Chapter 80 – What Do You Think of Me?
January 19, 2024
“Of course I have one. The feeling I have the most toward you, Master.”
“What is it?”
“Gratitude. You know I’m always thankful to you, right?”
Of course.
The small glimmer of hope Leonard had been clinging to completely fizzled out.
But it was too early to be disappointed. Cordelia was Leonard’s one and only disciple. There was still plenty of time to win her heart. Besides, who was he?
Leonard Atilay.
He awakened his magical powers at the age of five, became the youngest member of Seirios at eighteen, and was also the head of the prestigious Atilay family. On top of that, he was quite good-looking.
Cordelia just didn’t fully understand his charm yet. Her confession of love to Leonard was only a matter of time.
“If we get married, two or three kids would be ideal. Too many would just stress Cordelia out. I’ll have to ask the head butler to redecorate a room for her. And the wedding—when should we…”
In his imagination, Leonard had already married Cordelia and was picturing having two sons and a daughter, or one son and two daughters.
Had he been given more time, he would’ve named all their future grandchildren.
“But even if I wanted to go, I can’t leave right now.”
“Why not? What do you still have to do here?”
Cordelia’s words snapped Leonard back to reality.
“It’s not that I have something to do, but Lord Rosenblatt hasn’t fully recovered yet. I can’t just leave while a guest is still unwell.”
“Rosenblatt? Blaise is still here?”
He had briefly heard from Belluche that Blaise had come, but didn’t realize he was still staying in the Abrams estate.
“Yes. He caught a really bad cold and only just came to his senses.”
“A cold? That almighty Rosenblatt?”
“He must’ve been under a lot of stress.”
“Sounds like he told you about Lydia.”
“Yes. You mean the news about Lydia, right?”
Naturally, the two headed toward the room where Rosenblatt was staying.
“I still can’t believe it. If it were a kidnapping, they should’ve demanded money or something, but there was nothing. And if, by any chance, she left on her own… that doesn’t make sense either. Lydia could have anything she wanted just by pointing her finger.”
“There are things money can’t buy.”
“Like what?”
Leonard almost mentioned the love he’d just come to realize—but held back.
“There are. You’re still young, so you wouldn’t understand.”
“You call that young? I’ve been married and widowed already. That’s pretty mature for my age.”
“That’s not all there is to life.”
“Oh, please. You’ve never even been married.”
“That’s why I want to try it.”
“Try what?”
“Marriage.”
Cordelia abruptly stopped walking. Leonard also came to a halt. She looked at him in surprise, staring at the side of his face.
“With who?”
“Why? Are you curious?”
“Of course I’m curious! You said just a month ago that marriage was never an option for you. Who is it? Someone I know? Don’t tell me… Lydia?”
“Yeah. It’s someone you know very well.”
She thought it was a joke, but when he said “someone you know very well,” Cordelia became even more flustered.
Marriage? Master, married?
She tried imagining some nameless woman standing next to Leonard. The image felt oddly wrong and deeply unsettling.
“Master, I’ve been through it, so I know—marriage is really not all it’s cracked up to be.”
“Just because your marriage was bad doesn’t mean mine will be. I’ll treat my wife very well.”
“Th-That may be true, but still…”
She couldn’t come up with a proper rebuttal. Her mind was in complete disarray.
By then, they had arrived at Rosenblatt’s room. After knocking and hearing a voice granting permission, they stepped inside.
“Leo.”
“From the looks of you lying there, I’d say you’re about to die.”
Leonard didn’t hold back his sharp tongue after seeing the gaunt face of Rosenblatt. Cordelia simply laughed—by now, she knew this was how the two expressed their friendship.
“Did you eat anything?”
“No. I don’t feel particularly hungry.”
“Even if you have no appetite, you should still eat something. You’ll need strength to find Lydia.”
“She’s right. Hurry up and eat something. Don’t be a burden, lounging around in someone else’s castle.”
“Master! Why are you being so mean to a sick man? Lord Rosenblatt, please don’t take him seriously. Just rest and ignore him.”
“Of course I’ll listen. Because of him, you haven’t even been able to leave for the capital.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. You were planning to head to the capital?”
“Yeah. I figured it would be best to leave before the new Count is officially appointed. But really, don’t worry about it and just focus on getting better.”
“I feel like I’m just burdening you, Cordelia.”
“What burden? Please don’t think like that. I consider both you and Lydia to be dear friends.”
She smiled radiantly. Rosenblatt flinched at the word “friend.” For some reason, it stung more than usual. And today, Cordelia and Leonard seemed unusually close—it was bothering him.
“I don’t think of Cordelia as just a friend.”
“Uh, ah… I-I’m sorry. I didn’t mean—sorry!”
Cordelia’s face turned bright red in embarrassment. Leonard immediately shot Rosenblatt a fierce glare.
“Watch your mouth. Don’t you know the difference between what should and shouldn’t be said?”
“I think we’re something much deeper. ‘Friend’ doesn’t capture all the feelings involved.”
“Ah…”
“Cordelia was there for me when I was at my lowest.”
Rosenblatt smiled sincerely at her. Then, he noticed a bluish bruise on her wrist.
“Oh no. You got hurt because of me.”
He hadn’t noticed earlier, likely because he’d just regained consciousness—but it seemed he had grabbed her wrist a bit too hard.
He got up from the bed and approached her.
“That must’ve hurt.”
“Oh? Ah…”
Just like Leonard had done before, a faint light glowed from Rosenblatt’s hand, and the bruise on Cordelia’s wrist slowly faded.
It honestly hadn’t hurt that much, so the healing wasn’t necessary, but she thanked him anyway.
“I’m fine. Thank you.”
“You’re the one who did that to her?”
“Yeah. Cordelia had been taking care of me this whole time, and I must’ve mistaken her for Lydia.”
“Taking care of you? She nursed you?”
Leonard glared daggers at Rosenblatt, his eyes full of jealousy and irritation.
It had already annoyed him that Rosenblatt kept trying to steal Cordelia as his own disciple, and now the man had received her care—something even Leonard had never gotten. On top of that, the man who hurt her was the one who got to heal her?
Honestly, everything about the situation just pissed him off.
“You’ve said your hellos, so let’s go.”
“Already?”
“What do you mean already? We’ve seen him.”
At Leonard’s urging, Cordelia quietly followed her master out.
Two days later, Rosenblatt made a full recovery and left after expressing his gratitude to Cordelia. He headed south.
Cordelia, Leonard, and Belluche also began preparations to leave for Yebo Delim. There wasn’t much to prepare—they had packed long ago. It was just the lack of courage that had kept them from leaving until now.
Before leaving the castle, there was a tearful farewell.
Emily was surprised to learn that Cordelia was not only a mage, but also a disciple of Atilay—but she congratulated her warmly.
“I always knew you’d achieve great things, milady! You studied so hard every day after the Count woke up. To think it was magic! That’s amazing!”
“Thank you, Emily. Take care of yourself. I’ll miss you so much.”
“Me too. Thanks to you, I was able to marry Kevin safely. Serving you made me truly happy.”
For some reason, those heartfelt words made her chest tighten. Cordelia bit her lip, trying not to cry—but in the end, tears escaped through clenched teeth.
“Sniff… Take care, Emily. I-I’ll be staying at Atilay, so if anything ever happens, send word there, okay?”
“Yes, I will. Don’t cry, snff, don’t cry, milady. I was trying so hard not to cry too… Snff, goodbye, milady. You deserve to be even happier than you are now.”
It had been a hellish place—but even in that hell, there had been one person who truly cared for her. In a place she thought no one would ever be on her side.
Cordelia embraced Emily tightly and cried a whole bowl of tears before getting into the carriage. Through the window, she waved at Emily.
Once Belluche’s carriage took the lead, hers followed with a jolt as the wheels began to turn.
Cordelia wiped her eyes with her sleeve, sniffling. She thought her master would click his tongue at her in annoyance, but unexpectedly, he simply handed her a handkerchief.
“If you hate parting that much, just bring her with you. It’s not like taking one maid will change anything.”
“Emily’s lived here her whole life. Her husband, parents, even her grandparents are all here. I can’t separate her from her family just because I’m selfish.”
“Then take the whole lot with you.”
“Oh, come on.”
His casual tone made her tears dry up faster than expected. Cordelia let out a chuckle and said,
“It’s fine. Emily has her own life.”
She looked back at the shrinking silhouette of the Abrams estate. Spring had passed, and the early summer breeze tickled her cheeks.
The Cordelia Abrams who once shed tears in secret from her husband’s disregard, her mother-in-law’s scorn, and her sister-in-law’s insults—was no longer there.
Now, only Cordelia Vasquez remained.
From the moment Leonard awoke in Craig’s body, to learning magic from him, meeting Maximilian at the Mage’s Association, nearly dying in Dilroana’s territory, and ultimately killing Craig—
Cordelia had never once regretted her choices.
No one could predict what lay ahead, but one thing was certain:
Whatever hardships awaited on the road she had chosen, she would face them with open arms.
Even if it killed her.
