Chapter 35
Was it because Aletheia had forced her to use pet names so insistently? Even at times when she absolutely shouldn’t, the nickname slipped out without warning. Mio, feeling like she was about to cry, looked at Jamie.
“Anyway, right now… the things you prepared aren’t something I need. When we actually get married for real later on, you can prepare them again then. I’d be really, really grateful. Okay?”
Jamie seemed to mull it over for a moment before finally nodding in agreement.
“All right. But since everything is already prepared, if you need assistance with your bath—”
“I’m fine!”
Afraid Jamie might follow her, Mio hurried into the bathroom alone and shut the door behind her.
I knew it. I wondered why she was guiding me to a different bathroom instead of straight to the bedroom…
There was a bathroom attached to Aletheia’s bedroom too, yet Jamie had insisted, “Wouldn’t it be better to wash up before going to bed?”—leading her all the way here. To think there was such a terrifying hidden intention behind it. Sighing deeply, Mio plopped down on the floor.
“Haah… What am I supposed to do about Aletheia? I can’t exactly go to another room either…”
There was no certainty about the exact range of Aletheia’s nullification ability. All she could do was guess, based on experience so far, that it was probably narrower than expected.
If things go wrong and the position-lock activates and I get sent back to the Kelt Ducal House… everything will be ruined.
There was no way the vault would acknowledge someone as its owner if that person moved to another house after just one day.
And then I’d have nothing left to say to Aletheia either…
In that case, the line “Let’s get married in three months” might stop working as bait altogether. After all, no one would trust the words of someone who ran away after a single day.
Yeah, I wouldn’t believe them either.
Then he might start making a fuss about getting married immediately, three months be damned…
Just thinking that far made everything seem destined to go horribly wrong. With no other choice, Mio swallowed her tears and climbed into the bathtub.
“At least the water temperature is perfect. Jamie, you did well.”
As the fatigue melted away from her body, Mio was able to forget her worries—if only for a moment.
But bathwater inevitably cools. After sitting there until her fingers and toes wrinkled, Mio had no choice but to get up and face reality again.
The chance that Aletheia is already asleep… yeah, that’s basically zero.
He’d said he hadn’t been sleeping well ever since the banquet, so there was no way his sleep cycle had suddenly normalized today. He’d barely managed a short nap during the day, too.
After much deliberation, Mio squared her shoulders and trudged toward the bedroom, deciding it was better to get it over with.
I’ll go and explain—no matter what—that I came to give him comforting pats.
If necessary, she was even ready to invoke the honor of the imperial family. After all, this was Aletheia—the same man who had accepted even the absurd three-month grace period. Remembering that, Mio let out a relieved breath.
Whew. It’s really a blessing that Aletheia has lost his memory right now.
If this were the insane Aletheia from before, there was no way this would have worked. He would have ignored her completely and done whatever he wanted—just like the night of the accident, when he’d gone alone to the temple to submit the vow document.
Creeeak.
When she quietly opened the bedroom door, there was no sign of movement. Mio dashed toward a chair, intending to sit down and get ready for the patting session before Aletheia arrived.
“—Hk!”
Just as she was about to pull the chair out, she finally noticed a figure sitting on the sofa. Swallowing a scream, Mio placed a hand over her racing heart and cautiously spoke.
“R- Rete…?”
Aletheia was sitting on the sofa, reading something, his back turned toward the bed—so Mio could only see his silhouette. He spoke calmly.
“Go to sleep first. There’s nothing to worry about, so rest easy.”
…So he’d heard Jamie’s true thoughts. Earlier, she’d been so flustered that she hadn’t even thought about mind reading and had just blurted out lies at random.
I didn’t say anything wrong, did I?
Just in case, Mio carefully replayed her conversation with Jamie in her head as she spoke.
“But still… Rete, you’re a patient. You need to get proper sleep…”
“That’s enough. Once the rooms are finished, you can use another room as your bedroom. Until we’re officially married.”
Um, thanks, but that would be a problem. If that happened, her body would probably end up back at the Kelt Ducal House the very next day. Pretending not to understand, Mio continued.
“It worked earlier today too. I’ll give you pats again, just like before. Then you’ll definitely get sleepy.”
She slowly approached the sofa as she spoke. Aletheia placed what he’d been reading onto the table.
“Is it really that important that I sleep?”
“O-Of course it is. They say sleep is the best medicine. Even a little rest at night makes the whole next day feel better.”
And if I take care of you while you’re falling asleep—and the vault notices that—won’t it acknowledge me as its owner faster?
She had no intention of just sitting around and waiting for the perfect moment.
Taking care of a patient and taking care of a mansion—it all depends on what I do.
Scenes that appealed to the vault could be created and staged. Blinded by her fixation on the vault, Mio gathered her courage one more time and gently took hold of Aletheia’s hand.
“…Come here. I’ll give you pats.”
Contrary to her expectation that he would refuse, Aletheia surprisingly got up without resistance and followed her.
An Aletheia this docile… honestly, it was hard to believe.
Please—at least until I escape this original story—stay amnesiac.
She couldn’t imagine dealing with the Aletheia who had publicly proposed to her.
Thinking that, Mio pulled back the covers. With a soft sigh, Aletheia removed his robe and lay down beneath the blanket.
Hehe. Come to think of it, this is already my second nursing scene just today.
Suppressing the upward curl of her lips, Mio sat down on the chair beside the bed.
“Oh, right, Rete. There’s a fox I was raising at the Kelt Ducal House. Well—two foxes, no, one.”
“…A fox?”
“Yes. Somehow it knew and hid inside my luggage and followed me all the way here. I can’t exactly take the baby fox back to the Kelt estate now… so since it’s here anyway, Rosa said she’d take care of it in the servants’ quarters. That’s okay, right?”
“…Fine. I don’t mind.”
His tone made it very clear he had no interest. Mio, who had secretly worried he might object, relaxed and said,
“Whew. Rete, you really do have a good personality.”
“…I have a good personality?”
Aletheia asked in disbelief. Ah—she’d slipped up because she was in such a good mood. What she meant was that amnesiac Rete seemed to have a good personality.
Of course he’d find it absurd. It was probably the first time anyone had ever said that to him.
A good personality… even as a polite lie, that’s a bit much.
Feeling a twinge of regret, Mio soon changed her mind. She’d already said it—she might as well commit. Honestly, she even hoped he’d get a little brainwashed by hearing things like this. Better yet, she wished he’d lose his memory forever.
After all, they say that if you keep telling someone they’re pretty, they really do become prettier.
Lifting her chin, Mio spoke confidently.
“Yes. You said it was fine to keep a fox I brought by accident. And when I said sleeping would be good for you, you got into bed right away. You were like that this afternoon too. When I told you to come to the dining hall, you came immediately, right? And when I said eating would be healthier, you still took a few bites. That’s what having a good personality means.”
“……”
“I-I really mean it…”
After staring at Mio with an expression utterly devoid of trust, Aletheia eventually closed his eyes again and muttered,
“…Just hurry up and do those pats or whatever.”
Embarrassed, Mio nodded vigorously and reached out her hand—vowing never again to resort to sweet talk
