Please Don’t Let Go Of That Leash - Chapter 5 - Eden’s Regret (Part 3)
Chapter 5 – Eden’s Regret (Part 3)
Meanwhile, in Cherta’s office within the palace, the three men were wrapping up the matter with Omur.
“Thanks to Lady Peune, the issue was resolved quicker than expected.”
“Given how he was, it seems she endured a lot. I didn’t expect her to approach us first.”
Leaning back comfortably on the sofa, Cherta spoke while holding a slightly cooled teacup, to which Rune nodded in agreement, recalling his meeting with Katrina two days ago.
Not wanting to hear useless pleas for her kin, he hadn’t intended to meet her, but Katrina handed him a glass during their encounter. It was the same glass Omur had handed to Ria.
Of course, Rune didn’t immediately trust Katrina.
‘Such glasses are quite easy to come by. They are used only in the palace, but they can be obtained if one tries.’
‘Are you saying I’m lying?’
‘Glad you understand.’
Unlike at the dessert shop before, Katrina, with a resolute expression, didn’t avoid Rune’s cold gaze.
‘The glass will test positive for traces of the drug, whether I brought Omur’s glass or deliberately applied the drug to a similar one. The result will be the same.’
She had come to discard Omur.
Rune’s neatly arched eyebrows rose slightly as Katrina continued. The Duke still allowed her to speak.
‘He was no help to the family. If not for my parents, I would have abandoned him already. Knowing that you will handle him brings me peace. My parents won’t be able to oppose a command from the palace.’
‘You are a noble lady, you would have already guessed what we are going to do to him, right?’
‘You will kill him. Very painfully.’
‘……’
‘I don’t care. In fact, I feel like begging you to do so. Too many people have been hurt and suffered because of what he did. He should not die easily.’
Rune now looked at Katrina with a rather interesting expression. There was no trace of affection or goodwill towards her kin in her emotions. There seemed to be an abundance of the opposite feelings.
‘When I heard that Ria took the cup, I thought you and Omur were in on it together. Given our previous encounters, it was a natural suspicion, so I won’t apologize.’
‘Understood.’
‘I have one question. I heard you helped Ria when we were not in the banquet hall. Why did you do that?’
Since they were truly concerned about the young lady, Katrina answered without hesitation.
‘Because it was one of the few things I could do for her.’
No, in fact, it was a sincere feeling without any hesitation.
‘The young lady… she made me realize things I had forgotten. Very important things. So, although shameless, I wanted to apologize. I intended to do so until she accepted it. I was that regretful and knew it was clearly my fault.’
‘……’
‘But she gladly listened and accepted my apology. She even recognized me. She was the only one who acknowledged my efforts. How could I not help such a person? I also gathered evidence of what Omur did for that reason.’
It was fortunate that the Crown Prince stopped Omur. How devastated Rune felt when he was paralyzed by shock after hearing the shocking news and was a step too late to act. How painful that moment was, feeling as if he were just a bystander.
He would have crawled to stop Omur belatedly, but if it weren’t for the Crown Prince, by then Ria, who shines so brightly, would have been covered in filth. Just thinking about it was horrifying.
‘I know how dirty and vile the things Omur did are, and as someone who understands how much the victims suffer afterward, I want him to die as painfully as possible.’
Katrina bent over deeply in a plea. She no longer wanted to pretend not to see what was happening in front of her.
‘I beg you to give him a punishment worse than the crimes he committed.’
‘Though it’s late, so that it might be a small comfort to those who were hurt. So that the perpetrator meets the most miserable end.’
Rune erased his thoughts and organized the final documents, remembering Katrina’s resolute eyes.
“Anyway, thanks to the young lady Peune representing the family and giving quick approval, the announcement of the exile will go out tomorrow. Although he will actually be rotting in the underground prison.”
“Just torture him appropriately and call me before killing him.”
Cherta gave a concise and light response to the end of the report. It was the most familiar demeanor, so the two nodded without any reaction.
“Oh, I will bring Ria to the mansion soon.”
“What? Already?”
Then, hearing about the plan to change Ria’s residence, he reacted intensely, straightening his back from leaning. It was more than just talking about a person’s life.
“Then, will she stay here? Locked in a room without being able to go out to the garden?”
He was displeased with the idea that she might continue to be confined in the palace.
“Although she won’t be let out often at the mansion, it is freer than the palace. She can move as she wishes and go out for a walk.”
Though not satisfied, Cherta had no counterargument to the statement and closed his mouth. At that moment, Eden, who had been silent all this time, hesitated and spoke.
“…Is Ria okay?”
“If you’re curious, why don’t you go see her yourself? How long will you keep avoiding her?”
“……”
Without answering, Eden just bit his lip. He desperately wanted to go to her, hold her in his arms, and breathe with her, but he couldn’t muster the courage. Recently, he had been spending sleepless nights dreaming of Ria looking at him with a resentful expression and tears in her eyes. As a result, his face looked quite worn.
Rune and Cherta just sighed as they watched him remain silent until the end.
***
“Ha……”
Ria, drenched in sweat, entered the bathroom to wash up and sent all the maids away before immersing herself in the bathtub. The warm water filled the bathtub, making her tensed muscles relax, and a languid sigh naturally flowed.
She hugged her knees and rested her head.
“I knew my body had weakened, but this is too serious. It wasn’t this bad before.”
She already felt pained at the thought of suffering from muscle pain tomorrow.
Letting out a small sigh, Ria slowly closed her eyes. She heard the quiet sound of the door opening and someone entering. Sensing the presence, she lifted her eyelids to see Kahin standing in light clothing at the door.
“Kahin…Kahin?!”
Her mind, which had been relaxed and dazed, detected the oddness a beat late.
“Why, why did you come in!”
She hugged her knees tighter and bent over as much as possible. Kahin approached the bathtub and knelt on one knee.
“I’m sorry. But if I leave your body like this, you will surely suffer from muscle pain tomorrow…so I came to relieve your muscles.”
“You should have told me first.”
“Well, actually, I called out to you several times from outside, but there was no response, so I was worried. I apologize.”
There was nothing to say upon hearing that he had called her. It was true that she was on the verge of falling asleep, as her exhausted body relaxed in the warm water.
Still, she was embarrassed and was about to tell him to leave, but she stopped herself.
‘Wouldn’t it be less painful tomorrow if he gave me a massage? After all, Kahin had seen my body many times already.’
Ria’s gaze rolled to his large hands. He was strong, so a massage from those hands would surely be refreshing. It was quite, no, very tempting.
“…Then just a little.”
In the end, unable to resist the temptation of a massage, Ria entrusted herself to him. And shortly after…
“Uhh, there.”
So far, Ria was quite satisfied with her choice. It was incredibly refreshing whenever Kahin’s hands passed over her body.
Although receiving a massage in the bathtub due to the lack of a suitable place was slightly bothersome… well, the bathtub was big enough to fit at least a dozen people, so it didn’t seem to be a problem.
She was thinking it was fortunate the bathtub wasn’t small without knowing she was in a dangerous situation.