[Chapter 73] Come to me

"He will use you. Everyone will. Just because of a mere year of peace! You, who haven't seen the true nature of people you've known for almost twenty years, think you know everything about a man you've only seen for a year? There's no one who will sacrifice for you! You will die alone! You will die miserably at the hands of your enemies!"

"No."

Neris muttered unknowingly to herself. Feeling her fingertips rapidly growing cold, she changed her thoughts in dismay.

"Yes."

As if wanting to reassure someone that she wasn't foolish.

Thirty-year-old Princess Neris died like that. Doing anything for the person she trusted and loved endlessly, yet not receiving even a piece of kindness in return.

Affection doesn't always come with reciprocation. She didn't dare hope to be loved. But couldn't it have been better than this?

Abandoned as if waiting, killed as if waiting... even revealing that all the smiles she had shown so far were false, enjoying her misery!

The prison of that day unfolded before Neris's eyes. Valentin, dressed in golden clothes, watching her stepsister's death, appeared as if in reality.

Perhaps not far away, the indifferent figure of Nelucian waiting for news of her death.

What did Nelucian say upon hearing of Neris's death? In fact, he was depicted so serene that he seemed not to need water.

He would probably smile at Valentin and say "Well done." With that calm face he always showed when the foolish Neris returned from her past life after doing absurd things for him.

"Neris?"

Cladwin cautiously called her name as if something was amiss.

Neris realized she had been unnaturally silent for a long time. And that she was revealing it.

"Are you okay?"

Cladwin furrowed his brow and asked. Neris realized he called her name for the first time. His tone wasn't affectionate, but... it was honest.

Neris suddenly felt like she could breathe again, as if she had been rescued from deep waters.

"Ha, ha, ha."

"Are you feeling unwell?"

Cladwin's face stiffened. He stood up and placed his hand on Neris's carotid artery. Veins pulsating madly. Cold sweat streaming down her pale face.

Neris closed her eyes. And growled to herself.

"It's noisy."

Thirty-year-old Princess Neris Vista died. What remained was Neris Trude. And she would continue to change countless futures as she had done until now.

So be quiet.

"What will you do if you don't trust this person now? Nelucian is showing too much interest in me, which is annoying. It's right to get Mom to safety before it's too late."

"Decided like that, don't say anything more.

She whispered strongly to herself. And forcibly blocked her ears.

"Can't be helped. Let's talk later. Talfryn."

Cladwin grabbed the armrest of the chair. Neris could clearly see his hand emitting a small magic flow, causing her heart to beat too fast, making her vision start to shake.

A feeble voice flowed from the pillar behind her.

"I've been waiting, my lord. What happened...?"

"This is not the time for useless talk. Come here immediately. It's a patient. Prepare for examination..."

"No."

Neris managed to squeeze out her voice. Then she placed her hand on Cladwin's hand. The boy's hand, rough from training, was neat and, above all, warm.

Doubt mixed with the voice flowing from the pillar.

"Neris Trude? Are you with her?"

Cladwin paid no attention to the owner of the voice called Talfryn.

As Neris spoke, he only looked at her face, and only her face. As if there was treasure there.

The foolish moments when the past spoke in her mind were now gone.

Neris nodded again. Her limp head weakly bent forward and stopped against Cladwin's chest.

Cladwin furrowed his brow.

"Seems like you've been poisoned, haven't you?"

"No."

It was a joke thrown in his manner. It probably meant she looked okay now.

Neris leaned her face against Cladwin's chest, making a sighing sound, and Cladwin took a deep breath.

"If you're not feeling well..."

"No. Suddenly, bad memories came to mind, that's all."

"Memories of your classmates ruining you?"

Cladwin's words were sudden, but from his composed tone, Neris could tell he had already thought about the topic several times. Neris smiled bitterly.

"Classmates, people I thought loved me... How does it matter?"

"Is your mother treating you unfairly?"

People she thought loved her. Was there anyone else besides young Neris who could use such an expression?

Cladwin gently guided Neris to sit upright on the chair, holding her head and shoulders. Neris, feeling drained of strength, slowly lowered her head.

"My mother is a good person. She loves me a lot and is a good mother who can do anything for me."

The voice of Talfryn coming faintly from behind the pillar seemed to fade away saying, 'I'll leave now.' Neris gazed up at Cladwin's beautiful face.

Can I really entrust myself to this person? Will he not use me? Will he not threaten me?

Will this person continue to uphold his principles?"

She didn't know it herself, but in Neris's face reflected in Cladwin's eyes, the earnestness that she couldn't suppress was clearly visible.

"And then?"

If there was something that made her so tormented, she wanted to get rid of it. Cladwin was surprised by the sudden thought that came to him. Why?

But... was there a need to ask for a reason?

The fact that he genuinely thought that way was perhaps the most important.

"Don't ask."

When the harsh words finally came out of her trembling lips, Cladwin seemed to feel a sense of disappointment—towards himself. That's why.

Neris Trude didn't trust him.

Therefore, even though it was clear she held a secret, and that the secret was too heavy for her to bear alone, she didn't expect anything from him.

If Cladwin had been an ordinary boy, he might have been slightly angry at her attitude.

However, he had grown up in an environment where it was too difficult to trust even himself, let alone others. His subordinates were the same.

Constantly betrayed and abandoned by those he should have trusted the most, they had built a huge wall between themselves and the world.

So he didn't hastily say things like "Trust me and confide in me." There was no word harder to believe than "believe." The only way to truly gain trust was consistency.

The ultimate value that eventually emerges at the crossroads of countless choices, the deepest value within the heart.

"What does that mean to you?"

Neris seemed like a difficult book to read.

In the midst of a very long storybook filled with complex investigations that only those who already knew the content could follow, choosing a middle volume would evoke such confusion.

She could close the book.

"But I don't want to."

What would he say if he didn't know Neris Trude's life up to now? Reading through the remaining volumes, he might eventually guess the contents of the previous volumes.

And if he couldn't do that.

"Still, it doesn't matter."

Isn't understanding another person what it's all about? The only thing one could gain from another's life was a very brief and fragmentary glimpse that the other person willingly revealed.

Neris had slightly more hidden parts than others.

Therefore, Cladwin disregarded the advice to be cautious of Neris based on his own judgment.

Having already seen what she prioritized at a crucial crossroads, what was there to fear?

"I'll do as you wish. I'll protect Lady Trude in the way you want."

"Since you'll be preoccupied for now, once you graduate and things settle down, please take Mom to Maindland."

"Got it."

Neris's head dropped as if exhausted. Cladwin knelt in front of her, holding both armrests of the chair tightly with his hands.

Despite becoming a trapped figure, Neris's confusion only showed in the utmost restrained manner. She looked directly into Cladwin's gray eyes and felt overwhelmed for some reason.

Cladwin's eyes always emitted an intense light.

"I will graduate this time. If I stay at school any longer, those bastards will be ready to devour the master. You don't have to wait long."

The Noble Academy, where all nobles from the age of 12 to 19 must attend. Unless a student is seriously ill to the point of being unable to get up from their seat, it's a difficult place for a student to leave if they are a noble.

As a noble of the highest lineage and a hostage in the royal family, Cladwin Maindland had only one way to leave the academy early—a premature graduation that was merely nominal but practically usable.

To use this system, a student over 18 had to be recognized by at least five teachers in their department as having nothing more to learn from them.

In an academy filled with proud and strict teachers as students progressed to higher grades, it was nearly impossible.

But Neris knew Cladwin would succeed. He had already seen such a future. She nodded, expressing her firm will with her eyes.

"I will too."

She would be acknowledged. Therefore, she would leave confidently. Neris had decided that from the beginning. She didn't want to stay in this filthy place for long.

But she hadn't decided where to go after graduation.

Finally making up her mind, she asked in a whisper.

"Then, can I go to you?"

The anxiety that had barely been suppressed within her suddenly exploded.

She would be betrayed. She would be used. She would die at the hands of her enemies... All the dreadful possibilities swirled in her mind with the voice of the eighteen-year-old Neris.

Cladwin currently only knew about her brain. But what about when she turned eighteen?

Everything might change then.

"But it's worth a try."

The diligent and somewhat awkward seventeen-year-old boy. If others knew how Neris evaluated Cladwin Maindland, they would doubt their ears.

Perhaps someone would laugh joyfully, thinking Neris had finally lost her mind.

But Neris saw herself in him. Herself from her previous life. The self who sought the only glimmer she could grasp before facing the ultimate betrayal.

"So it will be okay.

After pouring out her emotions with such lengthy reasoning, Neris looked into Cladwin's eyes again. And upon seeing the light within them, she felt relieved.

She knew what kind of light it was. It was a light visible only in a tiny minority of people. A special light found in those individuals who take pride in their principles and are prepared to adhere to them at all costs.

However, as intense as his light was, it was the first time she had seen it.

"I can trust you."

"Come to me. As soon as you graduate."

Cladwin chuckled. Neris, looking at his face, also unknowingly smiled slightly, but she was unaware of this fact.

The boy carefully raised the girl's small hand, as if asking for her opinion. Their eyes met as the boy's lips touched her white hand.

His warm lips felt like a brand.

"The chair will stay here. I'll register your magic, so if you need to contact me, channel your magic into the right armrest. Can you use magic?"

Since all nobles at the Noble Academy had taken magic classes, the question was not even a confirmation, just a precaution. Neris nodded.

"I can't do anything grand, but I can infuse magic to a certain extent."

Cladwin smiled, his eyes slightly twinkling.

"When I graduate, this seat will be yours. Only for you."

"Thank you."

It had been a place that had supported Neris for a long time in her previous life. Formally receiving permission to enter from the original owner of that place didn't feel bad.

Cladwin once again kissed the back of Neris's hand. Unlike the brief touch before, this time his breath lingered for a while.

"Let's take care of each other from now on."