The Villain’s Aide Has Run Away - Chapter 82.2
“No, that has to be a lie. It must be.”
Kailos’s words sounded almost like a joke, but there was something persistent in them.
“You really have fallen for me, haven’t you?”
At Kailos’s question, Leslun just blinked slowly. That alone seemed to serve as an answer.
“I knew you couldn’t lie.”
“You said earlier it was a lie…”
Leslun muttered in a tone that almost sounded like he was sulking, then grew embarrassed. It was fortunate that his face was already so flushed it could not turn any redder.
“My face feels like it’s about to explode.”
The moment Kailos’s fingers brushed gently against his cheek, Leslun realized that all of his thoughts had been laid bare.
***
His parents had left the estate, saying they would bring back his younger sibling.
Leslun’s sibling had gone to another city for business, so he would be free from the Count’s watchful gaze for a while. Still, there was reason to be careful about his sibling’s safety too.
Because of that, Leslun suddenly found himself with time on his hands. He opened a book but could not read a single word. Normally, he would force himself to focus, unwilling to waste such precious time, but this time he could not manage it.
He had finally met his parents, whom he had worried about so much. He had even shared a sweet kiss with Kailos.
There were too many reasons why he could not lose himself in his favorite books.
He shook his head. At this rate, he would not be able to do anything, so he shook his head again and forced himself to look back at the book. He deliberately kept his eyes focused and endured.
Thankfully, his efforts seemed not to betray him, as the words slowly began to make sense, but…
Tap.
The soft sound of something landing lightly on the windowsill broke his concentration again. When he turned his head, he saw a small kitten with deep blue fur and gleaming golden eyes.
“Blue?”
When Leslun held out his hand, Blue approached silently and stepped onto his palm as light as a feather. Leslun lifted him, set him gently on his lap, and gazed down at him.
He was not as majestic as Silber, but he was cute and charming in his own way. Still, what Prince Tarensiu had said kept nagging at the back of Leslun’s mind.
‘Mate.’
That word alone remained vivid.
“Blue, is that really why you like me…”
Leslun started to speak, but the words caught in his throat.
“So that means I’m the Crown Prince’s mate… ha, what am I even saying.”
The fact that he had even considered asking such a thing of Blue made him feel pathetic. But before his sigh had even faded, a clear voice rang out somewhere in his head.
[You are too inadequate to be a mate.]
In that instant, Leslun’s entire body went stiff.
‘Did I just… hear that correctly?’
Blinking in shock, he looked down at Blue.
“Was that you who just spoke?”
Blue stared at him without blinking, as if he had understood, then slowly narrowed his eyes.
Well, that made sense. Sacred beasts were supposed to have the ability to communicate after all.
Leslun quickly accepted the idea.
At first, he was startled to hear Blue’s voice. Then, slowly, another emotion welled up.
Leslun found it hard to hide his disappointment.
He had always thought he was far too lacking to stand at Kailos’s side, that it could never be possible. But hearing it directly still stung.
‘So until now, I was just following my feelings blindly. Of course I could never truly be his mate.’
He looked down at Blue again. The kitten’s golden eyes still met his gaze head-on. Leslun straightened his expression so that his disappointment would not show.
“I think so too.”
Then, another voice rang clearly in his mind.
[You are someone far more important than that.]
Leslun gave a sheepish smile. Perhaps because it followed the earlier comment, it was not all that shocking.
“Thank you for saying that, but it feels a little overwhelming.”
He gave an awkward laugh.
But Blue did not budge from his palm. The tiny, firm creature continued to look up at him without wavering.
[Do you know what a sacred beast is meant to protect?]
“That would be… the Emperor. The one who sits on the throne. For generations, the Emperor has always…”
[The nation.]
Blue corrected Leslun’s mistaken answer.
[It is my destiny to protect my land.]
It sounded almost the same but was in fact entirely different.
[We protect the Emperor for the sake of protecting the nation.]
In the thickened, tense atmosphere, Blue leapt from Leslun’s palm with a light movement. His voice continued after the soft landing.
[The Crown Prince was also given a chance. I shook his mind so he would see you differently.]
Leslun’s heart, which had been floating, suddenly plummeted.
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