Chapter 38. Imprinting

A chill ran down his spine. It felt as if the ground beneath his feet had suddenly collapsed.

Rapellian felt as if he were floating in a vast, unfathomable void where he couldn’t see even an inch ahead, not knowing where the bottom was.

When he became unable to do anything due to the numbing sensation that felt like paralysis, everything that had been moving frantically began to flow slowly.

Then the world stopped, and the noise that had been disturbing his ears gradually disappeared until finally all surroundings fell silent.

As Rapellian sank into perfect stillness, the things that constituted him became loud within him.

His beating heart and the blood flowing through his veins felt more distinct than ever before.

These vivid sensations were directed solely toward one person, and it felt as if all his senses were being completely stolen by someone.

His body stiffened involuntarily and his breath caught.

He clenched his fist and gritted his teeth at this suffocating feeling he had never experienced before.

“Haah.”

As he finally burst out the breath that had been painfully trapped, the people caught in his field of vision disappeared one by one.

The gazes approaching him all scattered.

The world faded to black and white, and light disappeared.

Eventually, every existence vanished from his sight.

Except for only, solely one person.

‘This can’t be……’

All of Rapellian’s senses were directed only toward her, and existed only for her.

The only thing he could do now was focus entirely on the approaching figure who held a shy, lovely smile.

If he were a target, she would hit the bullseye every time, never missing a single shot.

“Young Lord.”

A very clear and pure voice flowed into his ears where no other sound had been heard.

Rapellian felt as if he might collapse right then and there at the sweet voice that seemed to melt his ears.

With each step she took closer, Rapellian’s nerves focused more and more on her.

Her hair, which rippled like waves with each step she took, was incredibly luscious.

Every strand of hair fluttering in the breeze was too vivid to miss.

Her snow-white skin, contrasting with her midnight-black hair, glowed with vitality, and he could hardly take his eyes off her transparent, sparkling ruby-colored eyes.

“Young Lord.”

His entire body tingled at the refreshing voice that struck his ears once more.

Rapellian could only react when she, who had approached as if in slow motion without missing anything, suddenly reached his side.

He barely managed to call out the name that felt both familiar and somehow different today.

“Rasiel.”

At his gentle resonance, Rasiel curved her eyes pleasantly and brightly curled up the corners of her lips.

At that moment, the thin thread of reason that Rapellian had been barely maintaining snapped with an audible sound.

“Young Lord, have you been well……”

He moved instinctively.

“Ah.”

A slightly surprised sound escaped from Rasiel.

Nevertheless, Rapellian, as if entranced yet with blue eyes burning red-hot like never before, pulled in Rasiel’s waist and cupped her cheek with his feverishly hot hand.

“Rasiel.”

“Y-Young Lord.”

Rasiel’s eyes widened like large candy in tension and surprise.

Rapellian was clearly reflected in her large, transparent, clear eyes that forgot even to blink.

Discovering himself embedded in those ruby-colored eyes, Rapellian finally realized what he had done.

He quickly stepped back, hiding his deep embarrassment.

“S-sorry.”

“Are you alright? Your complexion……”

“I’m fine. I was just so happy to see you after such a long time.”

Rapellian blurted out an excuse for the first time in his life.

“I thought you might not recognize me because I’ve changed so much.”

“How could I…… not recognize you.”

He pretended to be calm, firmly holding back his voice that threatened to tremble from embarrassment.

“But weren’t these flowers meant for me?”

“You’re the only person in the world who could surprise me like this. I’ll buy you new ones.”

“It’s fine. No one stepped on them. I can just pick them up……”

They both bent down at the same time. Not only that, but their hands touched the bouquet almost simultaneously.

Rapellian’s hand touched first, and Rasiel’s hand landed on top of his.

Rapellian felt as if electricity was coursing through their touching hands.

He was truly going crazy.

Now even the cool air felt burning hot, and the breeze gently stirring his hair felt as stimulating as a knife blade.

He thought this must be what it feels like when your hair stands on end and goosebumps cover your entire body.

“You shouldn’t pick these up yourself.”

Rapellian picked up the bouquet and handed it to Rasiel.

“I won’t do this in front of others anymore.”

“……Right.”

His gaze naturally fell on Rasiel’s mouth as she smiled shyly.

Rapellian almost got distracted by the strange sensation again but turned his body away from her completely.

“Let’s go home.”

“Yes.”

He had already taken a step forward but turned back and extended his hand.

No matter how flustered he was, he had to do what needed to be done.

But why was holding Rasiel’s hand so nerve-wracking?

He secretly swallowed a dry gulp.

It had been a very long time since Rapellian had escorted someone, but in contrast, Rasiel was now quite accustomed to being escorted.

Rapellian had opened that channel, and Briel and Riello had diligently maintained the path he created.

“Thank you.”

“No need for thanks.”

“Because it’s a gentleman’s duty to assist a lady?”

“Yes, that’s right.”

Rapellian saw Rasiel’s growth in the sentence that reminded him of the past.

The gently curved eyes were the same as five years ago, but her response was different from before.

It was a refined response that would have been unimaginable back then.

That wasn’t all. She had grown so tall that it was impossible to recall the past, and her appearance no longer showed any trace of having been a street girl.

The ivory dress and dark blue long coat she wore over it suited her tall, slender figure perfectly.

Her fine hair, small and soft facial features containing plump, juicy cheeks and lips, along with her straight nose bridge and large eyes were beautiful enough to make anyone turn to look.

Her voice had always been pretty, but compared to before, it had gained strength and weight, and her speech pattern and accent were not much different from the central nobility.

Her behavior and posture had also changed significantly; whereas before she had been like a timid baby animal, now she had become a proper, truly dignified lady.

Rapellian realized anew.

For beastmen, five years was not long, an unremarkable time, but for humans, five years changed so many things.

And the more vividly he felt this fact, the faster his heart pounded.

⁕⁕⁕

The car that had left the train station smoothly entered the ducal residence in the capital, Doska.

All the employees of the ducal residence, who had been informed in advance of Rasiel’s arrival, were lined up.

The old Rasiel would have been intimidated and nervous, but now she handled even such grand ceremonies very calmly.

“Hello. I hope you’ve all been well. Ah, I’ll carry this myself.”

When an employee stepped forward to take the bouquet Rasiel was holding, she gently extended her hand in refusal. The gesture resembled Michaela so much that Rapellian couldn’t help but smile slightly.

The employees of the capital ducal residence had to struggle to keep their jaws from dropping at his small smile, but Rapellian paid no attention to their situation and continued speaking.

“Sister said she never let you out of her sight, and it seems she was telling the truth.”

“She taught me many things. And I learned many things.”

“Perhaps even her complaints?”

Rapellian tried not to be conscious of the hand he was holding by making a joke-like remark and desperately controlling his body to prevent sweat from seeping into his palm as he escorted Rasiel upstairs.

Rasiel, completely unaware of his predicament, naturally accepted his escort and nodded at his words.

“His Maj…… I also learned that he is quite the romantic.”

“He’s a master at packaging himself.”

Rapellian recalled Ian whining to him and shook his head as if disgusted, releasing his tension.

Rasiel tried to hold it in but eventually laughed out loud.

A rare vitality flew into the always quiet ducal residence.

“This will be your room.”

They soon arrived at the bedroom where Rasiel would stay after chatting along the way.

Rapellian turned the doorknob, opened the door, and stepped aside.

Unlike in the north, here Rasiel’s room was on the opposite side from Rapellian’s room. In the rectangular structure of the mansion, Rapellian’s room was on the right side of the central staircase, while Rasiel’s room was prepared on the left.

“There’s still time until dinner, so rest well. Taking a nap wouldn’t be a bad idea.”

“Will you be staying in the mansion today?”

“For now. I might have to go out briefly, but I’ve taken a vacation.”

“Because of me, unnecessarily……”

“I’d like you to know that thanks to you, His Majesty let me go. He’s a persistent and tenacious person.”

Rapellian sighed as he finished speaking.

Rasiel nodded in understanding and took a step into the room.

“Ah, Rasiel. I was thinking of giving Jane about a week’s vacation?”

Now that Jane was Rasiel’s person, it was right to ask her about such matters.

“Ah. Of course. Jane, take a good rest.”

“I’ll assign others to Rasiel, so don’t worry and take your rest.”

“Yes. Young Master, Miss, thank you.”

“Then rest. I’ll be going now.”

Rapellian moved away from Rasiel’s room, ignoring his nerves and cells that didn’t want to separate from her.

At that moment, Rasiel’s voice caught him from behind.

“Ah, come to think of it, should I call you Marquis now?”

After a while without an answer to Rasiel’s question, Rapellian clenched and unclenched his fist as if he had goosebumps, then opened his mouth.

“……Call me by my name instead.”

“How could I do that?”

“There’s nothing stopping you. You are…… my person.”

Rapellian hesitated for a moment, then finished his words and turned around, striding away.

After leaving the corridor where Rasiel’s room was located and descending the stairs, he walked elegantly and with discipline at first, but eventually entered his bedroom with extremely quick steps and slammed the door shut.

He exhaled a long sigh, leaned his back against the door, and slumped to the floor.

“What is…… this?”

Would it feel like this if one were hit hard by a speeding car?

It felt as if Rasiel had rushed toward him at tremendous speed and collided with him, imprinting herself all over his body.

Rapellian clutched his chest.

He simply couldn’t breathe properly.

“This must be……”

No matter how much he thought about it, there was only one definition for this feeling.

“Love at first sight?”

Rapellian wrapped his well-groomed hair carelessly and rested his forehead between his knees.

‘Changing this much in just 5 years is cheating. She was definitely only this big……’

No. Even 5 years ago, Rasiel wasn’t just a child.

She looked like a child because she was so small and thin, but she wasn’t that young.

Hadn’t he consciously tried to treat her as a lady?

As he traced back through the past, he suddenly wondered, ‘Was it really love at first sight at the station just now?’

“It was certainly unusual.”

He knew that his behavior toward Rasiel was somewhat peculiar.

From the first time they met, he was strangely drawn to her, and that wasn’t enough—he always kept Rasiel in the corner of his eye and was always the first to act when it came to Rasiel’s matters.

That’s who Rasiel was to him.

Someone extraordinary and special who took him out of his daily routine.

Even then, he had thought, ‘Why am I acting like this?’ But at that time, he thought it was because Rasiel was so small and weak compared to them, making him concerned.

Rapellian was recalling the events from five years ago in more detail when he suddenly frowned.

In his emerging memories, the twins were with Rasiel.

“Huh!”

Rapellian let out a laugh of disbelief.

‘I hated it.’

Rasiel mingling with the twins. Those children hugging her without reserve, holding her hand, and rubbing their cheeks against hers.

Sometimes he couldn’t stand it and eventually picked Rasiel up in his arms.

‘It was already happening back then.’

His unconscious was already following Rasiel.

He just hadn’t realized it.

“I’m not an idiot. What a fool.”

It seemed he had already captured her gaze, captured her body, and even captured her heart.

It’s just that back then, Rasiel was young, so his reason had suppressed and endured his instincts.

Rapellian repeatedly exhaled deeply, ran his hand through his hair, and then brought it down to rub his face.

Suddenly, a pain like his eyeballs were burning flared up.

He squeezed his eyes shut and clenched his fist tightly.

The veins on his forehead bulged, and his knuckles turned white.

“Ugh.”

Despite gritting his teeth and trying to endure, a faint groan escaped.

Forgetting even how to breathe while enduring the pain, he suddenly had a thought and rushed to the mirror, forgetting even the pain.

“Ah.”

Something serious had happened.

The Rapellian reflected in the mirror looked the same as usual, but also different from usual.

His left iris had taken on the same red color as Rasiel’s.

“Imprinting……?”