You! Don’t Press that Button! - Chap 99

Days flew by, each carrying a complex tangle of emotions.

Eager to sort out my thoughts, I found myself huffing and puffing around the training grounds. The surrounding knights raised their fists high, cheering me on. Feeling slightly mocked, I narrowed my eyes and glared at them, only to be met with an unexpected sight. Behind them stood a group of elegantly dressed individuals.

Those people…

They were the elves I had seen in Karhan’s office. Why were they at the training grounds? I halted my frantic pace and ducked between the towering knights. Though I immediately drew some odd glances, I ignored them and stealthily peeked at the elves.

The elf who had exuded a beautiful grass scent when we passed in the office hallway stood at the front, surveying the training grounds. As he slowly turned his head, his gaze met mine.

For a moment, his seemingly indifferent eyes flashed sharply before curving into a gentle arc. He raised one hand, beckoning me over.

What’s this about? Wondering if the gesture was meant for me, I tilted my head quizzically. The elf’s smile deepened in response. How did he spot me among these hulking knights? Reluctantly, I moved slowly towards him where he stood just outside the training grounds. As I drew closer, the scent of grass grew stronger. I had never smelled such an intense aroma from other elves; it assaulted my nostrils.

When I stopped at a reasonable distance, the elf bowed his head slightly in greeting.

“We met before in the office, didn’t we?”

“Yes…”

Did he come all this way just to find me? As I stared at him with wide eyes, he raised a hand to cover his mouth and chuckled softly.

“It’s nice to see you again. I was curious about how humans live, so I came to take a look.”

As I followed the graceful curve of his eyes, I realized that he too had silver irises similar to Karhan’s. Having lived in a world of only black eyes until the age of twenty, I found them beautiful, perhaps because I had grown accustomed to Karhan’s. Lost in thought, I heard a light laugh.

“Ah, I’m sorry!” I exclaimed, mortified.

Why am I acting like this? I keep getting distracted by this elf. I thought I had built up sufficient immunity to beauty through Karhan, but apparently not. This elf was a different kind of refined beauty compared to Karhan’s bold features. If I were to compare him to a flower, he’d be closer to a lily.

With a deeply flushed face, I lowered my head. His calm response followed:

“It’s alright. It happens all the time.”

“Even if it’s common, it’s not particularly pleasant, is it? I’m sorry…”

Trailing off apologetically, I glanced up to find his silver eyes fixed on me. A shadow seemed to pass over his bright, sunlit gaze. Perhaps that’s why his gentle expression appeared to harden for a moment. As I blinked, the elf’s smiling lips parted.

“In that case… would you mind giving me a tour of the mansion?”

He spoke with a slight bow of his head. His silver hair, beautifully gradated, swayed behind his back. Without thinking, I nodded, inadvertently accepting his proposal.

What should I do? The truth was, my range of movement was extremely limited. I only frequented the small garden just below my room, Karhan’s office, and the training grounds. Though my clothes were made with special fabric to conceal my wings, I feared they might be noticeable if someone looked closely, so I hadn’t expanded my range of activities much.

In the end, I had no choice but to take the elf to the nearby garden. While it was indeed as beautiful as the view from Karhan’s room, there wasn’t anything particularly special to see. Feeling awkward, I scratched my cheek, and the elf let out a soft laugh.

“It’s a very pretty garden.”

Perhaps sensing my embarrassment, he continued speaking calmly. As we sat at the table in the center of the garden, a servant arrived with tea. A fragrant aroma wafted from the steaming cups. Surrounded by greenery, with the elf beside me and the scent of tea in the air, it was hard to keep my wits about me. As I blinked repeatedly, the elf spoke up.

“The Duke’s birthday is coming up soon, isn’t it?”

“…Birthday?”

The Duke must refer to Karhan, but his birthday? This was news to me. I blinked in surprise, causing the elf’s eyes to widen.

“Oh, you didn’t know?”

He looked at me with a puzzled expression. I was equally shocked by this unexpected information and nodded jerkily. The elf furrowed his brow, as if in sympathy.

“I believe it’s less than a month away… If you’re planning to prepare a gift, it might be a bit tight.”

“Isn’t a month plenty of time?”

“Well… I’ve heard that humans typically start preparing gifts for someone of the Duke’s status about a month in advance. Perhaps I’m mistaken?”

His eyes curved gently above his hand. A cool breeze swept through, causing his light-colored hair to flutter. It felt like watching a beautiful scene from a movie. The intense fragrance made my head spin.

I can’t keep doing this! Despite being in the middle of a conversation, I found myself entranced by the scent. I squeezed my eyes shut and shook my head vigorously, barely managing to hold onto my senses.

“Um, so what kind of gifts are usually prepared?” I asked, my voice tinged with urgency.

The elf tilted his head thoughtfully. “Well, I’m not sure since this is my first time in the human world. But Seol, haven’t you lived here for a long time? I would think you’d know the Duke’s preferences quite well.”

“Ah, well…”

I opened my mouth to respond but suddenly found my mind blank. Although I had spent a long time with Karhan, I didn’t really know what he liked. Come to think of it, I didn’t know much about Karhan at all. Even his age was just a guess, somewhere between his late twenties and early thirties.

As I fumbled for words, my lips moving silently, the elf narrowed his eyes.

“I heard from the servants that you two were quite close… I guess it was just a rumor.”

His soft murmur cut coldly through my heart. We are close, I wanted to say. But remembering that I didn’t even know about his birthday, I pressed my lips together again. Unable to say anything, I simply held my teacup, and the elf smiled faintly.

“Well, I suppose it’s possible to not know even after being together for a long time.”

The elf said this as he took a sip of tea. As the cup tilted and his head bowed slightly, I noticed one corner of his mouth lift almost imperceptibly.

Huh?

I involuntarily jerked my hand, causing the teacup to rattle. The elf set down his cup, his face clearly showing amusement.

“Come to think of it, I haven’t introduced myself. My name is Ruzel.”

“Ah, I’m—”

“I know. I’ve heard about you from the Duke.”

I see… An increasingly strange feeling washed over me. It felt as if he was subtly expressing hostility towards me, drawing a line. The warning bells in my head began to flash red. A cool breeze cut through the densely standing trees, passing between us. The beautiful scent of grass continued to waft over, almost oppressively.

The elf, who had been quietly savoring his tea, stood up. An elven attendant he had brought along draped a thin outer coat over his shoulders, as if on cue.

As I stared blankly at the scene, something about his appearance struck me as familiar, and I hurriedly rose from my seat.

“Th-that coat!”

My words tumbled out in a jumble, too flustered to form a complete sentence. Trying to express myself physically, I pointed with trembling fingers. The elf tilted his head quizzically.

“This coat?”

“Yes! Where… where did you get that?”

The elf lightly brushed the outer coat draped over his shoulders and smiled.

“The Duke gave it to me as a gift. I like it so much that I often carry it with me.”

“Karhan gave it to you…?”

“Yes.”

This can’t be. That coat was the one that had been delivered to me, which I had been so busy refusing. It was a gift Karhan had intended for me, so why did Ruzel have it? Did he immediately give it to someone else just because I refused it? My mouth opened and closed, but no questions came out. After observing me for a moment, the elf carefully fastened the coat he had draped over his shoulders and bowed his head slightly.

“I’ll be taking my leave now. I enjoyed our tea time.”

With those words, Ruzel turned his back on me, his eyes curving beautifully. The wind blew, causing flower petals to flutter gently. A delicate petal fell like a scene from a movie onto the nearly full teacup. Left alone in the garden, I stood motionless, staring at the floating petal.

When I had refused that coat, I thought Karhan and I needed to distance ourselves. I know now that it was foolish, but at the time, I believed that simply avoiding him was enough. I had been too busy with various things to remember it, but to think he immediately gave it as a gift to that elf. Well, I suppose I have no right to complain since I refused it, but… still, it was meant for me. Inexplicably, a sense of disappointment welled up from deep within my heart.

The meeting with the elf left me feeling nothing but unease. With heavy steps, I returned to my room, hugged a pillow, and curled up in a corner of the bed. As I bowed my head, Ruzel’s words floated through my mind.

‘Haven’t you lived here for a long time, Seol? I would think you’d know the Duke’s preferences quite well.’

‘I heard from the servants that you two were quite close… I guess it was just a rumor.’

‘Well, I suppose it’s possible to not know even after being together for a long time.’

It felt as if a sharp dagger had pierced my chest. Karhan and I were in a relationship, but when I thought about it, I knew nothing about him. I hadn’t even been curious. I only learned about his upcoming birthday through Ruzel… This point, in particular, gnawed at me.

My arms tightened around the pillow involuntarily. The tightly squeezed pillow creaked as if begging for mercy, but I didn’t loosen my grip. Burying my face in the soft pillow, I muttered:

“That coat… I could accept it now.”

Isn’t it too easy to give it to someone else just because I refused once? I pouted, grumbling inwardly.