Chapter 84
84
84. To You, Whom I Can't Erase Even If I Try to Forget (8)
“Master?”
“Yes. That man, he acts all high and mighty on the outside, but inside he's a coward and quite timid. He's also wary and cautious. He's always anxious that someone might hurt him, and he never forgives anyone who stabs him in the back. He'll go to any lengths to find them and make their lives miserable. But most people don't know that. He's especially good at putting on a good show.”
I blinked at the sudden criticism. Vincent being fearful and timid… I knew that well. He wasn't just a coward, he was a huge coward! The memory of enduring his temper in the past and trying to drag him out of his room brought forth a deep sense of camaraderie. I wanted to nod my head.
“So Ann, you be careful too. You'll be in big trouble if you accidentally rub him the wrong way.”
“Ah… yes. I'll be careful.”
I nodded involuntarily at her serious demeanor, as if she were whispering a very important secret. Joelly chuckled. Her face was beautiful as always, as if bathed in a halo.
But was it just my imagination? Somehow, I felt a strange sense of intimidation from her smiling face. Did Vincent say something bad about me?
Then, a question suddenly arose.
“But why do you find this funny?”
At my words, Joelly burst into laughter.
“Isn't it funny, the way that man acts?”
I had no idea what was so funny. But Joelly didn't stop laughing. She seemed quite amused. Suppressing the bubbling curiosity, I awkwardly raised the corners of my lips, following her lead. Haha.
After attending to Joelly, I returned to my room, where Robert, who should have been asleep, was standing in front of the door.
“Young Master? Why are you out here?”
Was he perhaps waiting for me because he couldn't see me? A heartwarming feeling arose, and my steps quickened, but then a sudden thought slowed me down. Was he perhaps planning to go to the Iron horse statue?
Robert hadn't climbed the Iron horse statue recently. To be exact, it had been since he received the reply to his letter. Before that, he would beg to go or secretly attempt to escape, but for the past few days, he had been quietly staying in his room. He looked happy as he treasured the letter he received from his mother, unfolding it and reading it over and over again.
However, contrary to expectations, Robert didn't send another letter. He simply read his mother's letter again and again, no longer feeling sad or wanting to see her.
‘Mother loves Robert. She misses him so, so much. She says she'll definitely come to see him, so please wait for her. Robert is a good boy, so he'll be patient and wait. Robert loves Mother very, very much too.’
The child smiled brightly, swinging his small arms in a circle. His face, saying how much he missed her, seemed to comfort my worries instead. Nanny, who heard those words, looked relieved but also on the verge of tears. She must have been thinking the same thing as me.
I wish he could grow up a little more slowly. The little master, whom I had thought of as just a bratty child, was making quite a mature expression. I swallowed a bitter taste as I looked at Robert.
But hope sparkled in Robert's eyes as he fiddled with the letter. It was a welcome change.
Nanny put the letter in a small pouch and hung it around Robert's wrist, fearing he might lose it. Robert wore the pouch on one wrist and carried a wooden horse figurine in his other hand. He no longer threw things or stubbornly insisted on things.
As I approached, Robert hesitated, unable to make eye contact with me. Was he really planning to go to the Iron horse statue? Suspicion welled up.
“Um.”
“Yes.”
“Over there, over there.”
Robert squirmed, tapping the floor with his toes. His hesitant attitude was strange. His large eyes, which had been wandering around the floor, suddenly fixed on me. He mumbled, then waved one hand. I took another step towards Robert, bent down, and met his gaze.
Then, a small hand grabbed my collar and pulled me closer. Something soft touched my cheek.
Smooch.
“Thank you.”
And Robert immediately ran into the room.
Even after the door slammed shut, I couldn't straighten my awkwardly bent back. My mind was blank. The suspicion that had been welling up just moments ago vanished into the distance.
I raised my hand and touched my cheek. The warmth that had touched it was vivid.
“Haha.”
The corners of my lips gradually lifted. Then, I became blank again.
An unexpected memory was created.
It had been raining since late last night. The raindrops hitting the window gradually intensified, and by morning, there was even thunder and lightning. Young Robert trembled at the deafening noise. He was afraid that the thunder would strike him, so he hid under the covers in bed, crying that he was scared, and I exhausted myself trying to soothe him.
By the time Robert finally fell asleep, darkness had once again engulfed the sky. The still-fierce rain and wind relentlessly battered the window.
Rattling— buzzing— the sound echoed eerily in the room. Robert must have heard it even in his sleep, as he whimpered. I patted Robert's back and tucked the sheet up to his neck.
I decided to stay by Robert's side tonight, instead of Nanny, who had been working hard all day. Nanny said she was fine, but I was worried about her, as she hadn't slept properly last night while comforting Robert. I finally managed to persuade her to rest and sent her back to her room.
The lights of the lamps placed here and there flickered precariously. The window rattled loudly. As if the hinges would fall off.
The wind was too strong. I was about to get up, worried, but before I could, the window couldn't withstand the wind and burst open.
At the same time, the lamps went out all at once. Darkness rushed into the room. I quickly pulled the sheet over Robert's head and got up.
“Ugh.”
Before I could even panic, the strong rain and wind hit my face. I couldn't open my eyes. I had to close the open window first. I raised one arm to shield my face and took a step forward. The curtains fluttered in the increasingly strong wind, and my body kept being pushed back. I took each step with difficulty, stretching out my remaining hand with all my might.
As I approached the window, I felt around through the rain and wind. The strangely twisted window shook in the wind, hitting the wall with a thud. I tried to grab it and fit it into the frame. I almost lost my balance several times because the wind was so strong.
After struggling with the wind, by the time I finally managed to fit the window into the frame, the room was already a mess. It was a stroke of luck that the glass hadn't broken.
As expected, the hinges that had been holding the door in place were broken. The window rattled as if it would open again in the blowing wind.
There was no way to fix it right away, so I tried covering it with the curtain, but it bounced back. As I wondered what to do, a chest of drawers nearby caught my eye. I dragged it over and placed it in front of the window covered with the curtain.
It only blocked the window halfway. But I couldn't rest assured with just that, so I put all the heavy objects in the room into the drawers. Then, I dragged other furniture in front of it. The window still rattled, but fortunately, it didn't open because it was blocked by the chest of drawers.
Only then did I catch my breath and look around the room. The interior, where not even moonlight shone, was too dark. It was a problem that all the lights were out, but the lamp that had fallen over in the wind had shattered. I found one that was still intact, but the matches were wet from the rain and couldn't be lit.
I sighed and went to Robert. I carefully picked up his small body covered in the sheet and left the room. I couldn't leave Robert in a room where the rain and wind might rush in again at any moment. Instead, I moved him to the room next door and laid him on the sofa.
He should have woken up from the commotion, but he was sleeping soundly without even frowning. He must be tired from tossing and turning all day yesterday. The sheet wrapped around Robert's sleeping body was faithfully acting as a protective shield. But since there was no light to illuminate the surroundings, he might wake up and cry that he was scared. I thought about asking Nanny for help, but I changed my mind, thinking of her dragging her tired body and rushing over here.
Wait, is it okay to leave him alone?
After hesitating for a moment, I got up from the sofa. Since all the lamps were broken, I had to bring at least a candle. Feeling around, I left the room, and the hallway was as silent as a graveyard. Fortunately, the hallway wasn't as dark as the room. The moonlight was illuminating the way.
I walked calmly down the hallway. A buzzing sound echoed from afar. As I took each step, the sound gradually grew louder, and now it was coming from all directions. Perhaps it was because there was no one around, but I swallowed hard from the tension. My footsteps mixed with the eerie noise. The shadows of the tree branches swaying in the wind stirred the hallway.
‘Should I, should I sing a song?’
I hummed a tune to shake off the fear, but that was even scarier.
I was so scared that my legs were trembling, but I tried to ignore it and walked down the stairs. Then, in the distance, I saw a blurry mass of light. At first, I thought I was seeing things. Because there was no one who would be wandering around the hallway at this hour.
But the mass of light gradually became clearer. No, it was coming towards me.
I stopped walking abruptly. At the same time, I heard footsteps coming from the direction of the mass of light. I swallowed hard several times from the rising fear and gripped the lamp I was holding even tighter. I was planning to hit them with it and run away if necessary.
As I took a defensive stance, the mass of light that had come right in front of me stopped. My eyes widened as I identified the person behind the bright beam of light.
“Master?”
No, why was Vincent here at this hour?
“You….”
He looked surprised too, as if he hadn't expected anyone to be here at this hour. I lowered the hand that had been holding the lamp tightly in embarrassment. As I stared blankly at him, his emerald eyes, which had been looking at me, followed the lamp in my hand and narrowed.
“What were you doing here?”
“The window opened and the wind was blowing into the room, so all the lamps broke. The ones that were still intact had gone out, and the matches were wet from the rain. So I came down to light a fire and get some candles to replace the lamps.”
As I said that, I showed him the lamp I was holding, and his brow furrowed even more.
“The window? Was it Robert's room?”
“Yes. The hinges were broken, so I covered it with the curtain for now and dragged a chest of drawers nearby to temporarily block it. But it was still dangerous, so I moved the young master to the room next door. He had been tossing and turning all day because of the thunder and lightning, so fortunately, he's sleeping soundly without waking up.”
“What about Nanny?”
“Nanny hasn't slept a wink since last night, comforting the young master. She's sleeping in her room now. I deliberately didn't tell her.”
I quickly added, fearing that he might scold Nanny. I wouldn't be able to do anything if he told me to wake Nanny up right away, but I hoped he wouldn't. Fortunately, he relaxed his expression without saying anything.
But why was Vincent here? Contrary to my worries about the ink incident last time, he hadn't shown his face at the mansion again.
I was wondering about his sudden appearance when Vincent subtly tilted the lamp he was holding towards me.
“This way.”
“Yes?”
“The lamp, I mean.”
The lamp? Ah, the lamp. I hurriedly lifted the glass cover of the lamp. He also lifted the cover of the lamp he was holding and put the burning wick to the wick of my lamp. A spark of fire transferred. Another mass of light appeared, illuminating the surroundings.
I bowed my head.
“Thank you.”
I carefully covered the glass cover. I turned the screw on the side to adjust the intensity so that the flame wouldn't go out.
“Where are the candles?”
“They're in the kitchen. Ah, over there.”
As soon as I said the words, Vincent turned around. I realized where he was heading and followed him in surprise.
