Honest Conversations (2)

Dolores Jade.

The Tower Lord of Wallin, once the daughter of Baldschmidt but now abandoned that name.

She was the youngest to ascend to the position of tower master, and her conviction earned her the trust of Helios, the Sky Chamber tower master.

But even Helios did not know Dolores’ weakness.

Alcohol.

Since entering Wallen Tower, she had never drunk with anyone, nor had she drunk alone.

People unaware of her circumstances thought that Dolores didn’t drink because of her meticulous and careful personality.

But the real reason was different.

“What are you trying to do to me? I know everything.”

The moment she drinks, she becomes a big child.

Dolores slumped on the sofa with a sly grin.

Her face was flushed red, contrasting with her blue hair, and the way she looked at Reed was as if he was a man with naughty thoughts.

It was more of a cute feeling than contempt.

Reed looked at her with a dumbfounded expression and denied her words.

“It’s not like that.”

“Really?”

“Yes.”

“Really, really?”

“Yes.”

“Then cast a spell to sober me up right now.”

“…Cast it on yourself.”

“How can a drunken magician cast a spell? What if my hand explodes? You do it, Oppa.”

Dolores was acting like a younger sister.

However, Reed couldn’t cast that spell.

Because he had heard for the first time from Dolores that such a spell existed.

As he silently folded his lips into his mouth, Dolores’ face became stern.

“See! I knew you were trying to get me drunk on purpose! Remember when I was 12, and I accidentally drank wine from your glass and got drunk?”

Dolores giggled as she twirled her hair around her finger.

Though it was annoying to the point of being unbearable, it was just as Reed had intended, as she began to spill out her past.

“Can I have one more drink since I’m drunk anyway?”

No sooner had she said this that Reed snatched Dolores’ glass away.

He didn’t even want to imagine what would happen if a lightweight who got drunk after one drink had another.

Instead of crystal glass, he handed Dolores an ordinary glass of water.

“Drink water.”

Dolores stared hard at the glass of water, then rolled her eyes and looked up at Reed.

“Feed it to me.”

“Drink it with your own hands.”

“Then I won’t drink.”

“You’re being childish.”

“I can be childish. You told me to tell you whenever…”

Dolores grumbled in a childlike tone and turned her head sharply as if she was sulky.

Dolores certainly remembered.

-If you want to act spoiled, tell me. I’ll go along with it until you’re tired.

And young Dolores did act like a younger sister, always being childish, just as he had told her.

But Reed didn’t know this fact now.

No, he couldn’t have known.

Because he was a third party with no memories of Dolores.

‘If this is considered a sincere conversation, then it is a conversation.’

He had to know about Reed.

And to do so, listening to Dolores, who had turned into a child now, was the most ideal.

With no other choice, Reed indulged her childishness and sat down next to her.

He could distinctly feel the chill emanating from her body.

Reed lifted the glass of water in place of her and brought it to her lips.

Her hair, blue as the sea, contrasted with her face, flushed as a beetroot.

Her eyes closed, lips slightly parted, looking up, she reminded him of a bride at a wedding ceremony waiting for the groom’s kiss.

Wary of possible dribbles, Reed carefully poured the water into her mouth.

Gulp, gulp.

Her slender throat moved up and down, swallowing the water.

Over three minutes, she emptied the entire glass of water.

“Feeling a bit sober?”

“Yeah, Oppa.”

While her mouth said so, seeing her beaming smile, he realized that she was not.

As Reed held the water glass and attempted to get up from his seat, Dolores unexpectedly grabbed his hand.

“Stay here.”

“Isn’t it a bit too close for a man and woman…”

“……”

“……All right.”

His words were cut off by the sight of her lips beginning to pout.

Since it was hard to put up with Dolores’ tantrums any further, Reed decided to calmly accept her request.

Even though Reed sat down, Dolores did not let go of his hand.

Reed looked down at her hand.

Her small hand was wrapped around the back of his hand, and her slender fingers tickled his palm.

“Can I… ask one thing? You have to answer no matter what.”

“……Depending on the situation, I might not be able to answer.”

“If you don’t answer, I’ll cry right here.”

“…Do as you please.”

‘ It’s scary, a six-year-old with a large body.’

Seeing her cruel threat, Reed resigned himself.

With a beaming face, Dolores asked Reed.

“Do you still hate the thought of seeing the face of a child we’ll make together?”

Upon hearing this, Reed’s body stiffened instantly.

“……What?”

“I’ve always been curious. You like Rosaria so much… I wondered if you’d still dislike having a baby with me.”

“Did I say that?”

“Are you evading the question?”

Then Dolores’ eyebrows came together.

Her eyes, moist and as transparent as the ocean, changed to a clear blue color.

Reed fumbled for an explanation about it.

“I can’t remember everything clearly because the memory of that day is too stormy.”

At his words, Dolores nodded as if in agreement.

“Yeah, that time was really like a storm. What did you say then? Ah, I remember. ‘Are you deaf? I don’t even want to see the face of a child made from mixing my blood with yours.’ That’s what you said.”

“……”

“It really hurt, hehe. I still remember your face. The way your eyes looked at me with resignation……”

Dolores chuckles lightly.

Reed knew that her laughter was not laughter.

It was her way of preventing her tears from flowing by laughing instead.

“That wasn’t true, right, Oppa?”