Chapter 40
“If you don’t want to drink it, then don’t! I don’t want to serve fine tea to someone who doesn’t even want it.”
Not to be outdone by her brother, Roena pouted and snapped back.
Just like yesterday, her brother was acting strange again today. Always calm and collected, it was unlike him to be so irritable.
“Brother, you know you’re acting weird, right?”
“I’m just tired.”
“If you’re going to get cranky for no reason, wouldn’t it be better to cut down on work?”
Roena had suggested the most reasonable solution, but Tirchen couldn’t answer easily.
He had never gotten irritable simply because work was hard or there was a lot of it.
When he had first entered the room, he had been in a decent mood, but suddenly it had plunged straight to the bottom, souring rapidly.
How pathetic—taking it out on my sister like this.
The reason for his bad mood was Elysia, but it wasn’t as if she had done anything wrong.
“Make me some tea.”
That was Tirchen’s own way of apologizing.
“You said you wanted to drink alcohol.”
Grumbling under her breath, Roena still went to make tea for her brother.
Kais had no desire to deal with a tense Tirchen. The wisest move was to leave before he got caught in the crossfire.
He stood and held out a hand to Elysia.
“Lady Elysia, why don’t we give the siblings some time alone and step out for a while?”
“Yes, I think that’s a good idea.”
Elysia agreed readily.
She thought Roena was the one best suited to soothe Tirchen’s mood.
But seeing this, Tirchen’s expression only grew darker.
The two of them, already heading toward the door, didn’t notice the murderous glare following them as they disappeared outside.
Only Roena caught the twisted look on her brother’s face, and she scowled harder in return.
“Why are you looking at Sister Elysia like that? Do you dislike her?”
“No reason I should like her.”
Tirchen pulled his gaze from the door and replied dryly.
There was no need to involve feelings in a relationship built on a contract.
From the beginning, he had always found it bothersome to concern himself with others, and he had never gotten into any kind of emotional entanglement with people.
But lately, he had been experiencing unsettling emotions more and more often—and there was no denying that Elysia was the main cause of that change.
Tirchen didn’t like how she disturbed his equilibrium.
“Liking someone is a matter of feelings, you know. You don’t always need a logical reason.”
“Don’t try to force such an inefficient thing on me.”
“I told myself I wouldn’t expect you to do anything impossible, Brother, but I guess I forgot again.”
Roena shook her head, chiding her own foolishness.
Asking Tirchen to have feelings was no different from pleading with a tree.
He was alive like a tree, yes, but he couldn’t even understand what emotions were.
She knew she should be grateful that her brother loved her at all.
Even so, she couldn’t quite give up the small hope that someday, he might love someone other than her.
Three days had passed since that walk on the beach, and still no word from Delina.
She was the type of woman who would never retreat so easily, so her absence made Elysia wonder.
Was she sick, or did she have some other scheme?
Tirchen was still keeping his cold distance, making it impossible to strike up a conversation with him.
Besides, he was holed up in the study all the time, so she barely even saw him.
“Ugh, so boring.”
I was sitting in the tea room, trying to read a book, but eventually just rested my face on the open pages.
After lying like that for a while, I shifted—and heard the door open.
From my slouched position, I tilted my head just enough to see Roena walking in.
“Sister Elysia, what are you doing?”
“Reading.”
With my arms dangling limply under the table and my cheek resting on the book, I answered shamelessly.
A soft giggle came from above my head.
“With your face?”
I straightened up in my seat.
“I was just taking a break. I couldn’t concentrate…”
“When that happens, you need to clear your head. How about we go outside?”
“You’re right. Let’s go for a walk.”
A cool breeze sounded far more appealing than clinging to a book I couldn’t even read.
The front yard of the villa was spacious, perfect for walking, and the scenery was beautiful enough to soothe the eyes.
“Since there’s no wind today, let’s ask to take the boat out.”
“The boat?”
“Yes. Brother said he’d take me out when the wind calmed down.”
Her suggestion was tempting.
I had never ridden a boat before.
Maybe I had once or twice when my parents were alive, since the villa was here, but I had no memory of it.
“That sounds fun.”
“Wait here. I’ll go ask Brother.”
Roena left the room in excitement, and I felt just as eager.
Leaving the tea room, Roena went straight to her brother’s study.
She peeked in first, gauging his mood—he’d been shut away in here for days, absorbed in work.
“Brother, are you very busy?”
Approaching his desk, she spoke tentatively.
Tirchen lifted his head, his gaze blank as he met hers.
“Why?”
“Are you going to stay in the study all day again?”
“I have a lot to do.”
“There’s no wind today.”
“I see.”
His eyes dropped back to the documents. Even here at the villa, his workload was heavy.
“You said you’d take us out when there was no wind.”
“Later. I have a lot to do right now.”
He was indeed busy, but burying himself in work was also a way to clear his head.
He had never experienced such turbulent emotions in his life before.
“Sigh… Well, I can’t disappoint Sister Elysia, so I’ll just ask Kais instead.”
Dejected at her brother’s flat refusal, Roena’s shoulders slumped.
But Kais didn’t really like boating just for fun—he was obsessed with fishing.
If she asked him, he’d probably anchor the boat in the middle of the sea and spend the whole time fishing.
As Roena turned to leave, dragging her feet, she heard the scrape of a chair behind her.
“I could use some fresh air.”
“Really? You’re coming too?”
“I’ll tell Kais to take you.”
“Okay! I’ll get ready right away!”
She ran off happily, and Tirchen let out a low sigh.
It was the mention of Elysia that had made him stand up so suddenly.
Since when did it matter to him if she was disappointed?
Ever since that day they visited the cave, he’d been prone to random bouts of bad mood, even snapping at Roena.
The real reason he’d spent the past three days shut in his study was—if he was honest—because of Elysia.
It was an instinctive avoidance, to keep from running into her.
Kais, delighted at the rare chance to go fishing, was humming to himself as he gathered his gear.
Even at the villa, Tirchen kept him so busy that he hardly had any free time.
When Tirchen entered the storage room, Kais had assumed his day would stay peaceful.
“I thought you’d hole up in the study again today. Coming fishing with me?”
“Get the boat ready.”
“What, for fishing?”
“No. Take Roena out. She’s been stuck at home and we’ll be heading back to the capital in a few days.”
Kais, who had briefly hoped for some boat fishing with Tirchen, gave a resigned nod.
“As always, the doting brother. Guess I’ll be fishing alone then.”
“Fish later.”
“Why? You could take her out yourself.”
“You take her. Elysia’s going too.”
“What difference does that make?”
Kais narrowed his eyes, studying Tirchen.
Lately, his friend had been acting differently.
He’d wondered if Roena’s kidnapping had shaken him, but that didn’t seem to be it.
Even his snapping at Roena could be seen as a change, but the main factor seemed to be Elysia.
“You were so nice to Lady Mares before—what happened to turn cold all of a sudden?”
“I’ve told you before. She’s going to be Crown Princess, so I’m treating her with the proper courtesy, nothing more.”
“So why the cold shoulder now?”
“I don’t like her.”
It was a clean, simple answer, but Kais found it baffling.
Something must have happened between them the day they went to see the cave, but he had no idea what.
“Did you two have an argument on the way back to the villa?” he muttered to himself, watching Tirchen leave.
While Tirchen and Kais prepared the boat, Roena and I packed a lunch.
“Brother’s not coming on the boat, so we’ll have to eat on the beach afterward.”
“Let’s do that. I’ll get something to sit on.”
I found a maid and asked her to bring a mat, then followed the sound of voices outside.
Around the boat stood Kais, Tirchen, and several servants.
“Your Grace, you’re going to move the boat to the shore yourself?”
“If you can do it alone, go ahead.”
Tirchen’s dry reply met Kais’s petulant tone.
The boat was small enough for four people, but still heavy enough that Kais couldn’t manage alone.
“What’s the reason His Grace is doing something the servants could handle? Don’t think it’s because you feel bad for me.”
Ignoring Kais’s grumbling and the servants’ protests, Tirchen took hold of the boat himself.
One would think Kais’s constant nagging would annoy him, but he didn’t react at all.
Looks like Tirchen’s in a good mood today—thank goodness.
The sunny weather was matched by my own bright mood.
Everything was going smoothly, and I was convinced the day would be full of nothing but pleasant moments—until an unexpected interruption appeared.
Just as we were about to leave the villa, a carriage came racing toward us.
“Isn’t that the Shiton family’s carriage? Haven’t seen them in a while, and now they’re back?”
As Kais said, it was indeed the carriage Delina used.
When it stopped in front of us, Delina leaned out the window.
“Where are you all going?”
Tirchen glanced at Kais, silently telling him to deal with it, and continued on his way without a word to her.
Leaving poor Kais behind, Roena and I followed after Tirchen.
I’d assumed Kais, being a capable aide, would get rid of her quickly—but I was wrong.
Delina ended up trailing Kais all the way to where the boat was.
“Why’d you bring her here?”
“She came on her own—what was I supposed to do?” Kais protested.
I wasn’t exactly comfortable with Delina’s presence, but I tried not to show it openly.
Once I returned to society, Delina wouldn’t be the only awkward person I had to face, and I couldn’t afford to display my feelings every time.
Better not to engage if you want to avoid trouble.
Roena and I stood a little way off, watching Tirchen and Kais set the boat in the water.
Delina stood nearby, but I deliberately ignored her.
“All right, ladies! Ready to board?”
Kais waved us over once preparations were done.
“Let’s go, Sister Elysia.”
Roena took my hand.
At that moment, Delina, standing just behind us, gave my shoulder a hard shove and dashed ahead.
