Episode 57. What Walter is hiding
In reality, it wasn’t such an unusual situation.
Ellie deliberately favored paths frequented by commoners, reflecting her easy-going personality. She disliked standing out like other nobles.
If Ellie had been a little more nonchalant, Odette wouldn’t have suspected anything and would have passed it off.
‘But…… it seems a bit suspicious.’
Was suggesting a bodyguard such a surprising and embarrassing thing to propose?
Odette found it a bit odd. If it were a different time, she might have teased Ellie about this and checked on her condition.
But this time, Odette had been preoccupied with her own affairs.
Partly because she was busy preparing for the wedding, but mostly because she couldn’t sleep.
It wasn’t just that the bedding was unfamiliar anymore.
‘It’s the dreams that are the problem.’
Ever since she came here, Odette had been having strange dreams.
Sometimes…… profoundly miserable and occasionally briefly happy emotions would be felt in the dreams.
But all she could feel was that, and when she woke up, she couldn’t remember anything.
She could only realize that she was having the same dream all the time.
After some thought, Odette decided that she should talk to Walter about this.
‘Maybe it’s the bed problem.’
So, she wanted to change the bedroom, but it seemed a bit petulant to do so without any specific reason.
However, at the same time, she also harbored a desire to share a bit of warmth by talking about those dreams.
Perhaps due to the few times they had embraced, Walter’s arms strangely provided a sense of comfort.
If Odette asked him to hold her for a few minutes, she thought he would allow it.
‘If he doesn’t let me…… well, maybe I’ll bring up some clauses from the engagement contract.’
For a moment, Odette wondered if she was learning something bad from her fiancé, but she quickly put it out of her mind.
She grabbed a lantern and headed for Walter’s room.
It was late at night, after all the lights in the mansion had been extinguished, but she had been here before, so she wasn’t terrified.
The thought of opening Walter’s door made her a little nervous, though.
But.
– Umm, Walter……?
As Odette cautiously opened the door, the pleasant fluttering sensation in her chest quickly vanished.
Walter’s bedroom was empty.
‘And in the morning he came back as if nothing had happened.’
He never mentioned that he went out.
There was only one conclusion to be drawn.
‘Walter has been going out suspiciously.’
He was leaving every night without saying a word to her.
She even asked the butler and other servants if he usually goes out at night.
– Is there a carriage that comes and goes at night? Well, I don’t think so.
– If His Excellency has urgent matters, he occasionally goes out at night. Should I ask him for you?
No one seemed to know for sure.
Waiting for Walter to say something seemed hopeless, as several days passed without him uttering a word.
Realizing this, Odette’s mood became subtly complicated.
‘Come to think of it…… Walter doesn’t necessarily have to inform me.’
Why did she assume he would?
Although they lived under the same roof, they were bound by numerous contractual clauses.
‘……. I think I got a little too excited.’
Odette was a person who was good at keeping the line between people.
Strictly speaking, she didn’t expect much from others.
Even to Ellie, who was said to be closest to her, she never asked about her life first, and the same was true for Cedric.
She thought it would definitely be the same for the person she was going to marry.
A few kisses on the lips, or a few helpings from Walter, must have blurred the lines.
What a rookie mistake.
‘I feel weird.’
It was awkward to say the least, or perhaps a bit bitter.
Odette looked through the bookshelf to see if this feeling would go away if she read the romance novel Ellie had lent her, but the bitter taste persisted until she met Walter in the evening.
* * *
Odette watched as the man who would become her husband in a few days took off his tight-fitting garments one by one.
The order was always the same.
Coat, cuffs, tie, neck buttons.
As if the clothes were some kind of switch, the man who looked stiff and sturdy became a bit languid and gentle after going through this series of steps.
Maybe that’s why the voice has become softer.
“So it’s tomorrow, that you’re going to the Palace.”
“Yes. I have to stop by Belfort to see a friend.”
“Then I won’t see you for two days. That’s a shame.”
Odette was about to respond casually, but she closed her mouth again at the mention of disappointment.
“…… We’ll see each other again after that period. We’ll continue to see each other in the future.”
“You ate today, will you starve tomorrow?”
Walter responded jokingly, and his hand gently enveloped Odette’s wrist.
It moved slightly upward, using his thumb to trace the inside of her elbow slowly.
“It would be a shame to say that even if I saw you today and couldn’t see you tomorrow. At least, I think so.”
“…… I thought it would be okay since I’d see you again soon.”
“Aren’t you glad not to see me for a few days?”
Odette furrowed her brow at Walter’s words and glanced up at him.
“Why would you say that? That’s not true.”
“Because after I finally being alone with you, we don’t even make eye contact.”
“……!”
Odette suddenly realized that she had been avoiding Walther’s gaze the entire time.
She hadn’t been able to look him in the eye because she felt uncomfortable.
“So, I thought I might have become terribly disliked by you.”
“I-it’s not like that.”
“I know, because you’re a wife who loves her husband, aren’t you?”
A faint smile appeared on Walter’s lips as he mentioned the terms of the contract.
However, the gaze they met was as static as it was intensely felt.
Perhaps it was because of that gaze.
There was no answer. But Walter didn’t ask any more questions.
Instead, their lips met.
The contact that initially began to deceive Arnold had become quite familiar within just a few days.
The persistent movements aiming to steal her breath, the fleeting moments when their breaths intertwined, and the sensation of dry lips meeting.
All of it had become quite familiar to Odette.
‘Making eye contact from a close distance…… when our gazes brush against each other’s lips.’
The hand that was stroking her cheek is now caressing her ear.
The signals observed beforehand were still effective at the moment of the kiss.
A gentle touch that embraced her cheek, moved down to her ear, his hand slipped into her hair, encircling the back of her head.
Unlike his usual authoritative and arrogant demeanor, the way he acted when he closed his eyes was very sweet and cautious.
Sometimes, it made Odette wonder if this was the same person.
After the prolonged kiss, Walter, who had lightly pressed his lips against hers as if reluctantly, slowly withdrew his face.
Looking down at her like that, Walter always gazed at Odette with a similar expression
Dark green eyes with a slightly furrowed, intense gaze.
It somehow evokes a strange sense of déjà vu…….
– If it’s not out of sympathy, or because of Cedric’s advice, but because I want you.
– Would you then…… be able to accept me?
A gaze that reminds her of the dream she had on the day she woke up at Duke Ertmann’s residence.
Odette had long since forgotten about that dream.
She was living her life, and there was no point in recalling a dream that had no meaning.
She had convinced herself that it must be a foolish delusion born from lingering attachments she hadn’t let go of.
But why do you look at me with the same eyes as in that dream?
‘Is it because of the contract condition that you have to love me?’
A feeling of choking emotion welled up.
She wanted to shift the responsibility of this ambiguous emotion onto Walter.
If only he had been as rude and arrogant as he were at their first meeting.
‘I wouldn’t have had such thoughts……..’
In a corner of her confused mind, she thought that everything Walter was doing was acting, and that she was the only one who was shaken.
Odette had already gone through the experience with Regis.
And she knew that Walter was hiding something.
At any other time, she wouldn’t have thought much about it.
Not everyone opens up completely.
But Ellie’s demeanor during today’s visit strangely left an odd feeling in her heart.
– Your Majesty, is the Duke been acting suspiciously? Is there something bothering him?
Ellie asked this several times.
Odette thought about mentioning that Walter had been sneaking out at night, but decided against it.
– Nothing, really. Walter is very good to me.
– You can’t just assume he’s being nice! A man who cheats on his wife is usually nice to her, even if it’s only because he’s sorry. If you notice anything, you should tell me!
Ellie was still not convinced of Walter’s sincerity, and so she left.
Odette suddenly remembered something she had forgotten.
-Walter Ertmann, he is deceiving you!
Louis’s exclamation, which Odette had dismissed as nothing more than an insignificant remark.
With all these thoughts overlapping, Odette couldn’t help but ponder more deeply.
‘What Walter is hiding’
Does he have something he won’t tell me?
Odette hesitated for a moment, then spoke.
“Walter. I have a favor to ask you.”
“Go ahead.”
“Would you like to sleep with…… tonight?”
Walter’s expression hardened at Odette’s words.
It was only for a moment, but it was clear that a crack had appeared in his face.
He had been caught off guard.
“…… My princess has suddenly become a child afraid of the dark.”
“I’ve been having trouble sleeping for a few days. I have to go to the Palace tomorrow, and…… I don’t want to sleep alone. If it’s inconvenient for you, though.”
Odette hesitated for a moment, then gave Walter’s sleeve a little squeeze.
“We’ll be sharing the same bedroom once we’re married anyway, so one night together before we get married isn’t going to make much difference.”
“True. So, are you trying to seduce me now?”
“If necessary.”
It wasn’t an empty statement.
That she wanted to sleep with Walter, and that she could seduce him if necessary.
Walther laughed coldly at Odette’s answer.
Before Odette could fully understand the meaning of Walter’s sudden laughter, she felt a hand pulling her waist.
They closed the distance.
“You know what?”
A breathy, low voice whispered in her ear.
“Even if you just reach out your hand…… is a temptation to me.”
