Chapter 43
On the day they returned from the fir forest to the Brante estate, it was expected that I would fall sick with a cold.
Because of the fever that started in the morning, I was lying unconscious in bed.
When I opened my eyes after noon, the Diarne family had already prepared to return to the capital.
“Three people came to the young lady’s room in the morning.”
Milly told me that the three had visited my room earlier, but I was unconscious, so I couldn’t greet them.
After begging Milly to stop me, I barely peeked outside the window.
I saw the servants of the duchy loading luggage onto several carriages, and the two families bidding farewell below.
By the time I returned to Pellen, the summer vacation of the Randurst Royal Military Academy would also be over.
When I thought that I might not be able to meet Darius for a long time, I felt affection for the small golden head I could see far below.
Soon, everyone from the Diarne family boarded the carriages one by one.
Kyle, who was about to get on the last carriage, suddenly looked up toward my room window.
As if he sensed my gaze.
“!”
I waved my hands enthusiastically. Even if my expression couldn’t be seen from such a distance, he should be able to see my arm movement.
Kyle, who had been frozen in place for a moment, slowly raised his arm and waved left and right. Then his silhouette was swallowed by the carriage.
“They’re leaving.”
Watching the long line of carriages slowly move away from the Brante estate made mixed feelings rise in my chest.
It had been a week full of variables and twists.
Still, it was a sweet experience just because it was a vacation spent with my favorite characters.
I also succeeded in creating a new, memorable summer vacation for Darius and Kyle.
But there was one big lesson I learned from this incident.
Small sparks can cause a fire.
If I thought that the peach I casually recommended might have been the starting point of a butterfly effect, my hair still stood on end.
To prevent the conflict between Kyle and Darius from changing the ending of The Golden Oath, I had to be more careful about everything.
So that things would not flow in a direction different from my intention.
But how could I control the results of unexpected events?
I had to guide Kyle to grow into a good person while also being careful not to cause other bad events.
“It feels hopeless.”
I decided that it was better to avoid high-risk actions.
“There should be no more long-term big events like inviting the two of them to our territory.”
Calming my messy thoughts, I looked back on the summer vacation I had spent with them—perhaps the first and last one.
Behind me, Milly placed her hand on my shoulder.
“Young lady, please lie down now….”
Before she finished speaking, heavy footsteps approached, and the door was slammed open.
“Riez! Why aren’t you in bed yet?!”
My brother Simon shouted at me angrily.
I had been standing by the window just a moment ago while waving goodbye below.
“Okay…”
I puffed my cheeks and returned to the bed. Milly glanced at my brother and wrung out a cold wet towel to place on my forehead.
“If you act on your own again, I will forbid you from going outside!”
Simon shouted so loudly that my ears rang.
“Okay… I’m sorry…”
I had my own circumstances, but from my father and brother’s perspective, they were very worried because of yesterday’s incident, so I stayed very submissive.
Moreover, because I had suffered a severe fever in early spring, they were still very sensitive about my health.
In the Pellen mansion, I even received regular medical checkups every week because of my father’s insistence.
“Simon, don’t be too harsh on the sick child. You already scolded her enough yesterday, and Riez is reflecting.”
Then my father came into the room and stopped Simon.
Simon let out a boiling sigh.
“It’s because Father is too soft that she acted recklessly like yesterday.”
“….”
I suppressed the excuse that almost came out reflexively.
“I won’t do it again.”
Lowering my eyes and acting obedient, the annoyed brother ran his fingers through his hair and handed me something he was holding.
“Hah. I want to tear this apart, but since I’m kind, I’ll deliver it.”
“What is it?”
I received the paper he handed me.
Inside a small yellow envelope was a small note.
Dear Miss Riez,
I am sorry that I could not say goodbye properly before leaving.
This past week was the happiest week of my life. Thank you for creating such a summer vacation.
I will use this memory as nourishment to endure another semester.
I wish you a speedy recovery and good health.
P.S. I also leave a small gift that is not much of a return. I bought it in the same size as Kyle, so I hope it fits well.
‘Crazy. This is Darius’s handwritten letter!’
I covered my mouth in admiration.
How could the handwriting be this neat and beautiful! I should make this my second treasure.
I wondered if sending a reply would be troublesome.
While thinking like that and reading the short letter again and again, I tightly held it.
Simon shook the box he was holding together with the letter.
“He gave this along with it. I don’t know when he bought it.”
It seemed to be the “small gift” Darius mentioned.
“Open it!”
Inside the box opened by Simon was a pair of ivory-colored Mary Jane shoes.
“Ah! So cute!”
I suddenly raised my upper body, and the wet towel on my forehead fell.
“Give it to me! I want to try them on!”
“What do you mean try them on right now? Lie down quickly. Do shoes have legs to run away?”
Simon closed the box lid and forced my shoulder down.
“Ugh. If I don’t try them on now, I’ll burn with curiosity!”
“What? I shouldn’t have told you. Close your eyes quietly before I throw it away.”
Watching the two of us bickering, our father intervened.
“Good grief, just lie down. If you can’t bear it that much, I will help you put them on.”
“Ah. On the bed is a little…”
Putting shoes on while lying in bed!
Even if they were new shoes, the Korean soul inside me rejected the idea.
After struggling with my father and brother, I was able to sit on the edge of the bed and try the shoes on.
The simple design of the round-toe, glossy ivory shoes suited my taste perfectly.
As expected, Darius’s aesthetic sense was excellent. His gift selection skill had always been great.
They were about one size too big, but my feet would grow, so they would fit soon.
Next time I met Darius, I could show him wearing these shoes.
I took off the shoes and lay back on the bed in satisfaction.
After that, I received medical treatment from the Brante estate physician, drank soup and medicine, and fell deeply asleep.
Kyle let out a sigh of relief as he boarded the carriage.
When he discovered the figure waving outside the window at the last moment, he almost smiled in happiness.
In the morning, he had visited briefly and left a pig doll beside Riez’s feverish sleeping head.
It was a prize he won from a competition game, and it looked poor, but it was the only thing he could give.
He wished he had been the one who caught the cold.
He felt very uncomfortable, as if an innocent child had been punished.
So seeing Riez regain consciousness at the end was a great relief.
Sunlight stroked the fields, and the carriages of the Diarne family drove along the winding road.
The peaceful village where the festival competition was held, the gentle meadow where cows grazed, and the green ripening vineyards passed by one after another.
For Kyle, who had never left the city of Pellen in his entire life, this lyrical rural scenery was strange.
A place that naturally made the heart feel warm and peaceful.
Suddenly, he thought that the village suited Riez very well. He could easily accept that she was a child born and raised here.
“Did you have fun, Kyle?”
Darius, who was sitting across from him, woke Kyle from his reverie.
Kyle answered only by glancing sideways.
Smiling refreshingly, Darius spoke again to his mother.
“Let’s go somewhere again next summer. If the Brante family allows it, we can come here again.”
“Well, that’s not bad. Resting in a quiet place sometimes is good.”
The distant bell tower rang softly in a slow rhythm.
Kyle kept his eyes fixed outside the window and engraved the past week into his heart.
The scenery that had become a breathing space in his harsh life slowly disappeared from view.
