Chapter 40: CH 40

I sighed and said,

“Yeah, go ahead and eat a lot.”

“If it’s so delicious, why…….”

Adandito’s shoulders slumped with frustration.

Pretending not to notice him, I waited for Hierian. If it was Hierian, he would accurately understand my taste and bring delicious meat.

Not long after, as I expected, Hierian brought a large piece of meat. It was a dish of roasted beef, seasoned with salt and pepper on the thick fillet, coated and baked in the oven.

As soon as I saw the dish Hierian brought, I exclaimed with delight,

“You’re smart as always!”

Suddenly, there was a loud thud from outside, making us all jump. Adandito looked at me, asking what the noise was.

“It’s nothing.”

“Doesn’t seem like nothing. Something might be broken.”

“…It’s nothing important. Let’s eat before it gets cold.”

Hierian swiftly sliced the whole roast beef with a knife. When the sweet aroma filled the air, I no longer cared about the situation outside.

Finally, I properly held the fork. Then, Hierian and I enjoyed the delicious meat together. While we were joyful, Adandito’s complexion was not good. He wrinkled his nose and asked,

“Is it tasty?”

“Yeah!”

“Isn’t that obvious?”

Once again, Adandito’s shoulders slumped.

* * *

After finishing the meal, Siara said she still needed to recover her energy and went to sleep. Right away, Hierian showed Adandito a woman. It was Riott, who had been following Hierian since the banquet, along with her sister Ashley.

Adandito calmly sipped his tea after the meal and casually said,

“So it’s someone from Duke Izbe’s Family.”

“They were following me.”

“None of my business.”

Hierian added a few words in an indifferent tone,

“I pretended not to notice since yesterday. But it seems like they’re even following Siara.”

At that moment, a calm madness glimmered in Adandito’s eyes.

“Duke Izbe, huh? It would be troublesome to kill him, right?”

“Well, we could bring in the Inquisitor. Then he’ll take care of him.”

“Not a bad idea.”

“Then, I leave this to you. I don’t want to get involved with the Empire.”

As Hierian was about to leave the room, Adandito stopped him and said,

“Hierian, Siara’s bedroom…”

“I won’t go. I’ll go to my room!”

“It’s not about that. I was going to tell you that it would be better for you to make your arrangements.”

Hierian hastily raised his head and asked,

“Why set up a barrier?”

“Just to be cautious, it won’t hurt.”

Hierian agreed as well. He didn’t know what Dianele, the Crown Prince, or the sisters might do to her. Besides, the mansion was bustling with guests for the festival. They needed to be careful in many ways.

Understanding his agreement, Hierian was about to turn the doorknob again when Adandito spoke once more.

“It’s difficult to create a 108-layer barrier in just one day, isn’t it?”

“Are you serious? That takes a month.”

“Well, then about 12 layers…”

“Why, do you suspect something strange?”

Hierian’s barrier was particularly powerful thanks to the Administrator’s protection. It was difficult for ordinary individuals to break even a single layer of his barrier. But a 12-layer barrier? Hierian looked puzzled.

Seeing that, Adandito gazed at him as if he still didn’t understand.

“Dianel has arrived. More importantly, it’s almost a full moon.”

Adandito’s words made Hierian’s face stiffen. Perhaps because he was too comfortable being with Siara, he had forgotten about important matters.

Dianel’s power had become stronger as if it would go on a rampage on the night of the full moon. There had been numerous occasions where Hierian had sweated profusely trying to restrain his power during their days in the Subjugation Force. That was why the palace had a room with a 108-layer barrier set up, prepared for Dianel’s rampages.

However, in Astita, there was no way to control his power. Hierian grabbed Adandito’s hand with a pale face.

“It won’t work. Let’s go to Siara together.”

“What are you planning to do in her room at this hour?”

“We need to protect Siara!”

In reality, with Siara being a dragon, she would easily defeat Dianel, but he had made a promise to Siara. They had promised to protect each other from Dianel. However, there was no way Siara could defeat Dianel at this moment. So, Hierian had to protect her.

However, despite his determination, his hands were trembling. He thought he had forgotten all about the trauma from his childhood as he grew up, but it seemed useless now that his body had weakened.

Adandito looked surprised as Hierian became frightened. He looked at Hierian’s pale face and asked seriously,

“Hierian, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. I will protect Siara.”

“You don’t look well.”

“I said I’m fine!”

Adandito sighed helplessly and embraced Hierian. Startled, Hierian grabbed Adandito’s shoulder.

“Wha-what! Why are you doing this?”

“Please stay calm. Didn’t you ask for us to go to her bedroom?”

“…Well, that’s true.”

Hierian glanced briefly at Adandito. Adandito’s expression remained the same as usual, so Hierian kept quiet. At the end of the short silence, Adandito stood in front of Siara’s bedroom. He gently knocked on the door with his large hand.

“May I come in for a moment?”

There was no response from inside. Adandito and Hierian exchanged glances and opened the bedroom door.

“Siara!”

However, Siara was nowhere to be seen. Instead, the door leading to the terrace was wide open. With a cool breeze, the white chiffon curtains fluttered. They were one step too late.

* * *

I had gone to sleep but was kidnapped. There was no other way to describe my state.

It happened when I finished a satisfying meal and changed into my pajamas. Something suddenly grabbed me and swiftly carried me away, running through the mountains. The speed was so fast that I momentarily lost consciousness. And when I came to my senses, it was now.

My impression of the sudden incident was simple.

“Ugh, it’s cold.”

It was summer, and I was wearing thin pajamas. Yet, the wind blowing in the mountains felt chilly, like autumn. Moreover, I have not dressed appropriately for riding on a mountain, especially while wearing slippers.

I estimated how long it would take to descend the mountain, considering that I was not wearing anything on my feet, but as I looked down, I raised my head in surprise. I, no matter who I was, could not ride a mountain at night.

So, it seemed better to hide somewhere suitable and return to the mansion when it became daylight.

‘The problem is who kidnapped me.’

There was one highly probable suspect. It was Prince Dianel. I was about to take my first step, thinking that I should hide somewhere before he arrived.

“Where are you going?”

A deep, low voice reached my ears. Under the moonlight, a dim, reddish gaze passed over my body as if the reins had been loosened.

It was Dianel, not in his right mind after his transformation. In other words, it meant he was in a very dangerous state. Facing Dianel at a time like this was not a wise move. However, it was already too late to run away, so I had no choice but to ask casually.

I swallowed my saliva and spoke.

“…I heard you came to Astita, but I didn’t expect to meet you like this.”

A peal of forced laughter escaped my lips, but he didn’t respond. Instead, he took a step forward and suddenly brushed my cheek.

“That’s right, I came to see you.”

“……Hmm, so you did.”

“Why aren’t you at the festival? I’ve been waiting for you.”

I raised my head slightly and looked at Dianel. He bent down and looked down at me, lifting one corner of his mouth in a smirk.

“You didn’t come to avoid me? Did you think you could avoid me?”

His voice dropped a tone. If I said the wrong thing here, I felt like my cheek would disappear. No matter how skilled of a healer I was and how great my self-healing ability was, the pain was unbearable. So I carefully chose my words, trying not to offend him.

“Well, I’m not a noble, you see…”

“Why aren’t you a noble? Siara Le Astita, that’s your name.”

My heart pounded at hearing my full name after a long time. On the other hand, my eyes rolled nervously.

‘How do you know that?’

That was exactly what I was thinking. Somehow, he seemed to know everything about me and smiled as if he did.

“Do you want to reclaim your name?”

“What?”

“Should I help you reclaim it?”

“What?”

“I can help.”

Then he lightly brushed his thumb against my lips. Without thinking, I grabbed his wrist firmly and asked.

“Do you remember me?”

Dianel chuckled strangely in response.

“Well, who knows?”

“Just tell me the truth!”

As I roughly pushed his hand away, Dianel obediently stepped back. Unlike my confusion, he seemed very relaxed.

When Dianel nears a full moon, he becomes ferocious. On top of that, in his unleashed transformed state, he was like a wild beast.

‘But let’s be honest.’

Becoming closer to one’s true nature also meant that one couldn’t pretend anymore. It was also an opportunity to uncover the emotions hidden beneath his usual expressionless demeanor, like a perfectly fitting suit on his body.

I still remembered what Dianel said to me right before the Subjugation Force ended.

‘Wait until the subjugation is over.’

During our time in the Subjugation Force, Dianel and I had the least contact. As the dark figure in the original work, he made me uncomfortable, so I intentionally avoided him, and Dianel also showed little interest in me. But now, he seemed interested in me. And perhaps he had been interested in me since our time in the Subjugation Force.

The reason was unknown. I was someone far removed from his refined hobbies. But if he remembered me, the situation had changed. I clenched both of my hands tightly.

‘He might know how to lift the curse.’

If that was the case, I had to find out, no matter what.