Chapter 47

" Daisy, when are you going home? "

" Well... "

Grace thought it would be nice if her parents' mission never ended, and she answered honestly.

" I don't know. "

" You don't know? "

" Yeah. What about you? "

" I'll be here for another month. "

I wish neither of us would ever go home. An impossible hope crept into her mind.

Leon was not a child. Even if the world was gradually changing, the love between a noble and a commoner was still taboo. He knew their fling at the vacation spot could never be more than that.

But the unfamiliar place had turned him into a different person. For the first time, he had defied his parents and escaped. The first kiss he tasted was sweet. He thought rebellion would always be this sweet.

" Do you want to play again tomorrow? "

" Sure. "

Daisy's gloomy expression brightened instantly.

" Then... "

Leon, who was about to say he would come to pick her up in the morning, was troubled. He would probably be grounded when he got back.

" Do you want to play at my villa tomorrow? "

" Is that okay? "

" But if the adults find out, it'll be a headache, so let's play in my room. "

" Sure. "

What can we do in the room? Leon pondered and asked.

" Do you like movies? I have a projector in my room. Do you want to watch a movie together? "

Daisy's eyes widened, and she nodded vigorously. She likes movies. That was a relief.

" Then let's meet at the entrance to the villa beach at ten o'clock. "

While planning how to bring Daisy into the villa without being noticed, Daisy stopped.

" Hey, Leon... "

" Yeah? "

" Actually, I... "

Just as Daisy, who was hesitating, was about to say something, a strong beam of headlights flooded their eyes. The window of a black sedan that had stopped on the narrow mountain road opened, and the man in the driver's seat shouted.

" Kids, get out of the way. "

The voice was familiar. The face that appeared outside the window was also familiar. The other person seemed to recognize him, and his eyes widened.

" Leon? "

" Father? "

Mother? Grace's face turned pale as she met the eyes of the blonde beauty in the passenger seat.

The woman in the passenger seat had definitely recognized Grace. The smile she had given to the man in the driver's seat disappeared instantly.

When her gaze fell on the blonde man with eyes like Leon's, she felt the blood drain from her body. This man was undoubtedly the target of the operation that the adults had talked about, the soldier named Winston.

'Is Leon's father this man?'

The old villa had thin walls, and the adults' conversation was easy to hear. The royal piglet, the royal mad dog, the devil who cruelly killed the revolutionary heroes. The adults called the man Winston these names.

'I'm going to get in trouble now.'

Her mind went blank. Staying out late with a boy was not the problem. If the boy was the enemy's son, and they had done all sorts of bad things together, she would receive a severe punishment.

She felt suffocated. Grace's parents were as admirable as they were terrifying. If she was caught, she might get a slap from her father, just like her brother.

" It's okay, Daisy. "

Just as Leon was trying to hide Daisy behind him, who had started to tremble, Daisy shouted and pushed him away.

" Dirty piglet! "

Leon stared blankly at the back of the girl who ran off into the darkness.

'What did she just call me... '

He wanted to believe he had misheard, but the last look of contempt in her eyes confirmed it was directed at him.

'What did I do wrong? '

It felt like he had been hit on the head. As he stared into the darkness, as incomprehensible as the girl's feelings, his father shouted.

" Leon, go back to the villa immediately. Keep it a secret from your mother that you saw me here. "

Only then did Leon realize that the unfamiliar woman who had covered her face was sitting next to his father.

" Daisy! "

After the car left, he searched the mountain road for Daisy, but the girl was nowhere to be found.

'Why? What did I do? '

He repeated the unanswered question to himself, dazed, as he returned to the villa, only to be met with a scolding.

" You broke an important promise and roamed around all day. Are you in your right mind? You've been a troublemaker since you were in my womb, and now you're trying to drive me to my grave. "

Even the shrill scolding from his mother, who was wearing pajamas and had rollers in her hair, was not scary.

" Leon! Can't you come here right now? What kind of behavior is this? "

Leon did not answer and went into his room, slamming the door. His body slid down the door.

He crouched on the floor, repeating the same question over and over, just like before.

" What did I do wrong? "

Dirty piglet. No matter how much he thought about it, he had not done anything to deserve such a terrible insult.

If she didn't like the kiss, she should have refused it then. To have a good time all day and then treat him like an animal at the end. He had genuinely liked her, but she had toyed with him.

Leon threw the thing he was holding across the room. The dolphin plushie, which he had thrown, laughed without understanding his feelings.

He felt ashamed of himself for picking up the doll the girl had so coldly abandoned and bringing it here.

" Ha... "

Although he had not cried since his head had grown, he wanted to cry now. He felt utterly pathetic.

***

That night, Leon had a dream.

A warm breath. A soft touch. Sweet...

The smell of blood.

And...

'Dirty piglet!'

He opened his eyes wide. His face was also wet.

" Damn it. "

***

" Your father hasn't been in touch either. You really are just like him. "

Ignoring his mother's scolding, Leon got up. The untouched breakfast on the table remained.

" Leon, you're grounded for a week. If you repent and beg now, I might reduce it to four days. "

As expected, the grounding order was issued. Leon did not beg. Breaking the rules set by his parents was difficult the first time but easier the second.

He started loitering at the beach where they had agreed to meet 30 minutes before the appointed time. Even though he had a gut feeling that Daisy wouldn't come, he couldn't stop waiting.

Sure enough, she didn't come. When the minute hand of his wristwatch pointed to 11, Leon started walking along the beach toward Daisy's villa.

'What did I do wrong?'

I have to ask her. Only she knows the answer.

If I did something wrong, I'll apologize. If not, I'll make her apologize. It was naive to believe that it could be that simple.

He searched the dilapidated villa and the campsite in the undeveloped, dense forest. But once again, the girl was nowhere to be found.

There were only other people.

Leon, who had been trudging down the sparsely populated mountain slope, suddenly stopped. A broken headlight lay in the dense forest.

'Did someone have a car accident?'

Leon entered the forest and followed the tire tracks. Was it about to rain? Dark clouds were gathering in the sky, and a strong wind was blowing. The salty sea breeze carried a distinct smell...

'Blood?'

The moment he realized it, he saw an abandoned black car in front of a remote cliff. It was a familiar sedan.

A bad premonition always comes true too much. The blood drained from Leon's face as he looked into the broken window. The body sprawled in the back seat in an odd position was covered in blood.

" ...Father? "

The dead man did not answer.

***

The thin, frail body hanging onto the railing swayed helplessly every time the train jolted.

The adults smoked on the balcony of the last carriage. Grace, caught between them, stared blankly at the horizon where the sun was slowly rising.

The sea was no longer visible. She no longer wanted to see the sea.

" Your eyes are full of the sea. "

She hated her own eyes.

" Dirty piglet! "

The boy wasn't dirty... Out of fear of being punished, she had shouted without thinking, and the face she had seen stayed in her mind.

She hated herself for shouting that. She also hated herself for feeling relieved that she hadn't been scolded by her mother because of it.

" Daisy! "

No. That's not my name.

Hearing a voice, Grace covered her ears.

She had heard a voice calling her from outside last night. After Leon's voice disappeared, Grace cried silently under the covers with the lights off all night.

And she heard strange sounds through the thin wall all night. Muffled screams, the angry voices of adults, and the sound of something being repeatedly hit.

When the sound suddenly stopped, Grace had to pack her bags in a hurry and leave Avington Beach as if she were running away.

" Damn it... I didn't mean to go this far. "

" Dave, don't blame yourself. "

Her father comforted the man standing next to him. No one comforted the girl who felt guilty without doing anything.