CH 8

“You knew. Didn’t you make that choice knowingly, Reyev?”

McLion checked the newspaper and spoke to Reyev, who was speechless.

The two checked the article on the front page of today’s newspaper.

News of the engagement of Duke Ian Cherville and Grace Bennett.

McLion knew that both of them were in love with each other.

He knew, yet he was determined to be by her side.

However, he couldn’t even avoid it and his heart ached whenever he saw it with his own two eyes.

“Whoa. Really?”

At the clear voice ringing in his ears, McLion turned his head away from the tree.

Grace was sitting in the far garden. She was spending a happy time with Ian with her beautiful smile.

“Phew.”

McLion let out a breath as he had no choice but to look at that figure.

Friend.

He could now be by Grace’s side in the name of a friend.

There was a clear invisible line between them.

The limit of friends.

The moment he crosses that line, his relationship with Grace will crumble like a sand castle.

It was a reality that was no different from that time with Sellonia.

“…Selli.”

He suddenly thought of Sellonia, who had laughed dejectedly two days ago.

Sellonia, who met Grace in Roblanc.

If Sellonia had even put her hand on Grace then, he wouldn’t have stood still.

Of course, it wasn’t that he didn’t understand Sellonia’s heart.

However, the human mind wasn’t a mountain that stayed in place, but a moving sea.

It couldn’t be stopped from flowing, and it couldn’t be settled.

He met Grace and realized it for himself.

He didn’t know what had started.

The moment he came to his senses, his feelings for Sellonia had disappeared like melting snow, and Grace had entered the void.

“I thought you would stay by Selli’s side.”

McLion muttered to himself to Reyev, who was still holding on to his silence.

At the time, he was on high alert that Sellonia might harm Grace. He had no idea what kind of feelings Sellonia might have.

Yet now that he thought about it again, her being alone stuck in his mind.

Because Ian, him, and even Reyev turned against her in an instant.

“The Knight’s Oath is so light that it can be issued to many people.”

He sneered sarcastically.

Reyev, who had interfered with Sellonia in everything, eventually betrayed her.

He pretended to be virtuous and honest, and it was ridiculous.

“Sir McLion even gave her your heart, didn’t you? If you’re going to take it back, why did you give it to her?”

Reyev, who was choked up, couldn’t stand it and raised his voice.

McLion had touched the guilt that remained like a burden in his heart.

“What, jerk? I’m just being true to my heart right now!”

McLion grabbed Reyev’s collar as the hot-tempered fellow he was.

His golden eyes shook wildly, with the momentum to hit Reyev at any moment.

“The same goes for me.”

Reyev faced McLion without blinking an eye.

It was meaningless to judge who was right and wrong here now. After all, they were all the same traitors.

“If it hadn’t been for my heart then, Selli would have died.”

McLion always glared at the unlucky Reyev’s expressionless face and roughly let go of the collar he was holding.

He wanted to turn that face into porridge, but he held back as he remembered Grace’s request for them to get along well.

“Then why don’t you protect her until the end? You hate it, so now you’re stealing back your heart.”

“Nonsense! Towards Sellonia, I’m still …!”

McLion, who was swept away by emotion and raised his voice, stopped talking when he sensed something strange.

For an instant, a look of bewilderment appeared on his face.

Towards Sellonia…? What’s next?

“McLion!”

At that moment, after talking with Ian, Grace ran towards him waving her hand.

“Don’t run. You can fall.”

When he saw her smile, which was more dazzling than the sunlight, he got up from his seat with a soft expression as if nothing had happened.

Then, without hesitation, he walked towards Grace.

His silver hair glistened in the warm sunlight.

The friendly yellow eyes in his mysterious and handsome face curved pleasantly.

The confusion up until now had disappeared.

As if he never had such worries in the first place.

“…”

Reyev, who read the confusion reflected in McLion’s eyes for a moment, was suspicious.

What was that, just now?

As if…

“Sir Reyev, come on!”

However before he had time to think, Grace’s voice flew in again.

She was beckoning Reyev to come.

In the end, Reyev couldn’t resist the gesture, so he cleared his head and moved on.

To Grace Bennett, whom he loves.

***

The original story is over.

Whether it’s a happy ending or a sad ending.

No matter what, she reached the ending, and the time she was living now is after the ending.

Because the novel was from the subjugation of the Demon King to the wedding of the two a month later.

In other words, there was no longer any bond from the original story that was enforced.

“Miss, can I really eat with you?”

“Of course. Eat as much as you want. If there’s anything you want to eat, order more.”

Sellonia comforted Ella, who was in disbelief, and drank the cocoberry juice in front of her.

They had been out at a cafe in the northern part of Monterra Street at Ella’s persistent request for a change of pace.

As Grace warned, the news of their engagement was on the front page of the newspaper today, two days after that.

The public’s attention was focused on the announcement of the engagement between the daughter of a commoner baron family, who wasn’t noticed by anyone, and Duke Ian, who was always chosen as the number one groom.

Since the insignificant baron’s daughter drove out his former fiancée, the Princess of Basin, who was called the Golden Family, and took over the Duke of Cherville, it was only natural that people would pay attention to them.

“What kind of bullshit is the romance of the century! Isn’t that newspaper crazy? It’s the same newspaper that was talking nonsense the other day!”

“That’s right.”

At Ella’s enraged words, perhaps thinking of the article again, she muttered as if it were someone else’s business.

She didn’t really feel any emotion.

The article described the meeting between Ian and Grace as a fateful love affair.

To the point where she wonders if he bribed the newspaper company. If someone who doesn’t know the circumstances sees it, they will accept it as such.

But it was only this newspaper.

The rest of the media and public opinion were all on her side and blaming Ian.

He was the one who openly cheated on her though he had a publicly known fiancee.

Even while his fiancée had fallen and was on her way to death.

What a shameless bastard.

Obviously, if Ian had a strong sense of self-esteem, he would be mad at articles criticizing him.

Because he was more sensitive to reputation than anyone else.

“It’s a pity I couldn’t see that expression.”

Sellonia chuckled and mumbled with dacquoise in her mouth.

The moderately sweet taste was good.

‘As expected, dessert makes me feel better.’

She quite liked the leisurely and sweet time. It was a good thing she went out.

Except for the fact that all the customers in the cafe glanced at her to check her expression.

In the eyes of others, she may seem uncharacteristic of a brokenhearted person.

But she struggled alone for two days until this happened.

It was almost all sorted out now.

She had no intention of dwelling on past memories or spending each day in tears thinking about her fiancé and the sub-male leads who had left.

Because of their betrayal, the bond and fellowship they had built up to this point had been thrown into the trash for a long time.

After admitting everything, her mind was organized and her complicated thoughts were relieved.

Today, only one thought filled her head.

“What are you going to do next?”

“Aren’t you going to keep going to the healing center?”

Ella asked with a puzzled look as Sellonia twirled a straw with her fingers and muttered words.

“Right. But there are still three months left of the leave period. I will unconditionally fill all three months and return to work. Office workers have to play when they can.”

Because that’s the eternal law of office workers.

“Well, then how about shopping?”

“That’s a day or two, too.”

“How about visiting the nearby attractions?”

“I must have been to most places on the past dates, though.”

“Ah… Ah! Then how about a trip?”

“I’m tired of adventures.”

Ella groaned and fell into trouble as everything she said was blocked.

But she really couldn’t help it. She was tired of travel and adventure.

Just a few months ago, she fought a bloody war against demons that popped up without warning and climbed the castle while rolling over a cliff.

There was even a time when she walked for two days covered in sticky monster blood.

She still gets a fever when she thinks of the hardships she went through then.

If it wasn’t for the main lead’s buff, it was an adventure that would cause her death long ago.

“Then you’d better just stay at home.”

“Right? That would be best, right?”

“Yeees.”

Ella shook her head, looking at the young lady’s brightly colored face as if it was the correct answer.

‘Yeah. What else can I do?’

The celebration has been set in three weeks, so until then she’ll just rest at home. There was nothing the duchy didn’t have.

As there was plenty of money for Sellonia to play and eat.