It wasn’t a good sign that she was speaking informally to Starchis.

Using informal speech meant she remembered what had happened back then.

She had always spoken formally, but when she asked to be called ‘that word,’ she had finally switched to informal speech to make her request.

-‘Please, Starchis... do it. Just this once, it’s my wish.’

She had playfully wrapped her arms around Starchis’ neck, making sure he couldn’t escape.

And this meant she remembered everything.

Starchis pretended not to hear and sipped his wine.

As if ignoring it would make it go away.

“Hmm?”

Hian, who had just set down his glass, spoke up.

“Rose, your cheeks are red. Have you had too much to drink?”

“I-I think I drank a bit too fast.”

“...Don’t get too excited. We have guests in front of us.”

“I’ll keep that in mind.”

Starchis wondered if her red cheeks were really due to the alcohol.

Uncomfortable with the topic, Starchis quickly changed the subject.

“...Miss Rose! I heard your birthday is coming up soon.”

But Rose didn’t respond to Starchis’ words. She just stared at him intently.

‘...Why... why now...’

Feeling uneasy, Starchis waited for Rose’s response.

Rose soon snorted and then spoke again with a warm expression.

“...Yes, my birthday is coming up soon.”

She spoke while looking at Hian and Stion across the table, openly expressing her dissatisfaction.

Starchis couldn’t figure out why.

“Congratulations, Miss.”

“Happy birthday.”

Starchis and Stion said.

“Thank you. When are your birthdays, Starchis and Stion?”

“...Uh... we don’t have such things.”

Stion replied.

During their childhood, their goal was to survive each day, and they weren’t in a position to keep track of dates.

Even if they had known, they probably would have just let it pass.

As a result, they didn’t know when their birthdays were.

“Oh..!”

Rose’s pouty expression softened, and she quickly looked at Starchis.

“...I’m sorry, I was being so thoughtless-”

Starchis stopped her from apologizing again.

“You don’t need to apologize, it’s fine. Really, it’s no big deal...”

When the mood at the dinner table started to feel down due to her sullen expression,

she suddenly lifted her head and made a suggestion.

“Oh! How about we just decide on a birthday?”

“Pardon?”

“We can just pick a day and celebrate it as your birthday, right?”

At her sudden suggestion to decide on a birthday, Stion and Starchis exchanged glances.

Their expressions questioned why it was necessary.

“Do we really need to celebrate birthdays? We’ve lived fine without them all our lives.”

“No! Birthdays should be celebrated!”

Rose said, her tone becoming stern.

“Being born is a blessing! That’s why you met me, isn’t it?”

-Crack!

A spark flew out of the fireplace, interrupting their conversation. A moment of silence fell, and Hian looked at Rose.

Rose thought for a moment and then hurriedly corrected herself.

“Oh... um, I mean... you met everyone in the world, right?”

“...Right?”

Feeling sympathetic to Rose’s unease, Starchis agreed to help her.

On the other hand, Rose, hearing what she wanted, pushed her plan further.

“Right? So let’s decide on a birthday, Starchis.”

“And me?”

Stion asked with a mischievous grin.

“Did you already forget me? Only focusing on one person?”

Before she knew it, Rose had been looking only at Starchis. She hastily added, flustered.

“Y-You too, Stion!”

Hian narrowed his eyes further, looking at Rose.

In the end, Rose, excited, decided on Stion and Starchis’s birthday dates, and the conversation flowed to the next topic.

.

.

.

.

.

“Elza, pour more wine.”

“...Rose? Calm down a bit.”

“We have to drink on days like this!”

Hian, his face red from drinking, asked Rose. But Rose wasn’t going to listen.

She pressured Elza with her gaze to fill Hian’s glass.

Even at the dining table, Rose had shown this side of herself.

Confident in her drinking, she drank somewhat aggressively.

“I-I’ll go get some fresh air.”

“Wait, why don’t you finish this glass first?”

Eventually, Hian stood up to take a break. Rose didn’t want to let him go, but Hian found a way out.

“Starchis! Why don’t you come talk with me for a bit?”

This time, Rose looked steadily at Starchis, but he couldn’t refuse Hian’s request.

“Of course.”

Starchis also stood up.

“I’ll be back soon. Miss, Hyung.”

“...Come back soon.”

“See you in a bit.”

The two of them left the room.

A maid tried to follow, but Hian stopped her.

“We’ll walk alone for a bit.”

Starchis understood that Hian had something to say to him.

Though it was to escape Rose’s insistence, Hian likely had already planned to talk.

They left the mansion. The cold night air greeted them. Their flushed cheeks gradually cooled. A sigh escaped, visible in the air.

“Let’s walk.”

Hian spoke with a seriousness that contrasted his earlier tone when escaping Rose.

Starchis began to feel anxious. An irrational fear arose that Hian might know about Rose’s request to him.

It was all because he had done something guilty.

Starchis made a resolution to live more conscientiously.

Of course, it wasn’t his fault that Rose had made such a request of him,

but he decided to live without any discomfort anyway.

“My Rose is beautiful, isn’t she?”

Hian suddenly opened his mouth.

Starchis agreed with him.

“Yes, she is a kind person.”

He recalled how Rose had helped him when he was in trouble.

“...It’s truly a relief. That she grew up this well without a mother.”

“...”

“Do you mind if I wallow in self-pity for a bit?”

“Feel free.”

“...Nights like this remind me of my wife.”

Hian spoke as they walked through the dark garden.

“She was really a beautiful person. Kind, considerate, and untainted by any negativity.”

Starchis just listened.

He knew that sometimes just listening was better than saying anything.

His brother had been like that too.

When talking about the lost party members, he had just listened.

“She was the one who taught me about love. The kind of love that warms your heart and makes the world beautiful. Do you know love?”

Starchis paused at Hian’s question.

‘Love?’

He had always said he wanted to experience love.

Starchis had heard many positive things about love.

How it made you think of someone constantly, filled your heart, made you strive harder, and allowed you to love yourself.

He wanted to experience it too.

But if asked whether he had experienced it...

“...I’m not sure.”

“Haha, is that so? Then, I’m afraid you don’t know love yet.”

Hian patted Starchis on the back as he spoke.

“You’ll know it when it comes.”

He sighed deeply before continuing.

“Ha... And that’s why the pain of losing it is so immense.”

Hian seemed to have drifted into his own world, reminiscing about his wife.

“The pain of having all those positive emotions ripped away from you... It’s hard to explain. Haha, there might be someone experiencing this because of someone as remarkable as you!”

He soon shifted the mood by praising Starchis.

“Pardon?”

“You almost died recently! If there was someone who loved you then, they would have tasted the same pain I did.”

“Haha... Is that so?”

Starchis thought of his brother.

“...Your work is dangerous. What you do.”

Hian’s voice grew serious.

“Starchis, I have a request for you.”

“Please, go ahead.”

Hian turned around and stopped.

The man with his distinguished white beard and hair looked at Starchis.

The wrinkles around his eyes hinted at the years he had lived.

“...I don’t know everything, but I sense something.”

“...”

“...It seems Rose has feelings for you.”

“....”

Starchis couldn’t say anything.

He had wondered if that might be the case.

Considering the kind of request she had made.

It was the first time she had shown such a side of herself.

He wondered if it was because of the alcohol,

but when she spoke informally at the dinner table, remembering everything,

it seemed more calculated than impulsive.

“...Please, distance yourself from my daughter.”

“Pardon?”

Hian placed a hand on Starchis’ shoulder, his expression apologetic.

“Don’t misunderstand me, truly. You are an exceptional young man, more so than many noble sons. I might have even blessed your union if circumstances were different. I mean that.”

He cleared his throat.

“...I want my daughter to marry someone she loves. I don’t have a fixation on her marrying a noble. If it were someone like you, I’d be satisfied... but the issue is your profession.”

“My profession?”

“Your dream, one could say. Isn’t it too dangerous? No matter how it’s presented, in the end, it’s a job where you stake your life. I don’t want my daughter to experience the pain I’ve known.”

Hian moved his hand from Starchis’ shoulder to grasp his wrist.

“It’s unfortunate... truly. Look at this scar. Can you promise this will be the last? Can you promise that if you’re with my daughter, you won’t die young? Or can you give up your dream?”

“...I won’t give up my dream.”

Hian burst into laughter.

“Haha... that’s admirable. You need to have such resolve. See, that’s why I’m asking you. It’s not my place to interfere, but I must. Please distance yourself from my daughter. It’s fine to remain friends, but don’t become lovers... understood?”

Starchis could hear the pain in Hian’s voice.

Even as he spoke, he seemed to be remembering his wife.

Recalling the agony of being left alone.

Starchis could sense Hian’s determination.

The desire to protect his precious daughter from experiencing such pain.

He also felt Hian’s embarrassment and guilt in making this request.

The shame of having to interfere and the guilt if Starchis harbored feelings for Rose.

Starchis understood all of this.

“I will.”

Starchis promised.

.

.

.

.

“...No... more...”

Hian, nodding off, shook his head and then slammed his face onto the table.

Rose, taken aback, gasped quietly.

“...Oh my...”

She covered her mouth and exhaled a deep breath, expelling the alcohol she had consumed.

The number of wine bottles that Elza had brought and taken away easily surpassed ten.

As soon as Hian returned to his seat, Rose had started drinking like a warrior,

and Hian, Stion, and Starchis, trying to keep up, were sweating profusely.

Rose, in particular, had offered Hian a lot of alcohol.

Stion covered his mouth and abruptly stood up from his seat.

“Ugh... I-I’ll take Hian to his room.”

“...Would you please?”

Rose asked.

She seemed fine, aside from her red cheeks.

“Elza, guide him to Father’s room.”

Stion supported the limp Hian.

Elza nodded and led the way.

“Take your time.”

Even if Rose hadn’t said so, Stion intended to take it slow.

Staying here felt like he might drown in alcohol.

-Squeak, thud.

As the door closed, silence once again filled the room.

With no people around and no one eating, the only sound was the crackling of the burning logs.

Starchis, shaking his head to clear the alcohol-induced fog, snapped to attention at the eerie silence.

He looked around.

At some point, all the maids and servants had left the room.

The only ones left were Rose and himself.

It was unsettling, to say the least, that Rose hadn’t spoken until he looked at her.

Like a deer in the headlights, Starchis felt his body tense up.

“....Starchis.”

Rose called him.

He swallowed hard.

‘How did I end up in this situation?’

He realized he was in a precarious position without even noticing.

He slowly turned his head to look at Rose.

“..Yes Miss?”

“I told you to speak informally, Starchis.”

She said.

Starchis thought he hadn’t felt this tense even during battles.

He stood up, trying to escape the situation.

“I-I need to use the restroom-”

But then he felt her hand gently pressing on his thigh, making him sit back down helplessly.

The alcohol made it hard to keep his balance, which didn’t help.

“Listen to me first before you go.”

‘W-What is she going to say...’

Worry filled Starchis’ mind.

He didn’t know how he would handle another strange request.

Hian’s request echoed in his head.

He remembered Rose’s desperate expression from that time.

...And the sense of betrayal subtly surfaced.

He shook his head.

He wished none of this had happened.

“Starchis, I’m sorry.”

“Pardon?”

Her apology left him bewildered.

“Wasn’t it too sudden back then?”

They both knew exactly which time she was referring to.

“.....Yes. It was sudden.”

A wave of relief washed over him.

His heart, which had been pounding with tension, now beat even more fiercely as the tension eased.

His face flushed with heat.

“I acted that way because I was drunk..”

She explained.

Glancing at her glass, Starchis noticed she hadn’t drunk any less today than usual.

A sense of unease returned.

Rose continued speaking.

“...But I felt a bit hurt earlier.”

“When?”

“When you called me Miss Rose.”

Starchis racked his brain.

Indeed, when Rose had come to sit beside him and he had called her Miss Rose, she had pouted.

His party member-trained “pout radar” was in full swing.

“You are Miss Rose.”

“...I called you Starchis, didn’t I? Then you should call me Rose.”

“But your father was right there.”

“Then how about now?”

Rose stared at him intently, her hand still on his thigh from when she had pressed him down to sit.

“How about now?”

Starchis reached for his water glass, trying to hide his agitation.

He sipped slowly, thinking about his next move.

It wasn’t easy with his muddled mind.

‘...Right, my brother will be back soon.’

He figured Stion, who had gone to take Hian to his room, would return shortly.

If he could just get through this moment, they could finish the evening and leave.

There would be nothing for Hian to worry about.

Once this was over, he wouldn’t have to deal with Rose again for a while.

He put the glass down and spoke.

After all, this level of familiarity was possible even between friends.

“Alright, Rose.”

But Rose tightened her grip on his thigh.

Using that hand for support, she leaned in close to whisper in his ear.

She shook her head slowly.

“...That’s not it either. We’re alone.”

Cold sweat started to run down his back again.

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