Chapter 86: A Sturdy Castle
Translator: RaidenTL
Chapter 86: A Sturdy Castle
Having finished his bath, Herdin stepped out of the bathroom with a towel draped over his damp hair.
The late afternoon sun slanted down the hallway, stretching the shadows long at his feet.
Herdin dried his hair with the towel as he walked toward Blair's bedroom, his steps unhurried and natural. Just as he turned into the corridor where her room was located, he caught the whispering voices of maids cleaning nearby.
"Seriously, what is His Grace thinking? Coddling a woman who might be his enemy's daughter… What if she gets pregnant?"
"Maybe the Imperial Family put her up to it? The Emperor was the one who pushed for the marriage in the first place. She's probably trying to seduce His Grace so he can't back out of it."
"...By getting pregnant?"
"Exactly. Even if it's true that the Grand Empress Dowager assassinated the late Empress, they can't just kick out a woman carrying a Delmark child, can they? That's what she's aiming for."
"Quite the detective, aren't you?"
The maids, who had been whispering without realizing someone had approached from behind, gasped at the sudden voice and spun around.
Leaning against the wall was Herdin, who had been listening for who knew how long, staring at them with icy eyes. His solid physique was visible through the opening of his loosely tied robe, a stark contrast to his strikingly beautiful face. The same face they usually stole blushing glances at now seemed terrifyingly cold.
"I didn't stock the library with mystery novels for you to concoct such fantasies."
"Y-Your Grace."
"So in your eyes, I am a fool who fell for her seduction hook, line, and sinker, completely oblivious to her intentions."
"T-That's not what we meant! We were only worried about Your Grace and the house of Delmark…"
"I didn't realize Delmark's standing had fallen so low that it required the concern of its maids. How… unpleasant."
His voice was flat and languid, but the maids could feel the rage simmering just beneath the surface. It was the instinct of the weak.
"Your Grace, what are you—"
As Ruth approached, having just completed the task Herdin had assigned him, the pale-faced maids scrambled to their knees.
"W-We have committed a grave sin! Please, just this once, forgive us, Your Grace!"
"We were ignorant and spoke out of turn. Please show us mercy…"
Herdin looked down at the pleading maids with indifferent eyes before turning away.
"Ruth."
"Yes?"
"Dismiss them."
Ruth glanced between Herdin's retreating back and the despairing maids, his expression troubled. While they were undoubtedly in the wrong, dismissal seemed a heavy price for a slip of the tongue, and the thought left him uneasy.
However, his lord's command was absolute.
After asking for the maids' names to pass on to Mason, Ruth caught up to Herdin. Sensing his presence, Herdin spoke without turning around.
"On your way, tell Mason to make sure no more outside rumors find their way into this mansion."
"Yes, I understand."
They soon arrived in front of Blair's bedroom. Herdin stopped and asked, "So, what did you need?"
"Ah, I received word from Sir Caligo. He secured the coin minter's testimony. As expected, Viscount Vernon was the one who commissioned the coins."
It was now proven that the person paying the pawnshop owner and the person who commissioned the coins were one and the same. With the testimony of the soldier who first found the coin, they could finally prove in court that Katrina was involved in the incident from ten years ago.
The preparations to clear Esmeralda's name were complete.
But Herdin's hesitation stemmed from something else.
"And…" Ruth continued, pulling a small object from his inner pocket. "This is what you ordered this morning."
He placed a small medicine bottle in Herdin's hand. Inside were pills identical to the ones Herdin had given Blair. He had ordered Ruth to acquire it as quickly as possible that morning before leaving for the magical beast subjugation.
"Are you certain they're harmless?"
"Yes. They're just candies made to look like medicine. But what do you plan to use them for?"
Herdin merely toyed with the bottle, offering no answer. Sensing he shouldn't pry further, Ruth quickly changed the subject.
"Well, in any case, with preparations nearly complete… I hope we can soon clear the late Empress's name."
"...Yes, soon."
Slipping the bottle into his robe pocket, Herdin turned toward Blair's door and dismissed him. "You may leave."
Leaving Ruth to bow politely, Herdin entered the room.
He passed through the drawing room and into the bedroom, which was bathed in the languid afternoon sunlight streaming through the balcony window. In the midst of that peaceful scene, Blair lay fast asleep.
Herdin approached her side and quietly watched her. He pondered once more what, exactly, he was building this sturdy castle to protect.
After a moment, he pulled out the medicine bottle he had received from Ruth. It was identical to the bottle that always sat on Blair's nightstand, right down to the shape of the pills inside.
For a long moment, he hesitated.
Even as he resolved to keep her by his side at all costs, to prevent her from ever going to that man, he couldn't bring himself to touch her medicine.
Could I bear to watch you resent me for the rest of your life?
That question held him back, just as it had last night when he’d impulsively decided to prepare the fake medicine after finding her room empty.
As Herdin toyed with the bottle, Blair's eyelids fluttered.
"Mmh…"
At the sight, Herdin acted. He swiftly knocked the medicine bottle from the nightstand, sending it to the floor. Then, he placed the new bottle in its place.
The fallen bottle rolled silently across the thick carpet until it touched his foot. At that exact moment, Blair's eyes opened.
"...Herdin?"
Her violet eyes, catching the light, slowly came into focus, soon filling with his reflection.
"What time is it?"
Her eyes reflecting him, her defenseless face still heavy with sleep, her soft, whispering voice… Seeing her alive and breathing before him, he reached a conclusion so quickly that his prior hesitation felt utterly pointless.
It had never been a matter worth agonizing over.
"There's still time before dinner. You can sleep a bit more," Herdin replied, kicking the fallen bottle under the bed as he reached out to brush her messy hair from her face.
I would rather be the worst kind of bastard than ever let you go, he thought.
* * *
On a rare day when Herdin was away, Blair had finished her lunch and settled by a sunny window with a book. But a sudden wave of drowsiness washed over her, and she soon dozed off.
"...Madam."
She heard a faint voice through her sleep. As she struggled to wake, a gentle hand touched her shoulder.
"Madam?"
"...Ah."
Startled, Blair finally woke up to see Lina looking down at her with worried eyes.
"Are you feeling unwell? You seem very tired lately…"
"Oh, no. I think I've just been sluggish from being cooped up inside. The weather has gotten warmer, too," Blair quickly reassured her, lest Lina call for the physician. Her hand, however, slipped quietly to her lower abdomen.
The cause of her recent, overwhelming drowsiness was likely growing inside her.
It's been well over a fortnight since the day Asiel was conceived…
Since gestational age was calculated from the first day of her last period, it was about time for symptoms to appear. Of course, they weren't much different from her usual premenstrual signs, but Blair, with the memories of her past life, was almost certain.
Yet, the more certain she became of her pregnancy, the more anxiety mingled with her relief.
If Asiel really has been conceived, morning sickness will start soon…
The deadline Herdin had promised was the end of the trial. But while her pregnancy symptoms were slowly beginning to manifest, there was still no sign of the trial even starting. Furthermore, she should have heard from Mikhail by now, but there had been no news at all.
She knew there was nothing she could do directly, but with nothing moving forward, she was starting to grow anxious.
"Madam, would you like to go out for a change of pace?"
Lina's suggestion pulled Blair from her thoughts.
"Go out?"
"The Foundation Festival is coming up soon. I passed by the plaza yesterday, and it was already in full swing. They were selling all kinds of food and putting on performances." Lina's eyes sparkled. "Why don't we dress simply and go out for a bit with the knights? It must be suffocating to be stuck in the mansion all the time."
Blair considered the offer for a moment before nodding readily. "Yes, let's do that. It sounds wonderful."
It would be a good chance to get some fresh air. She could also use the opportunity to have Lina send word to Mikhail, telling him to be ready to leave at a moment's notice.
However, a single word from Mason shattered their grand plans.