Chapter 115
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Chapter 115
"Why not?"
"...."
"What do you mean we can't?"
"Well..."
Dale's expression looked terribly troubled.
He stepped aside from blocking my path, and the storefront with the Guild's name emblazoned prominently finally came into proper view.
But something felt off.
"We're not open today."
"...."
"It's our day off."
My shoulders sagged, and I pressed my lips firmly shut.
Was this reality?
The glimmering light I'd seen in the shop window was merely the reflection of street lamps decorating the avenue.
"...But why are you closed?"
"Because mercenaries are people too."
"But it's not even the weekend?"
"It's the Black Tail founding anniversary."
"You have something like that? Since when?"
"It originated when the Guild Master who first established the Guild took a day off to commemorate the first anniversary."
Dale answered with the fluency of someone clearly belonging to the organization. His words flowed as smoothly as a river in spring.
This wasn't the situation I'd envisioned.
'I'd planned to drag Dale directly to the Mercenary Guild today and interrogate him about this. Now that plan has fallen through.'
If they were going to close for a founding anniversary, they could have mentioned it beforehand.
My head shook back and forth of its own accord.
Yet in the corner of my vision, I caught a glimpse of Dale exhaling a sigh of relief.
* * *
"Here it is! They say the aurora is most beautiful when viewed from near this lake."
After finishing dinner, Dale and I made our way to the lakeside.
Near Rocke Lake by the snowy mountains, there was a mountain lodge available for rent, much like an inn.
We rented this lodge since it would be too cold to wait outside for the aurora.
"Dale! There's a puppy here too."
On the mountainside, blanketed by the Northern Region's perpetually frozen snow, a small puppy trembled with cold.
"It looks so cold—would it be alright to bring it inside?"
"Of course."
I carefully picked up the puppy and carried it into the lodge.
Dale stared intently at the puppy cradled in my arms.
"What is it?"
"Nothing at all."
"Hehe, are you perhaps jealous of the puppy?"
I spoke in jest—his gaze had been so piercing that I'd said it without thinking.
"Yes."
"...."
Dale answered with complete seriousness.
"Ahem!"
The awkward atmosphere made me glance around unnecessarily.
My plan was to wait here until the aurora appeared, then leave when the time came.
"Right. Dale, do you have a pen I could borrow? I need to sign the contract for the lodge owner."
"I don't have a pen either."
"What about the one you always carry?"
"I don't have it. I seem to have left it behind."
"But your bag looks quite full?"
I pointed to the bag Dale had brought.
"You really don't have one?"
"If I had one, I would naturally have offered it to you, Enya."
It was like watching a spear clash against a shield.
I silently observed Dale as he avoided my gaze, then opened the lodge's storage cabinet.
"Found it here. Thank goodness."
I successfully completed the signature and set the documents aside.
The lodge, with only the two of us, was chilly and cold. But it had a bed, a sofa, a small kitchen, and everything we needed.
"Achoo!"
The Northern Region's cold was harsher than I'd anticipated. Even with the door closed, a chill seeped in gradually.
At the sound of my sneeze, Dale quietly approached and draped a thick woolen blanket from the lodge over me.
"Thank you. Oh? Wow, you've already gotten the fire going that much?"
Dale, who had lit the fireplace directly, had coaxed the small flame into a roaring fire, raising the lodge's temperature.
"Once the aurora appears, I'll wake you, so you can rest your eyes for a while, Enya."
"No, I want to keep my eyes wide open and watch it together with you."
"...."
I opened one arm to share the blanket with Dale, and as I pressed myself against him, his face flushed crimson.
He half-covered his face and turned his head away.
He seemed to enjoy it, but was making a visible effort not to show it too plainly.
"Sigh...."
A soft breath escaped me.
I gazed up at Dale, then rubbed my cheek against his shoulder and shifted my posture to sit more comfortably.
"You look even more handsome when you're honest about what you like. Since we're together, don't hide it—express yourself."
"Understood."
Yet Dale remained rigid as a wax figure, sitting with strained tension. The most he managed was the occasional sidelong glance in my direction.
"That's strange. When we sat facing each other, I thought he looked me in the eye properly...."
"My apologies, Enya. I didn't catch that."
"No, it was just me talking to myself."
I closed my eyes and listened intently to Dale's voice.
Dale had not only a handsome face but also a beautiful voice, and his manner of speaking was tender and gentle.
His tone was incredibly deep, yet his pronunciation was so crisp and clear. It's rare to find someone so perfectly endowed.
...It seems there are two such people around me?
My heart felt restless. I rested my head on Dale's shoulder and fidgeted with the blanket.
The puppy that had drawn near had already fallen asleep.
After being in the cold, coming to a warm place had thawed my body, and drowsiness began to overtake me as well.
With my eyes closed and sitting quietly, he must have thought I'd fallen asleep, for he carefully rose and laid me down on the bed.
"Dale."
Worried he might leave me alone, I called out to him.
"I thought you were asleep. Did I wake you?"
"I want some hot chocolate."
"...! Understood."
"I was just saying it offhandedly. Besides, there aren't any ingredients here, are there?"
"I made another mistake. I took your casual remark far too seriously. I'm sorry, Enya."
I felt a sense of déjà vu at words I seemed to have heard somewhere before.
"But we have plenty of ingredients."
With an expression mixing joy, anticipation, and a touch of relief, he retrieved his luggage.
"Since you enjoy hot chocolate on warm days, Enya, I brought some in case you'd want it."
"Really? Truly?"
I sprang up and approached Dale. There was indeed a jar of cocoa powder.
"And marshmallows too?!"
"Since you enjoy the texture of marshmallows, Enya, I couldn't leave them out."
"Dale... you feel less like my contract husband and more like a lifelong chef to me."
"I don't like that."
Dark clouds gathered across Dale's serene face. His eyebrows lowered in disappointment as he gazed at me intently.
"I prefer being your husband."
"Of course, my hu...."
As my words trailed off without my realizing it, Dale's expression crumbled in shock.
"Your hu...?"
"My husband."
Only then did a gentle smile melt into Dale's hardened face.
His cold expression was handsome, but his smile was so lovely that no one could compare to it.
'Though that might just be my opinion.'
I shifted slightly and moved closer to Dale's side.
"So you'll make cocoa?"
"Actually, I also have milk tea ingredients."
"You brought all of that?"
"Yes."
How thorough could he be? Dale's meticulousness never ceased to amaze me the more I learned of it.
Despite this not being his own house, Dale skillfully lit the kitchen fire and prepared cocoa for me.
"Five sugar cubes, just as Enya prefers, and I added a bit more marshmallow."
"Dale, when you say it like that...."
I accepted the cocoa and gazed at him quietly. Dale, who had been smiling faintly, tilted his head.
"Did I misspeak?"
"It's not that—it's just that being together like this reminds me of when we lived in Grunvalt."
"I see."
Dale's eyes widened as understanding dawned, and he nodded in agreement.
"It truly does."
It hadn't even been a year, but Grunvalt held precious memories for me. It seemed Dale felt the same way.
"You still know my preferences so well. Though you understood them from the beginning."
"...."
"When I think about it, meeting you felt like a miracle. You appeared exactly when I needed you."
I recalled the Grunvalt Residence where Dale and I first met.
"Back then, I thought I'd have no choice but to wander outside again."
"If that had happened, my heart wouldn't have been at ease either."
"And that's how we began."
But today, there was something I absolutely had to find out from Dale. That's why I came to the Northern Region.
"You were really impressive when we first met."
"Enya, you were-"
I stepped back from Dale. He too seemed to sense something strange in the atmosphere and couldn't finish his words.
Unease flickered across his expression.
"Enya?"
"I didn't ask you to meet me in this distant place just for a date. I'm sorry for deceiving you."
"...Enya."
"But Dale, you didn't need to forcibly close the Black Tail's doors today."
I slowly thought it through again.
In truth, I had visited the Pendraegan Territory yesterday as well. The reason was that I had business to attend to at the Black Tail, a mercenary guild.
At that time, I had expressed my desire to entrust a commission to a mercenary named Dale.
"I visited Black Tail yesterday, you see. They were courteous until they let me in, but the moment they heard Dale's name, they politely showed me out, saying business hours had ended and to return tomorrow."
"...."
"That tomorrow is today. If it had been a day off, they wouldn't have told me to come back tomorrow, would they?"
Dale's luminous golden eyes wavered like ripples across water.
"It seems the Guild Master contacted Dale immediately."
He remained frozen, unable to move.
"Dale. It is correct that I may address you as Dale, isn't it?"
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Brought to you by Valir Scans! To support our team and enjoy the latest releases, please read directly on our official site: valirscans.org
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