TOPWL 95

“You’re finally awake.”

“How long have I been like this?”

“Well… about an hour and a half?”

Yudit was shocked. He thought he was joking, so he looked at the moon. It had been low in the sky when he entered, but now it was high above.

“Why didn’t you wake me up?”

“You weren’t asleep, were you? You were just thinking. I, too, lost track of time enjoying the view.”

When Yudit looked upset, Khalid faintly smiled.

“So, did you think well?”

“…Thanks to you.”

“Then it worked out, right? If it had been later, I would have woken you up.”

Though he said that, Yudit was sure Khalid wouldn’t have woken him up. He stared at Khalid’s face and asked,

“Why are you being so… nice to me?”

“Because I hope you like me a little too.”

Yudit blushed at Khalid’s simple reply. Khalid, who had been smiling quietly, stood up from his seat.

“Go wash up. I’ll wait outside.”

***

“Shane, I’m sorry.”

Yudit, back in his room, squeezed the water out of his wet hair as he spoke.

“It’s fine. Waiting is also my job.”

Shane spoke casually.

“Moreover, thanks to you, I get to rest tonight, right?”

“That’s…”

Yudit made a troubled face. Because of the reason that Khalid had kept Shane outside for a long time, he gave him rest at night. And Khalid confidently took Yudit’s bed for himself. Yudit briefly suspected that it had all been planned.

“If anything happens, knock on the wall three times. I’ll be in the room next door.”

“Is that alright?”

“I am Your Highness Prince Yudit’s guard.”

Shane smiled faintly as he spoke.

“Thank you.”

“You’re welcome.”

After finishing his words, Shane opened the door and left. Yudit, trying to avoid Khalid’s gaze as he elegantly sat on the somewhat shabby but neat bed, walked to his desk.

“It’s late, so why don’t you get some rest today?”

“I want to organize the things I’ve seen today before I forget. You go ahead and sleep.”

Yudit thought Khalid might say something more, but to his surprise, he didn’t say anything and lay down on the bed. Soon, his steady breathing could be heard. It seemed like he had really fallen asleep. Yudit felt a bit relieved and began to enjoy his time alone. The wooden desk was slightly worn, but it was large and he liked it. It creaked in some parts, probably because it was unbalanced, and he thought it would be good to put some thick paper under it.

Yudit quickly organized what he had seen today and began writing down the things he had thought about in the hot spring.

1. Road construction -> Expected to be completed within this week, create places for the workers to eat and rest.

2. Housing -> After the road construction is finished, give three days of paid vacation to those participating in the housing construction. Make the foundation strong from the start.

The harbor and shipyard were not urgent, so they planned to start after spring. This meant more manpower was available. For the housing site, there were many vacant houses, so the work seemed to be completed sooner than expected. This area had also produced gold in addition to iron ore, and when that happened, many people flocked to the area, but they left once the gold ran out. The houses from that time only needed minor repairs.

As Yudit was thinking about the next task, he began to write number 3.

3. Assess the situation of the poor. Fortunately, the relations don’t seem bad. Support for those unable to work. Is unconditional support the right thing to do?

Yudit shook his head as he thought about it and drew a line through the part about unconditional support. There were times when reckless, unconditional support was worse than doing nothing. Suddenly, Yudit remembered Yasin, who was sleeping in the next room. Yasin had not treated his injuries in time, causing them to fester, and he was using strong medicine. Because of that, aside from meal times, he was mostly sleeping. If he wasn’t woken up, he would even skip meal times. Thankfully, he was young, and the medicine worked well, so the wounds were healing. Yasin’s husband had not come to visit him, and Yudit had made preparations for that. Yudit had no intention of letting him in even if he did come.

4. Monster hunting -> Weapon and equipment support. What can be made from the byproducts? Custom-made armor and weapons -> How can we involve people who came for the swordsmanship competition in the monster hunting? Would they be interested in armor and weapons made from the byproducts of monsters?

5. Development of specialty products and tourism items -> Iron ore, sea, monsters? Beer, weapons, armor.

“How can I attract people…?” Yudit mumbled to himself while trying to think of a way to attract tourists unrelated to the swordsmanship competition. Then, out of nowhere.

“A free carriage service running every 30 minutes between the city center and this area, with promotional materials for the local specialties placed inside. I’ll introduce you to a good illustrator and writer, so you just focus on planning and developing the products.” Khalid, who Yudit thought was asleep, had somehow approached him and said this. Yudit jumped in surprise and shrank back.

“You’re not even making a sound.”

“I’ve been making plenty of noise, you just haven’t been paying attention.”

Had he really been that out of it? Yudit scolded himself and avoided eye contact.

“Let’s sleep. There’s a mountain of things to do tomorrow.”

“Just a little longer…”

“No.”

Before he even finished speaking, Khalid lifted Yudit effortlessly. Yudit stared at Khalid, who had picked him up as easily as if cradling a child, with disbelief.

“Wait…”

“No.”

Khalid blew out the candle and placed Yudit down onto the bed. Then, he lay down beside him, pulling him into an embrace from behind. The drowsiness that had come with the tension disappeared in an instant.

“Alright, I’m going to sleep. Please let go of me.”

“I’ll let go after you sleep.”

“I don’t trust you.”

Whether it was because he truly didn’t trust Khalid or because he was being selfish, Yudit couldn’t tell. Khalid’s breath brushed against the back of Yudit’s neck, causing the fine hairs on his skin to stand on end. As Yudit squirmed to break free, Khalid wrapped the blanket around him and held him tightly again.

“Sleep. I won’t do anything.”

Could that really be true? Yudit rolled his eyes nervously. Anyway, Khalid had never lied before. Trying to close his eyes and fall asleep, Yudit suddenly felt an odd pressure from behind him.

“…Sir.”

“Why are you calling me by that distant title all of a sudden?”

“Could you… take your hand off my… behind?”

“My hands are both right here.”

Khalid waved the hand supporting Yudit’s head and the hand that was wrapped around him, causing Yudit to look at him, bewildered.

“Then what is this…”

“……”

Yudit’s face turned pale as he realized what was going on.

“Ah, you said you wouldn’t do anything…”

“Well, considering you’re right in front of me, what else can I do?”

“My… my…”

Yudit opened his mouth to say something but couldn’t think of what to say, his head spinning. He blurted out the first words that came to his mind.

“Do you… get aroused by me?”

“……”

Khalid fell silent at Yudit’s words. Only then did Yudit realize what he had said.

“I misspoke. I mean, when I said aroused, I meant it like how animals do… since we’re animals too…”

Khalid, who had leaned in closer, lightly bit Yudit’s earlobe without causing any pain. He lowered his voice and asked,

“Do you think many men would do this for someone they don’t even find arousing?”

“……”

“Who do you think was the one who kissed you not long ago?”

The memory of that day came rushing back to Yudit. He tried to come up with an excuse but decided to stop, fearing it would only make things worse. Fortunately, it was dark, so he didn’t have to worry about his heated cheeks being noticed. Yudit took a deep breath to hide his rapidly increasing heart rate and said,

“…I’ll sleep.”

“Good choice. Have a nice dream.”

Khalid then gently shifted away, and the tension in Yudit’s back slowly faded. Perhaps it was because the tension had left him, but sleepiness began to overwhelm him. The warmth of the man who had once tried to kill him was surprisingly comforting.

***

Clink.

Yudit plunged the shovel into the ground. The cold, frozen earth piled onto the blade. Despite the cold winter air, beads of sweat formed on his temples from the weight in his hands.

“Put more strength into your waist. Otherwise, you’ll suffer tomorrow.”

Khalid patted Yudit on the waist. Yudit stiffened his back, tightening his posture. When he glared at Khalid, Khalid smiled coolly.

“Yuli, don’t you think it’s time to stop? If you push too hard, you might hurt yourself.”

Despite his fierce appearance, Eden spoke with a concerned voice. Yudit had headed to the road construction site early that morning. As he listened to the workers’ stories, someone had suggested he try it himself, and Yudit had taken the advice seriously. As a result, he, along with Khalid, Shane, Huyan, and Wadiram, were all digging like never before. At first, Wadiram had seemed to put in some effort, but he quietly backed out, citing a prior engagement with the weapon shop owner. Since he and Huyan were employed in a role more like attendants than guards, it was an easy excuse.