Chapter 78
I wanted to get out of bed, but my body simply wouldn’t move as I wished. Normally, I would have to work in my office today, but right now, I couldn’t even manage to sit up properly, let alone work. In the end, I had no choice but to postpone the tasks I had planned for the day.
While work was important, the most pressing matter for me right now was attending the salon in two days. If I continued to work while already feeling unwell, my condition could worsen in the next couple of days. There was no greater inconvenience than pushing myself and making things worse.
So, today, I had no choice but to lie in bed and do nothing. But sitting in bed with nothing to do was so boring, so I hesitated for a moment before glancing at Julia.
“Is there anything you need?”
Julia, noticing my gaze, quickly asked.
“Could you bring me the financial reports I was going to look over yesterday?”
If I had to rest sitting down, I wanted to at least familiarize myself with the financial reports. Time would pass anyway, and I thought it would be better to do something, even if it was just reading through the reports. To me, looking at the financial reports was more important than reading a book right now.
“Huh? Are you planning to work again?”
Julia asked, her eyes widening in surprise.
“Your Grace, you’re not feeling well today. How about you rest?”
Olivier, too, spoke up with a worried tone. I agreed that resting was probably the right thing to do, considering my condition.
“I’m just going to look at it. I’m getting tired of lying here all the time.”
“Still, maybe it’s better if you just rest today without doing anything?”
“I won’t overdo it. I’ll just look at it and try to rest.”
“…Alright.”
In the end, Olivier reluctantly nodded at my words. After failing to persuade me, Julia bowed her head and left the bedroom.
“Please don’t push yourself.”
Olivier said, her voice filled with concern. I smiled to reassure her.
“Okay, I’ll keep that in mind. And thank you for worrying about me.”
I appreciated Olivier’s concern. It was a kindness I hadn’t experienced from the Tristan family.
After waiting for a while, Julia returned with the financial reports. I took them from her and slowly started looking over the contents.
I flipped through the pages slowly, only skimming through the flow of things. I wasn’t planning to focus on it as I had done yesterday. I knew that my recovery was the most important thing, and if I overexerted myself and made my condition worse, it would only be to my detriment.
After a while, I realized that I was getting drowsy, likely from the fatigue or the cold symptoms. It seemed like now would be a good time to stop looking at the reports and take a break.
“I think that’s enough for today. Julia, could you please tidy this up for me?”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
I closed the reports and handed them to Julia, who then took them and quickly left the room.
Olivier, noticing I was about to rest, moved the pillow that had been propping me up and placed it back in its original position. Finally, as I lay down comfortably in bed, my eyes grew heavy.
“Olivier, I’m just going to rest for a bit. If something comes up, I’ll call for you, so go ahead and rest yourself.”
“Yes, Your Grace. Please call for me anytime if you need anything.”
“Okay.”
Once Olivier left the room, a peaceful silence settled in. I quietly closed my eyes and drifted off into a light sleep.
* * *
While I was asleep, I felt someone carefully wiping my face. The touch was gentle and tender. Since Olivier often wiped my face with a damp cloth when I had sweat or a fever, I assumed it was her and slowly opened my eyes. But to my surprise, it was Richard’s face I saw in front of me.
“…Richard?”
As I called his name, the hand that had been wiping my face stopped. I looked into his blue eyes, feeling a rush of surprise. Richard had been taking care of me?
I couldn’t believe it. While I was sleeping, he had been wetting the cloth and wiping my sweat away? I knew Richard was usually kind, but I never imagined him taking care of me like this.
Blinking in confusion, Richard spoke up.
“How are you feeling? You were moaning in your sleep.”
Hearing his worried voice, I tried to sit up, but I didn’t have the strength to do so.
“Just stay lying down. There’s no need to get up.”
“But…”
As I tried to force myself to sit up, Richard placed a hand on my shoulder. It was a silent gesture that conveyed I didn’t need to get up.
“Your health comes first. You’re already not feeling well, so there’s no need to push yourself.”
“…I’m sorry.”
I looked up at him and gave a small, awkward smile. Richard, in turn, smiled faintly back at me.
“There’s no need to apologize. You’re sick, so it’s not your fault.”
“And… I don’t know if I’ll be able to attend the salon.”
I desperately wanted to recover quickly and attend the salon in two days, but if my condition didn’t improve, it would be impossible for me to go.
I wanted to attend for the sake of the Tristan family. And at the same time, I hoped it would be beneficial to Richard as well. I knew he was also eagerly waiting for this salon. His connection with Marien, the Marquis, was crucial for building ties with the central aristocracy.
I worried that by getting his hopes up, I might end up disappointing him. If I had known this would happen, I wouldn’t have gotten so excited. Or, if I had been more cautious yesterday with the fire incident, maybe I would have returned earlier to take care of myself…
Regret continued to swirl in my mind. The bigger the expectations, the greater the disappointment and regret when things didn’t go as planned.
I couldn’t help but feel sorry for Richard, thinking he must have felt the same way. I had ruined the plans entirely because of my actions, but Richard’s work was also disrupted because of me. If he didn’t feel some resentment, that would be a lie…
I kept my lips tightly shut, knowing I had no right to say anything, even if he was upset.
“It’s alright. This isn’t the only opportunity. Don’t worry about anything, just focus on getting better,” Richard said, without a hint of resentment.
Seeing him act this way only made me feel more guilty. I couldn’t bring myself to speak, so I stayed silent, and Richard let out a soft chuckle as he noticed my expression.
“I can tell what you’re worried about, so listen to me. If you think I have no connections with the central aristocracy, you’re mistaken. I already have some ties. The most significant one is with Duke Heinz.”
“Duke Heinz?”
“Yes. You remember his daughter from the ball, don’t you?”
Richard added that last part in case I didn’t remember who Duke Heinz’s daughter was. He was referring to Eileen Heinz, the Duke’s daughter.
“…Right.”
Eileen, the future protagonist of this world.
I hadn’t expected her to be mentioned in this conversation, and I couldn’t help but smile bitterly at the unexpected mention of her.
“Why are you smiling?” Richard asked, raising an eyebrow, puzzled by my expression. I quickly shook my head as if it was nothing.
“Oh, by the way, I actually met Duke Heinz recently since I came up to the capital.”
“Really?”
I knew Richard had been traveling around the capital, but I hadn’t imagined he had met Duke Heinz, so I asked in surprise. Richard casually nodded.
“Did you speak to Lady Eileen as well? If you visited the Heinz estate, you must have met her.”
Suddenly, I found myself wondering if Richard was already interested in Eileen, even before the original story had truly begun. I didn’t want to ask outright about his feelings for her, so I tried to inquire indirectly.
Richard tilted his head, as if puzzled by my question, before answering.
“Well, we did talk a bit.”
“What did you talk about?”
“Well… it wasn’t anything special. Just something about flowers.”
Flowers?
I blinked, confused by Richard’s words, and he shook his head.
“It wasn’t anything important, so you don’t need to worry about it. By the way, the daughter of Baron Hazel, whom you saw at the fire scene yesterday, hasn’t been caught yet.”
Richard changed the subject, as though to avoid my question. I nodded, feeling a bit uneasy.
“I know. Olivier filled me in on the situation. I think she went to the guardhouse, and they’re cooperating, right?”
“Yeah. They’re doing their best. If she’s really the arsonist, they’ll catch her soon enough. And…”
Richard trailed off, as though unsure of how to continue. I wondered why he hesitated to speak, but decided not to press him. Whatever it was, he likely had his reasons for keeping quiet.
“Right now, that’s not important. You should focus on getting better and not worry about unnecessary things.”
Richard finished speaking and gently ran his hand through my messy hair. His touch made me flinch, but then I smiled.
“Okay.”
Hey dear readers, the advance chapters of this novel are now available on Patreon. Also I’ll be posting chapters of my other novels there more frequently than here for some time due to some technical issues. Make sure to not miss your favourite novels. Thank you, have a nice day.✨❤️
