Chapter 54
And so Abel was able to stroll out into the corridor without a care.
But it seemed Felix, who had remained silent all this time, could no longer do the same.
“Lord Abel.”
Abel looked up at Felix after confirming that the priests and holy knights who had been waiting for him had disappeared.
“I told them I wanted to speak with you alone for a while, Lord Abel.”
Had Felix’s standing risen enough that he could dismiss people for a reason like that?
Or perhaps those who had been following Abel around were simply eager to see this matter resolved at last.
Either way, as long as they could finally have a proper conversation, that was enough.
“Shall we take a walk?”
Abel fell into step behind Felix as he led the way.
A few passing clergymen stole curious glances at them, but the farther they walked, the fewer eyes followed.
A short while later…
Abel found himself standing in a place he had never seen before, despite having spent nearly his entire life in the Temple.
‘Where is this?’
There was a place this bleak and neglected inside the Temple?
For a sanctuary that was unusually blessed with sunlight, this was the first place Abel had ever seen that felt so dark and overgrown.
Trees and flowers left untended until they had fallen into disarray.
Weeds that had grown past his calves, reaching nearly to his thighs.
Even the ivy draped across the wall hung in tangled neglect, and the wall itself was crumbling in places.
‘It’s filthy.’
Yet there was one spot that clearly bore signs of human care.
While the rest was so overgrown it was practically a forest, this lone patch still exposed the bare earth.
Around it lay old but well-maintained wooden practice swords, along with various pieces of training equipment.
A place where no one ever came.
Wooden practice swords and training equipment.
A patch of bare earth where the weeds could never take root, trampled over countless times.
It seemed this was where Felix came to practice his swordsmanship alone, away from everyone’s eyes.
Perhaps this was the place where Felix spent more of his private time than anywhere else in the Temple.
As Abel looked around with quiet curiosity, Felix turned to face him.
“How long are you going to keep this up?”
He went straight to the point. But Abel didn’t mind. As long as they were talking, that was enough.
“Until you stop ignoring me.”
At Abel’s answer, a bitter smile tugged at the corner of Felix’s lips.
“If that’s what you want, Lord Abel, then am I not even allowed to ignore you?”
“…Is that how it seems?”
He had simply wanted to talk to Felix. But from Felix’s perspective, it probably did look that way.
“You acted as though I had a choice, but in the end I’m nothing more than a toy that has to move according to your wishes.”
“That wasn’t what I meant.”
“Then just give me the order.”
“Tell me to become your lover.”
Since everyone in the Order already knew that Abel loved Felix, Abel had treated his recent behavior rather lightly.
But judging from Felix’s reaction, he shouldn’t have.
He had wanted to talk. Even so, he’d gone too far.
“In the end, you’re going to do whatever you want anyway. Acting as though you love me… pretending you’ll give me a choice… That’s the worst kind of hypocrisy.”
Even if Abel admitted that he preferred being despised and condemned like this to being ignored, Felix would probably never speak to him again.
“I was thinking only about myself.”
Abel admitted his mistake as he looked into Felix’s fiercely burning blue eyes.
“I really did try to be considerate, but I guess old habits don’t disappear so easily.”
Not once in his life had he ever tried to explain away his mistakes like this.
But seeing the anger on Felix’s face, the words came out on their own.
“I didn’t know. That’s why I acted that way. Can’t you let it go just this once? I just want us to be able to talk again like we used to.”
The childish pout slipped out just as naturally—something he had never done, not even as a child.
It had no effect on Felix whatsoever.
“No. Why should I?”
Good question. Why should he? Other than the fact that Abel wanted it, Felix had no reason to.
When Abel failed to answer immediately, a twisted smile crossed Felix’s face.
“I don’t want to talk to you, Abel.”
“Because I brought up Duke Spencer?”
“Because you’re overstepping.”
His curiosity had gone too far. He had crossed the line Felix had drawn completely.
“There won’t ever be a day when I want to talk to you.”
“As your escort, I have no choice but to remain by your side. But beyond that, I have no desire to involve myself with you.”
Abel cautiously made another suggestion.
“Then… how about just once a day? We exchange a single sentence. You just answer one question I ask.”
He would stop bothering him beyond that.
“I won’t even acknowledge you in front of other people.”
He had thought it was a fairly reasonable compromise.
Felix’s answer, however, was immediate.
“I’d rather kiss you once a day than have a conversation with you every day.”
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