Chapter 6: CH 6

I continued to watch Cassadin eat silently.

I had to remind myself what I was continuously watching every time I saw those long, white fingers move with a spoon in hand.

The elegance that poured out of Cassadin as he ate made one question whether eating could be such a graceful activity.

“Ah, I’m sorry.”

Maybe I had been staring too much. Cassadin, who was moving his hand, suddenly apologized to me.

“I should have waited for you to start eating, but I started first.”

“No, it’s okay. I wasn’t that hungry anyway.”

When I reassured him with a smile, he returned a faint smile as he said,

“You’re such a kindhearted person.”

“…”

“To a degree, it’s much more than I deserve.”

As Cassadin spoke, he picked up the knife and cut the steak into slices. He picked up a piece of the steak, perfectly cut to eat in one bite, then said,

“I don’t think I should eat alone after all.”

He offered me the food, his eyes folding into a beautiful arch.

Eventually, when I accepted the steak he offered and began to chew, a satisfied smile spread across Cassadin’s face.

“It’s delicious. I think the food tastes better because you cut it.”

“Thank you.”

“But where did you learn your manners?”

Cassadin suddenly froze at my question. But after looking at me with saddened eyes for a while, he gazed downward and opened his mouth.

“I was forced to learn manners, so that the value of the object does not drop.”

“…”

It was just one sentence. But from that one sentence containing a concentration of all his sorrows, I could tell how hard Cassadin’s life had been.

“I’m sorry. That wasn’t entertaining at all, was it?”

Trying to divert the awkward atmosphere that now surrounded us, Cassadin forced a smile to reassure me he was okay.

Why was it, though? His efforts to hide his deep scars overlapped with mine in my past life.

“I’m sorry.”

“…pardon?”

“I should have taken you out of there earlier. I can’t imagine how hard it must have been for you…”

Hearing that, Cassadin put down the knife he was holding on the table and responded,

“I’m fine.”

“Huh?”

“To be honest, it feels like a dream just to be here face to face with you. My only wish is that this dream never ends.”

Upon finishing his sentence, Cassadin rose from his chair and knelt down on one knee. Looking up at me, he very carefully kissed the back of my hand.

“Thank you so much, Sister.”

His eyes curved in a cute manner as he spoke.

“You have nothing to thank me for.”

After all, the only reason I took you in was for my own sake.

Thinking this to myself, I gently patted Cassadin’s back as he kneeled in front of me. I could feel the firm muscles on his back through the tips of my fingers, toned from a long life as a gladiator.

“Stand up now. The food will get cold.”

Cassadin only got up once I gave him permission.

Then we continued the meal in a decent mood. Once we finished the meal, I dabbed my lips while asking him,

“Do you need anything? Anything you like?”

“Something I need…”

He looked up at the ceiling for a while, as if in thought, before opening his lips.

“I would like a sword. Any kind would do.”

“A sword?”

“Yes, I’ve lived wielding a sword for so long that it now feels strange not to have one in my hand.”

He repeatedly clenched and unclenched his hand. I observed his behavior as I spoke to him,

“What else do you like, apart from swords?”

“…”

Cassadin was silent. But I patiently waited for him to talk again.

“I’m sorry. I’ve never once thought about what I wanted.”

“Why is that?”

“I was too busy with just surviving. But there is one thing I can say.”

As he said this, he turned his gaze toward me. His mysterious violet eyes curled like a crescent moon as they met mine.

“I think I like you, Sister.”

“…”

“I felt it from the first time I saw you in the arena. You felt like someone from a completely different world—so different from the entire arena—that I couldn’t take my eyes off you. And someone like you said you would take me in as part of your family.”

The boy had the audacity to act sly within a day of our meeting. There was definitely a reason he managed to survive for this long.

To me, who had spent three years in my past life pretending to be fine in front of Damian, it was obvious what was going through his mind.

Did he really think I wouldn’t realize he was pretending to like me?

“Sister.”

“Yes?”

“Even if you were to abandon me, there would never come a day where I would blame you.”

Contrary to his words, his eyes were pleading with me. Don’t abandon me. Who would be able to reject him when he said such words to me with such desperate eyes?

Cassadin’s acting was flawless enough to charm anyone in an instant if they didn’t know his intentions.

“I won’t abandon you.”

“…”

“I promise.”

Regardless of what Cassadin was thinking, it wasn’t difficult to pretend I was affected by his actions.

In fact, I felt more at ease with him trying to pull strings on me while hiding his true intentions instead of completely locking me out of his heart.

My poor, unrelated younger brother. I gently stroked my hand over his cheek. He let out a breathy sigh, then opened his mouth.

“You’re warm, Sister.”

“…”

“You’re so warm, it feels as if I’m dreaming.”

Cassadin gently wrapped his own hand around my wrist, cheeks flushed red and eyes flaring with heat.

It was certainly not how one would look at his sister. I was arrogant to try treating him as family in the first place.

He was desperately struggling to survive, even acting to do so. Then I withdrew my hand from Cassadin’s face and called out his name.

“Cassadin.”

“Yes, Sister.”

“You may feel uncomfortable now, but I hope that you can be at ease around me one day.”

I was going to play the role of a good sister to him until I fully tamed him. To treat him with the most warmth and kindness out of anyone he’s met.

“You must have been tired from adjusting to a new home. You can rest easy today, don’t worry about anything else.”

“Sister.”

“Feel free to come to my room anytime if you have anything to say to me.”

Having said what I wanted to, I got up from the chair to return to my room. But noticing that I was about to leave, Cassadin hurriedly grabbed my wrist.

“What is it?”

To my question, Cassadin looked at me with a desperate expression, as if he were cornered. When I turned to look back at him, he let out a small ‘ah’ and loosened his grip.

“Can I really visit you anytime?”

“Yes.”

“…I see.”

He must have liked my answer since the corners of his mouth curled up faintly. I almost laughed, seeing the gears in his brain being overclocked.

“I will see you in a bit, then.”

In a bit? I looked outside the window to see that it was already nighttime. A quick glance at the sky showed the glittery stars embedded across its dark veil.

Why would he need to visit my room in the middle of the night?

“Alright.”

To figure out what his intentions were for coming to my room, I answered cheerfully.

Cassadin seemed relieved to hear the answer he wanted, then bid me farewell with a bow.

“I hope you will have a peaceful night.”

“You too, Cassadin.”

“Thank you.”

Clack. Just as the door closed, I saw a faint smile appear on Cassadin’s face.

After returning to my room, I picked out a book from the bookshelf and started reading it.

It was a book containing information about medicinal and poisonous herbs that only grew in the north. As a healer, I’m easily able to acquire books that were otherwise difficult for ordinary people to obtain.

‘When I was 19 or so around this time of last year, I should have cured the Emperor’s illness.’

Our already wealthy family became even wealthier because I healed the Emperor’s illness.

Unaware of this fact, other nobles spread ridiculous rumors about our family, saying we had a hidden mine or were committing tax evasion.

And on the day of the Crown Prince’s birthday party, I foolishly fell in love with Damian at first sight.

So all of the money our family had earned flowed straight into Damian’s pockets, and in the end, I was met with a pathetic end where I was stabbed with a sword.

While falling in love with him was entirely my fault, I was never going to forgive him for using me and then killing me afterward.

I was 20 on the day I first met Damian, and there was about a month left until the Crown Prince’s birthday party.

I read and reread the contents of the book without skipping over a thing. I couldn’t miss a single word.

In order to confront the man who killed me, I had to know as much about him as possible. I had to know more than what I already knew.

It was only after I shoved the entire contents of the book into my head that I closed it and lay down in bed. The time was now early morning, and the full moon was still shining its light high in the sky.

I was lying there with my eyes closed when someone knocked on my door.

Knock, knock.

“Sister.”

A voice as low and clear as the morning air echoed from beyond the door.

“I have something to say.”

What could he possibly need to say at this hour? And why did he bother to come look for me when everyone else was asleep?

But I decided to play along with Cassadin.

“Come in.”

The door opened only after I gave him my permission.

Seeing his silhouette walking towards me from the doorway under the douse of the faint moonlight, he seemed more like a sculpture crafted from a spirit by God.

When he made eye contact with me, lying in bed in a sheer nightgown, Cassadin held a faint smile on his face as he carefully approached me.

The manner in which he sat on the edge of the bed felt incredibly careful and delicate.

“I know very well in my head that it’s not proper to visit at this hour, but I just couldn’t sleep…”

He explained, his head slightly dropping on timing. Not being able to sleep must be his excuse to visit me.

“You said I could visit anytime, so I took the risk of being improper and came to you.”

Who knew he would use my words in that way? What he was doing was rather cute.

“If you can’t sleep, do you want me to sing a lullaby for you?”

“!”

Cassadin’s eyes widened noticeably, as if he didn’t expect such a reaction.

“Will you really do that?”

“If that’s what you want.”

He just stood there, blinking, after hearing my response, and then shook his head side to side as if trying to erase the shock.

“No, it’s fine.”

Seemingly trying to change the subject, Cassadin picked up something else.

“What is this book about?”

The book he picked up was the one I had been reading before Cassadin came.

“Herbs of the North…”

“!”

How could a slave read? In the Seville Empire, slaves were not given the opportunity to learn or read. But how could he read it so fluently?

When he saw my bewildered expression, he lowered his eyes once again and said,

“An object’s value increases with rarity.”

“…”

“There were many things I was forced to learn in order to survive. In this empire, slaves are not people but mere products.”

A dark shadow clouded his face as he tilted his head and grazed his hand over the book.

Why was it that the story felt like a sad tale to whoever heard it, but instead felt more like a lie to gain sympathy from me?

But I could more than understand why he was lying.

‘He hasn’t known me for that long, so it’s natural for him to be wary of me.’

There was no need to scold him for lying. I just had to play along with whatever he was saying. Empathize with his pain, heal the wounds in his heart, and become a good sister to him.

“That really must have been tough. Having to learn things you didn’t want to.”

“…”

“And to be treated as an object as well. Nothing like that will ever happen to you again, Cassadin.”

And that’s how I would tame him, little by little.

“I can’t sleep because I’m too anxious, but if it’s okay with you, Sister.”

Finally, the real reason he visited my room came out of his mouth.

“May I sleep with you?”