“Shahar.”

“Why do you call me, mate?”

“What are you thinking about?”

“I’m thinking of you.”

Seriously, there’s no one more romantic than him. If Gined represented the ultimate faith of this era, Shahar was the greatest romanticist. At this point, I had to seriously consider what it meant to be in love with a stone.

“What are you thinking about me?”

“About how to keep you safe.”

“You’re already doing that.”

“I cannot agree with that.”

Shahar’s voice was somber.

“Oh, come on, why say that? If it weren’t for you, I’d be dead by now. We’d be meeting in the afterlife instead of here.”

I tried to lighten the mood with a joke, but he remained silent, which was a bit embarrassing. I thought his anger had subsided a bit after the fairy queen incident, but apparently not.

Suddenly, I wondered what kind of expression he would have if he were human. Since he had no human features, it was hard to guess his emotions when he wasn’t speaking. Even dealing with Gined, who had the least emotional fluctuations among the male leads, wasn’t this difficult and frustrating.

‘It would be nice if he at least had eyes… On second thought, that might be creepy.’

Imagining a pupil rolling around the center of Shahar, I realized that would be quite horrifying.

“I can’t sleep. Can you tell me an interesting story?”

“I do not know any stories that would interest a human.”

“Just try. Nothing grand, just how the afterlife is different from this world, any particularly strange souls you’ve seen… things like that. You must have seen all sorts of characters.”

“As I’ve said before, the afterlife is a barren and lonely place. Most souls forget the emotions they felt while alive when they come before me.”

“Just hearing about it is boring. You must have been bored too.”

“Not necessarily. Occasionally, some souls come who haven’t shed their emotions, and nine times out of ten, they cause trouble. Watching them closely kept me from being too bored.”

Shahar’s low and serious voice, combined with the dull story, made me sleepy.

“Well, that’s a relief. By the way, I’ve been curious, do you dream, Shahar?”

“Occasionally.”

“What do you dream about? Oh, never mind. Don’t tell me.”

I thought I knew the answer without asking. He would probably say he dreamed about me again, which would be embarrassing. I placed the fairy’s essence next to Shahar.

“Then you might need this too, Shahar.”

I patted the smooth surface of Shahar a couple of times.

“Have good dreams, Shahar. Interesting and… yawn… not boring ones…”

I fell asleep before I could hear his response.

***

Thanks to the devoted care of my parents and Seren, my body recovered quickly. However, my melancholy didn’t seem to improve. The sad expression of the fairy queen and the sobs of the fairies kept resurfacing in my mind, making a mess of my thoughts.

Today was no different. Using my sadness as an excuse, I stayed buried in bed well into the morning. Seren shook me awake urgently.

“Miss, Miss! Please wake up.”

I burrowed deeper into the blankets to avoid her touch.

“I told you not to wake me.”

“Oh, come on, this is no time for that. Sir Roengreen is here!”

The moment I heard that, my mind cleared as if I had been doused with cold water.

“Gined is here?”

As I sat up, I heard my father and Gined talking beyond the door. Even more despairingly, their voices were getting closer.

“By now, Lou should be awake and ready. She’ll be delighted to see you. Hahaha.”

As usual, my father, oblivious to the other person’s profession, was extending his sly hand to Gined with the sole aim of securing a handsome son-in-law. His laughter was especially hearty, likely because he had a prospective son-in-law in front of him.

It was a stark contrast to how he had thrown the Crown Prince out without even letting him through the gate a few days ago.

“Seren! Bring me a mirror, quickly!”

Checking with a handheld mirror, I saw drool marks clearly visible.

‘Oh no!’

This was worse than when the Crown Prince had visited unexpectedly. At least then, I had time to wash and change clothes.

“Don’t panic! You’re officially a patient. Today, you’ll go with the sickly beauty look.”

Seren, calmly reassuring me, quickly wiped my face with a wet cloth. She then dampened my messy hair to smooth it down and draped a thin shawl over my shoulders.

“Perfect!”

As she cheered, my father knocked on the door at just the right moment.

“Lou, are you awake? It’s your father.”

“Yes, come in.”

I answered in a thin, sickly voice. The door opened, and my father and Gined entered. My father seemed slightly taken aback by my disheveled appearance.

“Thank you for coming, Sir Roengreen. Cough, I’m still not fully recovered… Please excuse me.”

“Are you alright, dear? Don’t overexert yourself. I’ll entertain Sir Roengreen, so you can relax.”

“I’m fine, Father. It wouldn’t be right to send a guest away without a greeting. Please come in.”

“Then, please excuse me for a moment.”

Even as I faced Gined, I couldn’t believe it. Seeing him in my room was surreal. Pinion, Iscallion, Shahar—all the other male leads had been in my room at least once, but I never thought Gined would ever set foot here. It made enduring the pain worthwhile.

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m alright. As I mentioned before, there’s no need to worry. All my external wounds have healed. See? Not a scar left.”

“That day… it was all my fault.”

“You keep apologizing even though you did nothing wrong.”

Gined’s blue eyes were fixed on me. Despite only being sick for a few days, he seemed to feel considerable guilt. My haggard appearance only seemed to amplify his guilt.

“You look pale. I feel like I’ve troubled you unnecessarily. I’ll come back another time.”

“Already? You haven’t even had tea yet.”

“Seeing your face is enough.”

We weren’t close enough to sit and chat comfortably. Gined had come out of a sense of duty. Although I felt a bit disappointed, I understood his firm nature and didn’t insist he stay. I expected him to leave immediately, but he didn’t.

“What’s wrong?”

“Lady.”

He hesitated slightly before speaking.

“Yes? Is there something you need?”

Had something serious happened again? As I tensed with worry, Seren, who had been staring at Gined with her mouth agape, suddenly clapped her hands and intervened.

“Did you bring a get-well gift for our lady?”

Gined didn’t deny her words. Realizing it was true, I widened my eyes in surprise.

“A gift? Really?”

“It’s nothing grand.”

“Miss would be happy with even a piece of bread from you.”

Ignoring Seren’s comment, I asked Gined kindly.

“What kind of gift is it?”

After a long pause, Gined pulled out something wrapped in white silk from his coat. I unwrapped it in front of him. I knew it wasn’t proper etiquette, but I couldn’t contain my curiosity. Seren also watched my hands with wide eyes.

Inside the silk was a small dagger. Made of pure silver, it was simple yet sturdy and practical. The hilt was adorned with a single emerald the size of a bird’s egg.

“It was finished a long time ago, but I’m only giving it to you now. It’s made from the silver you gave me. With the capital being so dangerous lately, it might come in handy.”

“Wow, Miss must have done some great deeds in her past life…”

Seren muttered enviously.

“Now, I’ll take my leave.”

“Thank you for coming. And… I really like the gift. Thank you, Sir.”

I was already surprised he came to visit, but I never expected a gift. My melancholy melted away like water. I barely managed to keep my lips from curling into a smile. The dagger was too precious to even take out of its sheath. I decided to keep it in a golden box and pass it down as an heirloom.

Despite my heartfelt gratitude, Gined’s expression remained stern.

“Sir, what’s wrong? Is something bothering you?”

“It’s nothing. Don’t worry.”

His stiff tone made me think he was picking a fight.

‘What, does he regret giving me the silver?’