CHAPTER~62
“I almost ended up making you collapse too, my lady.”
“Are you all right?”
At his sudden appearance, I could only blink blankly.
“I’m fine, thanks to you.”
I definitely hadn’t heard the door open, so since when had he been here?
He set the fallen chair upright with one hand and carefully helped me sit down.
I accepted his touch without protest this time as well.
The way his hands moved was so attentive that I couldn’t bring myself to resist.
“That aside, when did you come in?”
“You didn’t say a word.”
“I didn’t even hear the door open……”
He pulled over another chair, sat facing me, and spoke.
“I did speak.”
“You were just too focused to notice my presence.”
“……How about going to get some rest, Evlyen?”
“I’m fine.”
“I need to stay by her side until her condition improves.”
“You’ve been here nonstop since the banquet.”
“You haven’t even changed your clothes.”
“Ah……”
Only after Frezen spoke did I realize I was still wearing my dress.
Until then, my mind had been so overwhelmed that I hadn’t thought about it at all.
My hair was disheveled, and my face felt stiff, so I was probably a mess.
Becoming conscious of my appearance far too late, I avoided Frezen’s gaze.
Now that I knew how I looked, I didn’t want to show him this state.
I didn’t want to feel embarrassed for no reason.
And besides……
In front of Frezen, I always ended up worrying about how I looked.
I hastily loosened my tangled hair ornament when I suddenly heard Frezen’s voice.
“I heard it from your maid.”
“That you’ve only been sleeping a few hours because you were making the medicine.”
“Loren, seriously.”
“I told her not to say anything, and she still……”
“Ah!”
Before I could finish grumbling, Frezen lightly flicked the bridge of my nose.
I covered my reddened nose and shot him a glare.
“Ah, that hurts!”
“Why would you suddenly hit me?”
“Because you deserve it.”
“What would you do if you collapsed from not sleeping, my lady?”
At his continued scolding, I snapped back irritably.
“Honestly.”
“What does it matter if I don’t sleep?”
“It’s not something to scold me over.”
Frezen must still see me as that little child from our childhood.
Otherwise, how could he flick his wife’s nose like that?
As I fumed silently, Frezen continued in a voice laced with a gentle smile.
“How could it not matter?”
“You’re my wife.”
“If you collapse, I won’t be able to endure it.”
“……”
The moment I heard that, my heart dropped with a thud.
My head rang as if struck.
He wouldn’t endure it?
He said something like that with such a calm face?
Unlike my flustered self, the one who had said such an embarrassing thing looked completely unfazed.
As before, he gently stroked the top of my head and continued.
“So don’t overdo it.”
“If you collapse, Mela will hate me.”
“She’ll say I made her mother collapse.”
“……”
“I know Mela isn’t your child.”
“And of course, she isn’t mine either.”
“Still, right now, you and I are her guardians.”
He seemed to see right through whatever reaction I was about to give.
With my words taken from me, I had nothing left to say and just sniffled quietly.
I turned my head and stared blankly at Mela as she slept.
“Guardians……”
“I hope Mela thinks of us that way too.”
The sight of Mela growing cold at the banquet was something I never wanted to experience again.
Thankfully, her hand was warm now, just like usual.
Holding Mela’s hand, I sank into thought.
“What if Mela deliberately ate the poisoned food?”
“Why do you think that?”
“……Of course, you’re not someone who would make such a guess without reason.”
“Actually, a child named Morris came to see me.”
“He said he told Mela that his mother and a maid had tried to poison someone.”
“Then Mela must have known.”
“Knowing that……”
My throat tightened, and my voice wouldn’t come out.
I closed my eyes to steady my emotions.
“Take a deep breath.”
“Don’t get anxious again.”
Frezen stepped closer, wrapped an arm around my shoulders, and gently patted me.
At his words, I barely managed to calm my breathing.
“If Mela knew and still ate it, just like you said, then the reason is clear.”
“What reason……?”
Frezen seemed to be thinking differently from me.
Come to think of it, he was surprisingly calm.
Was it because he knew, deep down, that she wasn’t his child?
“It means there was something this child wanted to do.”
“Something important enough to eat poison on purpose.”
“……”
“Mela is that kind of child.”
“You know it too.”
“She’s mature and sharp, different from other children.”
“Every action she takes has meaning.”
No, it was because Frezen trusted Mela.
Maybe even more than I did.
“What we need to do is find out why she made that choice.”
Yes, Frezen was right.
What I could do now was find the reason.
That child must have had something she wanted to accomplish.
Then, when the time came, I might understand the meaning of the smile Mela had shown.
Thanks to Frezen, my anxiety slowly turned into trust.
“Now then.”
At the same time, Frezen forcibly pulled me to my feet.
I was startled by how easily my body lifted.
“Go get some sleep.”
“I’ll stay here and keep watch.”
Frezen pushed me gently from behind.
I hesitated, my feet unwilling to move.
Today, I wanted to stay by Mela’s side.
“But……”
“Tsk, you’re stubborn.”
“Or should I carry you like a princess?”
As if he had no choice, Frezen rose to his feet.
When he reached out as if to lift me, I hurriedly waved my hands and stepped back.
“N-No!”
“Then…… please, just for today.”
“If anything happens, tell me right away.”
I left Frezen behind and hurried out of the bedroom.
Afraid he might grab me and actually carry me, I practically fled.
I slammed the door shut and let out a breath I hadn’t realized I was holding.
My heart was pounding.
* * *
Unable to resist Frezen’s insistence, I eventually returned to my room.
Even after forcing my exhausted body onto the bed, my mind was annoyingly clear.
“What could the reason be……”
The reason Mela would go so far as to deliberately eat poison.
My thoughts were still in turmoil.
I barely pushed them aside and tried to sleep, but my eyes opened again.
With a haggard face, I muttered in resignation.
“I can’t sleep.”
Just as I considered counting a thousand sheep, the door opened and someone entered.
“Frezen, what is it?”
“Did Mela wake up……!”
Seeing Frezen suddenly appear, I jumped up, worried something had happened to Mela.
“No.”
“Lie back down.”
“I came because I thought you might not be able to sleep.”
“And I also had something to tell you about the trial.”
Frezen approached and gently laid me back down.
He pulled the blanket up to my chin so I couldn’t get up again.
Sitting on the edge of the bed, he looked down at me intently.
Embarrassed by his gaze, I hid my face under the blanket and asked.
“What about Mela?”
“A maid is watching over her.”
“She brought a lot of books and said she’d read to her all night.”
“So stop worrying and take care of yourself today.”
“Tch.”
“I was already trying to sleep.”
“If you came just to scold me again……”
Instead of answering, Frezen climbed into the bed beside me.
He turned to face me.
The distance was much closer than I expected, and I froze.
Frezen seemed no different.
For once, his eyes wandered restlessly.
“I……”
“I’ll stay until you fall asleep.”
“There’s no particular reason.”
“……Th-Thank you.”
Seeing how awkward he was, I felt embarrassed too and brushed it off.
“……”
Feeling too awkward to keep looking at him, I forced my eyes shut.
But every other sense felt heightened.
His deep scent faintly filled my nose.
Each steady breath and rustle sent small noises ringing in my ears.
More than anything, I felt strangely chilly, as if a draft were blowing.
Even under the blanket, my body trembled.
“Evlyen, are you cold?”
“A little.”
“I’ll be fine soon……”
Before I could finish, my body was pulled tightly against him.
Frezen hugged me and gently patted my back.
Isn’t this too close?
Pressed against his solid chest, I instinctively held my breath.
“There, there.”
Cutting off any chance for me to respond, he pulled me into his arms even more.
Thanks to his warmth, my heart slowly calmed.
Soon, my eyelids fluttered shut.
Listening to the steady beat of his heart like a lullaby, I drifted into sleep.
* * *
Fortunately, Evlyen fell asleep without any fuss.
“This is driving me crazy.”
Perhaps because her breath brushed steadily against his chest, he tilted his head back and swallowed dryly.
Looking down, he saw the round crown of her head.
He stroked it gently, trying to steady himself.
She’s my wife.
If you collapse, I won’t be able to endure it.
The words they had exchanged earlier lingered in his mind.
With a heavy expression, he pulled her closer.
“What I said earlier…… I meant it.”
Please…… don’t get hurt.
And don’t ever think of leaving.
Burying the words he truly wanted to say deep in his heart, he pressed a light kiss to his sleeping wife’s forehead.
Only then did he allow himself to fall asleep.
