Chapter 20 - 20

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The next day.

I heard the news that the construction was finished. I immediately prepared and set off for the Lemut territory.

Perhaps because of the heavy rain, the weather was very clear.

'Oh, it's quite decent, isn't it?'

For being repaired in one day, the road was in pretty good shape. Good enough that I thought calling the workers was a good decision.

Moreover, the workers I called didn't stop at road repair, as requested, but were also helping to repair or rebuild collapsed houses.

When the carriage passed the road and entered the Lemut castle grounds, I encountered a familiar sound.

"The Duke has refused the Countess's visit."

Oh. An expected refusal, so it wasn't surprising.

I folded my arms and stared intently at the knight.

One second, two seconds, three seconds... The knight broke out in sweat.

"Susan, don't glare."

"..."

"Anna, you too, don't secretly glare. Bess, don't put your hands behind your back and curse."

Then the maids who were intently glaring at the knight from behind me flinched, and then looked up at me with tearful expressions like abandoned puppies.

...They weren't people who followed me this much before.

After I returned from the heavy rain and caught a body ache, they nursed me diligently, and after that, they became more persistent.

Maybe it's because I gave them lots of limited-edition accessories as thanks for their nursing.

"Kids, even if you glare like that, I'm not giving you money."

"C-Countess...! It's not for the money!"

"That's right! It's not for the money. How could we not hate that place for leaving the Countess out in the rain!"

"That's right, the Countess was so sick!"

I was just joking, but a flurry of chirping protests poured out, surprising me.

Their sad faces were all sincere, making my mood subtly strange.

Hmm, is this the moment the maids become the first to overcome Charlize's notoriety and prejudice?

"...I get it, everyone, stop."

Feeling embarrassed and ashamed for having misjudged them as only caring about money, I blushed.

After cooling my face for a moment, I turned my head.

"If I can't wait inside, I'll wait outside like before, right?"

Anyway, being turned away at the door was expected.

I turned away from the main gate and headed to the garden where the carriage was parked.

'Expecting this, I prepared the carriage and left it there.'

From my fiance's perspective, I must seem like a real nuisance. I'm sorry. I'm also very upset.

But I'm even more desperate because this happened while helping your flood victims, so can't you understand a little?

"Countess, here is your tea."

"Yeah."

I drank tea as usual and watched the garden.

I noticed some flowers I hadn't seen during my overnight stay.

Wow, those are weird and pretty. I like the color.

I started a tug-of-war with an unknown end in my mind.

Right, Mr. Fiance, let's see whether your handsome face shows up first or I give up first.

As I was sipping tea, I felt a gaze.

After the overnight stay, servants would look from afar with curiosity, or knights would watch with wary faces, so I thought it might be them.

But the person I met eyes with was unexpected.

'...Aria?'

Peeking out from behind a tree was my fiance's sister, Aria.

When our eyes met, her shoulders flinched, but she didn't look away.

She even hesitated and came closer.

"H-hello."

"Hello."

Oh, seeing her in the light, her snow-white skin is even more noticeable than when I saw her at night.

Although pale, if she only gets healthy, she's a beauty who could easily be called the empire's finest.

Well, her brother is such a handsome man, and she looks like him, so it's natural.

"W-well, Countess. I'm sorry..."

I was puzzled by the apology that came right after the greeting.

What wrong did this pretty, frail young lady ever do to me?

I searched my memory, but even if Charlize pinched her, nothing like that comes to mind.

"Did the Countess of Lemut do something wrong to me?"

"Oh! No, that day, I was sorry, my brother mis-misunderstood..."

Ah. I recalled that day.

"Are you feeling okay? Hurt anywhere? You fell painfully that day."

"I'm fine. I'm tough."

To shut them up, I glanced at the nearby maids.

The maids looked at each other and nodded.

Right, I need to get closer to this young lady. Only then will my fiance show me his face.

It's so hard to see the Imperial visage.

"Don't worry. Even if I get sick, I have enough money to get better."

Saying this, I thought, 'Oops'. It wasn't something to say in front of sick Aria.

I need to control my tongue. As I inwardly slapped my cheek, a small laugh was heard.

Aria was suppressing a laugh.

...What's so funny?

"As expected, I think I had... some misunderstandings during that time."

"..."

"It seems I had p-prejudices because of the Countess's public image."

Hey, aside from the image, you should remember what Charlize did.

As I saw in the carriage a few days ago, this innocent young lady let her guard down and her eyes sparkled after just a few kind acts.

I did intend to seduce her, but her coming to me like this makes my conscience prick and I'm a little troubled.

"...Would you like some tea?"

That was about all I could say.

Even so, Aria nodded eagerly, as if it was wonderful.

"Brother is currently out of the castle. He said he had an important guest in the afternoon, so he left for a bit..."

Advantages came with Aria joining us.

This innocent young lady readily divulged my fiance's whereabouts.

'A guest, huh.'

I chewed over what Aria said.

My thoughts scattered as Aria spoke.

"What were you doing in the garden?"

"Ah, just having tea and looking around. The flowers are pretty, aren't they? Especially that flower..."

"Flowers! You like them?"

Ah, surprised...! Aria apologized frantically. She had shouted while jumping up, knocking over a cup, but thankfully, it was cold tea, so no one was hurt.

She was at a loss, apologizing more, and I calmed her down.

"Well, I tend to those flowers, so I was just so happy..."

"You tend to them yourself?"

Aria's hobby was gardening, and she was very interested in cross-breeding existing species to create new seeds.

Hearing her story, I was surprised by how serious she was.

'In the book, unfortunately, she was just a poor, pitiful character who died because of Charlize...'

Although she can't stay outside long due to her poor health, she comes out when she can and works hard, looking happy.

While she was explaining, Aria started coughing.

"Shall we stop here for today?"

"P-Pardon?"

"You'd better go inside."

Then Aria looked visibly flustered and disappointed.

I waved my hand in front of Aria's face and smiled.

"Don't you know? Today isn't the only day. I'll come again, so you need to be healthy then too."

"Oh!"

Only then did Aria nod and get up.

Her coughing wouldn't stop.

Worried, I offered her a handkerchief, and her white cheeks flushed.

"C-C-Countess, may I ask you one thing...?"

"You can ask two."

Aria hugged the handkerchief I gave her tightly to her chest.

Coughing slightly, she smiled brightly with her pale face.

"Is this... what you call... f-friends...?"

"..."

I paused.

'Wow, for a moment, I felt purified.'

It felt like my evil intention to get closer to my fiance through Aria was being purified.

When I was speechless, Aria looked deflated, however she interpreted it.

"I-I'm sorry. How dare I, with someone like the Countess... I-I've never had a friend, so I wondered if this was what friends are... I had no other bad intentions."

It almost looked like she had droopy rabbit ears above her head.

"I don't think friends are that hard to come by?"

I said, recalling the tyrant group who used to say 'if we drink together once, we're friends for a hundred years'.

"And as far as I know, you and I are already friends. Friends call each other by name, right? Should I call you Aria?"

A beautiful smile bloomed on Aria's face.

"Yes, yes!"

Remembering that this pretty young lady was a character who died too soon, I felt sad.

Was her cure mentioned in the book?

Wondering if she could make it to the building, I got up and led the way.

Aria tilted her head but followed closely like a chick following a hen.

"Countess, Countess, where are you going?"

"Not Countess, Charlize. And I'm taking Aria."

"Oh! Cha-Charlize..."

Watching her smile, I thought again that the reason her fiance cherishes his sister so much isn't simply because she's sick. That's when it happened.

At the sound of murmuring, I turned my head. Beyond the wide garden, I saw a crowd of people.

'What's going on?'