“It’s probably easier on the mind not to care about anything at all.”

With sharp, watchful eyes fixed on him, Calix had little choice but to raise both hands in surrender. He emptied his thoughts, as if deciding he would no longer concern himself with the matter, and went to sit in a seat tucked away in the corner.

In the midst of the bustling chaos, his still, seated figure felt strangely out of place. But true to his word, Calix even took off his jacket, draped it over his face, and made as if to sleep.

‘Right. What could a man like him possibly do here, surrounded by Imperial soldiers? For all I know, he might be even happier that Selina’s gone.’

The marquis clicked his tongue. He had held Calix back, worried the man might catch on to any scheme involving Selina—but seeing him like this, it was a relief.

While the marquis turned his attention away from Calix to receive a report from his aide—

“Your Grace… you’re really not going to look for my lady?”

Alter, watching Calix lounging as if without a care in the world, asked in a worried tone.

“Then what? If we make the wrong move here, the arrows could end up aimed at us instead.”

It was Zenfri who answered in Calix’s place—a man who believed firmly in putting his own safety first.

With Imperial citizens everywhere, there was no real danger to the lady. At worst, she had simply lost her way. So they might as well sit and wait for things to resolve themselves. That was his usual way of thinking—

“Alter.”

To his surprise, it was Calix—whom he had assumed was already asleep—calling his name from beneath the jacket.

“Yes?”

“Are there many people nearby?”

“No, sir. Everyone’s gone off to search for my lady, it seems.”

“How tall are you again?”

Caught off guard by the sudden question, Alter nonetheless replied with a note of pride.

“I was measured at 183 centimeters during my physical earlier this year! They even said I might still grow taller.”

“Is that so? Not bad. Better than Zenfri.”

“What? Well, of course I’m taller than Captain Zenfri, but saying it outright like that…”

“Take off your jacket and cover your face.”

A look of confusion spread across Alter’s face. He didn’t understand why, but since it was the Grand Duke’s order, he obeyed—removing his jacket and draping it over his face, still wearing an expression that clearly said he had no idea what was going on.

“Ah—oh, no, don’t you dare.”

Only Zenfri seemed to catch on, his face twisting in pure distaste as he tried to stop it.

But Calix paid him no mind.

“Good. Now sit here in my place.”

“What?”

Though flustered, Alter did as he was told. He sat on the chair exactly as the Grand Duke had, tilting his head slightly.

“For heaven’s sake, can’t you go one moment without doing something like this? Will it kill you to just stay still?”

Zenfri muttered, rubbing his face in exasperation.

“As long as I’m back before anyone notices, it’ll be fine.”

‘Ha… unreal.’

Zenfri bit back the curses threatening to spill out.

Calix had been this way since he was young. Acting on impulse, doing exactly what he wanted without considering the situation—if he wanted to do something, he simply did it.

Zenfri had thought perhaps the position of Grand Duke might have tempered him, but no… here they were again.

“And why exactly are you taking such a risk? Don’t tell me you’re actually worried about my lady.”

Calix replied in a flat tone,

“You should say I’m worried about my own safety.”

“What? Your safety?”

“If Selina’s in danger, suspicion falls on me. And if I just sit here doing nothing to find her, won’t that suspicion grow even worse?”

At least he hadn’t acted entirely impulsively.

“Ah…! So I just have to pretend to be the Grand Duke and sit here acting the part?”

At last grasping the situation, Alter’s eyes lit up, unable to hide his excitement.

“I’m counting on you, Zenfri. And on you, my dependable Alter.”

“Yes, sir! You can count on this dependable Alter!”

Seemingly enamored with the word dependable, Alter crossed his legs and pressed the jacket down over his face, perfectly imitating the Grand Duke’s earlier posture.

“Excellent.”

Like praising a well-behaved dog, Calix gave Alter’s head a few light pats before disappearing in a direction where no one was around. Zenfri, watching him go with a look of disgust, quickly turned his head away.

“Worried about his safety, my *ss.”

It was true that Calix had shown more emotion these days than in the past, but what exactly was behind it—even Zenfri couldn’t guess.

Calix left Alter to act in his stead and made his way towards the forest in search of Selina.

But Imperial soldiers were standing guard at the entrance.

He had expected as much, but upon seeing their numbers, he realised that slipping past them unnoticed would be no easy task.

As he considered how to proceed, his eyes fell on a lone, somewhat hapless-looking Imperial soldier. Grabbing the man by the scruff of his neck, Calix asked,

“Let me borrow this for a moment.”

“W-what?!”

The soldier, flustered, seemed caught between crying out or keeping silent—so Calix solved the problem by shoving his hunting glove into the man’s mouth.

Once the soldier was unconscious, Calix stripped him of his armor and helm, draped his own jacket over the man’s body, and smiled faintly.

“This is worth far more, so you’re not at a loss. Don’t mistake yourself for unlucky—be grateful you’re luckier than most.”

Leaving the man in a spot where he wouldn’t be seen, Calix mounted his horse, now disguised as an Imperial soldier heading to join the search.

No one questioned him as he rode, and so, free from suspicion, he entered the forest path to follow Selina’s footprints.

But—

Pat, pat-pat.

Rain began to fall from the darkening sky.

The soil started to soften and collapse, and the faint traces of her footprints began to wash away.

Fearing that they would vanish entirely if he delayed any longer, Calix urged his horse into a faster pace.

He had no idea how long he had been riding through the forest when he realised just how far he had travelled. Given how far he had come, it seemed impossible that Selina could have made it there too. His instincts told him he was heading in the right direction, but reason insisted it made no sense.

Beyond this point lay a dangerous area teeming with monsters.

No matter how badly she had lost her way, there was no reason why she should have come this far, unless there was another explanation.

Calix stood at the edge of a steep cliff, debating whether to turn his horse around, when—

Flutter.

Through the rain, something strange caught his eye—an unusual lifeform shimmering in the air. He had never seen its like before. Almost as if trying to draw his gaze, it circled within his sight, then slowly drifted downward, pointing toward something lying at the base of the cliff.

“…Selina?”

Calix’s expression tightened.

He hadn’t expected to find her here, of all places, let alone in such a state.

Securing his horse to a tree, he grabbed onto the branches and began to climb down. The rain-soaked earth squelched beneath his feet as he pushed his way through undergrowth almost as tall as he was.

As he drew nearer, he decided it would be better not to reveal his identity just yet. After all, slipping away from the tournament grounds without permission was partly his doing.

“There you are. I’ve come to escort you.”

So he deliberately tried to pass himself off as an Imperial soldier.

“Calix?”

But it was pointless—Selina recognized him instantly. For reasons he would never understand, she had an ear for him alone.

‘It’s Calix.’

At first, Selina thought the voice might be a hallucination or a monster imitating human speech. However, when she saw the figure of a man and heard the voice again, she knew immediately that it was Calix.

‘Calix came all the way here for me?’

She had never imagined that he would do it. Maybe an unknown Imperial soldier would come to save her, but Calix? She would have considered herself lucky if he hadn’t been glad to see her go. He was not a man to waste time on anything that did not benefit him.

And yet here he was, soaked through by the rain, having descended the high cliff to stand by her side.

The moment she recognised him, he tore off his helmet and pulled her into his arms.

“Wh-why did you come all the way here?”

In truth, she had wished she could see him one last time—because only at the very end had she been able to admit the truth in her heart.

But that truth had come with the thought that she would never see Calix again.

If she were to meet him like this, if she were to survive once more because of him—

‘…If that happened, I don’t think I could bear the weight of my feelings anymore.’

Selina bit down hard on her lip.

“Why did you come to save me?”

Her voice was as small as a dying flame, drenched and flickering in the rain.

‘You’re not someone who would ever truly let me in. You’ve had someone else in your heart for a long time.”

‘So why give me hope? Why make it impossible for me to stop loving you?”

“Why would you come this far… because of me…”

Selina suddenly broke into tears.

In fact, she should be bowing down in gratitude for what he had done, yet the sadness welled up all the same.

“Then tell me—who else but a madman like me would come this far?”

Looking down at her with calm eyes, Calix pulled her closer and shielded her from the rain.

“You owe me a life.”