Time-Limited Saintess, You’ve Been Caught by the Tyrant Once Again - Chapter 98

Chapter 49.2

‘…That woman is strange. Being around her feels both comforting and unsettling.’

“Ellin.”

He kept murmuring her name.

His piercing red eyes followed Ellin as she disappeared down the hallway. Every time he looked at her, a strange feeling stirred within him, and he wanted to keep his distance. He was afraid.

But even so…

“Your Majesty, that woman… are you in love with her?”

Marquis Kasmin’s voice suddenly cut through his thoughts, startling him. He had been searching for Arkan to deliver a report when he stumbled upon the scene. To him, Arkan’s emotions were painfully obvious. You couldn’t fool the eyes of a man who had married for love.

The woman seemed oblivious, yet Arkan kept trying to strike up conversations with her for no reason, and his gaze never left her.

It had been clear ever since that ‘bird’ comment. The conclusion was inevitable.

“In love? Me?”

He scoffed.

“Ho…”

Marquis Kasmin stared at him in disbelief.

‘That man saying such lines with that expression?’

It felt like something ripped straight out of a romantic novel—the kind where a cold-hearted tyrant, clueless about love, blurted out such classic lines! He couldn’t help but marvel at how Arkan perfectly embodied the archetype of a cold man of Nicaea, utterly clueless about love.

“As if I could ever do something like love.”

He had learned hatred, rage, sorrow, and slaughter far earlier than he ever could have learned love. How could a ruthless killer like him possibly experience something as frivolous and ordinary as love? It was a frivolous, ordinary feeling only meant for the normal people.

“Arkan, you say you don’t understand love…”

“….”

“But there’s no one in the world who doesn’t know love. Liking someone is human instinct.”

Arkan didn’t respond to those words.

He simply kept looking in the direction Ellin had gone.

̊ · : * ✧ * : · ̊

Arkan’s behavior puzzled her. Ellin couldn’t figure out why he had spoken to her in the first place. Shaking off the thought, she walked back to her quarters.

This afternoon, Iweta was in charge of watching over Charlotte, so she had been given some time off.

‘Time to rest.’

She couldn’t believe she had that kind of time. A time where she didn’t have to do anything, where she could completely let her guard down.

Even though she had rest periods while working at the inn, the concept of rest in the imperial palace was foreign to her. There wasn’t a single moment of peace in the palace, where she constantly felt like a flower with its stem snapped, slowly withering away.

And now, in such a place, she was given ‘rest time.’

Ellin wandered aimlessly through the palace. Along the way, she ran into Melissa.

“Ellin!”

“Melissa!”

Their eyes lit up as they exchanged warm smiles.

“Is it your break time?”

“Yes.”

“What are you planning to do?”

“I was just… walking around the palace.”

“Uh… during your break?”

“Yes.”

“You’re not doing anything else?”

“No.”

‘Is it odd to walk around the palace during break time?’

Ellin furrowed her brows slightly, looking confused.

“What are you doing, wandering around the imperial palace?”

“Just… walking.”

Melissa sighed inwardly.

She couldn’t help but feel sorry for Ellin, who seemed to wander around aimlessly. While she had friends to spend her free time with, Ellin didn’t. Even if she was stuck in the palace, was walking really the only thing she could think to do during her free time?

It was the first time their break schedules had overlapped since they became friends. A strange sense of duty suddenly filled Melissa.

“Follow me.”

“Huh?”

“It’s rare for our break times to overlap, isn’t it?”

Without waiting for a response, Melissa grabbed Ellin’s hand and tugged her along. The path they took wasn’t one frequented by nobles but rather a quiet route mostly used by servants.

“Look over there.”

Melissa pointed toward a swing nestled under the shade of a tree.

“A swing…”

As Ellin’s memories flickered back to a time when she had ridden a swing as a child, Melissa guided her to the swing and gently helped her sit down. The swing, which she assumed would be small, had a surprisingly large seat that could comfortably hold an adult.

Once she was seated, Melissa grabbed the ropes and gave her a push. Ellin broke into laughter.

“How was yesterday?”

In response, Ellin began to share her stories. As she talked about the things she had kept to herself, she realized it was more enjoyable than she’d expected. She had thought this before, back when they went out together, but Melissa was truly a sociable and kind-hearted person.

A simple day spent chatting with a friend. It was the kind of ordinary moment she had always wished for, and now it had finally come true.

Ellin silently vowed to hold onto this memory for the rest of her life.

As they continued chatting, the sun dipped below the horizon. The sky behind the pristine white palace was painted in vibrant shades of red and orange.

Gazing at it, Ellin uttered softly.

“The sunset’s red glow in the sky is truly beautiful.”

At some point, the hands pushing the swing became gentler, almost hesitant.

Ellin smiled to herself, savoring the moment.

When Melissa didn’t respond, she turned her head to check, only for her eyes to widen in shock. It was because Melissa was gone, and standing in her place while holding the ropes, was Arkan, gazing down at her. His large hand overlapped hers as she clutched the ropes.

Arkan held her startled gaze for a moment before shifting his eyes to the sky.

He was gazing at the sky, where the sun was setting.

Ellin couldn’t find the words to speak. She just kept her eyes on the sky as though trying to avoid looking at him. Even though she wanted to excuse herself and leave, perhaps because his hand still held the swing’s ropes, she found herself unable to move.

“…Yes, it is beautiful.”

“….”

Arkan mumbled softly, even though his crimson eyes were far more mesmerizing than the sky.

Was it because of the sunset? It seemed as though his face was faintly tinged with red.

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