87.
He stared at my face as I wandered somewhere between confusion and bewilderment, then grinned.
“Didn’t you see Julie leave just now, too dazed to nag any further?”
“……I did.”
“Is there a better way than this? It’ll draw less suspicion if I defend you than if you cut them off yourself, Baron.”
Was that really the only reason?
But I didn’t have the courage to ask.
I nodded, pretending to accept it well enough.
Jaka’s eyes narrowed.
“And what are you going to do about treatment?”
“Ah.”
It was about time I started thinking of a way.
The duke had said that if I found a suitable excuse to visit his side, he would attach a physician to me.
‘……But it seemed like he was injured too. Probably.’
At times like this, I thought it would be better for him to focus only on recuperating himself.
For the internal injury, I could take medicine.
For the external wounds, I could apply medicine to reduce the swelling and bruising, and I had planned to take off the bandages after a few days anyway.
‘But the back is definitely…….’
It was awkward to treat on my own.
“Are you going to help me?”
“There isn’t anyone more suitable than me, is there?”
“I could ask Sir Ijanar.”
“You shouldn’t commit such rudeness against a guest, Baron. You are the proper master of a mansion, aren’t you? Shouldn’t you start caring about things like dignity now? Surely you weren’t thinking of shamelessly asking for such a favor?”
Jaka’s words grew terribly long.
It also seemed like he was speaking faster.
‘I wasn’t planning to ask him anyway.’
When I giggled, Jaka, only then returning to his usual sullen expression, silently rubbed his cheek against my shoulder.
“……You were going to have me treat you anyway.”
“Mm.”
“And you tricked me.”
“Come on, I didn’t trick you.”
“Did it hurt earlier?”
Suddenly, Jaka lifted his head.
“Hm? Earlier?”
“When I…… put strength into it.”
His palm, without any force in it now, rested quietly on my stomach.
Uh, this was bothering me a little in a different sense.
If I laughed, the vibration would go through.
Wouldn’t it maybe…… jiggle a little?
Realizing my thoughts had wandered off, Jaka shook his head as if deflated and turned away.
That was when a knock sounded.
As if she hadn’t walked into a room where I was sleeping without permission before.
‘……Is it because I’m with Jaka?’
At any rate, Julie, belatedly going through the motions, slowly opened the door and appeared.
Carrying a full meal tray.
“Eat first, eat!”
“Eat before doing what?”
Dumbfounded, I looked up at Julie with a laugh.
“Anyway, you must be hungry. ……You always asked for food first when you woke up.”
Ah. I forgot to tense my stomach.
“……!”
When I quietly tensed my abdomen and then clenched my teeth at the lightning-like pain that struck through me, breathing roughly, I could feel Jaka silently exhale through his nose, as if he found me utterly pathetic.
Then he gently stroked down my cheek.
“You’re not going to get out of bed……?”
Julie asked with a strange expression.
“Mm. Could you put it on the bed?”
I leaned comfortably against Jaka and accepted the meal.
‘Right, she doesn’t seem to think even a little that I’m doing this because I’m hurt.’
I quietly avoided Julie’s gaze, where shock, sorrow, and a hint of reproach coexisted.
“But…….”
“Baron. You’ve got something here.”
Jaka swept his thumb over my cheek with an openly subtle voice.
Julie’s shoulders trembled, and then she backed away before slipping out of the room as if fleeing.
I opened my mouth.
‘I haven’t even taken a spoonful yet…….’
What could possibly be on my face?
Our eyes met, and Jaka smiled brightly at me.
For the first time, I noticed there was a pitch-black mole at the outer corner of his left eye.
“Now that I look, you have a mole here.”
As I held out my hand into the air, pretending to poke the mole, Jaka caught it.
His hand slid up my wrist and naturally laced his fingers with mine.
“You only noticed that now?”
“It’s close to your eye, so I didn’t notice.”
“You said my eyes were pretty before.”
I searched my memories in silence for a moment. But I came up empty.
I answered staunchly.
“I don’t really remember, but of course I think you’re pretty.”
I grinned.
“They’re just like the summer sky.”
“You said that too.”
“Really? Then you know now, don’t you? That I don’t lie.”
“You simply don’t remember.”
Jaka lowered his gaze and pulled up the corners of his mouth as if laughing despite himself.
“Then will you let go of my hand now?”
“…….”
“I’m hungry. I want to eat.”
Jaka released my hand with a deflated expression.
“Did you eat?”
“I’m fine. Please eat comfortably.”
It did seem a bit late for dinner.
Though in summer, the sun set late.
I was definitely so hungry I could die, but once the meal was in front of me, my throat felt rough.
I dipped a piece of bread torn along the grain deep into the steaming soup.
Unless it was quite soft, I didn’t think it would go down my throat.
Jaka, who until then had been watching me intently with his chin resting on my shoulder, asked,
“Is it injured?”
“Hm? Didn’t you already notice?”
“No. Your left eye.”
“Ah, this? Why?”
“It kept trembling faintly while you were asleep. You were frowning too, like it hurt.”
“It’s fine. They said nothing was wrong.”
“But there is pain?”
“Sometimes.”
I naturally brought my palm up and covered my left eye.
The bracelet was quiet.
‘……Well, it probably isn’t a big problem.’
It was natural for one’s eyesight to decline a little over the course of life.
I shrugged and smiled.
“Maybe an eyelash got in?”
I had just taken a big bite of the bread soaked thoroughly in soup and started chewing with a mumble when—
“Come here.”
He took hold of my head and gently pulled me closer.
My shoulder tilted with it.
In that position, Jaka wrapped one arm around my shoulders and lifted my chin.
“Stay still. Don’t move.”
Jaka’s expression was serious as he gently touched the corner of my rapidly blinking eye with his thumb.
Did he really think an eyelash had gotten in?
I comfortably leaned all my weight against him.
Honestly, it was comfortable too.
I stared up at his eyes.
In just a few more years, his features would grow stronger and become distinct in all sorts of ways.
Right now, his appearance emphasized a boyish beauty more.
He was going to grow even bigger than this later?
‘Either way, he’s handsome.’
Then he blew, softly, into my left eye.
When I blinked in surprise, he grinned.
“You’re not even going to take it, so don’t stare at me like you’re so bewitched.”
“Mm. You’re the one who pulled me into your arms in the first place.”
“Still, you can’t.”
“How petty.”
“There is a way you could look as much as you like.”
“I’m going to have soup.”
Jaka brought over the bowl of soup while still holding me in his arms.
He even brought a spoon and placed it in my hand, then gave me a look.
“You want me to eat like this?”
“It’s hard for you to sit up straight, isn’t it? Shall I feed you?”
“That’s all right.”
While I spooned up the soup, Jaka adjusted his posture a little and rested his chin on the crown of my head.
“Hey.”
“Have some more bread too.”
Still holding me, Jaka began waiting on me through the meal.
And it was strangely comfortable…….
So I didn’t refuse.
Jaka didn’t seem to have any intention of seriously demanding anything anymore, either.
That was right, wasn’t it?
It seemed I would have to make time soon to go find the ingredients to break the contract.
I had been putting it off until now for various reasons, but it wasn’t something I could keep delaying like this.
* * *
In the end, that day arrived.
‘I know the only way you can make up for this.’
‘Three days from now is Sir Ijanar’s birthday.’
While I’d done nothing but agonize over what to do, somehow that day now had only six hours left.
After taking a deep breath, I knocked on the door.
“Um, Sir Ijanar. Are you inside?”
Of course he was.
It hadn’t been long since that uproar with Idan, so he wouldn’t have any reason to rush out for a while,
and because of the bracelet, he had no reason to wander around elsewhere unnecessarily either.
The door opened at once.
As though he had just finished washing, he had a towel draped over his head.
……Or not? Had he come out in the middle of washing?
The number of water droplets falling onto the carpet was no small matter.
“Uh……. Should I come back in a little while?”
“No, it’s all right. Please come in and tell me. Would you like some tea?”
Prien opened the door wide.
“……Then I won’t refuse.”
The interior still had that characteristic atmosphere of having no lived-in feeling.
‘Well, I suppose so. Even if you added up all the days he’s used this room, it wouldn’t amount to much.’
I moved to the sofa, scanning the empty shelves and the overly bare walls with hawk-like eyes.
When I sat down quietly, he soon poured some tea and brought it over.
“I’m afraid this is all I had brewed a little while ago.”
He sat across from me with a slightly sheepish smile.
“Would you like to dry yourself off a little more first?”
When I asked while looking at his damp, long hair, his face flushed faintly.
“My apologies, for showing you myself in such a disheveled state…….”
“No, it’s fine. My hair is long too, so I know it takes a long time to dry.”
“Then, could you help me a little?”
“Pardon?”
On top of having tied his hair for him last time, now it seemed I had suddenly ended up drying it for him as well.
‘I-I can’t refuse……!’
When I looked at those eyes gazing at me as though he knew nothing at all, it felt like my conscience was pricking at me.
“Well, it’s not difficult. I’ll help you!”
I declared, springing up from the sofa.
He fixed his gaze on me as I approached, moving his head and smiling.
When I hesitantly sat beside him and reached for the towel,
he turned to look at me.
My eyes flinched.
A droplet of water that had flown from his hair ran down the corner of my eye.
Prien’s fingers moved up from my chin, along my cheek, and swept over the corner of my eye.
I swallowed hard.
Then he smiled again.