IWBTVCF 54

Chapter 54

I heard that Duke Selphius and his eldest son Darius had returned to the Pelln mansion.

It was also said that the medal awarding ceremony was held only one week after their return.

That event was almost like Darius’ grand debut stage, and I regretted deeply that I could not watch it myself. Still, I waited while holding back my tears.

Ten days after they returned home, I sent a message saying I wanted to visit.

If it had been just meeting Kail like before, I would have visited without notice. But now Duke Selphius was there, so I had to be polite.

Ten days should be enough time for the family to rest from travel and have a reunion.

So I thought it was about time to visit.

As if responding to my expectation, an official invitation from the duchess arrived by reply.

It also included my brother in the invitation.

‘Go with 100% decoration strength!!’

Since I was going to see my favorite character after a long time, I should go with the best look!

I took out all the dresses and accessories prepared for occasions like this. I also asked Millie to carefully fix my hair.

When I went downstairs with a very determined appearance, my brother sneered.

“Is today your wedding?”

“Do I look weird?”

“You look like a peacock.”

Hearing my sibling’s merciless criticism, I removed some accessories on the spot.

After checking the mirror, it seemed better with less effort.

‘Well, it’s not like I’m trying to look pretty for Darius anyway.’

Feeling much more relaxed, I got on the carriage.

The carriage passed through a familiar road and stopped in front of the duke’s mansion in ten minutes.

From the disciplined and sharp atmosphere of the servants, I could feel that Duke Selphius had returned.

The butler guided us to the dining hall today.

Wow. Putting effort into my clothes was the right choice.

The high-ceiling dining hall was dazzling and solemn enough to make my eyes pop out.

Usually, I had tea time in the duchess’s reception room or glass greenhouse, so this was my first time entering this place.

Since we arrived about twenty minutes earlier than the scheduled time, the butler asked us to wait a little.

While admiring the beauty of the hall, I heard an excited voice from behind.

“Simon! Miss Riez!”

When I turned around, Darius was walking toward us with a bright smile.

“Darius, big brother!”

I screamed in joy and ran toward Darius.

I tried to stop right in front of him, but Darius laughed and stretched both arms.

How could I resist after seeing that?

I hugged him tightly, and he lifted me once lightly in a circle before putting me down.

“You’ve grown a lot, Miss Riez. You’ve become a proper young lady now.”

Darius said with a soft smile.

I happily admired the new version of my favorite character whom I hadn’t seen for ten months.

His hair was cut shorter like a soldier who had just joined the army, his body became more solid, and his eyes, nose, and mouth were perfectly balanced after finishing growth.

He was now nineteen, having just passed his birthday, and had shed his boyish look, showing a more mature face.

It was a little sad that I could no longer see my favorite character in his teenage phase, but my fan heart fluttered as his appearance became closer to the original.

“Darius big brother, I’m glad you returned safely!”

“Your letters, Miss Riez, gave me strength.”

“What? You two even exchanged letters?”

My brother ruined the emotional reunion by throwing cold water on it. Darius turned toward my brother.

“Simon, I heard you graduated at the top of your class.”

“Since you weren’t there, it was easy.”

The two bumped their fists and exchanged simple greetings.

At that moment, the duchess entered the hall.

“I’m sorry for making you wait. Please, take your seats.”

When the four of us sat around the table, the duke’s servants soon brought out mountain-and-sea delicacies until the table legs seemed to bend under the food.

“So, how was the battlefield? Tell me some stories.”

At my brother’s question, Darius shook his head with a smile.

“I was in rear supply duty, so nothing special happened. It was peaceful.”

“Then tell me more about the capture mission when you received the medal.”

Darius then talked about how he captured the carriages of enemy country officials who were fleeing, excluding classified details.

After that, he spoke about his future position.

“Right now, I’m on one month of reward leave. After that, I will serve in the Pelln Royal Guard.”

“I see. I also applied to the royal palace guard and received an acceptance notice.”

My brother also shared his personal news with Darius.

Everyone had truly grown up….

I felt that once again.

“So both of you will serve Her Majesty the Queen in the royal palace. That’s really good.”

“Yes.”

I agreed with the satisfied duchess.

Since there should not be much danger for soldiers serving in the royal palace.

I was also happy that my favorite character would be living very close to me from now on.

However, I felt a somewhat empty feeling.

‘Come to think of it, Kail isn’t here today?’

I knew that Kail didn’t really like official gatherings like this, so it wasn’t strange.

‘I should stop by the training ground before going home later. I’ll talk to him for a bit.’

Since Selphius and Darius had returned, Kail might have had some change in his feelings, so I should check.

But what welcomed me that day was an empty training ground.

Even after visiting several more times later, I kept missing Kail, and I could only finally arrange a meeting through someone else.

At the end of March when young leaves began to sprout, one month after my brother’s graduation ceremony, I finally went out to play with Kail.

The destination was Serdin Lake.

It was a famous place near Pelln where there were few people because it was off-season, but the natural scenery was excellent.

Because Kail gets seasick, we decided to walk only along the lakeside instead of boating. To focus only on Kail, I left my brothers and Millie behind and set off.

Standing at the gate of the Diern ducal house, I soon saw Kail coming out in casual outing clothes.

I tried to wave, but when he came closer, I noticed something was wrong with him.

“Why are you covered in so many injuries?”

I asked as soon as he opened the door.

“What.”

“Your face looks terrible!”

His face was covered with scratches and cuts here and there.

Kail closed the carriage door and sat down.

I quickly grabbed his arm and rolled up his sleeve.

Bruised, mottled forearms were revealed.

“What are you doing? Let go!”

Kail shook off my touch and pulled his sleeve down sharply.

Someone suddenly came to my mind.

“Did Duke Selphius do this?”

“What nonsense is that. I got hurt because I trained hard for the past few days.”

“Let’s get off. How can you go play when your body is like this!”

“It’s fine. This much doesn’t even itch.”

Kail waved his hand as if it was annoying.

“Hurry up and go. Hey, start moving.”

Kail knocked on the wall toward the coachman’s seat, and soon the carriage slowly moved.

Can I really go play happily with a kid who looks like this?

Was Kail’s body always like this, and I just didn’t know because it was hidden under his clothes?

While I was thinking about that, Kail asked in a low voice.

“How long do we have to go?”

“…About one hour.”

“Then I’ll take a nap during that time. Wake me when we arrive.”

Then he closed his eyes tightly and cut off the conversation.

Cold.

His tone wasn’t usually kind or gentle, but it wasn’t this bad.

When Selphius returned after a long war before, Kail became strange and pushed me away back then too.

This time too, I could guess that Selphius’ return had a bad influence on Kail.

I thought about interrogating him to find out what happened but held back.

I knew that if I pushed him in this state, Kail wouldn’t confess.

Seeing his condition, I also felt it would be better to let him sleep first rather than question him immediately.

Since we planned to play all day today, there was still plenty of time.

Even in the awkward silence, the carriage ran quickly and soon reached the destination.

When we got off at the lakeside where the view opened wide, I couldn’t help but exclaim.

“Wow, Serdin Lake is so pretty! It has a different charm from Lagria Lake.”

Our territory’s pride, Lagria Lake, was a mysterious and quiet natural spot, while this was a tourist-style lake.

Around the lakeside were small shops and cafés, with deck walking paths, wooden bridges, and flower gardens.

It felt like a lake park built in the middle of a city.

Since it was well decorated, it was nice to look at.

When I turned around, I saw Kail walking slowly out of the carriage.

“Kail, are you hurting? Are you tired? Tell me honestly.”

“I’m fine.”

“Really? Don’t lie.”

“I said I’m fine.”

“…Okay. Then relax your facial muscles a bit. You’re going to go to the dormitory soon, so we might not be able to play for a while. Are you going to stay like that?”

“…No. Let’s go.”

Kail must have remembered our promise, because his stiff expression softened.

Seeing him relax a little, I felt relieved.

I almost grabbed Kail’s arm out of habit, but I remembered his bruised arm and instead gently held the tip of his finger.

Kail’s fingers trembled slightly.