Freia mumbled in a daze that it couldn’t be true. That maid had practically grown up with Freia. She had entered the family when Freia was young and had cared for her regardless of Freia’s reluctance to open her heart. To think that child had been bought by the imperial family. To think she had placed poison in Freia’s hands to feed to the Crown Prince, that it was that child who had pushed the House of Nigritia into the swamp of death…!

However, indeed, though Ikanel was sick enough that he might have died, he fully recovered before long. The imperial family, led by Crown Prince Ikanel Riman Akelan, began eliminating the rebellious group. Of course, the leaders of these so-called rebels were the House of Nigritia. Ikanel had undoubtedly steeled his heart to think of Freia not as a lover but as a card to be used and discarded.

Freia was terribly confused. He clearly still had some feelings left for her. She had been certain of it. But thinking about it now, that might have been Freia’s delusion.

She couldn’t ultimately cut Ikanel out of her heart. And the result was the extermination of the House of Nigritia, the death of the Duke, the death of young lord Ian, and the deaths of hundreds of mansion staff and distant relatives in the territory. That was the price paid by a young girl not yet twenty for being unable to forget her first love. Terribly cruel.

Freia had loved Ikanel. Had Ikanel loved Freia?

“Ugh, hic.”

Snow made a sound as if in pain. The doorknob, which had been frozen solid with white frost rising from it, began to melt again, dripping water. Instead, the ice around the door grew sharply like pointed awls. The formation looked like a trap meant to harm anyone entering the room.

“El. El. Elios.”

Just as she had desperately called her brother’s name as Freia moments ago, she now earnestly called Elios’s name as Snow.

She wanted to see that languid smile given with the thin strands of sunlight at his back. But the moment she thought of that orange-gold hair swaying in the breeze, the warmth of his not-yet-cooled embrace, those black eyes, another voice within her screeched with malice.

“Kill him. Just as he killed your brother.”

“El. Elios. Elios!”

Snow deliberately called Elios’s name aloud, trying hard to remember his image. If he faded even slightly, just a little bit, from Snow’s mind, she would look at him with murderous intent not as a saint but as a witch, not as Snow but as Freia.

The thought alone was so painful that it felt as if blood would well up from her heart.

‘No. I will protect El.’

The doorknob, which had been melting and dripping water, began to freeze again in an instant.

At that moment.

Knock, knock, knock-knock-knock.

At the distinctive knocking sound, Snow inhaled sharply, still wrapped in her blanket. Unable to exhale the breath she had taken, unable to move even a finger, Snow froze as if time had stopped.

The regular interval between knocks, the number of knocks. It was the secret code that Snow and Elios had established together.

When there was no response even after a long while, that same knocking sound was heard again. Snow, with her eyes wide open, clutched her throat with one hand as if she might suffocate at any moment. With her other hand, she gripped the white blanket so tightly it seemed she might tear it.

“Snow, it’s me. Can I come in?”

His tone was always kind, but at that moment especially, it was gentler and more tender than any Snow had ever heard. Snow used the hand that had been clutching her throat to cover her mouth, barely swallowing back the lump of tears that threatened to burst out. Cold tears streamed down along the tear stains already on her cheeks.

“Snow, I’m coming in.”

Elios spoke calmly to the door that gave no answer. He touched the doorknob but quickly pulled his hand away, startled by the sudden cold. He glared at the door while lightly biting his lip, then pulled down his sleeve to wrap his hand before grabbing the doorknob again. Even so, it was so cold that his hand felt like it would tear. Elios gritted his teeth and turned the doorknob, ignoring the cold. It didn’t turn. The doorknob itself was completely frozen, having become a solid piece of ice.

After exhaling a deep sigh, Elios called for Snow once more. There was no answer. He leaned his back against the door and slid down, sitting with his knees up. Resting his arms on his knees, he sat in a posture devoid of any formality or pretense, and turned his head to look toward the door.

“Snow. I heard you wanted to be alone. That you asked for everyone to leave Santarium.”

His body trembled slightly from the cold. The chill enveloped the entire Santarium. The room against which Elios was leaning his back seemed to be the core of the coldness, with the cold air piercing Elios’s back through the thin cloth. Elios worried that Snow might be feeling the full force of the cold she herself had created. If so, Snow would be the one most exposed to the cold right now.

“You didn’t want others to get hurt, right? Because you couldn’t control the ice that was spreading everywhere, you were afraid someone might get hurt because of you.”

‘Yes. That’s the kind of person you are.’

Elios quietly scanned the empty corridor with his eyes. Very slowly, ice crystals were covering everything. Ceiling, floor, walls—snow flowers were blooming everywhere. They weren’t the kind formed by snow accumulating on tree branches. They were literally flowers made of white snow.

Sharp petals and leaves emitted a snow-white light as if they would melt at a touch. Looking closely, one could even see the rough snow powder on the flower’s surface with the n*ked eye. Black stamens and pistils stood out starkly against the pure white flowers, like foreign objects.

From High Priest Verdus, he had heard that Snow’s original room had become so damaged it was unusable, and her quarters had been moved to another priest’s room. He had also heard that she had sent the other priests out of Santarium. Snow was the only one staying inside the large white marble building.

Instead, holy knights disguised as priests were wandering abundantly around Santarium. If Elios hadn’t met the High Priest, he would never have been able to enter Santarium, let alone the Grand Temple.

The inside of the white building looked as if a blizzard had swept through it. Water dripping from icicles fell onto the bridge of Elios’s nose. It was as cold as midwinter. But his heart ached more than his body.

The Snow that Elios knew was full of compassion and unaccustomed to being alone. He immediately understood why she had sent away all the people in Santarium and wanted to be alone. It was for the same reason Snow had been cooped up in Santarium for the past few years, not coming out. She was afraid people might get hurt because of her.

“You must have had a hard time.”

A small sound of inhaling was heard from inside the door. Snow was clearly listening to his words. Elios whispered softly with a pitiful smile.

“I’m sorry I came so late.”

Snow tried not to miss even a single syllable of Elios’s voice while firmly covering her mouth to prevent her crying sounds from escaping.

“Enemy. My enemy. My brother’s enemy.”

She continuously tried to cut off the terrible thoughts that kept arising.

“Elios hasn’t done anything wrong. He’s kinder than anyone. He’s my precious friend. Please just leave him alone.”

She fought fiercely with the Freia inside her. She heard Elios’s voice blocked by the door.

“I heard you dreamed of Freia Nigritia.”

Thud, Snow fell from the bed. Still firmly covering her mouth, she crawled little by little across the smooth marble floor toward the door. Elios’s voice, which had sounded somewhat muffled through the wall, gradually became clearer. Behind Snow as she crawled, countless icicles grew upside down, creating a path of ice awls. Snow sat down carelessly and pressed her ear to the door.

What came through the door was a precarious hope like a single strand of spider’s web, and also something hateful that needed to be killed and eliminated.

Snow steeled herself. The opaque white ice attached to the doorknob grew thicker. Elios must not come into the room. She would hurt him.

“I’m sorry I came so late. When I found out something had happened to you, I should have come somehow. Selfishly, I was only thinking about my own position. It’s my fault.”

“It’s not Elios’s fault.”

“…!”

Elios was startled by the thin voice coming through the door. He hadn’t expected an answer. Snow’s voice was trembling finely, filled with tears.

“Snow, are you there on the other side?”

Elios whispered somewhat urgently. There was no response. Hearing a voice that was clearly crying made his anxiety grow like a snowball.

“Will you open the door?”

“…”

“If you’re worried I might get hurt by your ice, you don’t need to worry. I won’t get hurt. Despite appearances, I’m quite strong. I even have a proper knighthood. My reflexes are exceptional, and I’ve been praised by my master since I was young. Ah, by master, I mean Count Callisto.”

Despite his desperate rambling, there was still no sound from beyond the door. After waiting for a long time, Elios carefully stood up and tried turning the doorknob, just in case. The doorknob had only grown colder than before and still wouldn’t budge at all. Out of frustration, he forcibly applied strength, but there was no change. Elios brought his face as close to the door crack as possible again.

“Snow. Please answer if you can.”

There was a small rustling sound from inside the door. Soon, Snow’s voice was heard.

“Yes.”

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“No.”

“The whole building is frozen solid. Aren’t you cold?”

“No.”

“Are you eating properly?”

“Yes.”

Snow’s short answers became increasingly muffled.

“…Are you crying right now?”

“…No.”