MDIJTOMOH CH 09

“I simply thought it was time for me to get married.”

Sir Dylan’s expression had become stiff.

It felt as though he was hiding some kind of secret.

“I see. Well, I’ll finish eating now!”

I picked up my spoon and continued tasting the bouillabaisse when he quietly called my name.

“By the way.”

“Yes!”

“Ishael, you are someone worthy of respect.”

“Respect? All of a sudden?”

“Yes. Respect.”

Respect? Out of nowhere?

It was a strange expression to use. It sounded more like something you would say to a respected teacher.

I smiled brightly and waved my hand enthusiastically.

“Yes, thank you, Sir Dylan! I suppose you must have seen something I did that made me worthy of your respect, haha!”

“Yes, that is correct.”

What? Really?

Half suspicious and half curious, I asked,

“What was it?”

Sir Dylan’s seemingly indifferent gaze trembled ever so slightly.

“The way you overpowered your opponent so ferociously was truly impressive.”

……Me? When?

Was he talking about me? He wasn’t mistaken, was he?

His words seemed to be forced out one by one.

It looked as though he was desperately trying to come up with something to say, and I suddenly realized.

He’s just making something up?!

He’s saying it to comfort me because I seem to have low self-esteem!

Sir Dylan… perhaps you really are different from the rumors.

There were all sorts of bizarre rumors about him.

That he had danced around on top of monster corpses with a sword in hand.

That he coldly rejected the advances of countless women.

Or, conversely, that he was always surrounded by women.

Clearly, those strange rumors couldn’t be trusted.

He actually seems quite kind.

I swallowed the food in my mouth.

Then I brushed my hair back and smiled sheepishly.

“As you already know, Sir Dylan, you’re also more than worthy of respect!”

The moment Sir Dylan saw my smile, his expression became extremely rigid.

Even his entire body stiffened.

Did I get something stuck between my front teeth?

But even if I did, was there really any reason to become that stiff?

I quickly finished dinner.

Now it was time to take a proper look around the house.

I patted my stomach, which had become as round and full as a frog’s, and spoke warmly.

“I heard there are four rooms in the house.”

“One is a powder room, and the other appears to be a storage room. There seem to be only two rooms that can be used as bedrooms.”

Apparently, he had already taken a quick look around the house as soon as he arrived.

As expected of Sir Dylan, he was incredibly thorough.

“I’ll take a look around too!”

I began inspecting the living room with an emotional expression.

At first, I had been so shocked by Sir Dylan’s cooking that I hadn’t properly looked at the house.

But the more I saw, the more perfect it seemed.

It smelled nice, there was no mold, there were no money-draining family members, and best of all, it was a free house that hadn’t cost me a single penny!

The exterior walls were solidly constructed from red sandstone.

Beneath the lofty ceiling adorned with decorative molding hung a splendid chandelier.

The kitchen and living room were arranged side by side, separated by a single paneled door.

Through the living room windows, I could see the river running through the Imperial capital at a glance.

I stepped into the living room with a blissful expression.

There was a fireplace where flames would crackle warmly during winter, along with an antique couch.

It was the perfect dream house I had always imagined!

“Let’s look at the two smaller rooms now!”

Humming to myself, I opened the door to one of the small rooms.

Just then, his voice struck my ears.

“Ishael, you should use the larger room.”

“What? But…”

Sir Dylan probably hadn’t seen this small room yet.

I was about to explain the layout of the room to him.

But Sir Dylan was faster.

“I like the interior of the smaller room.”

I looked up at Sir Dylan awkwardly and nodded.

“I see. So that’s your taste.”

Whoosh.

Perhaps because of the breeze, the door to the small room slowly crept open.

Sir Dylan belatedly caught sight of the room through the narrow opening and swallowed a groan.

The place he had just said he liked was a nursery.

There was an adorable mobile hanging from the ceiling.

On top of that, rattles, baby supplies, and a set of toys filled one entire wall.

“Well… I respect your taste!”

I hurried into the larger bedroom.

Without even realizing it, I found myself smiling faintly.

I immediately stiffened my lips again.

After finishing the house tour with Sir Dylan, I entered the large bedroom.

Sir Dylan had practically informed me that he would take care of the dishes himself.

Then I’ll handle the cleaning.

I would also take care of the little household chores, like laundry.

We should simply remain decent housemates.

Until now, I had tried to heal the wounds my family had given me through my boyfriend.

The result?

Pedro had simply treated me like a pushover.

So for a while, I intended to keep my distance from people and live cautiously, always keeping my guard up.

“I don’t need people! Beds are the best!”

For a house meant for newlyweds, the queen-sized bed was surprisingly luxurious.

A queen-sized bed. This is way too extravagant for me.

I threw myself onto the rustling mattress and thought once more.

Though it would have been even better if it were a king-sized bed.

I rolled around on the bed to my heart’s content.

Maybe it was because I had experienced too many things today.

Or maybe I had simply overeaten.

Before I could even wash my face, I slowly closed my eyes.

How much time had passed?

CRASH—BOOM!

I jolted awake at the loud noise.

Thunder.

The moment I realized what the sound was, I froze completely.

The pleasant feeling of the crisp new blankets against my skin became meaningless.

To make matters worse, the large bedroom I was in had enormous floor-to-ceiling windows.

Through the windows, I could see flashes of lightning striking wildly.

My vision turned white for an instant before flashing brightly again.

I’m scared…

I knew that those flashes of light couldn’t kill me.

And yet, for some strange reason, every time there was a thunderstorm, my entire body would tremble.

As though proving just how helpless a human being could be in the face of the vivid terror of death.

As though I had experienced something that had left me terrified while listening to sounds like these before…

I pulled the blanket over my head and trembled.

But the thunder booming in my ears didn’t disappear.

I continued trembling alone for a long while.

Eventually, when the thunder had begun to subside, I cautiously poked my head out from beneath the blanket.

I thought drinking some water might help calm me down.

I reached for the doorknob.

And at that very moment—

A large figure appeared outside.

“…Is something wrong?”

It was Sir Dylan.

The fierce-looking man with the coldest expression in the world.

His enormous body stood upright as he looked down at me…

And in his large hands, he was firmly holding two tiny rattles.

A hint of surprise appeared on Dylan’s usually expressionless face.

“What happened? You don’t look well.”

“It’s nothing.”

“It seems that you’re trembling.”

Noticing something was wrong, he met my eyes.

And finally, our gazes met.

As though trying to comfort me, he held out the rattles in his hands—

Then hesitated.

Rattles…?

A man nearly 190 centimeters tall was holding out rattles to me.

Seeing that, my trembling finally stopped, and I managed to laugh.

Apparently not understanding why I was laughing, he solemnly shook the rattles.

Rattle, rattle.

“Please calm down.”

My smile deepened instinctively.

What kind of way is this to comfort someone?

He looked like someone who had never comforted another person before.

And yet, strangely enough, my intermittent breathing gradually became steady.

“Well… thank you. It feels nice to sense the warmth of another person!”

Sir Dylan looked down at me, his gaze wavering.

He placed the rattles on the floor.

Then, with an expression that suggested he had firmly made up his mind, he spoke solemnly.

“…I understand.”

I didn’t even have time to ask what he meant by that.

His rough hand gently took hold of my fingertips.

His calloused hand touched my soft skin, and a subtle warmth spread through me.

“I’ve heard that a person’s warmth is necessary to stop trembling. If so, do you need more?”