My Former Lover Didn't Die And Came Back - Chapter 24

Tears welled up in her eyes. She absentmindedly raised her hand to wipe them away, but she paused upon seeing the bandage wrapped around her hand. She recalled how long it had been since she last ate something. Even if she had no appetite, she needed to fill her stomach.

Her body trembled as she descended the stairs. Strands of sweat clung to her forehead as she made her way down. She wanted to hold onto the railing for support, but it felt too much for her palms.

…Is the condition of her wound not good? Was the inflammation in her hand the reason her fever wasn’t coming down?

First, she needed to boil some soup to fill her stomach and then take the emergency medicine prepared at the mansion.

As she passed through the hall on her way to the kitchen, she noticed something brown placed by the entrance. It looked like fur made from an animal’s hide.

…It must have been sent by Cedric.

‘Let’s start by filling my stomach.’

Just the mere act of pouring milk into the pot made her hands ache. Blair sat down on a nearby stool, waiting for the milk to boil. She took a deep breath and rummaged through a basket filled with vegetables. She started chopping carrots and potatoes vigorously.

…Her hands would get wet if she washed the vegetables.

In the end, she chose not to wash them and simply put them into the soup. Prioritizing her hands over an upset stomach.

The unexpected incident occurred at a moment’s notice. She was transferring the finished soup to the table when she stumbled. The small pot that she usually had no trouble lifting felt too heavy and cumbersome. Steam rose from the spilled soup on the floor.

“…Ah!”

The issue wasn’t just about spilling the dish she had worked hard on. When she fell, her bandage got wet from touching the floor. The freshly boiled soup was scalding hot, even with just a brief touch.

…What should she do if she gets burned?

She quickly cut the wet bandage with scissors and cooled the area around the wound with cold water. She tried to be careful not to touch the injured area, but it was actually quite difficult.

“…Haa…”

She didn’t have the strength to even move a small pot. A sigh escaped her involuntarily due to her helplessness. It wasn’t easy to wrap a new bandage since both her hands were injured.

In the end, she climbed back up the stairs, feeling dizzy. She had no energy to clean up the spilled food or to eat something.

“…I feel like throwing up.”

She covered her mouth when nausea suddenly surged. At the same time, she felt feverish, her vision was blurring, and she had no strength to climb up the stairs.

“…Ah, ah…”

… Her body was not in normal condition. She thought she should have crawled to the guard post at the main gate and asked for a doctor.

“Ah….”

‘…But what’s the point of doing that? Is there a reason to continue this life that is no different from begging?’

The only difference between her and the women on the streets is probably that she has only one customer.

She imagined crawling like an animal with her two arms to reach the main gate. The eyes of Cedric’s subordinates were predictable.

…Are they laughing at her for being so obsessed with life?

They believed that she switched to a wealthy nobleman while Cedric was away on the battlefield. There was a hint of disdain in the way they looked at her.

…If she had even one maid, at a time like this, she could have called for a doctor.

Blair was now irritated by her current situation, where she had to explain even simple tasks to the guards at the main gate.

If her hand continued to deteriorate like this, would it eventually have to be amputated? Would the man who only had that in mind in his head ever agree to a woman with no hands? What would happen next? Would she be dumped in a brothel, just as he said?

Part of the reason she begged for his life was also because she didn’t want to die before her parents. Because she couldn’t bear to hurt them. Even that thought was now unclear to her. After all, everyone eventually dies. Maybe a little sooner wouldn’t be so bad.

「…Don’t give me to other men…」

When she thought of the man who had so cruelly abandoned her, tears welled up again.

“…Bastard….”

Her fever rose, and her consciousness gradually became hazy. Blair experienced this condition before. It was around a hundred days after her marriage, she caught the fever that was prevalent in Eleanor at the time. They said she woke up after a week of suffering. A fever that rose too high affected the brain, so Blair, who woke up, had gaps in her memory. Memories a week before that. So, her memories just before she collapsed were hazy.

The fever seemed to affect her ears as well since she couldn’t hear anything. The front of her eyes gradually darkened as if she was pricked by needles.

* * *

Cedric looked up and saw an elderly man and a mature woman sitting across from him. His adoptive father, James, and his adoptive sister, Evelyn, were true nobility through and through. Their posture sitting up straight, the way they held their teacups, even the faint smile on their lips, nothing about them was lacking.

The Duke of Fitzgerald was related to the imperial family, but not subject to imperial control. Their rights of succession to the throne were not very high, and above all, male heirs in the Fitzgerald family had been scarce for some time.

Before Cedric, the original heir of Fitzgerald was too weak and died before reaching adulthood. So James Fitzgerald took Cedric, whom he met on the battlefield, as his heir.

Although he came from a mercenary background, he was granted an earldom for his military achievements. But his background posed a challenge when it came to commanding more subordinates to showcase his abilities, that’s why he needed a prestigious family to support him.

So there was a mutual interest. James needed an heir to ensure that his family’s assets did not pass into the palace, while Cedric needed a noble family background to easily command his troops.

Cedric also gladly accepted the proposal that fate had brought him to the battlefield, and he still thinks it was a good choice. If he said he didn’t feel any sense of inferiority about his status while being a noble lady’s lover, it would be a lie. Cedric always wanted to become a noble.

But reality is always bittersweet, and choices come with responsibilities. As the heir of a prestigious family who returned to the capital after the war, he had obligations. It was to marry a lady from a good family and produce an heir.

“Hey? Cedric. About Lady Elena, isn’t she a really good lady?”

Evelyn said. She believed that everyone should live by forming a family. James and Evelyn’s eyes twinkled, waiting for Cedric’s response.

“….”

But Cedric responded by taking a sip of his tea.

“Well, young men and women need more time to get to know each other.”

Isn’t that right, Father? Evelyn smiled warmly at her father. And then she brought up an old story, asking if he knew how much she struggled until she won her husband’s heart.

Cedric’s taste soured as he sipped his tea.

He knew what his newly formed family expected from him. What the deceased true heir of the Fitzgerald family could not accomplish. Bearing a healthy offspring to continue the family’s glory, passing on strong genes through generations in this family.

The noble duties they expected of him sometimes weighed heavily on him. But…

…Did Blair also feel this way in the past?

Did she receive criticism at dinner after returning home from spending time with me? Was she pressured to marry a high-ranking man?

At that time, he didn’t fully understand her position, and he had no room for such thoughts.

James and Evelyn were people of gentle nature.

James’s wife, in other words, Evelyn’s biological mother, said she gave birth to the siblings and died. Evelyn said her deceased sibling inherited her sickly disposition.

They were a small family. James did not remarry in honor of his deceased wife. Kindness emanated from Evelyn’s tone and expressions as she cared for her frail younger brother and busy father. In the banter between the two, it was evident how close the couple was.

They wanted Cedric to spend as much time as possible at the Fitzgerald estate.

「….There are various reasons why you and us became family」

「….」

「Still, I hope you consider Evelyn and me as your real family.」

The old gentleman’s eyes, as he held Cedric’s hands, were sincere as he spoke. Beside him, Evelyn’s eyes sparkled with anticipation for a positive response. But Cedric simply replied that he would definitely visit once a week due to his busy schedule and that must stay near the palace in a townhouse.

Cedric kept his promise. He did not miss the days when he dined with his adoptive father and sister.

They asked him about his work, what he usually did during his free time, how he spent his time when resting, how he dined at the townhouse, and what kind of food he liked.

The sense of stability and belonging that this ‘family’ provided him was something Cedric did not want to miss out on. He realized only now that he had always hoped to be part of such an atmosphere, having grown up as an orphan.

Blair had a family without me. Did she feel what I feel now back then? Did she also not want to disappoint her family? Blair’s parents may have been materialistic, but they also deeply cared for their daughter. There would probably be no parents who wished for their well-raised daughter to marry a poor commoner.

Cedric thought that if he were to have a young daughter now, he wouldn’t want to give her to anyone. What if a man like his past self, who had nothing, dashed for his daughter? Would he want to separate them even if it meant selling that man as a slave?

“….Ha,”

…Unbelievable. The premium quality tea imported from the East tasted bland.

“Is it too cold today? Eleanor’s winters seem to get colder every year.”

Evelyn pulled her shawl over her shoulders and instructed the servant standing beside her to add more firewood to the fireplace. Pour another drink, she added, instructing the maid to refill Cedric’s empty teacup.

The howling wind made the glass window rattle, and Cedric absentmindedly looked outside. The heavy snowflakes were swirling. For some reason, the day he first met her came to mind.

He’d locked eyes with the young lady of the house when he’d stopped by the Seymour family’s stables to make repairs. Blair smiled brightly, her blue eyes sparkling.

She was a young lady whom he could not dare to look at. Seymour was just a minor noble, but the problem was that he had nothing. So he was satisfied with just watching her from afar. But every time they met, she would approach him with a smile.

Cedric grew up as an orphan. His father and mother died when he was young.

The affection Blair showed him, who grew up lonely, was irreplaceable. It was natural for a thirsty person to become addicted after tasting sweetness.