TCS 06

Chapter : 6. Until the Wounds Heal

“We are simply walking different paths.”

Just as Duke Castillo was running here and there to lend strength to Teo, he was merely walking his own path as well. A relaxed smile was drawn over his calm, level tone.

“I see.”

The Empress smiled faintly. It was an expression that lacked nothing when it came to wrapping the elderly Emperor around her finger. To Adrian, however, it was simply creepy enough to spark a strong desire to leave this uncomfortable setting. Perhaps finding that look to her liking, the Empress curved her eyes straight and continued.

“Come to think of it, is it really such a big deal? You’ve always conceded to Teo, so you’re allowed to be greedy for at least one thing.” “I am honored.” “I do have one question, though.”

The Empress leaned her body slightly as she asked.

“When we made our deal last time, did you say your reason for coveting Lady Bronte was simply curiosity about something Teo could not have?”

Simultaneously with her question, the birds around the Empress’s palace fluttered their wings and flew off all at once. The pupils of the Empress, from whom the shadows of the birds had vanished, were shining with curiosity. Adrian read her ulterior motives and wore a gentle smile.

“If you are worried that our deal might fall through, there is no need to dwell on it. My heart is the same as it was at first.” “Is that so?” “I hope that was the answer you wanted.”

The Empress scanned Adrian’s unruffled frame from top to bottom, then snapped her folding fan shut.

“Look how the time has flown.”

At a gesture from the Empress, a lady-in-waiting approached Adrian and set down a small box.

“This has been prepared for the Young Duke.”

Inside the box opened by the lady-in-waiting lay a key made of gold.

“A key, I see.” “Before long, I shall send a beautiful gift worthy of that key to the Castillo residence.”

Though he had no idea what the Empress intended to prepare, he accepted it indifferently.

“I shall look forward to it. May the brilliant light of the night sky reach Your Majesty the Empress…”

Then, offering a courteous bow, Adrian stepped out of the Empress’s audience chamber. His adjutant, Liam, approached him as he walked at a brisk pace.

“Did the conversation end well?” “If you can call this a conversation.”

Adrian handed the box he had received from the Empress to Liam as if it were a nuisance. Seeing the box wrapped in golden-hued packaging, Liam asked in surprise.

“What is this?” “A golden key.” “What kind of key is it?” “She claims she will give me a gift to match it before long. As if I’d have any use for things to throw away.”

Before they had even left the Empress’s palace, Liam hurried to his side in dismay at his blunt remark.

“Commander, there are many ears about.” “It doesn’t matter. I moved only after calculating what kind of benefit we would mutually gain in the first place.”

Even though she should be able to get anything she wanted in the Empire, the Empress’s greed knew no bounds. Her reasons for trying to place her barely five-year-old son, Valerie, on the imperial throne were obvious enough.

“Who could possibly stop you, Commander?” “Liam.” “My apologies.”

Liam immediately lowered his head. Leaving behind the imperial palace, which exuded an unusually heavy fragrance, Adrian climbed straight into his carriage. Had the carriage wheels turned just a few times since then? The coachman’s flustered voice could be heard.

“You will need to step outside for a moment, sir.” “What is the matter?” “There’s a problem with the carriage wheel. Fixing it isn’t difficult, but it will take a little…”

The coachman glanced back and forth between the carriage and Adrian, reading the room. Scowling, Adrian emerged from the carriage. The carriage wheel, which had been creaking since they set out for the imperial palace in the morning, had finally broken down for good. The sky, which had been clear until just moments before, was now draped in thick clouds. It truly was a day of atrocious luck. Was this why they said not to lay eyes on things unpleasant if you could help it? The real headache, however, was that his counterpart was a nine-tailed fox. Seeing his sleeve torn on the edge of the carriage, Adrian clicked his tongue and asked.

“How long will the repairs take?” “About an hour.” “I see.” “Shall I look for another carriage?”

An hour was just a figure of speech; there was no telling how much time they would end up wasting on the road. Nonsense.

“Never mind. Just ride the horse you brought.”

The pupils of Liam, who was holding the horse’s reins, shook uneasily. Adrian stroked the horse’s neck and said.

“Are you dissatisfied?” “No, if the Commander wishes it, I must hand it over. I have no complaints whatsoever.”

As Liam hurriedly handed over the reins, Adrian mounted the horse as if he had been waiting to do so. Liam winced at a sudden gust of wind.

“Surely you aren’t planning to ride back to the estate like this, are you?” “That’s right.” “Leaving me all by myself?” “Goodness, are you clinging to me?”

At Adrian’s playful tone, Liam glanced around at the coachman and the others present. They were watching the two men with intrigued eyes. Liam waved his hands frantically in disgust.

“Not at all, absolutely not.” “Then dismiss yourselves and handle the rest as you see fit.”

With those final words, Adrian galloped swiftly toward the estate. Before long, the Castillo residence, emblazoned with the crest of a soaring eagle, came into view.

It was when clouds covered the sky and even the occasional glimmer of light vanished. The servants of the Castillo estate gathered on the first floor. Seeing the servants bustling about, it seemed Adrian had returned. Stella, who had been looking out the window, rolled the wheels of her wheelchair to head downstairs. Moving forward without someone’s help was no easy task, but for a first attempt, it went smoothly enough. Once downstairs, she caught sight of Adrian handing his outer coat to Owen. The movement of her hands turning the wheels came to a halt. And then she called out to him.

“Lord Castillo.” “Did you come out to greet me?”

Adrian responded to Stella with a smile. The neckline of his crisp white shirt caught her gaze.

“I didn’t expect you to come out and greet me like this. Is there something you wish to say to me in private?”

As Stella looked away, seemingly embarrassed, he bent his knees to match her eye level. Then, he pulled out a handkerchief and wiped away the beads of sweat that had formed on her forehead.

“It must be an urgent matter if it’s enough to make you sweat.”

Stella closed one eye at his cautious touch, which felt like he was handling a child, and said.

“I heard you went to the imperial palace.” “…”

The smooth, natural flow of conversation abruptly snapped. Amidst the silence, Adrian curled up one corner of his lips and twisted his mouth. It took only an instant for his affectionate gaze to turn chillingly cold.

“Who told you that?”

Had she made some kind of mistake?

“I was merely curious.”

An odd wave of guilt washed over her at the sudden feeling that she had done something wrong. Even though she had done nothing wrong, his gaze seemed to be reprimanding her. At this rate, she felt like she would blurt out “No, it’s nothing at all” before she even got the answer she wanted. Stella pressed down hard on her own knees. His eyes narrowed like a ferocious beast that had spotted its prey, and finally, with his neck flushed red, he suppressed a laugh he couldn’t control and said.

“It is true that I went to the imperial palace.” “For what reason?”

Her voice trembled as she asked. She hadn’t wanted to show any fear in front of Adrian, but hearing straight from him that he had been to the palace made her body refuse to obey her will.

What if he’s planning to hand me over to the imperial palace?

Though he had said with his own mouth that such a thing would not happen, she couldn’t bring herself to trust him blindly. Besides, the man before her was smiling as if he were having fun. He looked just like a wild beast enjoying the sight of its prey trembling with fear and trying to run away. Eventually, as Stella averted her gaze, her eyes caught sight of the large door behind Adrian. The tightly closed door seemed to tell her that she wouldn’t be able to escape of her own accord. It felt as though, trying to avoid a wild animal, she had walked right into the territory of a fierce predator.

Would I be able to run away?

Stella tightly closed her eyes. With everything pitch-black before her, her fear only seemed to grow larger. As she hesitated, not knowing what to say, he took her trembling hand and spoke.

“What is it you fear?” “I, I…” “His Majesty the Emperor does not know that Lady Bronte is here. Nor does Your former fiancé, Prince Teo.”

At Adrian’s calm and steady explanation, Stella opened her eyes cautiously. In his endlessly gentle voice, the gaze that had moments ago felt like a beast stalking its prey now felt entirely different.

“No one can take Lady Bronte away from this residence.” “…”

Stella merely blinked her eyes.

“I only went to the imperial palace for personal matters, so please do not worry yourself too much.”

Recovering her wits, Stella nodded. Adrian was shouldering all the affairs of the Castillo family while the head of the house was away. Thus, frequenting the imperial palace was as natural as breathing from his perspective. She felt sorry for needlessly misunderstanding him with groundless assumptions.

That’s right. If he had intended to hand me over to the imperial palace, he would have tried to take me there from the very beginning. If My Lord wished it, he could take me to the palace without any effort. Because he is a Castillo.

Yet, on the other hand, a sudden thought struck her that being close to Adrian, who frequented the imperial palace day after day, was dangerous. Realizing that staying here indefinitely was not a viable solution, Stella carefully opened her lips.

“I… I have something to say.” “Yes.” “I think I need to leave this place.” “Aren’t your feet not fully healed yet?”

Adrian’s hand moved toward her feet resting beneath the wheelchair. Meeting his gaze, which seemed to ask where she dared go in this condition, Stella averted her eyes and fidgeted with her hands.

“If I move just a little bit…” “It will only draw people’s attention, which won’t be good. And if your wounds happen to tear open, you might not be able to walk at all.”

Stella tried to retort that it wasn’t that severe of a wound, but he continued speaking first.

“I will help you leave the Empire the moment your wounds heal. So until then, I would like you to stay in this residence.” “…” “At least until the wounds heal.”

At his repeated words, Stella lowered her head deeply. Meeting his unwavering gaze made it difficult to make a proper decision.

“I would like nothing more than for the Young Lady to stay at this estate for a long time, but your peace of mind is what matters most. If you wish, I will help you leave right this instant.”

At his words that he would entirely respect her wishes, she lifted her head. Adrian let the corners of his eyes droop as if filled with regret. That expression momentarily made her heart soften.

“I… I will impose on you just a little longer.”

Hearing the answer he desired, Adrian’s lips drew a neat arc. The red pupils hidden behind his smile shone with a persistent intensity, as though he had no intention of ever letting Stella go. Embarrassed by her sudden change of mind, Stella turned her head away and failed to read that look properly. As Stella blushed slightly as if out of shyness, he gently guided her hand and pressed a light kiss to the back of her hand.

“Gladly.”

To think he would be happy about someone imposing on him. Stella found herself wondering where on earth this vague goodwill from Adrian was coming from.

“Why are you helping me, anyway?”

The pupils of his eyes when they met hers shone sharply. Given the unexpected question, one might have expected him to be flustered, but he looked pleased. As if he had been waiting for that question all along.

“Lady Bronte once saved me. Unfortunately, you don’t seem to remember it.” “Me? I saved Lord Castillo?” “Yes, so please, I hope you will stay until your treatment is finished. Because I don’t want to miss the chance to help Lady Bronte.”

It felt as though the beating of her heart was traveling up from her feet. The resonance was so overwhelming that it made her wonder if moving away from his side would even be possible.