Chapter 153: Happy
Caelith sat beneath the waning gold of the afternoon sun, a porcelain bowl of medicinal broth resting between her delicate hands. The lingering cough that had troubled her these past few days had yet to fade completely.
Erian had gone personally to the apothecary to fetch fresh herbs, and after tending the medicine over the fire himself, he had brought it to her while it was still warm.
Now he remained quietly at her side, watching her drink.
The faint smile upon Rhaegar’s lips disappeared entirely. Without a word, he strode across the courtyard.
Erian lifted his head immediately. The moment his eyes met Rhaegar’s figure, instinct moved him before reason could. He stepped forward, placing himself between them, shielding Caelith behind his back.
Rhaegar’s gaze darkened little by little. The air in the courtyard suddenly grew taut with silent hostility.
Sensing the tension, Caelith quickly rose to her feet and stepped out from behind Erian.
"Rhaegar... how was your visit?"
His eyes lingered on her briefly before shifting back to Erian. He jerked his chin, ordering him to move aside, yet the young man did not obey.
He stood there in silence, vigilant and unmoving, as though guarding something precious.
Caelith gently tugged at his sleeve.
"Erian, I’ve finished the medicine. Go put the bowl away for me."
Only then did he glance once more toward Rhaegar.
After a long pause, he finally lowered his eyes, gave a slight nod, and turned to leave with the bowl in hand.
The moment he disappeared from sight, Caelith quietly released a breath of relief. She reached for Rhaegar’s hand and led him inside the room.
"What is it?" she asked softly. "Why do you look so unhappy?"
Rhaegar gazed at her for a long moment without speaking.
"Why is he still following you everywhere?"
Caelith sighed helplessly. "I already explained it to you," she said with a sigh. "He’s afraid something might happen to me."
"I know." Rhaegar interrupted her quietly, but the shadows in his eyes only deepened. "...Fine. It is not important."
He then reached out and pulled her into his arms. "Caelith."
"Mm?"
"I spoke to my family today."
At once, she lifted her head to look at him. "And?"
The coldness in his expression gradually softened as his gaze settled upon her face.
"My father agreed."
Caelith stared at him blankly for a moment.
Then, in a low voice tinged with restrained emotion, he continued, "We can finally be married."
The world seemed to have stopped, silent.
For several heartbeats, Caelith simply looked at him as though unable to believe what she had heard. Slowly, her eyes filled with tears, a fragile redness blooming at the corners.
"Truly?"
"Truly."
The smile that appeared on her face in the next instant was brighter than the sunlight filtering through the lattice windows, radiant enough to dispel every lingering shadow from the world.
She threw herself into his arms and buried her face against his chest.
"Oh, Rhaegar!"
He held her tightly, his embrace firm and unwilling to loosen in the slightest.
"Grandmother wishes to see you again," he murmured softly against her hair. "She said she did not have enough time with you last time."
Caelith agreed right away. "Alright. When?"
"Tomorrow."
"Okay! Goodness, I’m so happy!"
***
That night, Caelith went to the rear courtyard to collect the garments left drying outside.
The moon hung high above the estate, luminous and pale, its silver light washing across the stone courtyard like frost scattered upon the earth.
A cool night breeze drifted softly through the air, stirring the hems of the clothing suspended upon the line.
Caelith stepped forward and lifted her hand to gather them down one by one.
The moment she looked up, her movements stilled.
Erian was standing beneath the old pear tree once again. The pale moonlight fell across his figure, casting shifting shadows over his dark robes. He stood there silently, watching her without a word.
His expression appeared calm, no different from usual. And yet, for reasons she could not explain, an inexplicable unease slowly crept into her heart.
"Erian?" she called softly. "Why aren’t you asleep yet?"
He did not answer immediately. He only stood beneath the old tree, his dark figure steeped in silver moonlight, his gaze resting quietly upon her.
After a long silence, he finally spoke. "He is always unhappy."
Caelith blinked in confusion. "Who?"
"The young duke," Erian replied softly. "The way he looks at me... it is always hostile."
A faint sigh escaped her lips.
"That is simply how he is," she said gently. "Don’t take it to heart."
Erian lowered his eyes and gave a small nod. Yet even then, he did not leave.
He remained standing beneath the tree, motionless as the night wind stirred the loose strands of his dark hair. The pale moonlight stretched his shadow long across the stone ground, lonely and still.
Caelith watched him quietly for a moment before speaking again, "Is there something else?"
After a brief pause, he sighed. "...He was happy today, though."
Caelith looked at him, slightly confused. "What?"
"When he returned," Erian said in a low voice, "he looked very happy. I have not seen someone smile like that in a very long time."
Something inside Caelith’s heart softened painfully at those words.
She suddenly thought of the twelve years he had spent beside Osvald. A child raised in darkness, taught only obedience and survival. In all those years, how much warmth had he ever truly seen? How many people had ever smiled sincerely before him?
Perhaps none at all.
Her chest tightened faintly. Slowly, she stepped closer until she stood before him beneath the cold wash of moonlight.
"Erian."
He lifted his eyes to her at once.
"One day," she said softly, "you’ll have days like that too. Days that make you happy. Days when you... or others smile a lot."
For the first time, uncertainty appeared in his expression.
It was fleeting, almost imperceptible, yet it lingered in his eyes like someone standing lost before an unfamiliar road.
After a long moment, he lowered his head. "I don’t know about that."
Caelith raised her hand and lightly patted his shoulder, her movements gentle and patient.
"But I do," she said quietly. "Now go and rest."
He nodded obediently and turned toward the rear courtyard. The sound of his footsteps echoed faintly against the silent stone path.
After several steps, however, he suddenly stopped. Without turning around, he called softly into the stillness of the night.
"Miss Caelith."
"Mm?"
His voice was quiet, yet there was an unwavering sharpness hidden beneath it.
"If he ever treats you badly... tell me."
Caelith froze slightly.
The night wind passed silently through the courtyard, rustling the branches overhead.
Under the cold silver moonlight, Erian’s back remained straight and solitary, like a blade left standing alone in the dark.
"I’ll take you away then. I’ll save you."
The words fell softly into the night, yet carried a weight impossible to ignore.
Caelith parted her lips, wanting to say something, but before any words could leave her mouth, he had already walked away, his figure gradually disappearing into the shadows of the rear courtyard.