# Chapter 92
When the door opened carefully without a knock, at first Levi thought it was Ion or a servant coming in. In reality, there was no one else who would enter at that moment.
But strangely, even after coming inside and quietly closing the door, there was not a single word spoken.
Only then did Levi raise his upper body to sit up and look toward the door. Though it was dark and not everything was clearly visible, he could tell it was a man with a more robust build than Ion.
The man’s face, illuminated by moonlight, was quite visible in detail.
The man had covered his nose and mouth with a black mask, and even wore a black mask to hide his eyes. Since it was difficult to identify who it was just by looking at that, Levi subtly reached for the bedside table and grasped the dagger that was still there.
It was then that the man let out a relieved voice in the darkness.
“You’re safe. I’m glad.”
Levi, startled by the man’s deep voice, put down the dagger. He had definitely heard that voice before.
The man, smiling beneath his mask, approached Levi’s bed without turning on the lights. He sat in the chair beside the bed that Ion had brought and met Levi’s gaze.
“I knew you’d be alive.”
The man’s eyes curved at Levi’s relieved voice.
“Wasn’t the probability of me being dead higher?”
Initially, Levi thought that since Iellin was a soldier of the Caron Empire stationed at the Iron Fortress, he would either be dead or captured. Of all who were able to retreat from there, only himself, Chepel, and just a few other troops made it out, and Iellin wasn’t among them.
But when Levi mentioned Iellin, Ion didn’t ask who that was or show a puzzled expression. That meant he already knew who Iellin was. Additionally, the fact that he didn’t seem troubled by the request to meet him suggested that Ion could easily bring him forward and that he would likely be safe. Indeed, the Iellin before him now was surprisingly intact.
Hearing Levi’s words, the man seemed somewhat surprised before letting out a small laugh. It wasn’t a mocking laugh, but rather a kind one, like that habitually shown to an endearing child.
“You’re quite perceptive.”
“I may be slow, but I’m not stupid, he said.”
The corners of the masked man’s mouth turned up, and his hand gently stroked Levi’s head. For a moment, Levi’s eyes widened in surprise, but quickly returned to their calm state.
“Who said that?”
“Raziel.”
This time, the man’s fingertips twitched. Seemingly unaware of this, Levi grabbed the hem of the man’s worn shirt.
“Was Ion keeping you?”
“All the soldiers and generals from the Iron Fortress are imprisoned in the underground dungeon of the imperial palace. I was one of them, but Grand Duke Verdit sent someone to bring me here.”
“…I see.”
Levi looked at the man’s eyes behind the mask, then briefly glanced toward the door. Unlike before, there were now two more presences outside.
“They said they would drag me out if I did anything suspicious.”
The man whispered to Levi as if he knew what he was thinking. Even at a glance, the presences outside were skilled guards.
Nodding, Levi firmly held onto the man’s shirt hem and asked a question.
“Do you remember what you said to me back then?”
The man, meeting his eyes, answered “Yes.” Just as Levi did, the man too remembered exactly what he had said on the Iron Fortress that day.
“When you’re in a high place, you can see many things.”
“Even if those below cannot see, the one looking down can see everything they seek.”
“Count Aden, you will definitely find that person you are looking for.”
Recalling the words he had spoken that day, the man, Ion Verdit, also remembered Levi’s desperate words.
“A long time ago, a woman said the same thing. I want to remember who she is, but I can’t.”
He knew very well who that woman was.
Former Princess Claudia.
His mother and the real owner of the alias Iellin, which was falsely presented to Levi.
A faint desperation clouded Levi’s eyes. A subtle trembling traveled through the shirt hem he was gripping.
“I only have memories of a few months. I don’t know who I interacted with or what conversations I had before that.”
Unlike his usual demeanor where emotions were hard to discern, his voice now seemed anxious, as if spilling out words that had been forcibly held back for a long time.
“All I can remember is the voice of a young boy, and the words of the woman I spoke to. I want to know who these people are.”
Levi pulled at Ion’s shirt hem, bringing his body closer. Ion complied, leaning in to listen to Levi’s voice.
“Who is that woman? Can I meet her?”
Ion remained silent for a moment, then answered with difficulty.
“She’s dead.”
“…What?”
At that moment, the force on the shirt hem weakened helplessly.
“She was my mother, who passed away 15 years ago while saving me.”
“Saved…? Dead…?”
Levi’s wide eyes trembled at the news that the woman who held the clue to his memories was dead. His eyes, reflecting in the moonlight, looked sufficiently mournful even in the dim visibility.
The hand that had been gripping the shirt hem slowly dropped.
“…So she’s dead.”
Perhaps he had anticipated it.
It was such a faint voice that it was impossible to know when he had heard it. The time when he was estimated to have met her and heard her voice directly was at least 15 years ago, if not more.
For humans, 15 years was by no means a short period.
As Levi lowered his gaze, a deep voice reached his ear.
“Although she has passed away, she spoke a lot about you.”
“About me?”
Levi’s gaze turned to the masked Ion’s face, and eyes that seemed to be savoring memories met his.
“She was grateful, saying that if it weren’t for you, she would have died much earlier. And she also said that you were someone she… loved very much.”
After repeating Ion’s words several times in his head, Levi suddenly displayed an expression of confusion, uncharacteristic of him. Thinking his expression had become strange, Levi quickly covered his face with one hand.
‘Strange words…’
It was already confusing enough that someone had thanked him, but love?
For Levi, it was a puzzling word that he couldn’t understand, and he didn’t know why that word made his heart race.
Was it just his heart?
His black core, which breathed, trembled, and his mind strangely pounded as well. What should he call these agitated emotions?
Watching Levi, who was anxiously rolling his endlessly trembling eyes back and forth while covering his mouth with one hand, Ion could easily tell that he was flustered by the words he had uttered. The atmosphere was also strange; he thought that if the lights were turned on, a fully flushed face would be visible.
In fact, Levi was simply confused by his body’s reaction to the two words he had never heard from anyone before—”thank you” and “love”—but Ion misunderstood.
It seemed as though the very fact that his mother loved Levi made his heart race.
‘I never thought I’d end up being jealous of even my mother.’
Love truly accompanies fierce emotions. It was disgusting to himself, but he couldn’t shake off the rising jealousy.
“Tell me more about her.”
Unaware of Ion’s feelings, Levi wanted to hear more about Claudia.
Pretending to be calm, Ion opened his mouth and told the story of his mother that Levi wanted to hear. Anyway, since the mother he remembered was not Princess Claudia but simply a commoner named Iellin, he had many stories he could tell without reservation.
As the stories continued, Levi’s eyes grew brighter like those of a child listening to a fairy tale. With only the moonlight scattered through the window as company, Claudia’s life, unfolding like a song, gradually filled Levi’s mind.
Time passed quickly, and dawn was breaking.
“Oh my, it’s already this late.”
As Ion was getting up from the chair, watching the moonlight and sunlight blend together, Levi grabbed his hand firmly.
“Are you leaving?”
There was such a clear look of disappointment that it was hard to believe this was the same person whose emotions were usually hard to read.
Finding such a Levi adorable, Ion couldn’t help but stroke his head again. Now, as if he had not only become accustomed to it but even enjoyed it, Levi quietly felt the touch without resistance.
“It’s already morning. If I stay any longer, Grand Duke Verdit, who has kindly accommodated us, might get very angry.”
“Why?”
When Levi asked with confusion, Ion chuckled.
“He’s a man with a heart as narrow as a fly’s hind leg, so he might go wild with jealousy.”
After stroking Levi once more as he recalled Grand Duke Ion Verdit’s face, Ion turned away.
“Iellin.”
Levi’s voice calling Ion from behind stopped him.
“You told me not to forget, but I’m sorry I forgot.”
Looking back, Ion saw that Levi wore a small smile, something that even Ion had rarely seen.
“So tomorrow, tell me your story.”
Then, with a deliberately stern expression, he placed his straightened index finger against his lips.
“Keep it a secret from that bug-like Ion Verdit.”
Ion inadvertently answered, “Yes.”
‘Bug…’
After leaving Levi’s room, Ion had to feel a strange emotion as he recalled the word Levi had used.
But only for a moment.
He kept curling up the corners of his mouth, recalling the cute Levi who had placed his index finger against his lips with a serious face.
