Thud.
The fingers fluttering by the door tap the air like that.
The fingers, which had been brushing past silently to avoid being heard, lightly touched the door again, thud, then again thud.
When the fingertips that had been gently fluttering like a drizzle came to a stop.
Adele slowly turned her head at the presence she felt from behind.
To be precise, it was the presence beyond the door; she wondered who would soon come out through this door.
Hearing the footsteps, she realized it was Robert’s.
The reason for waiting at this door wasn’t anything special.
She merely realized that the two people had gone in and hadn’t come out for a while.
What could they possibly be doing inside? It had been bothering her, and with no sounds coming from within, she let out a small sigh.
Eavesdropping on others isn’t a good thing.
Though she had learned that from her previous experience, she definitely knew that Robert had a mischievous side.
…He said he liked her because she was pretty. Isn’t that such an easy thing to say?
Even knowing it was said in jest, it couldn’t help but bother her.
The reason she had felt a bit off since earlier was not unrelated to Robert’s lack of comment about her tied-up hair.
It would have been fine if he had just said one more word.
It seemed strange to be swayed by such things, yet at the same time, it was quite fascinating.
No one else had held this kind of presence in her life.
Her father was her father, but for someone she had connected with much later, to have feelings run this deep…
If her former self had seen this scene, she would have scoffed.
Even if the memories of the past hadn’t resurfaced, Robert already held some significance for Adele.
For a moment, Adele let out a slight laugh and stared quietly into the air.
“Was your interest because of my looks?”
She had never heard anyone call her face ugly, but she hadn’t paid much attention to her appearance.
After all, what was the point of caring in a place full of men?
Having lived with bloodsplattered faces and sometimes being caked in dirt for days, focusing on looks was a recent development.
She brushed her tied hair lightly and started fiddling with the hair tie, leaning her back against the wall.
She was searching for a reason why she was waiting there.
There wasn’t really a reason to wait here. Robert would likely take a long time to come out.
And… she assumed he would be with the Saint.
That thought made her chest tighten, and Adele bit her lips, slightly furrowing her brow.
She had jokingly said she was quite jealous.
Whether he knew that was her true feeling was uncertain; if he did, he wouldn’t act like that.
It was a pointless complaint. Thoughts that used to be insignificant wouldn’t have crossed her mind.
Since when had she wasted her feelings on such unproductive thoughts?
Adele rubbed her forehead and slowly turned her back. Why be here if there was nothing good to hear?
She stepped away from the wall and walked slowly.
She thought she had walked quite a distance, but upon hearing a voice nearby, she stopped in her tracks.
“I stopped.”
When I collected my thoughts, I realized I had only taken a few steps from where I was just a moment ago.
The voice that I heard was the same as the one I had just been thinking about, and without realizing it, I let out a little laugh and cautiously looked back.
“What did you just say?”
“I asked where you were going.”
Robert, who had just come out of the room, was looking at me with a questioning expression.
If you ask where I was going, well, it’s hard to say. I couldn’t find a suitable answer to that question.
To be precise, I had already thought of an answer.
I walked forward step by step.
The footsteps that were moving away from the room began to come closer again, and I didn’t stop moving toward the man who was looking at me.
“I was coming here.”
To be precise, it was to you.
I didn’t have anything to say, but wasn’t the reason that I just wanted to see you enough?
I poked my finger into my chest at eye level and smiled brightly.
The gloomy mood I had just moments ago vanished, and now I felt nothing but good.
#
“Did you talk well with the Saint?”
As soon as Robert heard Adele’s question, he chuckled softly.
I thought he would already know, but it seemed like he genuinely cared. I felt reassured.
With my anxious heart calmed to some extent,
I had to say that leaning against Adrian felt… like leaning against a mother.
Of course, I thought of him as a woman, but he possessed a warmth of that kind.
And since I knew about the past, there was so much more to talk about,
I inevitably received plenty of help. Saying thank you wouldn’t be enough.
When I returned to the center, I was thinking of visiting the Moon Tower…
“I had a good talk with her. I also received help.”
Robert’s expression as he said that looked much better than before.
Not too long ago, he had clearly shown signs of impatience, but had those worries now vanished?
The fact that it was thanks to the Saint was the only downside.
I should have made him smile like that.
Adele wiped her cheek, trying hard to erase the bothersome thoughts that resurfaced.
She couldn’t really think of what to say. She had pulled him away from where he was going.
But facing those eyes that were staring directly at me left her at a loss for words.
Should I talk about work? But the worries until now would have been about that work.
If I ended up saying something that darkened his expression, I’d probably have a hard time sleeping.
“…Yeah, I just kind of grabbed you. I don’t really know what to say.”
So, being honest, Robert, who had been stunned for a moment, suddenly burst into laughter.
There wasn’t a particular reason. It was just that Adele’s awkward demeanor was so different from usual.
Adele didn’t know it, but she was nervously twisting her hair.
The words she wanted to say were stuck in her throat, yet she still glanced at him, which eventually made her burst into laughter.
It burst forth.
Seeing Robert suddenly laughing made Adele frown, but her cheeks turned red from the hair wrapped around her finger.
“Did you not know?”
“I didn’t. If you hadn’t laughed like that… I probably wouldn’t have.”
Hiding her unfortunate finger behind her, she chuckled awkwardly when her eyes met Robert’s.
Isn’t it okay to pretend not to know and let it slide? There was no need to reveal such behavior.
It could have been fine to keep it to herself, but why did she insist on making it known one by one?
“I’ve become too lenient; if someone laughed in front of me, I wouldn’t let them laugh again.”
“Do you remember that I was always an exception to that?”
“…I don’t remember. I never did that.”
In fact, she remembered everything, but she belatedly recalled that she had often said such things since her previous life.
The one who was always exempt from Adele’s retorts was Robert.
When they were apart, it might not have mattered, but in their shared life, Robert was essentially someone who received preferential treatment from Adele.
While she found it strange that others took that for granted, looking back now, it was truly a foolish question.
It was way too obvious. Even a fool could notice it immediately.
She couldn’t ignore the emotions that showed on the surface.
Trying to naturally wipe her face, her creaking hand merely moved awkwardly.
There was probably just a speck of the Grand Duke’s dignity left.
As that thought crossed her mind, she moved her stiff body to look at Robert again.
At this point, it was too late to show any dignified appearance.
Anyway, Robert was a bit apt to loosen up, but she felt it would rather be better to be honest about how things turned out.
After all, hadn’t she caught him for the purpose of saying something like this?
Even though she was too shy to talk after actually catching him, that sense of embarrassment had long disappeared.
She fixed her outfit and deliberately let her tied hair peek out.
‘He should notice this much.’
If he wasn’t a fool, he shouldn’t be unaware that her hair was tied.
However, Robert, who could easily see through Adele’s inner thoughts, only chuckled inwardly.
He already thought it suited her well.
It seemed he wanted her to say something about it, but if she came out like that, would he even be able to speak?
A desire to tease him arose.
After a moment’s hesitation, Robert corrected his posture and opened his mouth with a serious expression.
“Then let’s talk about those who wear masks.”
“…Masks? Suddenly?”
“Yes, since we’re seeing each other like this. Isn’t it better to discuss what will soon take place?”
“I guess that makes sense…”
Seeing her clearly disappointed expression made Robert want to burst into laughter, so he struggled to hold it in and continued speaking.
He wasn’t making things up. He had thought of something while slowly considering Adrian’s words.
He slowly recalled something while thinking.
Capturing one of those wearing masks and infiltrating inside.
There was no rush, and if he could borrow Arwen’s strength to bring back the results of the investigation on the dead dragon…
Infiltration would probably be a simple task.
What he wanted to find out was the purpose of Kaitel and those involved.
Was it the resurrection of the dead dragon, or was the purpose purely to quell the south?
He hoped for the latter, but he already knew it wasn’t going to be that direction.
“I plan to act alone during the infiltration, what do you think?”
“I don’t want to send you. Why are you asking the obvious?”
“How you say that makes it sound like you would allow it if necessary.”
“…No matter how much I try to stop you, you’ll go, right? You wouldn’t even listen if I begged.”
Seeing her sulk, Robert bitterly smiled.
It was clear to him how Adele felt about his attitude.
If he were to ignore her words and go out, it would be to protect her.
But this time, it seemed better to listen to her a little.
She was quite sulky since he hadn’t given her the response she wanted.
“Then I won’t go. Let’s send someone else or use a clone instead.”
“What?”
“I’m just not going since you told me not to. Is that bad?”
“…No, it’s fine.”
The dazed expression she had clearly interpreted her feelings.
Yet, there was no lie in his words.
There was no reason to risk going in directly.
Using a clone to give up if necessary seemed the best option.
As their conversation continued, Adele’s expression grew serious, and the look of disappointment faded away.
Just when Adele’s mind started to blur, expecting compliments about herself.
Robert, having wrapped up the words about the upcoming infiltration, sneaked a glance at her.
“Then we can wrap it up like this.”
“I guess I’ll have to explain the details to the saint.”
The reflection of her hair on the darkened window shone with a pure white light.
Hair as white as snow, sparkling like stars.
When Adele, having tied her hair back, tossed it behind her, it naturally made him think of how beautiful she was.
Why wouldn’t he think that way?
He himself was a man, and the woman he once had feelings for was doing just that.
He just deliberately chose not to say it out of mischief, but he had no intention of letting it slide completely.
“It’s about your hair.”
The sudden comment made Adele’s shoulders jump.
The voice, coming while she had forgotten, could only elicit a bigger reaction.
When he met her slightly trembling blue eyes, Robert gently smiled and continued speaking.
With a somewhat playful smile, as if he truly believed it.
“I thought it was beautiful from the beginning. Just saying it now.”
“Is that so? Then I’m glad.”
Adele replied somewhat flatly and slowly lowered her head.
She did so to avoid revealing her red cheeks.
In truth, her ears had already turned bright red long before that.
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