Chapter 64: Rewards – 1

Vivian neither affirmed nor denied anything.

She stood frozen, her eyes alternating between mine.

I broke the silence.

“…I’ll take that as acceptance.”

Vivian remained silent again.

I gripped my sword and turned away.

“…That bastard… played us for fools.”

The assassins, who had patiently waited, ground their teeth and expressed their anger.

I snorted and replied.

“I never lied. If the negotiations had failed, I wouldn’t have interfered with you.”

The assassins in the narrow room slowly adjusted their stances.

Exchanging glances, they seemed to have resolved to carry out their mission.

Meanwhile, I felt both tension and an unexpected sense of ease.

I was used to fighting multiple opponents.

Training had been nothing but preparing for this scenario.

Sparring against Valon, Wallace, and Martin.

Facing many comrades alone in mock battles.

Thus, my body did not stiffen from the tension now.

Moreover, with Vivian standing right behind me, the resolve not to retreat gave me strength.

And thinking of the reward awaiting at the end made it all the more worthwhile.

On the other hand, the assassins seemed to grow stiffer, their movements slightly rigid.

Having come to kill a single, seemingly weak woman, they now faced a life-or-death battle—it was no wonder they were uneasy.

Two of the assassins kept switching their grips on their swords, wiping their hands on their pants.

One stood frozen in place, while the last kept glancing between the door and the window.

After a long standoff, I asked.

“…Not coming?”

No answer came.

I took a deep breath.

Then, I kicked off the ground, charging at the nearest one.

***

It was overwhelming.

That’s how Vivian would summarize it.

Even though she was a complete novice to fighting, the disparity in power was undeniable.

Taking on four opponents at once was undoubtedly perilous.

Several times, the assassins’ blades rose behind Kailo’s back at deadly angles.

Each time, Vivian bit her lip, stifling the screams that threatened to escape.

She knew her voice would only distract him.

Images of him collapsing in a pool of blood flashed through her mind, but Kailo left no room for such scenarios to play out.

It was as if he had eyes on his back.

Every time a blade fell, Kailo twisted his body or spun, avoiding the attacks effortlessly.

His movements were so natural, it seemed as if he weren’t fighting four swords but performing an intricate dance.

The clash of steel filled the air with sharp, metallic sounds, occasionally sparking as blades met with great force.

Each time a spark flew, Kailo turned his head as if he was aware of every attack emerging from the shadows, flowing through them flawlessly.

A massive body and an enormous sword.

One would expect slow, cumbersome movements from such a combination, but there was none of that.

Kailo’s fight was like watching an acrobatic performance.

When he first arrived at Rondor Castle, he had certainly not been like this.

“Die! Die!!”

The assassins could no longer suppress their fear, screaming desperately at the unyielding Kailo.

Their voices were sharp and frantic, like shattered glass, but Kailo remained unfazed.

A mere 17-year-old was standing his ground against four seasoned adults.

Vivian could barely breathe.

The assassins, who once seemed like the embodiment of death, the very sight that froze her in terror—

Those who had made her confront her own weakness and helplessness—

Now looked like fragile, breakable figures, crushed under Kailo’s relentless hands.

Kailo’s movements shattered her unease and fear in an instant.

Again, it was Kailo.

Whenever she felt despair or fear, it was always Kailo who rescued her from the abyss.

Even after fighting and confirming their animosity—

Despite that, here he was, fighting for her once more.

Vivian couldn’t tear her eyes away from his actions.

Though this scene, teetering on the edge of life and death, felt like hell itself and made her want to look away—

Kailo, fighting within that chaos, was so breathtakingly beautiful that she couldn’t.

When she saw him easily overcome the situation she had been so afraid of…

It felt like she was experiencing a strange thrill.

The goosebumps running through her body wouldn’t subside, and her heart pounded as if it might burst.

Did the princesses who longed for fairy tales want to meet such knights?

Were these the kinds of knights that Lani Dubois wanted to see?

Even the sound of his heavy breathing strangely felt like a beat on her chest.

The powerful movements of his sword as he wielded it with both hands, the cold, firm expression, his attitude that seemed to mock the howls of the assassins…

From a step behind, looking at him, Vivian couldn’t believe it.

The eldest son of the Alan family.

The eldest son of the enemy family—this was the very Kailo Alan.

• Swish!

Before long, when she regained her senses, the four assassins were lying on the floor.

Kailo roughly swung his dual swords, shaking off the blood that had soaked into them.

“…Hah… Hah…”

His harsh breathing echoed in the empty space.

Kailo looked at Vivian.

Their eyes met.

Even though she was so close to him, witnessing Kailo ruthlessly deal with four people…

Vivian felt no fear at all.

She only felt a strange attraction.

The gap between them, a gap she could never close, felt so uncomfortably vast.

“Ugh… Ugh…”

One assassin, belatedly, crawled toward the door.

Kailo coldly looked down at him and kicked him in the head, knocking him unconscious.

“…Hah… Hah…”

He then looked at the remaining three assassins.

As if checking on the survivors with his dual swords, he prodded each assassin’s body with his foot.

He left the dead where they lay, and for those who seemed to still be alive, he stabbed their ankles with his sword.

It seemed he wanted to make sure they couldn’t escape if they woke.

Kailo then ran a hand over his stomach.

“…Ka, Kailo…”

Only then did Vivian’s breath freeze.

There was blood dripping from his side as if he’d been stabbed.

Kailo seemed unconcerned with the blood flowing down.

Instead, he dropped his dual swords limply.

• Thud.

Kailo then glared at Vivian.

Still unable to calm the excitement of battle, he pressed down on his heavy breathing and immediately approached Vivian.

Vivian, without realizing it, pulled her body back.

That wasn’t enough to avoid Kailo.

Kailo crouched down in front of her.

The stench of blood filled the air.

And between the scent of blood, there was Kailo’s deep, musky scent.

It was a familiar, reassuring smell.

“…You will pay the price.”

Kailo whispered.

Without a hint of hesitation, he grabbed the back of Vivian’s neck.

“Gah!”

Before Vivian could even prepare herself, before she could catch her breath, Kailo closed his eyes and tilted his head.

He was about to kiss her.

• Slap!

Vivian stopped him.

This was already the second time.

This was the second time she had rejected his kiss.

The first had been early in the morning after she dreamed a lewd dream about him, and now, this was the second time.

“…You…”

Anger that Kailo couldn’t suppress leaked through his voice.

Perhaps due to the heat of battle, the anger was sharper and more violent.

“T-Treatment comes first…!”

But Vivian shouted, offering an excuse.

The blood spilling from Kailo’s side was alarming.

“Forget it, treatment can wait.”

Kailo didn’t release his grip on the back of her neck.

She could feel his strong, yearning force.

“Ugh…!”

Vivian shouted again.

“…In this… situation, I-I don’t want to do it next to a corpse.”

“…I never promised when it would happen.”

The strength in Kailo’s arm, which had been pulling him, suddenly loosened.

His eyes swept around the room.

Four men were lying around in disarray.

Furniture was shattered everywhere.

The air was thick with the scent of blood.

It was only then that Kailo blinked, as if regaining his senses.

“…Get treated first.”

Vivian spoke again.

Her concern for him was genuine.

“…Then… I’ll do it.”

Vivian didn’t understand why the promise to kiss him made her heart flutter and feel awkward.

To promise to kiss him.

Vivian couldn’t even figure out what she was feeling right now.

She knew it was wrong.

A kiss with the son of the man who killed her family.

Could there be anything more humiliating than this?

She had been saved by him, and in return, she was supposed to give him her purity.

Perhaps that rationality was what caused the discomfort toward the kiss.

…But Kailo had insisted on receiving it because of that discomfort.

Kailo was still looking down at Vivian.

Vivian, receiving that gaze, felt confused.

There was clearly a sense of rejection.

She had every reason not to accept him.

…So why wasn’t it disgusting?

Why did her heart keep racing?

Why did she keep wondering what a kiss would feel like?

Vivian tried to deny all of these feelings inside her.

She squeezed her eyes shut and wanted to reject the situation.

…But, in the corner of her mind, an uncomfortably honest thought began to sprout.

If she had to have her first kiss with someone…

…Wouldn’t it be best if it was Kailo?

That contradictory thought disgusted her, but there was nothing she could do about it.

Either way, she needed time.

She didn’t want to be kissed so suddenly.

Especially not in this situation, having just escaped the brink of death.

“You say you’d do it with your own mouth.”

Kailo asked, as if looking for confirmation.

Vivian squeezed her eyes shut.

Suppressing her heart, which was about to burst, she nodded.

“…Before tomorrow passes… I’ll do it.”

Only after she said those words did Kailo release her.