âUh? Then did you know he was a boy?â
âHuh.â
âBut why were you okay?â
Didnât gender really matter? Was there a reason why he didnât like Benjamin, Adler, and Gourden? If thatâs the case, sheâd rather be happy.
âThank god. I thought you hated men.â
âI like Trixie.â
âMe?â
âI like you.â
âHuh?â
âTrixie-.â
âAre you trying to comfort me for the part about cutting my hair? Thank you.â
âItâs not.â
âThen?â
âI like you.â
âYeah, I like you too, Leone.â
Leone bit his lip tightly. He seemed to have something to say. Seeing this made her even more sad. She wanted to ask what Leone thought, why he was afraid of the world, and what he had been through, but it was still impossible. She touched his cheek, looked at him, praying with a desperate heart that he would be able to get along without her.
âIâll go.â
After todayâs training was over, the men in the main building and other servants except for her would move first tomorrow. Therefore, she should not be distracted, and in fact, this was the last day of discipline. Maybe she wouldnât be able to see Leone tomorrow. No, itâs better not to see him.
âYou should sleep well. Be well.â
Was that why? Feeling sentimental, she exchanged a little bit of a long greeting. Even knowing that she had to turn around without regret. It wasnât too obvious, though, so she tried to take her eyes off his face and walk away.
âYou want to go, Trixie.â
Suddenly, Leone grabbed her arm. Itâs still a hot, big arm.
â⦠Oh, now you know how to hold my arm. You are all grown up, Leone. You always pulls on my skirt.â
She made a friendly joke, trying not to panic. Leone didnât respond to her praise. Just staring at her with cold eyes somewhere. She replied, gently removing his hand from her arm.
âHuh. Let go. I want to go to the annex and rest.â
âAbsolutely?â
The atmosphere was a bit strange.
âHuh? Then, where am I going?â
It wasnât even a specific question, but the words came out because she was surprised by his question. There were shadows in his purple eyes. Itâs a face she had never seen before. Eyes as deep and dark as a riverbed, without light.
He was looking at her like that.
âPromise.â
âHuh? What promise?â
âYouâre not going.â
Her heart skipped a beat at those words.
âIâm not going. I am not leaving.â
Her heart, which was about to hit the floor, beat faster and faster.
ââ¦huh.â
She realized that if the agitation was too loud, nothing would happen. She looked at Leone with a normal face.
âWhere am I going, Leone?â
She smiled.
âCalm down, Trixie.â
Thereâs no way Leone knows about her plans. No, there was no way to know. He had seen maps, but he didnât know how to read them. Of course, she said âwithout meâ a lot, so the child was anxious, but all of this was a plan that has never been mentioned, and everything would go to the vacation spot and be implemented. She made a mistake, but Leone knew nothing. So no need to panic.
She stood on tiptoe and held out her hand, smiling as if she didnât look as awkward as possible. Leone habitually bowed his head.
âUgh. Donât worry, my boy.â *
It must have seemed strange. She was really complacent. Leone was a sensitive child, but to show off.
âOh, Leone. Hey. In two days we will leave this house. Did you see the mess here while taking a walk?â
Once again, She was worried about Leoneâs uneasiness.
âHuh. I saw.â
âWe are going to the capital.â
âCapitalâ¦â
Leone rolled his pronunciation in his mouth as if it were an unfamiliar word. They should have said it sooner, but everyone hesitated. If Leone finds out in advance, would he calmly follow the movement? So, she hadnât told Leone yet.
Now⦠she was going to put on the gun barrel and told him.
âBut if I want to stay with Leone all the time, I have to leave for a while before going to the capital.â
âLeave.â
âBut donât worry. Close your eyes and sleep for ten nights. Then I will come.â
Itâs a lie, but rather than messing around as if having a seizure upon arrival, it seemed better to make at least one corner to believe in. She tried to ignore the remorse.
âTen?â
âTen is a number, but itâs a count⦠Fold your fingers one by one here. Up to the toes. No, you have to take this foot off.â
An unexpected arithmetic class unfolded. She showed Leone how to remove the fingers one by one.
âSo donât be too surprised and wait patiently.â
ââ¦huh.â
âLeone. Have a good class today! Have a good dinner.â
She messed up Leoneâs soft hair.
âIâm tired. This miss will go and rest!â
Then, before Leone could say anything, she turned around.
âTrixie.â
Leone caught her again. This time his hand met her hand.
âBet, do it.â
ââ¦huh?â
âWish-granting.â
âWhat bet?â
âSee you again. Itâs coming.â
He learned how to bet and talk like this. She still hadnât asked for all the wishes she got⦠She just laughed.
âYes, bet. If you lose again this time, another wish will be added. Then youâll have to listen a lot, you know?â
âHuh.â
âOkay. Then I will go.â
This time Leone let her go easily. She walked away, turned around, waved one more time, and quickly headed for the annex. Leone looked at her until she disappeared. She could feel his gaze, but she didnât look back.
It was really time to leave. It was the four months with the most work since she came to that world.
* * *
Yesterday the annex was full, but today it is empty. It was because most of the workers had left. Even though some important items were removed from inside, the mansion was still packed.
âTo think you would completely abandon this mansionâ¦â
Adler decided to erase all traces of the prince and the count and leave most of them in the mansion. When he thought of how expensive the furniture, artwork, carpets, and lights in these mansions were, he felt sorry for them all.
âMoving all this stuff is easy to spot and takes too much time. Directors are ineffective.â
âItâs too bad. How much do you sell all of theseâ¦â
If he paid the money to bring the manpower to the Meto Mountains, there wouldnât be much left over from the sales, but it seemed like an amount that would be difficult for me to get his hands on.
âIf itâs too much of a waste, take this mansion.â
âYes?â
âBecause Iâm going to throw it away anyway. I donât know if it will sell well, but⦠If you say so.â
âOf course there are many!â
âWell. If I had to choose between this amount of money and an efficient way to go home, I would of course be on the efficiency side.â
Oh, dear⦠werenât they as a family?
That much money? Adler had a calm face, befitting the aristocrat who easily solved the marriage record expungement that cost 20 million gold. Seriously, a mansion of this size was nothing to nobles. It was sad all over again.
âMy⦠Thatâs Okay.â
She shook her head. She was thinking of leaving, but if she accepted it, what was it? She didnât even have the confidence to dispose of the things in this mansion well.
âIs that so.â
Adler, quickly nodding, nodded sideways. It seemed that the carriage was ready for her to ride.
âThen Trixie. Have a good rest in Stud. I will send someone soon.â
Today was me, Adler, Gourden, Benjamin and Leone. It was the day she moved. They reduced the number of people to go unnoticed in places where there are not many people.
Two of the three knights who were in charge of overtime agreed to escort her, and one followed behind Adler. Thanks to this, as a commoner, she was able to receive very luxurious security.
âYes. I will be waiting for the day you send someone from the capital.â
Her conscience stung to say something she didnât even want to say, but she couldnât help it for the sake of her life.
She turned around as she climbed into a carriage that had been painted black like a hire car so as not to be noticed. The wagon the rest of the men rode to the capital was also a little bigger, and the exterior was shabby and black. A wagon was hung behind it for Leone, and inside the cloth was the cage Leone used in the room.
The move itself seemed stressful, so Leone was given a sedative and put to sleep.
She told Benjamin and Adler about a hundred times to be careful because if the world he woke up and faced was different, he could be sharp.
âLetâs go. Do not worry. I will see you again soon.â, Adler said.
It was only then that she realized that she had been staring in the direction of Leoneâs wagon for too long before she climbed into the carriage.
â⦠yes.â
She felt bitter that she wouldnât be able to see him soon.
âItâs a real goodbye now.â
She knew it was greedy to make eye contact and say goodbye, but she felt very uncomfortable and sorry to go on like this.
âBe careful on your way to the capital.â
Adler closed the door, and she waved her hand out the window and said goodbye.
The carriage started moving. Two knights on horseback followed, encircling the carriage. She remembered the day she first came there. Adler followed her silently like those knights. That was the first day she saw Leone, and she was terrified. Leone was scared too, but in fact, he wasnât the only one who felt afraid.
She was afraid of her husband, afraid of poverty and mud. She hated the world. It was a time when she only thought about running away from all of this.
She hugged the burden tightly. Inside were full of gold coins that she had obtained with her own hands.
âThanks to you, I earned a lot.â
When she thought of herself when she first arrived there, itâs normal for her heart to be warm just by having a gold coin by her side, but somehow she didnât feel good. Feeling frustrated, she hugged her luggage tightly and closed her eyes. Her head was cluttered and she wanted to clear it. After a while, she felt into a deep sleep.
And how much time has passed?
ââ¦Ricky.â
âMmm.â
âTrixie.â
âUgh.â
âTrixie! Wake up. We are here.â
âHuh? Yes?â
Eyes flashed open. What the hell happened while she was asleep? She quickly cleared her head and opened the wagon door. As she was about to get off, she was frozen.
âWelcome, Trixie.â
This hospitality, this atmosphere, this humidity⦠She knew this wasâ¦
âTrixie, get off. Everyone is waiting.â
Burden. A burden, itself.
âThis⦠why?â
The mansion she saw in Meto Mountain was also filthy and large. It was so grand that it was hard to believe that it was at the foot of the mountain. But that was nothing.
It was a large mansion with cleanly maintained white exterior walls and a spacious and beautiful garden that made it seem like you would never get lost while playing tag and never return home. The blue roof was the color of the sky.
As expected, this is how the best knights in the empire were treated. It was a truly luxurious mansion. The most burdensome thing was the servants who were standing in a line and clapping as if they were trying to greet her.
âThis⦠Isnât this too much?â
She was able to barely open her mouth after a while.
âââââââââââââââââââââ
Translator Note:
* In that dialogue she called him âdogâ. I didnât really like it so I changed it to a more kind word that, in my opinion, follow the meaning of the context. If not, I fell like Trixie is degrading Leone too much, poor Leone T_T
That said, this is chapter 50!!! Than you so much for following this story until here <3 And I wonder, how would you like to celebrate when we reach chapter 100? Let me know your thoughts!