QOL 10

Chapter 10

“My apologies, but…”

“Ah.”

“Yes. Our young lady is…”

“I see.”

When he finally arrived, Erin Cornue wasn’t at the estate. The head maid, who had come out alone to greet him, firmly claimed she had no idea where Erin had gone.

He was pretty sure he’d told her not to go out. Still, he hadn’t actually expected her to obediently listen to him, so he let it slide. Someone of her status wouldn’t be that compliant.

What puzzled him, though, was the strange feeling that she’d gone to the ballet company.

‘…Shouldn’t she be utterly sick and tired of that place by now?’

Ethan recalled the articles Mars had shown him.

Loud, heated, chaotic articles. The same articles he himself had recently helped fuel a little.

And despite all that, she’d gone to Fourth Street of her own accord. Either she was the type who truly didn’t care about other people’s eyes on her, or she was an excellent actress.

Which was it?

Thinking vaguely of Erin, Ethan walked on. The head maid followed him up the stairs with an increasingly displeased expression, though Ethan responded just enough to keep her from outright exploding as he stepped onto the second floor.

Then he approached a closed door.

At last, the maid raised her voice.

“E-Excuse me. Why exactly are you…?”

“Haha, it’s nothing serious.”

Ethan bent halfway at the waist with a smile. At that utterly unconvincing grin, the maid blinked rapidly.

“The drawing room is downstairs, not on the second floor. And where you’re standing now is—excuse me—outside my lady’s bedroom.”

“My goodness. Then I’ve arrived at exactly the right place.”

“What did you say?”

Mrs. Delia, the head maid, finally planted herself in front of the door.

Absolutely not. No, he definitely could not be let in. What is wrong with this man?

But Ethan Fletcher slipped back in front of the door no matter how many times she pushed him away.

Click—

After a brief struggle, the bedroom door opened.

With a victorious smile, he smoothly stepped inside.

“Don’t worry. I’ll behave.”

The door closed.

Ethan let out a weary sigh, feeling oddly proud of himself for overcoming such unexpected hardship and adversity.

The bedroom was spacious and elegant in ivory tones. The unpainted wooden furniture lacked flashy decoration, but looked sturdy enough to last centuries. The framed paintings on the walls and the curtains perfectly reflected the owner’s impeccable taste.

It was the exact same scene he’d seen a few days ago.

Except Erin Cornue herself was missing.

His slow steps stopped before the table by the window. Beyond it stretched a vast green garden, where fresh spring buds had only just begun to sprout.

“…Ah.”

In the capital, where land was outrageously expensive—especially on Le Mans Street, home to old aristocratic wealth—not many people could afford a garden this large.

Unless they were Cornue.

The Cornue family.

Ethan stepped closer to the window, seeking the warmth of the sunlight. He placed the bag of bread he’d carefully carried onto the table.

What had Leto been like again?

As he gazed over the vivid green lawn that seemed to clear his mind, images of the Empire surfaced.

Buildings climbing higher floor by floor in arrogant displays of reinforced concrete development. Massive glass windows and exterior lights reflecting dazzling brilliance.

Parks and trees in the streets had vanished at astonishing speed over the past decade. Especially in the capital. Even gathering all the remaining greenery together wouldn’t equal this place.

But nobody cared.

That was Leto.

The country that had given opportunity to someone who had once possessed nothing. The place where tomorrow always seemed more exciting than today.

The country he loved dearly.

Soon Ethan returned his gaze to the scenery before him.

It was certainly different. Unfamiliar.

Yet strangely comforting.

The fresh green grass somehow carried the color of longing.

As though welcoming him back to the homeland he’d been forced to leave long ago.

‘And it’s still only the beginning of spring.’

As time passed and those leaves grew thicker, filling the branches—

By then, the entire Cornue family would completely belong to him.

Summer. Autumn. Then winter.

Ethan felt he could picture that dazzling future even with his eyes closed.

“That man is here?”

“Yes, my lady. About an hour ago…”

Mrs. Delia came all the way to the entrance hall to greet Erin, looking slightly anxious.

The first problem was that she had allowed him into the room without the owner present.

The second was that she still hadn’t decided how exactly to treat that Ethan Fletcher.

He was rude, but he was also their benefactor.

Still…

Paying off their debt didn’t mean he could control the Duke of Cornue’s household as he pleased, did it?

The butler happened to be away, so there was no one to consult. Though considering his usual habit of laughing everything off, it probably wouldn’t have led to any meaningful conclusion anyway.

“Did he say anything else?”

Having returned from her outing, Erin slowly climbed the stairs with a tired expression.

Since she had a guest, she needed to change out of her outdoor clothes first. Her steps were sluggish, perhaps because of her injury.

“No, my lady. He simply said he would wait until you returned.”

“Is he in the drawing room downstairs?”

“No. In your bedroom…”

“…What?”

“I deeply apologize.”

“…Ha.”

Erin genuinely couldn’t believe what she was hearing.

When she opened the door, Ethan Fletcher truly was inside.

But he wasn’t standing.

Nor was he sitting.

The first thing she saw, absurdly enough, was a pair of legs.

Like someone determined to constantly defy common sense and shock people at every turn, Ethan was lying sideways across her bed with both arms spread wide.

None of the scenarios she’d briefly imagined looked anything like this.

Oh, for heaven’s sake.

Erin quickly turned and shut the door.

Still gripping her handbag tightly, she strode toward the bed. Toward the polished shoes and the legs hanging over the edge. A little closer, until she could finally see his face.

“Mr. Fletcher?”

Ethan blinked while staring at the ceiling, then lifted only his head as if confirming who it was.

“Oh, you’re back?”

And without even waiting for an answer, he laid his head back down again. His open palms lazily brushed over the blanket with soft rustling sounds.

Following the movement upward, she noticed that beneath his neat navy suit and fitted vest, two buttons of his shirt had been undone.

“What exactly are you doing right now?”

“Where’d you go?”

“I asked what you’re doing lying on my bed.”

“Well… I was waiting for you to come back.”

Even when the tips of their shoes nearly touched, Ethan made no move to get up. Only his hands continued slowly smoothing over the blanket.

At least he wasn’t actually asleep.

‘I guess I should be grateful for that much.’

Erin removed her thin leather gloves and tossed them onto the table together with her handbag.

Perhaps sensing the strange atmosphere, Ethan turned his head toward her.

“Ah. So where did Miss Cornue go?”

“Fourth Street. The ballet company dormitory.”

“Come on, I told you not to go.”

“Why? Does my value decrease just because I stepped outside for a moment?”

“Hm?”

Ethan blinked several times before sitting up.

“Well, yes. Of course it does. Why wouldn’t it? So until I give permission, stop showing your face around carelessly. Whether it’s the ballet company or anywhere else.”

“Permission? ‘Showing my face around’? Is your manner of speaking always this disgusting, Ethan Fletcher?”

“I can say sweet things too. Depending on the situation.”

Ethan rose from the bed and slowly approached her, stopping less than a foot away.

His hand lifted as though to touch her hair.

“Beautiful Miss Cornue, will you shine only for Lepité from now on? For my Lepité. For everything I own.”

Ha.

With a scoff, Erin slapped his hand away with the back of hers.

Ethan laughed cheerfully and withdrew the hand that had almost reached her hair.

“Alright. I won’t touch you, won’t touch you.”

“…”

“But why are you irritated the moment you see me? We’re supposed to get along, aren’t we? I even bought bread to eat with you.”

“What? …Bread?”

“When I stopped by the bakery, you came to mind.”

Ethan pointed toward the window.

Erin slowly turned her head.

Surely that crumpled paper bag sitting alone on the table didn’t actually contain bread he’d bought for her—

As though reading her thoughts exactly, Ethan confidently walked over and lifted the opening of the loosely crumpled bag with a shake.

“What are you doing? Come sit down already.”

“….”

Erin paused in disbelief for a moment, then regained herself, opened the bedroom door, and asked a maid to bring tea.

“I’m having coffee.”

“I’m sure they’ll figure it out.”

Ethan nodded carelessly and opened the bag, the corners of his mouth lifting as though he were oddly pleased.

“I figured you probably never ate things like this before. You’ve been a princess your whole life, after all.”

Erin faltered.

She honestly had no idea what possessed him to buy something like this, but the situation felt too strange to criticize him for it.

‘You thought of me? Since when have you even known me?’

She pulled out a chair to sit—

Then noticed something moving outside the window.

“?”

Narrowing her eyes, Erin stepped forward as though entranced.

Then she suddenly threw the window wide open.

“Leon!”

Bracing one hand against the windowsill, she leaned half her body out while peering toward a large tree in the garden, shifting back and forth.

A warm, gentle breeze drifted inside.

“Leooon—!”

Trying to understand what was happening, Ethan awkwardly lowered the bread bag.

Meanwhile Erin bent nearly in half at the waist, then rose onto tiptoe, tilting her face left and right.

As befitted a ballerina, her movements were graceful and remarkably flexible.

But Ethan instinctively leaned his chin back, suddenly feeling the urge to keep his distance from her.

Then, with suspicion written across his face, he stood and looked toward the direction she was staring.

The same garden he’d admired earlier.

Trees just beginning to turn green in patches…

‘What’s out there? Why is she acting like this?’

Ethan looked back at Erin in confusion.

That was when a faint meowing sound drifted over from afar.

As he listened, the warm breeze carried it more clearly.

“Ahhh.”

At this point, there was no way he couldn’t understand what this “Leon” was, nor why Erin Cornue—who moments ago had looked ready to punch someone—was now sparkling with excitement.

“It’s a cat.”