“What?”
“Ruvlian!”
“H-hyung!”
Contrary to the priest who brightened up, the family members’ eyes all widened. He who was leisurely rubbing the rim of the teacup with his index finger was reflected in three pairs of similarly colored eyes filled with shock and worry. He wore a fresh smile at the corners of his mouth.
“I’ll go properly refuse and come back.”
In an instant, the expressions of the family and priest switched. After looking at the relieved faces, his gaze stopped on the priest who was grinding his lips. Though still wooden-faced, impatience showed. Ruvlian Belitent’s life was currently languid and boring. However, he had absolutely no intention of becoming the Hero’s companion and subjugating the Demon King.
Why would he need to abandon this comfortable life and dirty his hands with blood? Though refusal would be difficult since it was a Divine Oracle related to the Demon King. As he was fiddling with the surface of the teacup while pondering what to give the Temple to refuse, the priest belatedly opened his mouth.
“…I understand.”
That one answer alone was enough to tell. He was going to take him to the Temple somehow first.
“Then I ask that you prepare to go to the Temple right away.”
“You’re going to take my son right away? These crazy bastards really! Where did those with mana or Divine Power sell their manners!”
Eventually, his mother who couldn’t hold back any longer vented her anger. Ruvlian Belitent stopped his mother who had opened her eyes fiercely along with his father and younger sibling. While saying he would just go refuse and come right back anyway.
Having arrived at the Temple like that, he headed to the room where the Hero and his companions except himself were said to be. When he opened the door, the 3rd Prince, Montrio Alescan, the first daughter of Viscount Lincoln’s family, Alli, and the priest designated as the next generation Pope, Deadrian Russell, came into view. And what hung at the end was.
‘…Rian?’
Though it was from when he was an infant, the memory was vivid. Glossy black hair that somehow also looked brown due to artificial light, and gentle light brown eyes. Plus a youthful face no different from back then. Baek Sihyeon, who made eye contact with Ruvlian who had been staring as if to rip off his face, blinked blankly and opened his mouth.
“Ah. Hello. …I’m Baek Sihyeon, the Hero.”
‘Baek Sihyeon?’
At the introduction that came out after hesitating as if the word Hero was awkward, Ruvlian became puzzled instead. He had definitely heard the name as Rian, so he thought perhaps a fake name had been given.
He couldn’t take the Hero in front of him to the Belitent ducal residence and ask his parents. While learning magic, he had realized that the appearance-changing back then was a hallucination, and also learned that only he and the idiotic dead kidnapper had witnessed Rian’s true appearance. Even if he asked, an explanation of the face overlaid with the hallucination would follow.
Taking away even his first curiosity, now he took away the curiosity that arose after a long time. Ruvlian curved his eyes noticeably at the innocent-looking face that seemed not to know him and the attitude different from back then. The shoulders of the Hero, whether Rian or Baek Sihyeon—not knowing which of the two names was real—jumped up very slightly then settled down.
Watching that reaction, Ruvlian opened his mouth and called the priest.
“Priest.”
“Yes.”
“Please bring some paper and a pen.”
“Yes…?”
“I’m going to leave a letter to my parents saying I’m departing on the subjugation together.”
When he tilted his head crookedly at the priest who came with him as if asking if he disliked it, he moved quickly. With his characteristically leisurely movements that didn’t match the roughly closing door sound, Ruvlian Belitent arrived in front of Baek Sihyeon.
“I’m Ruvlian Belitent.”
“…Ah, yes.”
“Want to try calling me?”
“What?”
The eyes of the face that was strangely gentle yet indifferent grew a bit larger. Ruvlian gently pressed his lower lip with his thumb and said once more.
“Can’t you?”
“…Ruvlian Belitent.”
The name that came out after hesitation unexpectedly didn’t evoke much emotion. Just the impression that for a man, his voice was pretty. Since he was someone curiosity was directed at, the curiosity about whether he would feel other emotions was quickly resolved.
Ruvlian brought back to position his hand that was left floating in the air, having lost its place on Baek Sihyeon’s head as he distanced himself while reading the mood. He rubbed the thumb that had touched his lips with his index finger and deliberately produced a slightly softer voice.
“Belitent is my surname. Feel free to call me Ruvlian.”
Baek Sihyeon nodded a couple times. The indifference without malice was clearly different from the face seen briefly before. Rian in the memories he had constantly recalled from the moment proper thought was possible had no such thing as gentleness. Rather, only indifference existed, as if he had gone through all hardships and wouldn’t be flustered no matter what happened.
Where did the person who showed anger back then go? Were they twins? Ruvlian decided to first close the distance with Baek Sihyeon and extract what he wanted. Like slowly strangling.
“Sihyeon?”
“Yes.”
“Want to date me?”
That’s why. He spouted unprecedented bullshit.
“Huh.”
“What?”
“Wow.”
The three who had been watching while holding their breath like furniture reacted. A bit later than that, Baek Sihyeon’s mouth, whose soul had left, opened, and a stupid question returned.
“…What?”
“Originally I came to refuse the subjugation too… But I fell for you at first sight. Do you dislike it?”
Ruvlian Belitent knew how insane he would look. At their first meeting, and confessing to someone of the same sex at that. However, he didn’t care and curved his eyes a bit more while slowly closing then opening them.
As his golden eyelashes lowered then rose, his sky-like eyes revealed themselves. Baek Sihyeon reflected in them repeatedly opened his mouth slightly then closed it.
“Won’t you answer me?”
Ruvlian Belitent, who bent his upper body to narrow the distance between their faces, tilted his head. He scanned in order the long extended black eyelashes, the lukewarm temperature light brown eyes, the straight nose bridge, the plump lips. And thought.
‘It doesn’t bother me.’
Perhaps because he was someone curiosity was directed at, nausea didn’t come out regardless of the male gender. When he was called out and confessed to by the eldest son of another family at a ball, it was disgusting enough he almost did it on the spot. He poked the reddened white ear with his index finger. The Hero’s shoulders flinched and trembled, then soon a pretty voice flowed out.
“I’m sorry but I must refuse.”
“Mm. Why?”
It was a gaze asking if he truly didn’t know.
‘How could I not know.’
Ruvlian, who deliberately asked back, didn’t show it and smiled even more radiantly. The corners of the Hero’s eyes flinched and trembled. It seemed he was weak to faces.
“…Because we just met and don’t know each other well. You,”
“It’s Ruvlian.”
When he changed “you” to Ruvlian, the Hero hesitated. Ruvlian Belitent took advantage of that gap to push his face a bit closer. He flinched and trembled again. This time even his neck moved backward. Then a pretty voice was heard quietly.
“…Because I don’t have feelings for Ruvlian either.”
“In short, the problem is that we just met?”
“Yes.”
“Good. We can just get to know each other slowly and leisurely. Right?”
Ruvlian Belitent, who answered slowly, was confident as if he had given a perfect answer. At the same time, he still wore a beautiful smile brilliant enough to breathe color into the overall white space. Enough to momentarily mistake it for having heard a perfect answer.
“…What?”
“You answered ‘yes.’ Good, let’s get along well. Sihyeon, what’s your family situation?”
“Why are you asking that?”
“Because we decided to get to know each other.”
To the Hero who was dumbfounded, Ruvlian Belitent, who spoke leisurely, thoroughly extracted several parts of what kind of life he had lived until now, starting from having a twin. That interrogation that started under the pretext of getting to know each other only ended after the priest brought paper and a pen.
Ruvlian Belitent asked to send the letter to the ducal residence, and those who had been like scenery intervened to introduce each other. Then they stayed overnight at the Temple and departed on the subjugation the next day.
One day, two days, one month, one year. Ruvlian Belitent patiently observed Baek Sihyeon for one year.
Baek Sihyeon was quick-witted. Though he always smiled, he knew that he was observing him. Yet seeing how he left it alone, he either had quite a generous personality, or was stupidly mistaken that he was doing so because he liked him. Since he had confessed saying he fell for him at first sight.
And even in the beginning, whether he had a good child complex or not, his personality that had been strangely gentle yet indifferent while helping here and there disappeared. It was probably the influence of those three.
Besides that, he could tell he was excellent in all areas—magic, Divine Power, swordsmanship, strategy. And he could also tell he was weighing them while placing them at the boundary line he had set. Additionally, he also almost never smiled a true smile rather than a fake smile.
That exact feeling. The feeling that he was gradually coming to resemble ‘Rian’ subtly. While mulling over that thought, Ruvlian worked his extraordinary brain that had quickly finished successor education.
‘Did he come from the future?’
That’s when it was. Blue eyes and light brown eyes met in the air. The one who opened his mouth first was Baek Sihyeon, who moved his steps toward Ruvlian.
“Ruvlian.”
“Why are you calling, Sihyeon?”
It was a voice like the spring breeze slowly rippling. While capturing in his eyes the dazzling golden hair swaying like waves, Baek Sihyeon voiced what he had been constantly curious about.
“Do you still like me? Or what are you so curious about? Is there still more left to observe?”
At the question that flowed out as if reading the thoughts he had just been having, Ruvlian curved his eyes thinly. He instinctively noticed that now was the opportunity to enter beyond that boundary line. He wanted to enter inside that boundary line and thoroughly dig through the insides. He had always aimed for that opportunity.
It was probably because of the curiosity about ‘Rian’ that still remained like a lump. Ruvlian Belitent believed the desire to know more and get closer was truly because of that.
Though he didn’t know what emotions love and affection were, how they were formed, hoping to be as similar as possible to those emotions, he produced a voice as if sweet candy was rolling around in his mouth.
“Observation? Originally when you like someone, your gaze naturally goes to them.”
It’s just that I still like you.
Ruvlian Belitent, who showed a plain and leisurely attitude unlike someone confessing, stared at Baek Sihyeon who had the face of receiving an unexpected answer. If there was something else learned as the time of one year passed, it was that Baek Sihyeon was starved for affection.
He didn’t understand that emotion itself, and would probably never feel such an emotion called ‘love’ in his lifetime. Therefore, though he couldn’t give complete affection, he could give a fake that imitated it to some degree.
Of course, it wasn’t that Baek Sihyeon liked him. He was just predicting that he would be unable to refuse and accept the confession of him, a companion who had become close enough to have a foot on the boundary line, right up to the line. Ruvlian Belitent waited for the answer that would come from the firmly closed mouth. Soon he lifted his head as if finishing his contemplation. Eyes met and lips opened.
“…Then want to date?”
“Yeah.”
When he accepted as if waiting at the expected answer, Baek Sihyeon hesitated for a moment. Faint embarrassment lingered in the question that flowed from between his lips that had been moving.
“Then do you also use terms of endearment like honey or darling?”
“If you want, as much as you’d like.”
Ruvlian Belitent, who had hesitated like Baek Sihyeon, answered. He didn’t notice the fact that the smile hanging on his lips had deepened more than usual.
