Chapter 57
“I’m sorry for causing trouble because of me.”
As I meekly followed along, apologizing, he instead bowed his head.
“It is I who should apologize for failing to ensure your safety.”
What nonsense is this?
They watched from afar, but there was nothing they could do when I got taken. They couldn’t just teleport in and rescue me. Besides, rescuing someone from a kidnapping must be done carefully.
I’m sure they were planning the best way to save me, only to find me holding a village meeting, sharing potatoes with my kidnappers. It must have thrown them off.
In the end, all the responsibility here lay with me alone.
“…Ernst.”
He must have already heard that I was safe, yet he still came out holding Lilian, unable to wait even a moment longer. I quickly ran to him. His expression, with dark circles under his eyes, showed the depth of his anxiety. Not knowing what to say, I hugged him tightly instead of apologizing with words.
Against his chest, I could hear his heartbeat, pounding hard, like someone who’d been truly frightened. With one arm, he wrapped me in a firm embrace.
Once Sir Dane, who was watching over us, respectfully bowed and stepped back, Ernst looked at me, sighed, and gently wiped my lips.
“Look at you, going around with food all over your face.”
Huh? I thought I ate cleanly. Did I have something on me?
I was about to say ‘potato’, but before I could, Ernst leaned down and kissed me, pulling me close and deepening the kiss, his tongue exploring my mouth.
Feeling the warm touch of his tongue as it brushed over my lips made me shiver, and he sucked gently, producing a soft sound as he pulled back. Then he wiped my damp lips with his finger and murmured,
“Potato…?”
I looked at him in amazement, impressed that he could guess the food just from the taste. He sighed.
“I didn’t expect you to go out while I was sleeping.”
“Just looking for something to do.”
“And in the process, you got free potatoes?”
His last words carried a rare chill, making me laugh awkwardly, but I clung to him, requesting his mercy for those left at the lodge.
“You won’t harm them, right?”
“If left alone, they’ll likely become bandits.”
That wasn’t the answer I expected.
In typical romance novels—at least by my standards—when the female lead says this, the man usually says, “Ha, I can’t help it for my beloved,” and grants the request. But what was this reaction? Maybe it’s because this story is a mixed genre.
Just the thought of those poor potatoes, enjoyed without even the price paid, somehow leading to bloodshed, made me grab his sleeve and shake him.
“They’re not bad people.”
“But what they did was wrong. You’re safe this time, but…”
His voice trailed off, but I understood the rest.
Yes, it was their first attempt, and they were inexperienced. They still had some conscience left, which was why I got out safely. But as things worsen, as they continue these actions, their consciences will dull.
If left unchecked, they might one day harm someone—or perhaps do something worse than I feared at the start.
Not because they’re inherently bad, but because their situation has driven them to this point.
Ernst said it’s best to nip it in the bud, and as I nodded thoughtfully, he cupped my face gently, speaking softly.
“I understand your sympathy, but if left alone, the same thing will happen again.”
“Do you think there are certain people destined to do bad things?”
My unexpected question made Ernst hesitate. Grasping his hand that held my cheek, I asked again,
“Do you think they were always like this?”
“Maybe not, but we can’t save them all.”
It’s true. Poverty is something even rulers can’t entirely alleviate. The corrupt Imperial Family has begun to steal away innocent lives. Who could bear that weight?
Far in the future, when the young prince becomes an adult and Lilian stands by his side, a better world might come at last.
No one knows that better than me. Knowing the original story, understanding that I can’t alter its course, no one knows it better than I do.
“But, Ernst.”
Even I am a small anomaly in this world, and I mustn’t forget that. None of us knows when or where we might become that anomaly ourselves.
So…
“What if we show a small act of kindness for our child’s future?”
I looked at Lilian, peacefully asleep in his arms.
One day, she will leave my side and step into the wide world, facing challenges along the way. But Lilian, with unbreakable resolve, will rise up, helping others and becoming a strength for those around her.
I reached out and embraced that small glimmer of hope, wishing that this warmth would touch someone else, giving them strength.
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