The chill of the drink in her hand combined with the cool sea breeze, making her shiver even in the height of summer.
Perhaps it wasn’t the cold but rather the relief of having survived that made her feel this way.
Yes, maybe that was it.
“Haah…”
Taking a sip of the drink out of frustration, the rich strawberry flavor lingered in her mouth.
‘Ian always liked strawberries.’
As memories brought back through the Memorial Link resurfaced, her expression began to brighten.
Among countless fruits, Ian had always favored strawberries.
In Volkanov, where the harsh climate made it difficult to grow crops, winter strawberries were the only fruit that managed to grow, so it was natural for them to be a staple.
But even without that consideration, Ian still preferred strawberries over other fruits.
‘But he doesn’t particularly like eating them raw. He dislikes anything sour.’
He loved desserts and drinks made with strawberry syrup, boiled with sugar to create a sweet flavor.
Those were Ian’s favorite treats. Occasionally, Celia would make strawberry desserts just for him.
‘It was fun sneaking around in the Blue Moon Pavilion kitchen at night to make those desserts.’
Like the time she bumped into him while sneaking into the hallway out of hunger, both of them laughing quietly.
Or the time they snuck into the kitchen, avoiding the guards, to gather ingredients.
Or when they shared the finished treats, feeding each other and laughing together….
‘Those were… truly happy times.’
Those moments were precious memories to Celia—memories she could never forget, even up to the moment of death.
And that made the current situation all the more painful for her.
‘I may never feel those moments again….’
What she had decided to do purely to help him had instead led Ian to ruin, and their relationship had shattered, broken beyond recognition.
There’s a saying that even shattered relationships can be mended, that even the smallest fragments can be pieced back together with enough time. But to fix them, it requires a firm resolution.
‘Ian now has too many people to look after. There’s Erzebeth, and Lia Hurst too.’
Some decadent nobles collected wives like trophies.
But the Ian she knew was far from such people.
Naturally, Ian would devote himself to the women around him, sparing no effort to care for them.
‘For those he’s chosen.’
Would he have any time left for her?
Rebuilding the connection between them would require more time than she dared to ask for. Could Ian—or the women by his side—handle it?
‘No. It’s impossible.’
No matter how she thought about it, happiness seemed out of reach for her.
For Celia Wignoron, the best she could hope for was to watch Ian’s happiness from afar.
‘I thought he was going to kill me. But if he saved me… then why did we come here?’
The reason she had come to Celon Beach was perhaps for a final farewell trip.
The memories they shared would remain with Ian as well, and unable to completely turn his back on them, he must have decided to end it this way.
It was easier to do so in a scenic, peaceful place.
‘That must be it.’
Sensing that the end was near, Celia pulled her knees up and buried her face between them.
She had heard countless times that partings were harder than meetings. Only now, faced with this moment herself, did she truly understand those words.
As she swallowed the tears threatening to spill and tried to control her emotions, a voice broke through the silence.
“You look down… Is something wrong?”
“Huh? Oh, no. It’s just a bit chilly.”
“Your voice… Are you crying?”
“No… Why would I cry…?”
Celia shook her head insistently, claiming to be fine. But Ian had long since noticed something was wrong.
Even the most oblivious fool could tell when someone’s voice carried traces of tears.
‘We came here to relax, but she’s suddenly crying… Maybe she doesn’t like the sea.’
There weren’t many places to visit anyway, and knowing that bustling cities would only tire her, he had chosen the quiet Celon Beach. Perhaps it was a mistake.
He had ruled out a mountain trip, thinking it wouldn’t suit her. If she disliked the cold, then perhaps he should have chosen a warmer destination.
‘But we’ve already come all this way. Going back now isn’t an option.’
Ian scratched his head awkwardly as he watched Celia, who had buried her face deeper to hide her sobs.
He wished he could take her somewhere she wanted to go, but they had already spent so much time getting here.
And with Brookers Territory rendered a ghost town due to the zombie incident, there were no other destinations nearby.
Caught in a dilemma, Ian knew he couldn’t move her now. The only thing he could do was try to solve whatever was troubling her.
Swish!
“Hmm? This is…?”
“You said you were cold, so use this.”
Ian pulled out a combat coat he had stored in the Ring of Infinity and draped it over Celia.
It was heavy, but its superior insulation and wind resistance would keep her warm.
At the same time, Ian sat down right next to her, turning his gaze forward.
“I thought you’d like the sea, but I didn’t expect you to be cold… I’m sorry about that.”
“No, it’s fine. I’m okay.”
“Still, this trip was supposed to be for you. I wasn’t thinking clearly.”
“A trip for me?”
It was an offhanded comment, but the words lingered deeply in Celia’s mind.
Choosing the sea as a destination purely for her—how was she supposed to interpret that?
Wasn’t this trip to mark a clean farewell, to leave things behind and close this chapter in a remote, quiet place?
Her thoughts began to spiral. Each led to another, snowballing into a single lingering doubt.
‘Would you really call a farewell trip a “trip for me”? If that were the case, wouldn’t it be a trip for us? Or… am I seeing this all wrong? No, that’s too optimistic, isn’t it?’
She ran endless scenarios in her mind but found no clear answer.
Frustrated, Celia turned to look at Ian.
“Is there something you want to say?”
“Uh, yeah… I have a question.”
Gathering her courage, she finally voiced the question that had been tormenting her heart.
If her fears were correct, she had already steeled herself to endure the pain. If his answer defied her expectations, there was a chance it might bring her joy.
“Why did we come here? I’m not asking why we came to the sea—I want to know… why you decided we should go on this trip. That’s what I want to ask.”
“The reason for this trip…”
“Is it… some kind of final trip? Like a last farewell?”
“One thing I can say for certain—it’s not the last.”
It wasn’t the end. The words she never thought she’d hear came from Ian’s lips, stunning her into silence.
Joy surged through her heart, mingling with the worry that perhaps she didn’t deserve such happiness.
Before she could respond, Ian continued, revealing the purpose of the trip.
“I don’t know if you remember, but when we were kids, we talked about the future once. You were always weak back then, and you said you wanted to travel. I remember worrying about you.”
“Yeah… Back then, I was foolishly desperate to see places I’d never seen before.”
It was that same curiosity that had led them into the forest, where Ian had been seriously injured—a memory that still embarrassed her.
For Ian, however, those moments were a mix of romance and nostalgia, a precious memory he cherished.
“I still remember it clearly. When I worried about your health, you told me to become your guardian knight so I could help you.”
“…That’s embarrassing.”
“You might feel that way… but I didn’t hate it.”
“Huh?”
“Deep down, I hoped for it. I wanted to travel to places we’d never been, together with you—someone important to me.”
Ian Volkanov and Celia Wignoron were children of two of the most prestigious families in the Kallos Empire. Yet they were both lonely, isolated souls who couldn’t live freely.
Ian’s fate had been twisted by the world’s cruel games, tearing his life apart, while Celia bore the curse inherited from her father, the Duke of Wignoron, living under the shadow of inevitable suffering.
The sea was a symbol of this shared longing. The region where they had spent their childhood had no coastline; they could only imagine its vastness through books and documents.
Though both of them had since seen the sea individually, as children, they had promised to see it together. That’s why Ian chose this place.
“That’s why I picked Celon Beach. It’s quiet, away from people. Everywhere else is crowded because it’s vacation season, and the weather’s chilly. There are warmer places, sure, but they wouldn’t feel like the sea.”
Celon Beach had stunning scenery and, thanks to the lingering effects of the Brookers Territory zombie incident, it remained untouched and devoid of visitors—an advantage for Ian.
“So we came here. I didn’t say anything, but… I’ve been looking forward to this.”
“Looking forward to it?”
“Yeah. I’m talking about the trip I promised with someone I love—traveling to a place we dreamed of as kids.”
‘Someone I love.’
That single phrase melted away all the doubts and fears she had carried for so long.
Celia had thought that receiving Ian’s love was too much to hope for. She believed that standing far away, merely watching him in secret, was the only happiness she deserved.
‘I still have a chance after all.’
Tears welled up and spilled over before she could stop them.
Without saying a word, Ian gently pulled her head to rest on his shoulder.
“Things are going to get busy soon, so I thought we’d take this honeymoon trip in advance… You’re okay with that, right?”
“Yes… I’m more than okay.”
Ian spoke with a small smile, and Celia answered with a soft, radiant one of her own.
The two sat close together on the sand, gazing blankly at the endless waves.
It was only then that Celia realized the true purpose of this trip.
‘I thought this was about ending things… but it wasn’t.’
It wasn’t a farewell. It was about rebuilding what they had lost.
