“You’re the one who spread rumors about me and recklessly rushed in under the excuse of helping. How do you plan to help?”

As Kaiel listed her actions one by one, Delia felt both guilt and embarrassment.

But she couldn’t back down.

At least, now she had succeeded in engaging Kaiel in conversation. Considering the past six months where she hadn’t seen a trace of him, this was a huge opportunity.

Moreover, just talking to her favorite character, Kaiel Ceder, was incredibly enjoyable for her.

As Kaiel drew his sword halfway, Delia spoke urgently.

“You’re right, Your Grace, but please hear me out first.”

Their eyes met as she looked up at him. After a few silent seconds, he stopped drawing his sword and walked away without listening to her.

“I’m busy.”

A faint scent of fresh grass lingered in the air as he moved. The subtle fragrance that brushed past her nose reminded Delia of something.

‘Come to think of it, that scent earlier.’

“Your Grace!”

Delia ran and grabbed the hem of Kaiel’s cloak.

“For real, this is the last time.”

She recalled the faint scent she had noticed when she hugged his neck earlier. It was a mix of the cool scent of dawn air and the fresh scent of grass, with a unique smell in between. It wasn’t a body odor but a concentrated scent from a specific part of his body.

‘Herbal medicine.’

The bitter smell of various herbs and beneficial ingredients emanated from his inner pocket.

Through this scent, Delia realized exactly which point in the novel she had entered.

He had started gathering various herbs for his ailing mother around the middle of the novel.

Before that, Kaiel had hardly any presence in the story. Even Delia, the author, didn’t know what he was doing in the early parts of the novel, so she didn’t dare to look for him even after entering this world.

‘I regretted not detailing what Kaiel was doing in the early parts of the novel!’

The event that marked his full-fledged rise as a villain was the sudden deterioration of his mother’s health due to ‘something.’ Considering how Kaiel became endlessly cruel and violent after this, it was clear how much anger he harbored over the incident.

Given that, it was obvious Kaiel was currently focused on that ‘something,’ and mentioning it would surely catch his interest. And that ‘something’ was…

“Lapocia!”

Kaiel, who was about to coldly shake off Delia’s grip on his cloak, froze in place.

“You….”

“You’re troubled by it, aren’t you? Right?”

His initially startled eyes quickly regained composure. He seemed to think the likelihood of her genuinely knowing about it was very low. With a skeptical look, he slowly asked Delia,

“How do you know about that?”

Delia noticed that he had changed how he addressed her¹from 그쪽(polite/formal) to 너 (informal/casual/could be rude depending on the context). Was it caution or surprise?

She gently released his cloak from her hand.

“I told you, Your Grace.”

Instead, she took a step closer to him.

“I know everything about Tranade and about you, Your Grace. So….”

Delia’s eyes curved charmingly.

“Take me with you, Kaiel.”

“My name….”

Kaiel’s face briefly showed displeasure at the sudden mention of his name but quickly returned to normal.

“…Fine.”

He stepped back from Delia, maintaining a cautious distance.

Her eyes followed his movements persistently.

Those large green eyes filled with expectation and hope.

Kaiel spoke seriously to those eyes.

“Very few people know about lapocia. If you don’t know it well, it’s best to keep quiet.”

“Yes!”

Her response was immediate.

“That won’t happen. Don’t worry.”

Kaiel pondered for a moment and then raised his head.

“…How did you know that I’m troubled because of lapocia?”

“Well….”

Unlike her quick response before, this time, no answer came out of her mouth immediately.

How could she explain that she was the author and knew everything because she created this world?

He wouldn’t believe it even if she said it, and telling such a thing to a character was impossible in the first place.

After a brief pause, Delia opened her mouth.

“I’ll tell you later if you take me with you.”

At those words, Kaiel’s eyebrows raised slightly and then lowered.

Having said this much, Kaiel would have no choice but to take her with him. He was indeed troubled by lapocia.

‘Lapocia.’

The thing that poisoned and worsened his mother’s health.

Lapocia was a poisonous plant with narcotic properties, which would later cause great harm, driving the Sheriton Empire to ruin.

The title of her original work was <Lapocia> because that lapocia was the root cause of all the events in the novel.

Since no one knew much about this poisonous plant at the moment, she was the only one who could help Kaiel.

“If you make even the slightest mistake, you’re as good as dead.”

The stern voice warning her hit her ears.

“Of course. If you find me useless, you can discard me right away!”

She knew well that once she started accompanying him, there would be no turning back.

‘This is really the beginning….’

At the same time, it would also be an opportunity to kill him properly. For now, that was enough.

Kaiel stared at Delia, looking her up and down.

“Um….”

Feeling ticklish wherever his gaze landed, Delia stepped out of his sight.

“…Would you allow me?”

She asked cautiously.

“……”

“Your Grace…?”

There was no answer.

Kaiel ignored her question and walked out of the door, disappearing.

Even she, who was confident he would take her, felt uneasy, thinking, ‘Surely he wouldn’t leave alone like that?’

The innkeeper, Heather, who had been watching them with bated breath, hurriedly approached Delia.

“Hey, you… You’re not really thinking of following him, are you? Why….”

His face was full of worry and dissuasion. They had become quite close friends over the past six months.

As she was about to answer regretfully, she heard his voice cutting through the cold air from outside.

“Follow me.”

***

Kaiel didn’t wait for Delia and climbed into the carriage with his long legs.

Delia, who barely managed to follow him, exhaled a steady breath. Her cheeks were flushed like ripe peaches from running in the chilly air.

“Your steps are so fast, probably because your legs are long.”

She spoke in a thin voice as she stepped onto the carriage where Kaiel was.

The coachman, who hesitated to help her, finally extended a hand when he saw her struggling with the high carriage.

“Thank you.”

Delia briefly thanked him and sat down in the carriage.

The inside of the carriage was narrower than she expected. Sitting opposite Kaiel made the distance between them quite close.

Her breath was still rough, possibly because the aftermath of running hadn’t subsided yet. Worried that he might hear her breathing, she slowly held her breath and exhaled.

‘To think there would come a day when I’d sit in a carriage facing Kaiel….’

Her heart was starting to beat faster.

“Get off.”

His voice, cold as ice, slowed her heartbeat again.

“…Pardon?”

Startled by his sudden command, Delia looked at him in confusion.

“When did I say you could ride with me?”

“Uh….”

“You must not have understood.”

Kaiel reached out and reopened the door that the coachman had just closed.

“Get off.”

“…No!”

At her firm refusal, Kaiel glared at Delia.

She knew she was annoying him greatly.

Delia was aware of this.

She could have obediently followed his words, but for some reason, she didn’t want to.

“Get off.”

“No.”

She answered, meeting his glaring eyes directly.

Kaiel glaring at someone was a rare sight.

Maybe that’s why. Delia felt strangely elated, thinking that his expression had become a bit more diverse thanks to her.

She wanted him to express his emotions properly, even if she couldn’t make him smile. He was a character who rarely showed much change in expression or emotion.

After all, as the ruler of Tranade, who could he openly show his true feelings to? Everyone around him must have been desperate not to displease him even a little.

‘Smiling or openly getting angry must have been rare for him.’

So she simply wanted to break the dam of emotions he had suppressed until now. She couldn’t give up on the situation where he expressed his emotions, even if they were negative, because of her.

“It’s so cold outside! I won’t go out.”

There was a small laugh in her voice.

When Delia continued to refuse to get out, Kaiel soon averted his gaze from her.

“Isn’t it too cold outside?”

She smiled brightly, thinking he had given up.

“…One.”

Suddenly, Kaiel started counting.

It was a habit he had when commanding or training troops on the battlefield. A commanding ‘one’ that made you feel like you had to stop everything and follow his words immediately, and then,

“Two.”

“You can’t do this.”

“Three….”

“Ah! Okay, okay. I’ll get out! I’m out.”

Delia reluctantly jumped out of the carriage.

Was this how the soldiers felt during training? Even though she couldn’t see his face as he had turned away, the fear from those three numbers was immense.

“Ah!”

She stopped and turned back, poking her head into the carriage.

“What would you have done if I didn’t move even after counting to three?”

Before she could finish her question, Kaiel closed the carriage door.