TMGDW C10

“……Did you two have a fight?”

Kalix’s sharp gaze shot toward Jerome.

“Why are you curious about such a thing?”

“It’s strange because the person who always comes hasn’t come, that’s why.”

At those words, Kalix raked a hand through his hair somewhat irritably.

“It is a matter between husband and wife. It is not something for you to butt into.”

Kalix was right. Yet Jerome could not help but care about Selena. For she was a person who had merely been gazing quietly at Kalix from an inconspicuous corner of the training ground, fearing she might become a hindrance.

“If you have the spare energy to care about my wife, pay attention to the expedition two days from now instead.”

Kalix lightly tapped Jerome’s chest with a fist and went inside the castle. Nevertheless, Jerome’s eyes remained fixed not on Kalix’s retreating back, but on the spot where Selena always stood.

Just then, a knight who had made sure Kalix had entered approached Jerome and spoke to him.

“Vice Captain, I have something to tell you.”

“What is it?”

“That is……”

The knight hesitated to answer. Seeing his face agonize over whether it was alright to speak, Jerome crossed his arms.

“I suppose it’s a matter you can’t speak to the Commander about?”

The knight who had brought it up grew eyes as big as saucers.

“How did you know?”

“It’s obvious, seeing as you brought it up the moment the Commander went inside.”

Hearing Jerome’s reply, the knight nodded his head, uttering an ‘I see.’ However, the knight still hesitated to speak.

“Speak up quickly. If I don’t run you all hard, the one who gets scolded by the Commander is me.”

“T-That is……. That is……”

“Frustrating fellow. Surely you aren’t doing this on purpose because you don’t want to train, are you?”

“No way!”

The knight shook his head vigorously. Jerome clicked his tongue and gulped down water in large swigs. Glancing around while drinking, more than half the knights were sneaking glances in this direction while pretending to train.

‘They’ve all grown slack. I’ll have to run them harshly today.’

It was right as he was about to swallow the water while thinking so.

“……I-Is the Vice Captain in a romantic relationship with Her Highness the Grand Duchess?”

“Pfft!”

Water erupted from Jerome’s mouth like a fountain. Water dripped continuously down the face of the knight who suddenly suffered a shower of water.

“What kind of absurd nonsense……”

It was a question he had never even imagined.

“Because you two are together every day, I thought that was the case……”

“The Commander is too scary! You go much better together with the Vice Captain.”

“That’s right. Every time the Commander speaks, I’m on edge just watching, so how hurt must she be……”

Taking this as their cue, the knights each added a word while Jerome pressed a hand to his forehead.

“You lot, never bring up such words in front of the Commander.”

“We’re only saying this because we’re in front of the Vice Captain.”

“Does the Vice Captain truly have no feelings at all?”

It was not unreasonable for the knights to think that way. For he had remained by her side under the pretext of surveillance for a whole hundred days or so.

Jerome knew very well what kind of treatment the Commander he endlessly respected received from people. Monster, bloodthirsty killer, war demon…… Every kind of bad rumor imaginable was all his.

Despite being a war hero who saved this rotten Empire from crisis, he was called like that. Of course, he himself seemed not to mind rumors in the slightest, but Jerome thoroughly disliked his respected Commander receiving such treatment.

That was why he conversely harbored immense vigilance toward Selena, who showed no sign of dislike even upon seeing his face. She was sold off, so how could she look at him as if he were so radiant?

Yet at the end of Selena’s gaze, Kalix was indeed always there, and when looking at him, a gentle smile hovered around her lips. When their eyes happened to meet, the corners of her eyes would curve delicately into a bright smile as well.

That smile was dazzling. And it was fascinating. To watch him—whom even the knighthood members feared—as if he were pricelessly precious. When she asked a question after deliberating for several days, it would often be met with short, single-word answers, yet she even looked joyous over that.

｢Does the Vice Captain truly have no feelings at all?｣

No feelings at all.

‘No.’

Jerome himself knew the answer. If Kalix was at the end of Selena’s gaze, she was at the end of his gaze. Because the person who used to be where his eyes reached was nowhere to be seen today, he felt anxious. Mixed with anxiety and longing, an emptiness washed over him like a surging tide.

At the knight’s words, Jerome finally faced his feelings completely.

“……As if that could be.”

“Is that true?”

“Yeah. Stop talking nonsense and train. Prepare yourselves, because today will be harder than usual.”

“Ugh!”

The knights let out groans of complaint. Jerome let out a soft chuckle as he looked at those knights.

This feeling that had bloomed as it pleased was something he would hold onto alone for the rest of his life until the moment he died. No one must know.

Having skipped breakfast, Selena coughed continuously inside the room.

“Cough, cough.”

In the large fireplace, a warm bonfire was crackling away. Selena sat quietly in front of it, watching the flickering flames. Her body shivered and chills set in; it seemed she had caught a cold.

‘I need to feed the animals too.’

She pondered for a moment whether to ask Jerome to give it to them instead.

‘At this time, he must be at the training ground.’

Selena, who was about to leave the room, stopped in her tracks before the door. Had she not intentionally avoided going to the training ground as well, fearing she might pass it on to the knights for no reason? With the expedition not far off, she could not be a nuisance.

Jerome often made her feel at ease with amusing jokes, so without realizing it herself, she must have been relying on him greatly.

“Cough! Cough!”

After coughing, Selena wrapped her arms around her shoulders and slid down onto the floor.

‘Who should I ask?’

People working in the castle were more than abundant, but she hesitated to ask. Everyone felt uncomfortable around her, the Grand Duchess. That was natural, of course. For there was no one who served Kalix—who was called the Monster Grand Duke—with all their heart and soul.

Once Kalix finished the expedition and returned safely, they were all bound to be dismissed anyway. Though there were many who wished to work at the Grand Ducal Castle due to the high pay, loyalty did not exist for them. They never struck up a conversation with Selena first, and it was a common occurrence to withdraw as soon as their work was done.

Above all, if her husband learned that she had caught a cold, she didn’t know what he would say, so out of fear, she couldn’t bring up to anyone that she was sick.

‘Why am I so selfish?’

A wave of self-loathing washed over her.

‘Kalix will find out anyway when he comes to the room. It’s not something I can hide.’

However, the mere thought that there might never be a second time sharing a room with her husband made her heart feel as if it were aching.

At first, she intended to be satisfied merely watching from afar. Watching her husband training the knights in the training ground caused the corners of her mouth to loosen on their own. People who knew nothing called him a monster, but to her, he was light.

Shortly after they were married, a letter had come stating that Selena was invited to a banquet.

｢An invitation has arrived for Her Highness the Grand Duchess.｣

Selena’s hands trembled violently as she held the invitation. It was because terrible memories of her childhood in the Imperial Palace resurfaced.

Hundreds of pairs of eyes scanning her entire body, saying she was just like a living doll. Recalling those appraising gazes made her feel sick to her stomach.

However, the situation now was different from back then. Even though she was sold off, she was strictly the Grand Duchess. She didn’t know if a negative influence might fall upon her husband simply because she did not accept the invitation. Since she was used to suffering humiliation, she thought there was no reason to be afraid now.

‘But what if I go and become even more of a burden?’

It was right at that moment of worry. Kalix, who had approached behind her back at some point, snatched the invitation from Selena’s hand and tore it to shreds.

The invitation, which had become useless scraps of paper, scattered recklessly into the air.

｢To send an invitation all the way here out of pathetic curiosity. They certainly have nerves.｣

Kalix laughed coldly. The attendant who delivered the invitation was already stepping backward at a distance from the bloodlust emanating from his whole body.

｢If an invitation like this comes next time as well, tear it yourself. Throwing it into the hearth fire is fine too.｣

Pausing briefly, Kalix turned back to Selena.

｢Of course, if you wish to make a fool of yourself, you may accept the invitation, though.｣

Selena shook her head vigorously. Seeing Selena express her refusal with her whole body, Kalix laughed faintly.

｢Right. If you dislike it, express that you dislike it. Doing what you don’t want to do is something only fools do.｣

That strength, that smile, was as radiant as the sun in the sky, so she dared to hold him in her heart. She wanted to know everything about her husband. He was the person who showed a broader world to someone who was merely a frog in a well. She could not be a nuisance to such a person.

‘It’s wrong to continue staying in his room because of my selfishness.’

“Cough, cough!”

Selena pulled the doorknob while coughing. However, her fragile body collapsed after taking only a few steps down the hallway. Her body burned with fever. Perhaps because she hadn’t eaten anything, even her consciousness was becoming hazy.

Not a single person’s shadow could be seen in the wide hallway. So it was rather a relief. Because she could return to her room without being caught in this state. Selena painfully got up and headed to her room while leaning against the wall. Every single step was heavy, as if carrying a weight of lead.

“Haa, haa……”

Breathing raggedly, Selena barely reached the room where she used to stay. And as soon as she went inside, she lost consciousness and collapsed.