IYWHM Chapter 171

“What do you mean by that?”

Fortunately, Kisa’s voice asking this question showed no particular tremor, unlike her wildly beating heart.

Instead of answering that question, Seyard narrowed his eyes.

Then his eyes, which had been gleaming fiercely just moments before, softened as if by magic.

“Please sit down. It seems the performance is about to begin.”

As if his words were true, Gabriel, who had been tuning his instrument on stage, stopped his actions.

The audience had finished entering a little while ago, and the noisy hall gradually became quiet.

Under the gazes of the surrounding audience members gathering on her as she continued to stand, Kisa had no choice but to take her seat.

The performance began in a bright atmosphere that contrasted with her heavily sinking heart.

“Ladies and gentlemen, we give thanks to His Majesty the King for allowing this performance to be held in this sacred place today, and for the eternal prosperity of our glorious homeland, Octava, let us all together…”

Kisa let the emcee’s speech, which was customarily given whenever there was a performance at the Royal Concert Hall, go in one ear and out the other as she fell into other thoughts.

Her gaze was fixed on the stage, but her mind was entirely filled with the man sitting next to her.

What was that question from earlier? Had he perhaps noticed something and thrown a meaningful question at her?

‘What if someone had recognized Gale’s identity earlier?’

What if some other subordinate of Seyard’s that Kisa didn’t know had discovered evidence that Kisa and Gale had secretly met?

If so, now was the time to worry about Gale’s safety above all else.

But in the next moment, Kisa bit the soft flesh inside her mouth and blocked her thoughts from flowing in an increasingly negative direction.

‘It was just hearing one question, that’s all.’

Even judging objectively, there seemed to be no need to paint a desperate future just yet.

Kisa already had a history of running away. Such a person had suddenly spent longer than usual in the bathroom during a rare outing.

From Seyard’s perspective, wouldn’t it be worth suspecting and probing at least once?

Based on what she had experienced so far, testing others’ true feelings with incomprehensible words and actions was his specialty.

Then the person who fell into worry alone would naturally show their weak spots.

‘There’s also a good chance he was just making a wild guess.’

When that speculation occurred to her, supporting evidence also came to mind one after another.

Before entering the bathroom, there had definitely been only two guards near Kisa, and they had certainly been waiting outside the entire time.

Gale also had a history of being tailed once, so considering his cautious personality, he would have been extremely careful this time.

It was hard to think that someone who showed such meticulousness as to disguise himself as a worker and infiltrate the concert hall in advance would have been followed again.

‘And Seyard’s attitude.’

For some reason, she felt that if he really knew that Gale and Kisa had met, he wouldn’t have asked such a question as he did earlier.

How should she put it—it wasn’t like him.

“……”

Even she felt uncertain, but Kisa found it difficult to shake off that intuition.

Who was the person who lived intimately with Seyard—no, Vischer Hillan—yet was deceived by his blatant lies and only faced his true nature later?

Because she was such a person, there were things only she could feel.

If it were the Seyard she knew, nine times out of ten, if he really knew something… rather than throwing ambiguous questions, he would silently watch and monitor her actions.

After inducing her to let her guard down like that, he would catch her by the scruff of the neck for certain.

Like that day when Kisa had entered the secret room and encountered Seyard who had returned to see the prey caught in his trap.

As she recalled past events, her pounding heartbeat gradually began to calm down.

She also only then realized that Gabriel on stage was already playing his third piece to the accompaniment of the piano.

‘Delicate yet powerful.’

It was a performance that seemed to burst forth with the emotions of someone who hadn’t been able to stand before people for a long time.

The people in the hall were overwhelmed by this young musical genius and listened intently to the melody.

However, the current Kisa couldn’t surrender her body and mind to his music like they could.

Though it was unfair to Gabriel, to Kisa’s ears his performance felt no different from the occasional coughing sounds from someone in the audience.

And if she remained by Seyard’s side, she would continue to tremble at his every word like now and wouldn’t even have the leisure to feel the beauty of the performance.

‘It might be comfortable to give up entirely, but that feels like losing myself forever.’

To escape from that bleak ending, she must succeed in escaping this time.

She had to prevent Seyard’s suspicions from growing beyond the seedling stage.

Then what would be the best way to do that?

Kisa pondered how she would have reacted to his earlier question if she truly had no ulterior motives.

‘I would feel wronged. I’d also be angry.’

After all, she had bent her will and returned to his side, yet wasn’t she being suspected just for staying in the bathroom a bit longer?

To tell the truth, even now when she did have ulterior motives, she found Seyard hateful and resentful.

She had just been pressing it down deep in her heart, but Kisa both loved and resented him.

A man who claimed to love Kisa yet would break her will to have his way. A man who actually loved himself more than Kisa.

Eventually, Kisa made up her mind with a dark expression.

If Seyard thought Kisa would just panic at the bait he threw, it would be his great miscalculation.

When the performance of the last scheduled piece ended, thunderous applause erupted from the audience.

Quite a few people seemed to have come simply to see Gabriel, the person of the moment, only to be surprised by his fluid skills.

“Thank you for listening.”

Gabriel smiled with an indescribable emotion showing and sent his thanks for their cheers.

Naturally, the audience had no intention of letting him go yet.

Encore. Encore. The sound of many people shouting in unison filled the hall.

No one could resist such passionate cries.

While Gabriel was preparing his encore piece, Kisa quietly rose from her seat.

“Kisa?”

Seyard, who had been clapping like the others, looked up at her.

“I don’t need the encore. I want to go now.”

Kisa whispered softly and headed toward the exit without waiting for Seyard’s response.

Almost simultaneously, he also got up and followed behind Kisa.

A few nearby audience members glanced at the two, but soon turned their attention back to the stage.

Kisa came out of the hall while listening to Gabriel play the first bars of his encore piece.

Seyard, who had quickly caught up to Kisa and opened the door for her first, asked:

“Are you feeling very unwell? How about calling a doctor?”

The answer to that tender question was as sharp as a sharpened blade.

“What does my physical condition have to do with you?”

Seyard’s eyes widened for a moment, then he answered in a much more subdued voice.

“Of course it’s related. You are my person, and I am your person, aren’t I?”

“You’re still all smooth talk. Whether I’m sick or not, you just suspect me.”

“……”

Perhaps feeling there was something to be pointed out, he didn’t immediately respond.

“Is this the price for carrying your child? Is that all you have to say to me, who gave up everything and returned to you? Can’t I even go to the bathroom in peace!”

“Kisa, that’s…”

“Don’t tell me obvious lies like you asked because you were really curious or worried about me. No matter how much I’ve been fooled by you until now, I’m not that stupid.”

While outwardly pressing Seyard fiercely, Kisa’s inner heart was gripped by unknown tension.

Just in case Seyard had really sensed her meeting with Gale, he might use that fact to pressure Kisa in return.

However, facing Kisa who was being aggressive, Seyard’s eyebrows drooped.

“I’m sorry. I was wrong to think that way.”

At those words, Kisa barely managed to suppress a sigh of relief that was about to escape.

With this, she was almost certain. Seyard had just been probing without knowing the exact situation.

“Fine. I don’t want to hear it.”

Kisa turned around sharply and muttered in a faintly trembling voice.

“As long as I’m by your side, I’ll have to live receiving endless suspicions like this. I understand clearly. I didn’t particularly expect anything, but I feel truly miserable.”

“Kisa.”

“Anyway, since I came back on my own feet, this must be the treatment I have to endure. Constantly monitoring my actions and living as quietly as a mouse—that’s what you want, isn’t it?”

“That’s not it.”

“No. You said that. At least I definitely heard it that way.”

Having finished saying all she wanted to say, Kisa moved forward without looking back at all.

To have flustered that Seyard—an inexplicable childish sense of victory spread through her heart.

Even she thought it was a childish emotion, but Kisa savored it with satisfaction.

“Kisa, wait a moment. I understand you’re angry, but I hope you’ll listen to me for just a moment.”

No answer came in response to that earnest plea.