“…”
“…”

When the kiss was over, an awkward silence enveloped them.
Their minds were so complicated, they had so much to say, and their feelings were so immense that no one could speak easily.
Besides, because of the blizzard, they couldn’t even get back to the castle right away.

“But it will definitely come to a halt tomorrow.”

Kael spoke carefully as Adeline gazed at the blizzard outside the cave.
He got up and took out the pouch he always hung next to the saddle.

“It’s hard to hold on until the blizzard stops on an empty stomach. It may not taste good, but I think we should eat it to survive.”

It was a piece of hard bread and dried ham. Adeline nodded and accepted the food Kael had given her. The hunger she had just forgotten about was coming back.

“Why aren’t you eating?”
“… Ah. I’ll eat too.”

Kael, who had been staring at Adeline all this time, was slightly surprised and took a bite of bread.
He was worried about Adeline, so he didn’t even realize that he wasn’t eating.

“How are you feeling? Are you colder or in pain?”
“I’m fine. I have slight muscle pain, but it is not severe. And I’m not cold at all.”

Kael let out a sigh of relief. Adeline quietly watched Kael like that. It was only then that she realized that Kael was wearing just one more thin cloak.
His thick cape rested on Adeline’s shoulders.

“Ah, I’m sorry. I’m still…”
“Wear it. That’s why I covered you with it.”
“Your clothes are too thin. It’s chilly even with a fire…”
“I’m fine. Please just wear it. There’s no need to worry about me.”
“But…”
“You are the priority. You were very shocked, so I don’t know when you’ll get chills again and it will get worse. So don’t worry about me. Take care of yourself first.”

Kael, who had approached Adeline at some point, spoke firmly and firmly tied the string of the cape covering her.
His eyes looking at Adeline were filled with worry.
Now that she was facing Kael like this while fully conscious, she suddenly wondered how he had discovered her.

“How did you know I was here?”
“I heard from Melissa. You went to the western territory and got separated when you encountered the blizzard. That’s why I was looking for signs of you in the west.”

Adeline sighed and nodded.
Obviously, the weather was good when she left the castle. The sky was clear without a single cloud.
Both Isabel and Melissa pointed out the changing winter weather in the north and said it was dangerous, but Adeline couldn’t stay in the castle.
Although she had repeatedly insisted on going alone, both Isabel and Melissa got angry at her, so the three eventually headed to the western territory together.
Then, all of a sudden, they encountered a blizzard. It was the first time Adeline had ever had an experience where her vision of the whole world suddenly turned white.
She wasn’t losing consciousness, she wasn’t dreaming, but in an instant, the world was covered in white. It was a whiteout.

“Are Melissa and Isabel safe?”
“They’re safe. I also sent word to the castle that we met.”

Kael made a fire, laid Adeline down, and immediately summoned an eagle and sent it to the castle.
The eagle trained for communication was able to fly through the blizzard. With both northern masters gone, it was clear that the people in the castle would be in a state of panic. They had to be calmed down first.

“Are they hurt?”
“I couldn’t check properly, but it didn’t look like they were hurt.”
“I’m glad to hear that.”

Adeline was visibly relieved to hear the news. Kael sighed and looked at Adeline.

“Are those two the problem right now? What about you? Is it okay if you’re in a bad condition?”
“…”
“This is how the winter in the North is. We don’t know when a blizzard will hit us. Didn’t I tell you many times? But you still went to the western territory without thinking. Without even being escorted by a knight. Are you insane? What if I ran into the blizzard without being able to find you!”

Kael let out a sigh as if he didn’t want to even imagine it. The fear and nervousness he felt just before finding Adeline was still vivid in his mind.
He knew that Adeline had woken up safely and that the crisis had passed, but after talking to her like this, he couldn’t help but feel dizzy and lose his cool when he thought he could have lost her.

“I’m sorry.”
“I’m not trying to make you apologize. It doesn’t even matter. I am asking you not to be in danger. Cherish your life. Please.”

It was Adeline’s fault. Knowing that, she could only say that she was sorry.
However, Adeline was also angry when she saw Kael worrying like this and getting angry. Adeline’s emotions, which she was trying to hold back, eventually exploded and burst out.

“I’d rather you not worry at all. Didn’t you come to find me as soon as you came back to the castle from the northern wall?”
“…”
“Are you alright? You came running without even resting. Did you even take a second to see if you were sick or injured?”

‘If you’re going to push me away, don’t be kind.’

Kael whispered that he couldn’t love Adeline completely, that they couldn’t love each other because the curse would touch her. But the way he ran to her regardless of any danger made her hurt even more.

“Acting like you can’t see anything but me. Why…”

Tears welled up in Adeline’s eyes as she spoke.
She said he didn’t have to give her an answer right away and that she was waiting for him, but her heart was filled with frustration as he acted like Adeline was the only thing on his mind and didn’t even take care of himself. Knowing that they had to push each other away so painfully despite having feelings for each other was too much.

“If you just do whatever you want without caring about anything…”

Adeline made eye contact with Kael and moved closer to him.
As the distance between the two narrowed, Kael carefully reached out to wipe away Adeline’s tears.
A large, cold hand gently touched Adeline’s face.

“My curse is not that light, Adeline.”
“…”
“What I wanted all my life was for its weight to be a little less, but that wouldn’t happen. My curse is not the kind of thing I can just ignore.”
“…”
“It’s just a terrible bridle. A bridle I have to endure until I die. Though even that death will probably not be easily allowed.”

Kael spoke calmly as if he had given up on everything. That calmness made Adeline feel even more sad.
Kael’s eyes, looking only at her sadly without seeing any hope, were too painful.
His emptiness seemed to whisper to Adeline.
We can never be together. I can’t see you dying because of me.

***

“… Kael?”

The blizzard was so severe that they had no choice but to spend the night in the cave.
Adeline, who had taken a nap, looked around as soon as she woke up. It was still very early in the morning, but fortunately, the blizzard was abating.
But Kael was nowhere to be seen. Seeing that he had put in new firewood, he must have been in the cave a little while ago, but no matter how much she looked around, she couldn’t find him.

“Kael!”

Eventually, Adeline got up and headed out of the cave. Maybe it was because it was the early morning after the storm; the temperature was lower than usual.
She trembled and looked around the vicinity of the cave, but Kael wasn’t there.

‘That’s weird.’

Adeline frowned and returned to the cave. She was frightened.
After thinking about it for a moment, Adeline stared at the interior of the cave and walked towards it.
She didn’t know why, but for some reason, she felt like Kael was deeper inside the cave.

“Kael? Are you here…”

The strange premonition of unknown cause was correct.

“Kael!”

Adeline found Kael squirming inside the cave.
The floor was full of traces of him trying to bind himself, and the clothes he was wearing were torn to shreds and scattered around.
On his exposed back, as she had seen before, there was a large black scar that seemed like claws had ravaged him.
However, its size was incomparably larger than when she saw it the last time.

“… Kael.”

The moment Adeline called Kael again in a low voice, his red eyes met her.
It was the first time. The first time Adeline was facing Kael so closely during a moment when his curse was fully manifested.

–