Chapter 80
Episode 80: Agreement on Frequency and Number
When Olivia didn't respond, Noah kissed her hair and stretched his lips into a long smile.
"This is usually about it, Liv."
However, Olivia absolutely could not agree that this was 'usual' or 'average.' She even sat up, looking down at Noah.
"Mrs. Lehman told us to discuss and agree on the number and frequency."
She really taught us everything.
As Noah looked awkward, Olivia came in with logic.
"Judging from the fact that she told us to discuss the number and frequency, this can never be the average. Because the words number and frequency are meaningless at this level."
"……."
At her sharp words, Noah was silent for a moment, then retorted with brazenness.
"She told us to discuss and agree, right? In that sense, the average doesn't matter, does it? It's between you and me."
"……."
"I like this much."
There's no match for a shameless person.
Olivia, who had been momentarily speechless, braced her stomach and shook her head firmly.
"I can't live like that."
"Olivia, the owner of Rosemond Plains, the Duchess, and the Princess consort. You don't need to worry about living."
"Still, sleeping and waking up, and eating meals on time need to be regular for health. Noah, all we had this morning was one poached egg and a cup of tea."
Noah realized that tricking Olivia was more difficult than he thought. The lion, who had been planning to gobble up the innocent rabbit, groaned briefly and raised his upper body.
Then, staring intently at Olivia with a piercing gaze, he opened his mouth.
"Okay. I'll agree to the extent that it doesn't affect waking, sleeping, and meal times."
"What about the frequency and number?"
"Seven days a week. There's a time limit on the number, so I don't think we need to set it."
"...Five days."
"No, six days. And come to think of it, meal times are a bit ambiguous. You don't want to discuss it with the servants, do you?"
"...Then, let's set the waking and sleeping times."
Noah, who had been planning to lump it all together, sighed inwardly and said.
"7 a.m., 12 p.m."
"9 a.m., 10 p.m."
"8 a.m., 11 p.m."
"……."
"Don't you know how to compromise?"
The person who seemed furthest from the word compromise uttered it very brazenly.
Olivia pursed her lips and looked at him, eventually nodding.
"Okay. 8 a.m., 11 p.m. Six days a week."
"It's a little less than usual."
Seeing the look in his wife's eyes, which had no faith in him, Noah chuckled. At the same time, he snatched Olivia's waist.
"Noah!"
"What's wrong, Duchess? Isn't it a time that meets the conditions derived through discussion and agreement?"
Noah smiled, raising his red lips, and kissed her back.
Again, there's no match for a shameless person.
Prince Noah's schedule in Hamuel was scheduled for ten days.
Olivia's anxiety that she might not be able to get out of bed for those ten days was fortunately proven to be unfounded.
After spending five long days living entirely on the bed, Noah cleared his bed life as if it were a lie, saying, 'Now it's the time you wanted.' Then, he returned to his gentlemanly appearance as if nothing had happened and sat at his huge desk.
"Bring the documents."
At the short command, the servants delivered several carts of documents to the Prince, and Noah began to process the documents at a frightening pace. These were the documents that had piled up while Noah was away.
He even solved all his meals in his office and was busy processing documents.
Noah Astrid was a person who was clear about cutting things off and had no middle ground.
Olivia, who had been bewildered by the attitude that had changed like the back of her hand, soon began to find her own work. However, the problem was that there was no 'work' to do.
The first day out of bed still had things to do.
It took a whole day to look around the huge mansion and stroll through the fallen-leaf garden.
That day, Noah returned around 10 p.m. and fell asleep after 11 p.m. There was no special conversation.
Olivia stared blankly at Noah's face as he fell asleep, exhausted. It was the first time she had seen him asleep, as she had fallen asleep first for several days.
Olivia slowly looked at his beautiful outline and buried her face in the pillow, whispering.
"Good night, Noah."
And when she opened her eyes the next day, the bed was empty.
The moment the words 'debauchery' and 'profligacy' finally fell from her life, Olivia blinked her eyes silently.
Olivia glanced up. Noah, standing on the second-floor balcony, was talking to a man from the capital. Since he didn't bother to introduce him, he seemed to be an employee of the company Noah represented.
"Your Highness, shall we go?"
At the Head Maid's affectionate voice, Olivia turned her head and smiled brightly.
"Yes, let's go."
Olivia turned to the Head Maid and walked lightly. Unlike Pulder, where many people used parasols even in the fall, Herot's fall was cloudy with lots of clouds today. Still, Olivia liked this weather. Pulder's sunlight always felt excessive.
"The weather is nice."
Noah, who had been giving instructions on the documents for a while, turned his head slightly and looked at Olivia's back as she walked away.
When he asked the Head Maid, she said that she didn't eat much, but she ate well, and she seemed to enjoy touring the mansion.
That's good enough.
"I will proceed as you said."
"While you're here, take the pile of processed documents with you. Has there been no contact from Wilhelm Corporation yet?"
"No."
"How funny."
Noah put a dry sneer on his lips and went into the room.
Today, Olivia's destination was Cosmos Hill, not far from the Hamuel mansion. Outside the carriage, Hamuel's autumn unfolded like a masterpiece.
Beyond the harvested fields, an old cathedral could be seen. Peaceful bells rang, as if they were ringing at regular intervals. The picture framed by the window also continued to change as the carriage moved.
Tall reeds swaying in the chilly autumn wind and flocks of birds hovering in the sky.
A cargo carriage passing over a stone bridge and the river flowing beneath it, fallen leaves on the river and swimming ducks.
"Lorwell isn't far from Hamuel, is it?"
"Lorwell? Yes, it's a little to the right on the road connecting the capital and Hamuel. It's about an hour away by carriage from here. Do you know anyone in Lorwell?"
"No. I was just thinking about when I was young."
The Head Maid didn't ask any further and just smiled.
The carriage carrying them soon climbed a slightly sloping hill and stopped. When the carriage stopped, Olivia put on the hat she had taken off, put on her gloves, and leaned out of the door.
Surprisingly, a spectacle unfolded at that moment.
The end of the wind that had swept through the dry and barren vegetation was mixed with a fragrant floral scent.
Olivia silently inhaled and captured the scene in her eyes. The cosmos blooming below the hill swayed gracefully, swaying in the wind.
The huge cosmos colony, too large to fit in one glance, was splendid yet simple, vast yet not overwhelming. At the peaceful spectacle, Olivia slowly inhaled and smiled without realizing it.
"Isn't it beautiful?"
"Yes, it's really beautiful."
"Around this time, Queen Consort often visited Hamuel with the Prince and Princess. It was mainly to admire this Cosmos Hill."
Olivia recalled the Queen Consort's voice. On the day she bestowed the Tiara, the Queen Consort looked at Olivia softly and said.
"Hamuel's Cosmos Hill is very beautiful. The peacefully unfolding spectacle is so beautiful. I inherited Hamuel in the hope that Noah and you would live such a life. Go to Cosmos Hill with Noah when you go. …If possible."
A warm warmth lingered in Olivia's heart as she recalled her voice.
"Then the Prince must have seen this hill too."
"……."
"……?"
Olivia looked at her questioningly at the Head Maid's silence. She was silent in the end, and Olivia blinked in confusion.
"You've never been to this Cosmos Hill? I thought the Queen Consort would have brought you here……."
"He's such a… strong-willed person."
Her husband seemed to have been consistent since he was a child.
Olivia smiled awkwardly and turned her gaze to the cosmos colony.
She finally realized the meaning of 'if possible' that the Queen Consort had added.
It meant it would be impossible.
Noah steadily checked the documents. Since it was the workload that had accumulated since he was heading to Pulder, the amount was more than he thought.
He worked without resting for a long time.
When Noah's eyes became stiff, he put down his pen and leaned back in his chair. He habitually put a cigarette in his mouth, but he stopped trying to light it.
He didn't really feel like it.
Instead, he was curious about another being.
"How far did she go?"
Olivia was truly a woman of peace.
He was sensitive to sleeping places, so he had told them to prepare separate bedrooms for the couple even in the Upper River mansion. Sometimes even the moonlight coming through the curtains was annoying, so using the same bedroom as Olivia was not even on the schedule.
But surprisingly, Olivia slept like a log. Her breathing was so faint that he wondered if she was really dead, and she didn't have any sleeping habits.
Rather, if he reached out and stroked her hair when he vaguely woke up in the middle of sleeping, he could sleep so well.
He liked that languid and comfortable feeling, so he held Olivia and rolled around in bed for as many as five days. While setting ridiculous conditions.
Noah quickly scrapped his plan to use separate bedrooms.
At that time, the outside of the window became somewhat noisy, as if Noah's peace had returned.
"Your Highness, have you arrived?"
"Thank you for picking me up."
When he heard the cheerful voice, he smiled and picked up his pen again.
"She's doing well, going around without me having to worry."
After processing a few more documents, someone knocked on the door.
"Come in."
Noah casually allowed it without raising his eyes. He thought it would be a document servant, but a cautious voice flowed into his ear.
"Noah, can I come in for a moment?"
Noah's movements stopped at the smooth voice. When Noah put down the pen he was using and raised his eyes, Olivia was standing at the door. A fresh scent of grass wafted in, as if she had been walking in the fields.
