The woman gave a slight smile.

“We’re still looking into the items from ‘Baltgar’ you mentioned. It looks like we’ll be able to recover most of them. About half have been retrieved over the past two years, so with another year or two, we should have the rest.”

Reina took a sip of the warm tea.

The woman glanced at her, gauging her mood before continuing.

“Is your reason for restoring the Marquessate of Baltgar a secret too?”

“I just thought it wouldn’t be so bad to own a castle.”

Reina replied casually, brushing the question off.

Sensing that it wasn’t the truth, the woman didn’t press any further.

“We’ve completed the evaluation. No damage, excellent preservation, and all of high quality.”

The jewels had been fully dismantled and were now neatly arranged in trays. A sheet listing the number, size, and carat weight of each stone was handed to Reina. She double-checked the counts and types. Even the gold and platinum that had once set the jewels amounted to more than she expected.

“We’ll proceed as before.”

“I’ll take care of it.”

“I’ll send you a letter.”

Reina nodded and got to her feet, gripping her cane.

‘That took longer than expected.’

Zephion must be bored by now. That was why she had told him to just stay at the estate in the first place.

“Well then—”

Just as she was about to say her goodbyes, a scream rang out from outside.

“Catch him!”

“Kyaaah!”

“Are you okay?”

“It’s a thief!”

Dozens of voices clashed in a chaotic uproar. A chill ran down her spine.

“Zephion…!”

She barely managed to choke out his name through her tightening throat. Behind her, Yuta rushed out immediately. Reina struck her cane hard against the floor and forced herself forward. Her heart was already outside, but her body wouldn’t follow fast enough.

Limping as quickly as she could, she finally reached the scene. A crowd had gathered, forming a wide circle. As she pushed through the people, she saw Zephion—collapsed on the ground.

“Pipi!”

She dropped to her knees beside him. The first thing she noticed was his pale, blood-drained face. His complexion wasn’t good at all, yet an overwhelming sense of relief washed over her—he was alive. Her entire body trembled as the tension drained from her limbs, leaving her arms weak and shaking.

Zephion forced a crooked smile through the pain.

“Reina…”

“There’s no threat to his life, thankfully.”

Yuta said. He had been administering first aid, firmly tying a long strip of torn cloth around Zephion’s shoulder.

“Ugh… that hurts, Yuta.”

“Be thankful it ended with just this.”

“What happened?”

Reina asked, her eyes fixed on the blood-soaked cloth wrapped around the boy’s shoulder. The fabric pressing against the wound was already turning red with fresh blood.

“We should move from here first.”

Yuta said, lifting Zephion gently. After helping the boy into the carriage, he extended a hand to Reina as well.

The sight of his blood-stained hand made her head spin. She shut her eyes tightly for a moment. When she finally stood, her legs refused to cooperate.

Without a word, Yuta picked her up effortlessly and seated her inside the carriage.

Then, without delay, he took the reins and began driving them back toward the Berend estate.

“I’m the one who got hurt… so why do you look like that, Reina?”

“You can still joke right now?”

Zephion gave a faint smile despite his pale face, which only made her angrier.

“What happened?”

The carriage jolted more roughly than usual. Zephion flinched and groaned, pressing down on his wound as though the movement had made it hurt again.

“I don’t know… They just opened the carriage door all of a sudden…”

“…”

“When I told them to leave, they suddenly swung a knife at me… aagh.”

“They just suddenly swung a knife at you?”

Zephion nodded. Reina bit down hard on her lip.

‘A robbery?’

Robberies like this were not uncommon. Carriages belonging to wealthy families often carried valuables. But in broad daylight? And to draw a weapon after seeing someone inside?

“I should’ve brought a sword.”

Zephion muttered, clenching his fist. Blood from his wound had soaked into the carriage seat.

Reina parted her lips to speak.

“Still, I narrowly avoided the worst.”

He said with a faint smile. Reina looked at his smiling face, pale but trying to stay cheerful.

“Yuta, considering everything, isn’t this outcome pretty decent?”

“It’s only decent if you subdue the attacker.”

Yuta replied sharply from the driver’s seat.

“But still… aagh. That’s the first time someone’s ever tried to kill me.”

Zephion said, breathing heavily.

“Reina, I feel dizzy…”

“Stay with me.”

“Haa…”

His eyes fluttered shut, then slowly opened again. Reina gently tapped his pale cheek.

“We’re almost there.”

“I’m not going to die.”

Zephion whispered, still smiling faintly.

By now, the smell of blood had filled the entire carriage.

As soon as they arrived at the estate, chaos erupted.

The doctor came and stitched up the wound. The blade had nearly gone clean through, but fortunately, neither bone nor major muscle had been damaged. The doctor reassured them several times that he would recover just fine.

Only then did Reina finally sink into a chair, as if her legs had given out.

Zephion, still pale from the blood loss, turned to look at her.

“It’s you who looks like you’re about to collapse!”

“…How are you? Are you okay?”

“It hurts, but I’m okay. The doctor said I’ll be fine.”

“Get plenty of rest.”

Her whole body felt heavy now that the tension had drained away. She thought she might just fall asleep right there in the chair.

Zephion quietly looked at her for a moment, then extended his uninjured hand.

“Stay with me.”

Reina stared quietly at the hand reaching out to her. It was still small and slender—but when had it grown so firm and strong?

“I stayed by your side when you were ill, didn’t I?”

“Pipi…”

The day she’d first given him that nickname came to mind. Slowly, she reached out and held his hand tightly.

“This is exactly why I say you’re still a kid.”

“That’s right. I’m a kid, so stay with me.”

“Oh, now you’re a kid?”

“Would you rather treat me like an adult at a time like this?”

“You never miss a beat.”

She said this with a soft laugh. She pressed the back of her hand to his forehead. He had a slight fever, which might have been caused by the pain.

Zephion’s eyes slowly opened and closed.

“If Kaelid comes by today, don’t go.”

“…”

“I’m hurt, aren’t I? Just for today… stay with me.”

His grip tightened painfully around her hand.

“Reina…”

His lips moved faintly.

“Please… stay with me.”

There was a pleading edge to his voice. It made her want to say yes without hesitation. Zephion looked at her with an expression that was on the verge of tears.

“…Alright, I’ll stay.”

Only then did a smile spread across his face.

“Really?”

“Yes. I promise.”

She gently stroked his cheek, still soft with a trace of baby fat. Like a child seeking comfort, Zephion nuzzled into her palm, exhaling deeply as his eyes slowly fluttered shut.

“Sleep.”

“You’ll still be here when I wake up, right?”

“Yes.”

Zephion closed his eyes, still clutching Reina’s hand. Whether from the medicine or exhaustion, his breathing soon settled into a steady rhythm. She watched his weary face in silence. As he slept, he looked unmistakably like a child.

‘Thank goodness his injury isn’t worse.’

Why did she feel such relief? Was it only because he was the key to completing her revenge? If that were the whole story, she wouldn’t feel this fear.

At first, Zephion had been just another pawn on the chessboard; she had felt no particular affection for him. Yet, at some point, he had lodged himself deep in her heart. The mere thought of the hatred he would one day harbour for her caused a dull ache to bloom in her chest.

She wished he wouldn’t suffer. She wished he could be happy. In fact, part of her wondered if it would be better if he never awoke to hatred or revenge and could simply continue living unaware.

Reina tightened her grip on his calloused hand.

Only now did she understand the fear of losing Zephion—and how much more painful that fear was than she had expected.

“Zephion…”

She bit her lip.

‘What should I do with you?’

Just as she turned that thought over in her mind, the door swung open with a bang. Assuming it was a servant, she didn’t look up—until footsteps she recognized all too well crossed the threshold. By the time she lifted her head, a rough hand had already seized her arm.