Eugene stared blankly at Kay, who was confessing his feelings for Iris.
When your commander suddenly pours his heart out about his wife, what is a subordinate supposed to say? Besides, why was he talking about this as if it were a shocking revelation? Everyone already knew.
“I know.”
“How?”
“If you ask me ‘how’… what am I supposed to say?”
“Answer with what you know.”
“With what I know… well.”
If he were someone eloquent like Jamie, he would have had a graceful response, but Eugene was not a man of many words.
“Commander, you go around wearing your heart on your sleeve for your wife.”
“Me? That’s impossible.”
Kay shook his head, looking genuinely baffled.
“Why do you think it’s impossible?”
“I don’t show my emotions on my face.”
“You’ve been that way until now, but…”
“Are you saying I haven’t been lately?”
“Yes.”
“In what way?”
“Nathan says that when you smile like an idiot, it’s because something good happened with your wife. Jamie says that when you go around grinning like a fool, it’s because you and your wife have done ‘that’ kind of thing. And…”
“No, no. That’s enough.”
Kay waved him off.
“Then, may I go back to sword practice?”
“Do you have nothing else to say when your commander tells you he’s fallen in love?”
Eugene couldn’t fathom what Kay wanted. A man loving a woman was neither strange nor special. It might be monumental to the person involved, but to everyone else, it was a mundane event. It was admittedly a bit mysterious that Kay, who had never shown an interest in women, had become such a lovesick fool, but that was the extent of it.
“Are you expecting a congratulatory party?”
“…No, never mind. Go. Go practice.”
“Yes.”
Kay watched Eugene swing his wooden sword with total indifference, let out a deep, frustrated sigh, and left the training ground.
He had fallen in love. He loved Iris.
From the very beginning, he had known his feelings for her were singular. Even when Rishi asked him to marry her, fully aware of his true identity—even though he could have simply bitten her thin, pretty neck and ended her life right there—he had accepted. He had sensed that the more time they spent together, the more she would shine, and that these feelings would only burn hotter.
But he never expected the fire to spread this quickly.
*This is a big problem.*
Now that he had acknowledged his feelings, he found himself missing her more, craving her more, and wanting her more. The heat that used to surge whenever he saw Rishi had reached an unbearable fever pitch.
Since this was his first time in love, Kay was plagued by curiosity.
How did other men endure the frantic urge to run to their partners and hold them at any given moment?
+++
Crown Prince Iovet Okbocithers stared quietly at the luxurious wedding invitation.
“Is this really the invitation sent by Count Green?”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
His aide, Setni, answered.
“Has Count Green’s taste changed? I didn’t think he favored such flamboyance.”
Iovet flicked the heavy card.
“Is this Iris Witlo’s doing?”
He had heard the news that Kay had married the flower of the House Witlo. Knowing Kay, Iovet didn’t believe he had married her solely for her beauty; there had to be some political maneuvering between the Witlo Duchy and House Green. Still, such a garish invitation didn’t suit Kay at all.
“She grew up as the flower of the duchy; she must be quite vain.”
“There are such rumors.”
“In contrast, her sister, Miss Brittany, is known to be frugal and deep in thought, is she not?”
“That is what people say. They say she worries about her younger sister quite a bit.”
“Hmm. Miss Brittany will be coming to this party, too. And the great Iris Witlo will surely be there as well.”
“That is correct, Your Highness. But there is no need for you to travel all the way there just to see Miss Brittany. You could simply summon her to the Imperial Palace.”
“No, I cannot do that. An old friend is getting married, after all.”
Iovet handed the invitation back to Setni.
“Tell them I will attend.”
+++
There was only one week left until the wedding.
The man appeared before Rishi while she was picking fruit for Windy.
“Iris Witlo.”
Rishi was startled by the low voice behind her. She turned, and her surprise deepened upon seeing his face. Deep eyes, green irises that looked as if they were wrapped in gold, black hair, and features that seemed somehow decadent.
Eldhert Green. Kay’s younger brother.
“Who are you?” she asked, even though she already knew.
“Eldhert Green. The younger brother of the man who will soon be your husband.”
“Ah. And what brings you here?”
“I have business with you.”
“What kind of business?”
Eldhert’s thick eyebrows twitched.
“You have no manners, Iris Witlo.”
“It seems you’re the one lacking manners. The wedding ceremony hasn’t happened yet, but are you aware that I’ve already registered my marriage with your brother?”
“Yeah, well. I don’t care about things like that.”
Eldhert glared at Rishi and stepped closer. He reached out, his thumb and forefinger gripping her chin to tilt her face toward the light, examining her like a specimen.
“The flower of the Witlo Duchy.”
“No, Eldhert.”
Rishi slapped his hand away.
“It’s Countess Green. Unless you are disregarding your brother’s choice.”
Rishi hadn’t expected Kay’s family to welcome her with open arms, so she wasn’t flustered by Eldhert’s hostility. The rumors surrounding the “flower of the Witlo Duchy”—the good, the bad, and the excessive—meant that people were bound to be skeptical of her union with Count Green. But she had no intention of enduring his rudeness.
If he wanted to hate her, she would return the sentiment in full. She had no interest in begging for the approval of someone who looked down on her.
“You seem to be in a good mood. Having secured the position of Countess Green.”
“There’s no need to be unhappy about it, is there?”
“What did you suggest to Kay? He would never marry someone like you for no reason.”
Rishi smiled.
“Whatever passed between Kay and me is a matter for a married couple. There’s no room for you to cut in, Eldhert.”
“Kay is my brother.”
“Are you upset because you feel like you’ve lost him?”
At her mocking tone, Eldhert’s gaze turned ice-cold.
“You’re climbing high, forgetting your place. I guess Kay has been letting you get away with too much?”
“Oh my. I never dreamed that *you* would think of yourself as the sky.”
“I hit women, Iris. Haven’t you heard of the rascal of the Green family?”
“You’re not the kind of man who bothers with such rumors, Eldhert.”
For a moment, his sharp, predatory eyes seemed to soften. But then he frowned, as if he had discovered something truly unsettling about her. He reached out again, his large hand moving toward her cheek.
“Stop right there, Eldy.”
Jamie’s voice cut through the air.
Jamie walked over with heavy, purposeful steps and wedged herself firmly between Rishi and Eldhert.
“Jamie, it’s been a while. You’ve become even prettier.”
Unlike his interaction with Rishi, Eldhert gave a fresh, bright smile.
“When did you arrive? If I had known you were coming, I would have locked the doors in advance.”
“I’m not the type to be kept out by a locked door. Don’t you think you’re looking down on the Deputy Commander of the Holy Knights too much?”
“I don’t look down on you, Eldy. You aren’t interesting enough to be worth the effort.”
“You’re angry, Jamie.”
Eldhert pressed his index finger to Jamie’s brow.
“Surely you aren’t angry just because I was rude to that woman?”
“I’m curious why you think that wouldn’t be the case, Eldy.”
“This is breathtaking. Don’t tell me even *you* have been bewitched by her?”
Jamie didn’t answer, her hand drifting toward her side. Eldhert hurriedly grabbed her wrist.
“I want to believe you aren’t trying to draw your sword, Jamie.”
“A man sneaks in and insults the Countess, and you expect me to sit idly by while my reputation suffers?”
“What do you mean, ‘a man’… I am Eldhert Green.”
“And the person you were insulting is Iris Green, Eldy.”
As Jamie’s gaze grew lethal, Eldhert slowly raised both hands.
“Alright, I yield. But.” He glared at Rishi, who stood behind Jamie. “Marriage is a family matter. I cannot acknowledge that woman entering our house. The ‘flower’ of the Witlo family? Who knows? Whether she’s truly a flower or a poisonous weed, who can say?”
***
Eldhert walked down the hallway, his brow furrowed deep.
Eldhert possessed the ability to see what was invisible to others. He called them ‘souls,’ though they were more akin to lingering resentment, persistence, obsession, and resolve. With that power, he could discern the authenticity of any holy relic. The Holy Kingdom called the relics ‘gifts from God,’ but in truth, they were merely objects forged from the residue of human obsession.
He had expected Rishi to be a woman who played at being fragile, or elegant, or lovely—the kind who captivated men with carefully curated performances.
He was wrong.
When he had called her the flower of the Witlo family, the soul he saw—a bright, infernal crimson—was not the soul of a lady raised delicately inside a mansion. He had never seen a soul like hers.
—You’re not the kind of man who drags such rumors around, Eldhert.
When she had said that, he thought she might be an amusing creature. He had almost opened his heart to her, wondering if that was what had snagged Kay’s interest.
*What was that?*
For a split second, it had looked as if another soul had overlapped with hers. He had reached out to touch it, only for Jamie to interrupt. The strange, flickering presence near her face had vanished instantly.
He had spent his life in the Holy Knights, gaining experience, meeting thousands of people. Yet, he had never seen a phenomenon like this.
*Was she affected by a holy relic?*
There were cases where someone possessed by a relic would have the lingering resentment of that object overlap with their own, but it never manifested like this. A relic’s resentment usually clung to a person in a distinct, detachable shape.
But ‘that thing’ on Rishi seemed to have assimilated into her soul. It was as if it could never be detached—as if it were her own soul entirely.
*The problem is, it’s mesmerizing.*
He had only caught a glimpse, but it was bewitching enough to be pulled in at a single look.
*Perhaps that is why Kay and Jamie are so obsessed with her.*
Kay was one thing, but Jamie was cautious. He wasn’t the type of man to offer kindness simply because his captain had chosen a wife. For Jamie to be willing to draw his sword against Eldhert just to protect her meant he was well and truly ensnared.
*Iris Green might be a more dangerous woman than I anticipated.*