With the matters of Ixion roughly concluded, Kraush first returned to his estate.
Since his workload had increased significantly, he planned to organize everything at the Green Pine Mansion before proceeding.
“You’ve co all this way. Do you think you’ll be able to handle seeing that child next ti if you leave without eting her?”
This was the advice of Crimson Garden.
As she pointed out, Kraush felt it would be inappropriate to leave without saying hello to Bianca.
After all, it had been a long ti since he’d last seen her face.
So, when Kraush stepped into the Green Pine Mansion.
“If you’re looking for Lady Bianca, she’s currently training.”
It was Aliod, the mansion’s head butler, who inford him of Bianca’s location.
Perhaps it was because he had recently reunited with his daughter, Alicia, but Alriod’s face looked noticeably brighter.
Having been worried about his daughter, who had suffered from a discoloration disease, he now seed relieved to see her doing well.
“Training.”
Kraush had observed Bianca’s training a few tis before he left for Rahern Academy.
Since quite so ti had passed since his departure, he was curious to see how much her skills had progressed.
Just as Kraush was about to step into the training ground.
“?”
There was a small fox made of ice at the entrance.
The fox, whose body and head were almost indistinguishable, tilted its head, and Kraush imdiately recognized what it was.
Ice Collection (氷還收)
The ice spirit conjuring technique of the Northern Spirit Summoner, Jenna Edalsia.
However, Kraush sensed sothing different about this fox compared to the spirits Jenna typically summoned.
It felt oddly colder, with a slightly rough, unfinished quality to it.
“Pii!”
The fox let out a sound and scurried off sowhere.
Watching the fox dart away, Kraush stepped inside and noticed the fox disappearing into the white strands of hair of soone standing ahead.
“Pii, good girl.”
The fox’s destination was clear.
Standing there was a woman.
Perhaps due to training, her attire was lighter and shorter than usual.
Her white hair cascaded down, framing the nape of her neck, and her eyes shone like blue diamonds.
Bianca Hadenhartz.
She was Kraush’s fiancée.
Was it just a natural change during adolescence?
In just a few months, Bianca’s beauty had blossod even further.
The youthful look she once had had mostly disappeared, replaced with a more mature deanor.
‘So, this is what it ans to grow older.’
Kraush hadn’t noticed before since they were always together.
Seeing her after so ti apart, it was clear how much she had grown since their first eting.
Next year, she would be an adult, so it wasn’t surprising, but it still struck him.
On Bianca’s left ring finger was a ring, a gift from Kraush.
Even during training, she still wore it.
“Kraush.”
Bianca finally noticed him and looked surprised.
Then, she gave a slight smile and walked toward him.
“Pii.”
The ice fox poked its head out from the back of Bianca’s neck.
It seed Bianca was the one who had created it after all.
‘She’s only been training for about a year.’
Yet, the craftsmanship was this refined.
Although she wasn’t on Jenna’s level, it reaffird Bianca’s incredible talent.
After all, she was the one who had slain the Poison King, one of the Ten Greatest Under the Heavens, during her ti as White Ghost.
Her innate talent was undeniable.
“Did I interrupt your training?”
“I just finished.”
Perfect timing.
Kraush had been thinking of having a al with her.
“Wow, I thought my adorable pupil didn’t know how to show expressions, but look at this variety!”
A sudden voice chid in.
It was Jenna Edalsia, Bianca’s ntor.
She still seed to struggle with heat, wearing light clothing and covered in sweat, even though it was only early sumr.
“It’s been a while, Kraush. You rember , right?”
“No one’s mory is that bad.”
“I thought today’s youngsters forget everything as soon as they turn around. Haha, I’m honored you rember . I’ve even heard rumors about you out here.”
It might’ve seed like Bianca was spreading stories, but that didn’t quite fit.
In that case, soone else was actively spreading tales about Kraush to their benefit.
‘The First Prince’s doing.’
Kraush had made a deal with the First Prince of the Starlon Kingdom.
The prince was deliberately inflating Kraush’s reputation to showcase their connection and solidify his influence.
‘If he tries to grow his reputation too much, the nobles will push back. So he’s using to bolster his foundation instead.’
In the noble society, Valheim was an unspoken rule.
An untouchable taboo.
The First Prince was exploiting this taboo, using Kraush as a stepping stone.
‘Even if it’s exaggerated, it’s not necessarily bad for .’
Reputation elevates how others perceive you.
For Kraush, aiming to lead the Skyborne Generation, this was a necessary step.
“Bianca, have you eaten?”
“Not yet.”
“Perfect. Let’s eat together.”
At those words, Bianca ran toward Kraush.
She instinctively reached out to hold his hand but hesitated, pausing mid-motion.
Sniffing at the sleeve of her training clothes, Bianca took a step back, prompting Kraush to tilt his head in confusion.
“Why?”
“I sll like sweat.”
Sweat?
Curious, Kraush leaned in slightly to verify for himself.
But Bianca’s hair suddenly bristled, and she darted away in an instant.
It was like watching a fluffy white chick suddenly act like a wary cat.
“You’re an.”
Bianca raised her eyebrows in mock annoyance, making it clear she had no intention of letting Kraush sniff her.
She cautiously shifted around him, keeping a watchful eye, as if preparing to evade him again.
Watching her antics, Kraush couldn’t hold back his laughter.
“Go wash up.”
“Okay.”
Was it because it had been so long since he’d seen her, or was it just her usual self?
As Kraush felt himself smiling, he realized one simple truth.
The only person who could make him smile this comfortably was Bianca.
“eting your fiancée after so long, and now you’re grinning like an idiot.”
Crimson Garden teased from the side, poking him with her beak.
Kraush couldn’t even argue back.
After all, the mont he returned to the Green Pine Mansion and saw Bianca, it finally felt like he was ho.
‘Ho.’
Once everything was over, the thought of staying here and spending ti with Bianca didn’t seem so bad.
For Kraush, whose sole life goal had always been to prevent destruction, this was the first ti he thought about what might co after.
Whether or not that vision would ever beco reality, even Kraush couldn’t say.
But one thing he was sure of.
‘Even if I’m not there…’
He wanted to leave that future in Bianca’s hands.
Kraush’s hand clenched into a light fist.
He needed to try a little harder.
In that mont, the weariness he hadn’t even realized he’d felt solidified into a renewed resolve.
* * *
After finishing their al, with the early sumr heat beginning to make itself known, Kraush sat on a garden chair in the Green Pine Mansion’s yard.
Beside him sat Bianca, enjoying a rare mont of proper relaxation.
Kraush glanced at Bianca, who was fidgeting with his hand, her fingers lightly playing with his.
“Having fun?”
“Yes.”
Perhaps it was because they hadn’t seen each other in so long, but Bianca was unusually clingy.
Kraush couldn’t help but chuckle softly at her behavior.
When he had been sharing recent significant events with her, she had held his hand tightly, listening intently.
But as ti passed, she began to act like this, gently fidgeting.
The cool evening breeze, still carrying a hint of chill, brushed against Kraush’s face, rustling Bianca’s hair.
As her hair shifted, it revealed her delicate, beautiful face.
Her beauty was so renowned that it often left people captivated, and even Kraush, who had seen her countless tis, found himself quietly gazing at her.
Bianca, busy fidgeting with Kraush’s hand, eventually realized his lingering gaze and looked up at him.
When their eyes t, she tilted her head slightly.
“Is there sothing on my face?”
“No, not really. Just looking.”
There was no particular reason; he was simply staring.
Bianca tilted her head again, her hair cascading further down.
A few strands fell onto her cheek, clinging slightly.
Seeing this, Kraush reached out with his free hand and gently brushed her hair aside.
It was soft.
Not only the texture of her hair but also her cheek, which his hand barely touched, was unbelievably soft.
As Kraush adjusted her hair, Bianca quietly accepted his touch, her eyes trembling occasionally as if she found it ticklish.
“I won’t be able to see you for quite a while after this.”
Ever since he joined the academy, Kraush had been constantly on the move without a single break, and it was unlikely to change anyti soon.
The chances of him visiting the Green Pine Mansion like today were practically nonexistent moving forward.
Hearing this, Bianca gently placed her hand over Kraush’s, which still rested on her cheek.
“It’s okay.”
Under the night sky, her blue eyes glowed vividly.
“I’ll co to see you.”
Her voice carried a firm resolve.
“No matter where you go, I’ll follow you, Kraush. That’s what it ans to be your fiancée.”
With a slight smile, Bianca spoke as if it were her lifelong goal.
She uttered the one connection more precious to her than anything else in her life, even more than her family.
Her engagent to Kraush.
The ring on her hand, which rested atop his, shimred under the moonlight.
As Kraush watched, Bianca had unconsciously leaned closer to him.
In the narrowed distance, Kraush could feel her heartbeat through the fingers that brushed her neck.
Her slightly flushed cheeks couldn’t have been caused by the glow of the streetlights.
Kraush knew.
He knew how much he ant to Bianca.
To her, he was the one who helped her reclaim her emotions.
He had given her more than her discarded family ever could.
Even a casual observer could easily tell just by the way Bianca, who usually showed no emotion, would light up with a radiant smile whenever she looked at him.
And perhaps for Kraush the feeling was mutual.
In his life that resembled an endless struggle, Kraush had always been with Bianca.
Even Kraush, with his unyielding ntal strength, had monts where he faltered.
But during those tis, seeing Bianca asleep in his arms gave him the strength to rise again.
Just as Bianca had stood up thanks to Kraush, Kraush had also been able to stand because of Bianca.
Before his regression, Kraush owed Bianca his life.
Because of this, Kraush had once considered breaking off their engagent if it was what she wanted for her happiness.
If she ever fell in love with soone else, he was willing to step aside, even play the role of the villain if necessary.
But when his gaze t Bianca’s, all those thoughts seed aningless.
To Bianca, Kraush would always be her most precious person.
And Kraush knew this truth all too well.
He also knew he could never truly let Bianca go.
‘At this point.’
Who would have thought he’d develop such selfish desires?
A faint smile appeared on Kraush’s lips as he gently cupped Bianca’s cheek and leaned closer.
“Bianca.”
“…Yes.”
Her reply ca slightly delayed, her breath carrying a warmth that wasn’t usually there, as if she were nervous.
That alone was enough of an answer.
Kraush lowered his head, pressing his lips gently against hers.
Bianca’s eyes widened montarily before slowly closing.
Through their kiss, they felt each other’s warmth, a tender and soft sensation lingering on their lips.
When Kraush finally pulled back, he was t with Bianca’s dreamy gaze, her expression dazed as though intoxicated.
eting his eyes, she leaned into his chest, her flushed face and racing heartbeat leaving her completely weak.
Under the slightly chilly early sumr night air, Kraush, his body filled with warmth, looked up at the sky.
anwhile, his hand intertwined tightly with Bianca’s, holding it with a grip that promised he would never let go.
A vow to never lose her again.
Translators note:
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