TMWSH 08

~Chapter 08~

Pawned Life 

“What?”

Irina nearly bit her tongue along with the salad.

“Marriage,” he said.

“…That wasn’t a joke?”

“I don’t recall ever joking with you, Lady Irina.”

“Marriage isn’t something to joke about.”

“And I’m not joking.”

Irina’s eyebrow twitched.

“I have no intention of marrying anyone.”

Howard looked genuinely surprised.

“But you were going to marry Marquis Ire.”

“Well, yes. That was a transaction. And it wasn’t what I wanted.”

She added defensively,

“My father sold me off without even telling me. I was simply notified, and I decided to respond the only way I could. Besides, I didn’t have much time.”

“You almost—!”

Howard’s voice rose slightly—uncharacteristically so. He seemed to swallow back what he wanted to say.

Irina looked at him quizzically.

“Why are you getting angry? It’s not like I had a choice. What could I have done? The family was about to collapse.”

She tried to speak as casually as she could, but her throat felt increasingly dry.

“If I hadn’t gone through with it, Mother’s beloved house and garden would’ve fallen into someone else’s hands. Well, half of it already has, anyway.”

Embroidery to maintain noble dignity? Etiquette?
Or perhaps social graces useful for tea parties and balls?

None of that ever taught her how to survive.

“…I understand,” Howard said quietly.

“Well, anyway, while you were changing, I wasn’t standing still either. I changed too. Not that I want to sit here reminiscing about the past.”

A bitter smile tugged at her lips.

Howard didn’t ask further. Perhaps because he already knew the whole story.

“So what would marrying you accomplish? I assume you’re not dreaming of some sweet, romantic life.”

“Would you dislike that?”

She thought bitterly: Never again. I’ll never confess my feelings to him again. Once was enough. Twice was too much. Three times would be foolish.

“Yes. I’d hate it. I’d hate it so much. I’d absolutely despise it. Really, really hate it.”

When Irina said it so firmly, Howard gave a faint smile.

“Don’t smile. I mean it.”

“Understood. Anyway, the story’s a bit long—but the former head of House Lingester has passed away.”

Irina’s eyes widened.

The former lord was dead? And the man before her, not even of direct blood, had inherited the title?

“…Don’t tell me you killed him. That sounds like something out of a novel.”

“What if I had?”

At that chilling response, Irina leapt up from her seat.

“What? You killed him? Then this house too—oh no, don’t tell me…! No matter what reason you had—still, that’s—!”

“I’m joking.”

“Oh, for heaven’s sake.”

Her anger deflated instantly.

“The inheritance was transferred legally, according to the late lord’s will. But it isn’t entirely complete yet.”

Her head spun. She didn’t fully understand how these noble affairs worked.

Howard briefly explained that distant relatives could still challenge the inheritance.

“And if you don’t secure it fully?”

“Then it’ll go to someone else. I’ll be penniless. If I’m unlucky, I might even spend the rest of my life in prison.”

At the word prison, Irina frowned.

“You haven’t committed a crime.”

“To them, that doesn’t matter.”

Prison.

Her throat felt parched. She picked up her glass, but it was empty.

Clearing her throat awkwardly, she set it down. Howard rose from his seat.

They had sent all the attendants away to talk privately.

Howard came closer and poured her some water with practiced ease.
For a moment, it felt like old times.

As she drank, Irina glanced up at him.

He really is handsome.

Those long eyes, that lowered gaze, the silver hair that always tempted her fingers.

“Are there no women in Borman?”

He set the glass pot down and answered, “There are, but… I’m shy around strangers.”

“…You’ve gotten a lot more sarcastic, haven’t you?”

Back then, he’d always been at her side like a shadow. He’d had no time for women—but that was long ago.

Now, who knew?

Irina didn’t lower her suspicious gaze.

As he returned to his seat, she steered the topic back.

“So, you need marriage to complete your inheritance. Once you do, you’ll clear my debts? For how long?”

He answered briefly.

“One year.”

“One year?”

Irina’s eyes widened expectantly.

“In one year, everything will be over. When that happens, Lady Irina, I’ll give you whatever you want—freedom, wealth, anything.”

“I’ll think about it.”

With that, the dinner—and their conversation—ended.

Since becoming head of House Lingester, his life had improved, but also become more complicated.

“Ughh…”

Irina groaned.

Ordinarily, a debt was a debt, and she should have refused such a request outright.

How had things come to this?

She buried her face in her pillow, her thoughts a tangled mess.

In a dim room lit by a single lamp, Howard sat alone.

It was only beginning.

There was still a long road ahead.

Two trials had passed.
Three more awaited.

The liquor on his tongue tasted especially bitter tonight.

Irina.

My lady.

So long ago—so far back that it should’ve been forgotten—those memories returned.

A young boy sat nervously in a corner of a carriage.

It was a young Howard.

The weather had turned cold, and even in his thick clothes, he shivered.

His small frame didn’t even reach the floor; his feet dangled above it.

“Howard, the Count will take good care of you for a year. Don’t cause any trouble,” said the adult beside him.

Howard nodded obediently.

“You’ll be serving a young lady there.”

The man handed him a drawing.

“Me?”

“Yes. A very pretty, spirited young lady.”

Howard took the picture carefully.

Even though it was just a painting, her smile seemed as bright as sunlight.

Her chubby cheeks only made her look more endearing.

If angels existed, they’d look like this, he thought. Maybe she can grant wishes, too.

Howard’s cheeks flushed pink.

“She’s… she’s very pretty.”

“Hahaha! Right? You must serve her well. She’s Count Cosat’s only daughter.”

After two days of travel, the carriage finally entered the estate.

He couldn’t wait to get down and see the young lady he was to serve.

Would she be as pretty as her portrait? As angelic?

Howard finally met her the next day.

“What? He’s supposed to take care of me? He’s smaller than I am!”

The angelic young lady shouted sharply.

Howard shrank back.

Irina circled around him, inspecting him.

“Are you really ten? Then you’re older than me! Prince Leon is ten and way taller.”

She measured their height with her hand, frowning.

Howard could tell she wasn’t impressed.

The man who had brought him nudged Howard forward, telling him to greet her properly.

“I—I’m Howard. I’ll be serving Lady Irina from now on.”

He greeted her shyly.

Irina suddenly thrust her hand out.

“I’m Irina. Irina Silver Cosat. Since we’re together now, nice to meet you!”

From that day on, Howard’s life was… difficult.

“Howard! I have something to tell you—it’s a secret, okay?”

She acted like it was a great secret.

It turned out to be that the fruit that got the most sunlight was the sweetest.

The conclusion? She wanted him to pick that fruit for her.

“Did you know that fairies live at the top of the tree? The fruit that gets the most sunlight tastes the best. Don’t you want to try it?”

Of course, Howard wanted to do anything for Irina—but that was no task for a child.

“Too bad I’m too short to reach,” she said.

Howard was even shorter than she was, but he didn’t mention that.

She’s my lady, he thought.

“I’ll get it for you,” he said innocently.

“Really?”

Her eyes sparkled.

He hoped she’d stop him, but clearly, that wasn’t going to happen.

He climbed with a stick and a crate, but the tree was far too tall.

“Can you reach it?” she asked.

If he said no, she might scold him.

Howard stretched farther, just a little more—just enough to pluck the fruit.

Finally, he grabbed it.

But then Irina shouted so loudly that he lost his balance.

He fell from the tree. His chest hurt sharply, but more than pain, he feared punishment.

“I—uh, I didn’t mean—”

Irina looked frightened too.

Luckily, he wasn’t beaten, but he did have to endure hours of scolding later.

I never got to give her the fruit, Howard thought before falling asleep.

The next morning, Irina came running again, bright-eyed as ever.

“Hi, Howard!”

She looked ready for another day of adventures.

“Wanna do something fun today?”

Howard nodded.

Even if it was tiring, time with her was always enjoyable.

“Shh! Follow me quietly.”

She led him to a door halfway down the basement stairs.

“It’s scary, so you go in first.”

She pushed him inside.

Howard was terrified too.

The room turned out to be empty—but they got caught by a maid and scolded again.

And that wasn’t the end of it.

After playing in the garden fountain with Irina, Howard came down with a terrible cold.

It felt like something was crawling inside his skull. His head throbbed so badly he couldn’t lift it from the pillow.

His nose and mouth burned like a freshly baked loaf of bread.

As he lay there with a damp cloth on his forehead, Irina brought him medicine.

The one her maid, Laura, had given him in the morning was sweet and soothing, but Irina’s medicine was bitter and smelled strange—dangerous, even.

It didn’t seem like something one should put in their mouth.

But Irina was watching, so he drank every drop.

He ended up bedridden for another three days.