Chapter 6.7

“It looks like a mild cold. Rest in bed for a day… If your symptoms persist after arriving in Roeta, get another checkup.”

The cramped infirmary was filled with people who’d caught colds after drinking outside until dawn. The tired physician left Brienne without much of an examination.

Herace tried to get the physician to do a proper examination, but Brienne persuaded him that she would be fine resting in her cabin. After some compromise, Herace escorted her to her room, and Brienne lay alone on her bed, blinking up at the ceiling.

She hadn’t realized she was sick because it had been so long, but as soon as she lay down, she felt heat not just on her forehead but all over her body.

She was ill.

Strangely, the moment she recognized her fever, her family came to mind first.

‘When I was little, Mother used to feed me soup herself…’

Perhaps she was about eight years old. Having suffered from colds since birth, she had gone through an especially severe fever. It was always her mother, Olivia, who stayed by her side as she hovered between life and death.

Her father, always busy, only showed his face now and then, but Shylo came to see Brienne every day, telling her stories about his day. Whenever Shylo, who loved to play outside, was by her side, Brienne wanted to get better quickly and thank him.

But the fever lingered for a long time, and her family’s care became part of her daily life. On good days, she would call Kaiden to read books with her, but it still took years for her to fully recover.

So now, being used to someone caring for her, Brienne felt a little lonely being sick alone.

‘…What a spoiled thought.’

Most people have to endure sickness alone.

Besides, it was her own decision to leave her family and head to Roeta.

Brienne let out a gloomy sigh and pulled the covers over her head. As she tried to close her eyes and sleep, she heard a knock and Herace’s voice.

“Brienne, it’s me.”

“…”

“May I come in?”

Brienne, thinking she was hallucinating from the fever, threw off the covers in surprise. As she sat up to open the door, she realized she hadn’t locked it.

“Come in…! The door’s open.”

Raising her voice, Brienne sat up against the headboard. She barely had time to fix her messy hair before Herace entered the cabin, holding what looked like a tray from the restaurant.

“What’s that?”

A little flustered, Brienne looked up at Herace. He pulled a chair over and sat by the bed, setting the tray down.

“Soup and fever medicine. I also brought painkillers, but let’s eat first.”

“What? You managed to get medicine after all?”

But the physician said they were out of medicine. Brienne looked at the tray in confusion, and when Herace handed her a spoon, she shook her head.

“Oh, I already ate some soup earlier.”

“You didn’t eat a single bite.”

Herace finished speaking and brought a spoonful of soup to Brienne’s lips. He was trying to feed her himself. Brienne waved her hand, trying to take the spoon from him.

“Then, I’ll eat it myself…”

But Herace didn’t move at all. When Brienne glanced up at him, a gentle smile appeared on his lips.

“No need to refuse. I’m not trying to get revenge for when you fed me cake.”

The forgotten memory flickered in Brienne’s eyes. He must be talking about the time she teased him by pretending to feed him cake at the estate. While Brienne was caught off guard, Herace slipped the soup between her lips.

Brienne swallowed the soup by reflex, then stared at Herace in surprise.

“Well done.”

Herace gave her a kind, approving smile. Brienne shrank back a little. There had definitely been a subtle conversation between them yesterday, and today they were supposed to finish that talk.

But Herace was acting as if nothing had happened. Realizing he was doing this out of consideration for her being ill, Brienne felt a strange mix of emotions.

“Have another bite.”

One bite, then another. Brienne fidgeted with her hands under the blanket as she finished the whole bowl of soup fed by him. Without the tension from earlier, she found herself hungry after just one spoonful of the delicious soup. Before she knew it, she had taken the medicine with water and gave an embarrassed smile.

“…Now it’s you taking care of me, Herace.”

Was he thinking of the same memory? Herace let out a small laugh and nodded.

“I guess we’ve each taken turns now.”

“Right. It wasn’t supposed to be this way…”

“I don’t mind.”

“Still, I’m sorry I couldn’t keep my promise. If you’re okay with it, I can give you my answer now.”

“Brienne, you don’t have to push yourself to talk.”

As Brienne’s cheeks flushed and she moved her lips apologetically, Herace placed his hand on her forehead.

“You still have a high fever. It’s best to sleep a bit until the medicine takes effect.”

Gently, Herace helped her lie down and covered her with the blanket. Somehow, Brienne obediently followed his touch, rolling her eyes.

Was this how Herace had felt back then?

Her heart fluttered so much that she didn’t know what to say or how to look. Even the sound of his breathing was enough to make her nervous.

Brienne cleared her throat softly, trying not to be conscious of him, and managed a small smile.

“…But honestly, I’m not sure I can sleep. If I sleep now, I’ll wake up in the middle of the night. That scares me a little.”

“I promise I’ll stay until you wake up. So you can rest easy.”

“…Does that mean you’ll stay with me the whole time?”

Through her fever-blurred vision, Brienne saw Herace’s gentle smile.

“Yes, if you wish.”

His low, slightly amused voice lingered in her ears. Brienne pulled the blanket up to her nose for no reason.

“That’s strange. Who said you could… just stay in my room?”

Herace let out a soft laugh.

“I think you misunderstand. I just meant I’d stay outside the door.”

“…You’ll be outside?”

“Yes, until you wake up again.”

When Brienne asked suspiciously, Herace nodded easily. Brienne, dumbfounded, pulled the blanket down.

“What, seriously… Are you trying to make me uncomfortable on purpose?”

“Of course not.”

“Yes, you are.”

She had promised to tell Herace her feelings but caught a cold instead. On top of that, she shamelessly let him take care of her.

And now, she was asking him to stand outside until she woke up?

What kind of crazy person would do that?

“…You don’t have to do that, you can stay inside. Just… don’t sit right next to me like now. If you want, I can give you that cot over there… What do you think?”

Brienne gestured toward the cot. Herace glanced at it, his eyes narrowing.

“Well, sitting on a tiny cot like that would be more t*rture than standing.”

He shrugged, meaning he’d rather stand outside than be cramped on such a small cot. Brienne let out a small laugh, but Herace was serious. Compared to his height and build, the cot Brienne pointed to was far too small.

“…So instead of that—”

Herace, resting his chin on one side of the bed, tilted his head slightly.

Then, he gently leaned his cheek against the pillow next to her head.

“This spot seems better.”

The side of the bed where Herace leaned shook ever so slightly. Brienne’s eyes widened in surprise.

‘Did he mean he wanted to lie down together?’

‘…Like that time?’

Looking down in confusion, Brienne saw Herace calmly close his eyes. His peaceful face looked as though he might fall asleep at any moment, and she couldn’t help but let out a small, incredulous laugh.

‘How can someone be so shameless…’

‘How could he show his feelings so openly?’

To be honest, at first, Brienne had wondered if Herace’s confession, his seemingly sudden feelings, were really genuine.

But every time she saw Herace act like this, her doubts faded away. Even though she kept telling herself to push him away, she didn’t dislike his shamelessness at all.

‘I…’

She didn’t dislike Herace.

Yesterday’s conversation made her realize it completely. The reason she wanted to push him away was because she didn’t actually want to. The reason his kindness scared her was because she didn’t want to lose it.

Brienne’s greatest enemy had always been herself. She kept telling herself not to trust this man, that she would only get hurt in the end.

So she told herself never to begin.

With her heart sharpened like a blade, she was always ready to push him away, even though she knew she wouldn’t actually hurt him, even though she wanted to trust Herace’s feelings more than anyone.

She wanted to be by Herace’s side.

Her feelings weren’t the same as what she’d felt for Kaiden, but at least she was certain she wanted to be with him.

She thought the only kind of love she knew was what she’d felt before, but even if it looked different, it was still called by the same name.

The voice in her heart that made her hesitate, that made her a coward, began to change direction.