Her mind in disarray, she suddenly had an absurd craving for fish. Fortunately for her, Linus’ smile brought her back to reality.
Was it all right for someone like her to become the consort of a crown prince so dazzlingly beautiful he might as well have been spun from the light of the heavens itself?
“Well, since you’ve already made your intentions public, arranging for another saint now, not to mention searching for other bridal candidates would cost a lot of time and money. So, if we analyze the cost-effectiveness, I believe I may be a suitable option. Are you certain, though?”
“I should be asking you that, you know.”
Linus pulled his hands away from on top of hers and sighed quietly.
“Do you know what the name ‘Fiona’ means?”
“Bright, white, and just, yes?”
He was the one who’d named her. She had always thought it curious he’d given her a name with “white” as a meaning even though she had black hair. Nevertheless, it was her name because Linus had chosen it.
“I assumed you gave me the name because you didn’t want me to lose to others’ curiosity or prejudices because of my unusual black hair.”
“That’s part of it, but only a small part. You stole my heart the moment I met you, Fiona. So I gave you the name to remind myself you’re ‘the light that illuminates me.’ And you see how my hair is silver-white? Your name represents my color…so it means you’re mine.”
Her jaw dropped again in shock, mouth opening and closing foolishly. Now a full-fledged Saint of Fish, she felt that she needed to focus on ensuring all varieties of fish species thrived.
“But you’re talking about yourself from ten years ago, yes?”
Despite realizing her feelings toward Linus only moments ago, her mind could not keep up with the impact of his words.
“Did you know that saints form contracts at the time of their summonings?”
“His Holiness told me about it. That a saint makes an agreement with the first person she meets in this world.”
He’d said saints possessed unparalleled powers, so the country guaranteed her safety in return for their powers being used for the nation’s sake and to avoid any abuses.
“Yes, that’s right. The Saint of Abundance was deemed so detrimental to the interests of her country that, in accordance with the contract, her own magic was used to collar her.”
Oh. To her, it seemed like Paul had placed it, but it turned out to be Manaka’s magic. A contract kept both parties safe and bound them to one another more than they’d like.
“Wait, but I don’t have a contract with this country. Supposing I am a saint.”
“You’re not wrong about countries being a party, but remember, the contract a saint makes is the first person she meets in this world. In the Kingdom of Gene’s case, normally, the king and crown prince witness the summoning ritual.”
Except Fiona had appeared outside of the ceremony site and hadn’t met the king or the crown prince a decade ago. Did that make her a stray saint without a contract?
“Does this mean we’ll be forming a contract now?”
Though she had no intention of harming the country, after seeing what had happened to Manaka, she was a little afraid of being collared.
“No. We did that ten years ago.”
“What?”
“We made a promise to each other, remember?”
When he beamed at her, she thought back to his words from that day.
“I’ll protect you, Fiona. So, in exchange, stay by my side forever.”
“That…is a contract?”
“It is.”
“But there’s nothing in it about any punishments if I do something to hurt the nation.”
Protect the national interest and prevent abuse of the saint’s powers. Not only were neither of these conditions included, but Fiona had always been free to act as she pleased, so it didn’t feel like a real contract.
Picking up on her confusion, Linus gently stroked her head. That was all he did, but her mind calmed, making the gesture truly formidable.
“A country uses its saint in exchange for protecting her. But all I need is for you to stay by my side, Fiona. I want to protect you, so that’s exactly what I’ll do. Which is why we don’t need fetters or punishments.”
“Are you sure?”
“Of course.”
The smile he gave her then was so blinding that she couldn’t look directly at Linus. Even though she’d always thought him far too handsome for his own good, now that she was aware of her own affection for him, the power of his smile increased exponentially, terrifyingly.
“These last ten years, you’ve always been on my mind, Fiona, and I devoted myself to making you mine. That’s how long I’ve waited. So…don’t think I’ll let you get away. Ever.”
Gentleness and a different kind of heat dwelled in the eyes that stared so intently at her. To quiet the loud beating of her heart, she pressed her hand to her chest.
“If I may be so bold then. Do you mean you…love me? And you didn’t just choose me because I’m the cost-effective option?”
Should that turn out to be the case, then the marathon of sexual harassment he’d subjected to her person, mostly her hair until now, was not only a physical display of affection but also his way of expressing his love. Fiona knew she was at fault, too, for being so oblivious all this time. At the very least, though, the people around them could have tried to warn or stop him. Because she just realized they had unintentionally been flirting in public, which made her heart beat even faster.
While Fiona blushed furiously, Linus slumped in disappointment.
“Bloody hell. How did I miss that? I’m an idiot. Right, better late than never.”
He muttered unintelligibly, castigating himself. Then, he raised his head and stroked her cheek, his fingers gliding softly.
“I love you so much. There’s no room in my head for anything but you, much less cost-effectiveness. So you better prepare yourself, my dear saint.”
Before Fiona could even catch her breath at his dizzying sensuality, Linus closed his lips over hers as if he would brook no further arguments.