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Chapter 9 | A Misunderstanding in Black

* * *

[Rienne] “…..I’m sorry?”

Black’s light colored eyes followed Rienne, gazing over her face and falling down towards her neck. Without even thinking, Rienne immediately looked to the ground. He was staring so intently, it was embarrassing her.

Was it because her clothes were loose?

She knew they weren’t a perfect fit, but she didn’t think it was that obvious.

… I didn’t think he was the sort of man to care about what other people were wearing.

Feeling a sense of curiosity, Rienne tilted her head up towards him.

He said my clothing bothered him, but he’s not even wearing his shirt properly.

For his part, Black was wearing clothing that would ‘bother’ just about anyone. Maybe it was because of his injury, but he only had one arm through the sleeves.

[Rienne] “Please forgive me if my dress is ill-fitting. I haven’t had to wear mourning clothes for a while, so the size needs some adjustments, but with the funeral so close, we don’t have the time.”

Rienne once again tried to take back the tray, averting her eyes away from Black’s bare skin.

[Rienne] “Shall we go inside? With your shoulder being how it is, it might be difficult eating on your own, so I will assist you.”

[Black] “. . .”

Black narrowed his eyes for a moment, but eventually he relented and stepped aside.

[Black] “Inside, then.”

[Rienne] “Okay.”

Together, the two of the entered the bedroom—neither of them letting go of the tray.

* * *

[Phermos] “Oh, Princess… are those the only clothes you have?”

Black’s room wasn’t empty.

Phermos and some of his other subordinates had already come and been taken care of by the servants earlier that morning.

They weren’t nobility, so maybe ‘taken care of’ wasn’t the best way to describe it, but the servants did what they could. They brought them water to wash their faces with and fresh clothing to wear. (1)

Seeing Black and Rienne side by side and holding onto the tray together made Phermos leap to his feet.

In retrospect, there was only one reason by Black, a still injured person, would leave his subordinates behind and go answer the door himself.

[Phermos] “I know this sounds rude, but I need to ask…. Must you wear that, Princess?”

Now Rienne felt a little offended.

Both Black and Phermos had pointed out her mourning clothes.

…Do I really look that ugly?

Even if she did, it was really rude to point that out.

Completely unaware of how they really felt about her clothes, Rienne stiffened before she finally said something.

[Rienne] “It’s for mourning. It’s tradition in Nauk to wear black until the end of the funeral.”

[Phermos] “Wha—so it’s not just for today? You’ll be wearing this for three whole days?”

Phermos spoke while adjusting his glasses.

It was strange everyone was acting this way about such baggy clothing.

[Rienne] “Is there something wrong with my mourning dress?”

[Phermos] “Well, that’s…”

Phermos quickly shut his mouth and looked at Black, but his gaze was somewhere else.

[Phermos] “My Lord…”

This was bad.

It was obvious what was commanding so much of Black’s attention.

When dressed in black, Princess Rienne’s figure was unfortunately very noticeable. She looked beautiful even in Phermos’ eyes, which only made him worry more about what was going on in Black’s head.

If Princess Rienne was just some common beauty, then maybe Phermos wouldn’t have anything to worry about. But if his earlier suspicions about the Princess having some kind of connection to Black’s past was true, then he couldn’t ignore this.

To Black, this woman was special.

But a single question still remained: Why? Why was she special? Maybe even Black didn’t know the answer yet.

But one thing was certain. Phermos didn’t want his lord to fall to the whims of some woman. And since the woman in question was also the princess of a ruined nation, then that just added to the list of unanswered questions.

[Black] “Shut up.”

But maybe it was already too late.

As Black stood next to Rienne, he glared at Phermos from over the top of her head. There was a glimmer in his eyes that made it clear he was displeased.

[Black] “If her clothes are a problem, then don’t look. Close your eyes or get out.”

[Phermos] “T…That’s not it at all. I meant no disrespect, Princess.”

Phermos was smart enough to know when to take a step back, but his worries still burned hot in his mind. They already knew the Commander of the Arsak Knights was still alive and they knew Princess Rienne was aware of that fact as well.

It was reaching a point where it was unwise for Black to act too considerate towards the Princess.

[Phermos] “I hope the funeral ends quickly.”

As soon as Phermos muttered this under his breath, Black immediately spoke again.

[Black] “Get out.”

He’d reached his limits when it came to Phermos’ irritating chatter.

[Phermos] “…What… But…. I can’t…”

Phermos was trying to say he couldn’t leave the two of them alone, but swallowed his words and forced himself to bow.

Right now, his lord wasn’t able to listen to reason.

But what could Phermos do about that?

There were no other options available to them. Just as his lord said, they needed to find out what Princess Rienne was thinking and what she was planning on doing.

The sooner they knew that, the better.

[Phermos] “Then, I leave my lord in your care, Princess.”

Turning on his heel, Phermos left the room followed by the other mercenaries.

* * *

It’s just us now.

Funnily enough, it was the same room where their fevered kiss happened.

If it hadn’t been for Phermos making such a fuss about her outfit, Rienne would’ve likely still been in deep trouble, constantly recalling that moment.

….Is it really that weird looking?

Fortunately, Rienne had better things to worry about than how she looked.

Growing up, Rienne had gotten used to wearing hand-me-downs, so she learned never to be picky about what sort of clothing she wore or how she looked in it.

Maybe I should at least gain some weight.

But the second the thought popped up in her mind, it shocked even Rienne herself.

….Crazy. Why would I want to gain weight?

Did she want to look good in front of this man?

[Black] “What’s on your mind?”

Suddenly, Black’s voice cut through her mind—breaking through such a foolish idea.

[Rienne] “…It’s nothing.”

Rienne shook her head, driving away such a nonsensical thought.

The mere idea of wanting to look nice in the eyes of this man was strange in of itself. This was the same man who waged war on Nauk and destroyed their peace.

Things were calm now, but who knew how long that would last.

[Rienne] “Would you like to eat? Or should we take care of your wound first?”

[Black] “Either, but I’d rather change my bandages.”

[Rienne] “Yes, of course.”

Before Rienne got the chance to even offer help, Black began taking off his shirt himself.

Even the short glimpse she got made her feel a little dizzy.

Normally, scars were sad things. They represented pain and the stories behind however they got them. But the man’s scars made her feel dizzy before any emotion could hit her.

….It’s because of his face.

It was because he looked like that.

With a face like that, everything else was just decoration.

Those strange eyes that reminded her of an animal, his expressionless look like a statue, his sturdy body—all of it coupled with his face made him a handsome man.

[Rienne] “I’ll take off your bandages now… huh?”

Just as Rienne pushed away all those useless thoughts and steadied her trembling hands, she placed them on Black’s bandages.

They looked too clean. As if they were brand new.

[Black] “What is it?”

Black looked at Rienne as she whispered to herself.

[Rienne] “I don’t think I need to change these. If you’ve already applied medicine then…”

[Black] “Just change them.”

Black immediately cut her off.

[Black] “Unless you still can’t bring yourself to touch me.”

[Rienne] “…Alright.”

Even though his voice sounded a little strange, Rienne listened to him and started to remove the bandages in silence.

Looking back on things, it wasn’t as though she disliked this man.

Earlier, when he told Phermos to close his eyes or leave, it made her feel as though he was taking her side, if only for a moment.

If he was going to do things like that then… did that mean he hadn’t forgotten what he said to her yesterday? Was he going to faithfully keep his promise?

If that’s the case, I should do the same too, right?

Was it alright for her to do that?

Rienne kept undoing the bandage without saying a single word. Once the wound was exposed, she could clearly see that the medicine had already been applied.

Just as she thought—he already changed his bandages earlier this morning.

It was odd.

Even though he knew he didn’t need any help with it, he had still asked her to change his bandages for him. It was all too strange.

[Rienne] “I don’t think it would be a good idea to apply a second dose of the salve.”

At least the wound seemed to be healing nicely. That was good.

As Rienne bound new bandages around the injury with care, it suddenly occurred to her that Rafit once had a very similar injury.

How did it happen again…? Did I take care of his wounds like this, too?

….Now that she thought about it, Rienne distinctly remembered putting medicine on his wound while Mrs. Flambard wrapped it with a bandage.

Back then, Rafit kept her hand tightly in his grasp as he leaned his head into her lap. She thought he looked like a kid.

To be honest, his injury at the time wasn’t that serious. He was just acting sick because he wanted to hold onto Rienne, and that ended up bothering her more than the fact he was hurt in the first place.

How long is he planning on holding onto me? I have to get back to work. But none of those thoughts made it out of her mouth. She just sat there in silence as she dealt with his childish whims, no matter how much she wanted to protest.

[Black] “Did you check it?”

Lost in her thoughts, Rienne missed his question.

[Rienne] “…I’m sorry, what was that?”

[Black] “I wanted to ask if you were able to identify the body.”

Unlike Rafit, Black didn’t bother beating around the bush.

But the two of them did have one thing in common: they were always able to keep Rienne in place. But while Rafit did so by taking Rienne’s hand, Black was able to pin her down with just his eyes.

And it made Rienne feel completely different.

She never had the chance to think about when he’d let her go.

All she could do was face that illusory feeling of being tied up.

[Rienne] “So you heard. I went to the chapel because I thought it was only fair I say a proper goodbye.

Rienne always felt this way, but his eyes were incredibly clear. It wasn’t easy lying to him.

[Black] “And? Did you say goodbye?”

Even now, it felt like those clear eyes were searching for a lie in her words. Rienne swallowed nervously.

[Rienne] “……Yes.”

[Black

When he said that, his voice was completely deadpan—devoid of all emotion.

[Black] “Now I just need to wait for you to fulfill your promise, Princess.”

[Rienne] “. . .”

Black reached out, slowly running his hand against Rienne’s cheek. It was such a gentle gesture, it made all the hairs on her skin stand up.

[Black] “I want to know as soon as possible… so I wonder when you’ll make up your mind.”

* * *

He’s… not really courting me.

That’s what she told herself before, but his fever was already long gone. Though his hands were warm, they weren’t nearly as hot as they were before.

It was the same with his eyes. They weren’t hazy or clouded over, but cold and clear like water.

[Black] “I want to make things clear.”

He made it sound like he didn’t want to be misunderstood. Like he didn’t want to leave any room for the seeds of doubt to be sown or for any potential problems to arise.

As she paid close attention to his words, Rienne felt her face stiffen.

….What had Phermos said to her that day?

[Phermos] –‘So you’re saying you needed to give yourself the opportunity to separate yourself from your deceased love?’

She was certain he said that.  Looking back on it, Phermos sounded unmistakably suspicious when he spoke to her.

[Phermos] –‘If you are being honest, then I will thank you for your consideration, Princess.’

And the way phrased his thanks to her was strange, questioning whether or not she was being ‘honest.’ It was like he knew she didn’t mean what she said.

They must already know.

They know the body in the chapel doesn’t belong to the Commander of the Arsak Knights.

Black moved his hand, touching Rienne’s cheek in a way that was oddly considerate in comparison to his words.

[Black] “I’m not a very patient man.”

[Rienne] “. . .”

[Black] “So I hope you don’t keep me waiting too long.”

It was a warning.

He knew she still hadn’t entirely pulled herself away from her former lover yet, so he was warning her to do it properly.

[Rienne] “I’m…”

She could feel her eyes shaking.

It was so hard lying to someone who already knew she was lying.

….But she had no choice.

If she made one little mistake, they’d find out Rafit was still alive and hiding somewhere in Nauk. The Kleinfelders would be desperate to protect their eldest son and the Tiwakan would take up arms just to kill him.

So many people would die.

[Rienne] “I’m just having a little trouble.”

Rienne placed her hand over Black’s, which was still resting on her cheek. Black only silently stared at their overlapping hands.

[Rienne] “I want to be clear, too.”

She had to choose.

There was a scale in her hands. On one side was Rafit and the Kleinfelders, and on the other— Black and the Tiwakan. Even though she had tried so hard to keep it balanced, the scale completely tilted to one side without warning.

The Kleinfelders couldn’t win in a fight against the Tiwakan. If she were to choose Rafit, she’d be fighting a losing battle.

I can’t do that. If I lose, it’s all over for Nauk.

In reality, Rienne already knew whose hand she needed to take from the start.

Thinking that, she gripped Black’s hand tightly.

[Rienne] “I’ll leave the past behind…”

With their hands still overlapped, Rienne gently pushed him back until he was sitting on the bed. Black followed her movements and turned his head up towards her.

As she spoke, Rienne’s gaze turned towards his lips.

[Rienne] “…Just as I promised.”

And then, Rienne closed her eyes, leaned down, and closed her lips over his.

Rienne tilted her head, wrapping her arms around his neck just as she did the day before, gently teasing his lips as he once did hers.

T/N: (1) Basically, they’re referring to how mercenaries wouldn’t need help getting ready in the morning in the same way a noble would, so saying they were ‘taken care of’ by the servants wouldn’t be accurate