“You know that that’s not what I mean,” Lofus said, his voice almost robotic as he suppressed any hint of emotion.
“Yeah. I do...”
Fol once again buried her face in his chest as she wrapped her arms around his back and pulled him in for a hug.
“But still, I love you,” she said. “Even if you hate me, I’m ridiculously in love with you. My feelings won’t change, even if we’re worlds apart.”
She laid her soul bare for him, and Lofus felt his heart waver. He gently placed his hand on her shoulders.
“Fol, I...” he started.
But before he could finish his sentence, the carriage door burst open with gusto, and an exhausted Yusurika stepped into the carriage. It seemed she was finally able to bust through the cage of water. She vehemently bowed as she boarded the vehicle.
“I’m terribly sorry!” she huffed. “Young ma—”
When she looked up, she froze as she spotted Fol hugging Lofus and the boy seemingly reciprocating this gesture. Fol’s cheeks turned scarlet by the second while the noble cast a sympathetic and pitiful look at the knight. Yusurika, much to her panic, immediately averted her gaze.
“D-Did I...interrupt something?” she squeaked.
Lofus let out a deep sigh. “Indeed. Wait outside.”
“Of course.”
After a long silence, Yusurika visibly slumped her shoulders and headed outside, quietly closing the door behind her. Only Lofus and Fol remained. The girl, realizing the boldness of her actions, was still beet red from embarrassment. Lofus pinched her left cheek, stretching it out.
“Owww!” she cried. “Gah! Lofus!”
“Your cheek stretches very well,” Lofus remarked.
He released her face from his grip and chuckled while Fol rubbed her red, swelling cheek. She glared at him with tears in her eyes.
“What the hell?!” she shouted. “I’m being serious here, you know!”
He shrugged wearily. “You hugged me and loudly professed your love to me. I’m sure you’re being serious.”
“I-I am! Besides, you were cut off earlier... What were you trying to say? Finish your sentence.”
Her voice grew meek as she began to mumble, and she averted her gaze, but Lofus only tilted his head to one side.
“Was I, now? I suppose I’ve forgotten,” he said.
“What?!” Fol yelped. “Well, remember it, then!”
“I’m the heir of the marquess, I’ll have you know. No matter how you slice it, I cannot reciprocate the feelings of a commoner.”
“Then what am I supposed to do with these feelings of mine?!”
“Give them up.”
“Hell no!”
“Then become a noble and then try your luck.”
Fol blinked back blankly. “Become a noble?” she muttered.
Lofus grinned. “Does the idea offend you? Becoming something you despise? If so, give up. A commoner cannot become engaged to the heir of a marquess, no matter how big a tantrum you throw.”
“Then I’ll do it.”
“What?”
“I’ll become a noble.”
“Do you even understand what you’re saying?”
“Of course I do. But if I become a noble, you will reciprocate my feelings, won’t you?”
“Huh? Now wait... Even if you do become a noble by some stroke of luck, that doesn’t necessarily mean that I’ll answer to your feelings.”
“No, you said it! You totally said it! If I become a noble, you’ll be with me! Take responsibility for your words, high-and-mighty noble! Have you no dignity?!”
“Fol, you bastard...”
He gave an exasperated sigh and gazed up at the ceiling while Fol flashed a victorious smile.
“And did you know? My gramps wasn’t a sailor—he was a pirate,” she said. “He used to go around Roguebert, a terror of the sea. He was pretty infamous, you know.”
“What are you on about?” Lofus asked.
“I’m saying that I’ve got the blood of a pirate in me. And if there’s one thing about pirates, it’s that they take what they want—no ifs, ands, or buts. We’ll use whatever we’ve got at our disposal.” She stared into his eyes. “Don’t think you can run, Lofus. I’ll do everything I can and hunt you down. I’ll make you mine.”
Both her face and voice were as serious as could be. Lofus inched away, unnerved.
“Don’t... Don’t say that,” he muttered. “It sounds like you’re trying to kidnap me.”
“Oh, and one more thing,” Fol said. She grabbed Lofus’s hand and enveloped it with both of hers. “Thanks.”
“What?” He knit his brow with confusion, but she didn’t care.
“Thanks for saving my village. And you volunteered to defeat those monsters for me, so thanks for that too. Oh, and you saved my life. Huge thank you for that. For defeating that whale for us too. And above all...truly, thank you for saving Norn.”
As she repeatedly voiced her gratitude, she gently placed her head onto his chest once more.
“And finally, thank you for hearing me out,” she whispered. “I’d been wanting to tell you all of this, but I hadn’t been able to.”
“That so...” Lofus muttered.
He gazed up at the ceiling once more as he let these words sink in. He gently and awkwardly placed a hand on her head as though to soothe her.
“When I was thrown into the Devil’s Sea, I would’ve likely died had you not been there,” he said quietly, working up the resolve to speak. “So, what I’m trying to say is... Well... You...saved me.”
Wide-eyed, Fol gazed up at Lofus, not at all expecting him to thank her in turn. Her cheeks bright red, she was overcome with emotions as she clung onto him.
“Lofus?” she asked.
“What?” he replied.
“Can I...kiss you?”
“Of course not.”
It was a cold rejection, but Fol was undeterred. She placed her arms around his neck, brought him close, and drew her face to his. Just as the two’s lips were about to touch, Fol felt something—a translucent barrier thinner than paper—in the way. Lofus had summoned a magic barrier of condensed mana to block her, just in the nick of time. When Fol slowly drew her face back and realized what had happened, she let out a self-deprecating laugh.
“I can’t believe youuu!” she roared.
Lofus covered his right ear with his one arm, hoping to block out some of that noise. Even Yusurika, stationed outside the carriage, jolted with shock as Fol’s angry voice echoed within the vehicle.
“Really?! You’re gonna stop me just when it was getting good?!” Fol shrieked. “Honestly, I didn’t know you could be so insensitive!”
“And what are you trying to do to a noble?!” Lofus replied. “It’s a crime, I’ll have you know!”
“Oh, shut up! It’s not like this is our first time! You’ve got nothing to lose anyway! Who cares?!”
“What do you mean, it’s not our first time?! What’s that supposed to mean?!”
“Also, you saw me naked! Naked! Take responsibility for that!”
“You were trying to save my life, weren’t you?!”
As the two angrily roared at each other in the carriage, Yusurika heard it all. She instantly intuited that she likely wasn’t supposed to eavesdrop, so she gazed into the distance while covering her ears. However, neither Lofus nor Fol were willing to back down, and their furious shouting continued for a while as it echoed out of the carriage and into the hills beyond.
A while later, Carlos—who had explained the situation and told the residents that the sheltered slaves were kept in the church of the port city to recuperate—caught up with the carriage and butted in to mediate between Lofus and Fol. After the noble parted ways with Fol and headed back to his manor, it was rather apparent that he looked a touch lonely.
✶✶✶
At the main manor of House Lightless, Lofus had been called upon by his father to visit the marquess’s study. The boy sulked a bit as he plastered a frown on his face and stood in front of his father, who sat in his chair. The marquess had a terrifying gaze that could make anyone shrink with fear. His black hair and eyes were the same as Lofus’s, and he donned a black outfit that represented his noble house. Ludens Ray Lightless was no doubt the lord of House Lightless, and Lofus’s father.
“It’s been a while, Lofus,” Ludens said.
His tone was calm and gentle, yet it carried an unmistakable coldness and curtness that would make anyone freeze in fear. Lofus kept his frown and didn’t even meet his father’s gaze as he greeted in turn, solely to maintain appearances.
“Truly, it has been,” Lofus said indifferently. “I trust all is well?”
Ludens didn’t scold his son for his curt attitude. After all, this atmosphere between the two was nothing new.
“I’ve heard that you went to a remote village in the countryside,” Ludens said. “It was in Carlos’s report.”
“I did,” Lofus replied. “I do believe that I have nothing to report myself—it would be redundant to repeat what you already know.”
“I wish to hear what happened from your mouth.” He emitted a stronger pressure than before. “I also heard that you lost your left arm, and sight in your left eye. I presume both injuries are difficult to treat.”
“Yes, so it seems.”
The brusque reply made Ludens furrow his brow.
“Will you heal?” he asked.
“I’ll search for a way,” Lofus replied. “But if I cannot be healed, I suppose I’ll have to make an artificial arm.”
“Are you not aware of who you are? Clearly, you do not understand what it means to be the eldest son of House Lightless. Your actions were far too reckless and brash.”
Ludens’s voice remained calm and quiet, but it was apparent that he was angry.
“I shall be careful in the future,” Lofus replied.