"What I'm going to tell you this time is based on the story of Ancient Hellasium. Duke, listen to me very carefully. Hmmm. Back then, I heard that the vineyard in the Imperial City was beautiful. That time, there was a beautiful princess walking there. That princess often enjoyed walking along the vines. Of course, with her lover beside her."
Tashian sighed deeply as he guessed what the story was all about. He replied in a deep voice.
"Can't we please talk about this later?"
"I can't."
Ikshid continued his words, and cut the Duke's voice sharply, like a knife.
"One day, the princess was walking on the path along with her lover, who was very in love with her at that time. The path they were walking on was covered with beautiful vines. The sun had already set that time, and they could hear the sound of night coming from a distance, as the cold air burned the heart of this lover. Therefore… For example, other than eating the ripe bunches of grapes hanging from that vine, another desire was on fire… !"
Tashian frowned and groaned, but Ikshid only continued to talk more enthusiastically, linking his hands. He became excited as if he became the princess of the story.
"The princess, of course, wanted her lover to throw her down on that little grassy bed that smelled of earth right away however… !"
His enthusiasm was dampened.
"Hooh…. But her lover didn't. If he had done so, the princess's lover would have his name written on the Hellasium royal genealogy… Rather, he took the Princess home with the most sincere manner. He treated her with dignity all night, as if he would never force her."
Ikshid sighed at the end of his words, as if his mood deteriorated as he clicked his tongue.
"And then, as I've mentioned before, it's the matter of time… The Princess then has a new lover."
"…. Your Highness."
"You stay still and listen to me, ok? The princess surely enjoyed the walk with her new lover. It was still the same path they walked on, and the same atmosphere she had from her first lover was formed between her and her new lover. I mean, the desire I said earlier. The blood of youth cuts like a sun, and the ripe and bursting juice of the grapes drips down between the princess' lips…"
"Stop. That's enough, Your Highness."
Tashian tried to dissuade the prince by holding his forehead, but it was no use. Ikshid was already absorbed in his storytelling and went to the climax, paying attention to all of the facial muscles and body language he would use.
"Although the Princess has already experienced it, she expected her new lover to take her home first for the second time..! But! Her prediction was wrong! Her lover suddenly took her to the corner of the path! He roughly laid her down on the ground, and there… he suddenly…!"
Ikshid was speechless the next second. It wasn't because he was excited about the end of his story, but because the Duke shoved grapes into his mouth. How dare he put grapes into the mouth of a Crown Prince? He was a traitor in simpler words.
If the Duke hadn't been with the Prince since he was a boy, he would have been beaten.
Ikshid madly murmured, chewing the fruit the filled his mouth.
"T… his… disgraceful… act… to the Crown Prince…
"… I'll take whatever punishment you like, as I don't want to hear any more."
Tashian drew a deep frown between his brows and touched his forehead. At some point, the master will not test the patience of his servant.
Tashian wanted to directly plead with Ikshid to put a weight on the prince's mouth if there is a god of abundance that Ikshid said.
Before he knew it, Ikshid had already chewed all the grapes that Tashian gave him. He clapped his hand and grumbled.
"You have a problem because people are clogged up. If you know that you are a man who is offended by these obscene rumors after years of fighting on the battlefield, she will be very pleased."
Ikshid could hear the friction between the unsheathing of the Duke's sword.
"…Whoever has disregarded the warnings of God up to now is the worst."
"Wait, Duke. Let go of my hand. Let go of the sheath. I made a mistake. Okay. I made a mistake."
After a brief quarrel, Ikshid opened his mouth, looking at the Duke with his displeased eyes.
"You don't like it because for you it's nonsense, but it's a story that has lessons related to life."
"What lesson do you mean?"
"For example, what would you do if you were in the same situation? Will you do it like the princess's first lover? Or a second lover?"
Ikshid's eyes glittered stealthily and playfully, looking at Tashian.
"If I were a princess, I would have left the man who didn't lift a finger in that situation."
"I'm not sure."
Then a high, refreshing voice interrupted Ikshid.
"I guess it depends on how the princess felt at the time and how she liked it."
Someone gently walked out of the opportunity corner of the road that the two men were walking all along.
She was a woman in a beautiful blue dress with waterfall-like red hair.
"Greeting, Your Highness. You were talking about something interesting."
Selena folded her eyes and smiled. A smaller woman than Selena with a green dress appeared behind Selena. She was a girl with bright blond hair.
The prince unfortunately missed how the Duke froze on his spot, who found Lady Miller dressed up nicely. This was because he himself was busy coughing out of embarrassment.
Eun-woo looked pitifully at Ikshid, coughing to the point where the people watching him felt pity for him.
"Selena! When did you come?"
The Crown Prince asked while clearing his throat. Selena, who had waited for him to stop coughing, smiled.
"We've been here since you said you're going to tell an interesting story. The voice of Your Highness was so loud that we could also enjoy it as we walked together."
No matter how mischievous the story was, the earlobe of Ikshid, who had never changed his expression, turned as red as red wine.
The prince, who was apparently perplexed for no reason, explained the situation with an unexpected serious look.
"I don't want you to misunderstand. Duke and I have been friends for many years, so sometimes we exchange these stories like a joke."
"I see."
Selena calmly replied while grinning.
Perhaps he wasn't satisfied with his words as nudged the Duke's arm, as if asking for sympathy, but there was no answer from Tashian. The Duke could not take his eyes off the woman in front of him. It was as if his heart had been stolen by a siren and he was a sailor, and Eun-woo's eyes met Tashian's.
The Duke kept his eyes on her all the time. His heart, which was calm, started to pound helplessly and crazy as she looked at him.
The man's black hair was neatly brushed back by the wind, and his white forehead was exposed beneath it. Contrary to his tight ascetic lips, his eyes under his thick eyebrows were as hot as the scorching sun.
Eun-woo felt a strange cave burning within his eyes, she felt the strange desire glowing as if her lower abdomen was wriggling at the clear gaze.
Her memory of encountering him in the past as he was busy in his sword training reminded her how solid his body was under the military uniform.
Her cheeks were burning. She quickly turned her eyes away from him, swallowing her dry saliva.
This was all because of the Crown Prince story. When she heard of the vineyard woman that the prince had told Tashian playfully, her imaginations ran wild and free.
Eun-woo looked at him bewilderedly. Eun-woo gasped embarrassingly and lowered her gaze.
"Didn't you wait for a long time?"
Selena's neat voice put an end to the cold silence between all of them. Ikshid quickly escorted Selena, leaving only Tashian and Eun-Woo naturally behind.
Eun-woo, who was standing alone with the duke behind the two people, who began to walk with confidence, was quite embarrassed. The Duke naturally heated up again. At a loss, he managed to give her one arm. She looked at him for no reason, and pretended to put her arm on him.
"Oh… thank you."
"You're welcome."
His quiet reply only sounded as calm as usual. His burning eyes that had warmed her cheeks had disappeared. His determined attitude melted the hot tension away earlier.
Eun-Woo gently laid her hand on his arm. She could feel the firmness of his arm clearly on the fabric. Eun-woo moved slowly as he led. The tension, which seemed to have disappeared, fluttered over the surface again.
They walked slowly behind Ikshid and Selena. The sound of the two people talking in a row in front of them created a strange harmony that seemed to be heard or not covered by the sound of birds and grass bugs.
He was encouraged by it, and Eun-Woo spoke to say something. But he was a second faster.
"There were definitely only two invitations."
He muttered in a somewhat gloomy tone. He seemed unhappy, as if two more troublesome people had stuck together in front of him.
Eun-woo burst into a small smile because him, acting sulky was cute. She whispered in a whisper that the People in front of them could not hear.
"You can't help it. His Highness has seen the invitation…. Selena says it's her first opera performance. Everything will be more fun if we go together."
Just the day before the performance, the prince, who visited the duke's office as usual, found an invitation to go to the opera. The real problem was Selena, who accidentally walked past the slightly opened office door that day. As Selena showed interest in the conversation that began with the theme of opera, the very next moment, a seat was set up for the crown prince and his guests at the Grand Theater.
When Tashian said nothing, Eun-woo looked up to see his face. He was focused on walking with his blank face as he had done nothing but look forward.
Then he mumbled, as if he could be heard over the sound of pounding footsteps.
"… I only wanted to go with you."
Upon hearing that, Eun-woo's eyelashes trembled regardless of her will. She lowered her head hastily, and only wanted to arrive inside quickly.
It was strange. How could a person like him, like last time and this time, could say such a thing without blinking an eye?
The wind which tickled her ears seemed to enter her heart, and it started to thump.
***
Before the two wagons carrying them reached their destination, there was a loud noise in the heart of the capital. Inside the carriage, Eun-woo peeped over the curtain on the window and eagerly watched the streets of the capital late in the evening.
Tashian, who was sitting across from her, was looking at Eun-woo with his chin on his hand.
She was constantly exclaiming, and watched at how many people were walking on the street, the merchants buying and selling all sorts of goods, the soldiers riding horses in their uniforms, and the carriages going somewhere busily. Running on a perfectly maintained road, there were endless shops and restaurants lined with various items filled with numerous streets where wagons passed by.
She muttered in a voice that could not hide her surprise.
"The streets are so bright even though it's dark."
When he said nothing, Eun-woo took her eyes off of the window and looked at him.
Tashian had a slightly delicate look on his face. She didn't understand what it meant, so she looked back contemplating whether she had made a great mistake.