The Mansion Awaits Spring
Chapter 127
At April's summons to the estate, Fezin had arrived at the Lunos Mansion after spent the entire carriage ride pondering her reasons. Upon finding Shaefer already there, he clicked his tongue in annoyance.
Shaefer was taking a brief break on the porch, slipping a piece of smokeless tobacco into his mouth, when Fezin questioned him.
"What are you doing here?"
"April called me. What about you?"
"She called me too."
At Fezin's response, Shaefer clicked his tongue, his expression souring.
"So you two are still meeting, despite everything."
"It's been a while since we last spoke."
"Still, you're here. Do you just keep lingering because you can't let go, even though you know it's hopeless?"
"I have absolutely no intention of having a friendly chat with you."
"Oh, believe me, neither do I!"
Regardless of Shaefer's temper, Fezin checked the time, realized he was far too early, and pulled out his own cigarette.
He then gestured with his chin toward the smokeless tobacco Shaefer held.
"People in the Grand Duchy sure use that a lot."
"When it comes to tobacco in the Grand Duchy, this is the only way to go."
"I've never tried it. I didn't come of age here."
Fezin muttered quietly, then added,
"There are still many things in the Grand Duchy that feel foreign to me."
Glancing at him, Shaefer held out the tin.
"Want one?"
"No."
When Fezin declined and offered his own cigarette instead, Shaefer rejected it just as quickly. They were merely curious; neither had the slightest desire to share.
Spitting out the tobacco he had wedged between his gum and upper lip, Shaefer spoke up.
"About Lady Eleanor."
"April's aunt?"
"Why has she been nagging me so much lately?"
"I didn't think she cared enough about you to bother nagging."
"I thought so too, but lately, every time she sees me, she's telling me to sit up straight, button my shirt... It's constant."
Fezin, who had been letting Shaefer's words drift in one ear and out the other, suddenly found this highly grating. He pressed further.
"...To you? There's no way."
Whenever Fezin had seen Eleanor look at Shaefer, her gaze had always screamed, 'How is that piece of trash still walking around?' It was the look of someone who found him an eyesore and wanted to toss him into a bin immediately, but couldn't be bothered to pick him up because there wasn't a trash can nearby.
Shaefer muttered with a dead serious expression.
"Maybe she wants to bring me into the Lunos family as a son-in-law..."
"Are you insane? Have you lost your mind? Why on earth would Lady Eleanor ever introduce a piece of trash like you to April?"
"Look who's talking, you piece of trash."
"At least I'm a pretty piece of trash. You're just... average."
"Hey, watch the personal attacks, you bastard."
After grumbling his complaint, Shaefer continued.
"But think about it—there isn't really anyone else. No family around here truly matches the Lunos name. At least my mother is an Imperial princess, so my lineage is guaranteed."
"..."
"Lady Eleanor is an Imperial herself, so she's close with my mother... Lately, she's been coming over to our house for tea all the time, and every single time, she criticizes me from head to toe. And my mother just sits there agreeing with her... I only recently realized just how disappointed my mother is in me..."
The more Shaefer lamented, the deeper Fezin's scowl became.
He knew he himself was out of the running, but he absolutely could not tolerate the idea of Shaefer taking that spot.
Leaving Shaefer on the porch, Fezin climbed the stairs toward the rooftop garden where April was waiting. Having been notified of his arrival, April sat before a fresh pot of tea that Bauman had brought up.
Fezin took the seat opposite her.
"It's been a while since I've been up here."
"It was closed off for some time."
"It became wonderful in the blink of an eye."
"Mr. Bauman is incredibly talented, after all."
"Right. Speaking of Mr. Bauman..."
Fezin glanced toward the door where Bauman had just exited before continuing.
"Is he seeing anyone?"
"...Why do you ask?"
"Lately, Mrs. Eve has been talking about him quite a lot."
"Really?"
Surprisingly, April's expression, which had been cold toward Fezin all this time, brightened.
She poured the tea as she spoke.
"Mr. Bauman keeps trying to put his affairs in order, as if preparing for the end. I'm worried, and Hannah and Fred rely on him so much. I've been hoping he'd find more of a will to live."
"I want him to live a long life too. And Mrs. Eve, of course."
Fezin took a sip of his tea with effortless grace before adding,
"But Mrs. Eve is terrible at expressing herself. I heard her late husband went all the way up to their marriage believing she actually hated him."
April paused at his words.
"...Does she not hate me either, by any chance?"
"You? She dotes on you more than her own grandchildren."
"I always thought she disliked me."
"See? It's probably the same with Mr. Bauman. Someone needs to give them a little push."
Having eased the tension with talk of Bauman and Mrs. Eve, Fezin slowly brought up the main topic.
"I also heard another rumor."
April looked at him as if wondering when he had started gathering so much gossip, but she gestured for him to go on.
Fezin continued.
"I heard Lady Eleanor is trying to turn Shaefer into a decent human being."
"Well, his lineage is respectable enough."
Fezin had expected her to ask why her aunt was wasting her energy on such a useless endeavor, but her reaction was surprisingly accepting.
Fezin frowned.
"Still, it's Shaefer Meyer. He even broke into this very mansion."
"Because he thought I was a witch."
"Exactly. Look how stupid he is."
At his remark, April shot him a look that clearly blamed him for that misunderstanding. Only after Fezin fell silent did she speak again.
"I saw plenty of what that idiot was like when we were kids. But this time..."
April recalled Shaefer's actions on the Twin Mountains.
"I saw him in a new light."
"In what way, exactly?"
"At least he was more honest than you."
"..."
"Even though Shaefer knew he was in danger, he tried to warn me. That was brave. Unlike you."
Fezin opened his mouth to reply, but realizing he had no defense, he accepted it and shut his mouth again.
He doubted Shaefer would ever actually become a decent man. Yet, on the other hand, April did not seem like the type to reject an arranged marriage set up by her elders. To her, marriage was a matter of merger rather than love.
He had always known the possibility of April marrying someone else existed, but now that it felt like a looming reality, a fire flared up inside his chest.
He hated it.
Fezin knew that whatever he felt for April in these moments, it wasn't love.
It was pure obsession. An obsession with what he could never have.
Unable to bear hearing any more about her potential marriage, Fezin changed the subject.
"So, why did you call me? What did you want to say?"
"Ah, right."
April set her teacup down and sat up straight, looking directly at Fezin.
"The factory. The one bordering the Lunos estate."
"Yes."
"You said they're researching how to liquefy it and transport the gas, right? That means even the gas can be used as fuel."
"Correct."
"It's a massive resource with endless potential."
"And?"
He understood her point perfectly. Fezin was intensely curious about what she would say next. To his unspoken question, April replied,
"To make use of it, I want to take the factory."
It was a natural conclusion, yet entirely unexpected.
"This is my land, so that should have been mine to begin with, shouldn't it?"
Fezin froze at her words.
In that instant, he was reminded of the adolescent April Lunos he had last seen before leaving for the Empire. That bold, confident, wealthy girl.
Then, Fezin burst into laughter.
He had no choice but to accept the fact that he was not brave.
She was entirely right.
He had gone to the Empire at far too young an age and had grown up crushed under the weight of an overwhelmingly powerful force. Because of that, Fezin had never once thought to steal what belonged to the Empire.
Thus, April's words awakened a long-lost—or perhaps never before felt—impulse of his youth.
Miller Dieus should have killed April Lunos for his own sake.
Because he had failed to do so, April Lunos would now begin to strip him of everything he owned.
The things one failed to kill always returned for vengeance. Just as it would for him.
Without much hesitation, Fezin gave her his reply.
"Let’s do it."
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