Chapter 30

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 30
Chapter Title: A Dinner with the Knights
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As Aileen recalled Cesare’s voice, a blush crept all the way up to the nape of her neck.
Why on earth had he done that? Had he found it amusing to watch her flustered and squirming? Aileen sank into her thoughts, picking at the sofa. But the more she considered it, the less it seemed like something to dwell on.
After all, Cesare was a healthy young man with his own desires. It wouldn’t be strange for him to seek release with the woman who was to be his wife.
And yet, despite getting her all worked up, Cesare himself hadn’t found any release at all. Aileen pondered the reason, but no answer came to mind. In any case, one thing was certain.
‘How embarrassing…’
She felt she wouldn’t be able to look Cesare in the eye for a while. Even now, when he wasn’t here, her mind was constantly filled with him. His heated breaths and moans, his feverish skin, the pleasure that had torn through her body.
The more she remembered, the more a burning sensation seemed to spread through her stomach. A strange, itching feeling lingered on her nipples, where Cesare had tormented them for so long. She felt the urge to scratch, but she couldn’t bring herself to touch such an intimate area.
Aileen pressed her fingernails into her palms, trying to endure the encroaching sensation. Only after leaving several crescent-shaped marks could she finally catch her breath.
“…”
She had invited the Grand Duke’s knights for a small dinner, and it was a great relief that she hadn’t invited Cesare.
She had actually considered inviting him for a long time. Then she had decided against it, worried she might be a bother while he was busy. Looking back now, it was truly the best decision she could have made.
‘I’ll have to avoid His Excellency for a while.’
Aileen steeled her resolve, unaware that the shocking memory of that night had completely overshadowed all her other bad memories.
A few days later, the day of the dinner arrived.
Aileen woke early, cleaned the house spotless, and made a trip to the market. She wasn’t much of a cook, so her plan was to serve food she had pre-ordered from several restaurants, simply heating it up for dinner.
By the time she had bought fruit from the market and made her rounds to the restaurants, it was already afternoon. She was bustling about, preparing things on her own, when her father opened the front door and stepped inside.
He had gone out the previous day, saying he was meeting a friend, and was only now returning. The stench of alcohol and cigarettes clung to him, a testament to wherever he had spent the night.
“You’re home?”
Aileen, who had been rushing toward him, stopped in her tracks at the foul odor wafting from her father. He glanced at her and let out a hearty laugh.
“My dearest daughter!”
“…You know we have guests for dinner tonight, right?”
“Ah, guests. Right, I’ll be out before then.”
With that, he disappeared into his bedroom. He was probably planning to lie down on the bed without even washing up properly. His bedroom had an attached bathroom, yet he always acted slovenly whenever he was dead drunk. It was the one thing Aileen hated most.
Aileen let out a long sigh and refocused on preparing for her guests. She had just laid out a new tablecloth and was arranging her best plates and silverware when she heard a clamor of voices from outside.
Peeking out the window, she saw a black military vehicle parked in front of the house. Four figures, a mix of men and a woman, were walking through the garden, bickering amongst themselves. Their hands were laden with all sorts of things.
Aileen smiled and opened the front door. The door swung open before they could even knock, and the Grand Duke’s knights broke into wide grins.
“We’re here!”
Rotan, Diego, and Michele entered first, with Senon being the last to come in. Senon looked at Aileen with an expression of profound emotion.
“Lady Aileen…”
“Sir Senon. It’s been a while.”
“You’ve become even more mature in that time.”
Just as Senon, lost in emotion, was about to take a trip down memory lane, Michele, standing beside him, nudged him with her elbow.
“I’m hungry.”
Senon, who had swayed like a riverside willow from Michele’s force, steadied himself and glared at her. Michele giggled and lightly bonked her forehead against his.
“Don’t be mad, brother. They say a well-fed soldier is a handsome one.”
And with that, she zipped over to the dining table. Senon grunted, rubbing his forehead and swallowing his irritation. It was clear he was reining in his temper in front of Aileen.
Senon wasn’t short by any means, but he appeared relatively small next to Cesare and the other knights, who were all exceptionally tall. He was only slightly taller than Michele, who was quite tall for a woman.
Senon, who had androgynous features, often felt a sense of relative deprivation among his larger colleagues. Just like right now.
“You see? Just because they’re a little taller, they treat me like…!”
While Senon fumed and tattled on his colleagues to Aileen, the other knights were already busy carrying food from the kitchen to the dining table.
“Lady Aileen. Where should I put this?”
“Wow, this smells amazing. Where did you buy it? I have to go get some for myself.”
“My lady, I brought a bottle of liquor. Let’s have it with our meal.”
After bustling about, Diego suddenly ran back to Aileen.
“A gift! I have a gift for you.”
He breathlessly retrieved a paper bag he had set down on the corner of the table. Grinning, Diego pulled out a large rabbit doll.
“Ta-da!”
Aileen burst out laughing, amused by his antics. She hugged the doll and thanked him.
“Thank you, Sir Diego.”
The rabbit doll he had brought as a gift was utterly adorable. Its soft, squishy texture seemed to soothe her heart.
As she found herself unconsciously kneading the doll, Diego wore a look of immense triumph. He puffed out his chest in front of the other three knights.
“See that?”
He made sure to boast in front of Aileen that the liquor he’d brought along with the doll was *reeeally* expensive. When Aileen thanked him again, Diego looked as if he owned the world.
The other three knights, with unanimously annoyed expressions, took out the gifts they had prepared. Rotan presented a rare foreign botany book, Senon a fountain pen set, and Michele a large glass jar filled with imported candies and chocolates.
Her arms full of gifts, Aileen diligently expressed her thanks and then presented her own gift.
“This is my gift to you.”
The gift, packaged in small boxes, was a healing ointment for wounds.
Compared to the platinum pocket watch she had given Cesare, it was a somewhat modest gift. But the knights were as delighted as if they had received precious jewels.
“Wow! I really needed this ointment!”
Following Diego, who was making a fuss about how the lady’s ointment was the most effective, the others excitedly gathered around, holding their own jars. Rotan, too, smiled as he held the small jar in his large palm.
“I’ll have to brag about this when I go to work tomorrow.”
After the gift exchange, they all gathered around the table. Before they began to eat the lavish spread, Aileen belatedly remembered someone she had forgotten in the hustle and bustle of her preparations.
Her father was in the first-floor bedroom.
She had told him days in advance that guests were coming. She had even given him some money to go out, assuming he would want to avoid them, but it seemed he had overslept and missed his chance to leave.
Aileen glanced at her father’s bedroom. Right on cue, a thud came from inside as something fell. The knights all turned to look toward the bedroom.
“Ah, my father… he’s inside.”
Aileen murmured quietly, a look of embarrassment on her face.
“Still, he should at least have a meal.”
While Aileen stared at the bedroom door with a crestfallen expression, the knights exchanged glances. Senon gave Diego a slight nod. Diego raised his eyebrows and shot up from his seat.
“Baron.”
Diego strode to the bedroom door, grabbed the knob, and shook it. The door rattled as if it might break.
“Why don’t you come out and eat with us?”
After a moment of silence, a mumbling voice came from beyond the door.
“I’m fine…”
His voice was so faint a passing ant might have been louder. Aileen was about to let it go, assuming he didn’t want to eat, but Diego didn’t give up. He leaned one arm against the doorframe, speaking like a ruffian.
“Why not? A man’s got to eat. I said, let’s eat together.”
It was clearly an invitation to a meal, but his voice and posture suggested he was about to throw a punch. Diego slammed his hand on the door and spoke in a grim tone.
“Come out, Baron Elorde.”