Chapter 52
At that moment, a violent coughing fit, as if someone had choked on something, erupted from across the room. It was the man dining alone.
As Lottie turned her gaze toward him, the man quickly unfurled his newspaper to block her line of sight.
‘So, Father sent a spy.’
Only then did Calyx’s outrageous words make sense. The two of them had been playing the role of perfect lovers to convince her father that they were truly in love.
“Well…”
“…”
“If it’s not the kind of learning one finds in books, could you tell me specifically what you mean?”
Lottie asked, her eyes curving sweetly. She was playing along with Calyx’s performance.
Whether it worked or not, the newspaper across the room trembled once more.
Lottie sent Calyx a meaningful smile, signaling him to keep the act going.
“Go on, tell me. How else will I know? Please?”
“…”
“Or… you could always sneak away to the resort and teach me there.”
As soon as those words left her mouth, a clatter sounded from the other table. The man had given up on eavesdropping and stood up.
Still holding the newspaper up to hide his face, the man hurried out of the restaurant. He was likely heading off to report to her father.
Once she confirmed the newspaper and the man had completely vanished from the terrace, Lottie’s expression shifted back to a dry neutrality as if nothing had happened.
“I’m getting better at this the more I do it.”
“…”
“How was I? I won’t end up making my debut as an actress at this rate, will I?”
Lottie laughed and tapped the table. Though, when no answer came, she withdrew her laughter awkwardly.
“You know that what I just said was acting, not the truth, right? You mustn’t misunderstand me and think I’m… promiscuous!”
“I want to misunderstand.”
On the way back after parting with Lottie.
Someone naturally fell into step beside Calyx as he traversed the forest path. It was Sasha.
“…That’s what’s written all over your face, Captain.”
He had told Sasha not to follow, but the man had shadowed him anyway.
At Sasha’s remark, Calyx considered retracing where he might have been hiding in the restaurant before giving up. Regardless, the important fact was that his subordinate had witnessed his pathetic display from start to finish.
“Where is Mikhail, and why are you here?”
“We parted ways halfway. He said he had an urgent need to relieve himself, but who knows? Perhaps his heart was feeling so stifled that he had to leave the area.”
Calyx turned to look at Sasha at the pointed comment. Sasha merely chuckled and kept his words to himself.
‘I think I know why that dating-illiterate Misha felt so stifled.’
Despite knowing he wouldn’t see her for a month, the Captain would never follow that woman on her trip.
After all, the woman who had asked ‘Should I follow too?’ and even gone a step further with her agreement had only been acting.
However, the difference between Sasha and Mikhail was that Sasha wasn’t a dating-illiterate.
Sasha understood Mikhail’s frustration, but he also understood the heart of the Captain, who had no choice but to hide his feelings so painfully.
“There is a saying that doing nothing out of fear of losing something is, in the end, the same as losing it.”
“It’s a proverb from my hometown,” Sasha finished, beaming at Calyx. Sasha was the only one who could speak to the Captain in such vague, flowery riddles.
“I have no idea what you mean by that.”
However, if he were to smirk and say, ‘Aw, you know exactly what I mean,’ he would surely be beaten.
Knowing where to draw the line, Sasha simply nodded and said, “I see.”
He noticed a cut on the Captain’s hand, hanging by his side, as if from a blade, but he chose to ignore it. That, too, was part of keeping the line with the Captain.
“Ah. A month-long hot spring trip. I’m envious. I can’t even remember the last time I rested my body and mind in warm water without a care in the world.”
“I can let you rest if you want. For eternity.”
“Hmph.”
Calyx pushed Sasha away as he tried to cling to him. Before long, the horses they had tied up came into view. Sasha sensed that the time had finally come to get to the point.
“I heard a story once,” Sasha said as Calyx mounted his horse. Because he lowered his voice significantly, Calyx had no choice but to focus all his attention on his words.
“That village called Hans Valley in Dempis. It’s famous for its hot springs, but they say it actually became more famous for another reason.”
“Another reason?”
“It’s a mixed-gender bath. Over there.”
The moment Sasha’s soft voice echoed.
“Since it’s something only the locals really know, they say nobles who visit without knowing are quite shocked.”
Calyx’s eyebrows furrowed sharply.
The travel carriage carrying Lottie and Isabel departed early in the morning.
Hans Valley was a four to five-hour carriage ride from Glaster Castle. However, the schedule was relaxed, and since it could be a burden on her elderly great-aunt, the party chose a circuitous route.
By the time Lottie’s group arrived in Hans Valley, about a week had passed as they took their time exploring the urban centers between the well-maintained roads.
“Welcome to Hans Valley, Viscountess Dunchest. And the Young Lady of Ix.”
The village guild master, who had been notified of the landowning family’s visit in advance, stood at the entrance to greet them.
Lottie, descending from the carriage with the coachman’s help, could not hide her admiration. Behind the entrance to Hans Valley, a mountain range soared as if to pierce the sky.
The sky was so clear and close it felt as if one could fall into it, and the houses lining the slopes were charming.
The villagers huddled behind the guild master greeted them as their eyes met. One young girl even approached hesitantly and handed Lottie a bouquet of wild grass she had picked herself.
Lottie smiled happily, thinking for the first time that she was glad she had come on this trip.
“If you find it acceptable, may I introduce our village to you both? After purifying your mind and body with the fresh air, it would be perfect to move to my home for a meal.”
Lottie’s group followed the guild master to every corner of the village.
By the time their legs grew weary, the sun had set just right, and they naturally made their way to the guild master’s house.
“It’s a bit much for me to say it myself, but my wife’s cooking skills are truly exceptional… haha.”
The guild master’s words weren’t mere boasting. From one end of the table to the other, plates of food were packed tightly.
Lottie and Isabel sat down, feeling highly satisfied. When the guild master’s wife appeared with steamed veal, the four of them gathered around the table to begin dinner. However.
“One seat is empty. Is someone else coming?”
Isabel asked, pointing to the seat on her left. There were many empty seats at the table, but that one alone had a plate and utensils set before it.
“In that case, shouldn’t we wait for the guest to arrive before we begin?”
The guild master and his wife looked at each other in confusion, as if wondering what she meant.
“My Lady. If you mean the guest…”
At that moment, a maid entered the dining room and announced that the final guest had arrived.
A short while later, rhythmic footsteps were heard, and the guest revealed himself in the dining room.
“We were told there was one more person in your party, so we prepared an extra seat… Did we misunderstand?”
Behind the guild master’s question, Lottie and Isabel’s eyes went wide. In particular, Isabel’s expression went beyond shock and neared horror.
‘That fellow actually came here!’
She had heard from Robert that Calyx was constantly looking for an opportunity to follow Lottie on her trip.
Because Isabel knew how persistent and wicked he was, she had been certain he would try to join her grandniece’s trip by any means necessary.
That was why they had stopped at several cities before arriving at Hans Valley—to avoid running into him.
“I heard you were to join your grandson-in-law here; was that not the case?”
“Who is a grandson-in-law? That man is…!”
Isabel flared up at the guild master’s question before pausing.
If she said he was neither a grandson-in-law nor anything else, the question of who he was to be using the name of the landowning family would follow, and she would be at a loss for words. And strictly speaking, he wasn’t someone entirely unrelated to the Count’s house.
“…He’s still a prospect. He hasn’t even had an engagement ceremony with my grandniece yet.”
When Isabel answered gloomily, the guild master and his wife nodded. Ah. Their eyes said they roughly understood the atmosphere.
‘I bet the man’s status is lowly.’
‘The family elders must be violently opposing the two of them.’
‘But the two of them are resolute in their feelings.’
The premise was wrong, but the conclusion was more or less correct.
As Lottie watched with eyes full of suspicion, the guild master laughed dismissively.
Once the final guest took his seat, the interrupted meal resumed. It was incomparably more uncomfortable and awkward than before.
The fact that the landowning family had no son to inherit the household was something everyone in Dempis knew.
The current Lord had said he had no intention of remarrying after his wife passed away. Therefore, the position of the next Lord would be filled by the Lord’s son-in-law or grandson.
The Lord and the village guild master were inseparable. If so, would the guild master and his wife, who were inseparable from the Lord, favor a next-in-line Lord from the upper class who had never touched dirt in his life, or a self-made Lord who had rolled up his sleeves from the bottom?
“The latter, of course! How could a noble lord who’s never earned a penny himself listen to the cries of the lower folk having no money?”
“It’s not just because that young man’s face is handsome?”
“Hmph!”
The guild master and his wife, who had left the room on the pretext of bringing out dessert, returned to the dining room after finishing their own little strategy meeting.
The icy atmosphere of the dining room thawed slightly with their reappearance. As the guild master’s wife sat down, she sent a look of subtle pity toward Calyx, who sat on her right.
“Can a sweet dessert be complete without alcohol?”
“It’s a liquor brewed right here in our village. Please, give it a try.”
The guild master and his wife smiled slyly as they filled the glasses of the landowning family. The guild master took charge of Lottie and Calyx’s glasses, while his wife took care of Isabel’s.
The liquor they poured appeared identical at a glance, but there was a difference known only to them. It was the alcohol content.
The liquor the wife poured was stronger than the guild master’s, and to ensure it wasn’t noticeable, it was served with a very sweet dessert.
Isabel, whose insides were already burning with frustration, drank the liquor without a clue. One glass, then two…
“Ugh…”
