The Lady and the Stableman

“There won’t be any servants around. I’ll take a walk around. Thanks to Walter, I finally have some rest time.” 

Vivian took Edith to a shabby warehouse and then retreated.

Edith gave her some madeleines as well before entering the warehouse.

Squeak—

Just as she was about to knock, the door on the inside opened first.

“I didn’t expect you to come so early.”

Edith looked up as she held the madeleines wrapped in a handkerchief. Up close, Walter was much taller than the others.

His face still held a trace of arrogance today. It was only now that Edith could understand her friend’s words about going to the bar to admire handsome men whenever she felt depressed.

The complex and melancholic feelings within her quickly gave way to his refreshing dark green eyes.

When Walter’s eyebrows furrowed slightly, as usual, Edith burst into soft laughter.

“Sorry, I came a bit early.” 

“I can’t believe M’lady is looking at this servant like that.”

“If I look straight ahead, I can only see your chest.” 

“But if you look away so soon, I won’t feel the satisfaction of working out.”

“…” 

Walter’s usual teasing comments were enough to stir her suppressed emotions.

She didn’t know why just a few words exchanged with him could relax her.

Edith’s lips and jaw trembled briefly. And Walter did not miss that subtle change.

“I heard these madeleine cookies make a pretty good snack.”

He took out the small liquor bottle he had been carrying.

Originally, he had planned to drink alone to pass the time while waiting for Edith, but he was willing to share.

Right now, at the manor, dinner is probably in full swing, and the Fourth Lady, who couldn’t join the banquet, had shown up much earlier than expected, holding snacks that weren’t even a proper meal.

She had come to him without having a proper meal, pressured by Sophia’s orders.

When he extended the bottle, Edith shook her head.

“No, if I drink, Sophia will…”

But Edith, who had been speaking calmly, suddenly frowned and reached for the bottle of liquor.

“Who cares?” 

Walter was a little taken aback. Edith seemed determined to drink all the liquor in the bottle.

He couldn’t take his eyes off Edith whenever she did something unexpected, just like when she made a request for the Viscount’s third wife.

He snatched the bottle back and spoke with a smirk.

“Since it’s not too cold outside, would you like to go out, M’lady?”

“It would be warmer if we drink before going out.”

“But it seems like you’re hungry.”

“…” 

Edith took the madeleines and followed him. Walter, having spent a long time at the manor, didn’t lose his way even in the dim light.

The place where Walter took Edith was the grapevine behind the warehouse.

“I think this place used to be a garden when the Viscounty of Fortrion was in its heyday. Well… as you can see, it’s at a level where the servants take care of it as a hobby.”

T/N: The last sentence explains that the current state of the garden is not as well-maintained as it used to be.

He said as he rinsed a bunch of grapes and handed them to Edith. They were so well-ripened that the sweet scent and juiciness were unusual.

“It’s like they’re experts, not just someone who’s plucked grapes a couple of times.”

T/N: This implies that someone has experience in a particular activity, suggesting they’ve done it more than just a hobby as Walter said.

With a smile, Edith thanked him and put a grape in her mouth. The sweet and refreshing taste immediately made her feel better.

After Edith had eaten enough grapes and madeleines, Walter extended the bottle of alcohol again.

“This…” 

Edith accepted the bottle with a surprised look. Something was hanging on the neck of the bottle that wasn’t there before.

It was a necklace she knew very well.

“Is that my necklace? Where did you find it? Did you go to the carriage?”

She carefully held the necklace. It seemed like Walter had taken great care to polish it, as it shone even more brightly than it did before she lost it.

Thinking that she had recovered an object filled with memories, pure joy painted Edith’s face.

“Thank you so much, Walter.”

Edith smiled brightly, and as the wind blew through, her hair swayed, emitting a pleasant fragrance.

Feeling something invisible hit his heart hard, Walter averted his gaze. 

“You must have been upset to starve on a day like today.”

Edith looked at Walter’s face while caressing the necklace. He seemed to know what day it was.

“A day like today?” 

“It’s your birthday. I heard you mention the other day that this necklace was a birthday and Thanksgiving present.” 

“Ah, that time…” 

He remembered that casual comment she made.

Edith held the necklace, feeling touched. She couldn’t even have a meal on her birthday, and being kicked out of her room made her feel even sadder.

Knowing that someone here remembered her birthday was more comforting than she had expected.

“Also, thugs don’t do things like this.”

He added playfully, making Edith burst into laughter. It seemed like he had kept her words from last time in his heart.

“It was just, um… I meant that because you’re tall and have a well-built body, I thought you’d be good at fighting and it’s kinda cool.”

“…”

Although Walter’s eyebrows raised slightly as he acknowledged that he was good at fighting, he froze for about 3 seconds when he heard the compliment that he was impressive.

Edith glanced at him and saw the corners of his mouth rise slightly as he gazed into the distance. She was usually the one getting flustered, but she had managed to fluster him.

She took a sip of the alcohol with a strange sense of satisfaction. The fragrant fruity aroma of the liquor was inviting, but swallowing it felt like fire in her throat.

“Are you drinking something this strong…?”

Then, as she held the bottle and frowned at her own arrogance… Vivian’s voice was heard not far away.

“Jane. What are you doing here?”

She deliberately spoke loudly and awkwardly to announce someone’s arrival.

Walter and Edith quickly entered the warehouse. Even inside, Jane’s distinctive raspy voice was audible.

“The butler asked me to check if Edith was fulfilling the agreement she has with Lady Sophia.”

“She’s in that warehouse. There are a lot of rocks on the ground, so be careful, take your time.”

Vivian yelled aloud to let Edith know so they wouldn’t be caught cooperating, but deep down, she was anxious that Jane could see through the deception.

Crunch—

As Jane approached, stepping on dry twigs, she got closer to the warehouse.

Edith urgently looked at Walter and gestured with her mouth.

“Walter, you have more experience in this area. Tell me how to fool Jane.” 

Misunderstood as a promiscuous man without knowing why, Walter immediately frowned.

“I don’t think there are any men in this warehouse who have this kind of experience.”

But he also couldn’t ignore the urgency of the situation, so he stopped arguing and inspected the warehouse.

No one managed this place, so the floor was covered in dirt and dust. The only items inside were some old fabrics roughly covering other items and a handcart.

Unlike before, there were no windows, so to see what was happening inside, Jane would have to open the warehouse door, making it difficult to deceive her.

“Should we sit on the floor for now?”

Edith asked urgently. Her face was turning red, and her head was spinning after just one sip.

Walter looked at her rosy cheeks and then sat down on the ground.

“As a stableman, it’s kind of hard to have my master sit on the bare floor.” 

Without caring about the dust and dirt, he lay down completely and gazed intently at his lower abdomen.

Edith wasn’t naive enough not to understand what he meant. She knelt on the floor and sat on his lower stomach.

With the effects of the alcohol, her heart was beating so fast, and feeling his warm body temperature on top of that was enough to drive her crazy.

The hem of her skirt covered his body as if hiding a secret.

Creak—

Jane, opening the door at the right time, entered unexpectedly and scowled when she noticed.

『 Goodness, are they doing it in such a dirty place?』

She couldn’t see the man’s face because a cart was in the way, but it was clear that Edith was sitting on someone. Her face, with her drowsy and unfocused eyes, had a flush that was rising.

Edith, as if she hadn’t been noticed yet, bent her waist slightly and closed the distance with the man lying beneath.

『 Shameless woman…』

Jane felt embarrassed and didn’t venture further inside, just as Edith had planned.

Walter, who had to endure her long blonde hair brushing against his body, was on the brink of losing his mind. No matter how hard he clenched his teeth and tried to think of something else, the sensations Edith was providing became even more vivid.

Seeing his expression subtly contort, Edith finally turned her head as if she were conscious of the gaze of a stranger.

“… Jane?”

“…” 

Even though she was obviously following the butler’s order, Jane seemed to have been caught doing something wrong.

Reading her hesitation, Edith gently brushed up Walter’s chest with her hand and then, like driving a wedge, unbuttoned his shirt.

“If you’re not going to prevent me from following Sophia’s orders, then get out instead of standing there doing nothing.”

“…” 

Jane left, swallowing her inner disdain. The door she forcefully closed made a loud bang.

Edith pricked up her ears and looked down only after she saw that Jane was completely gone.

Walter was covering his face with his muscular arms.

Edith carefully rebuttoned his shirt, which she had undone earlier, and then hurriedly got up.

She felt even more embarrassed because she was aware that she had gained a bit of weight from eating decent meals after being confined in the manor.

“I’m sorry. Did my weight make it difficult for you?” 

“…” 

It was indeed difficult, but Walter thought that even if she sat on him all day, he wouldn’t mind it.

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