~~~{──────────
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~}~~~
As they walked away from the oppressive atmosphere of the hall, Salviana’s mind raced, still trying to make sense of the accusations. But amidst all her confusion, sothing else gnawed at her. Alaric’s silence in that room—it wasn’t the cold indifference she expected. It felt more like... satisfaction. She couldn’t help but notice the faint hint of relief in his deanor.
Why would he be relieved?
"Alaric," she called, her voice sharp with curiosity.
He turned to her with a raised brow, his usual aloof expression firmly in place. "Yes?" He’s still finding it endearing that she calls him by his na.
She studied him for a mont before speaking, her tone pointed. "You look relieved. In fact, you look ’pleased’ by this ban." She said with raised brows.
Alaric’s lips curled into a small, almost amused smile. "I didn’t know I was that easy to read."
"You shouldn’t be relieved, Alaric. A ’child’ got burned," Salviana said, her voice growing firr, frustration creeping into her words.
"’It’ was burned," he corrected, his tone cold, as if detaching himself from the emotion of the event. The clinical phrasing made Salviana shudder.
"That’s terrifying," she replied, shaking her head. "I’d much rather believe the child had an accident."
Alaric’s gaze sharpened as he glanced at her. "What’s the difference?"
"You an soone deliberately did it. I prefer to believe she... she fell or sothing," Salviana responded, her voice strained with the hope of innocence. She couldn’t bear the thought that soone had purposely hard the young girl, let alone the idea that the accusation had been hurled at them.
"You don’t think it was ?" Alaric’s tone was asured, but there was sothing else there, sothing almost... hesitant. He was waiting for her answer.
She scoffed. "You didn’t even know! You weren’t around until after I’d gone to sleep. It’s utterly ridiculous to think you’d sneak out and harm a child on my behalf. I don’t believe it for a second."
For a fleeting mont, sothing flickered in Alaric’s eyes—sothing she hadn’t seen before. It wasn’t coldness or detachnt, but a strange, unfamiliar warmth.
He was taken aback. No one had ever defended him before. Not like this. Not with such conviction. He was used to being feared, distrusted, even despised, but never... defended.
Alaric blinked, and for the briefest mont, he felt sothing unfamiliar stir within him.
’She’s defending .’ The realization hit him like a wave crashing against the shore. It was strange—unsettling, even.
No one had ever stood up for him before, Anne-Marie had tried but not like this.
His life had been different, it was like being in a storm all your life, constantly buffeted by accusations and disdain, and suddenly finding shelter where he least expected it. Her defense was an umbrella in the downpour of his existence, small but significant, and though he wasn’t sure what to make of it, the feeling stayed with him.
"Well," he murmured after a mont, "you’re the first to ever say that."
And he wanted her to trust him like that forever.
The declaration and realization made sothing shift within him, sothing uncomfortable yet oddly... gratifying. He couldn’t rember the last ti soone had seen him as anything other than a monster, let alone believed in his innocence without question. The sensation was foreign, and Alaric, for all his control, felt montarily unsteady.
He glanced down at her, his dark eyes softening ever so slightly. "You... surprise , Salviana."
Her eyes widened a little at the admission. "Why? Because I don’t think you’re a monster?"
’I still think you’re dangerous, but not the monster that got her last night’ she thought, avoiding his gaze.
"Because you believe in without needing proof," he answered quietly. His voice held a strange note of wonder, as if her faith in him was sothing precious and fragile, sothing he had never been given before.
Salviana frowned at his words, unsure how to respond to the vulnerability she saw in him, no matter how fleeting it was. "Why wouldn’t I believe you?" she asked, her voice softer now. "You didn’t do it."
Alaric paused, his mind spinning. He had always believed that trust was a weakness, that it made people vulnerable. And yet, here she was—showing him trust without hesitation. And it unsettled him.
But instead of responding, he rely gave a slight nod and continued walking. His silence was no longer cold, however. It felt... contemplative.
As they continued walking, Salviana couldn’t shake her frustration. The events of last night and the accusations still weighed heavily on her mind. "This is so unfair," she said suddenly, her voice tinged with the lingering pain of it all.
Alaric, ever composed, raised a brow. "What is unfair?" Her peaceful scent teased his nostrils when she grazed his shoulders.
"Us being kicked out of the dining hall," she replied, gesturing vaguely behind them.
A brief smirk tugged at the corner of Alaric’s lips. "Well, technically, ’you’re’ the one who was banned. I simply tagged along because I’m just the demon, and you’re the controller," he teased lightly, his voice filled with dry humor.
"This isn’t even funny," Salviana countered, her expression tightening into a frown.
"No one’s laughing," he said, with his usual calm.
"Not physically, but I ’know’ you’re laughing on the inside," she shot back, glaring at him.
"What, are you a telepath now?" he asked, arching a brow, clearly amused by her spirited response.
She glared at him even more, her lips lifting in that small, defiant way that made her cheeks puff slightly. Alaric bit the inside of his lip, forcing himself to look away. The softness of her expression, even when she was annoyed, was sothing he found... adorable. It caught him off guard every ti.
His mind whispered quietly, ’This is my wife.’
"Co, let’s have breakfast," he said, pushing the unexpected thought aside.
He didn’t care about human food and the break from the suffocating, scheming royals and this ban was sothing he really appreciated, just like Salviana had pointed out, he’d much rather just watch Salviana eat than pretend to eat at the dining hall.
Reviews
All reviews (0)