I Wish You Well In Your Next Love, My Love

I didn’t answer and only shook my head.

I have to find the key.

But no matter how much I searched around, I couldn’t find it, so the only choice was to kneel on the ground and look carefully.

Just as I was about to lie down, a hand suddenly slipped under my arm.

The face of the person who pulled me up appeared right in front of me.

“This isn’t your house.”

“Then where…”

“You’re speaking informally.”

My eyelids felt heavy. I tried to force my eyes open, but Gerard multiplied into two… no, three.

The light from the old streetlamp spread like a heat haze.

“What’s going on, why am I so dizzy.”

My voice, sounding as if my tongue had loosened, slipped out carelessly.

I was perfectly fine when we first walked into the restaurant together.

However, as the meal continued, people who recognized Gerard began glancing over one by one. That was where the trouble started.

It became hard to ignore the growing attention, so I buried my head in my plate and quickly finished my food.

“Bringing you here was pointless.”

“What if an article gets written.”

“You don’t need to worry about every little thing people who don’t know anything say.”

“I worry about every single one of those things.”

“Next time we’ll take a private room where we won’t be noticed.”

“If there is a next time.”

Everyone clearly looked curious about who the woman Lord Gerard Castion had brought with him, but fortunately there were no reporters inside the restaurant, so we avoided having any photos taken. Since this place was frequented by the upper class, there was no one who recognized me either.

The atmosphere also felt far from something that could be called a date, so it didn’t seem like tonight’s meal would turn into a scandal.

Feeling slightly relieved by that, I shoved a piece of meat bigger than my mouth inside.

“Cough.”

My throat got stuck, so I gulped down the first thing in front of me, which was wine, and staring blankly at the empty glass after that was my last memory.

“Louize, before I end up hauling you over my shoulder, just get on my back.”

I think I heard that several times.

“No. I can walk.”

When I wildly pushed away his body that was trying to lift me up with both fists, an irritated sigh fell from above my head.

In the end, Gerard wrapped an arm around my shoulders and started walking while supporting me.

Splash, splash. My gaze was naturally drawn to the puddle collected on the ground.

The sight of Gerard and me walking side by side was clearly reflected on the thin surface of the water.

For some reason, it suddenly felt strange.

For the past three years, I had only seen Gerard in dreams, yet here he was beside me.

“Hey, Lord Castion.”

“Yeah.”

“Why do you keep sleeping at my house? You’re rich.”

“Who knows.”

“Please answer seriously. You sleep on the floor every day without even a bed.”

“I don’t understand it either. So I’m thinking about it. Why I’m like this.”

…You didn’t remember something, did you?

The question I truly wanted to ask lingered at the tip of my throat, but even though I was drunk, I could still tell that some words shouldn’t be said out loud.

“So how far have you thought about it?”

I asked while tilting my head upward. Gerard must have felt my gaze, because he lightly pressed the back of my head and straightened my neck.

“Why is it that only your purification gets absorbed.”

“That’s because of Arvina…”

“Even when I received purification from other fourth-ranks, nothing changed. Only yours worked.”

“…When Arvina purified you, I was standing next to her. I guess I was affected by something then.”

“Right. Only Arvina and you can purify me.”

At the immediate correction, the uneasiness inside me settled down. I realized there was nothing to gain from carelessly moving my mouth.

For now, it might be better not to provoke Gerard and simply leave him alone.

I could just say that thanks to Arvina’s ability, my purification was absorbed by accident as well, and that the power disappeared over time. If that happened, his curiosity about me would gradually fade too.