Chapter 60
“I Want to See That Woman”
Calier was sleeping as if dead.
The doctor finally took his eyes off him, wiping the thick sweat from his forehead.
“Fortunately, the crisis has passed.”
“Is he really alright?”
Zember, his face completely pale, asked the doctor. The doctor glanced at Calier’s face before continuing.
“It’s a great relief that the Fenrir wasn’t a poisonous monster. I’ve closed the big wound for now, but complete rest is the priority.”
Hearing this, Zember and I both let out a sigh of relief at the same time.
The doctor, seeing us, spoke again.
“For the next few days, there may be fever from infection or inflammation, so I’ll prescribe fever medicine. Dissolve it in water and feed it to him if he has a fever.”
“I’ll do that.”
The doctor placed the medicine wrapped in white paper on the bedside table.
Zember, looking at the doctor wiping sweat with a handkerchief, spoke to May, who was anxiously standing guard.
“Guide the doctor to the dining room.”
“Yes, butler…”
“Oh! No, it’s fine. I’ll have to leave soon anyway. Isn’t it the time when the Kocher disease is spreading the worst?”
The doctor waved his hand, but Zember spoke firmly.
“That’s exactly why you should eat before you go. As you know, there aren’t many doctors in Esperos.”
At that, the doctor gave an awkward laugh.
After scratching the back of his head for a moment, he smiled faintly.
“Then I’ll eat just a little before going.”
“Follow me.”
The doctor bowed and left, following May. I watched them disappear, then asked Zember,
“Will the doctor not be staying in the castle even today?”
“There aren’t enough doctors in the territory. We can’t just keep him here.”
“But you’re the Grand Duke’s butler! The lord’s health is the most important—!”
“If there are no people of the territory, there is no lord.”
“….”
“In a barren place like Esperos, that is even more true.”
Maybe it was my imagination, but even though his words sounded cold, his face looked on the verge of breaking down.
‘The ones most frustrated right now must be them.’
I spoke carefully.
“…I’m sorry.”
Zember smiled faintly.
Calier’s bedroom still had cloths stained with blood and basins of water placed here and there.
The scattered items showed just how close to death he had been.
This morning, I had thought the empty room felt too hollow without its owner—
but now my stomach twisted with worry.
“…With His Grace, you worry when you can’t see him, and you worry when you can.”
Trying to lighten the heavy mood, I made the comment, and Zember’s lips curved faintly.
“I doubt His Grace would admit that.”
We both laughed softly.
Then Zember, as if remembering something, spoke.
“Ah, and I was able to contact Laperre.”
“…Lord Laperre?”
“Not long ago, you asked His Grace to meet him to learn about Zeros’s situation…”
“Ah, y-yes! I asked him!”
Only after hearing Zember’s words did I remember that I had asked Calier to arrange a meeting with Laperre.
‘How could I forget something like that? Get it together, Revelia Piace.’
Embarrassed, I gave an awkward laugh, and Zember smiled faintly before continuing in a careful tone.
“However, he said there’s something important, so it will be hard for him to come to the territory right away. It will take about a week. Is that alright?”
“Y-yes, of course. Thank you for letting me know.”
“That’s a relief. I’ll tell him so.”
I lowered my head and thought of Laperre’s face.
I suspected the reason he couldn’t come immediately was because of the medicine we had talked about three days ago.
‘That means in a week, I could leave Esperos whenever I want.’
My heart felt restless for no reason. I brushed my hair back—
Hair?
The moment I saw golden strands shimmer, my head reflexively turned toward the window.
The sky, which just moments ago was red from the setting sun, was now covered in darkness.
A-already?
“Then let’s have dinner in the dining room—”
“I-I’m not feeling well, so I’ll rest early!”
“What?”
“You don’t need to bring me food like last time! Then, excuse me!”
Before Zember could reply, I hurried out like I was fleeing.
The moment I slammed my bedroom door shut, golden strands fell from my hair.
‘T-that was close…’
“A-are you alright?”
Knock, knock. Zember’s worried voice came from beyond the door.
I quickly looked at my hair, now fully violet again, and answered in a rush.
“I-I’m fine!”
“If you’re not feeling well, the doctor is probably still in the dining room. Should I—”
“N-no!”
“….”
“I’m really fine. This just happens to me… sometimes.”
Ah, what kind of excuse is that? “Sometimes”?
Even I knew how strange it sounded. I was wondering how to fix it when his careful voice came again.
“Do you have a chronic illness?”
“What?”
“While His Grace is unconscious, I can’t allow anything to happen to Lady Heidi. Please wait, I’ll—”
If he ran to call the doctor now thinking I was ill—?!
No, that can’t happen!
“M-May knows!”
“What?”
“This happened around the same time last month too. So… instead of the doctor, ask May!”
“May already knows?”
“Yes! …And His Grace knows too.”
Only then did Zember agree and leave.
“Whew…”
That scared ten years off my life.
Pressing my ear to the connecting door to Calier’s bedroom, I listened until I heard the faint click of a door closing—then I collapsed into a chair.
I can’t keep doing this.
“…I have to leave before next month.”
“No matter what.”
Darkness was everywhere.
Calier groaned from the burning pain in his chest, then suddenly realized—this was a dream.
‘So I’m not dead.’
With a bitter thought, he slowly began to walk toward a faint light in the distance.
A familiar voice came to his ears.
“Could you do me a favor?”
“I want to know about Zeros’s situation.”
Heidi?
He stopped and looked around.
She appeared at a distance just out of reach, her eyes lowered in a hesitant, almost pleading way—like she was afraid he wouldn’t agree.
Seeing her like that stirred something deep inside him.
Was she still trusting Delphian Zeros?
Why?
“I’ll think about it.”
“R-really?”
“You might want to know why the fiancé you trusted so much hasn’t come to you.”
Beside her stood himself—speaking with sarcasm, exposing his pettiness for all to see.
“Ha…”
Calier let out a dry laugh.
Heidi, blindly trusting Delphian.
Delphian, enjoying meetings with another woman.
And himself—knowing he shouldn’t want her, yet unable to stop.
Suddenly, the scene shifted.
He stood in the middle of a canyon.
An angry knight’s voice rang out, echoing.
“What do you think you’re doing?!”
Leon, another knight, quietly explained,
“One of the men conscripted from the village for this investigation killed a baby Fenrir. Lord Yale is questioning him.”
“He killed a baby Fenrir?”
“Yes. He says it was revenge—his son’s arm was broken by a Fenrir weeks ago.”
They dragged the man forward, forcing him to kneel.
But his face didn’t look relieved at all.
For a moment, Calier thought he saw his own face overlapping the man’s.
Yale’s angry voice roared again.
“So you joined the investigation just to get petty revenge for your son?”
“Yes.”
“Your reckless act could have endangered the whole team.”
“I couldn’t take revenge alone, so I used everything I could to do it.”
“And now that you’ve put everyone else in danger, are you satisfied?”
The man gave a bitter laugh.
“I thought I’d feel satisfied, but I don’t. My son told me once—revenge only brings more revenge. I should have listened.”
Then—
“Brother, even if something happens to me, don’t seek revenge. Before my brother, you’re the lord of Esperos.”
Shion?
Calier looked around, startled at hearing Shion’s voice.
Suddenly, screams filled the canyon.
“F-Fenrir!”
“What?!”
Clang!
Yale, sword already raised at the man, struck aside the claws of a Fenrir leaping at him.
A whole pack surrounded the investigation team.
Calier saw himself drawing his sword to fight them—
and his lips slowly formed a name.
“Heidi.”
Ah—
I want to see that woman.
