The once towering castle walls lay in miserable ruin, as if someone had forcibly smashed through an impenetrable barrier.

Tonight, the full moon shone brightly, illuminating the utterly wrecked garden with perfect clarity.

‘It looks just as broken as I feel right now.’

I closed the curtains and, with weary eyes, sat down on the edge of my desk and opened the drawer where I kept all the letters I’d received from Jenald.

There weren’t many.

Most of the letters had been sent by me first; Jenald, busy with physical labor, rarely had time to reply.

When we first began living apart, letters arrived weekly. The next month, they came every two weeks. By the third month, only once a month.

And the last one was the letter delivered by the mailman last time. Counting them all together now, there weren’t even ten.

I, too, hadn’t sent any recently—but even so, whenever I went down to the village, I’d diligently send five or six at a time.

I unfolded the most recent letter I’d received from Jenald.

[Latieana! How much money have you saved? You remember my birthday, right? Let’s meet then and calculate together! It’s been so long since we’ve seen each other. I’m really looking forward to that day!]

He must’ve been extremely busy—the content was startlingly brief compared to his first letters.

But this honesty, this refusal to hide anything, was precisely Jenald’s greatest strength.

It felt as if I could hear Jenald’s bright, gentle voice echoing from within the letter.

I unfolded the rest of the letters one by one.

“At first, he wrote quite a lot.”

[Latieana. Did you arrive safely in the East? Did you find a job? I’ve settled in well. Working hard for our future…… (omitted).] [Latieana. It rained today. It also rained the day we first met—I remembered and decided to write. But a workplace that pays such a high salary is truly lucky…… (omitted).]

.

.

.

[Latieana. Work is so exhausting. Still, I must earn diligently. How much have you saved? I’ve gathered more than I expected…… (omitted).] [Latieana! I’m so happy to hear you’ve saved a lot of money! Take care of your health!]

The next letter was the one suggesting we meet on his birthday—and that was the last.

Reading them all together like this, it seemed recently Jenald had only asked about money—but that was unavoidable, since we needed to verify expenses for leaving the Empire.

I, too, had lived here purely for the joy of saving money, dreaming of a future beyond the Empire.

Staring blankly at the letters, I recalled my first meeting with Jenald.

That day, after greeting Ivy and leaping down from the carriage, I truly twisted my ankle badly.

Still, I thought myself lucky that only one leg was injured—until, while walking toward the nearest village, rain began to fall and I lost my way.

‘Are you okay?’

Jenald appeared.

‘Goodness. That’s a serious injury. Hmm? You also seem to have a fever…… Wait a moment.’

Jenald, with his dark skin and gentle features, immediately offered me his back—even though my clothes were soaked and utterly ruined by the rain.

Not once did he show irritation.

‘Climb on! Let’s go to the hospital, right now.’

That was how Jenald saved me.

Later, I learned my injured leg wasn’t just sprained—it was actually broken.

At that time, Jenald was staying in that village for a log cabin construction project. When he heard I had nowhere to go, he arranged for me to stay at the site supervisor’s house.

Though the pay wasn’t much, the supervisor hired me, and I managed to live comfortably.

With no one else to rely on, I think I opened my heart completely to Jenald back then.

It was like a newborn duckling imprinting on the first being it sees as its mother. Without realizing it, I placed boundless trust in Jenald—the first person to offer me help in that unfamiliar place.

Because, even before my death in my previous life, no one had ever treated me with such kindness. Everyone else had only ever looked down on me or tried to exploit me. So Jenald’s gentleness meant the world to me.

Now, looking back, I realize I pretended to be a bit nicer than I truly was—trying hard to appear virtuous, avoiding strange speech patterns, acting somewhat like a refined young lady. Perhaps because of that, Jenald treated me with unusual tenderness.

No matter what I said,

‘Yeah. Sounds good.’

‘Let’s do that.’

‘Do whatever you like.’

‘You’re right.’

‘I think that’s correct too.’

He’d always nod along, unconditionally taking my side. He was so kind it felt unbelievable.

Sometimes I wondered if his responses were a bit soulless—but on days he’d even pick wildflowers for me, even if his kindness felt rehearsed, I still cherished it deeply.

About two months later, rumors began circulating that the Temple was searching nearby villages for Vestal candidates. Since Ivy hadn’t yet been officially declared High Vestal, they were still actively seeking candidates.

That was when I first resolved to leave the Empire.

Coincidentally, Jenald’s log cabin construction project was nearing completion.

‘You want to leave the Empire?’

‘Yeah. How much money would we need?’

I immediately asked Jenald for help. I had saved up a small amount, and planned to first travel to another kingdom to find a new job.

‘Should I look into it?’

‘You can do that for me?’

‘Yeah. Then let’s leave together.’

‘……What? Are you serious?’

‘Of course. I’m serious. I can do at least that much for you.’

Honestly, I was a bit startled—he’d suddenly offered to leave with me. But Jenald truly returned a few days later with a plan for reaching another kingdom. He’d walked long distances on my behalf, even though my leg hadn’t fully healed yet.

‘Leaving isn’t difficult, but obtaining citizenship seems tricky. Still, there’s a way.’

‘What is it?’

‘Get married.’

‘……Married?’

Unlike my shocked reaction, Jenald continued speaking with his usual gentle expression.

‘Apparently, there’s a policy granting citizenship to newlyweds with verified identities who’ve completed an engagement period. But we’d need an engagement certificate.’

‘Certificate? How do we get that?’

‘We both sign the paperwork and submit it to City Hall. It’ll cost a bit, but we can manage that much, right?’

‘Money…… I don’t have much. Can I afford it?’

Seeing my worry, Jenald smiled brightly.

‘Latieana. Don’t worry. I’m here. You’re not paying alone. Let’s split it fifty-fifty. Hmm. Plus moving expenses…… and taxes for citizenship…… Since we need to complete a six-month engagement period first, how about we work hard and save up during that time?’

Jenald’s plan felt perfectly natural and flawless.

But since I hadn’t yet received a confession, I asked him.

‘But is it really okay, Jenald?’

‘Huh? What do you mean?’

‘Well…… this means you and I would get engaged, then married.’

‘Yeah. What’s wrong with that?’

‘Do you like me?’

Honestly, I didn’t feel romantic flutterings toward Jenald. It was more affection or friendship—what mattered most was that he was the only person I could rely on. And frankly, I wasn’t even sure Jenald saw me romantically. Aside from occasionally holding hands, we’d never progressed further.

To my question, Jenald smiled gently as always and replied,

‘Of course I like you. Do you?’

His smile was brighter than any I’d seen before. I smiled back and answered,

‘Yeah. I like you.’

Perhaps Jenald wasn’t “love,” but he was the person closest to love I’d ever felt. With effort, I could grow to love him more. A future with such a kind man couldn’t possibly be unhappy.

Above all else, being engaged to Jenald meant I could leave the Empire.

‘Latieana, let’s save up a lot of money!’

‘Yeah!’

Afterward, I signed the engagement certificate and emptied my wallet, handing the money to Jenald.

Jenald immediately went to City Hall and brought back the confirmation certificate. Since then, we’ve lived apart until now.

‘The engagement period isn’t over yet, but since we have the certificate, we can complete the remaining time after moving to the kingdom.’

As I mentally calculated the remaining engagement period and the days left on my castle labor contract, I organized the letters and packed them into my bag.

Then I skimmed through the memo detailing my salary records held at the bank.

It was a little disappointing I hadn’t saved more—but this amount wasn’t insignificant.

‘When I go this time, I’ll tell Jenald everything…… and leave immediately. This might be my last chance.’

It’ll be sudden, but Jenald has always followed my lead—he’ll surely understand this time too.

After all, the entire reason we’ve been saving money is for this. He said it was for me.

They say if you have even one trustworthy person in this world, you’ve lived a successful life. In this bleak situation, I can’t express how grateful I am to have Jenald.

Suddenly, the memory of kissing Edan flashed through my mind, and guilt pricked my chest……

It’s not an excuse, but I didn’t initiate it.

‘I’m sorry, Jenald! I’ll treat you well for the rest of my life! I swear it! Look, I’ve even saved this much money!’

I’d heard the capital had a massive terminal-like facility gathering portals leading to other kingdoms.

If I moved through there, neither Edan nor any other male lead would easily find me.

Thinking logically, the more I pondered, the more my foggy mind—drained by Hillstain—seemed to clear.

Then, the pain in my wrist, which I’d forgotten, began anew.

As reality sank in, anger slowly rose within me.

Why is Ivy looking for me? Now that she’s become High Vestal, does she not know what happens to the other Vestal candidates?

Should I have explicitly told her not to look for me when we parted? No matter how I think about it, she has no reason to search for me.

I wanted to scream directly into Ivy’s ear: I’m not going! I don’t want to go to the Temple! Stop looking for me! Focus on your own life!

‘How pointless. What’s the use of screaming alone? I should just go wash up…….’

The mere thought of sleeping with Hillstain’s creepy blood still on me made me want to vomit. I sighed deeply and stepped out into the hallway.

But—Hic! Edan was standing right outside the door. When had he returned?

“M, Master?”

It felt as if he’d caught me lost in all sorts of thoughts—my heart pounded wildly.

How long had he been standing there? Worse—had I unknowingly muttered to myself or accidentally revealed my plans aloud?

All sorts of worries flooded in, and I swallowed hard without realizing it.

“Where are you going?”

“T, to wash up.”

I spoke casually, then carefully watched Edan’s expression.

Did he and Ivy enjoy the ball? Did he find out why Hillstain tried to take me away?

“Want me to wash you?”

“……I’ll pass.”

He must not have heard anything from Hillstain. Edan seemed just like his usual self.

Then again, maybe not. Hillstain’s head and body were slammed hard into the floor earlier—he might’ve passed out while being dragged away. Yes. That’s good. At least I’ll safely make it through tonight.

“Then good ni—”

“Hand.”

“……Yes?”

“Give it here.”

Before I could even answer, Edan gently took my hand—the one Hillstain had gripped, now bruised dark blue.

He quietly examined my wrist, still smeared with blood and a mess, then muttered bitterly under his breath,

“Ha, that XX bastard.”

It was the first time.

The first time I’d ever heard Edan swear.