The End of Your Arrogance - Chapter 66

He slid into the seat next to Evelyn, glancing at her with curiosity.

“What’s going on here?”

“…”

As she remained silent, Ilya grew uneasy. “What was that just now? Was it about me, by any chance?”

“Naughty… Ilya.”

“What?”

Ilya was momentarily speechless at her candid response, like a child caught off guard. After a moment, he burst into laughter, teasing Evelyn as he covered his face with his palm.

“I turned a year older, but it seems like I’ve become more difficult to understand.”

“It’s not that you’ve become difficult… you’ve just become more honest.”

Evelyn found him annoyingly carefree, behaving as if nothing had happened. She turned her head aside, gazing at him with a tired expression.

“If you came to say more unpleasant things… let’s leave it for tomorrow.”

Ilya’s expression contorted.

“Today is one of the rare happy days in my life… I don’t want it to be painful.”

Evelyn turned her head away, afraid that tears might well up. Whenever he smiled at her, she swelled up like cotton candy. Each time, the anticipation she had buried deep inside surged, and the guilt faded a bit.

Despite being a sinner, she clung to the small gestures of affection he showed her, despising herself every time. How loathsome! Every time he spat out harsh words, it hurt even more. If only he had been like that from the beginning, she might have been able to endure it. The occasional tenderness behind the aloofness made her ache even more.

The experience of expectations soaring to the sky, only to crash to the ground in an instant, was painful no matter how many times she went through it.

“If you have nothing to say, then I’ll leave.”

Evelyn rose from her seat. “Ouch.”

Having worn heels and danced for a long time, her legs ached as she stood up. Unwilling to show weakness in front of him, Evelyn forced herself to swallow her groans and begin walking.

Ilya, whose hearing was several times more sensitive than others, didn’t miss her soft moans. He stood up, following Evelyn. Turning around, he bent his knees, crouching down. Confused, Evelyn stared at his broad back.

“Get on.”

“What?”

Evelyn thought her ears were playing tricks on her. Get on? What on earth was he talking about?

“Are you going to stay here all night, or do you want to be carried back to the Bellina Pavilion?”

Unusually patient, Ilya waited for Evelyn. He squatted, seemingly uncomfortable, but didn’t rush her.

Evelyn reluctantly approached him. Lowering herself, she wrapped her arms around his neck. Relaxing her body against his sturdy back, she felt him lift her lightly after supporting her hips with his arms.

As Evelyn stiffly maintained an awkward position, he sighed deeply.

“If you tense up, it’s hard for both of us. Relax.”

Although it didn’t seem likely that it would work the first time, Evelyn pressed herself a bit closer to his back. Ilya started walking, seemingly improving from before.

Upon leaving the chapel, the surprised faces of Bellina and the guards came into view. Embarrassed, Evelyn buried her face in his neck. She felt him flinch but had no other place to hide.

“It’s heavy.”

As Evelyn mumbled softly, Ilya casually replied, “I’ve carried heavier things on the battlefield. This is nothing.”

“Whether it’s heavy or not…” Evelyn muttered to herself.

Carrying her, Ilya began walking towards the guesthouse. Initially tense, Evelyn gradually adapted to the uncomfortable posture. Eventually, she even enjoyed the stroll, swaying along with Ilya as he carried her on his back.

Ilya smirked and mumbled softly, “You seem happy today.”

“Yes, I am. I used to think birthdays were meaningless, but it seems they’re not.”

Evelyn replied honestly. Every year on her birthday, Marquis Madus fell ill. Her father, Ayatol Madus, indulged in alcohol, jewels, and women.

During the days leading up to the family’s birthday party, Arcrid Castle would descend into a frenzy of celebration. Alcohol flowed like a river, and scantily clad men and women indulged in various corners. Evelyn’s mother was busy participating in the party, leaving her daughter behind.

“I used to hate the annual return of my birthday, but now I think I’ll look forward to it.”

After hesitating for a moment, Evelyn asked him, “How about you?”

“What?”

“The birthday party.”

Ilya had nothing to say to his wife. After all, he had never experienced a birthday party himself. He honestly answered, “My mother… Every year on my birthday, she would dress up nicely and go to the party to find a new lover.”

The movement of his swaying legs came to a halt.

Ilya continued his childhood story with a calm tone, “My mother hated the day I was born. She thought I ruined her life. Well, she wasn’t entirely wrong.”

Unconsciously, Evelyn tightened her grip on his neck.

“Ilya.”

She softly called her husband’s name.

“When I got married and had a family, I always wanted to try having a birthday party together. You know, with a cake, candles, singing the birthday song, and exchanging small gifts, it seemed happy.”

Ilya paused for a moment, halting in his steps.

“You wanted to do something like that with someone like me.”

Evelyn let out a soft sigh. “Because it’s you. After the war ends, if you come back safely…”

I wanted to have a birthday party with our son. Evelyn swallowed the rest of her words. Without asking further, she resumed walking, the sound of their steps filling the quiet night.

Evelyn tilted her head slightly to gaze at the sky. The full moon adorned the night sky.

She felt a resemblance between herself and the moon. Like the full moon that illuminated the night sky so brightly, Evelyn’s first love, which began with her husband she first saw at a wedding venue at the age of twenty, kept growing endlessly.

“After tonight, that moon will gradually start to tilt. Like the moon setting, will my love also tilt?” Useless thoughts filled her mind, and drowsiness gradually overcame her. Evelyn rested her head on his back.

I feel strange today. If he had carried me like this before, I would have been happily flying in the sky alone.

Evelyn’s heart, in contact with the man’s back, was strangely calm. Although it was beating irregularly, it was different from before. She used to worry that her heart was racing wildly every time they touched, as if there was a problem, but fortunately, it seemed fine now.

Evelyn fell asleep on her husband’s back.

****

The next morning, Evelyn woke up late. Fragmented memories of the previous night came to her. “My leg hurt, and I remember Ilya carrying me, but after that, I have no memory. Probably…”

Evelyn sat up abruptly in bed.

“Oh, what do I do? How can I face that man now?”

To clear her mind, Evelyn shook her head vigorously. Something sparkled in her blurry vision. Unconsciously, she reached toward it. Her fingertips touched something solid. Evelyn grasped it and raised it to eye level.

An emerald necklace with a sprout-shaped pendant hangs from a long silver chain.

Under the sunlight, the gem radiated a vibrant glow of life, and Evelyn stared at it in a daze for a while. She delicately touched the solid gem with her fingertips.

“He remembered.”

Not long after marrying him, when Ilya was busy with war preparations, Evelyn pestered him. Knowing it was an immature request, she didn’t want to send her husband off to battle like that.

“Ilya, shall we go to the night market? Before you leave, let’s have a date, just once.”

He seemed quite surprised by her unexpected request. She chuckled, recalling the embarrassed expression he wore.

Reluctant as he seemed, Ilya dutifully fulfilled his husbandly duties.

Before departing, he draped a coat made of animal fur, larger than his own body, over Evelyn.

“It’s almost spring, isn’t it? This coat is too thick.”

“It’s still cold.”

Wearing the oversized coat, Evelyn wandered around the night market near the border. Spotting an old woman’s display in the corner, she eagerly rushed over. She crouched down and observed hastily crafted jewelry made of crude stones.

A necklace made of a stone with the exact same color as her eyes caught Evelyn’s attention. She picked it up and, turning to her husband, who stood awkwardly behind her, exclaimed,

“Ilya, isn’t this sprout-shaped necklace pretty?”

At that time, Ilya wasn’t as wealthy as he is now. Being the son of a Duke, the Suzdal Castle he inherited could be described as modest or, less kindly, impoverished. Moreover, the Duke was heavily involved in preparations for war against the Tartars at that time.

Even Evelyn, who was quite naïve, knew the circumstances to some extent.

“But this should be okay. And it’s beautiful.”

“You don’t suit something like that,”

Ilya said with a deeply sunken face. Disheartened, Evelyn put the necklace down and stood up.

“If it doesn’t suit me, why?”

Evelyn rose and walked towards the place with a full-length mirror. With trembling hands, she lifted the necklace and hung it around her neck. The emerald necklace, matching the color of her eyes, seemed to complement her perfectly.

The necklace she had wanted as a gift from the man she fell in love with at first sight came into her possession after more than two years. Of course, it wasn’t the crude stone necklace from back then; it was crafted with the finest emeralds.

Yet, the fact that he remembered this and gifted it to her was astonishing.

Suddenly, she recalled the voice she heard in the half-sleep of the previous night.

“It’s not yet midnight. So… happy birthday, my lady.”

Evelyn buried that voice, tingling like a spring breeze, deep in her heart. She no longer wanted to be swayed by the affectionate Ilya.