“No, it’s not. You’ll be healthy again soon, and you’ll definitely return to the knight order,” I said hurriedly. “I’ll make sure you get better.”
He stared at me wordlessly.
“Why…”
I raised my head at his sudden low tone. Against the orange sunset filtering through the window, his blue eyes were piercing.
“Why are you doing all this for me?”
“….”
“I’ve been wondering about it. Just why are you doing this?”
He was speaking in a relaxed, languid tone, and yet I felt like I wanted to hide. The way he was looking at me was so intense that it felt like I was being interrogated.
“So? Have you come to a conclusion?”
I purposely raised my chin as I asked, hoping that he wouldn’t notice the guilt gnawing at me.
“…I haven’t a clue,” he confessed, squinting at me. “I’m more annoyed because I couldn’t figure you out. What’s wrong with you all of a sudden? Unless you’re really thinking about getting pregnant.”
He glared at me, and as if I was a deer caught in the headlights, I froze.
“….”
I couldn’t answer him to satisfy his curiosity.
To be honest, I didn’t even know where to start.
If I told him the entire story from point A to Z, he’d probably treat me like a crazy person. But, in any case, what I was doing for him right now was already making him think that I’d gone coo-coo.
From his point of view, I knew that he didn’t want kids, but I can also see how baffled he was at my constant attempts to seemingly convince him otherwise.
To save his life, I must first gain his trust. However, the contract was getting in the way because I couldn’t tell him about it.
What else could I do to gain his faith without mentioning the contract? No matter how much I racked my brain, the answer wouldn’t come to me easily.
“I just want you to live long and well. That’s really all. Please believe me.”
…It was an excuse that no one would believe, but it was the only one up my sleeve.
“Is that really all?”
I couldn’t help but smile as he asked me.
“Well, I’ll need to go now.”
Though as I got up, he hurriedly reached out to grab my hand. Long fingers gently wrapped around the bandage.
“Does it still hurt?”
I was at a loss for words again. This time, my heart was heavy for a different reason.
‘Is it bothering you that much?’
How would he react if he found out that I was only half-acting about the pain by now? What would happen to me?
…Let’s not worry in advance because that’s not going to happen.
“I’m wearing a bandage because it still hurts.”
Nonetheless, the truth was, the swelling and the bruise had subsided a lot. My bones weren’t broken, so I’d be able to remove the bandage soon.
“Are you being treated?”
“Of course.”
“When can you remove the bandage?”
“Well, I think I heard that I still need to keep it on for some time.”
“You heard?”
His eyebrows furrowed.
“Yes. I heard.”
Why was he listening to my words so carefully…
“Now that you mention it, I remember that I need to drop by the clinic. Then, I’ll get going.”
But, the hand that gripped mine did not let go. And, it wasn’t easy to pull out my hand even though it didn’t seem like he was exerting any force.
“Amoide?”
Embarrassed for some reason, I called his name. Then, slowly, his hand relaxed over mine and let go.
“….”
I glanced furtively at him as I held my hand closer to my chest.
Turning a blind eye to his penetrating gaze, I scurried out of the room.
<center><b>* * *</b>\nLike a good kitty, Noir answered me every time I spoke to him.
“I think this is the best place you can be in the world.”
The place where I brought Noir was at the isolated pavilion called ‘Moonlight Haven. The room was in a small building that had a total of about seven rooms, but there were traces of elaborate decoration everywhere.
No one was staying there now, and it was a rarely used building, so it’s pretty old and dilapidated.
When I first discovered this place, I was surprised to find such a place in the sparkling, glamorous Ducal estate. It’s been a while since I’ve been here, and since no one was living here, I’ll just need to manage it well and clean occasionally.
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The main building, where Camilla made sure to keep it neat and tidy for Amoide, it was clear that the Duchy’s sparkly exterior could be seen only there and not here.
‘This place must have been so beautiful when it was first built.’
Now, it was difficult to even know what the walls’ original color was, and the outer walls were already covered with vines.
A thick layer of dust fell over the marble floor, and the ceilings and decorations were either worn out or broken.
One of the former Dukes of Efret, known widely as a doting husband, built this building for his wife. Now, as long as his ghost doesn’t come out and shake hands with me, then it’ll all be fine.