If such a thing truly existed—

“There was one thing I found curious.”

—and if the ring on Callios’s finger was that very thing—

“Would people really be so easily fooled by someone who changes their appearance and pretends to be someone else? That’s what I wondered.”

Keeping Selina’s gaze fixed on the mirror, Callios took the ring off his finger. As though she already knew what would happen, Selina’s body began to tremble.

It shook as if she were having a fit, making it difficult for her to hold her head upright.

“It was easy.”

Callios forcefully lifted her chin, fixing it in place so she couldn’t pull away.

“I don’t think it would’ve been difficult to fool you, either.”

Callios murmured, laughing quietly. The deep, weighty sound was an unfamiliar one for him, sending a shiver down her spine.

His fingers slowly brushed the hairs standing up on her neck before sliding down to her wrist. Dangling from her slender wrist was the moonstone bracelet, its once brilliant glow now dimmed.

Fixing his gaze on the small stone, he let out a brief, humorless chuckle.

“I told you.”

Callios—no, Calix Silas—said as he brushed Selina’s cheek, her body frozen as if bewitched.

“That once you met Calix, you’d never be able to walk away from here.”

Long ago, it had been a captivating voice. The same low, heavy voice that had once left her reeling now sounded cold, like a demon’s whisper around a mere mortal.

“How is it?”

He traced her cheek with cold fingers and smiled faintly.

“You said you were hoping for this.”

Although it was the moment she had longed for, she could not bring herself to speak.

She had thought that finding out Calix was alive would make her feel as though she had gained the whole world.

But the truth was that Callios’s true identity was Calix — the man whose life and death she had thought uncertain — had been right beside her all along! And all this time, he had never once told her who he was.

“H-how could you hide it…?”

The first emotion she felt was hurt.

She could not understand him. If it had been Selina — if she had survived and been standing beside Calix — there would have been no way for her to hide who she was. She would have revealed her identity and tried to clear up every misunderstanding between them.

But Calix had never once revealed his identity. Instead, he had sided with the duke and taken on the role of watching over her.

“Did you deceive me because you resented me? All that time you watched me… what were you thinking?”

If he had truly been alive and well, he could have given her the slightest hint. Then perhaps she might have eased the constant anxiety she had endured while fearing for his fate, if only a little.

And yet, even as Selina collapsed into tears, Calix’s expression did not change.

With a face devoid of emotion, he spoke.

“That’s what you did to me, too.”

It was only then that Selina realized Calix had the wrong idea about her. She had to set the record straight. Even if they could not repair their relationship completely, she needed to make it clear that she had never intended to betray him.

“I—actually, that day…”

She meant to explain everything—what had happened that day, and what kinds of threats and conversations had passed between her and her father after the engagement.

But—

“Don’t cry.”

Calix cut her off firmly, as though he had no intention of listening to her sincerity.

“I’m not going to fall for your tears anymore.”

His voice was so dry it felt as though it could dry her tears entirely. There was no emotion directed at Selina within it.

“It seems you suffered quite a lot while I was gone.”

He whispered as he patted Selina, almost soothingly.

“Considering you even promised marriage to Waldemar already.”