When I opened the door and stepped inside, Ian, who’d been sitting there anxiously, greeted me with a bright, relieved smile. Damn it—now that I knew the truth, that innocent smile just made my heart ache even more.
“You’re back.”
“Yes. Sorry for leaving you alone.”
“It’s okay. But, more importantly, how did it go? Did you find out who I am?”
“Ah, about that…”
I knew exactly who Ian was, but I couldn’t possibly tell him. Feeling uncertain, I glanced toward Butler Squawk. The butler gently tugged at his beak and nodded reassuringly, signaling that I should leave everything to him.
“Yes, everything has been settled. You’ll learn the details as we go,” Butler Squawk smoothly interjected.
“Go? Where are we going?”
“To the quarters prepared for you. I will lead the way,” Butler Squawk replied politely.
“What about you? You’re not coming?” Ian asked, looking at me curiously when I took a step back.
“No, I have to go back to my own room now.”
“I see. I haven’t even asked your name yet.”
“My name’s Briel.”
“Briel,” Ian repeated, his smile warm and grateful. “Thank you for everything today. I’m not even sure how I should express my gratitude.”
“You don’t have to thank me. Honestly, I hardly did anything,” I replied softly.
“Don’t say that. I might not remember who I am yet, but I remember clearly how long I wandered this castle alone. In all that endless time, you’re the only one who has ever reached out to help me. How could that be insignificant?”
Before I knew it, Ian had moved right in front of me, gazing warmly into my eyes. How could I have mistaken someone so bright and gentle for a ghost?
Ian smiled gently and extended his right hand. Naturally assuming he wanted a handshake, I reached out. But instead, he smoothly drew my hand toward him and lightly pressed a kiss onto the back of it.
“……!”
“Thank you, Briel. I’m really glad it was you I met.”
I was completely flustered by the unexpected gesture, but when I met Ian’s innocent gaze, I couldn’t find it in my heart to protest. All I felt was an ache of sympathy at the thought of Ian having to spend time alone. Unable to resist, I gently spread my arms and hugged him lightly.
“Take care. I promise we’ll meet again soon.”
“Yeah. I’ll look forward to it.”
Ian followed Butler Squawk out of the room, repeatedly turning to glance back at me. Each time he did, I waved until his retreating figure vanished entirely into the darkened hallway.
***
Almond, who’d initially acted as though he were escorting Ian straight to his room, was now wandering aimlessly through the castle’s corridors, climbing up and down staircases without any apparent direction. He was deliberately stalling, careful not to give Briel, who might still be lingering nearby, any clue about Ian’s actual destination.
“I think we passed through here already,” Ian noted, frowning slightly.
“You must be imagining things,” Almond smoothly deflected.
“No, I’m pretty sure we’ve been here before.”
“Rather than worrying about that, didn’t you say you wanted to learn more about yourself? If you’d like, you can start with your biggest question.”
“All right then, what’s my name?”
“You’ll find out naturally when we arrive.”
“Can’t you just tell me now?”
“No.”
Butler Squawk’s responses to Ian’s questions were unusually curt, lacking his usual polished politeness. After a few brief exchanges, he eventually guided Ian into an empty room tucked away in a secluded corner of the castle.
“So, this is where I’ll be staying?”
“You could say that.”
“Then tell me my name now.”
“I could, if you insist. However…” Almond glanced at the clock on the wall, murmuring softly, “I don’t think that’ll be necessary.”
By the time Almond turned his head back, Ian had vanished. In his place stood a towering figure with a beast’s face. Kalz let out a quiet chuckle and gave Almond a casual shrug.
“Honestly, I’m more curious about something else. Just how exactly did you handle that situation?”
“I’d like to ask you the same thing, Master. Why on earth did you grab Briel’s sleeve and follow him all the way to his room?”
“You know perfectly well that wasn’t my intention.”
“And do you know,” Almond said sharply, his voice edged with irritation, “that while I was preparing tea, I nearly dropped the teaspoon from sheer panic trying to think of how to resolve this mess?”
“So, what did you tell him? You didn’t actually tell him the truth, did you?”
“Of course not. You specifically ordered me to keep it hidden—how could I possibly disobey? Besides, if I’d told him the truth, do you really think Briel would’ve treated you so warmly?”
Kalz fell silent for a brief moment, clearly stung by the bluntness of Almond’s words. But curiosity quickly overcame any wounded pride.
“So, are you seriously not going to tell me what you said?”
“If you’re that curious, why don’t you ask Briel directly? Though, given your recent relationship, I doubt that’ll go smoothly.”
“That’s exactly why you should just tell me.”
“No,” Almond retorted bluntly, far more gruffly than usual.
In truth, Almond was the one most distressed by the ongoing cold war between Kalz and Briel. Stuck helplessly in the middle, he felt thoroughly miserable. Delivering Kalz’s unreasonable demands to Briel only earned him icy glares, and dealing with Kalz—who refused to speak directly to Briel but obsessively asked about his well-being—was equally exhausting. Just yesterday, hadn’t he nearly lost a wing to Elizabeth’s sharp claws because of this endless drama?
But worst of all was seeing the relationship between Kalz and Briel, which had seemed so promising, now growing cold and distant.
“Ugh, I don’t get it. How could you possibly dislike someone kind-hearted enough to worry about a person even after they’ve turned into a centipede?”
“A centipede? What’s that about?” Kalz immediately perked up, clearly intrigued, as if he were ready to watch an exciting show.
Almond twisted his beak bitterly at Kalz’s obvious amusement, as though he’d bitten into something foul. Part of him desperately wanted to remain stubbornly silent until Kalz’s curiosity drove him mad, but he knew better. Given all the unpredictable circumstances they were facing, it would be wiser to ensure their stories matched before another crisis struck.
Internally lamenting his master’s narrow-mindedness, Almond reluctantly recounted the elaborate story he’d spun about Ian for Briel’s sake. As Kalz listened, his mouth gradually fell open, and by the time Almond finished, Kalz had even applauded a couple of times.
“Almond, you really should thank your father. If you hadn’t inherited his position as a butler, you’d have made an excellent con artist.”
“Is that seriously all you have to say? Who do you think put me in that position? The least you could do is thank me properly.”
“Believe it or not, that was a compliment. I’m genuinely impressed—I had no idea you were this talented.”
“Forget it. If you hadn’t insisted on hiding the truth from Briel, none of this would’ve happened. Can’t you just apologize and tell him the truth tomorrow?”
“No.”
“Why not? He’s officially an employee now—there’s no good reason to keep hiding it.”
Reason? At first, Kalz had claimed he was hiding the truth from Briel because he couldn’t trust him yet. But honestly, he’d found Briel’s reactions far too amusing to stop—especially when Bell thought he was dealing with a ghost. He’d wanted to tease him a bit more, and so he’d kept Almond quiet.
Even after being discovered, Kalz now hesitated for a different reason:
“Take care. We’ll meet again soon.”
That warm smile Briel had worn before hugging him—it had been meant for Ian, not for Kalz. If Briel discovered Ian’s true identity, he’d never see that expression again. Kalz wasn’t quite ready to let it go. Plus…
“…If only I hadn’t stupidly kissed his hand.”
“What was that?”
“Nothing. But why did you have to use the name ‘Ian’? That was unnecessarily risky.”
Ian had been Kalz’s childhood nickname. No one called him by that name anymore, but there was still no reason to tempt fate. Almond, annoyed by Kalz’s grumbling, answered sharply.
“It was an emergency! When I saw you in human form, it just naturally slipped out. If you hate getting caught, you should just confess first.”
“I said no. Either way, keep this from Briel a bit longer. It’d be a shame to throw away your carefully-crafted story so quickly.”
“If you’re honestly keeping this secret for such a trivial reason, I’ll reveal everything tomorrow before breakfast.”
Almond clicked his beak threateningly, but Kalz just turned away. Almond wasn’t fooled, though—he understood his master’s true feelings, at least partially. He sighed in resignation.
“Fine. It’s not like I can disobey you anyway.”
“Thank you. Although it feels like I spend more time obeying you.”
“But!” Almond interrupted firmly, his eyes glinting sharply as he fixed Kalz with a serious stare. “Stop bullying Briel with your childish tricks.”
“Childish? Butler Squawk, aren’t you being too harsh?”
“I’m actually holding back harsher words. Tell me honestly now—why do you keep treating Briel this way?”
“I already told you that you don’t need to know.”
“I just told you something you didn’t need to know, didn’t I?”
“I have nothing else to say. If you really want answers, ask Briel yourself.”
Almond had already tried, only to receive the same stubborn response from Briel as he’d gotten from Kalz.
“Forget it. Whatever it is, it’s probably trivial, and I’m sure it’s your fault anyway.”
“Isn’t that too biased, Butler?”
“So please stop now. You’ve done enough.”
Kalz felt slightly hurt by Almond’s assumption that he was at fault, but he also didn’t wish to prolong the situation further. Though he wouldn’t admit it out loud, Kalz already regretted snapping at Briel. He’d grown irritated when Briel kept pushing into matters Kalz wanted kept secret, and he’d ended up venting his frustrations far too harshly. After Briel retaliated by refusing to join him at meals, Kalz’s wounded pride had escalated the conflict, leading to more unreasonable demands.
He knew deep down Briel’s stubbornness had stemmed from a genuine desire to help. Yet Kalz couldn’t relent, afraid that giving in would only encourage Briel’s dangerous search for answers about the curse.
But just moments ago, seeing Briel had shattered Kalz’s stubborn pride. Those thin, fragile wrists—Briel had always been slender, but now he looked dangerously frail. Another week of this, and Kalz feared he’d end up employing a skeleton instead.
At this point, Kalz felt genuinely grateful to Almond for giving him a reason to end the cold war. Concealing these feelings behind a reluctant facade, Kalz nodded begrudgingly.
“Fine, I’ll forgive him.”
“Good. Then tomorrow I’ll send Briel to your study, and you must reconcile properly.”
“Understood.”
Satisfied by Kalz’s easy agreement, Almond chirped contentedly.
“If you insist on keeping this secret, I’ll cooperate—but it’s a bit of a shame. Briel seemed quite fond of your human form.”
“What do you mean?”
“Earlier in the hallway, he told me directly that Ian’s appearance perfectly matched his tastes.”
“Nonsense.”
“Well, he later claimed it was just a joke.”
“It doesn’t matter either way. Why should I care about his preferences?”
Despite Kalz’s dismissive words, his ears noticeably twitched back and forth. Almond didn’t miss this subtle reaction, and his eyes curved into a satisfied smile.
