Standing outside the door, the youngster directed his speech inside the room in a quiet voice: “Um… Miss Liu Yue, are you asleep?”

The youngster was nervous . Speaking to her agonised him . As a matter of fact, he didn’t dare to look her in the eye . If was as though he could see his despicable acts reflected in her eyes .

Liu Yue was combing her wet tail in her room . When the youngster called out to her all of a sudden, she panicked; however, because Vera notified her prior, she was able to quickly return to a calm state . She walked to the door and replied, “Not yet . Do you need something?”

“Um… You don’t need to open up . People will talk ill of you if you open your door for a male stranger at night . I’ll just speak from here,” answered the youngster .

He was right . If somebody saw them, misunderstandings would arise . He was surprisingly thoughtful . He sat down against her door .

“I’m very sorry, Miss Liu Yue . ”

“What?” Liu Yue didn’t comprehend what it was about .

“I’m sorry about what happened . ”

The youngster scratched his ear . He perceived recognising a fault as a virtue, but the virtue would always make him feel a little shy and wronged . The youngster was somewhat glad Liu Yue didn’t open the door; he’d unlikely be able to apologise when he looked into her eyes .

The youngster peered into dark sky . He elaborated, “Ever since I met you, I’ve hurt you over and over again . I don’t know why accidents continue to happen between us when we’re together . I almost squashed you at first, accidentally offended you and threatened you when you cared for me . I’m to blame . I’m very sorry . I know that a mere apology is plain and weak, but I don’t have anything at the moment . All I can give you at the moment is an apology . If you want my life, if belongs to Queen Vera, so I can’t thoughtlessly hand it over . ”

“I don’t need your life, anyway . ”

Liu Yue recalled the things that happened between her and the youngster . Indeed, the two continued to have misunderstandings ever since their meeting and in peculiar ways no less . It didn’t apply to just the youngster but also Liu Yue . She almost stomped him to death on their first meeting, and then she got him imprisoned .

“What do you need, then? I honestly feel too guilty . I repaid your kindness with grief . If I can’t compensate you, my conscience will torment me . I may have to live in guilt and regret forever . It would be too cruel if you did that . ”

While it was a fact that Liu Yue was initially angry, she didn’t think he did anything wrong later on as he fell down due to snapping a branch the first time and the second time was due to a negotiation . It didn’t turn into a physical altercation .

“I don’t need your apology or compensation . Since you said it was a misunderstanding, treat it as a misunderstanding . I don’t have any desire to make you compensate me . Plus, what can you compensate me with? My father can give me what you can . ”

Liu Yue lost interest . The apology was, frankly, meaningless to her . He couldn’t give her what she wanted . What Liu Yue wanted most was her dad’s love, something the youngster could never give her .

The youngster pondered to himself for a while, and then suddenly remembered what Vera said . There was one thing he thought would entertain the four sisters, and that was different scenery and enjoyment . As Vera said, the four sisters weren’t pursuing some n.o.ble ambition but merely an adventure to prove themselves . Extrapolating from that, he reasoned another nation’s celebration must be very interesting to them .

“In that case, I will make time to have some fun at the celebration once we arrive . ”

“A celebration?!”

Liu Yue liked celebrations in spite of residing in the North . Liu Yue didn’t want to reveal it, but she was actually still a girl who couldn’t sleep the day before a school festival . Therefore, she was very excited when she heard there was a celebration there .

“Yes . Once we overcome this crisis, there will be a three day celebration when Queen Vera successfully ascends the throne . Lots of people will only get to experience this celebration once in a lifetime, which is why it’ll be a grand event . Lots and lots of merchants will sell things on the streets . The entire city will be filled with the fragrant smell of food . There’ll be a ball and c.o.c.ktail party in the palace . Additionally, Queen Vera will open the palace . It’s an auspicious festival . ”

He didn’t say that to trick Liu Yue . He, too, wore a look of eagerness . The youngster also looked forward to the big ceremony . As opposed to saying he informed Liu Yue, you might as well say that he was informing himself .

“I want to see it . Such a grandiose celebration must be fun . ”

Liu Yue began to imagine how it would look . The North held big celebrations, as well . There were a total of two annually, which was a total of four days . The two celebrations were the national holiday and Troy’s birthday . Liu Yue was very, very eager to attend each time . Not only did she get a break from school for the four days, but, most importantly, her mom would take her to the Imperial Palace . There’d be all sorts of stores at the Imperial City, and the festive atmosphere was unforgettable, making her to indulge in it forever . That was why she teemed with interest for a foreign nation’s big celebration .

The youngster firmly nodded . He apparently forgot Liu Yue couldn’t see him . He, too, grew excited about the celebration as he spoke of it . It was as if he wasn’t going home to save his Queen but to have fun at the celebration .

The darkness he fixed his eyes on was still, yet the youngster sounded excited as he spoke . Liu Yue asked for a summary for all sorts of questions . She’d ask about the festival and about what she cared about . Their warmth seeped through the door to meld together . In his young voice, he ill.u.s.trated bustling crowds, the fragrant air, the people’s laughter, the n.o.bles’ c.o.c.ktails, the scent of perfumes in the air and the people’s smile . The sound of the ocean waves around them virtually died out . The conversation brought a smile to their faces .

They lost track of how many times the stars flashed . Perhaps the stars were tired of s.h.i.+ning by then . They lost track of how many times the waves splashed . The young man and girl finally fell quiet after countless droplets of water had hit the water . It was as if the two ran out of things to say . Maybe it was because they were both finally tired . Eventually, it was silent .

n.o.body knew what the future held . Neither he nor Liu Yue knew what they’d go through after reaching his nation, but their mood was as pleasant as the weather .

With her back against her door, Liu Yue looked around her room and softly sighed: “How nice… Celebrations and whatnot… are really nice… I want to see it . ”

“Aren’t we on our way there? I promise that, if we can resolve this, then I shall to take you to the celebration . We won’t have to worry about anything by then . You can play to your heart’s content . Before that, however, we need to protect Queen Vera . ”

“I honestly don’t know if we can do it . Honestly speaking, I’ve never undertaken such a job before; or rather, I’ve never gone through something so serious before . I don’t understand politics, and I’m ignorant with respect to military affairs . I’m just an ordinary girl; I just want to prove that I’m not a girl, though . ”

“It’s all right . I’ll protect you . ”

The youngster was in horrible shape at the start . He, in fact, almost died .

Liu Yue pursed her lips into a smile: “If you really can protect me, I won’t need my sisters, right? I trust my sisters more than I trust you . ”

“Don’t say that . I’m actually strong . ”

The youngster awkwardly rubbed his head . Liu Yue stood up . The didn’t notice that they were no longer shy or awkward around each other .

Liu Yue turned around . Smiling, she gently pressed her hand onto her door . Voice soft, she said, “I need to sleep now . I’m happy to have heard so much about the celebration today . It’s something I’ve never seen before . I’m eager to see it, but as you said, what we need to focus on first is how to protect Miss Vera, correct?”

“Oh… Yes . ”

The youngster stood up . When he went to leave, nonetheless, he looked at the door and had lingering feelings for some reason . A part of him didn’t want to leave .