BTGDF 5

Chapter 5

“A dungeon?”

At a punishment that was much heavier than expected, Evelyn’s eyes went wide. She had thought it would end with a fine or wearing restraining gear at most…….

Noticing her confusion, Kael added an explanation.

“The victim and perpetrator are clear, and the statements of the victim and the witness—” he grinned, pointing to himself, “—match. The foolish culprit will only add weight to our testimony as well.”

Thinking he did nothing wrong, he’d likely be throwing a fit through the entire interrogation.

He shrugged, adding that assault was originally an offense punishable by imprisonment in the dungeon anyway.

“Even if he gets released, he’ll be too terrified of the restraining gear to ever come near you, Young Lady.”

“I see.”

Neither too slow nor too fast, his pace was attuned entirely to Evelyn’s speed.

That minor consideration made her heart flutter slightly.

The two walked together to the plaza while sharing small talk. Even though it was quite a long distance, it felt as though time flew by in an instant.

And finally—

“I’m fine now. I think I can walk the rest of the way on my own.”

Arriving at the plaza, Evelyn spoke with a smile. Her face was much more relaxed, free from any remaining tremors.

“Thank you for walking me here. Well then, now for this little one… Huh?”

As she tried to hand the cat over, she tilted her head in confusion at the black ball of fur that refused to budge.

“Why are you acting like this?”

Clack, clack.

No sooner had she spoken than a rattling sound echoed.

Unlike Evelyn, who had no idea what was going on, Kael’s face hardened instantly.

“Pardon me.”

And before Evelyn could even reply, he grabbed the cat by the scruff of its neck and lifted it straight up.

Gulp!

A strange sound came out of the cat’s mouth. To be precise, it was the sound of it preparing to swallow a ring that had just entered its mouth.

The moment the shape of the ring sitting on its rough tongue caught her eye, Evelyn’s mouth parted slightly.

“Spit it out right now, Cat! What on earth do you think you’re doing?!”

Meeow-w-w! Meow!

Neither the man’s fierce scolding nor the sharp cat cries—as if warning him not to ruin a done deal—could draw her gaze away.

“That’s, that’s……”

A ring set with a red gemstone.

The keepsake of her late mother, Viscountess Libro.

“No!”

Evelyn snatched away the gemstone the cat was struggling to swallow. Her summer-green eyes quivered violently.

“Why is this inside its mouth……”

While she stood dazed with shock at a situation she couldn’t comprehend, something dangling from the cat’s teeth dropped down with a thud. It was the jewelry pouch she had just retrieved from Taylor.

The string part was shredded as if someone had chewed through it, and the inside of the pouch was…….

“……”

“……”

Evelyn and Kael’s gazes, which had been fixed on the empty pouch, turned as if on cue toward the cat held in his hand.

Meow.

Looking at the jet-black animal smirking with a satisfied face, Evelyn’s mouth opened slightly.

“Surely… it didn’t… eat them, right?”

Even while thinking it was complete nonsense, she couldn’t help asking. The way it was smacking its lips was just like, just like…….

“It did.”

“Pardon?”

“This guy ate them.”

They say when things become too absurd, reality loses its grip. She certainly hadn’t wanted to learn that lesson like this.

Staring blankly between the man repeatedly wiping his face with his hands and the cat lingering regretfully over her mother’s ruby ring, a thought suddenly slipped from Evelyn’s lips.

“A cat that eats jewels……”

“I am truly sorr—”

“Won’t it get an upset stomach?”

“Pardon?”

The place Kael brought the bewildered Evelyn—who was out of her mind due to the cat’s atrocious behavior—was a coffee house recently trending in Rauspel.

“Our household living expenses… our family jewels went into a cat’s stomach.”

In front of Evelyn, who was blankly muttering in a dazed voice, he placed down a cup of coffee with warm steam rising from it.

Then, after placing the teacup into her hands, he offered an apology once more with a solemn expression.

“I am truly sorry. I will compensate you. No, please make sure you let me compensate you.”

“It’s fine……”

Only after feeling the warmth of the teacup did Evelyn snap back to her senses and shake her head with a bitter smile.

It would be a lie to say she wasn’t angry, but more than that, she felt bewildered and drained. If there was a silver lining, was it that her mother’s ring remained safe?

She shifted her gaze to the cat sleeping soundly beneath Kael’s chair. Sleeping so peacefully…….

“I feel like I’m being punished for trying to sell off my mother’s keepsake under the excuse of needing money urgently.”

At her self-deprecating words, Kael’s handsome brow twitched slightly. Soon, his gaze thoroughly scanned Evelyn’s appearance.

Clothes that were worn out but cleanly washed—which likely used to be made of fine fabric—and hands that weren’t extravagantly decorated, yet were neatly manicured and clean.

Finally, after confirming her refined posture that looked like it came straight out of an etiquette book, Kael spoke carefully.

“You seem to be a noble lady……”

“That’s right. I’m the daughter of a viscount.”

His face grew even more puzzled. He seemed unable to grasp the situation.

“Well, not all nobles are wealthy, after all.”

Evelyn forced a smile and raised her cup. The aroma lingering at the tip of her nose was nutty and rich.

With a mix of curiosity and anticipation, she was about to bring the cup to her lips when Kael, sitting across from her, stopped her actions in a hesitant voice.

“Are you really going to drink it like that?”

“Didn’t you give it to me to drink?”

“I did, but……”

Trailing off as if in a tight spot, he gestured with his eyes toward the milk and sugar cubes placed in the middle of the table.

“It looks like it’s your first time drinking coffee. How about mixing in some milk? Sugar would be good, too.”

“It is my first time drinking it, but, um… I think it’ll be fine.”

Evelyn laughed off his concern as no big deal. But the very second she took a sip, her brow furrowed fiercely.

“Is this really something humans consume?”

“That’s why I tried to stop you earlier. And……”

Kael downed his coffee in one gulp with an unbothered expression. It would have been better with milk or sugar, though.

“That’s the taste people drink it for. It snaps you awake.”

“Drinking something like this, it’s impossible not to snap awake. It could raise the dead.”

“It’s palatable once you get used to it.”

Looking at him with suspicious eyes, Evelyn brought the coffee to her mouth once more. …Way too bitter.

Before she could even swallow two sips, she set the cup down, prompting a low laugh to burst from the man opposite her.

Evelyn pretended not to hear it and subtly pushed her cup off to the side.

It was right then that Kael’s hand, reaching out to perhaps add sugar for her, lightly brushed against hers.

“……”

“Is something wrong?”

“It’s nothing.”

Having flinched for a moment, Kael slowly pulled back his hand with a nonchalant face.

He glared with sharp eyes at the black cat sleeping soundly with its tail wrapped around Evelyn’s ankle.

Causing trouble himself, and now look at him.

Kael suppressed his rising murderous intent with effort and apologized once more.

“The conversation veered off track for a moment, but I will strictly see to it that this incident is compensated. I am truly sorry.”

“No, it’s fine. What would a cat know? It’s my fault for not keeping proper track of it.”

“Not at all. It’s entirely the fault of that gluttonous bastard. He’s the bad guy here. So—”

“It’s really all right. Considering that you helped me, Sir, this month’s living expenses are nothing……. Thank you for saving me. Thanks to you, I survived.”

Though she said that, her expression was quite troubled. Seeing Evelyn force a hollow smile as if her soul had departed made Kael’s heart feel even heavier.

Was that why? Words he normally would never have uttered tumbled right out of his mouth.

“Could I meet you once more tomorrow?”

“Pardon?”

“Let’s meet at this coffee house. How about 4 o’clock?”

“That’s fine, but……”

“Then let’s meet tomorrow. Whether I compensate you or make this guy take responsibility, I will make sure it’s done.”

Evelyn’s face went blank in a different sense from earlier. Whether it was just her imagination, she felt a sense of desperation in the man’s words.

And those eyes. His eyes were far too…….

“I don’t know if it will be of any comfort, but this guy will definitely pay for the value of the jewels he ate. No, if he doesn’t pay, I will make sure I take responsibility for it myself.”

Faced with a handsome man exclaiming his plea with melancholic eyes and a sorrowful aura, her words were completely choked back just as she was about to speak.

Firmly mistaking her reaction as ‘silence from being too heartbroken to even have the strength to reply,’ Kael’s expression grew even more mournful—and under the man’s unconscious spell of beauty—

“So please, let us definitely meet again tomorrow.”

With a flushed face, Evelyn had no choice but to nod as if spellbound.

Knowing full well that the other party had no such intentions made her feel immensely wronged.

Inside the quietly settled coffee house.

Left alone, Kael clenched and unclasped his hand, which still seemed to retain her warmth. His energy was stabilized, and his body felt light.

Through the window, he stared blankly at the receding back of the woman trudging away in the distance.

“Is it just my imagination?”

Pondering for a moment, his gaze suddenly shifted beneath his chair.

The black cat was still sleeping soundly. Seeing it smack its lips, it had undeniably fallen asleep out of full satisfaction after eating something delicious.

Seeing that, a wave of petty spite welled up in him.

“You sure ended up causing trouble after all, Cat. Isn’t Demian alone enough to cause messes?”

Kael nudged the cat with his scabbard.

“Get up.”

As if reacting to those words, a pair of blood-red eyes revealed themselves. The cat let out a long yawn, stood up, and stretched its body.

“You’ve become a total cat, haven’t you?”