Chapter 24

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Translator: Harry Potta

Chapter: 24

Chapter Title: To Protect My Wife

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"You look so pitiful for not being able to die."

Clodel was flustered.

Pitiful for not being able to die? Was that what he meant? Of course she'd prefer to stay alive if she could.

Under the premise that it didn't hurt.

"Th-that's not it. I'm just surprised to be alive."

"Surprised to be alive?"

"I thought I'd died. Why...?"

"I can't listen to any more of this."

Kaiyan turned to Hanna.

"From what your mistress is saying, she sounds just like she did before she collapsed. She doesn't seem to have lost her mind, given the nonsense she's spouting. Go fetch the doctor."

Hanna's face lit up with joy.

"Yes, my lord."

With her orders received, she hurried out to summon the butler. Kaiyan sat back down in his chair.

"You're not going to die. And I won't let you."

"Why? I'm from House Vermonte."

Kaiyan glared at her with clear displeasure.

"I won't allow a stain on my life. Do I look like the kind of man who'd carry the dishonor of holding my bride's funeral just three months after our wedding for the rest of my days?"

So, in the end, he hadn't saved her for her sake specifically.

Even so, he'd somehow gotten her treated.

The sensation of not hurting was so novel to Clodel that she felt wings sprouting from her mind.

Her body and heart felt light and clear, free of any thoughts.

It went beyond mere joy—she was overwhelmed with gratitude.

"Thank you."

"That's as far as my leniency goes. Don't even think about using your illness as an excuse to lounge around my castle like some pampered lady of the house."

Clodel nodded eagerly.

Good heavens!

Even nodding up and down didn't bring on a cough.

Just then, Hanna returned with the butler and the doctor in tow, entering the bedroom.

The doctor beamed at the sight of Clodel sitting up.

"Oh! You've finally woken. I was so worried when you wouldn't regain consciousness."

"Is that so? How long was I out?"

"Three days before the medicine, a day to prepare it after my lord brought it back, and then another ten days after that."

Hanna cut in before the doctor could finish.

"Two weeks."

"Two weeks?"

"But after taking the medicine, you improved dramatically—no more coughing, and your breathing became steady and peaceful."

"I see."

More than that, he'd gone and fetched the medicine himself?

Clodel tried to peer past the people surrounding her to find Kaiyan again, but he had already vanished.

Her recovery was smooth and swift.

Before lunch, Clodel practiced walking around the spacious bedroom.

The crocodile bite had healed cleanly, leaving only a scar like jagged pink petals where its massive teeth had torn into her.

Back then, she couldn't even unwrap the bandages or walk properly, but after beating Herzol, she'd lain unconscious for days, leaving her weak at first. Gradually, her strength returned.

Not only was the pain in her chest gone, but her legs felt fine too. When she lifted the covers, the bandages were already off, and the wounds had healed better than expected.

"I think I can stop these walking drills now."

"Even so, you need the practice to know for sure if it's okay."

Hanna's eyes sparkled as she watched Clodel walk slowly and steadily, without a limp.

"They say that medicine was an incredible tonic."

The doctor had explained that her leg had improved so much thanks to the heart of the wild water buffalo calf Kaiyan had procured—a truly remarkable elixir. Something about improved circulation despite the injury, and he'd gone on excitedly about how the medicine boosted blood flow.

"The lord truly is a wonderful man."

"Hanna, since when do you call the duke 'my lord'?"

Hanna narrowed her eyes into sharp triangles.

"I'm going to serve House Temneth from now on. Duke Vermonte, who did this to you, is basically my sworn enemy. It's the perfect job—pursuing personal grudges and family honor all at once. Rowen Castle is the best workplace ever."

Hanna, who had harbored so many resentments toward Kaiyan before, had switched completely to loyalty after Clodel woke.

"Compared to him, how splendid and admirable the lord is. Sigh. It would've been great if you'd seen it yourself, miss. But you were unconscious."

Kaiyan had gazed at her tenderly, murmuring sadly, "Clodel, open your eyes."

He'd carried her limp body from the floor to the bed as carefully as if she were the most precious treasure.

"If I don't save it, who will?"

Of course, the object was the medicine, not Clodel. He was convinced no one else in Oberon could procure a water buffalo heart if he couldn't. The man knew full well how capable he was.

And at the end, what was it?

When Hanna had stubbornly insisted on going after the medicine herself, he'd said, "Hanna. While I'm gone, protect my wife. You're the only one I trust with Clodel."

Anyway, over the few days since regaining her senses and conquering the illness, Clodel had heard these stories from Hanna again and again, but she couldn't bring herself to believe them.

To Hanna, who loved her so dearly, Kaiyan's act of saving her must have seemed heroic, embellishing him in her eyes.

Hanna would never imagine he'd saved her just to avoid the disgrace of a short-lived marriage tarnishing his life.

Clodel worried that Hanna's open disdain for Kaiyan might get her in serious trouble while staying at Rowen Castle, so she kept quiet, figuring what was good was good.

"He found a cure like this. But that bastard Duke Vermonte never even tried."

As Kaiyan rose from "duke" to "my lord," Duke Vermonte had been demoted to "that bastard duke."

As Hanna ground her teeth recalling Clodel's uncle, Clodel sighed.

"Hanna."

"Yes?"

"I think I'm hungry."

Clodel uttered the magic words to distract Hanna from her rage.

"Oh! Time flew by. Just wait a moment. I'll get it ready right away."

Hanna hummed cheerfully as she headed out.

"She's really hopeless."

Clodel smiled, watching her retreating figure.

Sure enough, realizing it was mealtime made her stomach rumble fiercely.

Herzol hadn't come on suddenly; she'd noticed her appetite waning a month before the symptoms started.

Once the illness took hold, the desire to eat vanished entirely. Later, even trying to swallow a little brought pain to her throat and chest, so she could barely eat at all.

Now, mealtime thoughts set her stomach churning, demanding food.

"There's a beggar in my belly."

The few forced spoonfuls of soup from Kaiyan had invigorated her that much.

Lately, Clodel could feel her health improving with every meal.

Plus, she hadn't eaten properly for nearly two months since arriving in Rowen, so she hadn't realized it before, but honestly, Rowen Castle's cuisine was far superior to Valmond Castle's.

Valmond Castle served excellent dishes befitting a lord's residence, of course.

But Clodel had first realized here how much the same dish could differ with different ingredients.

Valmond territory lay in the northern frozen wastes, rich with mines and ports.

Even with that wealth, it couldn't secede from Oberon because its lands couldn't produce enough crops to feed the populace.

Mine and forest workers expended immense energy and needed hearty meals.

After generations of enmity with House Temneth—Oberon's granary—without the king's mediation, food supplies were impossible.

Even after Kaiyan embargoed grain exports during the drought to pressure House Vermonte, the Oberon king had intervened, diverting just enough to prevent starvation.

At least in the lord's castle, no one went hungry.

Crops from Rowen took a week to reach Valmond, even fresh-harvested.

Produce arriving after such a journey was naturally wilted or spoiled to some degree.

Rowen Castle offered the freshest grains, fruits, and vegetables at their peak, served to the lord. Even a sip of lemon water tasted extraordinary here.

Lately, Clodel had been self-mocking that she was like a newborn.

Eating and sleeping were all she did.

Perhaps from starving so long, she felt ashamed at how undignified her fixation on food had become.

Just waiting eagerly for mealtimes felt excessive.

No matter what, it strayed too far from a duke's daughter's etiquette.

'But it's so delicious.'

Since locking eyes with Kaiyan over dinner the day before yesterday, Clodel had felt self-conscious for no reason.

He'd stared at her for emptying her plate so thoroughly.

She hadn't even realized she'd devoured everything in front of her.

Lowering her gaze under his stare, she noticed how spotless her plate was and flushed hotly.

A properly bred lady would leave at least half the food on her plate.

"Miss. The lord is here."

At Hanna's words, Kaiyan scolded her.

"How long do you intend to call the lady of the house 'miss'?"

"Ah, sorry, my lord."

Hanna had kept calling Clodel "miss" because she refused to accept Kaiyan as her husband.

Even after becoming a lord admirer, she persisted—until now, correcting herself before her sworn master.

"My lady. Lunch is ready."

Clodel sat, feeling an odd sense of betrayal.

'Wow.'

Today's table held only the dishes she'd found most delicious so far, like they'd been specially selected.

'If I finish all this, he'll think I'm gluttonous. I have to leave some today.'

Clodel waited for Kaiyan to start, then picked up her fork.

"No issues walking?"

Hanna must have reported already.

"Yes."

"No other discomforts?"

"No. Not yet."

She asked what had been nagging her.

"I can walk fine, but I haven't tried running yet."

"What need does a duchess have to run?"

"I'm not sure if I can... dance."

In Oberon, every territory held grand autumn festivals.

The lord and his wife dancing before the people signaled the start.

The dance included leaping steps, so now that she was better, that worried her.

He'd told her not to lounge around, so what would he think of a wife who couldn't manage basics?

"Practice slowly. I'll get you a dance instructor."

"Thank you."

Relieved, Clodel focused on her meal.

"...So good."

She murmured unwittingly at the mashed potatoes blended with melting butter.

Lifting her head at the sudden gaze, she met Kaiyan's stare once more.

Snapping to, she realized she'd polished off everything—despite vowing to leave some.

Clodel's face burned.

'He must think it's unsightly.'

Doing this at a meal with other nobles would be mortifying.

Yet Kaiyan sliced a thick piece from the meat on his plate, speared it with his fork, and held it out to her.

"Here."

Clodel blinked, at a loss.

"What are you waiting for? Open your mouth."