ITMWG 51

Chapter 51…

Can you call this a married couple?

Nadia could tell as soon as she saw Altair’s stiffened expression.

As expected, Altair…

She felt uncomfortable because she was not playing the role of the Baroness properly.

H-his eyebrows are furrowed…

He told her to rest comfortably, but she just couldn’t leave alone like this. When was she going to fulfill her role as the Baroness if it’s not now? She was determined that she would play the role of a decent mistress, but this disqualified her. Perhaps Altair didn’t point out the Baroness’ role for her at first because he wanted her to see the shortcomings herself. Or at least, that was what Nadia thought…

I’m glad I noticed it before it’s too late…

She sighed in relief and rekindled her will again. Since it took her some time to realise it, she was planning to strive harder for the image of a perfect baroness.

Besides, I have to protect Altair from the vicious Orca.

There was no time for her to waste.

“What on earth…How are you going to do well?”

Altair ran his hand down his face and let out a tired sigh. As his hand swept down his face, his sharp eyes met hers.

“Don’t do anything. You really don’t have to do anything.”

There was always strength in Altair’s gaze and voice. She was so overwhelmed for a moment that she almost nodded to it unconditionally, but thanks to her fiery will, she was barely able to hold her head upright.

“I know I’m not trustworthy. I’ve never served a guest properly before, so of course you’d be worried since I’m tending to a prince. But I won’t tarnish Aylesford’s name.”

“That’s not…”

Altair parted his lips, seemingly having a lot to say, but eventually gave up on the idea. Once again a long sigh escaped his mouth.

“But not yet. You haven’t recovered yet.”

“I’m fine. Really. I also helped clean up Leon’s doctor’s office today.”

“What? Why are you helping him with that? What are the servants doing?”

“Leon refused the Aylesford people’s help, saying he didn’t need it, so…”

“So you helped because you’re not an Aylesford?”

As Nadia answered the following questions, her shoulders gradually shrunk. She thought she had done her job properly, but Altair didn’t seem to think so. Altair must have felt that her voice was getting quieter, so he stopped questioning her and looked at her face intently. Nadia’s heart quivered that gaze.

“…”

As a strange silence fell between Nadia and Altair, Pavel, who had been quietly watching their conversation, quietly intervened.

“Madame. Why don’t you listen to the lord this once? As I see it, you definitely don’t have a good complexion.”

-That’s because Altair keeps pressing me…

Perhaps thanks to a few days of rest, her body felt very light when she opened her eyes in the morning. She didn’t feel languid either. But now her heart sank as if her good state at that time was all a lie.

“…I am well aware of my condition though.”

She admitted that she was a person who lacked many things, but she wasn’t an idiot who didn’t even know her own health condition. Her head drooped.

“I said I would do it because I could. I may be unreliable, but I will do my job right.”

“If it’s not that then…?”

When Altair tried to refute, something inside her choked up and she raised her head. She thought she had built up trust with Altair. She thought that even if she wasn’t a trustworthy wife, she did a good job showing him that she wouldn’t be a nuisance.

“Really, it’s not because you’re untrustworthy… I swear.”

Altair placed one of his hands on his chest and spoke calmly, but he never gave her the answer she was hoping for.

“Even if it’s not because I’m untrustworthy, something like this is shameful. If you have a reason why you don’t want me to work, you can tell me. Just banning me from doing anything without valid reason…it’s really offensive.”

This was just a repetition of what happened at the gathering. Weren’t husband and wife supposed to be equal? If it was just one side being protected alone…That couldn’t be called a couple.

I guess Altair and I aren’t a proper couple after all.

Nadia strained her eyes, refusing to blink. She was afraid that if she did, the tears that were welling up in her eyes, making them blurry, would trickle down her cheeks. Altair, upon meeting her gaze, widened his eyes in bewilderment.

“Nadia.”

“I am the Baroness of Aylesford. So, I will do my job.”

Altair might be angry that I’m being selfish.

But since Altair insisted on having it his way, she would do it her way too. She was also doing this to protect Altair.

Pavel’s shoulders drooped as he watched Nadia stomp away.

“…it seems she really has fully recovered.”

As he said that and turned to the side, Altair was looking at Nadia’s back with a dazed expression. Pavel sighed softly and patted Altair’s shoulder, bringing him back to his senses.

“What she said is right this time. How do you expect her to understand if you keep disapproving without a reason?”

“… I’m just worried about my wife.”

Altair protested lightly, but Pavel was already on Nadia’s side.

“I suggest you change the way you show your worry for her a little. She is your wife, my lord, not your subordinate. We follow your orders, but she is different. You can’t give orders to family members.”He didn’t know. Was the way he worried about his subordinates supposed to be different from the way he worried about his family? Altair didn’t understand at first and furrowed his brows. Since he had lost his family at a very young age, he did not know much about ‘how to care like a family member’. He had lived until now just thinking about how to protect his people, and in that way, he had been able to shield his territory and people without a hitch so far. But did family need something more than that? Was the desire to protect the other person alone not enough? Altair still had his usual expressionless face, but Pavel, who had served him for a long time, noticed the confusion underneath that mask.

It’s a little presumptuous, but…

Pavel decided to offer his little advice.

“Why don’t you be honest with the madame? Things like Aylesford’s situation and the lord’s concerns.”

“It’s something I can handle on my own. Why would I be talking about such tiresome things?”

“Because you are family?”

Pavel tilted his head indifferently.

“I often share such things with Blan. Of course, it usually goes into one ear and out the other…but that’s what family is all about.”

Altair listened to Pavel’s words in silence. He took Nadia as his wife in order to have an heir, and he intended to keep her as his partner. She had now become one of his people. But,…

“I know telling her all that won’t necessarily help the lord have an heir, but isn’t the madame your companion? We are a family that will be together for the rest of our lives.”

Family.

It’s obvious that his wife was family, but strangely, it didn’t feel real. ‘Family’ was something that was non-existent in Altair’s life after losing his parents in a tragic accident. Since his marriage was also a political decision, he did not think that he had gained a genuine ‘family’. The beat of his heart started to turn weird at the word. His whole family was burned to the ground. They all went down in flames. Bright, but a terror.

“My lord?”

Pavel, noticing that Altair’s complexion worsening, asked worriedly.

“Nevermind it.”

He raised his hand to stop Pavel, who was intending to check on him, and began to walk away. Pavel frowned with concern at the somehow precarious appearance.

Did I make a mistake…?

But Pavel quickly shook his head.

It’s a problem that he must overcome.

He knew that there was something weighing down at the depth of Altair’s heart. It was something that no one could touch. But at some point, Pavel noticed that a being was slowly approaching it. It was Madame Nadia, who became Baroness Aylesford through an arranged marriage.

If she could just reach that deepest part inside his lord…

Pavel quickly followed behind Altair, keeping that ray of hope to himself.

After yelling at Altair and stomping away, Nadia ended up in the garden. The master bedroom she shared with Altair, the study full of books that Altair enjoyed, the dining room where she always ate with Altair…As she searched for a place with no traces of Altair, she seemed to have instinctively chosen the garden.

At least I could have this space to myself.

Altair was a rather grey person, so he didn’t often visit the garden full of flowers and trees.

In the first place, taking care of the garden is the job of the lady of the house.

Therefore, many people judged the mistress’s sense by how beautifully and well-maintained the garden was. For that reason, when renovating the castle, the garden was the part that required the most effort, along with the parlor. In fact, no matter how well it was decorated, the scenery of the garden could be regarded as monochrome. Pretty flowers, full of greenery, and a fountain spouting water…It may have some unique features, but the overall framework still looked similar to others. For that, she paid more attention to scent than anything else while creating the garden so that one could feel as if a good scent wrapped around their whole body as soon as they stepped inside.

What you see with your eyes is easily forgotten, but the memories you make with your sense of smell last a long time.

“Baroness?”

She opened her eyes as a familiar voice reached her ears. When she turned her head to where the sound came from, she saw Prince Orca sitting at a table in the corner of the garden.

Since Altair had already left, Nadia had presumably thought Prince Orca wouldn’t be there either…

“I guess the Baron was very busy so he left first and I was left alone. If you mind, can you sit down in his place?”

“Ah.”

Prince Orca smiled softly and naturally offered a seat. It was such a natural gesture that a person who was oblivious to the circumstances would have mistakenly thought that Prince Orca was the owner of the garden. Did it all come naturally to all royal members to make such suggestions? As if it was a characteristic? Or was it just prince Orca? Although her mind was in turmoil, she had no justification for rejecting the prince’s request. Moreover, she had decided to keep a close watch on Prince Orca in order to protect Altair.

“I might not be a very good company because I don’t talk much, but…I think I can brew good tea.”

“Good tea?”

Prince Orca briefly looked at the cup in front of him at her words and burst out laughing. It had been quite a while since he had had tea with Altair, but his teacup was still full. While Nadia was blinking in confusion, Prince Orca picked up the teacup, spilled all the tea that had already cooled down on the ground, and smiled.

“Actually, that’s what I need the most. I drank some awful tea and my mouth is now left with a bad taste.”