NOVEL NEXT chapter 46
46 – Eileen, and My Heart
After the incident near the castle gates, I was dragged into the castle without being able to move. It felt as if I was being escorted like a criminal.
“So, tell me what happened in the palace.”
“…Do I have to tell you right now? I’m really tired…”
“If you don’t want to see the sun tomorrow morning, then you can leave it that way.”
“I will tell you right away.”
In the end, I ended up being questioned by my mother about what had happened in the palace. The more I spoke, the more I saw my mother’s face and Eileen’s face constantly changing color.
Finally, I came to the story of striking the princes with a whip.
“…”
“Mother?”
At that moment, I thought my mother would grab me by the neck or resort to violence, just like my great-grandfather used to do, asking if I had lost my mind.
But strangely enough, she didn’t react at all. So, I approached my mother to make sure she was okay.
“Mother? Are you all right..?”
“…”
“Mother? Mother!”
“Gruugh..”
M-mother… She’s… not dead. She fainted!
I was so shocked that foam formed in my mouth as I carried my collapsed mother to a safe place. Then, Eileen approached from behind.
“Your Lordship…”
“Hm? Ah, Eileen. Quickly summon a priest…”
Thud.
“I… If Your Lordship were to be executed, I will follow you…”
Eileen clasped my trembling hands tightly and expressed her determination to become a companion to the afterlife.
“No, what are you talking about? Why would I die?”
“But… You whipped the princes in front of everyone, reducing them to nothing…”
“Hey, logically speaking, if I were going to die, I would have died right there. How can I be calmly discussing this with you?”
“Is that so..?”
“Yeah. I told you from the beginning that I received an award instead. Stop saying strange things and go call a priest or something.”
For a moment, it seemed like Eilene was about to say, “Is the royal court a group of masochists who give rewards when hit,” but I ignored her efforts.
After a while, the priest Eilene brought finally rushed in and managed to calm my mother down.
“aaargh!!! Use your words!!!”
“This! Crazy! Bastard! Trying to! Cut off! The legacy! Of our house!”
…After that, my mother immediately grabbed Eilene’s hair, but well, it seems that ever since we visited the palace, I keep getting beaten by someone… Am I really a viscount?
Anyway, it took a long time before we could finally resolve the misunderstandings between my mother and Eilene…
**
“So… Westburn is now yours. Is that what you’re saying?”
“Yes, Mother.”
My mother was extremely pleased with the money she received from the royal family, but surprisingly, she showed a vague response to Westburn, which was the biggest reward.
“Why are you like this? Isn’t it a wonderful thing if Westburn comes under our control? Are you perhaps thinking of Father and your brothers…?”
“Well… that too, but are we capable of governing Westburn?”
“Well… there were already some people who managed Westburn, and moreover, His Majesty allowed the existing administrators to continue temporarily after occupying it, so there shouldn’t be any problems, right? The private sector was originally managed by the church…”
“If that’s the case, then it’s fortunate… However, in Silverwood, Westburn is quite distant, and I wonder if the people there will willingly accept our rule.”
“Oh, come on. There won’t be anything major.”
Although my mother still seemed lost in thought from my words, she soon recovered and spoke to me.
“Alright… if you say so. But you just returned to Silverwood not long ago and now you have to leave again.”
“Well… now that I think about it, that’s true. I intended to take a break while returning to the territory…”
“It would be best to go as soon as possible. They will also be confused because they heard the news of another change in ownership. You need to go there and stabilize the situation.”
“Oh no, more work… I wonder when I’ll ever get a chance to rest.”
“According to what I heard, except for the first few days, you had a great time playing at the palace, Viscount.”
“What? Where did you hear that?”
I clearly only talked with my mother and Eilene about the princes and Gudmila, but how did you hear about the rest?
“From Princess Nisera and Commander Satrisa…”
I was astonished by Eilene’s words and quickly approached her to ask.
“You… how much did you hear about it?”
“W-What? Um… we just had a fun time together in the palace, Viscount…”
Eilene looked flustered and taken aback when I suddenly approached and pressured her.
“You… Don’t talk to them for a while.”
“Yes? But…”
“Do you understand?”
“Yes, yes…”
Reluctantly, Eileen finally accepted my proactive ‘request’.
After the commotion settled down, as I turned to look at my mother again, she was staring at me with pitiful eyes.
“Huh, when we were talking earlier, you looked like you had been suffering in the palace and now you’re just playing around.”
“That’s different… Playing outside and resting at home are two different things, right?”
“Don’t speak nonsense. Rest for about three days and leave immediately for Westburn. It takes quite some time to get there.”
“Yes…”
I felt my energy drain away at my mother’s words. I had just come home, and now I have to go out again. This is child abuse… I’m only 15 years old, after all!!!
I wanted to flop onto the floor, cry loudly, and throw a tantrum, but unfortunately, I had to maintain the demeanor of a viscount… sigh, such is my fate.
But suddenly, a thought crossed my mind.
“By the way, who will govern Silverwood in my absence?”
“Well, your mother can handle the financial management… but as you said, there should be someone designated to govern the entire territory on your behalf. My body has its limits in what it can do.”
“Should I entrust the steward with the responsibility?”
“Well, the steward isn’t bad, but is there no one else? The steward already has a mountain of tasks to take care of. On top of that, if we add overseeing the entire territory, he might just completely lose it…”
“Ah, no, let’s not talk about that. Let’s think about this problem later.”
Since I still had three days left, I could think about it within that time. There’s no need to decide right away.
“Alright, now rest. I’m sorry for keeping you held up after a long carriage ride.”
“Yes, please rest as well, mother.”
After the discussion regarding ‘what the hell did Adric do in the palace’ came to an end, we parted ways.
I was about to return to my room to rest when Eileen followed me.
We walked for a while until we reached the front of my room, and even then, Eileen continued to walk behind me, so I turned around and asked her.
“Eileen, what’s the matter?”
“My lord, you said you were tired, right?”
“Huh? Oh… yeah.”
“Well then, would it be alright for me to give you an eye massage to relieve some of your accumulated fatigue?”
Hmm, an eye massage. When we had a war with Westburn (actually it was with the Kamusians) before, I couldn’t sleep properly due to stress, and Eileen gave me an eye massage at that time.
But bothering Eileen unnecessarily seems a bit, well, unnecessary. I just want to sleep quickly…
“I don’t really need this…”
“Is that so… Did I bother you, Count, by any chance?”
As I tried to refuse and turn her down, Eileen’s eyes noticeably filled with disappointment.
Unable to withstand Eileen’s gloomy appearance, I eventually decided to let her give me a massage.
“Oh, no… Now that I look at it, my eyes feel a bit strained.”
“..! Yes, I will gently relieve the tension for you.”
“She’s recovering quickly…”
Eileen and I lay on the same bed. Or rather, I was lying down while Eileen sat beside my head, starting to massage around my eyes.
Swoosh, swoosh.
“Eileen’s eye massage is indeed quite refreshing.”
Unbeknownst to me, my eyes had accumulated a lot of fatigue. Although it initially hurt a lot, as Eileen continued to massage them attentively, it became soothing.
Just as I was about to fall asleep under Eileen’s gentle touch.
“Count, I have something to ask.”
“…Hm? What is it?”
Eileen suddenly spoke to me. Is there something she wants to request?
“Well… When you go to Westburn, can you take me with you?”
“Huh? Going there would only bring hardships. Besides, it has recently been occupied forcefully by His Majesty, so it might still be chaotic and dangerous.”
“…Then will Princess Niresera and Captain Satria go with you, Count?”
“Well… The professor is supposed to teach me, so he’ll probably come along. As for Satria, I’m not sure what will happen, but she might join us as my escort.”
As soon as I finished speaking, Eileen’s hand stopped. What’s going on?
“Are you leaving me behind again?”
“Huh? Eileen?”
Startled by Eileen’s cold voice, I woke up abruptly. That’s when I saw Eileen’s face, looking as if she had been hurt.
“I… I didn’t hear everything clearly, but I heard that Princess Niresera, the leader of the mercenaries, and Lady Selena, the duke’s maid, enjoyed their time with you at the palace.”
“Eileen. That…”
Eileen silenced me by pressing her finger against my lips, as if there was no need for explanations.
“While I was waiting lonely for you in Silverwood…”
“Eileen…”
“Please don’t leave me alone… Do you know how lonely I was without you, Count?”
I felt a faint trembling in Eileen’s hand. And finally, tears started to trickle down her eyes.
“I won’t be bothered. I just need to be by the Viscount’s side. Please, take me to Westvern with you too. Won’t you?”
“Eileen.”
I raised my hand and wiped Eileen’s tears. Then I pulled her closer to me.
“..!”
After a moment, we parted our lips.
“Let’s go to Westvern together. Pack your things in advance for tomorrow.”
“Yes..!”
I had been pretending all along, but it seems that I have liked Eileen for some time now. Her crying face broke my heart to the point where I couldn’t bear it anymore.
Even if others don’t know… I must definitely take responsibility for Eileen.
And so, this time we truly lay side by side on the bed and fell asleep.
**
“Viscount, what does this mean exactly?”
Beside the terrifying-faced Eileen, Teacher and Patricia avoided eye contact with me with an expression that said ‘I did something wrong.’
While observing them, I looked up at the ceiling and contemplated.
Life…