Chapter 151: Questions of Heart
Kael tilted his head slightly and let out a small chuckle, "I'm not. Well, I'm going to make sure everything goes well, after all. Anyway, show me your stomach?"
Arwyn blinked several times, "W-WHAT? Isn't touching my ear enough for you? You want more?"
'In some way, he doesn't resemble him at all.'
Kael scratched the back of his neck slightly, his expression troubled as he spoke, "That's not what I mean, Arwyn. You see, my healing magic works extremely well against curses, so, I thought it might be better if I took a proper look at your condition."
She stared at him blankly for a moment before replying in a calm voice, "There's no need to go that far. My body is perfectly fine, so, the only issue lies with my mana core. I can assure you of that much as an experienced healer myself."
He fell silent at her words, his gaze lowering as he seemed to think deeply for a moment before letting out a quiet sigh, "In that case, you must start taking better care of yourself from now on. Therefore, you're not allowed to use magic so frequently anymore. Besides, you live alone, so, working without your tendrils will be difficult, which means you should hire a maid to handle the basic chores. Also, if you ever feel unwell, you're not allowed to go to the office either. And I'll be dropping by from time to time to check on you and heal you when necessary. And… and…"
Arwyn watched him quietly throughout his long speech, then tilted her head slightly with a puzzled expression, "Excuse me? Who do you think you are to order me around like that?"
Kael lightly touched his chin and let out a confident grin as he said, "I'm your healer. That means you have to listen to every order I give you. If I tell you to sit, you will sit, and if I tell you to lie down, you will lie down. Otherwise, I'll tell Seraphina about your condition… want me to do that?"
Hearing her name, Arwyn froze, her playful expression disappearing as she lowered her gaze and remained silent for a moment, then spoke quietly with a strange look crossing her face, "Please… don't tell her anything about what happened here. She has been worried sick about me, even though she never allowed it to show."
Kael raised an eyebrow in surprise, his curiosity evident as he asked, "Then how did you notice it?"
She rested her cheek on her hand and looked up at the ceiling, a fleeting smile appearing on her lips as she answered, "It was rather obvious once I paid attention. Today, no matter how casually I acted in front of her or how many jokes I made during office hours, she didn't scold me even once, nor did she punish me for breaking any rules, she simply overlooked everything. Normally, if I behaved like that, she would suspend me instantly for several days. On top of that, she secretly instructed Lyra to keep an eye on me while she would be away. So, you see, she may appear complicated at times, but once you look beneath the surface, she becomes surprisingly easy to understand. That is why I am asking you... do not tell her anything."
To be honest, Arwyn hadn't wanted to share these things about her friend, yet now that Kael was living with her, he would inevitably face similar situations sooner or later. Her words might help him when that time came, or at the very least, they could clear away certain misunderstandings before they grew deeper.
Kael smiled softly, his voice gentle as he replied, "I promise you… I won't tell her anything."
He was genuinely happy at that moment.
Happy that he hadn't left Arwyn there to die, happy that he had chosen to keep helping despite his own troubles, happy that he was able to protect someone precious to his wife, happy that he could preserve her smile once again, and happy that he was learning more about her little by little. After all, his wife was the most complicated woman he had ever met, yet just as Arwyn had said, if he tried to see beneath the surface, he would eventually understand her, perhaps he had already begun doing so without even realizing it.
Arwyn remained silent for a brief moment, then suddenly spoke in a playful tone, "Thank you. Oh, that reminds me… when did you start calling her Seraphina, hmm?"
Kael let out a tired sigh, "Can't I?"
She shook her head lightly and gave him a look filled with mock disappointment, "No, no, you definitely can. It's just that it has been a month since you two started living together, yet nothing really happened, so, I was a bit worried about the two of you."
He looked at her with clear confusion, "What exactly do you expect to happen between us?"
Leaning forward, she smiled mischievously, her eyes sparkling as she whispered, "Something that'll give me a cute little nephew."
'Wait… did she somehow find out about our marriage? That doesn't seem to be the case judging by her behavior, though. Or is this just one of those situations where a man and a woman live together and people naturally assume something will happen eventually?'
Kael's face turned completely red as he blurted out, "Why would you even think that could happen?"
She paused for a moment, then her teal-green eyes gleamed with excitement as she spoke again, her voice filled with anticipation, "Ah, why else? You've got a crush on her, don't you?"
---
As the daylight slowly faded and the night sky took its place, Seraphina found herself standing before the mirror inside her own room, holding the maid outfit against her chest while staring at her own reflection, and there was a troubled expression resting clearly on her face.
'He should be arriving at any moment now. I need to decide something before he does. Should I wear this thing or not?'
Truth be told, Seraphina wanted Arwyn's advice not because she intended to give him a gift nor because she was searching for something to offer him, but because she was struggling to hand over something she had already prepared for him long ago. However, due to the sudden decision that she would be participating in the Dungeon Hunt next week, she had no choice but to give it to him today no matter what. Even so, as far as she could remember, she had never given him anything other than money until now.
Besides that, she had avoided this moment for a long time by telling herself that it would be better to give it to him when he was ready, or by convincing herself that whenever she thought about it she somehow recalled that nightmare, but eventually she came to realize that those were nothing more than excuses she had created on her own.
In truth, she simply wanted to avoid facing him directly, or more precisely, she wanted to avoid the questions he would inevitably throw at her, because she truly had no answer she could give him, just as he had pointed out to her that night. And he was, unfortunately, correct.
Before that night, whenever he asked her something or teased her endlessly, she was always able to control herself and respond almost indifferently, as though his words meant nothing to her at all. Moreover, she avoided thinking too deeply about them because he was always so nonchalant and dramatic that it was difficult to tell whether he truly meant anything or whether he was doing everything purely for his own amusement.
That night, however, he had been different.
He seemed strangely sincere, as though he already knew that she was struggling to trust him again. It was as though he understood that she still had no answer to give him, yet he asked anyway. It felt as if he had begun to understand her a little, or at the very least, he was genuinely trying to do so.
It almost seemed like he had grown up just a bit, and that realization troubled her more than anything else.
Why would someone who supposedly saw her as nothing more than a source of entertainment willingly waste so much of his time on her?
Why would he go out of his way to clear up a misunderstanding that she herself had been carrying?
Why did he not mock her when he had the perfect opportunity to do so, an opportunity he would have seized without hesitation in the past?
Why did he not tease her back like he always did whenever she teased him merely to amuse herself?
Why was he doing things like this to her at all?
No, more importantly, why had he been acting so strangely lately?
She did not really know, yet she believed that if she were to ask him directly, he might at least attempt to answer her questions properly. However, she could not bring herself to ask him anything, no matter how curious she was about what he might say, because she was not in any position to question him at all. How could she possibly do that when she herself was unable to answer his questions, or even the questions she had been throwing at herself for such a long time?
Why was she getting so close to him?
The obvious answer would have been the influence of her friend, Arwyn. However, Arwyn had gotten close to her because they were friends, or rather because there was a genuine relationship between them.
But what about Kael?
He was her husband and nothing more than that. The connection they shared could hardly be called a relationship that justified this kind of closeness, especially when there was not even a proper sense of mutual trust between them. By all logic, there was no reason for her to grow closer to him.
Then why did being close to him always feel so strangely comfortable to her?
Why did she dislike it so much whenever he mentioned another woman in front of her?
Why had she grown furious upon hearing that he was mesmerized by another woman?
What did any of that have to do with her?
Why did it matter to her at all?
She hated him to her core, or at least she believed she did, so it should not have mattered, it should not have mattered at all.
And yet, she would have been a fool not to notice the strange sensation lingering deep within her chest whenever he was around, something subtle yet persistent that refused to be ignored. It was not something she could explain through mere words, but rather a lingering sense of familiarity, an unsettling one at that. But what exactly was that familiarity supposed to be?
Strangely enough, she had asked her mother about such a thing not too long ago, and of course her mother had given her an answer, though she did not like it in the slightest.
It was all happening because of... desire.
'Impossible! There is no way… I would ever harbor something like that toward him. Desire of all things, this is ridiculous. It cannot be true.'
She shook her head slightly.
'Ah, calm down, Seraphina, do not get so anxious… if you lose your composure like this, you will never find the answer you are looking for.'
She took a soft breath in an attempt to steady herself, and as she did, her fingers tightened around the fabric of the maid outfit pressed against her chest, a strange and conflicted expression appearing on her face.
'Hypothetically speaking, let us say that I do have some sort of desire toward him, one born purely out of feminine reaction from sleeping beside him for years and nothing else. No, I cannot even bring myself to imagine something like that, not when it comes to him. Still, I have to think it through anyway. Wait… who says I need to imagine it today? Let us just assume I have something like that and observe it for a while, just to be certain.'
However, her mother had also told her that this was not the true answer either, not the one she was truly searching for, and that she needed to find it on her own. Right now, she already had too many things weighing on her mind, so she decided she would think about it later.
In any case, she did not truly need to wear the outfit to give him those things. What she needed was courage, and after talking with Arwyn she had already gained that courage. There was no real need for it at all.
'I've decided. I will not wear it.'
But in the end, she wore it anyway.
'It is not like I want to impress him or anything.'
---
Some time later, Kael found himself standing in front of his mansion door. The cool night air tousled his brown hair into disarray, and above him, the moon hung quietly in the sky, accompanied by countless shimmering stars. The night felt somewhat different to him compared to usual, though he could not quite understand why, but it certainly did.
'I've made her wait too long today, haven't I? I just hope she doesn't get angry with me.'
Taking a deep breath, he slid the key into the lock and turned it, only to find that it did not open as it always did.
He tried once more, but the result remained the same.
'Strange… why isn't it opening?'
The lock was a dual-type mechanism, meaning it could be locked or unlocked from either side of the door using the same key. If Seraphina had returned home before him, she would have locked it from inside, and if she were reading in the living room, she usually left it unlocked for him. Since the key was not working, that meant either the lock itself was broken, or she had blocked it from the inside. But why would she do something like that?
He knocked on the door several times.
There was no response.
With a bored sigh, he muttered to himself, 'I guess I don't have any other choice.'
Drawing in a deep breath, he raised his voice and shouted:
"DARLING! I'M HOME. OPEN THE DOOR."
Once again, there was no reply from within.
'Has she not returned yet? Should I break the door then? No, that would be a terrible idea, since a weakling like me should not possess enough strength to break it in the first place. I should check whether any window is left open and use that instead. Hmm… that sounds like a good idea.'
...Very soon, he found himself near the training ground, where a single window stood slightly ajar with warm light spilling out from within. That window was the same one positioned at the exact opposite side of the dining table.
'She is definitely inside... but then, could she be in the bath right now?'
Without wasting any time, he leapt onto the window's outer ledge and jumped inside instantly in a swift motion. However, by some strange and cruel stroke of luck, a curtain ended up coiling itself tightly around his legs at the same time, causing him to lose his balance and crash down onto the ground with a dull thud, after which he rolled several times before finally lying flat against the cold marble floor.
'Damn it… I swear I'm going to tear that cursed curtain apart one of these days for daring to trip me like that.'
Just then, a sweet and nurturing scent drifted into his nose, lingering softly in the air and stirring a faint sense of hunger within him before he could even stop himself.
'Food? Has she already prepared dinner?'
Curiosity getting the better of him, he slowly lifted his gaze upward.
At that very moment, a shadow fell over his body as her figure came into view, her face darkening slightly as she looked down at him with sharp eyes, her voice reaching him instantly. "Why did you come here like some kind of thief? Can you not wait just a little longer and use the door like a normal person?"
Kael stared up at the ceiling instead and released a tired sigh, "Nope… I was just dying to see you all day, you know, so waiting even for a second was obviously out of the question."
She tilted her head just slightly, her gaze unwavering, "But... you're looking at the ceiling, though, not at me."
Kael waved a hand lazily in front of his face before snapping his fingers, "That's because you're so tall that I can't even see your sweet face from down here, and on top of that you are blocking all the light."
Her response came flat and unamused, "Why don't you just admit that you're the one who's short?"
He immediately snapped back, irritation seeping into his voice, "Trust me, I am absolutely not."
After a brief pause, a strange expression crossed his face as his tone shifted into something calmer and far more deliberate, "Hey, darling… I'm feeling a little cold today, so why don't you help me out and take a few steps forward?"
She raised one elegant eyebrow, clearly suspicious. "Why?"
Covering his eyes with his hand, he answered in an oddly casual voice, "Why else? If you step forward, the hem of your gown will completely embrace my face, keeping the wind away. I would naturally warm up from the inside."
Seraphina's face tightened ever so slightly as her shoulders stiffened, her irritation slipping through her composure as she said, "Do you take me for a fool, idiot? You really think I would not understand what you are plotting by now. But... it is unfortunate to say the least, because you won't be able to see anything even if I step forward, and I am not planning to do that anyway. Too bad!"
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(Chapter Ended)