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Chapter 68
The mansion was in an uproar over Michele’s change of heart—he had always said he would just spend the vacation here and return, but now he had apparently decided otherwise.
“Young master! Graduation is right around the corner—how can you not go back?”
“It’s just a one-semester break. Why are you all making such a fuss?”
“It’s because you brought a leave-of-absence form without consulting anyone, trying to get it signed!”
“Olli, I’m twelve now! I’ll be thirteen next year.”
“You’re still twelve. That means you’re at an age where consultation with adults is necessary.”
Olli was the first to step forward. She grabbed Michele’s legs while he sat on the sofa and shook him vigorously.
“Please reconsider, young master, won’t you?”
“I’m taking a break. That’s final.”
Sigh.
Olli lost, and Ezekiel, acting as his guardian, continued the discussion with Michele.
“What’s the reason you don’t want to return to the academy?”
“I think it’s more beneficial to stay here than to learn estate management at school.”
“It’s not about awkward relationships at the academy, is it?”
“No, none of that. If the other kids are scared of me, so what? There isn’t anyone I’m scared of.”
I had to listen to their serious conversation, almost forcibly. They were talking over dinner, so what else could I do? Let’s call it “table manners education.”
“Besides, there’s also your aunt’s work!”
Suddenly, Michele turned his attention to me.
“My aunt is learning about the information guild, and as her future successor, I should take interest and help. And come fall, when she’s working as a maid, someone needs to show her around the capital… and well…”
“That sounds like you think being with your aunt is advantageous.”
Michele’s cheeks flushed red.
“Well, that’s not wrong! What’s the point of just learning theory when real-life practice happens here every moment?”
The twelve-year-old boy’s gaze was now fixed on me.
“Since my aunt arrived, interesting things keep happening. Things we never even imagined last year. The city’s publicity methods changed, tourists increased, the famously strict crown princess took my aunt as a maid, and then famous figures proposed collaborations!”
His words made me reflect on everything I’d done. Thinking back, I had indeed accomplished a lot.
“And look. Even uncle changed. His speech is different, and he smiles more.”
Michele waved his fork passionately as he spoke.
“In just over half a year, major changes happened continuously. Even the kids at the academy were amazed when they wrote to me, saying they kept hearing news about the Betra estate nonstop.”
Ezekiel, seeing no way to argue, nodded.
“Watching your aunt change the estate firsthand is far better than dozing off in class and reading books.”
“Michele…”
“So that’s why I’m taking a break. To rest a bit and watch uncle and aunt manage the estate.”
Ezekiel, as the child’s closest guardian and relative, wrestled with the decision until the end.
“You want to gain experience firsthand, huh?”
“And! I also need to see how uncle treats aunt! Like he suggested to me—”
“Shh. Michele, shh!”
Ezekiel quickly shushed him while giving me a glance, as if there had been some kind of deal between them.
“I’m staying because of uncle. I still have a lot to say to him.”
Now Ezekiel was drawn into the argument too. The young master’s earlobes were bright red.
He muttered with a tick, yet in the end, it was just him shyly admitting the truth.
“Taking a half-year break isn’t a flaw. Other kids take breaks for trivial reasons too.”
I ruffled my nephew’s hair, messing it up slightly.
“…I didn’t expect you to tell me you want to stay with me like this. If my nephew wants it, I’ll make it happen.”
“Aigh.”
Michele’s cheeks puffed up. Even when I agreed to his wishes, he was still sulky. They were both identical in pretending differently from what they truly felt.
“Better to keep him safe in the mansion for half a year and then send him off.”
After all, my nephew would turn thirteen in March next year. With the succession decision approaching, it would be problematic if the royal family set their sights on Michele.
“Of course, I’ll strengthen my relationship with Crown Princess Giovanna to prevent that, but you never know.”
I had to protect him while I could.
“If you want, you can stay in the estate. Right, dear?”
The “dear” made Ezekiel flinch, but he relaxed his furrowed brow.
“Agreed.”
The leave-of-absence was decided unanimously. Olli, initially surprised by the change in atmosphere, agreed it was best after hearing my plan and mailed the leave request.
“The young master is precious, after all.”
The academy responded, and my nephew’s half-year leave was confirmed. Everything went smoothly.
There’s an epilogue.
“Maybe he was too embarrassed to deliver it himself, because he just left it on the reception table.”
That evening, when the leave approval arrived, Ezekiel personally came to my room and handed me the paper.
“I suppose he wanted you or me to see it first. I saw it before, so I’ll pass it on to you.”
The paper was filled with Michele’s heavily pressed handwriting:
[What I admire about my aunt:
-
She’s positive
-
She seems delicate but is determined
-
She can handle uncle
-
She cares for the estate despite being an outsider
-
She’s a cool adult]**
I focused on the fifth point.
“A cool adult.”
Had anyone ever called me a cool adult in my life?
“What are you thinking?”
“That I haven’t lived in vain.”
My contract husband bent to meet my eye level.
“Who could say you’ve lived in vain when you live this diligently?”
From up close, I saw his eyes clearly for the first time in a while. Previously, they had looked cold, like ice crystals. Now, they seemed deep and clear, like a lake reflecting everything inside.
“I respect you. This may sound funny, but sometimes it feels like you know the city better than I do.”
His beautiful eyes sparkled sincerely. I fell into them like a sailor enchanted by a siren. Whether it was good or bad, I didn’t even notice his face drawing close.
He intertwined his hand with mine as before. His fingers slipped between mine, and his expressionless face came inches from me.
A gentle breath brushed against my lips, sending shivers down my spine.
Come to think of it, Ezekiel and I were married—bound even after the contract ends.
Then… this kind of thing could happen, or rather, would happen often! My mind was a mess.
“I… am not ready.”
I tightened my grip, pressing my fingers weakly against his hand. Ezekiel paused his lean toward me.
Watching him silently, I wondered—do I not like him?
“No. I just… am not ready.”
Having never been this close to anyone, the approach of intimacy felt uncomfortable.
I had managed kisses well without feelings before, but now, with some affection budding, kissing seemed difficult—and oddly funny.
He gently pressed my hand and let go. My face heated.
But really, I wasn’t ready. A kiss with genuine feeling required a big commitment.
An ambiguous tension lingered between us after the failed kiss. It was my husband who first shifted the topic.
“…That paper.”
He suddenly pointed at the paper in my left hand. I lifted it and waved it.
“Michele wrote this?”
“Yes. That one. Pretend you don’t know until he brings it up first.”
The topic had come out of nowhere. But needing to focus, I quickly went along.
“Of course. If he brings it up first, he’ll just get embarrassed.”
Our conversation broke off. He placed his hand on my shoulder, as if to calm me, then turned and left.
“Understood. Rest.”
“….”
Left alone after Ezekiel departed, I leapt onto my bed, gripping and tearing the cushions, screaming silently inside.
“You idiot! Ack! Aagh!”
I stomped my feet, thrashed like a fish, and kicked the blanket. It seemed the night would be long just to calm my pounding heart.
