TMC 07

CHAPTER :07

6. Even If Only Until the Wound Heals

“We are simply walking different paths.”

Just as Duke Castillo was running himself ragged to throw his weight behind Theo, he, too, was simply walking his own path.

A poised smile graced his calm, even tone.

“I see.”

The Empress smiled brightly.

It was an expression more than capable of wrapping the old emperor around her finger.

To Adrian, however, it was merely repulsive—so much so that he felt a strong urge to leave this uncomfortable audience immediately.

The Empress, on the other hand, seemed to quite like that look in his eyes, curving them into soft crescents as she continued.

“Come to think of it, it’s not such a big deal, is it? You’ve yielded to Theo every single time, so surely you can covet at least one thing for yourself.”

“You flatter me, Your Majesty.”

“But there is one thing I am curious about.”

The Empress leaned to one side and asked.

“When you made a deal with me last time, did you say your reason for wanting Lady Bronte was merely curiosity about something Theo couldn’t have?”

The moment she asked, the birds around the Empress’s palace took flight all at once, their wings flapping.

Once the shadows of the birds vanished, the Empress’s own eyes shone with a curiosity of their own.

Reading her intentions, Adrian wore a gentle smile.

“If you are worried the deal might fall through, there is no need to fret. My intentions remain the same as they were from the start.”

“Is that so?”

“I hope that is the answer you were looking for.”

The Empress swept her gaze down Adrian’s impeccably poised posture before snapping her fan shut.

“My, look at the time.”

At the Empress’s hand gesture, a lady-in-waiting approached Adrian and set down a small box.

“This is something I have prepared for the Young Duke.”

Inside the box opened by the maid lay a key made of pure gold.

“A key, I see.”

“Soon, I shall send a beautiful gift to the Castillo estate that fits that key.”

He did not know what the Empress was planning, but he accepted it with nonchalance.

“I shall look forward to it. May the brilliant light of the night sky reach Her Imperial Majesty…”

Courteously offering his respects, Adrian stepped out of the Empress’s audience chamber.

As he walked briskly, his aide, Liam, fell into step beside him.

“Did the conversation end well, My Lord?”

“If you can even call that a conversation.”

Adrian handed the box he had received from the Empress to Liam as if it were a nuisance.

Seeing the box wrapped in golden paper, Liam asked in surprise,

“What is this?”

“A golden key.”

“What is it used for?”

“She said she would send a fitting gift soon. Quite unnecessary for something destined for the trash.”

Liam gasped in fright at his words, whispered before they had even left the Empress’s palace grounds, and hurried closer.

“Commander, there are too many ears listening.”

“It doesn’t matter. We only acted after calculating what each of us would gain, anyway.”

Even though there was nothing she couldn’t obtain in the empire if she wanted it, the Empress’s greed was endless.

Her reason for wanting to put her mere five-year-old son, Valery, on the throne was obvious.

“Who could possibly stop you, Commander?”

“Liam.”

“Never mind.”

Liam immediately bowed his head.

Leaving behind the imperial palace, which emitted a particularly stifling fragrance, Adrian got straight into the carriage.

How many times had the carriage wheels rolled?

The coachman’s flustered voice drifted in.

“You’ll have to step outside for a moment, My Lord.”

“What is it?”

“There’s an issue with the carriage wheel. Fixing it won’t be hard, but it will take a little…”

The coachman glanced nervously between the carriage and Adrian.

Adrian frowned and stepped out of the carriage.

The carriage wheel, which had been creaking ever since they set out for the imperial palace this morning, had finally broken down.

Heavy clouds were gathering in the sky, which had been clear just moments ago.

It was truly a terribly unlucky day.

Was this why they said one should avoid looking at unpleasant things as much as possible?

The problem was that dealing with a nine-tailed fox was a massive headache.

Adrian clicked his tongue as he noticed his sleeve had caught and torn on the corner of the carriage.

“How long will the repair take?”

“About an hour, sir.”

“I see.”

“Shall I look for another carriage?”

They said an hour, but there was no telling how much time they would actually waste on the road.

“No need. I’ll just take the horse you’re riding.”

Liam, holding the horse’s reins, shook with anxiety in his eyes.

Adrian stroked the horse’s neck and asked,

“Do you have a complaint?”

“No, of course not. If you want it, Commander, I must give it to you. I have absolutely no complaints.”

When Liam hurriedly handed over the reins, Adrian mounted the horse as if he had been waiting for the chance.

Liam winced at a sudden gust of wind.

“Surely you’re not riding all the way back to the manor like this?”

“I am.”

“Leaving me behind all alone?”

“Don’t tell me you’re clinging to me?”

At Adrian’s playful tone, Liam glanced at the coachman and the others around them.

They were watching the two men with keen interest.

Horrified, Liam waved his hands.

“Of course not, absolutely not.”

“Well then, the rest of you may dismiss yourselves.”

With those words, Adrian rode swiftly toward the estate.

Before long, the Castillo manor, engraved with the coat of arms of a soaring eagle, came into view.

* * *

It was when the clouds covered the sky, completely blotting out even the occasional rays of light.

The servants of the Castillo estate began gathering on the ground floor.

Seeing the servants moving about busily, it seemed Adrian had returned.

Stella, who had been looking out the window, rolled the wheels of her wheelchair to head downstairs.

Moving forward without anyone’s help was no easy feat, but for her first time, it was going smoothly.

Once she reached the bottom floor, she saw Adrian handing his overcoat to Owen.

Her hands on the wheels stopped moving.

Then, she called out to him.

“Lord Castillo.”

“Have you come to greet me?”

Adrian greeted Stella with a smile.

The line of his neck, framed by his crisp white shirt, caught her eye.

“I didn’t expect you to come down to greet me. Do you have something to say to me?”

As Stella looked away in embarrassment, he knelt down to match her eye level.

Then, pulling out a handkerchief, he gently wiped away the beads of sweat that had formed on her forehead.

“It must be urgent for you to sweat like this.”

Squeezing one eye shut at his careful touch, which felt as though he were handling a child, Stella spoke.

“I heard you visited the imperial palace.”

“…….”

The smooth, natural flow of the conversation snapped.

In the sudden silence, Adrian smirked, one corner of his mouth twisting upward.

The instant change from his previously gentle gaze to a cold, distant one was terrifyingly fast.

That look was so foreign that shivers ran down Stella’s spine.

“Who told you that?”

Did she make a mistake?

“I was just… curious.”

A strange sense of guilt washed over her, making her feel as if she had done something wrong.

Even though she hadn’t, his gaze felt like an accusation.

At this rate, she felt like she would blurt out, ‘No, it’s nothing,’ before she could even get the answer she wanted.

Stella pressed down hard on her knees.

His eyes flashed like a fierce predator that had just spotted its prey, but in the end, with his neck flushing red, he swallowed back a laugh he couldn’t quite contain and spoke.

“It is true that I went to the imperial palace.”

“For what reason?”

Her voice trembled as she asked.

She didn’t want to show Adrian her fear, but hearing him confirm that he had gone to the palace made her body betray her.

‘What if he’s planning to hand me over to the imperial palace?’

He had said out of his own mouth that he wouldn’t do such a thing, but she couldn’t bring herself to trust him so easily.

On top of that, the man in front of her was smiling as if amused by something.

He looked just like a beast enjoying the sight of its prey trembling and trying to escape.

Avoiding his gaze, Stella’s eyes fell on the massive doors behind Adrian.

The tightly closed doors seemed to tell her that she could never escape on her own.

It felt as though, in her attempt to flee wild beasts, she had walked straight into a predator’s den.

‘Can I even run away?’

Stella shut her eyes tightly.

The darkness behind her eyelids only seemed to amplify her fear.

As she hesitated, unsure of what to say, he took her trembling hand and spoke.

“What are you afraid of?”

“I, I……”

“His Majesty the Emperor does not know Lady Bronte is here. Nor does Prince Theo, your former fiancé.”

Hearing Adrian’s calm explanation, Stella slowly opened her eyes.

In the presence of his infinitely gentle voice, his predator-like gaze suddenly felt different.

“No one can take Lady Bronte away from this estate.”

“…….”

Stella could only blink.

“I only went to the palace for personal business, so do not worry yourself too much.”

Snapping out of it, Stella nodded.

Adrian was in charge of running all the affairs of the Castillo family in the absence of the head of the house.

Thus, visiting the imperial palace was as natural to him as breathing.

She felt sorry for harboring useless suspicions and misunderstanding him.

‘That’s right. If he wanted to hand me over to the palace, he would have taken me there from the very beginning. If he wanted to, he could easily drag me to the palace without breaking a sweat. He is a Castillo, after all.’

But on the other hand, the realization suddenly struck her that staying by Adrian’s side—someone who frequented the palace daily—was dangerous.

Realizing that staying here indefinitely was not the answer, Stella hesitantly spoke up.

“Um, I have something to say.”

“Yes?”

“I think I should leave this place.”

“But your foot hasn’t fully healed yet, has it?”

Adrian’s hand moved toward her foot resting on the wheelchair’s footplate.

Under his gaze, which seemed to ask how she could possibly go anywhere in this state, Stella looked away and fidgeted with her hands.

“If I move it little by little……”

“It will actually draw unnecessary attention, which won’t be good. If your wound happens to open up again, you might lose the ability to walk entirely.”

Stella wanted to argue that it wasn’t that severe of an injury, but he cut her off.

“I will help you leave the empire the moment your wound heals. So, I would like you to stay at this manor until then.”

“…….”

“Even if it’s just until the wound heals.”

Stella lowered her head deeply at his repeated plea.

Meeting his unwavering eyes made it difficult to form a proper decision.

“Honestly, I wish you would stay at this manor for a long time, but your peace of mind is what matters most. If you wish, I will help you leave this very instant.”

She raised her head at his words, which promised to respect her choice completely.

Adrian’s eyes drooped with a look of disappointment.

His expression made her heart soften in an instant.

“……I’ll stay under your care a little longer.”

Upon hearing the satisfactory answer, Adrian’s lips curved into a smooth arc.

Behind that smile, his red eyes gleamed with a persistent intensity, as if he had absolutely no intention of ever letting Stella go.

Feeling embarrassed for changing her mind so quickly, she turned her head away and failed to read the look in his eyes.

As Stella blushed slightly in embarrassment, he gently took her hand and planted a light kiss on the back of it.

“It is my pleasure.”

To think he would be so glad that she was imposing on him.

Stella couldn’t help but wonder where Adrian’s unconditional goodwill came from.

“But why are you helping me?”

Meeting her gaze, his eyes shone brilliantly.

One would think he might be taken aback by the unexpected question, but he only looked pleased.

As if he had been waiting for that very question.

“Lady Bronte, you once saved my life. Though, unfortunately, you probably don’t remember.”

“I saved you, Lord Castillo?”

“Yes. So, please stay until your treatment is complete. I do not wish to miss the opportunity to help you.”

The thumping of her heart felt as if it were vibrating all the way down to her feet.

The drumming was so intense that she wondered if she would ever be able to leave his side.