Chapter 93
*
Upon arriving back at the Air Force Base, Scarlett unpacked in the glider warehouse next to the Naval Residence.
A surprisingly nice workshop had been set up inside the warehouse. When Scarlett expressed her amazement, Pallin, who had entered with her, said,
"There are a lot of handy guys here, so it got finished bit by bit as daily busywork."
"It's amazing..."
Scarlett marveled.
"But it's too big for me to use alone."
"Will they come? The polytechnic university folks."
"I don't know. If they don't, I'll just have to do the work of three people by myself."
Pallin chuckled cheerfully beside her as she spoke so reliably.
In the meantime, Victor entered the workshop, and Pallin greeted him before leaving. He approached Scarlett and asked,
"Like it?"
"Yeah. It's great."
After saying that, Scarlett turned to Victor.
"I have something to tell you in advance."
"What is it."
"When we build the airplane, I'm going to install a detonation device in the engine too."
"......"
"If war breaks out, I'll blow up all the airplanes. So it'd be best if you make sure the peace treaty goes smoothly."
Victor looked at her with an exasperated expression at her firm words, then nodded.
"Alright. I promise. I'll make sure the peace treaty goes well."
"Good."
Scarlett began hanging the blueprints one by one on the wall.
In that short time, she had drawn an enormous number of them. Some came from her parents' memories, but most were newly drafted while attending school.
Victor looked at the multitude of blueprints and Scarlett's face, weary with exhaustion hanging from it. Then, grabbing her arm, he said,
"Rest first. You came over the mountains."
"Is there time to rest?"
"There is. Bestina seems busy assessing the situation because of the news that you're building an airplane. Especially since there haven't been any recent military provocations."
"I see..."
Scarlett replied and sat in a chair, leaning back. Perhaps because she'd stayed up so many nights, her tension melted away the moment she sat, and she began to doze off. She didn't want to admit it, but being next to Victor made her anxious yet at ease.
Victor chuckled at her drowsy state and stroked her hair, saying,
"Sleep in bed."
"Don't wanna wash..."
"Just sleep."
"I can't just sleep in a new bed like that. I'm going to bathe and change into pajamas first."
At her words, Victor picked up the pajamas she'd unpacked onto the bed and said,
"For someone talking about a new bed, these pajamas already look pretty worn."
She punched his arm with a half-awake fist as he teased her. Victor pretended to block it and stepped back. When she wobbled from his dodge, he swiftly pulled her into an embrace.
"Then sleep in my bed."
"What’s that supposed to mean."
"Or I’ll wash you."
She hit him again.
Victor chuckled and said,
"I'm not teasing. I can do that much labor for important personnel."
"Don't talk nonsense. As if you're not teasing..."
"I'm saying again, it's not a joke. If it's a hassle, I really mean I'll wash you."
"......"
This wasn't teasing? How could that be?
Scarlett looked up at Victor in disbelief, and he leaned down to meet her eyes, saying,
"Yeah?"
His close inspection woke her up.
Scarlett averted her gaze and opened her mouth.
"......I'm awake now."
"Oh dear."
"I'll go wash."
Scarlett hurriedly grabbed her pajamas from the bed. She dashed toward the adjoining bathroom but turned back.
Standing at the door, she asked as Victor turned to her,
"Victor, you weren't... trying to seduce me, were you?"
He countered at her words,
"Was I that clumsy that you'd even have to ask?"
"No..."
She'd only worried that maybe her own heart was wavering, mistaking non-seduction for seduction.
As Scarlett pondered, Victor walked toward the bathroom and said,
"What about you?"
"Huh?"
"Why the troubled look? You're making me wait."
She froze at his frank words. Then her face heated up, and she covered her cheek with her hand before speaking.
"Can you just really help with the bath? Nothing else?"
Victor looked somewhat displeased at her words but replied as if there was no helping it.
"Sure."
"Then come in."
Scarlett entered the bathroom.
She filled the tub with warm hot spring water that could be drawn up immediately, no need to boil. But it was too hot, so Victor mixed in cold water to adjust the temperature. Then he rolled up his sleeves and checked the water with his hand.
Scarlett watched in fascination as Victor, who would never have done such menial tasks in his life, adjusted her bathwater temperature. He added the bath salts she used at the Dumfelt estate, drew the curtain over the tub, and said,
"Wash."
"Is the temperature right?"
When she asked suspiciously, Victor replied,
"You think I can't even get the bathwater temperature right?"
"Remembering how you bandaged me last time, it seems plenty possible."
"I've been learning from that sense of failure back then."
"......Really?"
"Yeah."
At his answer, Scarlett unwittingly smiled a little and slipped behind the curtain. She took off her robe and got into the tub; the temperature was perfect. Pleased, she even hummed a tune.
When she emerged wrapped in a large towel after bathing, Victor approached, unwrapped the towel to dry her body, and helped her change clothes. Scarlett considered protesting but felt sleep overtaking her, and since he'd already seen her undressed plenty of times, she decided to let it go, her slight embarrassment diminished. But contrary to her initial thought, the embarrassment grew, keeping sleep at bay.
After fully preparing for bed, as Scarlett lay down, Victor said,
"I'll put you to sleep."
"Am I a child?"
Despite her scolding, Victor lay on the bed and extended his arm as if to offer it as a pillow.
Scarlett recalled how, not long ago when pretending to have lost her memory, she'd pulled his arm to cuddle. She'd thought he was asleep, but seeing him offer now, he must have been awake.
Her face burned, and she didn't linger, quickly lying on the bed.
Victor turned off the gas lamp and pulled her into his arms, saying,
"Sleep well."
"......Yeah."
Scarlett leaned into his embrace, her insides burning and even feeling thirsty as she tried to sleep.
Sleep didn't come right away. Already woken by the bathroom ordeal, feeling his heartbeat where her hand touched his chest made it even harder.
'His heart...'
The rapid beat suggested he might be tense too.
Scarlett propped herself up and asked,
"......Nervous?"
Victor looked up at her as she asked.
"Yeah."
"Why?"
"You're right here."
"That... makes you nervous?"
"Right now, yeah."
She hesitated at his words, then leaned down like conducting a difficult experiment, pressing her lips to his, and asked,
"......Now?"
"......"
With no reply, Scarlett placed her hand near his heart again. The strong beating was felt.
Victor finally spoke.
"Sleep quick. You're tired."
"......"
"Sleep when I'm trying to help you, Scarlett."
Scarlett nodded and rested her head on Victor's stomach to sleep. It looked uncomfortable no matter how you saw it, but as she fell soundly asleep like that, Victor let out a hollow laugh.
"......You're a woman I understand less and less."
He muttered, tilting his head back.
The feel of her breath on his stomach tensed his whole body. Sometimes she acted as if she possessed unbreakable reason.
Contrary to Scarlett's thoughts, Victor's mind was filled with images of her shoulders and smooth legs as she stepped out of the tub moments ago, and her body revealed as the towel fell away.
It was torment enough not to touch her, and now she was lying directly on his stomach. It felt like she was testing how solid his reason was.
Sleep was out of the question.