For Sale: Male Lead, Obsession Included - Chapter 94
Feyden didn’t answer.
He must have thought I was making a baseless accusation. Or perhaps, he was simply hoping that I had no proof.
“Then tell me. Why do you think I’m a traitor?”
Feyden’s throat moved with a heavy swallow. The usual playfulness in his voice had disappeared, replaced by a low, slightly trembling tone.
He was nervous.
Why?
“……Why should I tell you? And even if I do, would it change anything?”
“Say it. You might be misunderstanding something.”
“Isn’t that what you’re hoping for?”
Feyden’s face darkened slightly in anger.
I’m the one who should be angry, not him.
“Estira, I don’t know what you heard, but I’m not the kind of person you think—”
He bent down, gripping my shoulders tightly. His palms were damp with sweat.
“‘Displays characteristics typical of a fifteen-year-old. Purchased a sword for a meeting in Dongguk’.”
“……”
“And you still say you’re not that kind of person?”
As I recited the exact details of the report he had handed over to the guild, the blood drained from Feyden’s face in an instant.
“Is this proof enough for you?”
“……”
“And it’s not just Taolti and Ariel that I don’t trust. I don’t trust you either, Feyden. If that answers your question, then get out. And use the door, not the window.”
***
“Priest, may I use the portal as well?”
“Of course.”
Taolti had declared me fully recovered.
If it weren’t for those two, I would have been up and about two days sooner.
Standing behind Taolti, Ariel and Feyden glared at him with sharp, piercing gazes.
For three whole days, they had followed me around, persistently hovering over me.
They had two objectives.
First, they wanted me to continue traveling with them.
Second, they wanted to stop me from using the portal Taolti had offered.
They took turns, as if they had planned it beforehand, repeating the same arguments until I finally lost my patience and snapped at them for the first time.
“Both of you, stop before I leave you behind! Just quit being so damn annoying!”
“…Oh.”
“I’m sorry…”
If I had known they would shut up so easily, I would have yelled at them sooner.
And now, the moment I said I would use the portal, both of their expressions twisted.
Even Ariel, who had never once openly shown discomfort, was no exception.
Taolti explained that a mage from his order would open the portal at noon tomorrow and told me to pack my belongings.
As soon as he finished, Ariel and Feyden exchanged glances.
For two people who usually bickered nonstop, seeing them silently nod at each other was unsettling.
What are they scheming now?
***
That night was darker than usual.
So dark that even shadows had disappeared.
Two figures moved silently through the pitch-black night. Their steps were out of sync, but their goal was the same.
Just before reaching their destination, they pressed themselves against the wall of a building.
The silver-haired man trailing behind whispered with a low voice,
“I really hoped it wouldn’t come to this…”
“I told you a hundred times I’d do this alone. Stop whining already.”
“I can’t let you go alone.”
“Trying to play the hero?”
“No. I just think you’ll kill someone.”
The brown-haired man, Feyden, who had been peering past the building’s edge to check for guards, turned to Ariel with an incredulous expression.
“You followed me all the way here just to stop me from killing someone?”
“I came here for Estira. That’s my main concern.”
“…You might be crazier than me.”
“Regardless, Feyden, you absolutely cannot kill anyone.”
“Oh, for f— So kidnapping is fine, but killing isn’t?”
“They are completely different things.”
“……You’re unbelievable.”
Muttering, “Take off that damn priest robe already, you bastard,” Feyden launched himself forward. His movements were swift and weightless, like a feather carried by the wind.
Ariel, who had let his guard down for a moment, hurriedly followed after him.
With every step, the weight of guilt wrapped around Ariel’s ankles like iron shackles.
Kidnapping.
A priest of the faith, acting in the name of God, was now committing a crime.
Ariel had no idea how he could possibly atone for this.
He had been ordered to assist in Estira’s abduction under Pope Kyte’s command.
But now, instead of following orders, he was planning to kidnap the ones sent to capture her.
Is this really okay?
No matter how many times he questioned it, the answer never changed.
He had to protect Estira.
Because this was the only way he could atone for what he had done to her.
And atonement always came at a heavy price.
Swallowing his emotions, Ariel moved like a silent shadow, his every step a desperate plea for redemption.
