---- Chapter 5 Charles gave a faint smile. "Every word I just said comes straight from my heart." He then turned to Michael, and his gaze suddenly grew sharp and piercing. "T haven't touched a woman because those greedy people aren't worthy of my heart. But Ariel... She's someone I'm willing to break my vows for." At that moment, I felt as if something had spread within me, like a flower blooming quietly but surely. I gently linked my arm through Charles', and I felta sense of steadiness and belonging I'd never experienced before. "Michael, I want to thank you for teaching me such a valuable lesson and showing me what true love really looks like." When the banquet ended, Charles invited me toa small garden near the hotel. ---- I finally asked the question that had been weighing on me. "Why were you willing to return to secular life? You're the only heir to the Gordon family, yet you chose to seclude yourself in the Treyist monasteries for training these past five years." Charles gently removed a leaf that had fallen onto my shoulder, his movements natural yet careful. "Because you're worth it." My heart skipped a beat at those four simple words. "Have we met before? You just seem so familiar," I asked tentatively. Charles smiled-not the cool, composed ones he had worn at the banquet, but a warmer, softer one. "Do you still remember that fire at Tasera Monastery 12 years ago?" I froze. That had been when I was 12. My mother had taken ---- me to the monastery to pray, but a sudden fire had broken out. Someone had carried me out before disappearing into the chaos. Ihad fallen unconscious then. When I woke up, the only thing I remembered was that the person who saved me had a scar on his wrist. "That was you?" I asked, looking at him, shocked. "I thought it was Michael..." Charles slowly rolled up his sleeve, revealing a long, narrow scar on his wrist. "Twas clumsy and got burned while rescuing you." His tone sounded a bit pitiful. "But Michael... He told me he saved me," I said, my voice trembling. Charles sighed. "I had already decided to enter seclusion then and didn't want to give my name. Michael must've noticed something and decided to take the credit."