Previously
Killian wonders why Eleanora does not trigger his phobia of women and decides to live in the new mansion with only Owen to hide his condition. The two reminisce about the war against Criel, where Killian saved Owen's life and a mysterious military doctor named Elliot Winter performed a miraculous surgery on them.
On Friday afternoon, Clara came by to visit Eleanora.
Like Julian, Clara was Eleanora’s childhood friend. She worked at a small sundries shop on Highbury, a bustling commercial street.
Because the distance made daily commuting impractical, she stayed in the attic above the shop during workdays and returned to the village like this once the weekend arrived.
Covering her mouth, Clara giggled softly, then suddenly clapped her hands as something crossed her mind.
It turned out Julian had indeed gone all the way to Clara’s workplace to tell her about that miserable incident where Killian showered Eleanora with cutting remarks.
Apparently, however, he had said nothing about the financial support tied to Killian’s marriage negotiations, for Clara made no mention of the subject at all.
Eleanora felt uncomfortable, as if she were keeping secrets from Clara, but she could not speak openly about the Thorn family’s finances, leaving her no choice but to shoulder a strange pang of guilt.
Eleanora laughed in agreement at Clara’s candid sigh.
Clara let out an admiring sigh as she pictured the city’s dazzling nights.
Clara said, her eyes sparkling.
Eleanora arched an eyebrow and offered a sly smile.
Clara looked away, swallowing the rest of her words. Her reaction seemed rather odd, causing Eleanora to tilt her head in curiosity, but Clara quickly continued,
Eleanora almost replied that she might remain unmarried for the rest of her life, but she closed her mouth again. Words were said to hold power, after all.
Eleanora answered as she tried to picture Julian proposing to her. Strangely enough, the image did not come easily.
She did not covet a grand or dazzling proposal; she merely wanted to picture him holding a bouquet of flowers and asking, ‘Will you marry me?’
Eleanora wished that this scene, which felt so difficult even to imagine, might one day become reality.
It might seem impossible now, but who knew what the future held?
Clara asked in a careful tone. Eleanora’s eyes widened in surprise before a quiet smile settled on her lips.
After walking Clara to the crossroads, Eleanora turned back toward her clinic and home only when Clara’s silhouette had completely vanished from sight.
She walked slowly, taking in the world bathed in the hues of sunset.
By now, Clara’s house was likely filled with the savory aromas of dinner. The moment Clara arrived home, she would warmly embrace her parents, then exchange playful squabbles with her younger siblings.
When Eleanora was young, her own home had been bustling with life as well. But her mother had succumbed to a sudden illness, and her father had followed shortly after the war ended due to an absurd and tragic accident.
Left completely alone, Eleanora had been trapped in her grief for a long time, unable to find her way out.
Fortunately, there were people who helped and consoled her when it seemed she might never stand on her own two feet again—the villagers of Oakbridge.
Among them, those who cared for her most were Clara and Julian. For that very reason, Eleanora had forced herself to pretend she was fine and get back up for their sake.
Yet the truth was that she had not fully recovered even now. She still suffered from sleepless nights, and grief still choked the breath from her throat from time to time.
If she were to marry now, would she be freed from this cruel suffering?
Even so, she could not marry someone she did not love simply because she felt lonely.
( ‘There is no answer.’ )
Eleanora let out a quiet sigh just then.
Then, she felt a presence behind her.
Strange. She was certain she had been walking alone the entire way. After all, this path led only to her clinic and home.
Had it been morning, she would have assumed a villager was coming to see her, but at this hour, people rarely came unless there was a grave emergency.
‘And the family of an emergency patient certainly wouldn’t be walking at such a leisurely pace.’
Bracing herself, Eleanora quickly turned around. There, more than twenty paces away, stood Killian holding a small envelope, looking just as bewildered as she was.
( ‘Ah, right.’ )
She was no longer the only one living down this path. This man lived here too.
Still, why did he look so shocked?
She understood her own surprise, since she had had no idea someone was following her. But he had been looking at her back the entire time, hadn’t he?
Yet he seemed as unsettled as an herbivore locking eyes with a predator.
‘He’s built like a bear, so what on earth is wrong with him?’
In any case, he was hardly someone she was pleased to see, so she wanted to ignore him and keep walking.
At that moment, however, the faces of Julian and the Thorn family crossed her mind.
What if her rudeness reflected poorly on the family who had introduced her to him as an acquaintance?
Eleanora spoke with a polite smile. Killian’s trembling gaze fixed onto her, his lips parting slightly.
Eleanora felt a faint twinge of surprise. She had expected him to snap with some thoughtless, biting remark, or simply ignore her and stride past.
Instead, he looked as though he were carefully weighing his words. So, with a hint of anticipation, she waited to hear what he would say.
Finally, wearing an expression of utter resignation, he spoke.
Hah… Of course.
So he really had been deliberating, but evidently only about which rude remark he ought to make.
Eleanora nearly shot him a glare, but she managed to hold it together with effort and calmly turned her head forward.
‘Never mind. It’s no big deal. To him, saying such things is as natural as breathing.’
Thinking this, she prepared to take a step forward… but then abruptly spun back around.
Killian, who had also been about to continue walking, froze in place, flustered.
Eleanora did not ask out of mockery or a desire to provoke him.
Though she had only seen him from a distance, the color of his complexion seemed better than before.
The space between Eleanora’s brows furrowed slightly.
She had simply been concerned that he might be ill and delaying treatment because the only physician in this town was… a female doctor.
Swallowing the retort that almost escaped her lips, she parted her mouth again to answer.