Chapter 162
“I liked you even before I knew your face. No matter where you’re from or what your status is, I would have liked you all the same. So, please don’t say things like that…”
“Hm. It seems like you liked me because my appearance fit that of a noble.”
“Well, that’s not entirely true…”
Macy hesitated for a moment but then spoke honestly.
“I can’t deny that I was attracted to your noble appearance, but… I liked how you seemed like a noble but weren’t really like one.”
“A noble, but not quite a noble…”
Eren repeated Macy’s words with a bemused expression. It seemed like he didn’t quite believe her.
“Do you remember when we first met here?”
They had reached Romanci Bridge by now.
As they entered the crowded bridge, the guards cleared the people away. Macy felt a bit sorry for the people, but they still had secrets to discuss that must not be overheard.
“At that time, Eren, you seemed out of place. It wasn’t that you were enjoying the positive ease that comes from a noble’s life, but you looked frustrated and irritated by the boat ride.”
As she leaned against the bridge railing, a damp river breeze blew past. The clear cerulean blue river rippled gently.
The sapphire-like blue eyes, the restrained elegance in muted tones, the crossed legs, and the slow blinking of his eyelids…
The memory from that day naturally replayed in her mind.
“And your gaze was cold, yet intense like a flame. I was curious about why it was like that. Nobles usually don’t have such fierce intensity. That’s what drew me in… Yes, I think that’s what it was.”
Even back then, she hadn’t fully understood why she had been drawn to him, but as she spoke, she began to understand.
Eren’s gaze had been different from that of the other nobles she had seen. That was probably why her attention had shifted to him. But his appearance, so undeniably noble, had been odd—it was so refined and elegant, yet his eyes held an untamed intensity.
As Macy rambled on, she suddenly realized that he hadn’t said anything yet. Turning her head, she saw Eren watching her expressionlessly.
‘How long has he been staring at me?’
In an instant, Macy felt a rush of embarrassment and quickly tried to recover.
“Haha, I tend to daydream a lot. It’s a bit strange, right? I don’t even know you well—”
“No.”
His cold voice interrupted her.
“It was a life that couldn’t afford to be anything but intense. One wrong step, and you’d fall off a cliff.”
His gaze dropped low.
“So, I don’t understand people who waste their time on boat rides. Watching those nobles, I find it pathetic that people admire them. Most of their hobbies are just about showing off, and I’ve never liked that.”
He still carried the same sense of boredom and apathy from that time. At the same time, the man, who always appeared so strong, now seemed excessively lonely. Macy found herself unable to look away from him.
Despite standing at the center of attention, drawing the gaze of other nobles, he was always alone. She couldn’t fully understand his life, but she knew that he must have fought alone, hiding secrets that no one else could know.
“In that sense, maybe you’ve already noticed the real me.”
He smiled faintly. To Macy, who now knew the full truth about him, it was a bitter smile. She wanted to hold him, but the timing wasn’t right.
Seeing her sad expression, Eren poked her forehead with his finger.
“There’s no need to look at me like that. I still think I’ve been lucky. At least, here, I don’t have to worry about starving, and I can afford to keep you by my side, dressing you up lavishly with the Duke’s money.”
“…”
“I don’t regret the choice I made that day.”
It was a typical Eren mindset. He looked ahead rather than dwelling on the past. It felt as though he had made up his mind to hide everything and live well.
Pitying such a man would have been inappropriate.
“You’re impressive.”
“What do you mean?”
“Eren always seems so steady.”
“Are you sure it’s not you who’s swaying too much?”
“…”
Macy fell silent for a moment. She had always thought she was making an effort to hold onto herself.
Of course, to him, that’s probably how it appeared. Every time something happened, she would cry and whine, and when Eren soothed her just a little, she’d smile like nothing was wrong…
“By the way, you liked me, but why did you draw me like that?”
“Huh?”
Suddenly, Eren raised an eyebrow and asked.
“When we were on the boat, you drew me as if I had enchanted you.”
“Oh, that time? I didn’t really think of it that way when I drew you… I just drew what I saw.”
“Your hand is innocent, then?”
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