Chapter 2 (Part 8)

The dangerous, cold gaze turned friendly again as it lifted its head to face Ria. But his inner turmoil, fueled by curiosity, remained. Rune released his grip on her foot, carefully placing it in his lap as if he didn’t want to give it too much pressure.

His mind raced to find the culprit who had pulled such a stunt. Eden still seemed innocent, so it had to be someone else… but no other person came to mind. As he thought about it, the only ones close to Ria were himself, Eden, and Kahin. 

Wait a moment.

“Was it Kahin?”

It was mere speculation, but strangely, Rune felt almost certain. He hoped Ria would deny it but a response came, not from Ria but from Kahin.

“Yes, it was me.”

Knowing that this situation would eventually arise, Kahin calmly admitted the truth. This only puzzled Rune even more. 

What would Ria call this situation in her world? Was it akin to letting the cat out of the bag? Or being stabbed in the back by a trusted axe?

What further bewildered him was Ria’s subsequent words.

“I’ve accepted Kahin.”

Ha. What the hell is going on? When? How? Why? 

All sorts of thoughts raced through his head, but he was quickly interrupted.

“The Empire allows polyamory, right? You both reasoned it out.”

“That’s…”

“So I accepted Kahin just as I accepted you because he confessed his love for me and took an oath. Why can’t I?”

Who knew the past would come back to bite him in the a$s. There was nothing to refute, even if his mouth had ten voices. Eden, who had climbed onto the bed after confessing his love and asked to be accepted, and Rune, who had known all along and eventually acquiesced for whatever reason.

After a moment of silence, Eden, who had been quietly present until now, knelt down on one at her feet. He gently held her foot with two petals engraved on it, he stared intently at the marks of the oath.

“I know. You’re right about everything you said because that’s how I could be with you.”

It was all self-inflicted. He hadn’t expected her to come out here with the same reasoning. But did it make any difference? No, it didn’t. He can’t go against her will, and if he did, it’ll be worse than hell.

“Do whatever you want to do. Anything. As long as you don’t abandon me, I’m fine.”

Raising his head, his gaze held genuine emotion. He quickly smiled and hid it, then bowed his head again, touching his lips to her foot and reciting the vow.

“I, Eden Carlisle, do swear to be in eternal obedience to you.”

In an instant, the petals on her foot became three. Ria wondered for a moment if this was really right, but she pushed the thought away as she felt the hesitation in her mind fade. It didn’t mean she was starting to fully trust their hearts, but it wasn’t a bad thing to know that the trust that had already begun wasn’t foolish. It gives her hope that one day she will be able to trust them fully.

Rune, who had been chewing on his lips while looking at the three petals on her foot, soon pressed his cheek against Ria’s hand as if to reassure himself. He didn’t like the idea of having one more person in her life, but his greatest fear was earning her hatred, so his only option was to back down like he always did.

“It’s fine… as long as you don’t abandon me.”

It didn’t matter as long as Ria lived next to him, could see her every morning when he woke up and didn’t abandon him.

That was all that mattered.

＊ ＊ ＊ ＊

Having eaten the warm soup and medicine again, Ria soon fell into a deep sleep. Her body, already weakened more than usual by the cold, and her mind’s ability to process all that had happened in such a short period of time was at its limit.

Once her breathing had stabilized, the three men retired to the nearby reception room.

The mansion was kept toasty warm for the frail woman, with blankets and fluffy rugs everywhere to keep her warm even in winter, but the reception room had been filled with a chill from the moment they entered. If there had been a hot cup of tea, it would have gone cold in an instant.

“When did you start seeing Ria like that?”

It was Rune who spoke first in the silence that followed their sharp exchanges of glances. Behind the straightforward question to Kahin, there were mixed emotions.

“From the moment we first met in her world.”

After his brief answer, silence fell once again. Glaring at Rune, who sighed deeply as he ran a hand through his hair, Eden stopped drumming his fingers on the armrest of the couch and spoke in a fairly organized voice.

“Since Ria has made her decision, it’s over. It might be easier to accept it quickly. Besides, when you think about it positively, it’s not necessarily a bad thing that she’ll be protected by the Empire’s greatest swordsman.”

“…….”

“But I’m more worried about what lies ahead. There’s still one inevitable relationship left.”

The long, bony index finger that rested on the armrest skimmed his lower lip.

“Ria can’t spend the rest of her life in the mansion. As much as I’d like to keep her here…”

“She wouldn’t like that.”

“Yeah. So it’s only natural that she’ll meet more people in the future. But among them, won’t there be a vulture with different intentions approaching?”

“… There will be many.”

Rune’s brow wrinkled in displeasure at the mere thought. He’d brought her here to keep her by his side for the rest of her life, not to have everyone ogle at her.

“We didn’t think ahead this time, but from now on, if we reach out to her before she accepts, the same thing won’t happen again.”

Then Ria will whisper love solely to us. 

Seeing Rune and Kahin, who understood the hidden meaning behind the words, exchanging glances, Eden smirked and lifted one corner of his mouth. If you can’t trap them, build a fence so big they can’t see it.

“But there is an inevitable connection that cannot be avoided, so we must be as careful as possible. If the First Duchess told her about our relationship being similar to what was said about the myth, she must have heard about the royal family.”

“Naturally, people she’ll be involved with?”

“Yes. The crown prince is the most likely candidate at this point. Surely when he sees Ria, he’ll fall for her as we did.”

“Hah, including the Crown Prince, that makes it four. That’s more than enough.”

But as much as they laughed at their desire to avoid getting involved with the crown prince, the reality was beyond their control. The only thing they could do was to keep Ria out of his sight.

“Kahin, you will continue to guard Ria. Eden and I will be at her side every day, but unexpected things can happen anywhere.”

“As you command.”

With a tumultuous heart, Kahin bowed deeply to Rune’s command. He feared being rejected for overstepping his boundaries regarding his lord’s lady. Yet he had been given permission to stand by her side, which meant acceptance.

Apologetic yet deeply grateful, he silently reiterated his loyalty once again.

The oath of loyalty they’d sworn so long ago when they’d been left alone in the same accident, was the only comfort they’d had.