TOPWL 161

“All of them?”

Yudit swallowed dryly as he spoke. It was hard to stay composed—understandable, since he himself had grown up reading this writer’s works. The three books were set on a farm and depicted rural life and human psychology with a brutal kind of honesty, earning high praise from critics. The woman nodded timidly.

“Yes… Is that not okay?”

“No, of course not. It would be an honor to distribute your works. May I ask your name?”

“Rita.”

Rita’s cheeks turned red at his affirmation.

“It’s a pleasure to meet you, Author Rita.”

Yudit spoke with sincerity. He and Rita talked for about thirty minutes. Rita, too, was from the north. She had married early and had three children. Her relationship with her husband hadn’t been bad—until her books began making money. Rita had published under her husband’s name, which meant the bank account was also in his name. When the money started flooding in—enough to buy dozens of houses—the man changed.

The husband who used to watch the kids so she could write became the biggest spender at the village’s only gambling house. Even though it was clearly Rita’s income, he barely gave her any money, claiming everything went into his account. From last year, he began openly living with another woman. When Rita tried to change the publishing contract to her own account, the publishing house owner —who had a long-standing friendship with her husband—refused. He gave her the occasional travel allowance out of “sympathy,” nothing more.

“Well, see, a woman shouldn’t get too successful. Her man’s so ashamed, he can’t even go home. Think of it as the price for ruining his future.”

Rita, furious, tried to terminate the contract, but since it was under her husband’s name, she couldn’t. Feeling helpless, she realized she was nothing more than a powerless middle-aged woman with three children standing against a giant publishing house. She needed strength—someone willing to fight beside her. But while other publishers believed her story, none dared take on the battle. The president of the original publishing house was a noble.

Still, if things continued as they were, her husband and his mistress would continue to grow fat while Rita and her children lived in hardship. That’s when she discovered the buzz around Yvonne’s book. She heard the publisher’s owner was a duke. Without asking, without hesitation, she set off for the duchy that very day.

“…I came here hoping to find someone who would fight alongside me. That was all I thought about as I rode from carriage to carriage.”

Rita’s voice was steady—clearly, she’d spent a long time finding the words. Though she looked tired, her brown eyes burned with determination.

“These are… the proof. My account books, early manuscript drafts—they all match my handwriting. Ah, and… if I can take this to court, I’ll win. Because my husband… he can’t read.”

Notebooks she’d likely carried through every leg of her journey were spread out in front of Yudit. Each one filled edge-to-edge with dense, consistent handwriting. Yudit stared at them silently. The silence seemed to make Rita nervous; she hurriedly pulled out another notebook.

“This is the concept for my fourth novel… I haven’t finished it yet. With the kids and trying to earn money… I just couldn’t. But once things settle, I can write it right away. Really. I’ll send it the moment it’s done.”

Rita looked desperate. She had come to make a deal, but she hadn’t brought a shred of bargaining posture. She laid all her weaknesses bare—this wasn’t a negotiation, it was a plea for rescue. Yudit looked at her with complicated emotions.

***

That night, Yudit returned to the bedroom early. Khalid, sitting on the bed reading, blinked at him.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“The prince coming home before midnight? I figured the sun must’ve risen in the west.”

Khalid pulled Yudit awkwardly into his arms. Before he could even get settled into bed, Khalid kissed him. It was a soft kiss, tongues brushing lightly. Khalid’s hand, which had been resting on his shoulder, began to slide lower. He clearly thought this was an invitation. But Yudit, who’d barely recovered from being worn out until dawn yesterday, squirmed away in a panic.

“W-Wait, Khalid. I need to talk to you.”

“What is it?”

Even as he asked, Khalid kept caressing Yudit’s waist. With how sweetly and persistently he lured him in, he looked like a puppy rolling over to show its belly. Yudit couldn’t believe he was thinking of him this way now. Almost giving in, he pushed Khalid back again.

“What’s wrong?”

“I said I need to talk. It’s serious.”

“So it’s a kind of talk we can’t have like this. All right, go ahead.”

After a moment’s thought, Yudit began to explain what had happened earlier that day.

“…So that’s how it was. Since it’s a legal matter, I thought she should get professional help, so I didn’t give her a definite answer.”

“You made the right call. Good thinking.”

“Speaking of which… Khalid, do you know any good lawyers?”

“You said her name was Rita, right? Do you want to help her?”

“Yes. I’d like to do everything I can for her.”

At Yudit’s answer, Khalid smiled and reached over to brush back his hair.

“If you help her with everything you’ve got, you might just make her the new head of that publishing house. So just help her moderately.”

“Hmm, is that so? By the way, Khalid, do you know any lawyers?”

“Well, I’m not exactly unfamiliar with a few.”

Khalid’s cryptic answer made Yudit tilt his head.

“What does that mean?”

“There’s one right in front of you.”

“Khalid, you have a law license?”

“I had a long-standing dispute with my relatives, remember? I couldn’t trust anyone back then, so I studied on my own—and while I was at it, I went ahead and got the license too.”

He said it simply, but the storms Khalid had weathered came through in his words. Yudit quietly gazed at him, then pulled him into a hug. Khalid let out a soft chuckle and leaned gently into him.

“Are you trying to comfort me? I’m okay now.”

“I’m not hugging the current Khalid. I’m hugging baby Khalid.”

“Baby? I was sixteen then.”

Even so, the comfort seemed to reach him. Khalid stayed in Yudit’s arms for quite a while, letting him pat his back.

“Laws may have changed a bit since then. If you give me the relevant documents, I’ll look into it for you.”

“Aren’t you busy, Khalid? You’ve got another deployment coming up, don’t you?”

Rumors that the empire was preparing for war had spread quickly among neighboring smaller nations. Tensions along the borders were rising. It was as if the empire intended to tidy things up decisively. Since Khalid’s domain bordered several minor countries, he had to prepare for a potential deployment. Fortunately, most sides were still too wary to escalate to a full-blown war.

“This much is fine.”

“Don’t overdo it,” Yudit said, his face filled with concern.

“It’s not overdoing.”

“I wanted to help you, but now it feels like I’m just making you even busier…”

Yudit couldn’t hide his troubled expression. Finding that adorable, Khalid rolled with him on the bed, wrapping him up and planting playful kisses all over. His affection was clear in every touch.

“You can make me busier all you want. And you’re doing plenty already. Books aren’t exactly easy to sell, but your first release sold out, and now you’ve even signed a great novel. That’s no small feat.”

“I just got lucky. And the second part happened because you own the publishing house.”

“That’s not true. If you hadn’t published Yvonne’s book under her real name, she never would’ve come all the way down to the north. That’s your achievement.”

He hadn’t brought it up looking for praise, but he was being praised anyway. Yudit blinked, unsure how to respond. Khalid smiled and tapped him gently on the nose.

“Haha, that’s a weird face.”

Not wanting to show any more awkward expressions, Yudit turned and buried himself in Khalid’s arms.

“You get awkward when someone praises or adores you without filter.”

“Mm… I think that’s true.”

“Well, get used to it. I’m going to praise and adore you for the rest of my life.”

Khalid’s words spread through Yudit like a warm tide. He loved him. He loved him so, so much. What would he do if Khalid weren’t here? Could he even keep living?

Yudit gently traced Khalid’s rough, large fingers and murmured:

“I… love you so much, it scares me.”