Episode 27

* * *

After enduring so much yesterday, I thought I might be coming down with the flu, but it seems like it was just unnecessary worry. Fortunately, my physical condition was fine.

Except for the swollen eyes in the morning, that is. Oh, and excluding the thigh pain I got from Partraz, my body was in excellent condition.

I took out a bunch of grapes from the basket. I only ate the flesh and picked out the peels.

I nibbled on the flesh while turning the grape peels inside out. Then, I smeared the purple juice on my thigh.

As a result, the area stained with grape pigment looked as if it had suffered a serious injury. Seeing my thigh, dyed in a violet hue that seemed on the verge of necrosis, I smiled with satisfaction.

I went to find Mr. Henry. Luckily, he was walking towards me at the end of the corridor.

“Chase?”

The moment Mr. Henry saw me, I grimaced a little. In response, he rushed towards me as if almost running and quickly supported me.

Although I exaggerated my pain, there was indeed pain when walking. I lowered my head, squinting my eyes.

Seeing me like this, Mr. Henry exclaimed in shock and quickly led me to the room, where he sat me down in a chair.

“Where are you injured?”

It was the awaited question. I nodded slightly, gesturing towards my pants. Mr. Henry widened his eyes as soon as he saw my thigh.

“Goodness… What happened!”

Mr. Henry shouted loudly to the servants outside the door.

“Get Eleanor right away!”

He rushed towards me as if about to run and quickly knelt down, inspecting the injury again. My thigh, dyed in violet, looked really serious.

I wiped off the grape pigment on my thigh after the door closed. Despite the gentle wiping due to the severe bruising, it hurt too much.

“It’s terribly swollen.”

Eleanor inspected my wound while shaking her head. Her face was a bit dark, and I was frightened because of it.

“It’s not a broken bone, is it…?”

“It doesn’t seem broken. Of course, we should be suspicious if the swelling doesn’t go down, but…”

She placed an ice pack on my thigh.

“At least do an ice compress three times a day. Avoid strenuous exercise.”

I nodded my head. She added a warning not to stress myself and then inquired about my work.

‘…How am I supposed to handle work?’

The fact that the duke’s mansion was busy right now was probably something even the passing sparrows knew. In this situation, I couldn’t afford to rest. I got up to go see Mr. Henry.

But before I could open the door, it turned back with a peculiar sound on its own. Thinking it might be Abel, as I took one step back, the door opened with a creak.

And an unexpected figure appeared before me. Without any permission, the person who opened the door was none other than Partras.

“…What are you doing now?”

Were we close enough to come in and out of each other’s rooms? At least, I don’t have such memories in my mind.

Partras lightly shrugged his shoulders and spoke.

“I was curious if you were living well. Thanks to you, I ended up working at the villa for a while.”

“Well, congratulations.”

Perhaps the villa he mentioned was the Marmania Villa. It was also one of the villas owned by Akaruth.

But because it was a villa that had been abandoned by the family for a long time, it was full of strange rumors. Rumors like a legless ghost crying every night, or objects moving on their own accord.

Because of these rumors, there were hardly any servants who wanted to work at the Marmania Villa. So, the servants who caused trouble would stay there for about a month, doing villa cleaning as a form of punishment.

Partras smiled brightly. Then he said,

“Stay healthy until we meet again.”

“…”

He patted my shoulder quietly and left my room. The touch of his hand on my shoulder felt strangely ominous.

* * *

“Those bastards, I knew they’d cause an accident someday!”

Peter was strutting around the room with vigor. Roel scolded Peter, telling him to calm down because I was still recovering. Then she asked me if I was okay.

“I’m fine. The swelling is going down day by day…”

“What’s wrong with those guys? Did they lose a screw somewhere? Ugh, so annoying!”

Seemingly unable to calm down, Peter vented his frustration with a string of curses. Abel, looking disturbed, listened to Peter’s words.

“What did they say?”

When Peter asked the question, Abel didn’t answer. Peter urged him again, and eventually, Roel stepped forward and slapped Peter on the back so hard it made a smacking sound.

“Please be quiet and let him rest.”

“Ouch!”

Peter, rubbing the area where Roel couldn’t reach, shed a few tears.

“These guys are really workaholics.”

“Now you know that? Abel, let’s get going soon.”

“Sure.”

Abel had a concerned expression, but just then, the door opened, and through the gap, Flynn popped his head in.

“Ch-Chase. Can I come in?”

“Flynn, you came at the right time!”

Roel’s expression brightened instantly. She grabbed Abel’s arm and said, “Now that Flynn’s here, we can relax and work comfortably, right? Let’s go quickly.”

Abel took an awkward step forward.

“I’ll come back at night.”

While being led away by Roel, Abel opened his mouth. I smiled faintly and nodded my head.

After Peter, Roel, and Abel left the room, it quickly became quiet. Flynn pulled a chair and sat down.

“By the way, doesn’t the mansion seem noisy today?”

Roel also seemed busier than usual.

“Oh, you probably didn’t hear the news. Today, Lady Herwin is visiting.”

If it was Lady Herwin…

I remembered hearing from Roel before; she was the young lady of the family who was pushing forward the engagement with Raiden.

“She’ll be staying at the mansion until the end of the banquet.”

It seemed she would stay for about a month.

Since the banquet was held at the Akaruth mansion right after the hunting competition, many guests were coming from afar, so the rooms where they would stay needed much preparation.

“…Isn’t it suffocating to stay in the room?”

Currently, I had to stay in my room due to my leg. I had decided to rest for a day and start working immediately after that. Mr. Henry was taking care of me a lot, allowing me to skip physically demanding tasks.

“It’s suffocating, but there’s nothing we can do.”

In response to my words, Flynn spoke as if to say not to worry.

“How about going for a walk together? Oh, the weather is really nice today.”

His words were tempting. In fact, I could walk; I was just staying in the room to recover quickly.

I glanced at the sunlight pouring through the window. In the end, unable to resist the temptation, I went for a walk with Flynn.

Luckily, the weather was clear. The cool breeze of early autumn, combined with the not too harsh sunlight, made it comfortable.

While exchanging casual conversation, Flynn and I walked slowly. However, for a moment, a clacking sound of heels approaching from a distance was heard.

Beyond the fountain, I could see a man and a woman walking slowly. The woman with high-tied red hair was wearing a white shirtwaist dress. And the person standing next to her was…

Raiden Akaruth.

Seeing him walking side by side with the unfamiliar woman, I felt like I knew who she was. The woman was undoubtedly Amy Herwin.

Looking at the beautiful lady and Raiden together, all the events of yesterday felt like a dream on a midsummer night.

As Flynn and I approached them, closing the distance, we stopped and bowed slightly. Whether their gazes reached us or not, the two passed us in an instant.

“Um, let’s go, Chase.”

Unconsciously, I must have been looking at their backs, and Flynn pulled me, urging me. I smiled awkwardly and nodded my head.

“Come on, want to go for a walk? Oh, the weather is amazing today.”

His words sounded pleasant to the ears. In fact, I could walk. I was just staying in the room to recover quickly.

I gazed at the sunlight pouring through the window. Unable to resist the temptation, I decided to go for a walk with Flynn.

* * *

“I never expected the Duke to personally come out to greet.”

Raiden opened his mouth as he escorted the woman getting out of the car.

“I apologize for not meeting your expectations.”

Even to Raiden’s dry voice, Amy just smiled it off.

“By the way, your face seems quite injured since we last met.”

Naturally resting her arm on Raiden’s, Amy continued.

“I doubt it’s because of me. I can’t imagine anyone causing harm to your face over me. Besides, I doubt anyone would dare to ruin the Duke’s property.”

“Your face also looks quite damaged. Seems like the engagement with me is frightening.”

“Haha, are you saying I’m afraid of the engagement with you?”

Amy, having heard Raiden’s words, burst into cheerful laughter.

“We’ll see as time goes on. You’re saying strange things… But what should I do? I quite like this engagement.”

Raiden’s face showed no particular emotions. Well, there was no way a man like him would refuse an engagement where only benefits existed.

But, even though he was a man who sought his own desires recklessly, he was clear when it came to gaining benefits.

There was no reason for him to reject this engagement, where only benefits were guaranteed.

“By the way…”

Amy was about to continue her words. However, Raiden stopped walking, and her words couldn’t proceed.

“Duke?”

Amy turned to Raiden with a face full of confusion, but Raiden’s gaze wasn’t on her.

Who is he looking at?

Following his gaze, she noticed two servants walking at the end.

‘A woman?’

Both of them looked furtive, but one of them appeared undoubtedly male. However, the figure next to him had a strangely different silhouette.

Now that she thought about it, when they passed by them earlier, one of the servants caught her attention.

‘Could it be… Is the Duke looking at that guy?’

Whether Raiden was looking at her or the other person, this was purely a woman’s instinct.