#48
“Yes, Enrique. As the king of Shamier, of course I have ambitions for this country’s future. However… the sacrifice you must make for it is too great, and just thinking about it breaks my heart.”
“…Father.”
“You don’t understand yet. I’m not saying you’re foolish. It’s just that, having not had children yourself, you can’t possibly know. You might give birth to children and send them to Ruben, Monta, and Baron, potentially never seeing them again for the rest of your life.”
A faint pain appeared on the king’s face as he spoke slowly. It must have been the pain of losing two sons to war resurfacing.
“Think positively, Father. Just imagine. The children I’ll bear… children with Shamier’s bloodline will become the rulers of the mighty Ruben Empire, Monta, and Baron. As long as I inherit the country and rule Shamier, and as long as my heir continues to lead Shamier… the four countries will be tightly bound as brothers. With that power, Shamier will enter a period of renaissance.”
Just speaking these words aloud, just imagining that future, made Enrique’s heart burn with passion. His words naturally carried that fervor. Enrique looked directly at his father with eyes full of passion for the future. The king, meeting his son’s gaze, let out a short sigh as if resigned.
“Alright. You’ve always been a child with strong convictions. Fine. Do as you wish. But, Enrique. Remember that there’s always a possibility of the unexpected. Promise me that if you ever change your mind, you’ll tell your father without hesitation.”
Understanding his father’s concern, Enrique nodded in agreement.
*
After the people from Ruben arrived, dinner was always with Anture. When he had come alone, he was treated as an outsider, but now that people had arrived from Ruben for wedding preparations, he was receiving proper treatment as a fiancé.
Honestly, Enrique had thought Anture would cling to him with various excuses after dinner. He had even thought of ways to shake him off. But surprisingly, Anture left without lingering after finishing his meal. The servants, who always brought news without being asked, reported that Anture was quietly conversing with the Ruben entourage in their quarters.
He must have been quite happy to meet his own people after being alone in Shamier.
Enrique grumbled to himself as he went to bed.
Lying with his eyes closed, trying to sleep, Enrique tossed and turned for a long time before finally opening his eyes again. Despite the bed being warmed with hot stones placed by the servants, it felt unusually cold. After repeatedly closing and opening his eyes, Enrique finally sat up. He stared blankly at the thick curtains covering the window.
Perhaps… no, probably he had been thinking that Anture would knock on the window again tonight. It wasn’t that he particularly expected it, but the thought of when he might knock was clearly keeping him from falling asleep.
After briefly considering getting out of bed to draw the curtains, Enrique shook his head and flopped back down. Then he tried to think of something else.
Come to think of it, tomorrow was already the day.
Tomorrow was the day Damiel would depart for the territory he had been granted.
Despite being told through the king to go down to his territory, Damiel had made no attempt to send a message through a servant or to meet Enrique. While this was somewhat of a relief, it also pricked at Enrique’s conscience.
Enrique briefly considered going to see him off tomorrow, but then clicked his tongue softly.
Although he had kept him as a guard for years, Damiel had been his heat partner after all. Everyone knew that. It wouldn’t be dignified for a prince to personally see off such a man. But sending him away without even a farewell weighed on his mind. He also felt guilty for not visiting the knight who had been injured while protecting him.
Finally, Enrique sat up again. He pulled the cord at the head of the bed.
With a light knock, a servant entered. Enrique hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Help me change clothes. And inform Count Persi that I will be visiting him shortly.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
The servant answered and left the room, then returned to light the candles. Enrique got out of bed, took off his nightclothes, and changed with the servant’s assistance.
His steps felt somewhat heavy as he walked down the corridor. The journey to meet Damiel seemed unusually short.
Finally, he arrived at Damiel’s quarters. When the servant knocked, the door opened slowly.
“Please come in, Your Highness. Count Persi is waiting for you.”
The servant who opened the door from inside bowed his head as he spoke. Enrique took a deep breath and stepped into the room.
“Your Highness.”
Damiel, who seemed to have just finished dressing, bowed his head in greeting. Enrique frowned as he saw Damiel’s left arm tightly wrapped and fixed with wooden splints and bandages.
“How is your condition?”
“The doctor says I’m recovering smoothly.”
“Hmm, I see. That’s good.”
“Thank you for your concern.”
They exchanged purely ceremonial words. Then silence fell.
Enrique hesitated for a moment before gesturing for all the servants to leave the room. Then he walked to a small table by the window and sat down.
Receiving the silent cue, Damiel sat across from him at the table. Enrique quietly gazed at Damiel, who maintained a composed face under the flickering candlelight. Despite this man having silently stood by his side for years, Enrique couldn’t remember if he had ever directly met his eyes like this before.
“I hear you’re departing for your territory tomorrow?”
“Yes, I’m scheduled to leave early in the morning.”
“It’s been years since you were granted the land, and you’re finally going to see it with your own eyes.”
“Yes.”
The conversation awkwardly trailed off. But Enrique didn’t try to force out words unnecessarily.
As Enrique looked at the man who had protected him all this time, Damiel also gazed at Enrique with calm, gentle eyes. Enrique suddenly thought that perhaps the emotion dwelling in Damiel’s eyes as he looked at him was what people called affection.
“You’ve silently protected me for years. I’ve never thanked you for that.”
“Your Highness need not feel any gratitude towards me. Being able to stay by your side has been the greatest fortune and honor of my life.”
Damiel’s gentle voice carried not even a hint of flattery or exaggeration. He truly was a good knight and a good man.
“Nevertheless, I feel gratitude and indebtedness towards you. Now you’ll be living as the lord of a territory, and it won’t always be smooth sailing. If you ever have any problems or need to ask me for something, don’t hesitate to let me know. Consider that my parting gift to you.”
“…Thank you.”
Damiel looked as if he wanted to refuse. But instead of words of refusal, he simply expressed his gratitude. This only increased Enrique’s sense of indebtedness.
Enrique stood up, swallowing all the words lingering in his mouth. It was a relationship that was destined to end anyway. Being able to conclude it without major disturbance was perhaps fortunate for both parties.
“I won’t be able to see you off. I look forward to the day we meet again.”
Offering this simple farewell, Enrique smiled faintly and extended his hand for a handshake. Damiel looked at the outstretched hand for a moment, then took it and turned it upward, kissing the back of the hand instead of shaking it. If anyone else had done this, Enrique would have immediately withdrawn his hand. But knowing that this act was Damiel’s final ritual of farewell, Enrique silently accepted his parting kiss.
“I will always pray for Your Highness’s happiness.”
Damiel said in a slightly husky voice after placing a long kiss on the back of Enrique’s hand. Enrique nodded silently and turned away. He felt a strong gaze on his back the entire time as he opened the door and left. But Enrique didn’t look back.
“Let’s go back.”
As the door closed behind him, Enrique began to walk resolutely towards his quarters.
It was when he was nearing his quarters.
He noticed a tall figure leaning against the corridor wall where candles flickered.
Their eyes met. Those pitch-black eyes slowly and intently scanned Enrique from head to toe, then the figure straightened up and strode towards him.
“What are you doing here?”
Enrique looked up at Anture with a blank expression and asked. But instead of answering, Anture traced Enrique’s lips, cheeks, and clothes with his exceptionally dark eyes. Then his gaze traveled downward. When those black eyes reached it, the hand that Damiel had kissed twitched involuntarily.
Anture’s eyes narrowed. His large hand swiftly caught Enrique’s and lifted it. After quietly examining the back of the hand, Anture raised it further and buried his nose in it. Enrique looked at Anture smelling the back of his hand with incredulous eyes.
