CHAPTER 47….
“……”
“……”
Right now, it felt like I could count every single strand of Kaien’s hair. It was that slow, eternal, and beautiful.
Etisha gazed blankly up at Kaien, still nestled in his arms.
Come to think of it, this was probably the first time she had truly faced Kaien in this bedroom. She usually fell asleep first every time.
But today…
Together with the Duke…
Realizing this made Etisha’s blue eyes tremble slightly. Her pale cheeks flushed red.
The eternal moment shattered, and now she could hear her pounding heartbeat.
The thumping sound grew faster and faster.
It felt as if her heart was tumbling downhill.
“Please be careful.”
Kaien’s low voice whispered by her ear. Etisha wanted to answer but felt her voice might tremble, so she only nodded silently.
“I’ll close the window.”
Kaien withdrew the hand that was wrapped around Etisha’s waist and reached out to close the window shutter.
Even though their bodies had parted, the area where his hand had touched still felt warm.
“You’re still awake this late. What were you thinking about that you didn’t even notice me calling you?”
Etisha took a moment to catch her breath. Though her heart still raced, she had to answer this question.
“Ah… Duke, there’s something I need to tell you.”
As the window closed, the curtains that had fluttered gently settled down slowly. The sound of the drapes clashing also quieted.
When everything became calm and silent, Etisha looked Kaien straight in the eyes and spoke.
“The reason Dite acted that way today was because of Larienne.”
“Huh?”
“To explain briefly, Dite tried to take and break my wedding ring. When Larienne saw that, she assaulted Dite…”
“What? Are you hurt, Miss Etisha?”
“No. I’m fine. It doesn’t bother me.”
In truth, the back of her hand, where Dite had hit her, still tingled slightly. But now was not the time to dwell on that.
It was more important to finish telling about Larienne.
“Let me see.”
However, Kaien seemed to think differently.
He slowly scanned Etisha’s body from head to toe. Since he couldn’t tell if there was any internal injury just by looking, he pressed lightly with his fingertips and swept over her.
“D-Duke.”
“Stay still. I’m just checking if you’re hurt.”
“Ah…”
Kaien’s fingertips rested on Etisha’s cheek. He stroked down along her jaw, then moved to the nape of her neck, carefully tracing all the way down to her shoulders.
His touch was serious and deliberate.
Clearly to check for injuries…
But Etisha felt as if her heart was tumbling downhill once more.
“You might have injured muscles without even realizing it. As you can see, they seem somewhat stiff.”
That was just because Kaien was touching her.
His hand moved down along her arm to the elbow. Now even her waist felt like it was trembling faintly.
“Ugh.”
“Do you feel any pain in your arm?”
“No, it’s not that…”
“I’ll check again.”
This time Kaien’s fingertips moved the other way up, from elbow along the forearm to the round shoulder line. He examined slowly.
“Ugh…”
Etisha squeezed her eyes shut.
She felt she couldn’t endure anymore. If being hurt was the problem, she wanted to tell Kaien quickly and end this sweet torture.
“Duke, well… actually… the back of my hand hurts a little.”
“The back of your hand?”
“Yes, here…”
Finally unable to bear it, Etisha surrendered.
She held out her hand to Kaien. It was definitely a bit red and swollen compared to usual.
“It’s okay to this extent. It doesn’t interfere with movement.”
Etisha said as if it was nothing. Having endured many punishments in the Heinz family, this level of injury was nothing new for her.
Still, Kaien seemed to disagree.
“It’s swollen.”
“…Yes. It is.”
“The skin is red.”
“…Yes, a little red.”
Kaien stared intently at Etisha’s hand. For some reason, his gaze darkened deeply.
He seemed upset and angry that Etisha was hurt.
Especially since she was a woman who wouldn’t live much longer anyway…
“I’ll have to treat it.”
“No, there’s no need.”
Etisha shook her head seriously. It was finally time to finish the story she hadn’t finished.
“Please listen to me before treatment.”
“……”
“It’s important.”
Kaien kept his eyes fixed on Etisha’s hand for a while before slowly lifting his head. It seemed he thought nothing was more important than taking care of her injured body.
“What is it, Miss Etisha?”
At last able to speak, Etisha spoke cautiously.
“Larienne threatened to reveal my chronic illness.”
“……”
“She said she would tell everything…”
Etisha lowered her eyes. A shadow of sorrow darkened her face.
“Larienne Heinz threatened you, Miss Etisha?”
“Yes… The wedding hasn’t even happened yet. What should I do?”
Kaien’s jet-black eyes shook with an ominous intensity. It looked like a flash of murderous intent.
“That might be for the best.”
“Huh?”
Kaien shook his head.
Larienne Heinz. The Heinz family. It was unreasonable for such people to live proudly in the world.
Etisha did not seem determined to take revenge yet, but Kaien was different. He had already been planning to find them and deliver proper punishment.
And now, they had come to him on their own.
“You’ve saved me some trouble.”
Kaien didn’t bother explaining to Etisha, who didn’t understand his meaning, and changed the subject.
“I understand why you’re anxious. We could immediately assert the duke’s authority or use the reason of Larienne assaulting Dite to throw her out of Wintel Castle. But if we do that, we can’t predict how rumors will spread.”
“That’s right. Knowing Larienne’s personality, as soon as she’s expelled from Wintel Castle, she’ll spread rumors about my illness everywhere. Until now she’s been quiet, probably because Father made her keep quiet…”
“If she’s a Heinz viscount, that makes sense. She probably kept quiet to avoid angering the Grand Duke and the Emperor.”
“But things have changed now. Larienne said that before coming north, she stole all my father’s money. Looks like their relationship soured.”
“That means she’s like a horse with its reins cut loose.”
Etisha nodded slightly.
If Larienne really intended to expose Etisha’s illness, she would do so without hesitation anytime.
It was dangerous whether she stayed inside Wintel Castle or was cast out.
And if cast out, she might hold a grudge and spread rumors even faster in retaliation.
“…Sigh.”
Etisha sighed unconsciously.
Once it became known that she had a terminal illness, who knew what would happen. The peace they had now would probably be shattered.
Kaien seemed to share the same thought.
“If it becomes known that you have a limited time to live, the wedding won’t go smoothly. Your mother will definitely oppose it the most.”
Lady Cyrileze…
Etisha’s expression instantly grew bitter.
Lady Cyrileze wanted Kaien to have love, marriage, and a lifelong partner to rely on. And she hoped Etisha would be that partner for Kaien.
But what if it was revealed that Etisha was a terminal patient who would die in just a year?
Kaien would not find peace, and knowing he’d become a widower in a year, he would be sure to strongly oppose their marriage.
“Then… what should we do?”
Etisha looked up at Kaien with big eyes. Kaien gazed into her blue eyes but kept his thoughts to himself.
“……”
There were many possible solutions.
They could imprison Larienne in Wintel Castle, punish her for her crimes—it wouldn’t be hard as long as the secret didn’t leak for two weeks.
But Kaien didn’t say any of that aloud.
He could not yet show the murderous intent and thirst for revenge he held to Etisha. And somehow, looking into Etisha’s clear eyes, he didn’t want to.
Kaien suddenly spoke in a low voice.
“Shall we get married?”
He gently wrapped his hand around Etisha’s swollen left hand. Then a faint light began to glow from the ring on her ring finger.
“Marry me, Miss Etisha.”
It was a light like a lamp brightening the darkness.
“Huh? Marry… you say?”
Etisha could not hide her bewildered expression. Marriage now? Weren’t they already engaged?
“You know there’s a chapel inside Wintel Castle, right?”
“I do, but…”
“Let’s go there. Today. Right now. We’ll have the wedding.”
A wedding just for the two of them.
“Even if someone opposes a wedding that hasn’t happened yet, once it’s done, it cannot be undone. If we have the ceremony today, no matter what happens later, you will become my wife.”
“……”
“In other words… it’s a trump card.”
A secret between just the two of them.
One more promise shared by Kaien and Etisha.
“Of course, first I need to treat the back of your hand…”
Only then did Etisha’s gaze drop. She finally noticed the hand she had been ignoring all this time.
“This really is okay.”
“It’s not.”
“But…”
“You need to take better care of your body. You left the window open and were exposed to the cold wind earlier. You could have fallen.”
“……”
“Be careful. Please.”
Kaien frowned. Thinking that Etisha might die soon, her health and safety were on his mind.
It was strange.
At first, when Etisha heard about her terminal illness, she seemed unaffected. But at some point, it had come to this.
