Matthias looked on with meaningful eyes.
Crinkle.
I crumpled the document on the spot, destroying the evidence.
Nothing happened just now. Yes, that was all.
"Bring a new one."
"…Yes."
A similar scene repeated itself after returning to Schmaichel Castle.
Clip-clop.
The journey back to the castle had been not the least bit welcome. I arrived at the castle, half-heartedly urging my steps onward.
'…She's not here.'
The red hair that could be recognized at a glance even from afar was nowhere to be seen.
"Welcome back, Your Excellency."
"Welcome."
Bill, Selma, Fabri, and Joel, who had been waiting, bowed at the waist.
I dismounted from the horse, barely acknowledging their greeting.
"Where is Rose?"
The servants exchanged glances with one another for a moment.
Joel looked at Fabri, Fabri looked at Selma, and Selma looked at Bill.
Eventually, Bill stepped forward as if pushed into it.
"…She is in her room."
"I see."
I said that and headed for the dining hall.
On the dining table, only a single portion had been set. Naturally, no one was waiting.
"Where is Rose?"
The dining hall servants kept their heads bowed in silence at my question.
"Oh dear."
In the end, head chef Fabri stepped forward.
"The madam said she would eat in her room. I had it sent up earlier."
"I see."
I picked up a spoon and added.
"Make sure Rose never skips a meal. Attend to that carefully."
"Yes, Your Excellency."
Fabri had clearly put tremendous care into the meal—it was excellent.
Yet I couldn't taste a thing. It felt like chewing on a lump of sand.
Clack.
In the end, I set the spoon down having barely touched half the food.
Clink.
Bill, the butler who had been standing by, set down a teacup.
"It is chamomile tea. It should help calm your mind."
As I slowly sipped the tea, I could feel Bill and Fabri watching me intently. Too tired to say anything, I just drank it all in silence.
Clack.
I set down the teacup and rose from my seat.
"…Good work."
I left a farewell as usual and exited the dining hall.
In the meantime,
"…You put salt in the tea? Have you lost your mind?"
Fabri whispered to Bill with wide eyes.
"I was curious so I just poured in a few spoonfuls… He didn't notice at all."
Bill shook his head.
"He always eats without any reaction, but today it was like watching him chew on a log."
"Oh dear, this is something."
Fabri habitually scratched his smooth head.
"Why on earth did he fight with the madam? He won't even tell us the reason, so it's awfully frustrating."
"The more you love, the more you fight. Like me and Selma."
"That's just you getting scolded by Selma for making mistakes."
"…Anyway."
Bill nodded heavily as he watched Dane's retreating back.
"We should help him out a bit, shouldn't we."
Unaware of the conversation the two were having behind his back.
Rustle.
I began working on documents in my office. Naturally, my pace was extremely slow.
"……."
The work involved digging the clansmen out from the registry, organizing their assets and territories, and distributing them here and there.
There was a mountain of paperwork, yet it never seemed to shrink—incredibly irritating.
Amidst all that, there was also a letter that had flown in from the royal palace.
[Hey, you can't just leave me there and go! Pay me back later, got it?]
Swish.
As I irritably tossed aside Beatrice's letter—
"Your Excellency."
Bill, who had been standing by my side, spoke up. In a very cautious manner.
"If I may dare offer advice as someone who has been married for decades… at times like this, just saying you're sorry unconditionally is the best course."
"……."
I took my eyes off the letter and looked at Bill. He was watching me with a worried expression.
"This is no time for pride. Surrender and say, 'I was completely wrong and you were completely right.' Go in with your head lowered. That's how I do it with Selma too—"
"Dear."
Selma, the head maid standing beside him, shot him a look.
"Do you mean he should just blanket-apologize without a word? Don't you know that kind of apology only makes people angrier?"
"Um… ahem."
Bill retreated sheepishly, and Selma stepped forward.
"Your Excellency. Starting today, don't shave."
"…What?"
I looked at Selma, wondering what kind of advice this was.
"Grow out your beard a bit, and leave your clothes rumpled. And keep standing in front of the madam's door."
Selma nodded with a serious expression.
"Would the madam just leave you there? She will certainly open the door. When she sees Your Excellency in that state, her heart will surely soften."
"……."
Both of them were looking at me with encouraging eyes, as if telling me to get up and go to Rose's room.
But my body wouldn't move easily.
'Would he have dared lay a hand on someone like me otherwise?'
Thinking of Rose shedding tears as she said those words, my fingertips went cold.
"Your Excellency! Take this with you when you go!"
Now Fabri burst into the office as well. Along with a cart loaded full of something.
"What is this?"
"Seven desserts that the madam has enjoyed over time."
He had been in such a hurry that beads of sweat stood out on Fabri's forehead.
"Here, look. Slime pudding, lizard tail crème brûlée, cobweb sugar craft and sherbet……."
Joel, the physician who had joined at some point, also chimed in.
"Shall I tell the madam that Your Excellency has collapsed? I believe she would come running immediately."
Facing the worried and expectant gazes of all four, I said,
"Everyone, get out."
"…Yes."
"…Understood."
But I hadn't completely dismissed everything they'd said.
'An apology…'
I wasn't sure if this was something an apology could resolve.
Either way, I had to go see Rose. The problem was when and how.
With such thoughts, I spent a long, tedious day without Rose and then entered my bedroom.
"The madam said she would sleep in her own bedroom."
Bill bowed apologetically.
"…Understood."
Thud.
I lay back on the bed and stared blankly at the ceiling.
'Was the bed always this big?'
In the original work, this was around the time assassination attempts were most frequent, so I had been busy beyond imagination.
This time, thanks to having dealt with the clansmen in advance, I was enjoying the most peaceful days.
But I wasn't particularly happy.
"……."
It felt empty.
It felt like just yesterday that Rose was awkward about lying in bed together. Now, without Rose, I couldn't even fall asleep.
Despite the fireplace blazing away, without Rose's body heat, it felt cold.
The next day, and the day after that.
I couldn't even catch a glimpse of the tips of Rose's hair.
"The madam was in her laboratory all day yesterday."
The news Helena brought was my only connection to Rose.
"I see. Is she ill or struggling with anything?"
"Shall I tell you the truth? Or shall I lie for the master's sake?"
"…Stop."
Helena's blue eyes scanned my darkened complexion inch by inch.
"It's the master who seems unwell, isn't it?"
Then she slipped the cinnamon stick from my hand and replaced it with a quill pen.
"You weren't trying to sign with this, were you?"
"……."
The paper had grown sticky from the juice on the end of the cinnamon stick.
Rustle.
I crumpled the paper and tossed it into the fireplace.
"…Haa."
I stood up and gazed out the window, lost in thought.
Clatter.
In the meantime, Helena cleared the teacup and cinnamon stick from the desk.
"…Aren't you going? You always went to the laboratory at this time every day."
Eventually, Helena's voice came through, tinged with hesitation.
"Rose asked for some time."
"And you're taking that at face value? Are you an idiot?"
Helena asked in disbelief.
"When a woman says she needs time to think and you actually give her that time, it's over. Why don't you know that?"
Sniff.
Helena sniffed once, then spoke in a suddenly brightened tone.
"Who cares if the door is locked? Just break it down and go in."
When I turned around, I saw Helena smiling with trembling lips.
"No need to say anything. Just kiss her and it's done."
Helena's hand grabbed my forearm and pulled.
"Why are you just standing there? Go, quickly!"
Then she shoved my back with both hands.
"The madam is in the laboratory!"
Helena's murmuring scattered through the closing office door.
"This should do it……."
Thud.
The office door closed behind me.
Click.
I heard the sound of the door being locked from inside, as if to prevent me from coming back.
"…Huu."
I ran a hand through my hair, then made up my mind.
'Let's go.'
Whether Rose turned me away, threw me out, or despised me—it didn't matter.
I would rather meet Rose and do something, anything. Otherwise, I felt like I would go mad from the suffocation.
Step.
The path to Rose's laboratory felt unusually short today. I didn't think I had walked that fast, yet I arrived in no time at all.
"Haa."
Feeling the sweat pooling in my palms, I grasped the doorknob and turned it.
Click.
Surprisingly, the laboratory door was unlocked.
Step.
I stepped inside without bothering to hide my footsteps.
Past the many bookshelves and devices of various sizes, I could see red hair swaying.
"……."
The hesitation lasted only a moment before I strode forward.
Step, step.
The moment I came a few steps closer—
"Are you here?"
Rose spoke in a flat voice without turning around.
"……."
I fell silent, struck by a strange feeling.
To examine my body, and to remove the Velvet Wisp from my lungs, I had visited this place every day.
'Are you here?'
Every time, Rose had welcomed me with those words. Always turning to face me, smiling brightly.
But not today.
"……."
Red hair pinned up, a few loose strands falling over a white nape. An immaculately white coat without a speck of dust.
The same view from behind as always, yet it looked different. It felt as high and solid as an insurmountable wall.
Step, step.
I took one short breath and approached Rose. I had no intention of turning back or running away now.
Step.
The moment I stood beside her, Rose glanced my way.
In that brief instant our eyes met, I struggled to read the emotion held within Rose's eyes.
"……."
I used to be able to read everything—what Rose was thinking, what she was worrying about.
Now, in those large green eyes visible without glasses, in their transparent depths, I could find nothing.
That Rose felt terribly unfamiliar.
"Sit down, Your Excellency."
Rose said, gesturing to a chair behind me.
I silently turned as instructed. Then, just before taking my seat, I opened my mouth.
"Rose, last time—"
"Your Excellency."
Rose spoke with a voice so firm there wasn't a crack to squeeze through.
"We should do what needs to be done. That is the contract, isn't it?"