Unlike her who would suffer for months from just a sprained ankle, his was a robust body. It made her somewhat envious…

A gentle smile spread across Melissa’s lips.

It was nice to wake up in the morning and find him there.

Who knew a man with closed eyes could be so heart-flutteringly beautiful under the sunlight… She felt she could spend a day, two days, or even a lifetime just watching him and her heart would feel rich.

Just the fact that this man was alive, breathing, and existing beside her was enough to make her feel grateful.

But such sentiments didn’t last long.

As she was closely examining his face, she felt a stabbing pain in her left arm.

‘What’s this?’

Melissa unconsciously clutched her arm and twisted her body. The pain disappeared, and the man’s eyelids slowly opened.

Soon she was directly meeting blue eyes.

“Ah.”

It felt like being caught peeking.

Melissa hurriedly averted her gaze. Then she heard a small chuckling sound. Seeing his reaction, she was the one who felt more embarrassed.

“Were you… awake?”

“Yes.”

His eyes curved gently with a faint trace of laughter. Melissa’s face burned hot.

“If, you were awake, you should have…”

Said something.

The rest of her words faded away unspoken.

Her heart seemed to drop as she met his gaze, which had suddenly become quite serious. Strangely, her left arm felt like it was being seared with fire.

Reizen lay on his side and pulled her closer.

Her small body was drawn in helplessly.

Their faces became very close. Their breaths felt precarious, close enough that their noses would brush if either turned their head slightly.

Melissa’s red eyes trembled.

Reizen’s bare skin was hot. His body pressed against her skin was burning like a vessel just taken from a furnace.

Even without words, she could tell what he intended from the temperature rising enough to warm everything around them.

The nervous Melissa tried to calm her frantically beating heart. Her heart was pounding so hard it felt like it would jump out of her mouth.

With such strong vibrations, he must be able to feel it with their bodies pressed so close.

But Reizen instead smiled hazily as if finding her lovely and tilted her chin to kiss her lips. Their breaths intertwined closely in the gradually approaching moment.

“Ah, ugh!”

And suddenly feeling intense pain in her left arm, Melissa startled and pushed against his chest. It was an impulsive action that surprised even her.

She hadn’t meant to reject him.

Melissa looked up with a confused expression.

“…It’s okay.”

Reizen slowly kissed her forehead. It felt more like a signal to be at ease rather than s*xual passion.

The lips that touched softly and pulled away left her wanting more.

Melissa grabbed his arm but it wasn’t enough to convey her intentions. Reizen slipped his hands under her armpits and lifted her to sit up in bed. Then he held her against his chest like embracing a doll.

Melissa blinked, suddenly finding herself held like a doll.

This isn’t right.

Something felt strange. Her left arm kept feeling hot, and emotions she’d never felt before came crashing like a headwind against her will.

Melissa curled up into a ball, clutching her arm while shrinking into herself.

She felt it instinctively.

That something inside her had changed.

* * *

At lunch, a merchant from Tavania visited.

It seemed they were developing Glinford Port and building a new train station. Though she wanted to hear the details about what happened to Selheim, Reizen appeared busy, and the merchant kept glancing at Melissa while speaking.

Throughout the conversation, it felt like he was carefully choosing his words while being conscious of Melissa’s presence.

Feeling uncomfortable being there, Melissa tactfully slipped out of the reception room.

‘Sister!’

Clara, as if she had been waiting for Melissa to come out, immediately ran and hugged her waist as soon as she saw her.

Well, since Melissa was the only one in this castle who could speak foreign languages, Clara would have been alone unable to talk to anyone if not for her.

‘Were you doing well? Clara.’

‘Yes! I missed you! I wanted to talk with you!’

As she ran up and hugged her intensely in greeting, Clara’s loneliness was palpable.

She’s still a child. How boring must it be to have to wait around in a country where she can’t even communicate, following her father?

Melissa, feeling sympathetic, suggested they play together. Clara jumped up and down saying yes and rubbed her face against Melissa’s side.

It was nice to see the child looking happy.

While walking holding Clara’s hand, Melissa said:

‘They’ll probably talk for a long time anyway, right?’

‘Probably!’

‘Then shall we go somewhere a bit far today?’

‘Is that okay?’

Clara’s father seemed preoccupied with work. The child was always alone.

Though she got to see new places following the merchant around, she said she had never gone out to play with anyone.

Melissa prepared a boat ride for such a Clara.

Following the forest behind Miellin Castle, there was the large, calm Molten River.

As the castle had a long history, the forest trees were tall and majestic, and there remained a dock where noble ladies used to go boating in the old days.

Melissa, Clara, and a servant acting as boatman boarded the rather old ferry.

The old ferry creaked with each step. Clara enjoyed even those sounds as she bounced around on the boat.

At one point the boat almost capsized, but when Melissa and the boatman were startled, she enjoyed it even more. When she opened her mouth wide to laugh “Hahaha,” her missing baby teeth were clearly visible.

Seeing Clara so happy made Melissa’s heart feel like it was filling with yellow light.

Thanks to that, even the nagging pain in her left arm somewhat subsided.

‘Daddy’s name?’

Clara, who had been humming while walking holding Melissa’s hand, asked mischievously.

‘Arthur White.’

So it was Arthur.

The merchant always avoided eye contact or was wary whenever he saw Melissa. Should she be grateful that at least he didn’t stop her from playing with Clara?

If he traveled abroad by ship with his child, there was a high chance the child’s mother wasn’t around.

Melissa deliberately didn’t ask about the mother’s existence.

When they returned to Miellin Castle, unusually today the two men had come out of the reception room early.

Though the sun hadn’t even set yet, the two men talking in the garden looked surprised to see Melissa and Clara.

They seemed especially surprised to see Melissa and Clara’s joined hands.

‘Daddy!’

As soon as Clara saw Arthur from afar, she scampered over like a squirrel. This time too she expressed her joy by burying her head into Arthur’s lower abdomen, and he caught her as if used to it.

“Oh my, madam… I’m truly sorry if this child caused you any trouble again…”

The man holding his bowler hat in his hands bowed. Though Melissa politely told him not to, Arthur didn’t stop apologizing.

Beside him, Clara jumped up and down and snatched Arthur’s hat. Arthur just looked at the distant mountains with a resigned expression, not even scolding her.

“Are you staying at the castle today?”

If they were leaving the next day like last time, she was thinking of ordering dessert for Clara.

“No, madam. We plan to stay in Glinford today. It’s about two hours from here, so we need to leave quickly before dark.”

Melissa elegantly nodded in response as she handed her parasol to a maid.

If that was their schedule, nothing could be done. She thought she would have to prepare dessert next time.

“Is His Highness leaving right away too?”

Melissa’s expression hardened at Arthur’s question.

‘His Highness is going too?’

She hadn’t been able to look at Reizen properly since earlier. Her heart kept trembling and beating so hard it hurt.

Her breath stopped whenever their eyes met as she looked directly at Reizen’s face. That’s why she wanted to share these emotions with him. She had so much she wanted to say. She wanted to share the stories she couldn’t press into her letters, and ask him things she was curious about.

But to have to separate again right after returning from the capital.

‘When will he return if he goes to Glinford…’

Though it probably wouldn’t take a month like the capital, if they’re leaving in the evening it must be for something important.

Maybe at least a day or two?

Surely he won’t be gone for more than a week?

“I need to leave. We can’t decide without seeing the site.”

It seemed he was going to look at the site where the train station would be built.

As Reizen’s answer fell, Melissa’s expression darkened rapidly.

He’s leaving again…

Now it even felt bitter. Well, it’s not easy when the waiting keeps continuing…

Is this how Clara feels waiting for Arthur’s work to end every day? The feeling of being left alone.

Melissa smiled slightly watching Clara, who had been bouncing around holding the hat, get caught by Arthur.

“Then you’ll need to prepare quickly.”

Though she knew Reizen was looking at her, she deliberately didn’t turn her gaze that way.

It was only painful as her stigma on her left arm kept burning whenever their eyes met.