CH 54

Everyone praised it as it was the first time such a moving reading had been held.

After saying goodbye to the important guests, the Young Master slowly walked toward the front door.

This time I took the wheelchair.

But even after the reading session was over, the Young Master still had a nervous look.

“Lobel, are you mad at me?”

His eyes were stiff as he kept glancing behind the wheelchair where I was. So was his shoulder.

Compared to when he stood in front of a noble or read a poem, he looked more nervous now.

I felt like I would laugh because of the Young Master who was looking at me like this.

But I pushed the wheelchair with a pout.

Of course, I’m happy that the Young Master can walk.

Yes, I’m happy. Of course, I should be happy—but aside from that, I honestly thought it was too much.

“Looking at it, it seems that Arif Hyung already knows…”

“….”

The Young Master gave a startled look.

“How would Young Master feel if you were me?”

“….!”

When I asked him how I’m feeling emotionally, the Young Master’s back flinched greatly.

“I’m the Young Mster’s exclusive attendant. But only the three of you shared this good news…”

“….”

“And you know how much I’ve been worried about Young Master. How could you do this to me?”

Now his shoulders are stiff.

When I saw it, I smiled inwardly. After that, I thought I should stop joking around here.

Well, looking back, I’m not in a position to say anything. I’ve been hiding the fact that I’m a woman from the Young Master for all this time—.

I’m going to lie to the Young Master for the rest of my life—.

Even though this will never happen, the Young Master will feel more betrayed by me if he knows this.

But it’s the opposite.

When I thought about this, even a small amount of sadness went away quickly.

‘Honestly— I think my sin is worse?’

Feeling guilty, I spoke to him sincerely.

“It was a joke. It’s all right.”

But when I arrived at the front of the stairs, the Young Master apologized to me.

“Sorry to disappoint you—”

There was a lot of guilt there. So I told him repeatedly that it was okay, but he didn’t answer.

He usually answers everything, so it was strange when he didn’t answer me, but I stood right in front of him.

He must be very tired, even if he doesn’t show it. First, I’ll have to give him a rest.

“Now, go up to your room, wash up, and rest. Then, I’ll give you a hug.”

However, unlike the generous reward, he looks at a loss for words.

How—the small and pretty Young Master’s face remains the same, but his shoulders and bones seem to have grown.

‘I don’t think it will be easy for me to embrace it as lightly as before—’

The Young Master, who was quietly looking at me in conflict, shook his head.

“Now I can go up on my own.”

“Can you even go up the stairs by yourself?”

“Ung. If I hold onto the railing—”

The Young Master, who still thinks I’m angry, replied hesitantly.

I was genuinely surprised at the words.

No matter how much the Young Master took medicine and rested according to the doctor’s examination, it has only been less than half a year.

But to be able to climb the stairs alone already—it was unimaginable.

The Young Master is even sicker than I am—.

“Still, it would still be too much to climb alone. Every time you raise your foot, it hurts like an awl from your thigh to your ankle, isn’t it? And your sole hurts like it burnt—”

I asked based on my previous experience because I was worried about him.

Then the Young Master opened his eyes wide.

It was like asking, ‘How do you know that so well?’

—Ah.

My conscience was pricking, but I pretended like everything was fine and made up another excuse.

“I looked it up in advance. It’s a medical book or anything about the Young Master. I asked the doctor what it would be like if the symptoms improved—”

“…I see.”

Fortunately, the Young Master seems to have easily understood.

Since I had been living my life so thoroughly, no one had ever noticed about my illness.

I usually wear long pants and socks, so the affected area is not exposed, and I also took a separate bath.

As if he didn’t need help like what he said, the Young Master climbed the stairs on his own.

Still, in case he fell down, I pretended to support him with both hands and walked along.

But all my concerns were unnecessary. The Young Master walked to the second floor by himself.

Not once did he ask me to help. He didn’t even look back.

“…I did it.”

Finally, he had reached the second floor and was muttering as he gripped the railing.

He frowned as if he couldn’t believe it, laughed in vain, and said it several times.

How happy he must be.

I smiled along because I was happy and proud as if it were my job. I quickly wiped the tears from my eyes.

It was a miracle that he did what he did before I even thought about it.

There was a time when I desperately wanted to walk more than anything—.

As I looked at the back of the Young Master, who was still happy, I suddenly had the urge to hug him.

As I reached out to him, I held my heart and stopped myself.

No, no. This is not the time. The Young Master should get some rest soon. We have plans for tomorrow.

I stood in front of the Young Master with a smile.

“But you’d better carry a wheelchair for the time being. You can’t push yourself too hard.”

“Ung. I will.”

The Young Master calmly climbed into the wheelchair brought to him by the servant who followed him from the first floor.

As I pushed his wheelchair again, I had another strange feeling.

‘Now, this work will be over soon….’

It was fortunate that neither of us got sick.

Perhaps, by next spring, we will all walk in good health. In different places—.

The servant who had followed him from the first floor brought the Young Master’s wheelchair to him.

“Lobel.”

But as soon as the gatekeeper closed the door, the Young Master called me as if he had been waiting.

He was still in a wheelchair, looking ahead.

As I was wondering what he was going to say, he said calmly.

“You always know a lot. About my illness.”

“I don’t know much, but—I’m trying to get to know a lot. That way, we can serve our Young Master well.”

The Young Master, who smiled quietly as if he had expected my obvious answer, turned his head slightly.

His face was pale because he was tired, and when he bit his lower lip, there was a little bit of blood on it.

However, his eyes were full of life.

I felt like he was determined to do something.

“Lobel. Then, do you know about Diff?”

“…!”

“…You don’t know?”

“No, it’s a little—I know a little. Once upon a time, I happened to see it through a stone slab. As I said before, it was shown to me by a scholar who was good at lithography among travelers from where I lived.”

I didn’t say much because I was surprised at how quickly the topic came up.

A long time has passed since the Diff people lived in hiding.

They didn’t reveal their identities even among their races, just as I was hiding the fact that I was a woman.

‘Then why are you suddenly telling me this—’

I didn’t know what he was trying to do, so when I stared at the Young Master with difficulty, he spoke easily, unlike me.

“I am a descendant of Diff.”

“….!”

“My mother was Diff. So as I said, I inherited the blood of Diff.”

The Young Master continued to speak more naturally than he had previously practiced and memorized the poem.

“But… It is said that my mother and I were the only Diffs left in the world. So, when I was young, I had never seen the faces of not only the parents of my father, but also the parents of my mother.”

The more I listened, the more I felt strange.

This is because the Young Master’s mother has always told him that he should live by hiding the identity of his blood relatives.

‘But why are you telling me that important thing now—’

While I was confused, the Young Master got out of his wheelchair and limped over to the table.

Soon, he had an ancient book with poems from the Old Kingdom in his hands. It was also something I looked at in the process of selecting a poem this time.

But in the past, Diff couldn’t understand it because it was a mix of ancient and natural languages, like code.

I was so frustrated that I didn’t know any of it, even though I thought I should have.

“I have been…I wanted to share Diff’s poetry with you too.”

But it seems he remembered the self-talk that I grumbled about at the time.

The Young Master begged for an awkward reconciliation towards me, who was bewildered.

“I swear. I won’t let anyone but you listen to it in the future.”

He added with a faint smile as he fiddled with the old cover.

“I’m actually… I’ve been looking forward to this moment the most today.”

“….”

“Can I read it for you?”

The Young Master, who was not nervous at all earlier, was actually very nervous now.

Under his slightly messy blonde hair, his shaking eyes, fluttering cheeks, and trembling voice showed that he was nervous.

I frowned as I asked him.

“Why are you asking me that again?”

“….”

“Now. Please read it quickly.”

After a sudden change, I sat on the sofa with my arms crossed and my chin up, like a sensitive and arrogant audience.

Then, the expression on the Young Master’s face, which had hardened due to tension, slowly loosened. His cheeks were a little red in the soft moonlight.

Soon, a clear voice with a strong scent of summer filled the room.

It was the beginning of a real reading session.

* * *

“If you give me an order, I will take care of it.”

Alexis didn’t reply to his subordinate’s words and laughed in vain.

When he recalled his subordinate’s report a while ago, he laughed because it was ridiculous.

‘Lobel… What a pretty big-hearted brat.’

He met many people in his life, but this was the first time he met such a person.

Not enough to deceive Denkart’s head of the family from the first day, he can’t believe this brat comes with a fake identity.