The Mansion Awaits Spring
Chapter 45
As April got out of the car and Fezin prepared to drive back, she spoke up.
“Get out, you idiot.”
Fezin, interpreting her words as a command to escort her to the door, frowned. He was in no physical condition to be getting out.
“I got you home. That should be enough.”
“No, I mean stay here tonight. You’re going to die at this rate.”
“Oh, that’s what you meant.”
Fezin, who had been dreading the long drive back to the townhouse, looked like a man who had found water in the middle of a desert. Still, feeling a bit embarrassed to accept so readily, he looked for something to nitpick.
“What about the bedsheets? Are they washed?”
“They’re washed. Because you kept complaining about them.”
As soon as April grumbled her answer, Fezin climbed out of the car. He let out a long sigh of relief.
“I really couldn’t have made it home. If you hadn’t asked, I probably would’ve died on the way.”
“Yeah, you look like it.”
Bauman, watching the two of them talk as they entered with a pleased expression, soon began preparing bathwater with the help of the servants Fezin had brought along.
After they had both bathed, April headed to the guest room to check on Fezin, who was collapsed on the bed.
The moment she entered, Fezin let out a groan of exaggerated misery.
“I haven’t caught a cold once since I left for the Empire.”
“People die when colds get serious.”
“Did I ask?”
“No, just making sure you knew.”
“Try worrying about me instead of saying scary things.”
“Why should I worry? You’re not going to die. You’re far too sturdy for that.”
April spoke dismissively, but she didn’t leave. She hovered by the bed for a moment before speaking again.
“Still, be careful. Just in case.”
“About what?”
“Don’t die.”
At her words, Fezin squinted one eye and looked up at her.
The request not to die seemed unexpected. After studying her with narrowed eyes, Fezin finally spoke.
“Fine. I won’t die.”
“Good.”
April murmured her response, wrapped her sweater tighter over her pajamas, and placed a hand on Fezin’s forehead. He was burning up; her hand felt hot almost instantly.
Despite her claim that he was too sturdy to die, her heart sank. She hadn’t realized his fever was this high. She thought he was just being dramatic, but compared to the heat radiating from him, he was actually being quite patient.
April paced the bedroom for a long while, her worry driving away any sleepiness. She couldn’t bring herself to leave his side easily.
The next morning, Fezin—who had only managed to fall asleep at dawn—opened his tired eyes to the sound of children’s giggling and the thumping of feet running through the mansion.
“I told you not to run! Lady April and the Inspector are still sleeping!”
“But the young lady said we could run during the day!”
“Not today! They were both at a party all night, so…”
“If it was a party, didn’t they just have fun? Why are they still sleeping after having fun?”
“Fred! Let’s wake them up!”
“Uh-huh!”
Bauman’s knees weren’t good enough to catch two sprinting children.
Fezin sighed, resigning himself to his fate. Just as expected, Hannah and Fred burst through the door.
Fortunately, they were old enough to know they shouldn’t just shake him awake.
The two children approached the bed, and Hannah lightly tapped Fezin’s arm with her wrist.
Fezin turned toward them.
“Kids, you might not know this, but I’m a member of the Grand Ducal family.”
“We know.”
Fred, hiding fearfully behind Hannah, nodded in agreement.
Hannah continued.
“But the young lady said you’re here to watch her. To see if she does anything bad.”
“Yeah, she explained it perfectly.”
“Lady April isn’t bad. She’s not a bad person. There are so many bad people in the world, so why are you wasting your time here?”
Listening quietly to the child, Fezin sighed and pushed himself up into a sitting position. He looked at Hannah.
“I take it April is teaching you?”
“…How did you know?”
“You’ve gotten smart all of a sudden.”
“How did you know I got smart?”
“I’m a policeman. It’s a policeman’s job to notice things like that.”
Fezin spoke, but his condition was so poor that he collapsed back onto the bed. His entire body felt heavy, as if the earth itself were pulling him down.
Fezin muttered to himself.
“Even the way she starts with education is stuck in the past.”
To the people of the Right Island, education had been a ‘possibility’ they discovered—a way to live without resorting to piracy.
Because of that, they all considered it vital to send their children—and by extension, all children of the Right Island—to school.
The fact that one of their oldest laws prohibited child labor stemmed from that very belief.
However, for the sake of the Grand Duchy’s dazzling progress, it had become necessary for children younger than the legal age to work in factories. The idea that school was more important than the factory was now considered an outdated notion.
Yet April, who had not witnessed that ‘dazzling progress,’ still prioritized educating the promising children of the household for the sake of the family’s restoration.
Contrary to Fezin’s expectations, Hannah immediately understood his meaning and nodded.
“The young lady said I’m not old enough to work yet.”
“Yeah. I’m sure she did.”
“She said once I can read, I can go to school.”
“To April, that’s only natural.”
Fezin gave a hollow laugh, staring into space, then asked Hannah.
“Do you know what’s really strange?”
“What?”
“The Imperial nobles—the ones the Grand Duchy tries so hard to imitate—actually follow the old ways of the Grand Duchy. They make sure their family members receive a high level of education.”
Fred, who had been quiet, whispered in a small voice.
“That really is strange.”
“I’m telling you.”
Fezin yawned and made a shooing motion with his hand.
“Get out, I’m sick. And because you woke me up, I feel even worse.”
“You mustn’t spy on Lady April.”
“Yeah, yeah, I got it.”
He said whatever was necessary to get the children out of the room.
Since there was a sick person in the house, things finally quieted down enough for him to try and sleep. But after a short nap, he felt a cold hand touch his forehead.
Fezin frowned and opened his eyes, only to click his tongue when he realized the hand belonged to April.
“Why is your hand so cold?”
“It’s always cold. My feet, too. My parents used to worry about it.”
April spoke calmly as she sat on the edge of the bed.
“Do you want something to eat?”
“What is there?”
“Vegetable soup made by Fred’s grandmother. She brought it over because she heard there was a patient in the house. It has honey in it.”
“Honey?”
“Yeah.”
April continued.
“You were sick a lot when you were little. I remember. The nanny used to make vegetable soup with honey and feed it to you.”
“Ah, that’s right.”
He felt as if the flavors of his childhood were reviving on his tongue.
Fezin tried to get out of bed, but his cold had worsened in the meantime, and his vision was starting to blur.
Unable to get up, he looked at April.
“Don’t tell my subordinates I caught a cold. It’s embarrassing.”
“Sorry, I was planning on using this as a conversation starter to make friends at the next social gathering.”
Despite his pain, Fezin burst out laughing at April’s joke.
April laughed along with him and had the soup brought in. She dipped a spoon into the bowl and held it out to him.
“Eat.”
Fezin turned his head away, unable to process the situation of someone feeding him soup. But April set the spoon down, firmly cupped his face with both hands, and turned him back to face her.
“I said eat.”
“Ah, this is driving me crazy.”
“You catch a cold swimming in the ocean, and then you skip meals. Even a child would act with more sense than this.”
“Give it here, just… ah.”
Fezin gave up and opened his mouth, and April fed him another spoonful.
Once he actually tasted the soup, he found he liked it. Fezin let out an appreciative ‘Mmm’ and opened his mouth again.
As expected, eating brought back some of his strength. His vision gradually began to clear.
Fezin felt like he could probably take the spoon and eat by himself now, but he let April continue to feed him. She looked like she was enjoying herself, doing something she had likely never done in her life.
‘She’s definitely a fool.’
Even the way she occasionally poked fun at him was becoming tolerable. And as his vision cleared, the sight of April before him…
Fezin tried to stop his thoughts for a moment.
But despite his efforts, the thoughts continued.
The thoughts took over his body, much like the cold had.
