âHere. I was planning to give this to you.â
ââ¦â¦.â
âI didnât know there was something else around your neck that someone else had given.â
Thinking that he was about to hug her, Cassian drew closer to fasten the pearls around her neck instead.
âAre you alright?â
Yernia got scared of Cassian earlier.
It felt like he was a different personâa stranger.
Honestly, she was more worried for his sake.
âYour hand is hurting. Give me your hand. Iâll hold it.â
Yernia held his bleeding hand and blew a breath, hoping to alleviate the pain.
She was guiding him with the normal hand-holding.
As she focused hard on healing him, Cassia slightly poked Yerniaâs cheek.
âJust a word of warning. Donât take what someone else had given you.â
âWill you kill me if I do?â
Cassian laughed.
His smile was soft and gentle that she couldnât believe he had broken Jennanâs necklace a while ago.
âNo. Not you. But him.â
âPlease donât do that. Youâre scaring me.â
Cassian examined Yernia closely, and she avoided his gaze.
He came to his senses when he read the fear in her eyes in that split-second glance.
He would usually suppress the urge to kill Jennan when he was around his wife but seeing the bastardâs gift on her neck almost drove him to murder.
He shouldnât have shown  the extent of his jealousy in front of Yernia.
Cassian sighed in regret.
âIâm just kidding, Yernia.â He said, wiping the blood on his scar with a handkerchief.
ââ¦â¦.â
âNow youâre perfect. Youâre so pretty.â
***
High-level Espers, who have similar abilities to Cassian, were usually sensitive.
It took a lot of mental strength to control it, so it made sense.
It was the guideâs role to stop them from going insane.
âMy Lady!â
Startled, Yernia turned her head towards the call.
Two servants holding the paintings were looking their way.
Even the butler standing next to them was staring at her in suspicion.
âOh, sorry. What did I say?â
As she stared at the portrait in a daze, she briefly fell into another thought.
âI think itâs better to hang it a little more to the left.â
Yernia looked at the painting, nodding in agreement at the butlerâs suggestion.
A famous artist had painted this ship sailing on a dark blue sea.
She paused.
She originally thought it was cool to hang this picture on the living room wall but now it appeared like the deep sea had was about to swallow  the ship.
How creepy.
âIâd like to choose a different picture.â
âWhat?â
âI changed my mind. I think the living room will be brighter with flowers.â
The butler and the rest of the servants felt awkward, but they all followed Yerniaâs will.
She decided to hang another painting just in case it didnât match the mansionâs atmosphere.
âGet out of my way!â
âOh, Iâm sorry.â
Young maids were carelessly walking around, obstructing the carrierâs path.
He waited for the space to clear before he continued walking.
A maidâs foot accidentally hit the ladder, which the servant who carried the painting had just climbed.
At that moment, everyone looked up.
Someone shouted, but she couldnât hear who it was.
Yernia thought about avoiding the painting, but it was about to drop over her head.
â!!!!â
She closed her eyes tightly, and out of nowhere, she smelled the strong scent of a manâs perfume.
A warm body had embraced Yernia before both of them fell down.
âMarquis!â
âMarchioness!â
Their servantsâ panicked calls rang in their heads.
When Yernia opened her eyes, Cassian was on top as she watched the painting fall on his back.
âBehind youâ-â
The painting hit his broad back before she could finish.
*THUD*
Cassianâs broad back jerked forward when he slightly lifted her in his embrace.
With gritted teeth, he tried his best to prevent the painting from falling into Yernia.
âAre you hurt?â
He was the one who got hurt but he was still worried about her.
âWhy are youâââ
Her shock  made her speechless.
Her mouth opened and repeatedly closed in her desire to ask him why he had saved her.
The question was meaningless, however.
If Cassian were in danger, Yernia would still save him like he did for her just now.
Nevertheless, she still wanted to ask.
âWhy âââ
âYou shouldnât ask that to a person who just saved you, Yernia. Why would you ask me that after I did what had to be done?â
Cassian didnât sound angry at his rebuke.
Still, he rose with a frown.
All of the servants, whose shock had momentarily turned them into stone, quickly set the painting upright.
âI didnât want you to get hurt. Were you surprised?â
âYes. Hehe.â
âDid you get hurt?â After standing straight, he rolled his shoulders and paused. âWhy are you crying?â
Yernia, who rose after him, rubbed her eyes and shook her head.
âAre you crying because the painting got ruined?â
The painting must have been ruined after falling from such a high place.
However, Yernia wasnât crying because of that.
She was glad to see him alright.
She worried about him and that it would be a lie to say she was relieved from the accident earlier.
Cassian, who had no idea she was crying because of him, wiped Yerniaâs tears with his bandaged hand.
Upon seeing his injuries, Yernia shed all of the tears she had been holding back.
âYou.â
âMe?â
âPlease donât get hurt. Youâre making me cry!â
She shouldnât have said that, but she also meant it.
Yernia didnât want Cassian to get hurt.