Chapter 19

"Milord, there are documents you need to look at right now..."

"Shh."

Pavel, who had opened the door and stepped into the room, was silenced by Altear's gesture. Altear was sitting against the headboard of the bed, his upper body wrapped in bandages, while Nadia lay asleep in an uncomfortable position beside him. It seemed she had fallen asleep while nursing him in the chair. Altear, without looking at Pavel, kept his gaze fixed on Nadia, gently smoothing her scattered hair on the bed. Despite the seemingly ordinary scene, Pavel felt an odd tension and swallowed hard. Should he go in or turn back? As Pavel hesitated, holding the door, Altear clicked his tongue and gave him a look.

"You, don't just barge in like that. This isn't just my room, you know."

"I don't do that when I come to see Lady Nadia. It's because you're here that I do. You would know my presence even in your sleep, wouldn't you?"

Feeling embarrassed, Pavel cleared his throat and stepped inside.

"Lady Nadia must be very tired."

"Well... She's been busy trying to nurse me for a few days now."

"Are you faking it even though you know all that?"

Pavel narrowed his eyes and looked at Altear's wound, which was tightly bandaged. Altear had always lived with various injuries, and while this one was quite serious, it wasn't bad enough to keep him bedridden for days. Given his usual recovery rate, he would have been back to swinging his sword in the training ground by now.

'But this time...'

Pavel's gaze shifted to the sleeping Nadia. Since the appearance of the lovely lady in the colorless Eilsford, the lord, who had always been rigid, seemed to be changing gradually.

"This time, I just wanted to rest. Dealing with the dragon was exhausting, even for me."

Altear grumbled, making excuses, but he couldn't bring himself to lie and say it wasn't an act. It wouldn't have fooled Pavel anyway.

"Why are you so embarrassed? Resting is a good thing. It's just that you never listened when I told you to rest, and now you're suddenly doing this, so it's hard to get used to."

"Don't say things you don't mean. A guy like you showing up with a pile of documents?"

"It means the matters are urgent. The protest from Lord Galad about the mine development... These are documents you need to see, Milord."

"Lord Galad?"

Altear, who had been casually dismissing Pavel's words, frowned and gestured for the documents. He easily found the paper with Lord Galad's seal among the pile Pavel handed him. The content was brief.

"Pay the price for insulting the lord? And that price is a share of the mine?"

"It's nonsense, but Lord Galad has considerable influence in the east... It's quite a headache."

"You talk big, but you were trembling and running away in front of me."

"A lord is a lord, even if he's a coward. Titles are absolute. While I was satisfied with what happened that day, now that I have something to protect, I should be more careful."

"Something to protect..."

Altear had always been able to sweep through his surroundings recklessly because he had nothing to lose. This allowed him to have the upper hand over those with much to protect. But now, Altear had something to protect too.

'For example, this girl who exhausted herself trying to nurse me and fell asleep.'

Altear looked at Nadia with a complex expression. When he had brought in a wife to secure an heir, he hadn't expected this situation. Perhaps because of the prejudice that ladies from the capital would be reserved and haughty, he had thought their relationship would be merely formal and obligatory. But the woman who came to Eilsford as his wife was very different from what he had expected...

"Ugh..."

Nadia shifted in her uncomfortable sleeping position, and Altear's shoulders tensed. Pavel, finding the scene amusing, suppressed a laugh. The idea that the fearless Altear was fidgeting over a small woman's movements was quite a change.

'Is this a good change?'

How many times had he worried as a subordinate, seeing Altear throw himself into dangerous situations without hesitation? Now, at least, Altear had a brake.

"Ignore Lord Galad's protest. He's all talk and no action. As for the mine development..."

Altear trailed off and carefully got out of bed. The feeling of being cared for wasn't bad, and he had stayed in bed for a few days, but with work piling up, he couldn't afford to be lazy anymore.

'Besides, this girl seems to have reached her limit.'

Altear gently lifted the uncomfortably sleeping Nadia and placed her in the spot he had just vacated. She seemed to like the cozy bed, as she snuggled deeper into the warm blanket even in her sleep.

'I can't make her suffer more for my sake... huh?'

Altear, who was tucking the blanket around her, frowned at the clear handprint on Nadia's wrist. Nadia had said it was nothing, but it looked like a bruise was forming. After a moment of thought, Altear straightened up and quickly left the room. Pavel hurried to follow.

"...Pavel."

"Yes."

"I've changed my mind. We need to properly deal with Lord Galad. That way, he won't dare do this again."

"He's a lord... What do you plan to do?"

"Don't worry. I have a plan. And..."

"Yes."

"Get some good ointment for the bruise."

"Huh?"

Pavel, who had been tense and waiting for the next words in the serious conversation, let out a hollow laugh. But Altear's expression remained serious.

"Not the cheap stuff the knights use, but a proper one. Understand?"

* * *

'It smells good...'

I was buried in a pleasant warmth and smiled happily, but then I realized something was off and opened my eyes wide. A cozy bed, a quiet atmosphere, a dark room.

'Oh no! What time is it?'

I desperately tried to recall my memories. I remembered dampening a towel with warm water and gently wiping Altear's face, then sitting in the chair for a moment to rest, but everything after that was a blank.

'And how did I end up in bed?'

Thinking I had taken the patient's place, I quickly got out of bed, but I couldn't find Altear anywhere. Confused, I blinked, and just then, the door opened. I turned my head to see Altear stop in his tracks at the door.

"Uh..."

"Surely you didn't come to chase me away without knocking?"

"No, no! I was just wondering if you could walk around now... Is your wound still painful? Is it bleeding? The doctor said you might have a fever, so you might need to take some medicine."

I cautiously approached Altear and looked at his abdomen. His shirt made it hard to see the wound, so I hesitated. Altear sighed and pulled his shirt up.

"It's fine. I don't need the bandages anymore."

As Altear said, the bandages that had been tightly wrapped around his wound were gone. It was hard to believe the wound had healed so quickly in just a few days.

"I recover faster than ordinary people due to the influence of aura. So you don't need to worry."

'I see.'

Now I understood why the doctor and others had been so calm about his serious wound.

"..."

"..."

After a brief exchange, we ran out of things to say. Altear and I stood in front of the door, both silent, in an awkward standoff.

"Um..."

Fortunately, Altear spoke first.

"I brought some ointment."

"Ointment?"

Altear handed me the envelope he was holding. Inside was a large glass bottle of ointment, as he had said.

'Ah! It's for the wound?'

Even though the wound had healed, it would need careful attention for a while.

"I'll apply it for you!"

"Um, what?"

"You'll probably find it difficult to apply it yourself. If you take off your shirt and lie down on the bed, I'll do it for you!"

Excited to find something to do as a wife, I beamed, but Altear looked speechless.

'Am I not trustworthy?'

I felt my shoulders droop, but I decided not to give up. I couldn't be a wife if I gave up easily on such tasks.

"I can do it well! I'll be careful not to hurt you."

"..."

"Are you worried? I might be clumsy, but I can do it well..."

I had been diligently nursing Altear for the past few days, but maybe that wasn't enough to earn his trust. My head hung low, and then I heard a groan from above. Altear's voice followed.

"Um... Lie down on the bed? Take off your shirt?"

I looked up at his positive response, and Altear was already walking to the bed, albeit with a limp. It seemed his wound had healed, but he wasn't fully recovered yet.

'So applying the ointment is very important!'

I approached the bed with renewed enthusiasm. Altear hesitated, then took off his shirt and lay down carefully. I sat on the bed and opened the ointment, and the distinctive smell of the medicine filled my nose. I scooped some ointment with my hand and gently applied it around the wound. The sensation was different from touching my own soft skin; it felt firm.

'Something feels strange.'

But now wasn't the time to think about that. Every time my hand touched his abdomen, Altear flinched and shivered. He must have been in pain, even if he didn't say anything.

'What should I do...'

I tried to be even more careful, but Altear's shivering didn't improve much. His face was flushed, indicating how much pain he was in.

"Um... That's enough, I think."

Just as our eyes met, Altear reached out to stop me from applying more ointment.

"Huh? We need to apply more."

"It's fine. Really, it's fine. I don't think we should do more."

Confused, I blinked, and Altear bit his lip and gently pulled my wrist.

"I've applied it, so you should too."

"But I'm not hurt."

"There's a mark on your wrist."

"It will go away on its own. Besides, this isn't even my ointment..."

"It's a general-purpose ointment. It should work on that too."

"Really? Do they have such miraculous ointments in the east?"

Wow, that's amazing. As I marveled at the glass bottle, Altear started applying the ointment to my wrist. His large hands were rough, but his touch was surprisingly gentle.

"Tickles!"

I burst out laughing, and Altear stopped, perhaps thinking it was a mocking laugh. I quickly explained that I was just ticklish, and when I looked up, Altear's face was right in front of mine.

'Why is he so... close?'

We were so close that we could feel each other's breath. My heart started pounding as soon as I realized this.

I couldn't pinpoint the exact reason for my racing heart, but one thing was clear...

'I'm not scared.'

At this moment, Altear didn't seem scary at all.