IJSMC 11

Chapter : 11

But Elena was too busy snapping her head around to notice any of it.

It couldn’t have been stranger.

When she pretended not to know anything, Sirius’s mood improved even more.

He had already been in a good mood earlier, but now it had become so pleasant it was almost suffocating—soft, buoyant lights seemed to bloom and rise around him.

“Take this.”

Why are you doing this to me?

With tears threatening to fall, Elena accepted the bowl.

After passing through the dining room and arriving at the kitchen, Sirius handed her food he had already served himself.

He was kind. Gentle.

And that really didn’t suit Sirius at all.

“Enjoy your meal.”

“I hope you enjoy yours as well, Your Highness.”

Why isn’t he wary of me?

With anxious eyes, Elena stared down at the bean soup placed in front of her.

…Could it be that he really thinks what happened last night was just a dream?

But that didn’t explain why he had suddenly become so kind.

There was no way she could eat properly in this situation.

On top of that, bean soup was a food she disliked to begin with, so her appetite dropped straight to zero.

She absentmindedly stirred the soup.

Knock, knock.

At that moment, a knock suddenly sounded.

Sirius’s previously languid eyes sharpened instantly.

No one had ever entered in the middle of a meal before.

Still, it wasn’t reason enough to refuse, so without relaxing his guard, he gave permission.

“Come in.”

“Pardon the interruption during your meal, Your Highness.”

A servant entered, pushing a tray, and bowed respectfully to Sirius.

Then he began setting the dishes from the tray in front of him.

“The Duke has prepared this meal to aid in Your Highness’s recovery.”

At the House of Rode, high-quality food was practically routine.

It was a reward for Sirius having earned the Duke’s approval yesterday.

Instead of food, he should’ve sent a physician or something. Elena puffed out her cheeks.

Her father really lacked delicacy.

Honestly—serving steak to someone who’d just been stabbed.

“Then I will take my leave.”

“Very well.”

Sirius gave the retreating servant a brief glance.

The food waited before him, releasing mouthwatering aromas.

A perfectly seared steak with a brown crust, golden bread rich with the scent of butter, and a fresh, green salad—everything was there.

It was a sight that made one salivate automatically.

Elena tried not to stare too much at the food.

None of it was meant for her. The servant had placed everything solely in front of Sirius and left.

“Eat this.”

“…Pardon?”

Suddenly, a small, neatly cut piece of steak was thrust out toward her.

Startled, Elena looked up at Sirius.

“Go on.”

Urged on by him, she dazedly took the piece of steak.

Her wide, round eyes looked rather cute. Sirius felt the corners of his mouth loosen on their own.

When she hesitated with the food in hand and then began to chew the steak, his smile bloomed even more brightly, like a flower.

Just watching food go into her small mouth made him feel full.

He wanted to do everything he could for Elena.

As of yesterday, Sirius was completely certain of one thing.

In this place, she was the only one on his side.

“I had a dream yesterday…”

At the terrifying opening, Elena froze mid-bite and gulped. She felt like she might choke.

“You were in it.”

“…Was I?”

Elena replied with her heart shriveled tight.

It was no different from declaring that he clearly remembered what happened last night.

Sirius held out another piece of steak and continued in a meaningful tone.

“Now that I think about it, this might not be the first time I’ve dreamed of you.”

“…Really?”

“In the dream I had before, you held my hand.”

Cough.

Elena started coughing violently, steak forgotten.

If it were only a dream, she would’ve called it terrifying—but unfortunately, it was a terrifying reality.

Does that mean he was awake back then too?

She searched her memory.

Sirius was talking about the second night after he arrived at the House of Rode.

That night, after his first grueling training session, he had been groaning as if he were dying. Worried he might actually die, she had gone to the adjacent room.

There, she had seen Sirius crying.

And without thinking, she had taken his hand, as if to comfort him.

If Sirius hadn’t brought it up himself, it would’ve been such a trivial incident she would’ve forgotten it someday.

“Why aren’t you saying anything?”

Pulled back to the present by his question, Elena realized that this was the first time she’d ever had such a long conversation with him.

Feeling strange, she hesitated—then asked him. Somehow, it felt like it would be okay.

“…What kind of dream was it, where I appeared?”

“Just a good dream.”

Thinking it was an odd answer, she immediately asked again, tilting her head cutely as a bonus.

“Just… a good dream?”

“Yeah.”

Even after receiving such a clear and concise answer, Elena’s brow creased slightly.

She was racking her brain to find the hidden meaning behind it.

Sirius could practically hear the tiny gears turning in her head and smiled faintly without realizing it.

Though it might have sounded suspicious, Sirius had spoken sincerely.

It really was a good dream.

Though it had started as a nightmare, it ended with the thing he had always wanted coming true.

When Sirius first arrived at the House of Rode, he carried with him a threadlike hope.

At last, he had escaped the dreadful imperial palace.

Until then, he’d been a prince in name only—a manifestation of a wolf—barely surviving beneath his half-brother, better described as not dying rather than living.

Knowing food was poisoned yet being forced to eat it out of hunger was a common experience for him.

So with trembling anticipation, Sirius imagined a new life unfolding before him.

Wishes he’d harbored for so long spilled out—ordinary, normal dreams shared by others.

Waking up to be asked if he’d slept well. Eating meals together without danger. Playing and studying with peers. Falling asleep peacefully at night.

Hearing someone tell him “sleep well” before bed would’ve been even better.

But the moment he met the Duke of Rode, those wishes scattered like a mirage.

The imperial palace or Rode—it was the same nightmare either way.

As he introduced the castle, the Duke examined him with amused eyes, like a snake looking down at a toy.

The same was true of the others in Rode.

There was no way Sirius hadn’t noticed the malice soaked into their gazes.

He responded to hostility with hostility.

That was how he’d survived the imperial palace—and it would be no different here.

“So in the end, my position is the same wherever I go.”

The moment he fully realized this, Sirius quickly sank into resignation.

Of course the Emperor wouldn’t have sent him somewhere decent.

Overcome with sudden exhaustion, he dismissed everyone and remained alone for a while in the western tower.

And there, he met a girl.

A child who looked the most like someone from Rode—and yet didn’t belong there at all.

Her name was Elena.

“Try this too.”

Sirius handed her something besides steak.

Perhaps upset that she hadn’t gotten a proper answer about the dream, her face turned faintly pouty.

Finding that expression adorable, Sirius laughed quietly to himself.

He’d never met anyone whose thoughts were written so plainly on their face.

She was completely transparent—and clumsy, always choosing the most awkward actions.

Thinking back, Elena had left a strong impression from the very first day.

She’d mistaken him for someone following her.

When he teased her a little because he found it amusing, her face had flushed immediately.

That day, Sirius had chuckled inwardly in delight.

But his face had remained expressionless, so Elena would never know.

Feigning ignorance, he had asked:

“Do you have something to say?”

“…Good night.”

At that simple greeting, his pleasant mood evaporated in an instant.

It wasn’t that he felt bad—rather…

Sirius was seized by a very subtle feeling, something close to shock.

One of the wishes he had long since given up on had suddenly come true.

“That girl just told me to sleep well.”

With a restless heart, he lay down on his bed.

Looking back, he’d treated her terribly all day—rudely peering into her room, speaking carelessly.

He’d even teased her at the end.

He hadn’t managed to leave behind the palace-bred habit of mocking useless things.

Yet she had wished him a good night.

It seemed like something that had slipped out unconsciously, but it was still a proper evening greeting.

That alone made this place clearly different from the imperial palace.

“One wish… at least one has come true.”

Realizing that such a near-accidental greeting had comforted him made Sirius sad in its own way—and he ended up crying.

He had never felt so weak before.

Just recalling the memory unsettled him, and his mood sank.

Then he sensed the person sitting across from him watching his expression.

Sirius immediately relaxed his face and asked gently,

“What’s wrong?”

“…It’s nothing.”

Elena quickly shoveled the food he’d given her into her mouth.

The mist surrounding Sirius, which had seemed so bright earlier, was now sinking into a gloomy blue hue.

He looked happy just a moment ago, though?

Elena glanced at him cautiously.

Was it because she’d been picking at the food he gave her?

But she really felt like she might choke!

Being uncomfortable made it hard for the food to go down.

She hurriedly drank some water—and it went down the wrong way.

“Cough!”

Her body shook with harsh coughing.

She felt a hand patting her back as if to calm her down. The owner of the hand was obviously Sirius.

In a way, it felt like he was both causing the illness and providing the cure.

After coughing for a long while, Elena finally calmed down and wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes.

“I’m okay now.”

“Why did that happen all of a sudden?”

Sirius was peering at her face with clear concern.

Elena’s pupils practically shook with disbelief.

She couldn’t believe he was worried about her.

“I just drank the water too fast.”

“For such a trivial reason?”

Sirius looked completely unable to understand.

But from Elena’s perspective, someone who could get stabbed in the stomach and be up and moving the next day was far harder to comprehend.