Chapter 43

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

Chapter 43

“…Gabriel?”

A shrill voice came out of my mouth.

The young man with green eyes and disheveled water-colored hair as if he had just gotten off the ship, was certainly Gabriel Vecchio.

“Eve.”

Gabriel slowly approached me.

His soft mouth and friendly voice were still there, though I could somewhat feel a determination that was different from before.

“I really, really missed you.”

“What are you doing here…!”

I cut off my words.

This was not the time for this. If it was discovered that a commoner with no special status like Gabriel had broken into the Empress’s Palace to meet me, the aftermath would be incomparable to the case of Cassius’ invasion.

As I took a breath, I turned and spoke calmly to him.

“…If I am caught meeting an outsider at the Empress’s Palace, I will be in trouble. Please, go back now.”

“Do you think I came here without knowing any of that?”

“Yes.”

I nodded my head.

How would Gabriel know about the conversation between the Empress and me? Unless he stole the letters between Cassius and I.

“…Did you open the letters that I sent?”

“What letters are you talking about?”

Gabriel asked back with a puzzled face.

His expression did not seem like it was a lie at all, so I sighed.

“That’s fine. Anyway, please leave as soon as possible. It has nothing to do with Gabriel’s reasons for being here.”

“It doesn’t matter!”

He exclaimed urgently.

I was surprised to find that Gabriel had shouted louder than he had ever done, so I hurriedly covered his mouth.

“What are you going to do if someone hears you—”

Gabriel gently pulled his body out of my grasp.

“Eve, I’m here to save you.”

“…Yes?”

I doubted my ears for a moment.

Did he come to save me…? What nonsense is he talking about?

“I know you think it’s nonsense, Eve, because you’re a realistic person.”

“….”

“But, listen. I have the power to save you and escape. If you just nod your head once… you’ll be free.”

At his words, I just stared blankly into his eyes.

Even though the meaning of Gabriel’s whispering words was conveyed to me well enough, I did not understand the inner meaning.

Gabriel Vecchio.

A young man working on a boat.

Although he has his own abilities, abilities and power are completely different issues. To set me completely free from this life, I needed the same power as Prince Brudenell. What kind of power does he have for a commoner young man who seemed just over twenty-year-old?

​​

Still, I did not want to doubt him.

To be precise, I did not want to suspect him in ‘like that.’

“…Why?”

I barely managed to formulate an answer as I licked my lips.

“Why are you doing that… for me?”

“Because I love you.”

Gabriel answered without hesitation.

“Since Eve left, my life has lost its light. I know I’m saying this too late but… I love you, Eve.”

“….”

For a moment, I could not say anything. I could not move as if my body was frozen.

It was because fear took precedence over extravagant emotions such as surprise or embarrassment. It could not be like this. If I do not know about Gabriel Vecchio, it means that he is a character who has never appeared in the novel.

“No, that’s absurd.”

I shook my head as hard as I could.

“You haven’t known me for a long time…”

“When does love come from knowing each other for a long time?”

Gabriel grabbed my hand as he continued.

“Look at me, Eve. Do you feel that I am lying?”

The scariest thing was the fact that it never felt that way. Gabriel’s desperate voice and mournful eyes were the kind I knew well…

Things I’ve seen a lot from Cassius Brudenell.

I hurriedly pulled my hand away from him.

“Please, stop it.”

“I’m sorry.”

Gabriel apologized quickly.

“I was too hasty. However, please know this one thing. I’m the only one who can get you out of this situation.”

Once the fear subsided, all that remained was a sense of guilt.

About my own actions?

No way.

I was not responsible for anything that happened in this world. In the meantime, no matter how hard I tried and struggled, everything went the way the world wanted.

​​

What I felt guilty about was the fate of this young man.

Gabriel, who has just become an adult, would die at the hands of Cassius because of jealousy, which was not even funny.

“…Do you think Lord Cassius will stand still?”

Cassius will follow me to the ends of hell.

Of course, I do not know, although Gabriel’s ending will not be pretty. His answer was firm, although I would not have known about it if he had done a background check on Cassius before.

“He won’t stand still, but it doesn’t matter.”

He clasped my hand carefully again.

Though Gabriel touched me without my permission, I did not hate it. Unlike Cassius, his movements were delicate and thoughtful.

However, at his following words, I wanted to scream.

“You don’t know too much about him. Of course, you must not know because he has been hiding his true self from you all this time.”

He said Cassius hid his true self…?

I knew more about Cassius Brudenell than anyone in the world. Because I knew what would have happened if I had not struggled to survive after being possessed here!

“So, come with me. Didn’t you want to leave, anyway? Isn’t that why we met on the ship?”

Right.

Gabriel was right. Nevertheless, the problem was that this guy did not know who Cassius Brudenell really was.

“Actually, I know that Eve wants to leave with me.”

Oh, how true is that?

“In the end, you’re just hesitating because you think he’ll catch you. Isn’t it?”

I nodded my head unexpectedly.

However, I realized that I should not have done that. It was because Gabriel’s face lit up as though it was blooming.

“Yes, you’re a wise woman. You wouldn’t believe me without evidence.”

“What…evidence?”

“I’ll bring a token to prove that I’m more than capable of defeating him.”

Gabriel’s fresh, grassy eyes gleamed before adding his words, “Please, postpone the marriage until then. Then, you will be free, Eve.”

“…Okay.”

My tongue moved as if it was not mine.

My head shouted not to agree, though my instincts reacted differently. The long-cherished desire to run away from Cassius responded to Gabriel’s desperate words.

I wet my dry lips.

“Nonetheless, please go now. If you get caught doing this…”

The moment I took a step back from Gabriel, the voice that I did not want to hear the most now echoed in the air.

“Tell me. What do you think you can do?”

Cassius Brudenell slowly appeared.

His golden eyes flashed dangerously like a beast.

I was not particularly surprised, perhaps because all of my plans had been foiled by Cassius. However, a natural conclusion was drawn that Gabriel’s life was in danger.

With that thought, I instinctively blocked the gap between the two of them. Although I did not like Gabriel’s behavior of breaking into the Empress’s Palace and making outrageous noises, I couldn’t let him die.

I threw up the questions that came to my mind to distract him.

“Since when have you been there?”

“I was there from the beginning, Evelyn.”

His tone suddenly softened, but I was not deceived. Regardless of whether this was the Empress’s Palace or not, he was the one who would remain fine after killing and hiding Gabriel.

“…You promised not to come to the Empress’s Palace.”

“I promised not to come to the Empress’s Palace and meet you. I didn’t say that I wouldn’t come to the Empress’s Palace.”

Cassius continued in a sullen tone.

“If I had known that there would be bugs like this, I wouldn’t have even made such a promise… That’s too bad.”

“Go.”

My eyes were fixed on Cassius, but I didn’t say anything to him.

“Quickly.”

Fortunately, Gabriel seemed to understand what I was saying. Because after a moment, I could not feel his presence.

“…Evelyn.”

Calling for me, Cassius raised his hand and stroked my cheek. The act of love was horrifying, and it gave me goosebumps.

“Do you want that man?”

“….”

“Have him if you want. I won’t take him away from you.”

“What nonsense are you talking about?”

I glared fiercely at him.

“Nothing happened between him and me. You know we didn’t even have time for that!”

“I doubt that.”

Although Cassius’ mouth drew an arc, his eyes were not smiling.

“I saw the way you looked at that man on the ship. At that time, your mind had already gone to him.”

I bit my lip.

Unfortunately, I could not deny it. At that time, it was true that I was attracted to Gabriel.

“It doesn’t matter. The aristocrats’ paramours are bound to be abandoned eventually.”

“…A lover?”

I doubted my ears. There have been many times where Cassius has said nonsense, but none like today.

Still, he chuckled softly.

“Did I really look like a narrow-minded man who couldn’t understand one of my wife’s insignificant lovers?”

────────────────────────────────────────────────────────────