Chapter 118

“Mother.”

“Yes?”

Elysia raised her head and met her gaze with Cardel’s reflection in the mirror.

The hesitating and parting lips, his face was exactly like hers. Red pupils, eyes, and even the location of the beauty mark. Except for the fact that he was a man and his build was thick, it seemed like only the face was moved.

The only sign of Cassian was the color of his waist-length hair.

“Does the imprint remain the same for reincarnated father?”

Her hand that was braiding Cardel’s hair stopped for a moment. Elysia let out a small voice and laughed.

A quiet silence fell for a moment.

“I like father.”

Cardel really liked Cassian.

Since he was his father, she thought that affection was natural though respect, awe… and such feelings were also mixed in. To the extent that when Cardel was asked who he liked better, his mother or his father, he would say without hesitation that it was his father.

“I like him, too.”

“But sometimes… there are times when I wish he hadn’t been reincarnated.”

At that, Elysia pulled Cardel’s hair.

“When mother made that face. That’s when I think about it.”

Elysia tried to smile at those words.

It wasn’t like this from the start. She knew it would be a long time, but she thought the wait wouldn’t be too hard since she had Cardel with her. Would he see her when they met again? What if she failed the temptation?

While she thought of that, she thought she would wait with a smile.

However, there were times when she couldn’t stand it a little bit from time to time. It must have been because she knew that Cassian was reincarnated. If she didn’t know, she might have just let it go and sometimes shed tears and spent time reminiscing with Cardel.

In the past, she had been so afraid that she would live an eternal life without Cassian, but now, she felt that way.

“…Cassian will be saddened if he hears it.”

If she or Cardell could feel something when Cassian was reincarnated, it would have been different. Still, there was no such thing, so they couldn’t neglect their search to find him for a very long time.

If Cassian really were reincarnated and they missed him or if she passed the time without knowing it, she would continue to wait without a promise. Elysia was afraid that if she missed the opportunity, she would give up and be abandoned.

She clung to the word that even if his reincarnated gender changed, his appearance would be similar.

“What would you do if he gets upset?”

Cardel uttered in a firm voice.

Disappointment over disappointment again… What if she didn’t find him in the midst of repeated disappointments? There were times when she thought that.

Yes, just once.

Seeing that she even thought about it, it seemed that the imprinting wasn’t such a big deal. Perhaps leaving the portrait was a small revenge.

The current Cassian didn’t make a mistake, although it was a small prank for the difficult time. Between the strange certainty that she would be able to seduce him and the uneasiness of him not seeing her.

If he saw her, wouldn’t it leave little room for jealousy for his past self…?

“I’m going in person… Now, don’t worry about anything else.”

“It is.”

“Especially that thought.”

Elysia picked up the hair tie, avoiding Cardel’s gaze in the mirror.

She wondered if the reincarnated Cassian could be said to be the same as the Cassian of the past. When she thought she might be left alone, she wished for his reincarnation, but she thought, what if she didn’t feel the same way when she faced the reincarnated Cassian?

It was because he wasn’t Cassian. That reason was also mixed in with why she hid her face and visited him only occasionally.

“I can’t help it.”

“Father is bad.”

“Right?”

The longer she waited for him, the more she thought about everything and came to this messed up result.

An ambiguous situation where she can neither approach right away nor watch him from afar. If she let go of him and it was too late to try to find him, it would make her a little sad. Still, now that Cassian was clamoring to know who she was, she had no reason to back down.

“As expected, wouldn’t it be better to have a meeting disguised as a coincidence?”

It seemed that he had accepted the Emperor’s offer for no reason, and then things got tangled.

“I think it would have been better to choose an appropriate family and approach him disguised as an arranged marriage.”

That wasn’t too bad, either. However, if that happened, shouldn’t he be tied to the family? If Cassian wanted to continue his noble life, she would, but Elysia was reluctant.

“But, can we get rid of that heir now?”

They were talking about the heir of the Esteban family. Cardel seemed to be bothered for a long time as that man aimed for his father’s life.

“I want it too, but I don’t know.”

It seemed that the Duke had already agreed to take care of it when he begged her, and she left it alone. Even though it happened because she didn’t deal with them properly in the first place. Elysia felt a bit sorry for him. She should have warned him right away.

“Let’s think about it.”

“All right.”

Cardel smiled brightly, but it was only bloody. Elysia patted him on the shoulder a couple of times and got up.

* * *

Cassian found a shabby house on the outskirts of the Capital and was waiting for someone to show up.

“…Does it have to be a kidnapping?”

“Just. It looks like she’ll come like this.”

“Who the hell is she? A guest coming to the Imperial Palace? Or that person?”

Cassian smiled, raising a corner of his mouth.

“Both.”

As time passed, he became strangely convinced. If he hadn’t found that portrait, he wouldn’t have connected the Magic Tower’s support with the Emperor’s order. Where could she visit him and secretly look after him, even supporting him from the Magic Tower…?

“You go out and wait.”

“Though if anything happens…”

Cassian pointed to the doorway, saying, “It’s okay, just leave.” In case of emergency, he could have pulled himself out right away, and the knights were waiting in the house right next door.

He muttered to himself as he watched Rand leave.

“I mean, it’s strangely tense.”

Rand didn’t understand Cassian’s feelings.

He asked if Cassian felt reluctant to meet someone who might have been watching him for a long time, but he didn’t feel that way at all.

How long had he been waiting for this moment? He finally felt like she was offering to meet him, and he was feeling overwhelming emotions. While his expectations may have been wrong, he just hoped it would be right.

He waited for a long time before he felt someone opening the door, openly revealing their presence. Did they not know how to hide their presence?

A knight? Wizard?

All he knew was her slender, small hands… He thought it might not be the woman. Several questions filled his head at the same time.

Cassian took a long breath and moved to a position overlooking the first floor. Soon, a person wearing a white robe became lodged in his field of vision. He could see the long silver hair flowing out of the robe. They seemed to be on the tall side, but the body was small, and the body build was thin.

Coming alone with no one to follow… what if it wasn’t her who was here?

“…Ah.”

Then, he saw her hand go up to remove the robe.

That time when he held onto the hem of her robe to reveal her face seemed to pass very slowly. Finally seeing her face, Cassian let out a short exclamation. He raised his head and met her gaze as if he knew exactly who she was. The reddish eyes curled softly, and the red lips drew a seductive line.

At that moment, he was caught in her gaze, unable to breathe.

He passed her straight eyebrows and captured the eyelashes the same color as her hair. One look at the beauty mark under her right eye and then back up.

The red eyes drew attention for an exceptionally long time.

Cassian let out the breath he had been holding back after facing her for a long time. Meanwhile, she walked up the steps, not slow or fast, approaching him. As they approached a certain distance, her delicate brows furrowed.

Cassian saw that and realized what she did. Was there something she doesn’t like?

“…Whoo.”

She relentlessly pursued her hand, running through her hair with the sound of a small sigh. The woman in front of him let out a small laugh that sounded a bit disheartened.

Cassian frowned, unable to fathom the change in her emotions.

“Hi, long time no see.”

She heard a soft voice that didn’t match the situation.

Cassian was convinced that the ‘she’ he had been waiting for was the woman in front of his eyes. He couldn’t help but utter the words that filled his throat at the moment of conviction.

“…I wanted to see you.”

“Me?”

She was taken aback, perhaps not expecting it.