What was promised once a month has turned into twice a month, then once a week.

  Then my time with Lilia continued to increase. I did not bother asking her again. I just accepted it.

  Even right now, I still wonder why I didn't bother checking the facts with her again. I just wanted to live at that moment.

  I really felt insecure about it. I was too scared to talk about it with Lilia again, given that she really did not want to touch that topic again at that time.

  I was afraid of being left alone again. I was scared of not seeing anyone again.

  Yes.

  What was important to us was not the past, but the present.

  It was comfortable that I didn’t want it to change.

  For the first time, I forgot about my situation. I forgot about my trouble. I forgot about the outside world.

  I could say that I was living my best at that moment.

  Yes, I was too relieved at this time.

  I got to feel those warm again.

  I got to meet Lilia and talk to her.

  I thought Lilia was too shy to talk about it. About the time she touched my body, about the time she washed me.

  Her reaction at that time also pointed out that I'm in that direction too. I might be full of myself, but I was not a narcissist after all.

  After that day, in addition to new books, Lilia personally brought many entertainment items with her.

  At one time, she would bring a card game to me. She taught me how to play it with her. She was a great player. I never got to win.

  At one point, she also brought a board game. I spent most of my time playing with her. However, she was not good at it. She would pout whenever she lost.

  So, I always deliberately lost to her.

  Whenever she won, she would jump up and smile broadly.

  She would also occasionally laugh out loud.

  She really loved to win.

  Additionally, for our indoor activities, with her help, I occasionally took a stroll around the hut at night when it was bright enough to see outside.

  And each time she injected her divinity into me, I would silently sit there and look at her profile.

  I really could not take my eyes off her.

  We always enjoyed our time like that.

  Over time, I stopped reading the book as I found my time spent with her more enjoyable.

  After she departed, I would spend my time reminiscing about our interaction as I smiled until I fell into a coma again.

  I even forgot to write my diary sometimes.

  Still, she did not seem to mind it.

  I could still find a new book neatly placed on the table from time to time.

  She even silently brought back the old book so as not to make the table too crammed.

  However, I found one embarrassing thing I could not bring up in our talk.

  I knew that during my coma, she might have cleaned my body.

  She might see everything.

  I was really embarrassed about it.

  I tried to ask her not to do it.

  However, I was unsure about how to talk about it.

  And looking at Lilia, she didn't seem bothered by it.

  So, I, as a man, should not be bothered by it.

  That was why I could not ask her to stop doing it.

  Well, at the end of the day, I could just do what Duke Raven told me.

  I would take responsibility for her.

  Yes, that thing might also be why Duke Raven refused to tell me about Lilia.

  And that thing might also be why he always asked me to take responsibility for her after that.

  If you stumble upon this tale on Amazon, it's taken without the author's consent. Report it.

  Of course, I am resolved to take responsibility for Lilia.

  Now, we are entering our second year of being together.

  And it was recently that Duke Raven caught on to Lilia’s presence during my awake time.

  The first time he saw Lilia with me, when I was awake, he was in pure confusion. He even drew his sword on her.

  I could see that after Duke Raven escorted her back, Lilia would sneak back to the hut to meet me.

  He might have found it absurd. He was a swordmaster after all. His sense was superhuman. Having a young girl like her escape his detection might hurt his pride.

  When my time staying awake increased, so did the time Lilia spent with me. So, one day, he got back in time to check on me when I was talking with Lilia.

  That was when he saw her with me.

  I could not forget the disappointed look he showed me at that time.

  It put me in confusion. He evaluated me as if I were human trash. That was how I felt from him at that time.

  It might be my mistake.

  At that time, the moment he entered my hut, he asked as he drew his sword. “Who are you?”

  To his sudden entrance, Lilia jumped up in surprise. When she turned to look at him and saw him draw his sword, she hiccupped, “hic?”

  Seeing them like that, I got between them and tried to soothe the situation.

  “Duke Raven, please put your sword away. This is Lilia. Wasn't she the one you talked about?” I looked at each of them in turn when I explained that.

  Yet, he stared at me as if I were a madman. “Huh?”

  When I was about to ask him why he was confused at that time, Lilia’s voice came from behind me. “Oh, you are also a Duke like my father?”

  That time, when I heard that, I turned back to look at her.

  It was my turn to show my confused look. “Huh?”

  And that time, I also heard Duke Raven’s voice. “Huh?”

  He appeared to be as confused as I was.

  Seeing our bewildered faces, as if she just remembered something important, she stood up and gave us her formal greeting. Well, to me, it might be a bit late. We have long skipped that part.

  So, I thought that she might do it to Duke Raven. “Ah, nice to meet you, your grace. I am Lilia, the youngest daughter of Duke Willow.”

  It was a bit clumsy. But given our circumstances, it was understandable.

  To be able to give a formal greeting to others when a person was drawing a sword in front of her, she was already doing well.

  Yet, that graceful behavior did not suit her.

  I did not know why. But she appeared to miss something.

  Facing her formal creation, Duke Raven dropped his sword.

  Seeing him like that, I sighed in relief.

  Then, I turned to Lilia. I needed to check that fact with her again.

  She never told me about her background.

  I cautiously asked her. “Lilia, you are the Duke Willow’s daughter?”

  Facing me, she reverted to her usual behavior. “Ah, yes. More accurately, I was adopted by my father.” She answered me with her hands on her hips. She confidently said that as if she were proud of it.

  Facing this new fact, I felt disheartened. I was not happy that she hid that fact from me.

  Thus, I dejectedly asked her. “You never told me about it.” I did not try to make it seem as if she had betrayed me.

  However, as if not noticing my inner thought, she just scratched her cheek and lightly brushed it. “Ah, sorry. I think it was not necessary.” Well, it was her after all.

  I really thought that it was her real self.

  Although she hid her background from me, she showed me her true self without any pretense. That was what gave me confidence.

  At that time, to respond to her laid-back behavior, I shouted out. “This is big.”

  Yes, that was an important issue.

  For her, a duke’s daughter to be here. It would cause many political issues.

  Thinking about that, I began to understand more about her previous reluctance to keep our encounter a secret.

  Additionally, if Lilia and I worked together, we could gain more support from the South in our fight against the clergy faction.

  Ah, well, I wasn't thinking of anything inappropriate.

  However, she pointed out something that I had always overlooked. “I mean. You also never introduced yourself. So, I think it was our tacit agreement.”

  Yes, we never formally introduced ourselves.

  In our ‘first meeting’, I only asked her for her name, and she simply replied by giving her name.

  After that, I never once told her my name. And she never asked for it.

  All this time, she has always called me ‘you’.

  It was really my blunder. In my defense, I tried to find an excuse. “I think you already know since you are coming here.”

  After all, everyone should have known that I was here. And wasn’t it she who came to help me despite knowing the risk?

  Before we could discuss further, Duke Raven pushed aside and stood in front of Lilia.

  “Lilia, you said?... Please come with me.”

  After he said that, he grabbed her hand and pulled her to follow him.

  Yes, he took her out of the hut in great haste. I tried to follow them, but they were too fast.

  Then, after a while, Duke Raven came back alone.

  Seeing him come back alone with a dark face, my heart jumped out.

  Then I thought there was no way he could hurt Lilia. After all, she was Duke Willow’s daughter. That was the only thing that could reassure me of her safety.

  Perhaps, he escorted her back.

  It was night after all. We could not keep a duke’s daughter out in the middle of the night.

  We needed to send her back home.

  I asked him to explain his behavior. “What is wrong with you, Duke Raven?” It was not his usual behavior.

  Still with his eyebrow knitted, he evaded my question. “It is nothing of your concern, your highness.”

  Then I looked behind him and asked to confirm her whereabouts. “Where is Lilia?”

  Yes, he escorted her back. “... I escorted her back….”

  After he reported this fact, he asked me about my encounter with Lilia. “So, could you tell me how you two met?” That was an expected question.

  I knew he would ask me about it when he found out about it. So, I readily recounted our encounter and subsequent events to him. His face was getting darker and darker as time passed.

  At the end of my tale, he rudely let out a sigh, “... This is fate.” It was as if he gave up on something.

  Seeing his rude behavior, I asked him to explain things to me further. “Why are you so exaggerated?”

  “... you two are not meant to meet yet.” He just weakly said that as he looked up to the sky. We could see many stars that night. “Not this early.” He added.

  I did not know why he showed me that kind of behavior at that time.

  Still, I let it go and only focused on the most important thing.

  It was my time with Lilia. I needed to ask for his permission to meet her. I could not bring myself to separate from her. “... I still want to meet her. It is too lonely here.”

  Hearing my plea, he shifted his gaze from the sky to my face.

  His face showed me that time was full of many emotions. However, I could clearly see uncertainty in his face.

  He continued to look at me like that for some time before responding to my plea. “... if this is your decision, I will not interfere. ……. I talked with Lady Lilia. She would continue to come here.” He gave me a disappointed look.

  However, I was unbothered by it, as I was busily coping with my delight. “... You have my thanks.”

  Seeing me like that, Duke Raven let out a sigh again. After that, he turned his back on me. Then, he silently walked toward the forest by himself.

  I skipped everything he said and only focused on his acceptance of my request.

  We no longer had to hide our encounter.

  I was pleased at that time.

  I even forgot to see Duke Raven off.

  I am looking forward to our next meeting, Lilia.