Chapter 82

Chapter 82

Derek walked for a while and found a red roof. It was a very old house. The income was poor, and it looked like he couldn’t even afford to repair it.

‘…I can leave it here.’

Thinking that, he put the hide at the door and put the meat on it. It would be nice to pick it up quickly so it wouldn’t get worse, but he didn’t think it would be good to meet face-to-face for nothing. However, the moment he got up, the door to the house opened.

“…Huh?”

And, the man he met at the hunting ground found him. Derek glanced at him with a look of disappointment.

“Fortunately, you came to our house well. I couldn’t explain where the house is…”

Nevertheless, his expression quickly darkened as if he had seen what Derek had put.

“Ah… to give me this…”

“It doesn’t mean much. I’m a wanderer, so I didn’t need this much, so I just brought it with me. I don’t know many people.”

“I see. Thank you. I’m shameless, but I have no choice but to receive it due to my circumstances.”

Saying so, he smiled bitterly. The situation in which he could not even refuse seemed sad.

“Why don’t you come in and have some tea first. When it’s time to eat, you eat, and then you go.”

“No, I’ll just go. I have work to do today.”

It was when Derek was about to say no because he didn’t want to be treated. Suddenly, a voice came from inside.

“Honey, who’s here?”

“Ah… The person who rescued me from the hunting ground came.”

It seemed to be the wife he was talking about on the hunting grounds. Seeing that her voice was cracked, it looked like she was still in a lot of pain.

“Tell him to come in. He saved you, it’s nothing special, but I want to give him a little treat.”

“I…”

The man looked at Derek eagerly. It was as if he had asked him not to turn down the request of his sick wife.

Derek was perplexed.

“I’ll be going away in a moment.”

In the end, at Derek’s words, who could not refuse the request, the man’s expression brightened.

“Come on in.”

Derek’s heart was heavy as he walked into the house following his guidance.

* * *

“Uncle must have someone he likes.”

“What?”

Ellie, who was solving the problems, raised her head at Brielle’s words. She thought he knew that person was her sister.

“Yesterday, uncle asked me what it would be like to have someone he liked.”

“So what did you say?”

“I told him not to separate with Marie.”

“Hmm…”

She was in trouble.

‘He doesn’t seem to know that it was Sister. Will he help the two of them…?’

Without speaking, Brielle moved his hand in front of Ellie, who was in trouble.

“Ellie, what’s wrong?”

“Young Master.”

“Yes.”

“Do you still want to marry sister?”

“That’s right.”

At Brielle’s answer, she asked once again if he really wanted to.

“Yes, but now, I know I can’t.”

Seeing the pouting of his mouth, it seemed that he had not yet fully accepted it.

“If you simply want to be with sister and become a family, there is a better way.”

“What is that?”

At her words, the child urged and gazed at Ellie’s mouth with his ears perked.

“That’s for the Count and Sister to get married.”

“…What?”

Brielle stopped his hand, which was turning the pen, as if in shock.

“Have you never thought about it?”

“Yes… Though…”

He then recalled a moment when he had been happy holding hands between Marie and Kentrail a long time ago as if his mother and father were holding him.

“….”

Ellie gave him time to think without urging the silent Brielle.

‘Think carefully and come to a conclusion.’

This way, she had done all she could for her sister and the Count.

‘…I can only hope that the Young Master will accept it.’

Shrugging her shoulders once again, she went on to focus on solving the problems.

* * *

“So, I couldn’t tell Brielle.”

Kentrail was talking to Marie about what happened last night. He looked very sorry to have missed the golden opportunity. Hearing that, she glanced at him carefully and then opened her mouth.

“Shall I tell him?”

“No, let me tell him.”

Not wanting to leave the difficult work to her, he answered firmly. Still, he was lost in the thought of how to speak to his nephew again. Kentrail felt he had to say it before anyone else could.

“Uncle.”

Were the two of them too deep in thought…? They didn’t even know that Brielle was approaching.

“Huh? Brielle, when did you come?”

“Just now.”

The child stood next to the two of them.

“What’s the matter?”

He wondered if Brielle had noticed something, so Kentrail asked cautiously.

“No…”

Answering him, the child drooped his shoulders and turned around.

‘…They look good together.’

Marie, worried about him, followed the child in a hurry.

“Young master.”

“Marie.”

Brielle stopped on the spot and gazed back at her as she spoke to him again, “Would you like to walk in the garden with me?”

“Yes.”

At that, she took his hand and walked out slowly. Nonetheless, the child’s expression remained dark. Brielle, who would normally have liked just walking and holding her hand, seemed to have some troubles.

“Can you tell me what’s going on?”

After Marie bowed her back and looked into his eyes, he opened his mouth to ask.

“Marie, who should I marry?”

“Hm… someone you love?”

“I love Marie, I love uncle, and I love Ellie?”

“Hehe. Seeing our young master worrying like that, he’s grown a lot.”

“Hmph…! I was originally grown up. When did I become a child?”

Marie stroked Brielle’s hair, who was sniffing his nose after a long time, “That’s right. Our Young Master has already grown this way. There are many kinds of love.”

“…Kinds?”

“Yes. When you love your uncle, you love your family. Loving someone you will marry later, very later, is a different feeling.”

“….”

“Don’t Young Master like me like your uncle?”

“That’s right. I love Marie as much as uncle.”

Replying so, she hugged Brielle tightly. The child continued, “Me, too. I love Ellie, I love Barry, and I love you as well. Same thing.”

“So, Marie means I’m going to have a different kind of love later…?”

“That’s right, marrying someone like that.”

“I don’t know yet. It’s too difficult.”

“Of course. I’m only now finding out.”

“What…? Marie, do you have someone you love?”

Brielle made a shocked expression. The next moment, he started to cry.

“Who is it? Is it better than me? So, are you leaving my house?”

“No. I will always be by your side.”

“When you get married, you have to live with that person.”

“Um… Not everyone gets married just because they love them. And, even if I do get married, it’s a thing in the future.”

“You’re in love, but you’re getting married?”

“Yes. If the Young Master is as big as me, you will know.”

Marie gazed intently into Brielle’s eyes and said so before wiping the water from his eyes.

“Young Master will find someone much better than me. Then, you’ll know what I’m talking about.”

Still not sure what it was, Brielle took a deep breath and nodded his head, “Okay. Anyway, Marie means you’ll stay by my side even if you have another loved one, right?”

“Right.”

“It would be much better if we were a family.”

The child said regretfully.

‘Me, too…’

Marie swallowed her unspoken words.

‘The rest will be up to the Count.’

It was because Kentrail said that he wanted to talk to Brielle himself.

* * *

Derek followed the man inside. There was a strong smell of medicinal herbs.

“First, please sit here.”

The man who took one of the old chairs out went to the kitchen. He looked like he would bring tea. As Derek sat down on the chair, a squeak echoed through the house.

“Honey, please support me.”

And, the man’s wife’s voice came from inside the room.

“Wait.”

He hurriedly put the teacup in front of Derek and entered the room.

The teacup was chipped. Nonetheless, Derek, who wasn’t the type to care about that, drank the tea casually. It didn’t taste too good because it was a cheap tea, though he drank it all in one gulp so that the man wouldn’t feel embarrassed.

As he waited for the man, he thought it would be better to leave sooner rather than later. It was so uncomfortable that the man was taking care of him rather than a sick person and he couldn’t bear it.

“Did you wait a long time?”

Derek’s head turned to the man’s voice again.

He was coming out supporting his wife. It seemed that she was too skinny to move around. The sunlight made her face difficult to see.

The man sat his wife across from Derek. Finally, the backlight disappeared and the woman’s face was revealed.

‘How—’

There sat a woman who looked exactly like Brielle’s mother, whom Derek saw in the portrait. Although her face was so skinny that it was sunken, she was recognizable at a glance.

“….”

“Thank you for saving my husband.”

Derek was speechless for a moment. While holding down his look of surprise, he also opened his mouth.

“It wasn’t a big deal.”

“Still…”

It seemed that he had to sit down, eat here and find out about this couple…

* * *

“How about Count Bent?”

Kentrail was receiving reports from Taylor.

“It doesn’t look like there’s anything abnormal with him. He was just going to the pub as often as usual, and it seems like he was not in the mansion as often.”

“Is there anything different in the mansion?”

“Yes. The people who come and go are the same, and there is no notable change.”

Kentrail didn’t have the information he was looking for.

“…Should I, at least, go to the Royal Palace?”

“Will you catch anything?”

“Baron Jake told a strange story…”

Knowing just how much the king hated Caveran, he was even more suspicious.

“Bring Biddle.”

Kentrail, who didn’t want to empty the mansion, decided to use another way. He must have known that Biddle had gained enough trust to serve the king nearby.

“I understand. Should I bring him home after work?”

“Yes. And, have you heard from Derek yet?”

He asked, worried about sending him alone to the North.

“Yes. It’s been a while, shall we send a knight?”

“I’ll wait a little longer.”

Kentrail, who lightly tapped the desk, stood up and opened his mouth again, “I’ll have to go to Brielle. You can go and do what you’re ordered.”

“Understood, Master.”

Seeing Taylor moving away, Kentrail headed towards Brielle.