The Author's Will

54 | Mirrored Blades

　　 That was...

Unexpected... Irene thought, her face flushed as red as a beetroot as she hurried through the maze, back the way she came. With her elaborate little gown fluttering from her movements, her mind became a frenzy of panicked thoughts as she realised what had just happened.

I talked rudely to the first prince...

What if he comes after me because of this?!

As she continued almost aimlessly running through the endless labyrinth, Irene couldn't even tell if she was going the right way anymore. That was her first time meeting Daniel in this life, and he was as beautiful as she thought. Although — she could've sworn she saw his face somewhere before. Perhaps she was mixing it up with someone else's. Either way, it didn't seem he knew who she was, seeing as he asked for her name.

"Let's just hope he forgets about me by the time we next meet..." She mumbled to herself, absentmindedly. The older Daniel was not someone who one could easily mess with. In fact — if compared to other characters, he would become as frighteningly powerful as Rayvis and Rudien. There would be no walking out alive if he planned on killing a person. And Daniel never hesitated.

Just as Irene was about to hurry past the next corner, her eyes widened at the sight of a familiar face coming right toward her.

"—WAH!"

Someone collided into her with a sudden impact — causing Irene to fall back into the grass with a yelp. It seemed they accidentally barged into each other at the worst timing.

The young man in front of her winced as he ran a hand through his silky turquoise hair. Those amber eyes were screwed shut, as Irene recollected herself and turned to face him with a look of bewilderment.

"Ivan?" She gave him a look with slight apprehension, and her voice quickly brought the boy's attention. As he faced her in slight embarrassment, Irene noticed the boy's cheeks tint a light shade of pink.

"What are you doing here?" She asked him, but he faltered and struggled to find a reason. Sighing softly, the white-haired girl stood up and gently brushed the dirt off her skirt, realising from Ivan's reaction — he came to look for her.

"...I saw you coming outside by yourself, so..." He hesitated, averting his gaze. Long, straight bangs concealed his eyes, but the little beauty spot above his cheek was still visible.

Irene offered him a hand to help him up. Considering they were in a rather awkward place ever since he degraded Mikael a few months ago, she wasn't exactly happy to see him right now. Although she knew he was just a silly kid who made mistakes like any other eleven-year-old, she still couldn't let go of the insulting attitude he had toward the prince.

"You followed me here, didn't you?" Irene sighed, crossing her arms after helping him to his feet. He had grown noticeably taller than the last time she saw him. "So I'm guessing you have something you want to say?"

He wore the look of a frightened little kitten who was hiding from a big dog, and although it was a cute face he was making - she wasn't going to let him go that easily. Ivan fiddled with his fingers, eyes downcast and shoes shifting uncomfortably. But he soon gathered the courage to speak up again.

"I-Irene, I wanted to apologise..." He began to say, and she stayed quiet so she could listen to what he had to say. "I know it's been a long time since we last talked... But the time I spent after that day was horrible - until I learnt my lesson and realised I was wrong. I was too scared to say this earlier, but I really shouldn't have said those things to the prince, or to you..."