Chapter 100: The Eyes I Love Most

Clive wasn’t joking—he was serious.

After feeding Eirene a drink because she said she didn’t have the strength to hold a spoon, he scooped up some soup and held it out.

“Say ah.”

His voice was as gentle as the soup.

“I can eat by myself.”

“Ah.”

This time he looked at Eirene with a firm voice and slightly lowered gaze. Her heart wanted to refuse clearly, but she couldn’t with the servants watching. Rejecting affectionate behavior wouldn’t be good for either Eirene or Clive.

A wife who ignores her husband. A husband who can’t do anything about his wife. She didn’t want such rumors spreading, so she quietly opened her mouth.

Clive tilted the spoon and put food in. This continued several times.

Eirene smiled and said, “I’ll eat by myself now. Food going in gave me strength.”

“Then eat everything on the plate.”

He took the plate and cut the meat directly for her. It was quite a large portion with a high chance of leftovers, but she didn’t tell him. He might try to feed her directly with a fork like before.

“You can eat it if you take your time.”

“…Yes.”

Eirene nodded lightly and stabbed a piece of meat to put in her mouth. Matilda, who was watching the couple, felt her heart flutter.

A husband who feeds his wife directly!

She had never encountered such a couple in her life. After Eirene returned, Matilda had worried their relationship might be worse than before, but it was a useless concern.

True to being from a family symbolized by snakes, the Grand Duke was always cold. Of course, he was good to his people, but he didn’t treat them this warmly.

His unique atmosphere was also difficult. Despite his large build, his movements were swift and silent. No matter how good a person he was, sometimes he was scary with the chill flowing from him like snow falling on a winter dawn.

But in front of the Grand Duchess, he was a wolf, not a snake.

Just like Zeus.

So was he a dog? A white dog?

She burst into laughter without realizing it and quickly bit her lips with her hand. However, he wasn’t a dog being trained by Eirene, but the opposite. The Grand Duke was charming his wife, slowly wagging his tail.

* * *

They walked through the garden holding hands. The fountain’s water streams decorating the night sky felt refreshing. It seemed summer was quietly preparing to arrive. Talking while walking, they reached the pond.

“I haven’t been inside the pond’s greenhouse yet.”

“You can go in now.”

They crossed the semicircular bridge and entered the gazebo.

Opening the door to the connected greenhouse, an exotic fragrance they hadn’t smelled in the garden wafted out.

“Are there flowers from other countries?”

“Most were brought from countries in the southern part of the continent. They have mild climate year-round, so they need to grow in the garden until midsummer comes.”

She stepped inside.

There were many unusually shaped flowers. Looking at flowers she’d never seen before, she listened to Clive’s explanations. Though he seemed uninterested, he knew a lot.

After about half a turn, it started getting hot. Eirene fanned herself with her hand.

“It’s a bit hot.”

“Should we go out?”

“Let me look a little more. Aren’t you hot?”

“Not particularly.”

Clive, who shrugged his shoulders, didn’t look hot as he said.

Wanting to see the other half, Eirene decided to endure a little, but after exactly one full turn, sweat beaded on her forehead.

The outside air was cool.

They had walked about half the pond’s bridge when she brought up something she’d been thinking about.

“Clive. I have a favor to ask.”

“Tell me.”

“Please send just one doctor to the village where I lived. I’ll handle the doctor’s salary from my budget allocation.”

“I already sent one.”

“When?”

Eirene’s eyes widened.

“Three days after coming to Dervel with you?”

“Clive.”

“You don’t need to look so moved. Those people were good to you and Karl. I should give back as much as they gave to my family.”

She wrapped both arms around Clive’s waist and hugged him.

“Thank you. You’re a good person.”

“I’m only good to my people.”

“Thank you so much.”

Eirene kissed his cheek.

“If you’re really grateful, I’d like to go over there now.”

The place Clive indicated with his eyes was the second-floor bedroom.

“Is that all you have in your head?”

“Sometimes.”

Looking at him without blinking an eye, she could only laugh.

* * *

Having worked up a sweat, she soaked her body in bath water. No matter how much purification ability she had, it was different from bathing in warm water.

She hadn’t used divine power much since a year ago. Like in the rural village, she helped those who needed it, but only that far.

At first it was because she wanted to cherish the ability even if it didn’t wear out, but it was also due to her drastically declined stamina after giving birth to Karl.

She closed her eyes and leaned her head back at the fragrant smell rising from the water.

“Matilda. I can be alone.”

With her eyes still closed, she gestured for Matilda, who was standing guard beside the bathtub, to leave.

“I should wake you if you fall asleep.”

“I’m not sleeping. I took a nap so I’m not sleepy.”

“Still, I should be here to help you.”

“I said it’s fine. I want to be alone quietly.”

“Then I’ll wait outside the door, so call me if you need anything!”

“Yes. I’ll do that.”

Matilda bowed and left.

The bathroom became quiet. Only the splashing sounds when Eirene occasionally moved echoed.

Click. The sound of a door opening was heard.

“I said I’d call if I needed something.”

There was no answer. Footsteps approaching the bathtub.

“I said I can be alone.”

Since Matilda didn’t respond, she opened her eyes slightly.

Startled by a much larger shadow than Matilda’s, she opened her eyes wide to see Clive.

“Wh-when did you come?”

“Just now.”

“Why?”

Though nothing could be seen because of the flower petals floating on the water, she crossed her arms to cover her chest. She also twisted her body slightly to the other side.

“Did I come somewhere I shouldn’t?”

“Matilda is outside.”

She lowered her voice and whispered.

“I sent her to the first floor before coming in.”

Clive also spoke quietly, following Eirene.

“Still, she would have seen you come in.”

“This will happen often from now on. Matilda is a well-trained excellent servant. Get used to it. Should I leave?”

He pointed behind himself with his thumb.

“There’s really no one outside, right?”

He nodded.

“Really no one?”

He nodded again.

Eirene stretched her arms toward Clive, asking to be held.

“The bathtub is narrow.”

* * *

Clive, who had actively wanted this, was much more careful than before. Before and after knowing everything was different.

He hesitated, perhaps because of the past that occasionally surfaced. He could completely forget just for now. He could completely erase it from his mind just for now.

Even when he decided to move forward without hesitation, there were times he stumbled. Eirene cupped his cheeks with both hands.

She smiled prettily and spoke, seeming to have looked into his mind.

“Love me with all your heart. That’s enough.”

Right. That’s enough. Just the task of loving you completely.

Like he had promised Eirene, living while loving her every day, every moment was Clive’s duty.

His chest felt tight. Though he had never heard her say she loved him, he was certain he was loved. Who could accept such flaws? It would be impossible without love.

Clive turned his head and kissed Eirene’s palm. At the tongue tip that lightly touched, she trembled and let out a short breath.

“Open your eyes.”

He wanted to see her purple eyes. She really listened well. The clear eyes that had once been indifferent to him now looked directly at him. The eyes he loved most. The only eyes that had been alive even in expressionlessness.

“Keep them open.”

When he touched somewhere on her body, Eirene’s eyes shook and quickly became cloudy.

Clive’s breathing became rough from the excitement that gap gave him.

Like fingers intertwining to become one, the two also became one.

Eirene could no longer keep her eyes open and closed them.

* * *

She woke to the sound of rain. The night air had been hotter than usual, so it must have been because rain was coming. Eirene looked at the broad chest in front of her and recalled what happened before falling asleep.

Even with her swaying movements, she had barely kept her eyes open, but the moment Clive’s brow furrowed and she heard his moan, she had no choice but to close them.

How could she keep watching that?

Just remembering made her face burn.

Thirsty, Eirene slowly unwrapped Clive’s arm that was around her shoulder and got out of bed. She poured water into a cup prepared on the table, drank it, and was about to put it down when—

Flash! She almost dropped the cup. Thunder rumbled shortly after. It felt strange that the vision that used to appear on nights when lightning struck was now lying on the bed.

Suddenly feeling cold, Eirene’s steps toward the bed stopped. Her head hurt. Why was this happening?

When she took another step, it hurt like being stabbed with something sharp. The headache gradually worsened and she sat down right there. It felt like her head was being squeezed. The pain was so severe she couldn’t breathe.

At Eirene’s groaning, Clive came running.

“What’s wrong?”

“My head, my head hurts.”

Lightning flashed again. In between, she saw people. Dad, Mom, Sister, and the servants who had lived with them. Outside, wind and rain were beating against the windows with the sound of tree branches knocking loudly.

Unlike the cold weather, inside was warm. Since it was dinner time, there wasn’t much set on the table, but it smelled delicious. They continued conversation while sharing food. They said the vegetables planted a few days ago had sprouted.

Serenity said Siaran had briefly come and left chickens. Later he said he would bring a puppy too. After dinner ended, Father went out and came back saying he had met a priest he was friendly with and received good alcohol.

The adults who sipped it emptied the bottle, saying it tasted good. Eirene wanted to try it too, but there was no way they’d give it to a child. Watching everyone share drinks, young Eirene drank juice.

She imitated her father who was laughing happily while drunk. In the laughing and chattering atmosphere, Eirene also kept drinking juice like alcohol. Though they had moved from a spacious nice house to a narrow old house in the forest, the family lived happily.

So did Eirene. She was a little sad about not having friends, but there was much to play with. As time passed and the alcohol ran low, Eirene dozed off and woke up. Everyone had fallen asleep face-down on the table, perhaps very drunk.

Eirene rubbed her sleepy eyes and shook Serenity’s arm.

“Let’s go sleep in bed, Sister.”

She didn’t get up. Suddenly, Serenity’s body temperature felt cold to her hand. Though she was too young to understand what it meant, the feeling wasn’t good.

“Sister!”

“Ei… rene. Fa, Father…”

Gulp. Serenity, who spat blood from her mouth, collapsed to the floor. Even without her saying what to do, Eirene caught on.

She ran to Father.

Like she had done with Serenity, she shook him with force. She shook Sister again. She shook Mother and the servants who had lived with them, but…

They didn’t get up, like they had promised not to wake up.

“Mom! Mom!”

When she frantically shook Mom, thud, her arm fell limply.