Chapter 5

ㅤ”……You stayed up late again, didn’t you?”
ㅤ”N-No, I didn’t.”
ㅤ”Look me in the eye and say that.”
ㅤ”Ugh……”
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ㅤChelsea, who hung her head and apologized, seemed to be embroidering every night. It’s been a week since I received the ribbon. Since then, two embroidered handkerchiefs have been added, and now she’s probably working on a pillowcase. She apparently asked the butler to buy a new one the other day, so I’m sure of it.
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ㅤ”I appreciate the thought, but if you collapse, who will feed me?”
ㅤ”……You said on the first day that you wouldn’t d*e if I left you alone for a bit.”
ㅤ”Oh? This mouth is the one that’s talking back to me, huh?”
ㅤ”Ouch! That hurts!”
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ㅤWhen I lightly pinched her soft cheek, Chelsea made a big fuss. I caught her waist as she playfully tried to escape and pulled her onto the bed, where she landed with a soft thud.
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ㅤChelsea, who has become much more comfortable around me, smiles much more often than before. It makes me happy to think that this is her true self and that she’s able to act this way. And she’s gradually become more affectionate. Even now, if I move the hand I removed from her cheek to the back of her head and gently pull her closer, she obediently leans against me. I’ve come to think of her as dear to me.
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ㅤ”……I know it’s just a placebo. With my meager magical power, it doesn’t matter how much I imbue into objects. But I can’t help but do something.”
ㅤ”Yeah. Thank you.”
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ㅤIf I left her alone, I think she would silently embroider everything. Pillowcases, pajamas, sheets.
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ㅤ”But you have to spend time with me too. I’m bored to death.”
ㅤ”Is it okay for you to stay awake?”
ㅤ”Yeah. Strangely, the lethargy has gotten a little better, so my naps have been shorter lately.”
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ㅤPerhaps it’s a case of mind over matter, or perhaps it’s simply that my physical strength is returning with time. I’ve been dozing off less even after Chelsea returns to her room after lunch.
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ㅤ”That’s right. Why don’t you do it in this room?”
ㅤ”Won’t I be in the way?”
ㅤ”I’m telling you I’m bored. I’ll be reading a book or something, so let’s take a break together when you’re tired.”
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ㅤIf she’s within my sight, I can make sure she takes breaks properly. No matter how young she is, her body will hurt if she works all the time.
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ㅤ”Spend some time with me.”
ㅤ”Lord Oswald, you’re like a child.”
ㅤ”Yes, I am. And you’re the one taking care of me.”
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ㅤSmiling and saying,”You’re right,”she started spending the afternoons in my room as well, starting the next day. My small world, which had been filled with nothing but magic for so long, is now filled with my lovely fiancée.
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ㅤA few more days passed, and I had recovered enough to stand and walk on my own. My magical power was still empty, but perhaps my body was getting used to being in this empty state. Chelsea smiled happily when I was able to sit and eat with her.
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ㅤAfter finishing the pillowcase, she actually started embroidering my pajamas. The pace has slowed down because I make her take breaks and sometimes stop her from working to read, but I think the day she starts on the sheets is drawing near. Also, to prevent her from working all night, I make her leave her tools behind when she leaves the room.
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ㅤ”……Lord Oswald, don’t you look better?”
ㅤ”Do I?”
ㅤ”I feel like the miasma haze has thinned a little.”
ㅤ”Maybe you’re just used to seeing it.”
ㅤ”Hmm……Now that you mention it, maybe you’re right.”
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ㅤIt was two days after that conversation. In the afternoon, I was gazing absentmindedly at Chelsea, who was still diligently embroidering.
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ㅤI felt a little sleepy and dozed off slightly. I think it was only for five or ten minutes. When I opened my eyes again, I realized my body was trembling with a feeling of nostalgia.
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ㅤ”……Chelsea.”
ㅤ”Yes, what is it?”
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ㅤHer hair, which she raised as she said,”You were awake?”flowed smoothly and covered her eyes. Before her hand could brush it away, I pointed my finger, and a small breeze arose.
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ㅤ”……Lord Oswald, just now……”
ㅤ”Yeah.”
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ㅤHer voice trembled as she repeated,”Just now.”The small breeze moved in a way that was unnatural for a natural phenomenon, tucking her hair behind her small ear. It seems my fiancée isn’t so oblivious as to not understand what that means.
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ㅤI hear the sound of her crying out loud near my ear. Chelsea, who apparently rushed to my side in an instant, is clinging to me and sobbing. She keeps crying, saying,”I’m so glad, I’m so glad, I’m so happy,”and as I hug her back, I think to myself that I’m happier that she hugged me first.
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ㅤ”Are you sure you’re okay to be up?”
ㅤ”Yeah. Although I can’t really help with anything.”
ㅤ”Hehe.”
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ㅤOne day, I casually mentioned that I wanted to eat something sweet for a change, and Chelsea said,”I can make it.”I said it with the intention of asking her to share the store-bought sweets she was eating during our break time, but those words brought unexpected good fortune. I persuaded her, who immediately said,”But it would be tastier if we bought it,”and now she’s in the kitchen.
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ㅤ”……It seems like it requires quite a bit of strength.”
ㅤ”It’s just the beginning.”
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ㅤShe’s apparently making pound cake. Chelsea, who had been silently mixing butter and sugar until a moment ago, cracks eggs into a separate bowl. She mixes a little of the well-beaten eggs into the butter, mixes it, adds a little more, and mixes it again.
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ㅤ”Can’t you just add it all at once?”
ㅤ”If you don’t mix it in gradually, it will separate.”
ㅤ”Hmm.”
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ㅤI offered to take over the mixing, but she insisted that I should rest. Since my magical power and physical strength have only recovered slightly, I obediently listen to her. If I were at my peak, I could have mixed it for hours with magic.
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ㅤAnyway, Chelsea finished making the pound cake without my help. She prepared tea and suggested we have it at the table in the garden.
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ㅤ”……How is it?”
ㅤ”Yeah, it’s delicious. Maybe even better than what you can buy at a store.”
ㅤ”I’m glad.”
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ㅤEven without considering the fact that it was homemade by my fiancée, the moist pound cake was truly delicious. It’s been a while since I’ve been out in the garden, so the sunlight and refreshing breeze also contribute to my good mood.
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ㅤ”You like baking, huh?”
ㅤ”It’s not that I particularly like it, but……”
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ㅤChelsea’s hand, which was holding the teacup, stops. Her expression, which had been calm until a moment ago, clouded over, and I couldn’t help but call her name.
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ㅤ”Chelsea?”
ㅤ”……Ah, no, um……My sister often told me to make it.”
ㅤ”……I see.”
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ㅤMy mood instantly plummeted. I inadvertently brought up Lily again after a long time. She seemed to be enthusiastically making it, even though it was quite a bit of work, so I thought it was one of her hobbies, but if she was forced to do it, it might not have been very enjoyable.
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ㅤ”Sorry. If you don’t really like it, then you don’t have to……”
ㅤ”No! No, um……If you liked it, I want you to eat it. From now on too.”
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ㅤSeeing her smile with a troubled expression as she said,”I want to make it for Lord Oswald,”I feel a surge of anger inside. What a failure she is not. Even without strong magical power, Chelsea can do many things. She can make people, she can make me, happy with a genuine smile, not a troubled one.
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ㅤI strongly wished for magical power. I wanted magic that could erase the deeply rooted memories of the Saint from her heart.