“…Is what the child said true?”

“……”

Carly glanced at Hildes, who had surprisingly hit the mark. Kyle’s reaction only confirmed the child’s words.

Kyle couldn’t say anything. Normally, he would have brushed it off with a joke, but now he was too flustered.

As Calvin awkwardly apologized and prepared to leave with his son, Carly sat down across from Kyle.

Memories of her past interactions with Kyle flooded Carly’s mind.

‘Oh my…’

She had cried in his arms about another man and asked to stay at his house, and now it dawned on her that Kyle had been giving her signals all along. She had just been too oblivious to notice.

As Carly stood there in shock, Kyle, wanting to escape the situation, sat at the table.

“Don’t worry about it.”

“What? Oh, alright.”

Carly regretted her loud response immediately. It made her seem like she was affected by his words.

“Just because I like you, I’m not expecting anything in return. So, please don’t worry.”

“……”

Carly felt a small thorn prick her heart. However, her feelings for Ferrell weren’t entirely resolved, and facing Kyle’s emotions felt overwhelming.

So Carly simply nodded.

“But Dad, when will Anne come back? She said she would visit again.”

“She’ll be busy settling down for a while.”

Realizing that the father and son had mentioned ‘Anne,’ Carly and Kyle’s eyes widened in surprise.

Carly stood up and approached the boy again.

“I have a question.”

“Go ahead.”

“The boy mentioned Anne. Was she a woman with red hair?”

“Hmm, I don’t remember clearly. It was a long time ago.”

“But Anne was really pretty and cute! She even healed me!”

Calvin rubbed his forehead. He had intended to play dumb, not knowing why these people were searching for Anne, but the boy’s honest words couldn’t be ignored.

Carly was now sure it was Anne. She beamed and exclaimed,

“We found her!”

“But why do you want to find her?”

Kyle answered for them,

“She’s our friend, and we want to see her again.”

“Friend, huh…”

Calvin scrutinized the two of them. According to Anton, Anne had good people around her, but he couldn’t be sure if these two were truly her friends. They could be people Anne was trying to avoid.

Just as Calvin was considering keeping silent, Kyle spoke up.

“I understand your concerns about us possibly harming Anne. My name is Kyle, and I worked with Anne at a field hospital. She was my superior and friend. We just want to make sure she’s doing well.”

Calvin hesitated, but the sincerity in Kyle’s eyes convinced him.

“Yes, she crossed over to Vails.”

***

Kyle and Carly took Calvin’s word to heart. They decided to stop sending Blue into nearby cities and instead headed straight for Vails. Despite their worries, Blue had been returning noticeably slower, which they took as a sign they were on the right track.

“We’re close,” Kyle said, retracing the direction Blue had flown. They were walking through narrow alleys.

“Do you think Blue’s delay means Anne is in this city?”

With a mix of hope and anxiety, they scoured the small city, looking for any sign of Anne. Eventually, they found a blue feather on the ground.

“…Kyle, isn’t this Blue’s feather?”

“Yes. If Blue hasn’t returned, it must mean Anne is nearby.”

“Let’s hope so.”

***

Anne, worried about Blue’s food and lodging, decided to take him to Garnet’s office. As an exceptional employee, Garnet welcomed Blue’s presence, albeit with a caveat to keep the prince and Evan in check.

Anne, holding Blue, headed to the room where Evan and Howard were staying. She intended to leave Blue with Evan while she fetched some nuts from the dining hall.

Knock knock.

Anne peered inside, meeting Evan’s intense gaze. Upon recognizing Anne, Evan’s stern expression softened into a warm smile.

“Anne, have you changed your mind and come to stay?”

“No!”

Evan’s eyes drifted to her chest, where she held Blue. Anne cleared her throat and carefully revealed Blue.

“Bleep, Bleep! (You’re here too?)”

Seeing Blue chirping at Evan, Howard showed interest.

“So, this is the famous carrier pigeon.”

“Evan, can you watch Blue while I get some nuts from the dining hall?”

“Hmm. Is that a request?”

With a sly grin, Evan extended his hand, and Blue eagerly flew to his fingers, performing tricks he never showed in front of Anne.

Anne sighed and replied, “Yes, it’s a request.”

“Go on then.”

***

It had been three days since Anne had been treating—or rather, supervising—two very healthy individuals in the hospital. Between caring for Blue, breaking up morning fights, writing financial reports, and compiling a disease manual as per Garnet’s suggestion, Anne was exhausted.

Anne splashed water on her face, trying to stay alert. But she had to return to Evan’s room, which now felt more like an office than a hospital room. Despite small rebellions, like moving her desk there, Garnet remained her superior, offering her various snacks and even attempting to massage her shoulders in the hallway.

‘Too kind to call it harassment…’

Anne shook her head, trying to dismiss the thought.

‘Is this some sort of high-level brainwashing? Gaslighting?’

She quickly exited the bathroom and sat at her desk. As she worked, she noticed an unusual silence and glanced sideways, unable to see Evan or Howard from her position.

Suddenly, a loud knock echoed through the hallway, startling Anne. She stood up and cautiously approached the door, opening it slightly to see who it was.

The desk used to be positioned to face them, but it was moved against the wall due to Anne’s insistence.

It was at that moment.

A firm hand gently patted Anne’s head. When she looked up and recognized Howard, she had to hear the shocking news.

“Anne, what should I do? I think I need to go back.”

“What?”

That meant she would have to be alone with Evan.

She saw Evan smiling behind Howard.

“Something came up. Will you be okay?”

“…You know, the prince has already given me quite a hard time.”

Howard widened his eyes and pointed at himself with his finger.

“Me?”

“It sounds urgent, so you should go quickly. And don’t fake being sick again.”

“I’ll do that.”

Though she spoke as if it were nothing, Anne wondered how she would manage being alone with Evan.

Howard’s face suddenly got close to Anne’s. As he touched her right earlobe and brought his lips near, he whispered.

“Now, it’s time to stop being stubborn. You might end up dead at this rate.”

“What?”

“…Well, you’ll probably understand soon enough.”

Evan, who had approached without her noticing and separated Howard from Anne, growled in a low voice.

“What shameless behavior is this!”

Howard smirked. Who had been shameless until now?

Anne, who had been working facing the wall, didn’t notice, but Evan kept staring at the back of her head, as if trying to bore holes into it.

He seemed to have no interest in anything else.

Howard knew Anne was quite attractive, but seeing Evan’s obsessive behavior, his own feelings seemed trivial.

This made him even more curious about their story. He wanted to know what had happened in the past that made Evan so obsessed with her.

Howard raised his hands and looked at Evan.

“The uninvited guest is leaving now. I’ll come back to see you again.”

“Don’t come!”

Anne, thinking he was pretending to be sick again, waved her hands in surprise, but Howard patted her head once more.

“I’ll come back as a friend, not a patient. Is that okay?”

“…Yes.”

The word ‘friend’ made Anne’s heart feel warm and fuzzy. She nodded quietly. Satisfied with her response, Howard left.

In the silence that followed, Anne looked at Evan and spoke.

“Evan, when will you go back?”

“Do you want me to leave?”

“……”

Anne stared at Evan silently. She couldn’t answer that question. Just having him in front of her filled her empty heart with a warm feeling.

So, she turned away from his question.

“I have work to do.”

Anne tried to walk to her desk, but it was pointless. Evan embraced her from behind.

His warm breath tickled her ear from over her shoulder.

“Duke.”

“Why, can’t we stay like this for a while?”

“……”

At the word ‘a while,’ Anne relaxed. She tried to ignore how much she enjoyed feeling his warmth again, waiting for the short embrace to end.

But as time passed, Evan showed no sign of letting go. When Anne tried to wriggle free, Evan quickly lifted her up.

“Ah! What are you doing…!”

“Anne, you’ll get hurt if you struggle.”

When Anne stopped moving, Evan continued.

“Haven’t you been sleeping well lately? Just lie down and rest for a bit.”

He gently laid her on the bed and pulled the blanket up. Anne, being told to go to sleep in the middle of the day, looked at Evan with disbelief.

“This is dereliction of duty!”

“It’s fine. You were busy writing reports all night, weren’t you? The director will allow this much rest.”

Anne briefly wondered how Evan knew she had been working on reports all night.

Evan sat in the chair next to the bed.

“…But why are you sitting here?”

“Well, it’s uncomfortable to lie down all the time.”

Anne squinted her eyes.

“You’re going to watch me sleep?”

“Yes.”

“No, you can’t.”

“Yes, I can.”

TL NOTE: Visit dusk blossoms for more advanced chapters and stories