To You, Who Will Die Alone in Paradise Chapter 47

‘Kellewen, just why…’

Dandeleon recalled Kellewen from that morning once more. Come to think of it, he had said something then, too, about sending Zellos away. Mumbling to himself like a madman. He did not want to think this way, but he was doubtful whether Kellewen was in a normal state of mind right now.

“In any case, I want to grant the High Elf’s request. If he’s like a real brother to you, how about letting him be independent on this occasion? If he needs severance pay, I will give him a generous sum.”

“That is… I cannot decide such an important matter…”

“What do you mean you can’t decide it? He’s your attendant.”

The Crown Prince shrugged, but that was all. He did not seem very interested in this issue. The Crown Prince picked up a pen and scribbled something on a piece of paper.

“I’ll give you some time, so decide as quickly as possible. Before the High Elf gets upset and changes his mind.”

Although the Céleste Domaine was within the royal grounds, it was a considerable distance from the Château Grand where the Crown Prince resided, making it too far to walk.

Fortunately, the Crown Prince’s attendant had prepared a carriage to guide Dandeleon. Seated in a carriage far more splendid than the ones he usually used, Dandeleon quietly headed to his new home.

Gazing at the gardens and buildings passing by the carriage window, Dandeleon was preoccupied with thoughts of Zellos. He worried whether Kellewen was the reason he had not returned for so long, or if something else had happened.

As he did, the aversion he had felt toward Zellos in the morning was long forgotten. In fact, he felt sorry for having felt that way toward Zellos because of a dream he could not even remember.

“What should I do…”

Dandeleon muttered in a worried voice. He wished there was at least a clear reason for Kellewen’s dislike of Zellos.

He would have to hear an explanation directly from Kellewen to either get angry or accept it, but where was he now?

“We are here, Your Highness.”

After about a ten-minute ride, the carriage stopped. Dandeleon got out of the carriage and looked up at the building that had suddenly become his residence.

The Céleste Domaine was a small, two-story building made of white brick. Atop the perfectly square building, instead of a roof, were verdant tree leaves. The rooftop of this palace, a gift from a king several generations ago to his flower-loving mistress, had a beautiful garden with a terraced pond.

Due to its ambiguous location and its origins, it was not often used for official events. A building gifted to a king’s mistress could not be offered as a residence for a state guest, after all. For the Crown Prince to give this Céleste Domaine, of all places, to Dandeleon was…

Dandeleon’s cheeks flushed red with shame again. This was as if the Crown Prince were offering him to Kellewen as a mistress.

Come to think of it, the Crown Prince had not asked him if he loved Kellewen. He only considered the fact that Kellewen had taken a liking to him as important.

Seen in that light, it was not an exaggeration to say that the Crown Prince had ‘given’ Dandeleon to Kellewen.

“Haa…”

Dandeleon let out a sigh.

He was used to being pointed at anyway. So what did the opinions of others matter? He and Kellewen truly were in love with each other.

Even as he tried to think that, the shame did not disappear. Son of a prostitute, a monster who seduces others with his beautiful appearance. Such rumors about him, far from disappearing in the future, would only grow larger.

Moreover, if Kellewen were to stay here, Dandeleon would have to live here until he died. This was a place Kellewen had obtained even by selling himself. Dandeleon, who knew its weight, did not have the courage to refuse it.

‘But what about the death I wanted?’

Dandeleon thought.

What would become of his humble wish to close his eyes anywhere but here, in this hellish royal palace?

Dandeleon stood blankly in front of the entrance of the Céleste Domaine, the midday sun on his head. The more his thoughts continued, the less he wanted to go inside.

“You have arrived, Your Highness.”

A worker who had been in the garden spotted Dandeleon. He shouted something toward the inside, and the firmly closed front door burst open. About half a dozen attendants came out from inside and lined up in front of Dandeleon.

“We will be serving Your Highness here…”

“Where is Zellos?”

The oldest of them was bowing in greeting when Dandeleon cut him off. Among the lined-up attendants, Zellos was, of course, not present.

“Where is my original attendant?”

“That is…”

The attendants mumbled, glancing at each other without answering. Dandeleon sighed and said.

“Bring him here. I have received permission from His Highness the Crown Prince.”

Didn’t he say to decide quickly, meaning it was fine for him to be with him for now? It was a claim bordering on forced logic, but it was enough for the attendants who had no way of knowing the full story. One of the attendants, who had been whispering in a low voice, hurriedly ran toward the Château Grand.

In the meantime, Dandeleon passed through the entrance of the Céleste Domaine and went inside.

He had expected a wide hall, as is common in Benoit manors, but surprisingly, a long, straight corridor greeted him. The arched doorways on both sides of the corridor and the colorful mosaics on the floor and ceiling were exotic. The corridor had no windows and was somewhat dark, but thanks to the plants placed here and there, it did not feel stuffy.

An attendant asked if he could show him around, but Dandeleon refused. At his words that he was tired and wanted to rest, the attendant quickly guided Dandeleon to the second floor. He suggested that he rest in the bedroom, as it was already tidied.

The bedroom was large and bright. In contrast to the dark, narrow corridor, it was enormously large and dazzlingly bright. The spacious room, which seemed to be three times the size of his former room, was filled with luxurious furniture.

Dandeleon sat down on the new bed with a sour expression. The mattress was so soft it felt like he would sink into it, and the texture of the blanket against his hand was indescribably smooth.

And yet, he did not feel comfortable at all.

Dandeleon got up from the bed and lay down on a sofa that looked like it could seat five people, but he soon got up again. He would be living here from now on, but nothing felt like his own. He wandered around the room awkwardly, like an uninvited guest.

“Mr. Leon!”

After a while, Zellos finally arrived. As soon as Zellos saw Dandeleon, he called his name loudly and ran to him.

“What is all this?”

“Don’t ask me. I don’t know either…”

Dandeleon turned away from Zellos and groaned. It was not that he knew nothing at all, but the thought of explaining it right now was so overwhelming that he wanted to avoid it. Groaning, he snapped his head around and glared at Zellos.

“And what about you? It takes you hours to bring back the laundry?”

At the sudden nitpicking, Zellos’s expression became aggrieved.

“I was on my way back from the laundry room when someone stopped me. I’m just an attendant, what can I do? I have to do everything the higher-ups tell me to.”

“Still, you just let them keep you instead of trying to find a clever way to get away? You didn’t even show your face until His Highness the Crown Prince summoned me!”

“Mr. Leon, did you talk with that Crown Prince bastard?”

Dandeleon’s eyes widened, a warning to watch his mouth. Did he not grasp the situation yet? All the attendants working in this palace were the Crown Prince’s people.

Fortunately, Zellos, who had been through all sorts of trials and tribulations in the royal palace for ten years, keenly caught Dandeleon’s signal. Zellos’s ears perked up and then drooped again.

“I don’t think anyone is around. I’m sorry… But what really happened? You didn’t hear anything unpleasant, did you? From the Crown Prince… His Highness.”

Zellos’s voice was filled with concern. Dandeleon, who was thoroughly exhausted from constantly facing strange situations, was greatly comforted by those words.

Everything was a mess, but Zellos alone was just as he knew him. The person who had been by his side from his very first memory. The family who had cared for him more devotedly than even his mother, Apsara. He could not cast him aside just based on Kellewen’s words.

“Mr. Leon, do you really not know what happened?”

Zellos asked with a mournful look.

Having more or less made up his mind, Dandeleon plopped down on a nearby chair. Then he gestured for Zellos to sit as well. Even after Zellos sat opposite him, it took a long time for him to open his mouth.

“Zellos, the truth is…”

It was not something he could hide forever. It was something he would find out eventually, even if through rumors. In that case, it was better to tell him himself.

Dandeleon began to slowly explain what had happened with Kellewen. Of course, he did not tell him everything. It was simply that they had become interested in each other while he was showing Kellewen around the palace, and they had naturally fallen in love.

“In the end, Kellewen proposed… I was happy at first. But he talked as if he was going to go back to the Elven Forest and get permission. What happens if you don’t get permission? When I asked that, he couldn’t answer.”

“Isn’t that a bit much?”

“Right? I think so too! So I told him if he was going to act like that, there was no reason to be together anymore, let alone get married!”

He thought Zellos might get angry, but surprisingly, he listened to Dandeleon’s story calmly, giving appropriate reactions here and there. Thanks to that, Dandeleon also started to enjoy telling the story. That was why the story, which had been a simple recounting of facts, became more and more mixed with emotion.

“And we didn’t see each other for a while. Well, we… had feelings… for each other.”

He omitted the part about sleeping together the day he met with the King. Dandeleon gave a pointless cough and awkwardly changed the subject.

“I couldn’t see his face even after the Tuella Deum came. But then this morning, he suddenly appeared and said he wouldn’t go back. Kellewen was a bit strange then. Just like…”

Like a madman. Unable to bring himself to say those words, Dandeleon let out a sigh.

“No, anyway, Kellewen said he asked His Highness the Crown Prince. To help him stay here a little longer. I don’t know the details of what they talked about, but the sudden move of my quarters is probably because of that.”

“I see… I think I have a rough idea of what happened.”

Zellos nodded. Dandeleon looked at him with a much lighter heart.

“But by any chance, did the High Elf say anything about me?”

But that was only for a brief moment. As the forgotten problem resurfaced, it felt like his throat was closing up. Dandeleon could not give any answer and just fidgeted.

“He did, didn’t he? What did he say?”

Zellos’s expression turned fierce. Dandeleon agonized over what he should and should not say.

“He did say something, but it wasn’t very specific… It’s just that, um, for some reason, I think Kellewen dislikes you…”

“He does?”

Zellos let out a smirk.

“You don’t know why? I think I do.”

“What?”

Dandeleon asked back in surprise.