Chapter 49
Translator: wuttisyun
‘Right, Castor recommended me for this position.’
Did Granius think I was being favoured by Castor? What a horrible thought to have.
“I don’t know why you would think that.”
I glanced at him for a moment before tilting my head. I did not feel much pain from the fall I took just now since I knew that this was an amount of pain I could endure. So, he was half right and half wrong. Though Castor did not tell me to do such things, he was the one who drove me to do them.
“You were too calm when you said that you didn’t know. That’s not how someone who just fell from somewhere high would say.”
“Is that so?”
“That’s what it looked like to me.”
I had nothing to say in reply so I averted my gaze. I blinked just like that before turning back to him and gazing upon him slowly for the first time in two months.
I had not noticed since his eyes always felt so far away but the ones I was looking at now were warmer and more dependable than the aura he usually exuded.
When I saw his white toga fluttering in the wind, I decided to be honest.
“I’m only telling you this since I think I’ve been caught. I was honestly not that shocked.”
Erasing my naive expression with that of a collected one, I started at him calmly. I was not good at acting shocked.
After averting his brown eyes for a moment, Granius then looked back at me. He parted his lips and spoke.
He spoke slowly but his tone was strange.
“At first, when I heard that the Crown Prince left you as you were in your palace, I thought he was going to take you in and raise you as a templar.”
“Is that so?”
“Yes, most of the Imperial children would be either born as templars or would have abilities equivalent to that of one. However, you don’t have a talent for anything.”
This was a truth I had already accepted so I took it calmly.
“To be honest, I have no idea what His Highness is thinking. I only had questions the day he brought you in. You were not the type to come to such a place… Why would he bring the precious princess to such a place to do tedious work?”
That was because I was not precious to him?
Granius paused for a moment to sigh before continuing.
“He’s the strongest templar in current existence and the 1st Imperial Child who had been chosen to be the successor of the throne. He had such a brilliant image before it completely changed.”
“… Is he very different from when he was younger.”
“Yes, he is. He had been such an innocent and bright child. After some point, he changed.”
He gave a long sigh, looking distressed for some reason.
Castor’s childhood. I had never heard about it before. He had always been an adult in the novel. I continued to listen to him passively without giving any responses.
“But that’s not what’s important right now.”
It was not because I had no place to interject but more because he was such a calm talker.
“I have a nephew who’s a little younger than you. He’s my younger sister’s child but he was such a troublemaker. He had grown up preciously, with delicious foods and precious things at his fingertips as if that was only natural. Princess, you are only two years older than my nephew. Which reminds me, Princess.”
I raised my head.
“I had never seen any sort of childish desire within you, Princess. You must have grown up well as a Princess but even whilst you make tea, you are always so quiet. Where does your patience come from?”
Instead of giving him a reply, I stared back at him. I mulled over what to reply and rolled possible replies over my tongue before speaking.
“So you’re saying that I’m strange because I don’t bother you and I’m not greedy.”
pαndα`noνɐ1--сoМ “You don’t look your age is what I’m trying to say.”
“Well, it could be because I was forced to mature at a younger age which could explain my appearance.”
“That’s not what I’m talking about.”
I understood what he was trying to say.
He had thought I was a sheltered princess who had grown up preciously. Then, when I suddenly appeared in front of his eyes, he thought that it was strange that I had no complaints even when he treated me sloppily though I was just a child. He had thought that this entire situation was incomprehensible.
In other words, if the precious son of the chairman were to suddenly visit one day whilst bringing coffee as an employee and was able to retain his optimism even after being mistreated by his boss, I would have thought it was strange too.
After reaching my own conclusion, I looked at him calmly before nodding. But Granius shook his head firmly.
“From what I can see, your eyes are void of life.”
“Why are your eyes lifeless?”
Though I was not surprised, I flashed a frown before closing my mouth without giving him a reply.
I thought I had heard these words before and I realised Amor had told me the same thing. I looked down and stared at the floor meaninglessly for a moment. Granius sighed before continuing.
“It’s clear that he did not have a good influence on you, child.”
I wondered why. It sounded as if he blamed Castor for how I turned out and at the same time he sounded sorry for me.
“Go back home early and rest today.”
I got a half day. It was all because I had been strangled by the intruder. However, the carriage I always took back home only came at one specific time, sunset. So, I managed to find an empty room in the Administration and laid on the sofa.
While I spent time in a daze, I suddenly jumped up and stood in front of the mirror.
“Ah, a big problem arose.”
Still, I thought there would be no more traces left of his hands since I had only been strangled for a short amount of time but what was this? When I looked into the mirror, I could already see my neck starting to bruise.
It looked too disgusting to touch.
“Hannah will make such a fuss when she sees…”
If there had been anyone around me at the time like Soricks and Penne who treated me well, they would have tried to treat me themselves somehow. But they all went to help construct a sketch of the intruder and seemed to be busy so I quietly looked for the necessary herbs and bandages myself… The problem was that I had never done this myself.
“… I’ve never learnt how to do this even when I lived alone.”
I had never been hurt like this in my previous life. Even when I was hurt, there was a hospital three minutes away from me. I could even count the number of times I had to treat myself. Besides, I could not find the herbs. Even when I kept dying and regressing just a while ago, the pain I felt when I died was gone completely when I regressed so I had no need for treatment. Now, I was just a child who did not know how to treat herself but this was way too difficult and ridiculous.
“Ah… How bitter.”
I was currently in pain and needed someone who could worry about me and treat me but the place these people were in was too far away from here. If I went back home, there would be Hannah, Bess, Dane, Fleon and my nanny but there was no one here. The most important rule to keep when living alone was to never get hurt or sick. The reason behind it was simple. If I were to get sick or hurt, it would only hurt more and be harder to overcome alone. I would only feel lonelier, battling the pain myself.
Like how it was now.
No matter how I tried to feel better, I would still be lonely and it would still hurt.
“… I had been strangled by a stranger.”
I did not know why I suddenly thought of my father.
I thought I would have completely forgotten about him by now. My heart seemed to still long for him. I was in this much pain. I was having such a hard time.
“Is it really true?”
I turned to face the low voice.
Only a few steps away, I saw a shocked face.
“Hernan?”
“Princess! Is it true? Who strangled you?”
He strode towards me whilst talking rapidly as he tried to hold all the herbs and bandages in his arms.
“No, look here. How did you get—”
“The Aedile called for me. I don’t think that’s what matters right now.”
No, it mattered to me. A lot. Granius called for Hernandez? Why? I threw Hernandez a questioning gaze, openly expressing my suspicion. Unfortunately, he had no intentions of responding to me.
“Please excuse me.”
There was a crunching like sound next to my ears as his hands reached out to my head. He immediately sat me on the floor before holding the bandages in his hands.
“Grab onto me if it hurts.”
He made my other hand grab onto his thigh. I stared at him in a daze as he bowed his head. I held in my breath.
“Wait.”
“Please don’t say anything.”
Hernandez exuded the scent of a cozy blanket, a refreshing and pleasant scent that helped make people feel comfortable around him. For a moment, I imagined myself standing in a wide field with a cool breeze to my face. I spent a long time trying to describe this feeling and in the blink of an eye, he finished his treatment.
Even though he was putting a bandage on me, because of his careful hands, I barely felt any pain.
“Ha…”
But I continued to look ahead without breathing. His face was still too close.
“If I had known of the situation beforehand, I would have brought better herbs but I didn’t know the details.”
He mumbled before slowly backing away from me. Frowning, I touched my neck.
“You’ll only be getting black bruises tomorrow.”
“It’s fine.”
It was what I expected. It was hard to continue acting like a moron since I was tired. When could I go home? I glanced out the window to look at the sunset as he continued to stare at me.
Why was he not leaving?
“… The bandages, do they not hurt?”
“Yes, I don’t.”
Hernandez bit his lips.
“Has he gotten caught?”
“Well, I heard that he hasn’t been caught yet.”
I looked up at Hernendez for a moment, worrying about what I should do if he were to question me but instead, he said something unexpected.
“If you’re scared, you have to say that you’re scared. And when you’re hurt, you should say that you’re in pain.”
He looked into my eyes and spoke clearly. As if he wanted me to engrave his words.
“Were you scared?”
I was fine though.
I lowered my head. I realised that I had to act my age, pretend to be hurt and make a huge fuss.
“You’re right. I was scared.”
Hernan bent one knee and knelt in front of me. He placed his hands on the back of mine before saying.
“The troops from the Solatoruim are reliable so he’ll be caught soon.”
I looked down at him, unsure of what he wanted me to reply. For the past four months, whenever he saw me, he would stare straight at me from a lower eye level. To be honest, I felt strange whenever he did that.
I had not expected him to show up here and I had not expected this reaction. I wanted to remain flustered whenever I saw him.
“For the cherished you, I swear to never allow you to regret reaching out your hands to me.”
“I mean, did you need to go this far…”
But Hernan did not let me continue.
“No, I insist.”
I winced as my body trembled. My eyes widened as my upper body slouched over.
“You deserve to be treated like that and you have the authority to punish me whenever you wish.”
“Authority?”
“Please call for me.”
“What do you mean—”
I was left speechless. Before I even managed to finish speaking, Hernandez brought the back of my hand to his forehead.
“… No punishment you give me will make up for how scared you were at the moment.”
This was strange. He looked as if he felt really sorry for me.
Why?
If anyone sincerely cared about me, it would be Hannah, Dane, Fleon or even Sir Ray. It would not be Hernan.
“I was worried.”
I did not know why he looked so serious and sincere at this moment.
“As soon as I received the news, I ran over.”
I blinked my eyes again before looking into the eyes that were as clear as a lake. I lowered my gaze. I did not want to say anything but I had to play my part before he began to doubt me. He was Castor’s aide.
“I see. Thank you for worrying about me.”
His suspicions of me could make him change his mind anytime.
Actually, if Castor had not come after me, my view of Hernan would have been completely different. He was a loyal and decent man in the novel.
“From today forth, I will pay attention to your safety.”
He had liked Rusbella but he gave up neatly without the usual confession and instead, caught her when she was running away for his master.
He was the only one who worshipped Castor, willing to throw his life for him like a sunflower growing towards the sun that was Castor.
He was such a person in the novel.
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