Chapter 5
Homecoming (5)
The place they arrived at was a hill that overlooked the entire Wibin estate.
Green grass stretched out lushly even in this autumn season, and perhaps because any trees blocking the view had been cleared away, only small shrubs were landscaped at regular intervals.
The tombstone stood right in the center.
<Hoven Portman. Lies here.>
It was a brief inscription.
Elric sat before the headstone with a bitter smile.
“This is very much like you.”
The selection of a location that overlooked the land he had built with his own hands, the landscaping that reeked of tidiness, even the short inscription on the stone—everything perfectly reflected his father’s disposition in his memories.
Given his personality, he likely handled all of this himself before he died.
Just looking at the tombstone made Elric feel as if he could picture his father’s final moments in his mind.
“Since you loved perfection so much, you must have hounded the contractors relentlessly.”
He was a man who never forgave even the smallest flaw, so many workers must have suffered a great deal until this burial site was completed. They probably cursed him plenty, too. His father would have known that and simply feigned ignorance.
It was no wonder his nickname had been ‘the Cold-Blooded.’
“I didn’t expect to face you like this. The reunion I imagined was a bit different.”
But what use was there in saying that now? Elric’s lips parted, but he ultimately gave up on further grumbling.
It was a futile effort.
Meanwhile, his outstretched hand brushed against the tombstone.
Perhaps because high-quality stone had been used, the headstone remained smooth even after a year.
And, predictably, it was cold.
In that chill, Elric pulled forth the memory of his father.
A self-made figure who had raised the Portman family from a mere merchant house to the premier trading company representing Wibin, and a villain who had made countless enemies with his ruthless personality.
A man who lived a truly lonely life, never showing so much as a smile even to his own child.
As he recalled all those things, Elric realized something.
“I don’t resent you as much as I used to.”
Even facing the man he had once hated enough to weep tears of blood, his emotions did not boil over.
He had thought it was simply because he was busy with life and rolling around on the battlefield, but the resentment had already been diluted.
It was a funny thing.
Once he stripped away his childish heart and let the man go, all that remained was pity.
What were his final moments like?
How did he live those nine years without him?
He was staring at the name carved into the tombstone for a long time, lost in thought.
“He was a rational man until the moment he closed his eyes.”
It was Aldio, who had returned after securing the carriage.
Elric looked at him.
Aldio had a face steeped in reminiscence.
“He had heart disease. He hid the fact until the very end, so only the doctor and I knew of the Master’s illness.”
“Is that so?”
“From the moment his final days approached, he devoted his heart and soul to organizing the business and liquidating it into cash. I struggled quite a bit as well.”
Aldio continued speaking with a soft chuckle.
An empty laugh escaped Elric’s lips.
“You are truly peculiar, Butler. What did you like so much about this cold-blooded human that you followed him so faithfully?”
Come to think of it, that was true.
Aldio had been by his father’s side, assisting him at every moment Elric could remember.
He was busy following behind to clean up matters his father hadn’t noticed, and busy taking care of Elric when his father wouldn’t look at him.
Because of that, Aldio remained unmarried even at this age. Without siblings or family, he lived as a part of the mansion’s machinery.
Aldio surely knew his father’s intentions were behind that life, yet he seemed not to mind.
“He paid me handsomely. What other reason would there be?”
The way he even shrugged his shoulders was somewhat sly.
It was another moment where a hollow laugh escaped Elric.
“However, you aren’t asking.”
“Hmm?”
“About the Master’s inheritance. Didn’t I tell you? That he liquidated everything possible into cash.”
When Elric furrowed his brows in confusion, Aldio smiled.
“All that cash was bequeathed to you, Young Master.”
Flinch—
Elric’s fingertips trembled.
His gaze turned toward the headstone.
A look of profound surprise was etched deeply into his face.
“This man did?”
“Yes, the Master did so.”
What shook Elric was bewilderment.
It was because he could not fathom the reason why he would leave an inheritance to him.
After all, if he had wanted to see him, he was a man fully capable of making that happen. If he had felt regret, he was a man who could have left an apology instead of an inheritance.
Elric parted his lips blankly, then eventually stammered out a question.
“……Is there something like a will?”
He wondered if the true intention had been left in writing, but,
“He wasn’t the type of person for that, was he? Nothing is written except for instructions regarding the inheritance. If you are curious about even that, I can show it to you, but….”
As expected, his father was not a man who would move as his heart desired.
A sigh escaped him.
His chest felt a bit tight, so he looked at Aldio as if craving an answer, but the butler only shook his head.
“I do not know the Master’s inner thoughts. He approached that part more coldly than ever.”
Elric’s lips pressed into a firm line.
For what reason on earth did he do such a thing? It was almost spiteful of his father to leave him in such turmoil until the very end.
“What will you do about the inheritance?”
Elric did not answer the question.
A worry he hadn’t entertained even once since his boyhood days churned inside him once more.
When he deferred the answer with a long breath, Aldio bowed his head.
“Take your time to think.”
Elric nodded.
* * *
It was on the way back, having gained only a restless heart.
Elric, who had been staring blankly at the scenery, finally gave voice to a question that had just occurred to him.
“……Now that I think about it.”
“Hmm?”
“My wi—.”
He faltered, the word getting stuck in his throat.
For some reason, the word ‘wife’ felt embarrassing.
In the end, Elric glossed over that part.
“……Why is that person still at the mansion? If I left like that, the marriage should have rightfully been annulled.”
The answer to the question did not come immediately.
Aldio drove the carriage in silence for a while before finally offering a response.
“It was an arranged marriage, was it not? A transaction disguised as a marriage.”
His voice carried a hint of bitterness.
“……Does that serve as a reason?”
“It does. Now that I think about it, I haven’t told you.”
“What?”
“Portman has become a Baronial house with hereditary rights.”
Elric’s jaw dropped.
Aldio turned his head to look at Elric. His expression was somewhat cautious.
“The Master obtained a title. If you inherit the estate, that title will pass to you, Young Master. And I don’t know if you remember, but….”
Only then did Elric recall a fact he had forgotten.
It was something he had heard on the day of the wedding.
“……The Wibin Baronial family was poor.”
Wibin was an aristocratic family so impoverished they had no choice but to marry into the Portman merchant family. They took the money in an arranged marriage that held Tiria Wibin as collateral. The title must have been received as the price.
Elric understood the causality.
“She’s still a hostage, then….”
His heart felt a bit heavy.
If he had to label it, it would be pity.
The one thing he couldn’t understand, however, was why she remained here even now, a year after his father’s death.
It was a situation where he, the heir, had not appeared.
Tiria could have taken that inheritance in her capacity as a representative and returned to her family as much as she wanted, so what was the reason she didn’t?
When he asked about this part, the answer he received was this:
“That point was Madam’s own will.”
“……She did that?”
“Yes.”
“Do you know the reason?”
“She is not a woman of many words. In fact, embarrassingly enough, we haven’t become close enough for that.”
Aldio spoke as if apologetic.
But Elric understood.
Why wouldn’t he? Her aura had a noble quality that made it difficult to approach.
Furthermore, even if one asked a question, she usually cut the conversation short with brief answers, so Aldio, being a servant, wouldn’t have been able to force a conversation.
Elric laughed awkwardly.
“Mmm, she’s a difficult person.”
“She is your wife, Young Master.”
“She’s a total stranger. I’ve only seen her face once.”
“Everyone is like that at first.”
Aldio spoke playfully, but from Elric’s perspective, it was truly troublesome.
Just this morning, he had fled after cramming food into his mouth because the meal was so uncomfortable.
How was he supposed to face her?
As awkwardness welled up, he found himself rubbing the back of his neck again.
While they shared such small talk, they arrived at the mansion before they knew it.
“Please go in first. I will tidy up the carriage and follow.”
“Understood.”
Aldio moved away.
It was the moment Elric stepped into the mansion, leaning on his cane.
A truly coincidental meeting took place.
“……Ah, you’re back?”
“Yes.”
It was Tiria.
Whether she had been to the wheat fields, she was wearing a straw hat and cradling several stalks of wheat in her arms. Her attire was simple enough that she could have been mistaken for a laborer, but whatever that ‘aura’ of hers was, she looked aristocratic even in a farmer’s clothes.
Ah, what on earth should he do about this awkwardness?
An artificial smile naturally rose to Elric’s lips.
“Er, well….”
“Please, speak.”
“Shall we go in?”
Tiria stared intently at Elric’s face for a moment, then eventually nodded.
“Yes.”
Elric regretted it again.
To think he was trying to prolong the awkwardness himself—at any rate, this damn mouth of his was the problem.
The Wife Waited in the Wheat Field (Serial)
