Chapter 14

Elcia, even after saying those words, couldn’t bring herself to take down Ian’s wreath hanging on the indoor shutter. He had thrown it away, so why couldn’t she? For what reason?  

It seemed this foolish love would take a long time to truly end.

As the days grew warmer, the snow piled up at the castle melted, and finally, the day came to begin treating Ian’s hand. Even as the process of aligning the broken bone was rough, with cracking sounds, Ian endured silently. Elcia, while witnessing his painful treatment, avoided looking at him, simply waiting for the ordeal to be over.

Though she still liked him, the wound from that day remained, as if salt had been rubbed into it.

「Hmm, done! Ah, don’t move yet! Stay still for at least two days, and then we’ll start rehabilitation slowly depending on your progress… okay?」

White Bunny carefully wrapped a brace around Ian’s palm and the back of his hand. Ian sighed as he watched his hand, restored to its former smoothness, now encased in the brace.

“Really… To think it could return so perfectly… I was foolish. No, I should never have gotten hurt in the first place.”

If he started talking about the Saint again, asking why she hadn’t saved her, Elcia thought she might actually pour a cup of water over his head this time. With such absurd thoughts, she clenched her small fist and continued to ignore him. Her petty spitefulness had grown sharp so quickly, even though not much time had passed since that wounded day.

After finishing her work, White Bunny returned to Elcia’s arms, nestling in warmly.  

Now, there was only one thing left for her to do at Usley Castle.  

Return.

Once back in her bedroom, she would pack her things as quickly as possible, say goodbye to Haden, whom she’d grown close to, and if Ian was deemed well, she’d return within a month at the latest, and it would all be over…

“……Elcia?”

“Yes.”

Ian, hearing her flat, emotionless reply, quietly spoke.

“About that day… I’m sorry.”

The air around her seemed to instantly take on the gentle warmth of spring, like soft, fluffy clouds. It was the same warm breeze as the night they made the wreath together, the first snow falling outside. Hearing Ian’s apology, Elcia felt a faint tremor on her earlobe. As if thick winter ice was melting, her heart began to thaw all at once.

Elcia was such a fool, so weak in love. She surrounded herself with thorns she didn’t even have before, but the moment the one she loved reached out, she forgot everything—an incomparable fool.

“I… I really don’t know why I did that. I’m sorry to say this, but after sobering up, I felt so guilty. I thought I’d managed my feelings well, but… To do that to you, my benefactor, I’m truly sorry.”

“There are days like that for everyone.”

She tried to brush off Ian’s heavy apology, but his confession continued.

“Seiran told me I verbally abused you and acted out. Is that true…? You said you weren’t hurt, but I’m ashamed to face you.”

*buse? Acting out? In conclusion, it was true, but strictly speaking, Elcia’s deepest wound had another cause. Seiran had glossed over it with other reasons, and Elcia didn’t want to dig it up. Besides, Ian’s memory was likely hazy from all the drinking, so questioning him now about things he didn’t even remember would be pointless.

Perhaps, it was better this way.

If this was her last chance to resent Ian, she didn’t want to miss it.

Elcia replied simply.

“I’m trying to forget about that day. You’re a patient, Count, so please just focus on getting better and don’t worry about little things.”

“Elcia Bennett……”

Ian called her full name precisely as she tried to stand up, so she had no choice but to sit back down.

“Yes?”

“I… I haven’t decided how I’ll live once my hand is healed.”

Elcia was a bit surprised by his unexpected words. She had assumed that once his hand was healed, Ian would surely return to the capital. Seiran, too, had accepted his return to the marquis’ residence as a given, adjusting only the timing. The other servants also thought so. Ian was originally a high-ranking noble from the capital, so it was only natural.

But Ian’s decision was still wavering?

“Then…”

“More than that, there’s something else I want to say to you. Elcia… Maybe I’ve been dreaming a long, painful dream I must escape on my own, one no one else can break…”

His hand was completely healed—White Bunny said he might need rehabilitation, but even that would be brief. Ian had already been told he’d regain full use of his right hand within about a week.

“I want to fully escape this long daze, even if it takes time. So…”

Ian’s blue, beautiful eyes—those Elcia had loved so dearly—quickly followed her hazel eyes. She felt frozen, as if under a spell. She still hadn’t recovered from the fever of love Ian had given her. Like a squirrel frozen before a hawk, she was powerless before Ian.

Those were eyes that needed Elcia.

Her deliberate harshness toward Ian, pretending to resent him for his wounds, was really fear that she could never escape him.

But it was too late.

When the man she loved called her name sincerely—

She could do nothing.

A small butterfly, mesmerized by a beautiful flower, forgot all else and became a prisoner, clinging to the blossom forever.

“Elcia, won’t you please become my friend? I sincerely ask you.”

Though it wasn’t the pink-tinted reality she had desperately dreamed of,

* * *

The cold, painful February that had tormented Elcia passed, and March arrived. It was still chilly for spring, but the snow had nearly all melted, and the roads near Usley Castle were clear all the way beyond. She climbed the observatory and sat on the bench, gazing at the road leading to the capital.

Ian’s hand was completely healed.  

Just as White Bunny had confidently predicted before treatment.  

Though Seiran worried and didn’t let him hold a sword yet, Ian used every part of his right hand freely in daily life. Youth and innate talent once again placed Ian Kypris before a door filled with light. He was not someone who would easily fade from people’s memories. That was fortunate, yet Elcia couldn’t fully rejoice.

The reason was simple.

Ian’s recovery was truly wonderful news, but paradoxically, it marked the start of new worries. Since falling for Ian after coming to Usley Castle, Elcia had focused all her attention on him, but now she had to think about what to do next.

She had successfully healed Ian’s hand since arriving in autumn. Yet she hadn’t reported the progress to the Crown Prince who had given the order. Even though he sent a messenger every month, regardless of snow-blocked roads, to deliver food and treats.

Given Conrad’s position at the top of power, it was almost absurd. If Elcia had sworn loyalty to the Crown Prince, she could have been severely punished.

‘The fact that His Highness hasn’t sent me any urgent letters and has just waited for my report… It must be because of his good nature. Or maybe he firmly trusts me. So… I can’t deceive him any longer. I must soon inform him of Ian’s condition.’

Conrad was always gentle and warm, like sunlight, to Elcia. She didn’t know how he acted before Nersian or others, so her assumption was reasonable.

“Elcia, what are you doing here?”

“Ah, Lord Ian…!”

And so…

Elcia and Ian, surprisingly, became friends.

When his hand healed and he finally stood, Ian had pleaded earnestly, and Elcia couldn’t refuse. To ignore the misfortune of a man who had no one but Seiran to confide in… For Elcia, who loved this wounded man so deeply, it was impossible.

Wasn’t it painful to hide her shy love forever as his friend?  

That wasn’t even an excuse.

After all, with Elcia’s status, she could never be the companion of the proper Count Ian Kypris, only the abandoned prodigal.

Someday, when the time came to leave Ian’s side for good, she would confess her love, face the separation, and live bravely through the days without him…

She comforted her aching heart with that thought, smiling.

He, knowing nothing, smiled brightly back at his “friend.”

“You’re good at calling my name now! You used to stammer ‘Count’ all the time.”

“You know, Lord Ian.”

Still, Elcia never stopped addressing Ian formally. Even when he suggested, ‘Why? You can call me by name and speak casually,’ she gently declined. She feared that if she became too close and informal, she might cross the line and confess her feelings without meaning to. Elcia was always careful around Ian.

“Hmm?”

Unlike her, Ian sat beside her without a care, staring straight at her. His blue eyes were as beautiful as a sky in midsummer or a lake reflecting autumn’s early chill. To steady herself, Elcia avoided his gaze and spoke.

“I wanted to ask if I could report your condition to His Highness the Crown Prince. It’s a bit of a sensitive question, isn’t it?”

“Go ahead, just as it is.”

“Really? Are you sure?”

Ian’s easy answer surprised Elcia.

“……I can’t hide away here forever, as if I were dead. Even if I don’t officially return right away, I should report my situation to His Highness.”

“What do you mean, not officially returning?”

“Elcia.”

Already close, Ian’s face drew even nearer. Elcia’s small, delicate heart couldn’t bear it and began pounding rapidly.

“Yes?”

“I… I’m thinking of sneaking off to the capital.”

“Sneak off to the capital?”