Chapter 16: I've never seen her act like that!

While thinking about Maru's gallant spirits, Thadeus belatedly realized that Maru was lost in thought again. A mischievous thought suddenly invaded his mind, and he quickly acted upon it, easily climbing out the window.

Seeing this, one couldn't help but wonder if it was alright if it was easy to enter the room of a young lady as pretty as Maru...but the intricate magic enchantments well hidden throughout the inn prevented anyone who was not of the Aragon lineage from entering illegally.

That's how Thadeus was able to enter; although he wasn't aware of it himself, he only knew that there was magic securing the place...

Anyway, Thadeus stealthily entered Maru's room, approaching the unsuspecting girl with an amused smile slightly visible on his face.

He then stood beside her, who was still deep in thought, and whispered his mocking voice near her ear, and feeling that this was not enough, he even gently pinched her cheek, taking her by surprise.

She looked at him in panic and frowned, putting on an expression that literally screamed “What are you doing!?”

What she said didn't stray far from that impression. "What are you doing in here?" she quickly rebuked him, almost bristling like an angry kitten in surprise.

How beautiful... He couldn't help but think for a moment. He'd never seen her like that. Not that he could remember, at least.

“Well, you didn’t answer my question and you were lost in the clouds, so I came to bring you back down to earth.”

Putting aside his wandering and meaningless thoughts, Thadeus simply answered him with an indifferent gesture, observing the increasingly rich expressions on Maru's face with a strange sense of discomfort and excitement beneath his mask.

She was clearly flustered by his words, something she didn't understand, and suddenly she quietly told him, "You can't just walk into other people's rooms like that..."

Although it was obvious she was planning to continue, Thadeus couldn't ignore her words and stopped her. "But you never complained about that before? Why are you complaining about them now, Hmm?"

It was true. Although it wasn't at first, for three years now Thadeus has been able to enter the room whenever he wanted with her tacit permission. Of course, there had recently been an incident where he saw her changing clothes because of it and almost made a scene... but she didn't tell him to stop, he remembered.

“Cohou!”

“?” Thadeus could only watch in bewilderment as Maru acted as if she had suddenly choked on something, completely speechless at her response. It was as if she had actually forgotten about it, and that was quite disconcerting.

What was going on here?

With many questions like that swirling around in his head, Thadeus decided to choose one of them, the simplest, to break the awkward atmosphere between them.

His gaze fell on the bed, where the slightly fogged-up hand mirror had fallen—clear from how rarely it had been used until now—and he looked up at her. “Why are you carrying a mirror? I didn’t know you were particularly vain.”

He said it with the intention of making her feel a little embarrassed, but what he received in return was an unexpectedly rather rude “It’s none of your business.”

He looked at her, his brow furrowed in pure bewilderment. Even when Maru had rejected him in the past, had she ever acted like this?

No, even now, Maru should still consider such behavior beneath her, as she was a child of excellent pedigree. How could she suddenly say something so passive-aggressive?

…if she knew the rude things Maru was thinking at that moment, she might have fainted from shock.

Suppressing the urge to scold her for that attitude, Thadeus took a different approach; expressing his concern to the girl in front of him. “Are you okay? What kind of nightmare did you have that made you act like that? Ah, although I’m not saying that showing more emotion than usual isn’t good.”

That was something Thadeus believed there was no arguing about. After all, hiding one's emotions too much was something that harmed one spiritually... that's what the eldest sister at the Church's orphanage had said, but Thadeus still believed her words even though he honestly didn't understand much.

"You know, I'm glad you're expressing yourself better and all. But I feel like you've been very different from usual since this morning. Something like this can't just happen..."

Hearing what he had to say, Maru blinked, slightly puzzled; as if she didn't understand what he was talking about, before appearing thoughtful again, and Thadeus sighed, slightly annoyed, before walking over to the bed and sitting on it.

For a moment, Maru looked at him as if he were committing some kind of sin, which made him wonder, “What did I do wrong now…?” before he shook the thought off and continued the conversation, expressing his conjecture with some caution.

“Maru, this…” Thadeus began, slightly hesitant. “That dream…is it about your father again?”

At those words, Maru froze, then looked at him with wide eyes in disbelief.

That expression... Was it true? Thadeus wondered, feeling sad and uncomfortable about this delicate matter that had tormented his friend for years. Talking about nightmares about the event was almost taboo unless she wanted to, but this time, she couldn't help it.

“What… What do you mean?” She asked nervously, clearly looking foolish in his eyes.

What was he playing at? Thadeus wasn't going to let him do that.

“You know what he talked about, that constant thing about how you and your mother had to flee far away for your own safety with baby Lily, while….. they left your father behind to fight…” Thadeus hesitated, unsure how to continue with this topic that encompassed a tragic incident like that that separated members of what he supposed was a happy family.

Maru's face became completely expressionless upon hearing all this, causing her to gulp, but she gathered her courage and continued her questioning in simple words.

“I mean, maybe I’m talking too far about this while you’re having another nightmare about your noble past, but….”

“Argh!”

“Maru!? What the hell is with that strange sound?”

Thadeus could only stop in complete surprise when he saw Maru begin to hold his head with both hands in a sign of what was clearly frustration.

He really couldn't understand what was happening to him...

I've never seen her act like that!