CHAPTER 25
“What is this?”
Clea clenched her teeth inwardly.
No matter how much she thought about it, something felt off.
She had clearly been thinking, but it felt like her mind had been abruptly cut off, like a string had snapped.
After that, she couldn’t remember what had happened at all.
“…Ah.”
How irritating.
She was about to add something but shut her mouth instead.
Though it had been completely suppressed, the voice she heard was her own.
Her eyes suddenly shot open.
Unlike yesterday, her eyelids smoothly lifted without heaviness.
Her vision was bright.
Finally, she could see in front of her.
Clea let out a big sigh and rolled her eyes.
The familiar scenery filled her vision.
This was the Rino mansion.
The mansion where Clea Rino had been left alone.
And it was definitely her room.
‘They didn’t put me in a coffin.’
She let out a quiet, deflated laugh at the ridiculous thought, then turned her head toward the warm sensation she felt in her hands.
On one side, Isaac was holding her hand, or more precisely, seemed to be checking her pulse.
‘…Why is he here?’
Clea slowly blinked and thought.
Well, it’s nice that he’s doing this, but…
Is he unexpectedly kind? Or did we unintentionally grow closer in that time?
Either way, the slightly changed look in his gaze, which had previously been distant, was something to be welcomed.
‘It means we’re one step closer to success.’
She sighed deeply.
As she put some strength into her left hand and slowly tried to get up, she felt someone tightly holding onto her left hand.
Clea turned her head irritably.
“…Why is he here?”
She looked down at Eclipse, who was lying on the floor, still holding her hand.
His long eyelashes were calmly spread out, and his tightly closed lips showed his stubbornness.
Clea sighed again, glancing at her clasped hands.
She alternated her gaze between Eclipse and Isaac, then gently shook the hand Isaac was holding.
Shake, flinch—
It was a tiny, subtle movement.
Nevertheless, Isaac squinted and slowly opened his eyes.
His crimson eyes peeked out from under his silvery hair.
After blinking once, he sighed softly and pressed his narrowed brows with his empty hand.
Then, he lifted his head to look at Clea once more before pressing his eyelids and sighing again.
“Isaac.”
“…Now you’re hearing things.”
Has he gone mad? Isaac let out a faint laugh and sighed deeply.
Clea tilted her head at his low mutter.
What on earth is he saying?
“Isaac, if you’re not mad, could you let go of my hand?”
“…Are you serious?”
“When have I ever been fake? I should probably send a hunting squad after you.”
At Clea’s playful voice, Isaac extended his arm and felt her pulse.
The pulse was definitely beating.
The warmth in her hand confirmed that this wasn’t a dream.
“…You, what exactly…”
“How long have I been asleep?”
“Exactly seven days today.”
“…Wow, that’s bad.”
For him, it had only been an hour, but this penalty is way too harsh.
Wasn’t there some saying that an hour here equals a week in our world?
‘Could it be that “one hour” here meant something like that?’
Clea dropped her head and sighed again.
Even half a year is a tight schedule, but to lose a whole week… no, including the time spent sleeping, that’s eight days gone.
“Isaac, could you get Eclipse’s arm off me? I think I’ll wake him up if I move it myself…”
Before she could finish her sentence, her vision suddenly flipped.
As expected, she was abruptly lifted into the air.
Eclipse’s hand fell away as if it was nothing.
Reflexively, Clea clung to Isaac’s neck in surprise, her eyes wide in confusion.
“…What are you doing?”
“I’ve been away from the mansion too long. We’re going back.”
“Didn’t you hear Eclipse’s message?”
Isaac, stepping out of the room, didn’t even look at her as he answered.
“Are you talking about the priest saying I shouldn’t be seen or placed in a coffin?”
“…Yeah.”
There was an unmistakable coldness in the air.
Clea rolled her eyes, but Isaac still didn’t look at her.
Even so, his grip on her was firm and steady.
“Why on earth… with your weak body, why did you go off on your own?”
“I didn’t plan for this. I just wanted to stop by the mansion and grab what I needed…”
“Didn’t you poison yourself?”
Isaac cut her off with a sharp remark, silencing Clea’s words.
After hearing Isaac’s words, Clea was left stunned for a moment, then opened her mouth.
“…What?”
She asked again, a beat too late, her face turning pale.
She quickly lifted her head, and Isaac’s crimson eyes were staring directly into her emerald ones.
“I heard it from Lord Eclipse… no, from Lord Kelpie. He said it wasn’t a chronic illness, but that you poisoned yourself, which caused your physical strength to drop drastically.”
“…You heard?”
“Yeah.”
Clea sighed deeply.
Even though someone had collapsed, he had casually spilled secrets.
‘I specifically told him to keep quiet.’
At least, it’s fortunate that she hadn’t told him she’d die in six months.
It was probably best not to mention it again.
“Why so serious? Were you worried?”
Clea asked with a mischievous smile.
But Isaac wasn’t smiling at all.
With eyes that had no depth, he silently stared at her.
“…Don’t say such obvious things.”
He muttered softly, turned his head, and started walking again.
His calm voice made Clea’s eyes widen in surprise.
‘…Worried?’
She didn’t know how long it had been since she heard that word.
This was the first time since she came here, but she hadn’t heard it since high school, when she left home to be independent.
She was always alone, and everything had to be done on her own.
She worked part-time to survive, and studied desperately to avoid going back and crawling home.
“There, prepare the best and least shocking carriage. We’re leaving.”
Isaac, now at the bottom of the stairs, spoke to the maid with a bow.
Clea, who noticed the maid, suddenly blushed and wiggled her feet in the air.
“Isaac, let me down. I can walk on my own.”
“And tell Lord Kelpie in the room that ‘my wife’ woke up and will be taken back.”
“Understood.”
Her suggestion was neatly ignored.
The maid, who knew Clea Rino’s personality, hesitated, not daring to lift her head, rolling her eyes in a panic.
Had she not moved quickly enough, she would have already heard the scolding, but even as the maid hesitated, no reprimand came.
“Isaac!”
“Don’t worry about her, just go right away.”
The maid glanced once at Clea Rino.
She certainly seemed annoyed, but unlike before, her face wasn’t radiating coldness.
Clea, who was blushing as Isaac carried her, shouting to be let down, looked like their mistress.
‘What am I even seeing?’
The maid, who felt dizzy, grabbed her head and bent down, quickly disappearing.
“Wait…”
Before Clea could even reach for the maid, she was already out of sight.
Seeing her flustered face, it was obvious what rumors must be circulating.
Clea gave up trying to catch the maid.
She couldn’t run now, and if she wanted to, she would have to get down first, but Isaac didn’t seem willing to let her down at all.
“I told you to let me down.”
“You’re not allowed to leave without my permission or company from now on.”
“That’s too much…”
“I’m not accepting objections.”
Just as she was about to call it unreasonable, Isaac interrupted her.
At his words, Clea kept her mouth shut.
How petty.
But, she decided it was better to stay quiet for now, considering her current physical condition.
It was also better for her to spend as much time as possible with him.
“The preparations are complete.”
“Let’s go.”
Isaac, still holding Clea, stepped into the luxurious carriage.
He sat her down on the soft carriage seat and took the seat opposite her.
“If you’re feeling weak, I can take care of the Rino family’s affairs. What do you think?”
“If Isaac keeps to the promised deadline, I don’t care what you do.”
Even Eclipse had managed to find his own place.
He had received his title, and with his abilities, there was no need to worry about him growing.
“But, could you lift the ban on my going out?”
“Only if you don’t cause trouble. Then I’ll think about it.”
His firm tone made it seem like the ‘yeah, right’ was implied.
Clea sighed deeply.
Isaac, looking resolute, didn’t seem like he would back down easily.
“Don’t you have anything to say to me?”
“I’m sorry for causing worry. I’ll be more careful next time so you don’t have to worry about me.”
Clea gave a smile as harmless as she could manage.
Though her sharp eyes probably didn’t look soft at all, she did her best to give a gentle smile.
