CH 39.1

Despite the sweetness of his speech, she couldn’t help but notice a deep sense of emptiness. An emptiness that, almost incredibly, seemed to run deeper than her own; a woman who shuddered at the pain of her family’s treatment of her every single day. Daniel continued to talk to her and the idea she could give him no comfort made her feel awful.

“I’m confused, lonely, and embarrassed by how sudden all this has been. It’s hard because I’m not sure about all the decisions I must make from now on. I’ve never been so unhappy with myself.”

“It’s natural to be shaken by the changes in the environment,” she answered in a low voice, though her eyes were still elsewhere. “You’ll get used to it soon and be a good King.”

“What are you watching so intensely?”

Iveca bowed her head. She listened to him while she had been staring blankly at the kids playing line ball in the park near the lake. Iveca opened her mouth impulsively.

“I grew up very lonely too. I had four sisters, and they always played line ball two by two. I was never included.”

“What? Why?” Daniel seemed genuinely concerned.

“It’s just that I’m always alone. So, I tried to hang on to the only man who seemed to be with me.” Iveca paused to watch the game before continuing. “I thought I would always live alone after being dumped by him, but I got good colleagues after entering the investigation office, so the loneliness of the past is now far away. You can’t choose your family, but you can choose who you want to keep.”

Iveca smiled brightly at Daniel.

“Line ball is easy to play, so it’s a ball game for kids and seniors, right?”

Suddenly, she thought he wasn’t a King; he wasn’t a man; he was just a simple friend she met every day.

“I never played line ball when I was young, but when I become old, I will play line ball with the closest person I am with every day. I believe that there will be someone who will be with you. You may be alone now, but in the end, you will be happy with other people in the new world.”

“Eve.”

Daniel smiled bitterly.

“You are a good person. I think it’s fortunate that Kayden went far, so I could spend my birthday with you. He’s terrible at consolation. How long has it been since you joined the Bureau of Investigation? Are you my junior in college? It would have been nice if I knew you in advance.”

“I wasn’t the same at all before I entered the Bureau of Investigation. I was always depressed, and because of a terrible lack of affection, I could trust no one and had a lot of doubts about everything. But since I lived looking around for 18 years, isn’t that inevitable? As the environment changed, I gradually overcame it.”

“Eighteen…”

“I don’t think Your Majesty would like me at all. So, I’m glad we only met this late.”

“I don’t like how I am right now the most.”

He narrowed his eyes.

“I can stop the war… at a cost. It’s a more difficult, blurry, and most dangerous path to take. I’m embarrassed to show myself being confused and unable to hold my mindset.”

“Get used to it, and if the environment changes, it will change again.”

She smiled softly.

“I got so much better after joining an affiliated agency. I think it’s because it’s the first recognition I’ve achieved on my own. I like myself enough to never leave the affiliated organizations even if you give me billions of won. If Your Majesty leads the Amethan well, it will be incomparably better than it is now.”

It was a strange day in many ways. Maybe it was because it was his birthday. Iveca pulled out a card that she secretly scrawled from the general store in her pocket. He was not very surprised and accepted with a smile.

Since it was only made one evening and she did not do much, there was nothing special about it. It’s not just ‘Happy Birthday, Your Majesty’, but ‘Happy Birthday, Daniel. I hope you are happy today – E.J.’ in a short phrase.

“In the Bureau of Investigation, doing what I can do well and having my colleagues support me has changed everything for me. Daniel is cautious, so you will do well in everything, and eventually, many people will cheer for you, so you will be happy.”

“Things I can do well….”

“Did you see that dagger throwing? It is the treasure of the Bureau of Investigation. I’m good at acting, too. It’s high quality.”

Iveca spoke confidently and smiled.

“Daniel, please do well, too. I want to grow old, and I have to play line ball by then. If there is a war, the Bureau of Investigation staff will die the most. Even though death is not scary, that does not mean I want to die.”