Chapter 20
Marsha felt a lump in her throat.
Berry always cared for and treasured her like this.
But Marsha couldn’t give anything in return…
“Why do I always end up losing out like this?”
Marsha opened her mouth, then closed it again.
If she said this, kind Berry would firmly say, “It’s not losing out!”
“I’m just getting all the time. What can I do?”
“You just received it when? Furthermore, I did nothing noteworthy to merit gratitude.
“That’s a big deal. If it were me… I wouldn’t do this. I can’t.”
In the past, Emelide, the count’s daughter, was rich, so she could always give to others.
If she had been poor, she would have lived without giving.
But Berry worried about her living expenses every month while still caring for her friends.
“You’re amazing, Berry.”
“Oh, it’s nothing! I just brought some food, and you say such things…”
Berry scratched her cheek with an embarrassed smile.
“I want to say, ‘Let’s have tea together,’ but…”
Marsha didn’t want to send Berry away like this.
But if someone inside the room was found out…
“Berry might get into trouble.”
Just like Claudio said before, Marsha wasn’t sure if the people looking for Claudio were his comrades.
They talked about rewards and told her to go to the duke’s house, but that might be a trap.
Maybe someone is waiting near the duke’s house, watching for someone who knows his whereabouts.
“…Has anyone come looking for you since that day?”
Marsha asked carefully.
“That day? Oh, you mean when Gloria Duke’s knights came?”
Berry shook her head.
“No, no one else. Since they’re holding a big festival, I guess they found him.”
Marsha slowly nodded.
“So the people who came for Berry that day weren’t the duke’s knights?”
If not, maybe Claudio was a commoner, and the duke didn’t care much.
Whatever the truth was, Marsha felt relieved that Berry hadn’t met anyone dangerous.
Then Berry sighed deeply, full of regret.
“Ah, I wish they had come to my house.”
“Because of money, right?”
Marsha asked with a small smile, and Berry clenched her fist.
“Of course! It’s too bad. That reward from Gloria Duke’s house must have been a huge amount. Then I could’ve fixed my house, expanded the farm, and oh, gone on a trip too.”
Berry’s face was shaking from exhaustion.
“No use being regretful now. Anyway, Marsha, I’m going. Don’t just study all the time—eat well and take care of yourself, okay?”
“Uh…”
Marsha hesitated briefly, then bravely said,
“I’ll walk you home.”
“What? No! Don’t tire yourself out for nothing.”
“I’m not tired.”
Marsha said firmly.
Berry’s large eyes grew wide, and she gave a gentle smile.
“All right, just to the large rock. I refuse to compromise any more!
“Alright. Got it.” Before going out, Marsha glanced toward the room where Claudio was.
It was quiet. “He looked like he fell asleep earlier. Still sleeping?”
A patient who is sleeping doesn’t need to be informed that she is leaving.
“It’s not very far… it’ll be fine.”
In the end, Marsha walked Berry home.
“Oh dear! You came all the way here!”
“But I didn’t want to stop talking.”
“Well, same here… Oh! Since you’re here, take some butter and milk with you!”
“No, I already have plenty of food at home…”
“Ah, butter and milk are different!”
So Marsha had to take Berry’s gifts with her.
“All I get is… what should I do?” Worried, she thought.
Her eyes then became brighter.
“Cosmetics.”
In her grandmother’s book, there was a simple way to make lotion and toner.
It was very basic and needed improvement, but…
“It’s worth a try.”
First, she’d need to make some fragrant oil.
“Luckily, many fragrant flowers are blooming these days…”
Berry is a lovely girl, so she thought of making a sweet floral scent for her.
For the elderly woman, a gentle and serene fragrance.
Oh, and also for the man.
He might feel awkward using such things, but he would still use them.
Marsha walked slowly, imagining this with joy.
She promised to walk Berry just that far; she was passing the large rock.
“Hey, you.”
The voice of an unfamiliar man suddenly emerged from behind.
Marsha turned sharply and saw a stranger coldly looking down at her.
She went pale as if she saw a ghost.
“Wh-who are you?”
She stepped back and asked.
“That’s what I should be asking.”
The man slowly followed her and spoke.
“You’re not supposed to be living in that house.”
“…”
Marsha’s eyes trembled.
How does he know that?
“Why are you secretly living in someone else’s house? What’s your name, and where are you from?”
“…Who are you to ask that?”
Marsha kept stepping back, asking.
Only a guard or a knight of Gloria Duke’s family would ask such questions.
But guards or knights wouldn’t hide their bodies in robes like this.
“I don’t think I owe you any answers.”
The man said harshly.
Trying to calm her pounding heart, Marsha glared at him.
“If you don’t reveal who you are, I have no reason to answer either.”
The man frowned and reached his hand toward Marsha.
“!”
She tried to avoid his hand, but his large hand grabbed her slender wrist roughly.
“Ugh!”
The bag in her hand dropped to the ground with a crash.
A milk bottle broke, and white milk quickly soaked into the floor.
“Don’t be rude. Answer me. Who are you? An illegal smuggler?”
The man growled and pulled Marsha toward him.
Her wrist felt like it might break.
“If not…!”
Just then, as the man opened his mouth wide,
Whoosh! Something flew and hit the head of the man precisely.
“Ugh!”
He groaned in pain.
Frozen by the sudden situation, Marsha stood still.
Then a voice sounded.
“Let go of her right now.”
“Dio…”
The man who always spoke calmly now showed a sharp anger in his voice and eyes.
“How did you even get here…?”
He was struggling to stand properly.
Was his body okay?
Even at this moment, Marsha worried about Claudio.
The man holding his bleeding forehead suddenly raised his head sharply.
“Du—!”
“Shut up.”
Claudio quickly shut the man’s mouth with a short curse.
“How many times do I have to tell you to let go of her hand?”
“Ah.”
The man finally released Marsha’s wrist.
Holding her sore wrist, Marsha stood there, unsure of what to do.
What was going on?
Do they know each other?
Confused, she saw Claudio reach out his hand.
“Come here.”
“…”
Marsha felt strange.
Her heart was still pounding wildly, and her legs were so weak it was amazing she could stand, but a strange calmness held her firmly…
‘It feels like I’m hypnotised or something…’
Like water flowing downhill, Marsha moved toward Claudio.
“You’re not feeling well, so how did you get here?”
“Is that important right now?”
He frowned as he spoke, making Marsha flinch.
After a short sigh, he finally responded to her query.
“What else could it be due to?”
“…due to me?”
“There has been no sign of the person who hardly ever leaves their garden. And this forest might still be crawling with the people who did this to me.”
Claudio spoke with some anger, keeping his eyes on Marsha.
Marsha blinked.
‘He was worried about me?’
Truly caring about someone else is harder than you think.
Even among people who have built long relationships, many worries are just words.
But this man, despite his condition, went out to find her because he cared.
It could be his compassion or his regard for the person who saved his life.
“… I’m sorry. I thought it wasn’t right to wake someone who was sleeping…”
Marsha bowed her head and rubbed her sore wrist.
Seeing her wrist swollen and red, Claudio gritted his teeth and glared at the man who was stumbling behind him.
‘That bastard…’
The man—Urian—was panicking.
He had finally found his master, whom he’d been so worried about.
He wanted to run over and check if she was okay, but his instincts shouted,
‘If you go near now, you’ll die.’
Urian’s mind was in chaos.
What exactly was happening?
Who was this woman?
