ITMWG 43

Chapter 43…

You can’t run away.

It seems I’ve said too many useless things.

After taking a look at the patient’s condition, Leon came out with a sigh in regret. He thought it was a story he would conceal for the rest of his life, but when he saw Altair’s wife blinking innocently, it came out on its own.

It’s clear that she’s also being tricked and used by the baron.

Long ago, Leone failed to help his father escape from the clutches of that villain because he was too young back then. It was inevitable. Despite knowing that, he always lived with the guilt of having survived alone. The emotions he had tried so hard to forget weighed heavily on his heart, and Leon grabbed his chest. It felt like his heart was getting suffocated.

“How is she?”

As soon as he came out, Leon ran into Mrs. Ritti. This time he couldn’t find Altair, who had been acting like he was truly worried about his wife. ‘As if!’ thought Leone, as he swallowed a snort inside and smiled at Mrs. Ritti.

“Fortunately, things look fine. But…”

“But what? Are there any other problems?”

Leone hurriedly shook his head when Mrs. Riti asked in surprise.

“Yes. It’s hard to get anything decent in this rural area unless the merchant guild is passing through, so it’s kind of a problem. Did you order some medicine, sir?”

“Yes.”

“Uh but, why are you researching so much? Just using the existing medicine is fine though.”

“Existing drugs are too expensive for ordinary people to buy. It’s fine with nobles, but…”

Leon murmured at the end of his words and scratched his head. His father was an aristocrat’s personal physician, and thanks to that, Leon had lived a life close to the nobility. For nobles, it was common sense to buy and use medicine when needed. But it was not the same for the commoners. Since the medicines were too expensive, there were many cases where people suffered from a simple cold and developed a disease. There were several people in this village who passed away like that. For that reason, Leon started researching cold medicine. He thought that everyone would benefit if he could create an affordable drug that could treat the common ailments. However, research was not easy. It was difficult for him to obtain medicines, and the research funds were too much for a doctor at a rural clinic to afford.

This is probably the last time I have the medicine brought by the merchant.

He was about to make a last attempt with desperation by spending all the money he had saved up. Since all the villagers knew about this situation, Mrs. Ritti raised her voice brightly as she watched Leone’s expression grew dark.

“Ah, yes. That will help. But it will take a lot of work to get it done.”

“No worries about that. Her husband is already on it!”

“By her husband you mean…”

As Leone slurred his words in disbelief, Mrs. Riti giggled and pointed under a tree.

“Yes. That scary looking gentleman. He’s a bit clumsy, but it’s not completely hopeless.”

When he turned his head, Altair was actually sitting under the tree, peeling the fruits’ skin in a large basket with a serious face.

“… Did he really do it by himself?”

“I said it was good for his wife’s recovery, so he did it without hesitation.”

Leon’s mouth slightly fell agape at the sight of Altair peeling off the fruit skin with that terrifying demenor of his. It seemed that he couldn’t control his strength at all, so the fruit distorted while he was peeling, and his face crumbled along with it.

“He doesn’t express it much, but I think he cares for his wife a lot.”

Leon frowned slightly in disbelief at Mrs. Ritti’s words.

“… he does?”

“That’s because you didn’t see the lady’s reaction when the two of them met. As soon as she woke up and saw her husband’s face, she broke into cold sweat.”

“Sorry? That can’t be. When she saw the letter from her husband, her face turned red…They must be a harmonious couple.”

Mrs. Ritti, who tilted her head, patted Leon lightly on the back as if saying he would soon understand the reason for his misunderstanding.

“The doctor must not know since you haven’t been in a relationship! You should find yourself a nice lady too!”

“…Why did the story take such a sudden turn like this?”

As the conversation began to show signs of going against him, Leone slipped away from her.

“In case you don’t know, I will come twice a day to check on the lady. Please keep an eye on her so that there are no problems.”

“No need to worry.”

Mrs. Ritti showed a bothered expression and waved her hands in a dismissing manner, saying that Leon’s worries were useless. As he left due to her urging, Leone glanced at Altair, who was sitting under the tree and struggling with the fruit.

I must not clear my doubts.

The doctor came to see Nadia twice a day to check her condition. It was her daily routine to tell him the good things about Altair. It started with the expectation that his misunderstandings would be resolved after knowing Altair’s positive aspects, but the doctor’s reaction was always sour.

It’s not going as well as I thought.

Though, if everything had always gone the way she wanted, she wouldn’t have married the villain from the novel she was trying to avoid to begin with. She took a sip of the juice Mrs. Ritti prepared for her and sighed inwardly. The doctor, who glanced at her, spoke up for first.

“Is that delicious?”

“Oh.”

He was referring to the pomella juice.

“Would you like to try it? It is sweet and sour, tastes pretty good.”

Nadia wondered if she was being rude by enjoying something delicious alone in front of the person who was struggling to tend to her, so she quickly held out a cup of juice and offered him.

“Right, I suppose so…”

As she withdrew her hand in embarrassment and started sipping the juice again, the physician let out a sigh and put down the medical tools.

“You shouldn’t be fooled by such trivial things. That guy is really terrifying.”

“Pardon?”

“That juice. Pretending to do it for the sake of the madame, he intentionally showed that he was the one who prepared the fruit. That’s how he gains your trust to stab you in the back later on.”

“What do you mean?”

Intentionally showing that they prepared the fruit? Who?

“This was made by Mrs. Ritti though.”

“The baron peeled the fruit.”

“Sorry?!”

The doctor’s eyebrows twitched slightly as she jumped up in surprise at the fact she wasn’t at all aware.

“Don’t tell me you didn’t know?”

After turning away from Altair that day, Nadia hardly had the chance to run into him. It was hard for her to get out of bed because she still had no energy, and Altair had not show his face even once for some reason. Hence, she asked Mrs. Ritti where he was. That was how she came to hear that Altair was helping the villagers a lot these days, as they were busy cultivating the fields. However, there was no mention of him preparing the fruit for the juice she would drink.

“He was sitting under a tree today peeling the fruit. I thought he was deliberately sitting at a place where the madame could see him, or was on a watch out in case you ran away due to fear. But…”

The doctor paused and looked at the tightly closed window with the curtains drawn. Nadia could not see the outside from her bed, as Mrs. Ritti had closed the window, saying that any cold wind would be bad for her health.

Could it be that Altair is over there right now?

“Wait, if you suddenly get up like that!”

Nadia quickly got out of bed despite the doctor’s warning and opened the window wide. And it was as he said, Altair sat in a very noticeable place. A basket full of fruit was placed in front of him, and he was leaning against a tree with his eyes closed, perhaps taking a break.

So Altair really…

Every day, Nadia could not help but wonder about the strange smile Mrs. Ritti gave her whenever she brought her juice. She even said that the juice was especially tasty because it was made with sincerity. She guessed she knew what that meant now. Nadia hurried her steps out of the room. Without a break, she headed straight toward the tree and stopped in front of Altair. He was soundly asleep, perhaps really tired.

Altair certainly did not seem to be in a good shape. Nadia caught her breath and carefully bent down to take a closer look at him. It’s been a long time since she had last seen him, so his face looked a little strange to her. It was new to see Altair wearing the labour clothes usually worn by farmers in the countryside.

His hair is a bit messy.

It was said that he was helping the villagers these days, so he probably didn’t have time to style his hair properly. If Pavel had seen this, he would have lamented that the lord’s image would be ruined.

And what is this?

Red pomella juice was splattered on his white shirt, leaving a mess. The juice was also smeared on his cheek.

…he looks just like a child.

Altair’s usual fierce demeanor was nowhere to be found in his comfortably sleeping appearance. It was cute to see him drop everything and fall asleep so peacefully, so Nadia couldn’t help but giggle.

I need to wipe the fruit juice off his cheek.

Nadia carefully reached out to wipe the juice from Altair’s cheek so he wouldn’t wake up from his restful slumber. Even though she tried to move as cautiously as possible, it still must have been felt by Altair’s greatly sharp senses. The moment Nadia’s hand touched him, he flinched then grabbed her wrist and flashed his eyes open.

As soon as she let out a small moan in pain, the pressure on her wrist loosened. When Nadia looked at Altair a little sulkily as she touched her wrist, his eyes widened.

“It hurts.”

As she pouted her lips in protest, Altair’s tightly closed lips slightly fell agape. While Altair was staring blankly at her, Nadia helped him tidy his hair. Soon, she frowned in worry.

“You must have been so tired that you didn’t know I was near.”

If it was Altair, he would have felt the presence of people even in his sleep.

“Aren’t you overdoing it? I heard you are helping the villagers with their work these days.”

“It’s not like that. It would be a shame on a knight’s name if I am tired from just this. It’s just…”

“Just?”

“Your presence brings so much comfort…that I’m not vigilant at all…”

Altair then grabbed her wrist again as if he realised something. Perhaps remembering that she said it hurt, his touch was cautious and gentle this time around.

“Is this a dream? Have I not woken up yet?”

“You think this is a dream?”

“… Did you want me to touch your hair?”

As Nadia tilted her head, Altair shook his head with a serious expression.

“I wished that your anger would subside, and that you would look straight at me again like before.”

“Oh.”

Come to think of it, was there a time when she was angry? No, the days of her resentment have long passed. Was it really that strange for someone who had been coldly indifferent a while ago to suddenly be like this? Nadia’s mind got complicated, and she tried to free her wrist from Altair unnoticed, but he stopped her by putting a little more strength into his grip.

“No. Whether it’s a dream or not, you can’t go.”

I wasn’t going anywhere.

Did he think she would go back? Just as Nadia was about to open her mouth to correct Altair’s misunderstanding, he lightly pulled on her wrist. With that, her body was dragged into Altair’s tight embrace. Her heart began thumping at the strange sense of security and familiar scent.