🔊 TTS Settings
Chapter : 10
Don’t come.
“Y–you… don’t come. Stay seated where you are.”
“Pardon?”
The man muttered a string of curses that were hard to make out and let out a heavy breath. He looked exactly like a patient fighting an unbearable illness. Alferil hurried toward him.
“It’s… nothing. I’m telling you not to worry.”
“You should drop such pointless stubbornness. You look like you’re about to collapse! D-don’t tell me it’s because of that food? In a place like this, even if we called a doctor, it would take ages—”
Terencio frowned and muttered,
“Alfe, damn it… no. It’s just because I ate food for the first time in ages.”
“…What?”
“I put something into an empty stomach that’s been empty far too long. My stomach twisted, that’s all. I’m fine.”
“What did you say?”
Alferil asked as if talking to herself. Having been startled while still unwell, she didn’t even have the strength to raise her voice. Terencio didn’t answer further and wiped his mouth.
His claim that he was fine didn’t seem to be complete nonsense—his breathing gradually grew steadier as the pain subsided. She asked in her usual calm tone, though it wavered slightly.
“Is that really true? You don’t need a doctor?”
“Yeah.”
“How long does someone have to… starve for it to get this bad?”
“There’s no calendar in my place.”
Still frowning, he rested his chin on his hand. Forgetting all the worries she’d been harboring until now, Alferil murmured with a blank mind,
“It’s a wonder you’ve survived this long.”
While Terencio remained seated and slowly ate about half the contents of the bowl, Alferil half-heartedly picked at her own food. It tasted clean enough that it was hard to believe any strange medicine had been added.
In doing so, she had buried what had been her biggest worry—but having been deeply shaken, she couldn’t shake the feeling that she’d taken on something far beyond her ability to handle.
Still, setting aside the impertinent thought that had briefly crossed her mind, Alferil was, at heart, a conscientious peasant. When she heard the chair scrape as it was pushed back, she immediately sought out what needed to be done and acted.
She went to the man as he rose and supported him.
“……”
Terencio didn’t move. In the flowing silence, Alferil lifted her tense head to look at him. Then the solid arm she was holding lifted. He gazed at her with a peculiar look.
“What do you think you’re doing?”
“Aren’t you getting up?”
Despite his irritated tone, there was—surprisingly—a faint smile at the corner of his eyes. The moment Alferil widened her eyes, the man barked, sounding rougher but somehow gentler than before.
“Do you think I’m some dying invalid? Let go.”
As Terencio tried to shake off her hands, Alferil grabbed his wrist again. It was courage born of not wanting to deal with her young master collapsing once more.
“It’s fine—lean on me. This much nursing won’t be too much for me.”
“What nonsense have you been listening to? Put that down before you get hurt.”
“My lord.”
Alferil spoke firmly.
“Pain isn’t a weakness that needs to be hidden. Everyone is born with frailty.”
He hates taking medicine. He tries to hide his illness.
Leopold’s warning echoed in her head. Part of her found it almost amusing that she felt sorry for this stubborn young master—but pain was something that stood equal before everyone.
“Please don’t take this as disrespect. If you simply eat proper meals and take your medicine, your health will improve greatly. You can trust me.”
“…I truly have no idea what you’re talking about.”
She had felt that her first impression of him could never have been good, but now it didn’t linger as a particularly bad memory. When the moody man was in a foul temper, she could simply remove herself.
Being served food cooked by a noble was an experience she would likely never have again. For him it might have been a simple impulse, but for her it was a surprisingly memorable kindness.
In the end, he left her arm alone and walked toward the doorway. Because of Terencio’s large build, it felt more like Alferil was being dragged along than supporting him, but what mattered was that she was holding on.
When Alferil picked up the tray with the plates using her free hand, he took up the candlestick. Darkness had fully enveloped the manor, leaving only the small flame to rely on.
Unlike his earlier sharp reaction, the man no longer tried to shake off her hand, nor did he seem particularly bothered by it.
And suddenly, she realized that beneath the deep scent of wine, his natural smell wasn’t unpleasant. The fragrance of oil mixed with grass felt refreshing rather than bad.
“May I ask you something?”
“When have you ever asked before opening your mouth?”
“……”
“That meant you may.”
“How did you manage things like bathing and shaving on your own…?”
No answer came. Alferil was about to step aside at the foot of the stairs leading to his room when the man passed her and kept walking. Her legs moved along with his.
“My lord?”
“There isn’t a single working light bulb in this manor. How do you expect to walk this corridor without a candlestick?”
Whether it was consideration or simply reproach was hard to tell. Each time the silver candlestick in his hand passed by, objects long coated in dust were revealed.
For a moment, it seemed as though he cast an admiring glance around, but he said nothing more.
They reached a room used for washing dishes at a measured pace. Alferil released her hold on him, stepped away, and roughly organized the dishes. It seemed more efficient to finish the rest after daylight.
She brushed the dust from her hands and turned back.
“Thank you for waiting. That’s everything now—my lord?”
He was gone, leaving only the burning candle behind. As Alferil looked around in confusion, a man’s voice came from somewhere behind her.
“Here.”
The closer she moved toward the sound, the more biting cold wrapped around her body. Wearing only thin clothes without a coat, Alferil hunched her shoulders. It was a storage room, isolated from the others.
In the light she carried, Terencio’s tall profile came into view.
“I used this water for bathing, not the drinking water. You’ll need it too.”
It was a round wooden barrel that looked like it should be filled with cheap rum. Alferil opened the lid and shone the candle inside. For a moment, she couldn’t speak.
“…Did you heat this separately before using it?”
“Are you insane? What if I got burned? I don’t do things that damage my hands.”
“I’m not sure whether burns or frostbite would be the better choice.”
On the surface of the water—kept in this particularly cold place—floated a thin layer of ice. Alferil rubbed her trembling arms and shut the lid with a thud.
“Even a healthy man would die if he stayed in a place like this for a month. Considering that… perhaps you’re sturdier than most. For now, let’s go upstairs.”
She lightly tugged on the arm of the man whose life could be described as neither gently raised nor entirely rough. An overwhelming sense of burden crashed over her all at once.
It had been a very long time since she’d been swept up in such a flood of emotions.
“Does this manor seem that dreadful to you?”
The question echoed, sounding rough but not sharp. Alferil missed her chance to reply while choosing words polite enough. His question lingered in her mind.
At the Grand Duke’s estate, Alferil had lived surrounded by soft dresses and dazzling jewels, eating bird-sized portions of food and chirping, quite literally, like a canary.
One might say she had lived a life more aristocratic than that of nobles themselves. Everything here simply felt unfamiliar—especially when she thought of spending the remaining year of her life in this place.
Before long, their steps stopped in front of the man’s bedroom. Without a word, Terencio handed her the candlestick. Alferil lowered her gaze and spoke.
“If I offended you, I’m sorry. I just feel ashamed. Normally, by now I should have cleaned the manor and prepared your meal—”
“You intend to work in that condition?”
Terencio replied coldly, as if her words grated on him too much to listen to any further.
“I don’t even understand why you think the household chores are your responsibility. What exactly did my brother tell you to do when he sent you here?”
Alferil’s heart dropped. Had he noticed the medicine she’d slipped in? She bowed her head and glanced at him. His expression seemed innocent, not as though he suspected anything.
“I… was told to take care of you…”
“Good. If you came to take care of my life, then focus on me alone.”
At that, Alferil suddenly lifted her head.
The door was just about to close. She gently caught the sleeve of Terencio’s shirt, stopping him. The moment he turned around, she let go.
Their eyes met. Alferil instinctively stepped back, rubbing the fingertips that had just grasped his clothes.
“You told me to take care of you. Then I have to stay by your side.”
In truth, she didn’t want to spend the night alone.
She was afraid that if she fell asleep with her body not yet recovered, her fever would rise again and nightmares like yesterday’s would return. Knowing how forced her words sounded, she still placed her hopes in his capricious nature. Terencio looked down at her askew and said flatly,
“Could you stop calling me ‘my lord’?”
Alferil, who had blurted out something terribly impulsive and instantly regretted it, widened her eyes. It wasn’t the scolding or harsh tone she’d expected—the content itself caught her off guard. Then what should she call him?
When she failed to answer right away, the young master frowned and spoke again. This time, he didn’t sigh heavily as before. His indifferent voice broke the silence.
“Come in.”
The permission came easier than expected. Still dazed, she followed him into the room. The cluttered space smelled cozy, filled with the scent of old paper.
Terencio offered Alferil the sofa by the fireplace and took the chair at the desk himself. From the mountain of papers, he somehow picked out two sheets of music and dipped his pen into ink.
The crackling of burning logs and the soft scratch of writing filled the peaceful room. Wrapped in a thick blanket, Alferil quietly watched him work—and before she knew it, she fell into a warm sleep.
