One day when I was so busy preparing for tea time.
I was cramming for social studies with an information magazine sent by Madame, and I heard a neat knock.
“Lady Hestia. It’s Uross.”
“Yes. Come on in.”
The butler came in quietly without making a sound of footsteps.
“Just a while ago, Mr. Kael had a visitor.”
“Oh, really? Did the marquis say he’d meet?”
I immediately asked back and quickly turned my head. If someone was to come visit Kaelus without notice like this..
“Oh, was the visitor’s name Hyperion?”
Then the butler was appalled.
“Oh, my God, did you know?”
“Huh, the Crown Prince has gone undercover, so I’d better pretend I don’t know.”
Hyperion was the name that Helios used to sneak out of the palace. I’m a big fan of novels, so I can’t help but know.
The butler also nodded.
“Fortunately, the master is meeting a guest. I’ll come back and tell you when the guest leaves, Lady Hestia,”
“Yeah, all right.”
Uross bowed briefly and left immediately.
“Hmm……”
As Kaelus said, Helios really came to see him. To personally confirm the marriage of a close friend.
However, the concern is whether Kaelus’ mental state has recovered enough to face Helios. Of course Helios would have come without knowing anything. He can unintentionally tear through Kaelus’ wounds.
“Will it be okay….”
Wouldn’t it be better if Kaelus open up and shout, “I was going to die because of you guys!” I was worried that it would only be harder while he pretended to be okay and firm. Helios’ personality is by no means friendly.
I suddenly felt bitter. If Kaelus had been clever in his relationship with Diana, would she have chosen Kaelus instead of Helios? In any case, the designated lead of the novel was Helios, it seems that it would have been useless for Kaelus to perform any tricks.
But if this world is not a novel, but a real world. If it was.
“….”
It makes me sad in an instant. That’s not why I’m pushing the second lead. The serve bottle is this scary.*
*TN: what’s been dealt out
“Ha… Let’s just study…….”
I forced myself to pick up the file again. Countess Erinnis’ tea time is just around the corner, so there is no time for idle thought.
The butler said he would let me know when the crown prince returned, and he kept his word. It was a long time before he came back and told me.
“The Crown Prince has just left.”
“Oh… Okay.”
It was as quiet as it was when it came. Anyway, I’m good at sneaking around. Helios.
What did they talk about? No, it’s obvious. Helios would have asked exactly how the marriage was going, and he would have confirmed how much Kaelus knew about me. If he didn’t hear a satisfactory answer from Kaelus, he’ll have his men do a separate background check.
“….”
It’s frustrating. When I read a novel from the perspective of an omniscient writer, I can understand all the situations at once, but after becoming a person like this, my vision has become very narrow. I vowed to make the most of my money, but it is much more inconvenient than I thought. I’m not a genius tactician and I can’t predict everything mysteriously.
“What can I do if I struggle and I can’t get the answer?”
I murmured irritably to myself. I shook my head loudly to shake off the uncomfortable feeling and concentrated on studying again.
But after a while.
“…?”
Somehow it became noisy outside. I covered the information sheet for a while, and I came out the door.
“Butler…”
However, instead of the butler who once called me, he appeared in front of my eyes with urgent expressions and his doctor. What? Doctor?
For a moment, my heart sank. Helios had just been there, so I had a bad feeling. Instead of calling for a servant who ran busily, I followed them to the bedroom of Kaelus.
“!”
And when I finally entered the room, I was appalled.
A sharply broken piece of glass, a blood-stained room And Kaelus, with a couple of servants clinging to him. His hands were red, too.
I murmured hastily.
“Hey, what the hell is this?…!”
The butler, who appeared before me, shouted in a bewildered tone.
“Master!”
The doctor focused professionally on his duties regardless of the disturbance around him. He held the trembling hands of Kaelus with force.
“Please bear with it even if it hurts.”
“Ugh…!”
At the same time as the doctor’s words, a painful groan came out of Kaelus.
With me standing stunned, butler Uross came to his senses first.
“What the hell is going on? Nothing happened until just a moment ago!”
A servant answered immediately.
“He suddenly punched the terrace door. Be hurt his hand badly because of it, of course..”
The doctor who was wiping the blood suddenly intervened.
“It’s just a little bleeding, but it’s not a big wound. Don’t worry.”
“Oh…….”
It was only then that the tension was relieved. I almost sat there, but I managed to get through it.
“The Marquis…”
The face of my favorite was pale and distorted. He was biting his lips as if he were holding back something was about to burst.
Did Helios’ visit have any impact on him? I wonder if he inadvertently stuck a dagger in Kaelus, as I feared earlier? He may have hurt himself with indifferent words, knowing that he was still the same Kaelus he used to be.
“….”
Fifty thousand thoughts fluttered in my head. I even blamed myself for thinking nothing would happen.
I wanted to make sure he didn’t hurt himself again. Why am I so pathetic. I can’t even keep my favorite safe.
Kaelus lay down on the sofa and left his hand to his doctor. With one arm covering his eyes, he opened his biting lip.
“Everyone out.”
The butler quickly glanced around. He meant that he and his doctor would be there, so everyone could go out without worrying.
It didn’t help Kaelus to be all over here. I accepted the butler’s will and quietly retreated out of the room with the other servants.
I scrambled back to my room. I couldn’t be immersed in my studies again with an already chaotic mind.
“Uh…….”
The first time I stopped Kaelus from committing suicide, I still had not seen blood. But today was different. The red that was coloring the sofa and carpet. My favorite in front of me was a real living person, not a character in a book at this moment.
“….”
I quickly wiped the tears from my eyes. I have to calm down first. The life and death of Kaelus is now entirely in my hands.
“Whoa….”
As I tried to calm my heart by taking a deep breath several times, the maid, Clarice, appeared with a polite knock.
“Madam, are you all right?”
“Oh, Clarice. Come on in.”
She looked at me with pity and said. “You must have been very surprised, Lady Hestia. The butler told me to get some tea.”
“Ha… Thank you…….”
These attentive people. My heart was touched by the consideration for me.
“The doctor said it was the result of the sudden sensitivity and the instantaneous excitement. They say he’ll get better soon if he takes a rest and stays absolutely stable. Don’t worry too much, ma’am, and let your heart rest.”
“Yes….”
Was it a temporary hysteria? Even so, I am worried. What prompted Kaelus so much? I’m going crazy wondering what you talked about with Helios.
“Whoo….”
I breathed a long sigh. Anyway, I think I need to rest now.
A few days after that Clarice, said with care.
“The thief who made noise in the capital for months was finally caught.”
“Oh, really?”
I’m sure Diana and Helios have heard the news. Now do you have any doubts about me?
I walked to the window with a cup of tea. The garden view from here was quite spectacular, so it became a habit from some point on. by the way.
“Huh…?”
“What’s wrong, Hestia?”
My lady-in-waiting responded to my voice. My heart sank and I pointed out the window.
“Kaelus came out!”
“Oh my…!”
We watched Kaelus walk alone through the garden, stiff with tension.
But then.
“Oh!”
“!”
Kaelus suddenly sat there, gripping his chest!
Surprised, we threw the teacups away and kicked open the door. Seeing us running out of the blue, the butler Uross hurried out.
“Kaelus!”
“Marquis!”
Kaelus was crouching on the garden-stone, breathing heavily with a distressed look and frown.
The butler quickly helped him.
“Are you all right?”
His face turned pale. I shouted urgently at the maid’s house.
“Clarice! Call the doctor! Come on!”
“Yes, ma’am!”
She ran back to the way she had been running. The butler hurriedly took off his jacket and covered Kaelus with it. Come to think of it, his light gown caught my eye belatedly.
“Uross. Was the Marquis ill last night?”
“There was nothing wrong with him when he woke up in the morning….”
The butler’s words were clouded with confidence. In the meantime, Kaelus’ breathing has stabilized quite a bit.
“Ha…What a fuss.….”
There was a faint murmur of self-help. I tried to ignore it and instructed Uross.
“Hurry up and take him to his room.”
“Yes, my lord. Can you stand up?”
Instead of answering, Kaelus slowly raised himself.
“……That’s enough.”
But you can’t believe what the patient says. Despite his cold attitude, I and the butler doggedly followed as if they were ducklings. Clarice, who rushed to the scene, and Marquis’ doctor. The quiet mansion turned upside down in a flash.
We all went into Kaelus’ bedroom. The doctor examined him as everyone watched.
Kaelus murmured sulkily, leaning languidly against the sofa.
“It was just a moment of tightness in my chest. There’s nothing to make a fuss about.”
The doctor also shook his head after measuring his pulse and heart rate.
“There is nothing unusual. I think it’s because he’s still psychologically unstable.”
Kaelus drooped his shoulders and tilted his head back.
“I’m not even a kid. What’s this?….”
Anyway, I was relieved to hear that there was nothing wrong with my body. But it’s a pity that he’s still suffering from a mental illness that he can’t even take a walk in the garden.
As expected, the aftermath of meeting Helios is clearly affecting him.
I couldn’t take it anymore.
“Well, Lord Kaelus. I’d like to ask you something quietly.”
“….”
Hearing my voice, he beckoned, furrowing his brow. Then the quick-witted servants left me and immediately left the room.
“…Okay. What is it?”
I can’t believe that Kaelus is so kind to listen to my request. I was moved to tears, but I held it in.
“With all due respect, did you have a hard time today because of what the Crown Prince said to you the other day?”
“…….”
His glassy purple eyes stared at me. His face heated up and he bowed his head quickly.
“Do you know what she said?”
“No, it’s hard for me to get that detail with my foresight. I was just wondering if you were shocked by what he said without knowing the context.”
“Shocked….”
Kaelus smirked.
“I’m sure Heli was shocked. Because I told him honestly why I’m like this.”
“Oh….”
Perhaps my expression was suspicious because he waved his hand.
“It was just a little hard to breathe a little while ago. Haven’t you ever had that happen? It’s like a sudden shortness of breath when the thought you don’t want to think about takes over your head….”
He shook his head in silence.
“Of course I’ve experienced it. But it wasn’t to the point of collapsing like the Marquis.”
“I see.”
Kaelus leaned his head in a languid posture.
“Actually, he didn’t say a few words that day. I was the only one making a fuss. But I feel much more comfortable after clearing the air like that.”
In fact, Kaelus left the room for the first time today since the night he attempted suicide. It was quite a big improvement, even though he collapsed quickly.
His voice continued calmly.
“But it’s very strange. It was unexpectedly comforting that you withdrew my donation to the temple. Honestly, I still don’t know what you’re up to, but at least I should thank you for that.”
“……Don’t mention it.”
I couldn’t bear to raise my head because I was about to cry. Until I left Kaelus’ room, I bowed my head the whole time.
