Chapter 51

“What…….”

She shifted her eyes. She was utterly flustered by the unexpected reaction.

‘Isn’t this more realistic than saying that Eched is “jealous”?’

Quiet down, past Shaterian. Why did you even think that? Who doesn’t get jealous?

‘No, but can this even be called jealousy? He looks more sad than jealous right now.’

She thought her conscience had long since been dulled, but the pitiful voice and sorrowful face pierced through her heart.

‘Ugh…….’

Unable to bring herself to meet his eyes, she shifted her gaze over Eched’s shoulder.

“Well… if you say so.”

It wasn’t as if keeping her distance was difficult.

She added an excuse, as though trying to justify herself.

Only then did the cold air surrounding Eched begin to thaw. The chill in Eched’s eyes was replaced with a faint warmth.

His mood lifted so quickly—simple yet somehow complicated.

‘Fine. As long as you’re feeling better.’

She simply smiled faintly.

***

The plan devised by Orgon’s “Love Manipulation Squad” was absurdly simple.

An eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth, jealousy for jealousy. A strategy they called the “counterfire operation.”

The scheme to provoke Shaterian’s jealousy and make her realize her love for Eched was being enacted in the training grounds.

Two pairs of eyes focused on one spot. There, their hastily recruited accomplice was awkwardly attempting to converse with the Knight Commander.

At first, the atmosphere seemed chilly, but soon, a more amicable vibe lingered for quite some time.

“Where’s Terry?”

Orgon frantically looked around. Shaterian had to witness this warm atmosphere.

“Why is everyone ordering me around?”

A voice tinged with irritation came from behind. Orgon, his face lighting up, hurriedly guided Shaterian to a spot where she could clearly see Ech

“It’s about time you started practicing your holy power. Anella learned some training methods from the temple’s apprentice priests and wanted to share them, so I called you over.”

The lie he had prepared in advance flowed smoothly. Convinced by the plausible excuse, Shaterian nodded.

“Really? Well, I suppose it’s something I should learn.”

Her gaze soon fell upon the two people who seemed to be getting along. It was a tense moment.

“So…… what do I do first?”

But her reaction was unexpected.

Not that he had anticipated anything grand. He had merely hoped for a slight reaction, but…….

Instead, her face, unusually eager, showed no interest in the scene before her.

‘This isn’t working.’

“Shaterian.”

Eched approached, accompanied by the accomplice who had been conversing with him.

The accomplice, following Eched hesitantly, sighed subtly and shook her head.

“She congratulated us on our marriage.”

It seemed, having nothing else to talk about, he had resorted to mentioning their marriage to create a friendly atmosphere.

No wonder the mood had felt strangely pleasant.

Orgon let out a long sigh at the plan that had gone awry from the start.

Orgon and Anella quietly slipped away from the soon-to-be-married couple, lowering their voices to converse.

“That’s why I said we should involve the Knight Commander.”

“Oh, and who was it that said no to Sir Lutz’s suggestion?”

“…….”

Orgon’s mouth snapped shut at Anella’s retort.

Resigned to the failure of their initial plan, they resolved to move on to their second strategy. But, of course, things wouldn’t go so smoothly.

Pell had washed his hands of the matter from the start, Taltos, selected as the scout leader for the Haltonea Forest, had long since withdrawn, and the uncooperative Lutz had quickly fled after repeated failures.

“There’s no choice. We’ll have to use the final method.”

The final method was none other than persuading Eched to woo Shaterian directly.

It was the most foolproof approach, but they had delayed using it, hoping Eched would naturally come to his realization.

Surprisingly, gaining Eched’s cooperation was easier than expected.

Orgon enthusiastically shared various methods to win someone’s heart with Eched.

Complimenting endlessly, checking in frequently, saying “I missed you” after being apart, and so on.

Orgon had high hopes this time! But those hopes were shattered before long.

He had forgotten one crucial fact: Eched, a Divine Beast, was utterly inflexible.

***

It all began at the breakfast table. Eched, staring intently at Shaterian as she ate, suddenly spoke nonsense.

“You’re eating well today. Good job.”

His tone, as though praising a pet, made Shaterian pause.

“You look cute when you eat.”

Her appetite gone, Shaterian put down her fork and knife and left the table.

Even at the imperial palace, where she had fled to work, Eched’s strange antics continued.

“Shaterian, your counseling office’s performance has been improving. Your document organization is meticulous. You’re doing…… very well.”

Rather than feeling pleased by the praise for tasks she hadn’t even done, she found herself frowning.

Shaterian pursed her lips, carrying signed documents out of the office. Remembering something she had forgotten to mention, she returned, only to find Eched saying…….

“I missed you.”

“You lunatic.”

She couldn’t help but curse.

As for the advice to “check in frequently,” Eched took it to heart by sitting in the grievance counseling office all day.

“…….”

Doing absolutely nothing, he simply sat in a chair nearby, staring at her.

Eched was the only one unaware of how suffocating the atmosphere in the counseling office had become.

‘Chief, did you do something really wrong?’

‘Hah. Me? No. But even if I did, what the heck is this?’

Silent glances exchanged between them conveyed their thoughts.

On a warm afternoon, Shaterian let out a deep sigh and tossed a stack of documents into Eched’s arms.

“Sign these.”

She was about to hand him a pen as well but, seeing how difficult it was for him to work without a desk, reluctantly pulled her chair closer to the edge of her wide desk to make room.

“Come closer.”

Eched silently dragged his chair over and sat beside her. Shaterian thought it was a good decision to have switched to a larger desk.

“Stop staring and sign.”

She pointed to the documents with her hand. Only then did Eched slowly pick up the pen.

Normally, Eched would have taken the initiative to work by now, but this time, he only did what Shaterian instructed, repeatedly putting the pen down after each task.

Each time, she patiently gave him the next task.

Pell, watching the scene unfold multiple times, couldn’t help but stifle his laughter at Shaterian’s patience and Eched’s obedience.

Regardless of Orgon’s intentions…… Pell thought it wasn’t such a bad thing.

After all, the two of them, seated close together at the desk, processing documents with perfect harmony, seemed like an ideal match.

As they worked, Shaterian muttered in a casual tone.

“You know, Eched, whatever you’ve heard, what you’re doing…… it’s not right.”

She pointedly told him his approach was wrong.

If Orgon had overlooked one more thing, it was that Shaterian, despite her general disinterest in her surroundings, was highly sensitive to changes. There was no way she wouldn’t notice Eched’s altered behavior.

She didn’t bother asking why. Knowing the reason would only lead to more trouble.

That evening, the darkened bedroom was silent.

As usual, Eched held Shaterian’s hand. Just as she was about to drift off to sleep, she blinked and squeezed his thumb.

Of late, this had become Eched’s favorite time of the day. The tranquility of falling asleep while feeling each other’s warmth was something he wished would continue forever.

It wasn’t just the divine power he received from Shaterian.

Certainly, the divine power had eased the pain in his heart. But this serenity stemmed from more than that.

Late at night, when Shaterian was deeply asleep, Eched pressed a secret kiss onto the back of her hand.

It was a secret only he knew.

***

A few days later, Shaterian grabbed Orgon by the scruff of his neck as he loitered near the grievance counseling office.

“Orgon. Stop doing pointless things.”

She was already exhausted; she didn’t need him adding to her workload.

“What did I do?”

“Playing dumb, are we?”

Shaterian, smirking, pulled Orgon’s head down and warned him.

“If you keep this up…… I’ll introduce Anella to someone else. I’ll make you as annoyed as you’re making me.”

“……Don’t bother Anella.”

It’s not Anella I’d be bothering; it’s you.

Watching Orgon retreat silently, Shaterian shook her head.

***

Eched seemed to have taken a liking to working beside her.

Though his bizarre behavior had stopped, he continued to wedge himself into her workspace.

Of course, he had his own work to do, so he wasn’t there all day.

For three hours every afternoon, Eched sat beside her, processing documents before returning to his office.

And so, a few days before their wedding……

“They say you’re supposed to give a ring and propose before the wedding.”

“Isn’t that usually how it’s done?”

In response, Eched pulled out a small box. It was unmistakably a ring box.

“Will you marry me?”

It was such an abrupt, unromantic proposal—just like her own had been.

A chuckle escaped her lips.

She held out her left hand.

“If the ring fits, I’ll accept.”

Eched smiled as he followed suit. The ring, adorned with multiple green emeralds, fit perfectly on her left ring finger.

She picked up the remaining ring and slid it onto Eched’s left ring finger.

The matching rings, visible even from afar, sparkled on their hands.