Chapter 69: The Two Beauties
—Southern District—
The sun hung low in the vast blue sky, scattered with soft white clouds, as Kael stepped onto the cobbled main road of the town. He felt a little tired. Seven days had passed since he made that bet with his wife, and ever since, he'd been pushing himself harder during his daily training.
Today, he decided to visit Arienne's training session first. She'd actually been doing quite well with mana sensing. Even during the earlier days, she managed to see the light a few times, though not clearly yet.
But Kael had another reason for arriving early today. After hesitating for a while, he had finally decided to take on a quest. He'd been putting it off, forcing himself to focus, because more than anything, he wanted to help her.
The scent of baked bread, roasted meat, and citrus oil filled the air, mingling with the clamor of merchants setting up stalls and hawking early-morning deals.
He rubbed his eyes and let out a quiet sigh. "This town really does treat selling like it's some sacred ritual. Every corner smells like coin. And I've already wasted mine. But it's decided now… I've finally made up my mind. I'm going to make money."
His footsteps echoed with casual rhythm against the stone, hands tucked into the pockets. He passed rows of open-front shops, one selling colorful scarves, another displaying rows of polished daggers and ornamental jewelry. The market was alive, vibrant, with people shouting, haggling, laughing. And Kael… just drifted through it all, like a shadow.
Then, just as he was about to cross a corner where the scent of grilled meat lingered too long, his eyes narrowed instinctively. A subtle prickling at the back of his neck.
"Damn it."
Then his eyes narrowed. At the bend ahead, two figures. One tall and composed, silver hair catching the morning sun. The other, shorter, fiery in her stride, light green hair tied in a ponytail behind her. Their silver armor gleamed in the sunlight. They were Knight Order's Captain Seraphina and Lieutenant Arwyn. Walking together, toward him, weaving through the crowd like they owned the street.
His first instinct was to keep walking like nothing happened. His expression stayed casual and calm. But inside—
"Why now? Why here?"
Kael halted, heart skipping once. His gaze lingered on Seraphina first, unreadable expression, walking with the silent grace of someone raised above the rest. Then his eyes flicked to Arwyn, talking animatedly, smiling at something Seraphina probably hadn't responded to.
He thought, "Okay... it's fine. But that psycho girl is with her. There's no way she'll just ignore me after trying to find me and failing. What should I do? Should I just walk forward...? Well, I have to talk to her anyway. But the problem is... Seraphina is with her. I don't know why, but I really don't want to talk to her in front of that psycho. Well then..."
He spun around so fast he nearly collided with a fruit stand, hoping the movement looked natural. Cool, even. Not panicked. He started walking, fast. Then behind him, a voice cut through the crowd.
"Kael—! Is it? Stop right there!"
Arwyn shouted lightly. Loud and clear. A few passersby turned their heads. But Kael didn't. His pace quickened. From the outside, he looked suspiciously like someone who had just shoplifted and was pretending to be innocent.
Then—
Whoosh!
The air changed suddenly, a sharp shift in pressure, followed by a cold pulse of wind that brushed past his ears. He slowed, his gaze flicking to the side. At first, he was looking at the store, but then, a strand of silver hair danced beside him, glimmering under the morning sun. A pale-skinned face followed, eyes intense, fixed straight ahead.
His eyes widened slightly. "Oh shit."
And then there she was. Standing before him like a spirit carved from moonlight, Seraphina, blocking his path without a word. Her expression was unreadable, but her posture radiated pure elegance. She stood straight, angled slightly to the side.
"Hey, you. Are you deaf, or just trying ignore us?" Her voice was quiet but cold, ice beneath silk.
Kael chuckled softly, voice low so only he could hear it. "Darling, aren't you being way too cold?" He said it under his breath. Barely a whisper.
Seraphina's sharp blue eyes narrowed. She didn't respond. Her gloved hand shifted slightly, just a faint movement, as if calming herself.
But behind him, he could hear Arwyn's boots on the stone path, steadily approaching.
"This is getting worse by the second."
Seraphina turned her head slightly. "Lieutenant Arwyn wants to speak with you. Don't make her raise her voice again." Her tone made it clear she had no personal stake in this.
Then she turned, her cloak flicking slightly behind her, as if this conversation was already over.
Kael exhaled slowly. "Why are you doing this to me, Seraphina?"
Then came an unfamiliar sound of leather gloves tightening. A hand, gloved, delicate, but firm, patted him lightly on the back. He took a step forward from the subtle push and glanced over his shoulder.
Lieutenant Arwyn. She was smiling. That soft, polite smile that masked everything else.
"Lieutenant," Kael muttered, straightening up. "I heard you wanted to talk to me?"
She gave a small sigh. "Didn't I tell you to call me just Arwyn?"
"Yes, you did," he replied coolly. "But that was off-duty. And considering our beloved Captain is watching..." He glanced at Seraphina, who had already resumed walking ahead. "...I wouldn't want to be accused of disrespecting a Lieutenant."
She laughed. Genuinely. It lit up her face. "Very proper of you, Kael. But don't think I missed you trying to run the second you saw us. You turned and ran like a thief. If it weren't me, someone might've drawn a sword on you."
Kael waved a hand dismissively. "I wasn't running. I just remembered something I forgot at home. Important thing."
But in his mind, he thought," Why is she talking to me like we're friends? Didn't I reject her that day? I don't care if what she asked was true or not, she was the first woman I ever rejected. Shouldn't she be angry? Embarrassed? Hell, I would be."
She gave him a look. "Uh-huh. Liar. And here I was thinking you were the honest type."
"You thought wrong, then. Actually, honest men get in trouble more often than liars. That's why it's better to be a liar."
Kael walked beside her now, his gaze fixed not on Arwyn, but on Seraphina's back, on that indifferent posture, the way she moved as if neither of them existed. Like she was walking alone through a dream, even though they were only a few feet behind her.
He watched the silver strands of her hair sway with the breeze, and thought, "Why is she acting like I'm invisible? She's the one who dragged me into this mess."
Arwyn let out a quiet breath, half a scoff, half a laugh. "Do you think you're some kind of legend with lines like that? Because it really didn't sound as clever as you thought." She didn't look at him as she spoke, just kept walking a little ahead now, chin slightly lifted, like she was addressing the air itself. "Even if you're in trouble, that's still no excuse. A person should always try to be honest. That's something that doesn't change, no matter how bad things get."
Kael didn't answer right away. He shifted his gaze forward, saying nothing. Her words brushed past him like wind through leaves, noticed, but not held onto.
She glanced at Seraphina, then back at him. "Anyway," she continued, voice softer now, more deliberate, "I've actually been trying to find you. But you're not exactly easy to run into, you know. I stopped by the guild more than once, but never saw you there. And then I heard a rumor that you live outside of town."
Kael still didn't turn to her. His voice came out steady, without much weight. "That's true. I live a bit further out. Quieter that way. Fewer eyes watching you. But what do you want from me, Lieutenant? I'm not exactly useful. Just another weak adventurer trying not to starve. I was heading to the guild myself, actually."
Arwyn slowed down, just enough that he passed her by a step, and then she came to a full stop. When he finally glanced at her, her eyes were fixed on him with a strange, unreadable expression, distant, almost dazed.
"Weak or not," she said slowly, "that doesn't matter. I need to talk to you. And I mean really talk. It's not something I can say out here, not in the open."
She turned her head, scanning the street behind them. A few passersby were casting glances their way, mostly toward Seraphina.
Arwyn tilted her head slightly, letting her voice slip back into that calm, practiced tone of hers. "This isn't the place. Come with us to a shop, somewhere quiet. We can talk there." Then she added with a faint smile, brushing her hair behind her ear as if embarrassed by her own honesty, "And honestly... I'm starving."
"Alright." he nodded as he groaned inside, "Not again. Why do you always want to drag me into shops just to talk nonsense? I already know what you're going to ask." Then he sighed again. "Fine. One shop. But if she tries to ask me out again, I'm throwing myself out the window."
He looked toward Seraphina again, his voice softening with sarcastic affection. "And look at her... my lovely wife." he thought, voice laced with sarcasm, "calmly walking away after dropping me into this mess. Like she doesn't even care."
Then, as Kael kept his eyes locked on Seraphina's back, he noticed it, the faintest motion. Her gloved fingers, twitching subtly at her side. Slow. Rhythmic. Like some hidden code. Like something she couldn't say aloud. But that wasn't all. There was something about it that felt familiar to him.
His lips curved slightly. "Aww... would you look at that... she's jealous," he mused, raising an eyebrow. He didn't say it, but the amusement twitched at the corner of his mouth. Arwyn, meanwhile, was still glancing around, scanning for a shop like a cat sniffing for cream.
His thoughts shifted. "She definitely is. No doubt about it. But why? Why leave me behind with another girl if you're jealous, darling? It's not like you care about me. Not like you like me or anything. That'd be too simple. Nah... how could I forget? She's the type who'll throw away her old toy the second it gets boring, only to freak out if someone else picks it up, even if it was just trash. That's all I am to her, huh? Just a toy."
He exhaled silently through his nose, walking slower now, letting the thoughts crawl deeper.
"But hey... jealousy's still jealousy. And that's all that matters right now. No, darling, I'm not letting you off easy. Let's see how long you can play noble and indifferent. This is your punishment."
He glanced up again toward Seraphina's figure ahead. Cool. Controlled. But still walking slightly slower than before.
"There!" Arwyn suddenly shouted, snapping Kael out of his thoughts.
She pointed excitedly toward a small storefront nestled between a florist and a bookshop. The sign above the wooden door read: "Creammist & Crumbs – Artisanal Cakes & Pastries."
The windows were decorated with pink lace curtains and pastel-colored frosting sculptures in the shape of roses and foxes.
"Look over there! Let's go to that cake shop!" she said with genuine enthusiasm. "It's been forever since I had a good slice. And it's famous for a reason! Captain, what do you think?"
Seraphina, who had been steadily walking ahead as if none of them mattered, finally stopped. She turned with deliberate grace, her silver hair catching the morning light like threads of moonlight. Her expression remained composed, elegant in a detached way, as if the entire world were a painting she observed but never stepped into.
"Now that you mention it," she said in her smooth, cold voice, "I've never been to that shop before." She looked at Kael now, directly. "Cake sounds... acceptable. What do you think Ka—, ahm… what was your name again?"
Her tone was effortless, graceful, and entirely false. Like she was reciting a line in a play.
Kael narrowed his eyes. "Ah. So we're playing that game now, are we?" Inwardly he sighed. But on the surface, he put on a charming smirk and bowed slightly, not out of respect, but mock courtesy.
"It's Kael Ardent, ma'am," he said with just enough sarcasm laced into his tone to be noticed, but not called out.
There was a brief beat of silence. Arwyn's face changed. Her eyes darted between the two, unsure. First to Kael, then to Seraphina. Then back. Her lips parted slightly, but she didn't speak.
"Is something wrong, Arwyn?" Seraphina asked, looking at Arwyn. "You look as though you've seen a ghost."
"G-ghost?" Arwyn squeaked, her tone shooting up a pitch. She practically leapt behind Kael's back like a child. "Where? There's no ghost, right? Please tell me there's no ghost."
Kael sighed, visibly annoyed. "Seriously?" he muttered. "So she really does hate ghosts."
Seraphina tilted her head ever so slightly. "I'm joking. There aren't any... And how many times do I have to tell you? Ghosts don't exist. That's just a children's tale. I don't know why you're even afraid of them."
"Right, right... Sorry, Captain," Arwyn said, stepping out from behind Kael and smoothing her cloak.
"It's fine," Seraphina replied, her tone clipped.
Then her gaze returned to Kael. Something unreadable flickered behind her eyes. "So, Kael, was it? Would you be interested in eating cake or not?"
Kael smirked faintly, hands still in his pockets. "Well, of course. I'd never turn down cake… especially if it's a personal invitation from our beloved Captain. How could I refuse that, ma'am? Honestly, it's an honor just to share a table with you. Can't say I ever imagined something like this would happen in my lifetime."
Seraphina turned without another word and began walking toward the shop. Her silver hair flowing like a noble banner in the breeze.
Kael followed after her with the calm of someone who had resigned to a bizarre fate. Behind him, Arwyn paused for a moment, biting her lip thoughtfully. So far, she had merely been observing the two of them.
"I suppose I may be overthinking it… just a little," she told herself, fidgeting with a strand of her hair. "But... Seraphina knows him. That much is obvious. I mean, I've never seen her talk to someone like that, so direct, so... ugh, casual." She pouted slightly. "Still... Seraphina never does this. She never joins in like this. Never even goes to shops. And during duty hours? That's just not proper. Not for someone like her."
She let out a dramatic sigh. "This absolutely confirms it. Seraphina definitely has feelings for him. There's no other explanation! But he only sees her like any other civilian. How absurd!"
She straightened her posture, eyes narrowing with newfound determination. "Fine. Then I'll just have to do it myself. I'll make him fall for her. If Seraphina's too proud to act on her own feelings, then I'll step in. After all... someone has to take responsibility for this romance. And I suppose that someone is me." She blinked as the distance between them widened and hurried forward.
Meanwhile, Kael's thoughts were far less composed, but far more grounded.
"So much for blending in like a regular civilian," he muttered internally. "What kind of average guy ends up heading into a cake shop with not just a Lieutenant, but the coldest, most beautiful Captain in the entire Kingdom?" He sighed. "This is insane. I'm gonna die. Either from psycho girl's endless talking or Seraphina's cold stare." He groaned inwardly. "Rest in peace, my peaceful life."
Then, almost reluctantly, a faint smile tugged at the corner of his lips. "Still... it's not that bad. I'm going to eat something with her. Outside our mansion. That's... kind of rare, isn't it? No, not just rare... come to think of it, we've never eaten out together. Not once. And we've been married for three years."
A pause.
"Wait... does this count as... what's it called again? A d-date?" His eyes shifted to the side. "But there's a third wheel. That probably disqualifies it. Right? Well, who cares anyway? I can still use it to get some kind of reaction from her. It's so fun."
Still, even in all this chaos, part of him couldn't stop watching the way Seraphina walked ahead of them, composed, cold… and just barely, unmistakably, off-rhythm. Like she was walking through a storm she refused to show.
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(Chapter Ended)