TMGDW C4

Chapter 4

Jerome hid and watched her for a few more hours, but he did not sense any suspicious activity whatsoever. He reported directly to Calix.

“She went to the garden?” “Yes.” “…”

Was he unhappy that his wife had gone to the garden? Calix’s already frightening face grew even gloomier. “However, there were animals in the garden. Small creatures like squirrels and rabbits.” Calix stroked his chin, the corners of his mouth tightening slightly. “And? What did the woman do in the garden?” “She didn’t do anything unusual. She looked around the garden as if fascinated, and when the animals approached her, she didn’t chase them away; she took care of them.” “Is that all?” Calix gestured with his chin for him to continue. Jerome spoke honestly about what he had seen and felt. “From what I saw, she didn’t seem like a bad person.”

She also looked a little—no, a lot—lonely. He didn’t bother to add that last part. It was obvious he wouldn’t get a good reaction even if he mentioned it. It was a well-known fact among the entire order of knights, not just Jerome, that the Commander hated humans. Calix twisted one corner of his mouth in disbelief. “We’ll see what kind of person she is in due time.”

Just as Jerome had expected. Jerome looked at Calix’s profile, deeply rooted in misanthropy. At that moment, a fierce wind typical of the northern provinces blew by, stinging Calix’s cheek as if reprimanding him. “Damn it.” Faced with the uninvited wind, Calix deeply furrowed his brow and swept his black hair upward. No matter how much other people called him a monster, Jerome, who had watched him for a long time, knew better. Aside from the black eyepatch and his scar-ridden face, Calix was closer to a handsome man than a monster. Back when he didn’t a single scar on his face, practically no noble family failed to send him marriage proposals.

‘Then what wind blew to make him suddenly get married?’

“Um… Commander.” Unlike usual, Calix watched his hesitant adjutant with suspicious eyes. “If I may be so bold, might I approach your wife and examine closely what kind of person she is?” “…” It was typical of Calix that he would rather trust his adjutant, who had long rolled around the battlefield with him, than a wife he had laid eyes on for the first time just yesterday. At that time, Calix had no idea he would come to regret the answer he was about to give.

Her heart fluttered needlessly the entire time she walked. It was because the time to have dinner with her husband was fast approaching. Sweat oozed profusely from Selena’s hands as she clutched her dress tightly.

‘Will he allow it?’ If her husband permitted her to feed the animals, she would probably be overjoyed enough to leap for joy.

Upon entering the spacious dining room, a rectangular marble table came into view. Steaming, freshly made dishes like stew and grilled fish rested on the table alongside dark red wine. A fireplace sat at the head of the table, and Calix, who had arrived first, was quietly gazing at the crackling embers fluttering in front of the fireplace.

For some reason, Selena couldn’t take her eyes off such a husband. The bridge of his nose, cast in deep shadows, was high and straight, and his lips were reddish as if he had bitten into a ripened pomegranate. His blue eyes, capturing the flickering flames, looked almost like blue waves, perhaps because they contrasted with his black hair. His facial scars were so insignificant compared to his strikingly handsome appearance.

As she watched him as if entranced, he slowly turned his head to look in her direction. “Sit.” His tone was as devoid of emotion as his gaze.

Confirming that Selena was seated, Calix called out to the servant standing by the door. “Check it.” It was the procedure to check whether the food was poisoned. The servant faithfully followed his command. Only after confirming that eating it posed no problem did Calix pick up his knife and slice the steak in front of him. That sight felt rather graceful to Selena. Unlike her own tiny hands, his hands were exceptionally large—the very hands that had held her and laid her down on the bed last night.

“No appetite?” Calix lowered his cutlery and leaned back. Thanks to this, his large pectoral muscles, visible through the gaps in his clothes, came into view. His ferocious upper body, covered in muscle, looked somewhat like a weapon.

“Um, Your Grace, the knot on your clothes… has come undone.” At Selena’s words, Calix tilted his head slightly to look down at his attire. Sure enough, the knot must have loosened when he leaned back, and his upper body was now fully exposed. “You aren’t the kind of woman to be embarrassed by something like this.” Those were the words Calix spat out as he retied his clothes nonchalantly. By this point, Selena couldn’t help but wonder what on earth her father had said to him when selling her off. However, she couldn’t ask out loud, either.

“Why did you go to the garden?” How did her husband, who was always at the training ground, know she had been to the garden? “You told me I could wander anywhere except the training ground.” The corners of Calix’s mouth twisted. He took a sip of wine and said, “Are you trying to play the lady of the house already?”

Selena shook her head vigorously. That wasn’t the intention behind her words. She just needed to be here. “If you want, I won’t take a single step out of the bedroom.” Calix gave no response to Selena’s words. Encouraged by his silent, steady gaze, Selena stammered onward. “I was walking in the garden earlier and saw animals. Small, cute animals like squirrels and rabbits. If it’s alright, I was hoping you might grant permission to… feed them.”

Before Selena could even finish her sentence, Calix set down the glass in his hand with a sharp clatter. The glare he shot her was quite fierce. In the uncomfortable silence, only the sound of cutlery tapping against plates echoed.

How much time had passed like that? What broke the silence between them was Calix’s irritated voice. “Let me correct myself. If you want, you can wander around the training ground or anywhere else. Of course, I won’t stop you from going outside the castle or feeding the animals.” “Pardon?” At words she hadn’t expected at all, Selena’s already large eyes grew as big as saucers. “Instead, wherever you go and whatever you do, you must take my adjutant with you.” “When you say adjutant…?” “Jerome.”

At Calix’s call, Jerome, who had been waiting like a shadow, immediately stepped forward. Startled, Selena flinched, and Jerome placed one hand over his chest, speaking in a calm tone. “My apologies if I startled you, Your Grace. My name is Jerome Devan Heinrich.”

The man with dark-gray hair, bowing politely as he introduced himself, was someone she remembered seeing earlier at the training ground. Unlike the other knights who were swinging their swords diligently, he was the one standing by her husband’s side with his sword holstered in its scabbard. “Nice to meet you. I’m Selena.” “Please feel free to call me Jerome.” “Ah, then Jerome…”

As Selena carefully uttered his name, Jerome smiled around his eyes and nodded. Calix, who had been watching the two in silence, opened his mouth. “I’ll be getting up now.” “Ah.” Seeing him turn his back without a trace of lingering attachment, Selena hastily grabbed Calix’s fluttering hem as he brushed past her. Even though she only touched it lightly, a deep furrow formed between Calix’s brows. At the chilly gaze directed at her, Selena slowly released her hand and replied, “I haven’t thanked you properly yet… Thank you for granting my request.” “…”

When Calix tilted his head in silence, Selena’s clear sky-blue eyes filled completely with Calix’s face. As her husband stared straight at her, her mind went completely blank. “Ah…” Selena sighed without realizing it. The neckline extending over his black collar and the firmly pressed lips oozed masculinity. How on earth had this man come to be called a monster? Selena simply could not understand the people who called her husband a monster.

“Do you really think you should be thankful?” She didn’t know what intent lay behind the question, but Selena was nodding as if entranced. Tilting his head, he grabbed Selena’s chin with one hand. Startled, Selena gasped, and Calix immediately let go, saying in a cold voice, “If you’re thankful, repay me in the bedroom.”

That was hardly something a man who had walked out of the bedroom last night should say. Without so much a glance back at her as she stammered, Calix smoothly vanished down the corridor.

“He’s normally like that, but you don’t need to worry.” Even as he spoke, Jerome didn’t know why he was making excuses for his superior’s behavior. He had known him for a long time, but Calix was truly nothing short of a madman. He acted as though he had no concept of the word consideration. Having spent no less than ten years together rolling around on the battlefield, he was still an incomprehensible superior. “Even though his face is scary and his mouth is quite rough, he’s not really such a bad person…” “I know.” “Pardon?” “I knew he wasn’t a bad person from the moment I first saw him.”

Selena smiled faintly as she looked at the spot where Calix had left. With a shy blush rising on her cheeks, her smiling appearance looked precisely like a woman deeply in love. ‘Good grief…’ Jerome momentarily doubted his own eyes. It seemed he finally understood the meaning behind his superior’s words when he had called her suspicious.

Dusty floors, sunlight piercing through a crack in the window no wider than a handspan, old mold stains, and the damp smell of rotting wood. Her childhood days, when she was driven up to the attic of the annex under the pressure of Viscountess Celius. Every night, her mother would sing her a lullaby.

Baby, oh baby. Even if the dark night, heavily draped by the curtain of darkness, tries to swallow you whole, do not be afraid. Dana, the God of Light, will protect you. When sorrow rushes in like water, please do not hold back your tears. Nieve, the goddess who descended to earth, will soothe your sorrow.

Selena used to fall asleep listening to her mother’s soft singing. However, starting from a certain moment, her mother’s words noticeably decreased, and she no longer sang lullabies.

Ah, her mother has turned her back again, moving far away from me, leaving me behind. ‘Don’t leave me all alone.’ Selena reached out toward her retreating mother, but she had already vanished beyond the mist.

Then, suddenly, the scenery changed. Everything became blurry, save for the voices she could hear. Over the mist-blurred landscape, only a man’s voice remained clear.

｢Does sitting around and crying your eyes out ever solve anything?｣

As she forcefully held back her tears, a rough hand roughly ruffled her hair before pulling away. ｢Good job.｣ ｢…｣

It was a clumsy yet affectionate touch. The moment she opened her mouth to ask who it was, brilliant moonlight poured in through the window.

‘When did I fall asleep?’ Before she knew it, a single tear was trailing down the corner of Selena’s eye. Wiping her eyes roughly, she raised her head. Calix, with a dry expression, was looking down at her from above.