North x Northwest
Chapter 54

“…”

Lil didn’t understand what Cesar was going on about.

‘Who is he and what did he do?’

“I’m asking you if he did this to you.”

“Who the hell is he?..”

In the middle of her sentence, Lil suddenly realised who it was and Cesar’s behaviour started to make sense.

As she looked down, she saw her torn shirt and her chest that was half exposed through the sack tied around her body. From what she could see, no wounds were visible, but after remembering what had happened, she hesitantly asked.

“…Oh, um… is it… that bad?”

“How did your shirt become like this…?”

Cesar stopped talking and instead gritted his teeth. Not long after, a sigh indicating he was holding himself back, was heard by Lil. It wasn’t hard to guess that he was furious, so she swallowed her dried saliva and began to take off her clothes on her own.

‘Let’s pretend it’s nothing. It’s nothing…’

“It’s true that Ed did it. While we were fighting, he couldn’t breathe, so he bit me.”

“It doesn’t look like just a bite mark…”

“Really? I don’t remember exactly. My shirt wasn’t ripped at that time, and I wasn’t only wearing the shirt, I also wrapped myself in a blanket.”

“…”

With all her clothes off, Lil stepped into the bathtub and lifted a bucket. Cesar’s eyes followed her persistently, but Lil had nothing more to say.

‘So, well, Cesar of all people should know I have a sensitive neck. I even made a weird sound… Oh, so annoying. How can I share that?’

“I was too preoccupied with the fight, I really wanted to kill him at that time.”

“Why did you want to kill him?”

“That’s because…”

‘…He rubbed his lips against mine.’

She paused as she was about to dig her own grave and eventually shut her mouth.

“…Because they found out that Ed belongs to the Navy and that discovery was the reason why I got dragged into that mess. It was all because of the Navy.”

As Lil was pouring lukewarm water over her body, Cesar stared intently at her, with eyes that seemed to know that it wasn’t the truth. Facing each other like this, she was starting to feel uneasy. Not because she wasn’t wearing a single piece of clothing, but because there was much more information to unpack. To turn the uncomfortable mood around, Lil tugged his sleeve and held out the soap bar to him, which she had used to rub her arms and lather herself up.

“Wash me.”

Cesar was easily seduced by her body wrapped in foam. As he couldn’t resist her dizzying offer, he slowly lowered himself and accepted what Lil offered him. The contrast between the two was immense. The wet Lil, with water droplets on her eyelashes and lips, glanced up at Cesar who was looking smooth and tidy. Before she knew it, she was held in his arms. Cesar bowed his head and licked the sweet drops of water…

***

At dawn, Cesar left the captain’s room and entered Ed’s cabin. He was greeted by Ed’s afflicted, grey face. As Ed had lost a lot of blood yesterday and his body temperature dropped considerably. Cesar stared at Ed’s blue lips that were trembling unconsciously and was reminded of the cruel words that those same lips once uttered.

{“I’m going to kill her.”}

‘It was a great performance.’

{I just won’t kill her. I will kill her very horribly.}

‘It doesn’t matter if it all turned out to be an act, at that time it never for a moment crossed my mind that he could be bluffing. How could I’ve been so blind? No matter how eccentric Edgar may be, he has the same desires as any other man and facing a beautiful woman like Liloa will definitely awaken those. Liloa is a woman who never stopped having suitors, even when she was already engaged. Her charm is so self-evident… But does this mean Edgar has abandoned his first goal? Did being close to her made him change his mind?’

Back on the enemy ship, Lil probably didn’t recognise it, but Cesar who was in the rear with Ed, saw it clearly. He also knew what a drug flute was, so he noticed the danger Lil almost faced at about the same time as Ed did. In close combat fights where everyone was focused on their own battles, it was common for the Western pirates to put a knife or bullet in the body of their opponent, who was losing their mind over the blue powder. It was mainly used as an expedient for dealing with officers possessing superior combat skills. It was only natural that Lil, who had no experience in naval warfare in the West, didn’t know this.

‘But instead of Liloa, Edgar took the hit. He could have done it in a more self-preserved way by throwing a dagger or shooting the pirate. But Ed also knew that wouldn’t have guaranteed Liloa’s safety, as the probability and the speed would have been too low. In the end, he chooses to run toward her… He must have anticipated what the western pirate would do to him as he has fought countless battles. The blue powder is a drug that has an immediate effect upon contact no matter how strong someone is. Despite knowing this, Edgar ran toward Liloa in the midst of his own fight, he didn’t even draw his sword, so he wouldn’t lose pace. Thanks to that, he succeeded in pushing Liloa away just in time. Ed was truly as desperate as I was… But the difference is, he has no reason to be desperate for Liloa, unless he had already fallen in love with her…’

Cesar’s mind flooded with questions.

‘Have I been fooled by the Admiral’s acting? Did I not recognize the real reason he approached her? Was it because of some secretly deep affection? So, did the Admiral travel all the way to Amiaeng just to get Liloa, rather than because the Duke had commissioned him to? Was it love that piqued his interest?.. No, he must have changed his mind after meeting her in Amiaeng.’

All Cesar could do for now is speculate, but he didn’t want to overlook a possible answer; ‘love’.

When he yanked at the medicine cabinet that Lil had closed tightly, the clasp opened with a clatter.

***

Side story 1 – Cesar’s Chapter: Gust of Wind

One summer day.

It was a coincidence but not a big deal. They were both cadets of LeBrun, so nothing was surprising about their encounter.

She stroked her horse’s mane. Cesar unconsciously turned towards her. At first glance, the scene before him felt just ordinary. But that was only for a brief moment, with the passing of time, Cesar saw no reason to look away from Liloa.

When she noticed his gaze, the woman asked him.

“How are you?”

The summer sun right after spring, was strong and warm, and Cesar noticed that her eyes became pale blue under such bright light. Liloa gathered her voluminous hair in one hand and tied it high, revealing the rounded shape of her ears with her fine hair fluttering around them. His gaze stayed there. The back of her ear, which was shining smoothly in the sunlight, seemed to be soft and warm to the touch.

“Hello. Officer Liloa.”

Although he realised it belatedly, he didn’t make the mistake of addressing her as ‘my lady’. At his greeting, Liloa smiled softly and gently rolled her eyes down.

“Officer Cesar.”

Cesar wondered whether to express surprise or pleasure that Liloa knew him. But overshadowing his short dilemma, Liloa quickly added an explanation.

“Is a well-known name. And I’ve seen you from afar at the Navy’s shooting range.”

“Is that so?”

“Seeing you also know my name, have you by chance seen me at the Sesbron’s Ball?”

“I don’t think so.”

“In Nazaro or Pontenbach then?”

Cesar gave her a shallow shake of his head as she spilt her words. The Battles of Nazaro and Pontenbach were both battles respectively fought by the Navy and the Army. In addition, due to the nature of the Navy, it wasn’t easy to reside in Sesbron as one would spend several years in Mondovi or on the fleet.

“I heard that you were outstanding at Pontenbach.”

Liloa opened her eyes wide as if she had heard something unexpected. Contrary to himself, Liloa revealed a wide variety of emotions. Cesar stood there calmly watching her face change in many ways. In the end, Liloa decided to smile brightly.

“That’s an overstatement…”

“Thanks to that, you will be commissioned soon. Congratulations.”

“I don’t think anyone shares the same sentiments as you.”

A servant brought his horse out of the stable. Cesar watched for a moment as some of his entourage went through the process of raising the saddle. Liloa, who was tending to her horse, also paid attention to his horse. Her plump lips formed a smile.

“It’s a black horse from Obernyu.”

Her horse was of the same breed.

“Yes.”

“Do you like fast horses?”

“I mainly ride it when I need to go back and forth between our estate and Lebrun.”

“Ah.”

“You?”

“I do like fast horses. Are you going to your estate now?”

“That’s right.”

“Then, I wish you a comfortable trip. I’ll excuse myself first.”

Liloa suddenly bowed her head, pulled the reins and called out her horse that was grazing.

“Koud bhan!”

Her horse, being busy eating grass, only wiggled its tail.

“Koud bhan!”

At that moment, Koud bhan, who neighed a bit, looked at its owner.

‘If someone was simply passing by, they would probably think the owner of the name was really ambitious.’

Liloa slid into the saddle and nodded at the young officer.

“See you again, Officer Cesar.”

“See you soon.”

With a loud shout, Koud bhan kicked the ground vigorously. As it ran swiftly, a short, rough wind blew over Cesar and his companions.

It was then that he thought that the name that meant ‘Swift wind’ suited the dignified black horse very well.