Chapter 14: Chapter 13

Now that I take a good look at her, Agrita’s eyes were welling up with tears .

‘Ah, is that the reason why?’

After I heard the doctor’s explanation, I could surmise why Ash took out his sword .

Was it simply to cut off the seaweed?

It was a pretty peaceful and rational reason .

“You’re pulse is fine . Anyway, it’s really fortunate . If it wasn’t for His Grace, something worse could’ve happened . ” The doctor remarked .

“That’s right” Bessie added .

“I was so shocked . My goodness, even though a person fell into the pond, you shouldn’t have jumped in yourself like that . It’s dangerous . ”

Bessie’s words made Agrita flinch .

Looking at Bessie’s face, I knew she deliberately said that for Agrita to hear .

Agrita glanced around, taking a hint before she apologized in a small soft voice .

“Sorry, because of me……”

“No, it’s fine . ”

It was my choice to leap in . Even though it was a poor decision, what’s done is done .

Bessie seemed like she wanted to reprimand Agrita more, but instead, humphed while holding it in .

“Everyone was worried . Especially His Grace . ” The doctor smiled bitterly .

“……Ash was?”

“You probably didn’t know this, Milady . He stayed by your side all night without getting a single wink . He went to his bedroom just some time ago, saying that you would wake up soon . ”

Bessie’s words surprised me . What?

“All night?”

“Yes . We told His Grace to leave everything to us and take a rest, but as if he’d listen to us . ”

Bessie grumbled under her breath as she complained, but contrary to her voice, she kept a well-mannered professional smile on her face .

I felt like all I heard was just a big fat lie . However, there was no reason for Bessie to lie about something like this .

I eventually raised my hand to my eyes and I was frozen on the spot .

‘Then that……’

Wasn’t a dream .

Ash’s deep and quiet eyes shined in the dark . His large and slightly rough hands covering my eyes as he told me to sleep more…

His low and deep voice that was reigning his anger .

All of them were real .

‘And he stayed with me all night?’

I was speechless for a moment . Did he go that far?

I knew I worried him, but I didn’t know it was this much .

Without knowing what words to say, I kept my mouth shut .

“He’s really caring . Even though Milady is his only family, who else would go this far for a family member?” Bessie continued .

“And why are you the one who’s so proud of it?”

“Why, can’t I?”

Bessie gave the doctor a single glance and the doctor sighed from her reply .

“Well, I wouldn’t say that your family’s normal . After all, both of your parents passed away early… How long has it been since it was just the two of you?”

Then Bessie pushed the doctor aside and approached me . She clasped her hands on mine .

“Milady, please take care of yourself . Of course, we were worried too, but most importantly, please think about His Grace . ”

Bessie has been working here for a very long time .

She was my mother’s companion when my mother was still alive, and she took care of me and Ash instead of a negligent nanny .

To be honest, Bessie was more than just a mere employee for me and Ash .

“His Grace has only you, Milady . ”

This was rather ironic .

I listened to Bessie’s scolding, at the same time, I was thinking about the reason why I was supposed to die .

I was the only one who stayed by Ash’s side… Yes, of course .

I’m Ash’s last family member .

The only person Ash can open and give his heart to . The Ash who thinks that people are nothing more than crumbs .

‘But it’s a lie . ’

I wasn’t Ash’s real family . We don’t share a single drop of blood . We might have grown up as a family, but we could never be considered as a real family .

And this will be revealed in the future .

He gave his heart completely to his one and only special person without ever doubting them . But, how would he feel if he finds out that we aren’t blood-related?

The more he gives his heart to me, the more painful the feeling of betrayal will be later on .

‘Seriously, I don’t think he’d keep me alive . ’

It wasn’t surprising, but I still felt bitter .

Strangely, I couldn’t open my mouth . I couldn’t answer Bessie casually without losing composure .

The Doctor stared at my speechless state, then gave Bessie a nudge with his elbow .

“What?”

“Why are you saying unnecessary things?”

“What do you mean ‘unnecessary things’?”

“It’s not like Milady wanted to drown in the pond . Why are nagging her?”

“Nagging? Did you just say nagging?”

“What else would call it if it’s not ‘nagging’?

“Hey, Doctor!”

“Okay, enough . ”

I stood up and intervened between the two .

I totally forgot that these two can’t be in the same room together . Why did they have to visit at the same time anyway?

“I’m fine, so there’s no reason to fight . Doctor, I’m alright . And Bessie, you’re correct . Thank you . I’ll be more careful next time . ”

It’s fortunate that I was able to mend the atmosphere .

I sighed and turned my head to Agrita .

Agrita was sitting on the edge of my bed while blinking blankly .

She almost died but her cheeks were a lively shade of light pink .

I was astonished .

Agrita’s still alive .

She might have almost died, but she still lived . She didn’t die .

I felt strange until Bessie interrupted .

“Right, Milady . You should wash your face since you’re already awake . I’ll prepare for warm water . ”

“Hmm? No, it’s fine . I’ll just use cold water to wash my face . ”

“Oh heavens, no! I’ll get the water heated up, so just wait here . ”

I could get water from the bathroom with a piece of equipment, but only cold water would come out .

Bessie was concerned that I might catch a cold in this chilly weather if I used cold water to wash . Her eyes were burning as she quickly left the room .

After seeing Bessie leave, the doctor started to stand up, too .

“I’ve already examined your condition and you seem to be doing fine . So I’ll be taking my leave as well . Please, call me anytime if you feel anything wrong with your body . ”

“I will . ”

“I’m warning you, even if it’s small, don’t disregard it . That’s dangerous . ”

“Of course . ”

The concerned doctor finally left the room, leaving only me and Agrita .

Agrita’s eyes started to dart around in panic .

She seems to be considering whether she should leave as well or stay .

“Ari . ” I called out to her .

“Yes?”

“Have you eaten yet?”

“Eaten? No, I haven’t yet . ”

“Is that so . ”

The door was already half-open . I grabbed the doorknob and opened it widely .

“Then, see you later in the dining room . ”

***

Now that I have sent Agrita away, I was all alone in my room .

…is what I was hoping for, but then the butler entered as if he was precisely waiting for this moment .

“How are you feeling?”

“I’m alright . ”

“You have to be careful . So why did you jump in the pond in the first place? You can’t underestimate a pond just because it’s not a big lake or anything . Keep that in mind . Next time, if someone falls into the water, never leap in yourself, but instead, call for anyone around you . And if you’re in a situation that makes that impossible, then just search for something that would float and toss it to them . If there’s nothing like that around you, then don’t just get yourself into danger too and start praying…”

“Now, this is what you call a proper scolding . ”

“Pardon?”

“Nothing . ”

The butler repeated those words to me 3 more times before leaving .

I was starting to feel exhausted when the Viscount and Viscountess Grace visited .

“Thank you very much . ”

“Thank you for saving our daughter, Milady . ”

“…… . No, I did nothing . ”

I literally did nothing . I just flailed around with Agrita . The one who actually saved her was Ash .

They left after giving their series of gratitude .

“Phew . ”

“Milady, I’m back . ”

“…There’s no time for me to sort out my thoughts . ”

“Pardon? What did you say?”

“It’s nothing . Thanks . ”

I took the bucket filled with warm water and the towel . I asked Bessie to leave, closed the door, and hoped that no one else would come .

Thankfully, no one else came over .

I flopped onto my bed .

‘Ah, my sanity . ’

I sat down doing nothing, then washed my face with the supplies Bessie had delivered .

After refreshing my mental state like that, I moved my feet towards my desk .

There’s no better way of sorting my thoughts than writing . Especially when things get complicated and when your head is about to burst .

I took a piece of paper and held a pen in my hand .

I dipped the pen in the ink and started to write the most basic things in my current situation .

-One . The current Agrita Grace is absolutely doomed to die if left to her own devices .

Underneath this, I wrote down some points in a more detailed manner .

-Who kills her? The world .

-Why? Because she is not the real Agrita .

Not knowing the reason why, Shin Ari transmigrated into a character of another world named Agrita .

Because of that, the world deemed her as something to get rid of .

‘Ten stars for this crazy situation . ’

A good ten out of five . This was such an insane world .

I flipped my hair and started writing the next sentence .

-Two . Is it possible to save Agrita from her fated death?

I wrote my answer right below it .

-Yes .

It was possible . The undeniable proof—Agrita was still alive .

If I left her alone, she would’ve drowned and died for sure, but Ash saved her .

However, the problem was I, the one who tried to save her, was of no help at all .

‘This is quite difficult for me . ’

Save her my ass, I almost went to hell with Agrita .

Yes, how pitiful . I pondered on the thought of what would’ve happened if Ash hadn’t appeared in time . Just thinking about it gave me goosebumps . I rubbed both of my arms .

Shortly after, I sighed and added a few more sentences .

-I can’t do this alone . I need help . It’s fortunate though that she can live .

Continuing, I left some space between the next point .

-Three . Would Agrita, with Shin Ari’s soul, be of help to me?

‘This……’

I stopped .

‘I don’t know . ’

I really don’t know for sure .

I wish she would be .

But I couldn’t reassure it .

What I had originally asked from Agrita was simple and not so simple at the same time .

I had hoped for her to catch Ash’s interest .

I believed she would be able to catch Ash’s attention and give me a chance to escape from this place safely .

However, is the current Agrita able to do that?

The current Agrita has the same flesh but a different core . She wasn’t the real, complete Agrita .

The sole reason why Ash was so drawn to Agrita was because Agrita was Agrita . But right now, we have a huge problem in that aspect . I have absolutely no idea how things would turn out from here on out .

And I suspected this ever since I heard that Ash stayed with me the whole night .

You see, if Ash really fell in love with Agrita like how it’s supposed to be, then he would’ve stayed by Agrita’s side and not with me .

‘……Hm?’

I started to feel a pang in my heart . What’s this?

‘Is it because this situation is hopeless?’

Makes sense . I guess so . Clearly, this was the kind of situation that will make me feel so frustrated that my heartaches .

END OF EPISODE 13 .