Chapter 105 (1/2)

Chapter 105: Chapter 105

When I felt a burning sensation in my swollen eyes, and my neck was stiff and my voice was hoarse, I released the soaked pillow. I felt like a limp noodle.

As I tried to stand up to put out the candle on my wobbly legs, a soft fluffy thing hung on me and meowed. When I looked down with blurry eyes, I saw the small silver cat.

‘I forgot you, Luna.’

I held Luna in my trembling arms. I felt sad as the kitten without worry or concern looked up at me casually.

‘It was Allendis who brought you to me.’

Maybe it was because I was thinking about him that I dropped her.

‘No, Luna!’

A silent scream burst out in my croaky voice. Fortunately, the silver cat landed safely on the floor. While I breathed a sigh of relief, she, meowing sharply at me, ran into the corner under a table. As she would not move out of it, I was worried a bit.

‘What if she got hurt?’

I put some power in my legs and got up. The kitten, who saw me approaching her, turned around and bumped into the leg of the table.

‘Oh my!’

The chess board and chess pawns placed on the table fell all at once. Surprised by the loud noise, Luna ran to me and hung on to me. I held her, trembling on the floor covered with the chess pieces.

“You’re okay. It’s nothing. Calm down.”

As I stroked her gently with a croaky voice, she stopped trembling and soon closed her golden eyes.

When I was about to get up, holding the sleeping Luna in my arms, I saw the shadows of the chess pawns created on the wall by the swaying candlelight. It reminded me of the shadow play I saw in the village. I also recalled the puppets that only moved as shadows behind the white cloth.

I gently put her down and picked up the bishop near my feet. The shadow of the bishop was on the wall in my hand. I moved my hand around, and the shadow moved along.

When I was looking at the bishop wearing a round hat, Allendis came to my mind, who always used the bishop skillfully when he played chess.

When I thought of Allendis, my heart began to ache again. What if I had given him a different answer? Did I really close my heart to him? Could I begin to love him if I had more time?

While looking blankly at the shadows of the bishops and pawns on the walls, I opened the chessboard on the floor.

I placed a bishop on a black square. Gathering scattered pieces, I picked up one of them. White queen.

‘No, not this one.’

I put down the queen and put the rook back on the chessboard instead, which I tended to be obsessed with, according to Allendis.

“… Good.”

When the shadow of the bishop on the wall asked, the shadow of the rook hesitantly answered. The shadow of Bishop approached the rook with joy. At that moment, the shadow of the rook moved back. The closer the bishop approached, the more the rook retreated. I stopped the bishop in its place with a sigh.

His sad emerald eyes came to my mind. Alendis, who was friendly, kind and warm to me. Allendis who used to care for and love me.

‘Why don’t you love him, Aristia? Think carefully. Where can you find another man like him?