Episode 121. Side Story 1

<You must remain on complete bed rest until the pregnancy stabilizes.> At the doctor’s words, Elkais wouldn’t even let Eveline step out of the bedroom.

“Um, but… am I not allowed to walk at all?”

“No.”

“Not even a short stroll?”

“No.”

Eveline was a little flustered—Elkais had never been this firm with her before. Still, she didn’t dislike how he stayed so close by her side.

“Then I’m going to get really bored…”

“Then I’ll entertain you.”

“How?”

Elkais came over and sat on the bed beside her.

“I’ll read you a fairy tale or something.”

“That’s something you do once the baby has ears, right? It doesn’t even have ears yet. If you read to it now, I’m the only one who’ll hear it.”

Eveline was well aware that Elkais had taken care of all his duties at dawn just so he could stay with her during the day. He was even handling her own work on her behalf.

Duke Wilden wasn’t pleased that Elkais was managing his daughter’s responsibilities, but since the man was already married into the family, there wasn’t much point in complaining.

Even though the duke often spoke harshly, he was surprisingly cooperative with Elkais. And when it came to Eveline, that went without saying.

“Then I’ll just stay by your side.”

“Actually… I want to eat something you cooked.”

“Just say the word. I’ll make you anything.”

“Hmm… then, not a full dish, but… maybe some wild strawberries…”
“I’ll go get them.”

The only problem was—it was winter.
They had returned to the past in early summer, gotten engaged in late autumn, and now it was winter.

Their honeymoon destination had summer weather year-round, but they’d decided to return to the capital due to Elkais’s obligations.

More importantly, there was a resident doctor at the duchy’s estate. And in an emergency, they could also go to the temple.

The mistress of House de Robein had to reside in the estate. Because the mistress was the master of the de Robein household.

Thinking that, he turned to leave—but then came back to Eveline.

“Why are you back again?”

“I forgot to say goodbye.”

“Okay. Go, then.”

“I’m going now.”

Elkais said that and pressed a kiss to her lips. It was brief, barely a touch, and Eveline opened her eyes in surprise.

Perhaps because he always kissed her deeply, this light kiss felt oddly unfamiliar.

“Are you feeling sick or something?”

“No… I just thought if I kissed you like usual, I wouldn’t want to leave.”

He held Eveline gently, as if she were a sugar doll that might break with a single touch, then let go and headed out.

Once he was gone, the medicine Eveline had taken to help stabilize the baby began to make her drowsy again, and she lay back down.

It wasn’t long before she fell into a deep sleep.

* * *

“Bring me wild strawberries.”

“Pardon? Your Grace, where are we supposed to find wild strawberries in the middle of winter?”

“Then where do I have to go to get them?”

“You can’t get them in winter!”

When Elkais went to the kitchen and asked, the chef responded with clear distress.

“Useless.”

“Your Grace! Where are you going?!”

Elkais headed straight for the stables, intent on going into town.
He motioned for the stablehand to step aside and picked the horse closest to the door.

“Your Grace, the saddle—! Your Grace!”

Ignoring everything, Elkais mounted the horse with only the reins in hand and took off.

The sun was already starting to set, and the merchants in the town were likely packing up for the day and heading home.
Knowing that, Elkais rode at full speed straight to the largest fruit store in the plaza.

To him, every second felt too precious, like time was flying by too quickly.

His horse, sensing his urgency, didn’t resist the reins being tugged tightly and galloped full-speed toward the town.
More than anything, the ride was smooth because Elkais matched the horse’s rhythm perfectly—it was even kind of enjoyable.

The horse, having dashed full speed to the village, let out a satisfied whinny as it came to a stop and let Elkais dismount.

“Do you have wild strawberries?”

“Pardon? D-Duke de Robein, Your Grace!”

The shopkeeper was startled upon recognizing the duke’s cloak and uniform and exclaimed in surprise.

“Wild strawberries,” Elkais repeated urgently.

The shopkeeper blinked in confusion and replied with wide eyes,
“Your Grace, it’s winter…”

“I know. But do you have wild strawberries?”

At first, the shopkeeper thought the duke was trying to throw around his noble weight. But then he remembered that Duke de Robein was the hero who had saved the Vestrian Empire in many wars—and quickly ruled out the idea of noble arrogance.

Still, he was completely at a loss as to why anyone would be asking for wild strawberries in the middle of winter, or how they were expected to provide them.

“Your Grace, I don’t think you’ll be able to find wild strawberries anywhere in the Empire right now.”

“There’s no way at all?”

“…Perhaps… you could try the Mage Tower?”

Elkais nodded at the suggestion and climbed back onto his horse.

“Thank you.”

“I-I’ll try to find some myself, too! If I do, I’ll bring them to the de Robein estate!”

“Alright. I appreciate it.”

He replied curtly, then turned his horse toward the Mage Tower.

He rode for quite a while, heading toward the Magic Tower located on the outskirts of the capital. As always, Elkais didn’t like the unpleasant magical energy he felt from the mages in the tower.

It was because of a lingering memory—Eveline’s first love had been Crown Prince Ferite, who was a mage.

Though she had been young back then, and even if she had chosen him now, just the fact that Ferite was her first love was enough to make him hate it. Because it meant Ferite had once caught her eye.

Since Eveline had been his first love and would also be his last, he wanted to be hers as well. Even if he couldn’t be her first.

And so, perhaps unsurprisingly, he visibly disliked Ferite, the Crown Prince.

Maybe that’s why the overwhelming presence of that same unpleasant magical energy near the Magic Tower made his skin crawl.

“Open the door.”

“Lord de Robein! Why are you—ack!”

As soon as the two gatekeepers saw Elkais, they stepped aside. Elkais got off his horse and strode through the now-open door.

“Lord de Robein! What brings you here…?”

“Where’s the Tower Master?”

“Pardon? The Tower Master is at the very top floor…! Lord de Robein!”

At those words, Elkais walked directly to the center of the tower.

The structure of the tower resembled a clock tower. The central space was completely open, and a long staircase was attached along the wall. Pressing on the wall next to each stair would open a magic-formed door to a separate room.

This structure was designed for wartime use. Because the magical spaces were maintained by individual sources of magic, even if the tower itself collapsed, the mages inside could remain unharmed.

It was a system Elkais himself had devised.

After all, mages were a crucial military asset. As a general, he couldn’t help but value them, no matter how much he disliked them, which is why he had personally designed the layout.

“My lord!”

Elkais moved to the center and leapt upward. Bounding up the stairs with ease, he reached the top floor in no time.

“Tower Master.”

With that, he reached out his hand, intent on forcibly opening the door. Just then—

“Welcome, my lord. What brings you here?”

The Tower Master, startled, ran out.

Elkais’s hand, which had been reaching for the door, stopped right in front of the Tower Master.

“I need a favor.”

“Please, just say the word. The forces are always ready.”

The Tower Master bowed his head, assuming that Elkais, being a general and arriving so urgently, needed troops immediately.

The Magic Tower always had units ready to be deployed at a moment’s notice, so if he gave the order, mages could be dispatched right away.

“Raspberries.”

“…Pardon?”

“I need to get raspberries.”

“…Eh?”

The Tower Master blinked, wondering if he had misheard, but Elkais was looking at him with a very serious expression.

“Is… that a code name?”

“No, I literally meant raspberries.”

The Tower Master looked around, flustered, but saw only a gatekeeper struggling up the stairs. Elkais’s knights were nowhere to be seen.

So he really had come… for raspberries?

The Tower Master stared at him in disbelief.

“My wife wants to eat raspberries.”

“Ah… the Duchess de Robein? I heard she’s recently expecting.”

“Yes. That’s why I need to get raspberries.”

At Elkais’s earnest voice, the Tower Master let out a brief chuckle. Then, looking at him, he said,

“I’ll open a gate for you. If it’s the southern region of Lokenia, they should have raspberries.”

“Yes, please do.”

“Or perhaps I can just contact one of our mages there and have them bring it here.”

“I can go myself.”

“I think our mages are more likely to pick out better-quality ones than Your Grace.”

Elkais hesitated for a moment at that. But if it meant Eveline could have good raspberries…

“Then I’ll leave it to you.”

And so, in less than thirty minutes, a whole sack of raspberries was delivered to the tower.

Elkais carefully cradled it in his arms and returned to House de Robein.

The first place he went was the master bedroom. He gently opened the door and stepped inside.

“You’re back?”

Eveline opened her eyes, recognizing the sound of his footsteps.

“Yes. I brought raspberries.”

Elkais smiled, relieved that he had managed to bring her what she’d wanted for once.

“…Now I want something else instead.”

“What is it this time?”

“I want Shine Muscat grapes.”

Right now, it was winter in Bestia. A season when fruit was hard to come by…