Chapter 2 – A New Beginning (Part 4)

“Mollek, they’re on the move.”  

“What? Now? It’s not the right time for them to move.”  

Mollek asked, puzzled.  

In reality, it was the time for the monsters to gather their strength, making it the most peaceful period in the North, yet the movements were unusual.  

They could no longer delay the expedition.  

“I’ll have to go and deal with them soon.”  

At his words, Mollek clapped his hands with a bright expression.  

“Make a lot of money!”  

Every time Fernan went to deal with the monsters, he brought back an unimaginable amount of money.  

Especially the strong northern monsters, which were top-tier and too formidable for hunters to handle.  

Fernan rotated his stiff shoulders.  

‘What was that earlier?’  

No one had been able to solve it until now. That long-standing curse disappeared for a moment. It was an impossible event.  

Suddenly, the face of Ellerdin, whom he had seen for the first time, came to mind, and he cleared his throat awkwardly.  

‘Shall I just check if she’s sleeping?’  

As he opened the door and went out, he met Celine, who was guarding outside Ellerdin’s room.  

“Is Ellerdin asleep?”  

Fernan asked in a low voice.  

“Probably.”  

“You can go and rest now. I’ll take care of Ellerdin.”  

At Fernan’s words, Celine gave a short bow and left.  

Fernan carefully knocked on Ellerdin’s door and gently opened it.  

But as soon as he opened the door, he heard a faint sobbing.  

Startled, he hurried to the bed, where Ellerdin was curled up under the blanket, crying.  

As soon as he touched her trembling arm, he felt her cold body.  

Her body was always cold.  

‘Could she be crying because she’s cold?’  

Fernan shook Ellerdin’s body to wake her.  

The external shock woke Ellerdin from her nightmare, and she opened her eyes with difficulty.  

“Why are you crying? Are you very cold?”  

Fernan asked in a lower voice than usual, due to his confusion.  

Half-asleep, Ellerdin mistook his voice for Baron Brian’s and screamed in terror.  

“I’m not cold at all!”  

But her lips were already blue, and her fingertips were red.  

Fernan couldn’t see her appearance, but he could feel her body trembling through the skin contact.  

“Your body is too cold. If you’re cold, why didn’t you say-”  

“I’m not cold! Really, I’m not cold. I’m sorry. Please don’t be angry.”  

Ellerdin, in fear, started to cry and beg.  

The memories of the past began to surface.  

On the first winter day at Baron Brian’s house, her room was as cold as an icehouse because it wasn’t heated.  

After enduring in that room for several days, she finally reached her limit and went to him, saying she was cold.  

The Baron had exploded with anger at her words and took her to the basement, where the solitary cell was.  

Accusing her of being ungrateful for the favor of taking her in, Baron Brian threw her into the solitary cell.  

Who knows how much time had passed, but when the Baron left the solitary cell, only her cries and the marks of red-hot pokers remained.  

Since then, she had a long burn scar on her arm and wore long-sleeved clothes ever since.  

As the memories resurfaced, her arm and fingertips, which hadn’t hurt until now, began to ache.  

“Sob, please save me, save me. I don’t want to go.”  

Seeing her crying and trying to escape, Fernan hugged her tightly.  

But misunderstanding his action as being taken to the solitary cell, she scratched his shoulder with her nails and struggled.  

Her thin legs kicked his thighs, and her weak arms hit his sides.  

Fernan silently held her and slowly stroked her back. The warm, heavy touch gradually brought Ellerdin back to her senses.  

Her cries subsided, and her rough breathing filled the room. Recognizing him, Ellerdin apologized.  

“I’m sorry… I wasn’t in my right mind.”  

‘Why do I keep causing trouble? I tried to do well.’  

Overwhelmed by frustration and sadness, she began to cry again.  

Watching her tears fall, Fernan carefully wiped them away.  

“Don’t say anything and just lie down.”  

Fernan gently laid down, holding her in his arms.  

With both of them lying down, the once large bed felt full.  

Though she tried to push him away, saying she was fine, her exhausted body couldn’t muster any strength.  

Eventually, lying in his arms, she glanced up at him.  

Lying still with his eyes closed, Fernan seemed to have no intention of letting her go.  

At first, she wriggled slightly to get away, but soon, feeling the warmth of human contact for the first time in a long while, she stopped moving.  

Fernan’s body was large, sturdy, and warm. The warmth of their contact was so comforting that she ended up crying again.  

Noticing this, Fernan turned her to face him and began to gently pat her back.  

The soothing pats gradually lulled Ellerdin to sleep.  

Having slept in the cold for so long, the warmth enveloping her body brought an irresistible drowsiness.  

***  

The next day, when she woke up, Fernan was already gone.  

Feeling a sense of emptiness in the spot where he had been, she recalled the disgraceful scene from the previous night.  

A wave of self-loathing washed over her.  

But even in that self-loathing, the memory of his embrace was pleasant, making her feel even more ashamed.  

‘Sigh… I should go thank him….’  

Thinking about her disgraceful behavior last night made her really not want to go.  

‘What must he think of me?’  

All sorts of negative thoughts filled her mind.  

But she couldn’t skip thanking him.  

Ellerdin sighed and got up.  

As soon as her feet touched the ground, a sharp sensation spread through her soles.  

“Oh.”  

Her feet, wrapped in white bandages, showed the marks of last night’s injuries.  

‘I can’t walk like this.’  

Panicked, she looked around for something to support herself.  

Just then, someone knocked on the door.  

“Yes, come in.”  

The door opened, and an angry Celine entered.  

Ellerdin, who had been suffering silently without showing any signs, felt a pang of guilt for not taking better care of her.  

Seeing Celine’s upset demeanor, Ellerdin gave a faint smile.  

She was grateful for her concern.

Celine approached and carefully unwrapped the bandages around her foot.  

Due to her wild movements last night, the wound on her foot had reopened and was bleeding. Celine sighed deeply at the sight of the wound.  

“It wasn’t this bad before.”  

Ellerdin stammered in embarrassment.  

Celine gently wiped the blood with a warm, damp towel.  

Seeing her silently cleaning with her head bowed, Ellerdin waved her hand and said,  

“I’ll do it. You can go and rest.”  

At her words, Celine spoke tearfully,  

“It’s okay to whine and say it hurts when you’re in pain.”  

Seeing Celine much sadder than she was about her injury made Ellerdin’s chest ache.  

“Thank you.”  

Ellerdin whispered softly.  

***  

“Sigh…”  

Standing in front of the office, Ellerdin let out a small breath.  

She had come this far, but she wanted to turn back if she could.  

‘There’s no way that’s possible.’  

As a woman and a wife, it was unthinkable not to greet the master in the morning.  

Earl Pure had always taught her to maintain proper conduct and keep a low profile.  

Until now, she had gotten away with it because Fernan was busy in the mornings, but today was different.  

With what happened yesterday, she couldn’t avoid greeting him today.  

Straightening her back, she lightly knocked on the door.  

Soon, she heard a voice telling her to come in, and Ellerdin opened the door, bowing her waist and head.  

“Did you sleep well?”  

“Ellerdin! Are you not tired? I slept very well.”  

Fernan approached with a bright smile.  

Startled, Ellerdin’s shoulders flinched.  

Hearing him call her name so brightly made her ears tingle in an odd way.  

Fernan looked at his little wife as if she were precious.  

He had always wanted to greet Ellerdin first, but she was always asleep, so he couldn’t.  

But now, she had come to see him as soon as she woke up. How grateful he was.  

Fernan smiled and pulled Ellerdin’s hand.  

“Please, have a seat.”  

He called Mollek to bring tea and snacks.  

Even though it was before breakfast, a table full of desserts was laid out, making Ellerdin feel uneasy.  

‘Was he going to say something about what happened yesterday?’  

‘Or maybe he didn’t like me greeting him?’  

As she nervously rubbed her hands, Fernan sat down in front of her and said,  

“Please eat! It will take some time for breakfast to be ready. I’m not sure if it will suit your taste. I tried to make it as similar to the capital as possible.”  

Ellerdin noticed how shy he seemed as he spoke.  

‘Had anyone ever given me something so purely?’  

She wasn’t hungry since she had just woken up, but how could she not accept the words of someone who seemed so well-intentioned?  

Ellerdin lowered her head to look at the desserts.