Chapter 21
At the same time, the royal soldiers present in the tent began to grumble. Their unwelcome gazes were directed toward the Rubelin’s knights. Even after a long time working towards the same goal, they didn’t get along with the Rubelin’s knights.
The commander of the royal army often came up with poor strategies in every battle. Furthermore, he was too prideful to follow the different strategies and ideas suggested by Richard, who was a lot younger than him.
And mimicking the attitude of their superior, the royal army also disobeyed Richard’s commands due to their inferiority complex. They also hated the fact that the Rubelin’s knights were always one step ahead when dealing with the enemy.
Thompson and the other Rubelin knights glared at them and left the tent. Richard had already left to clean up the remnants of the enemy army.
One of the subordinates asked Thompson, who was sighing. “Sir Thompson, why is the Young Master in such a hurry? The emperor offered to award him personally, so wouldn’t it be nice if we could stop by the capital for a while?”
Thompson replied with a shrug. “Who knows? Maybe he has a hidden honey jar in the territory.”
[e/n: he’s talking about a girl Richard wants to get back to but he’s not necessarily referencing Elisha, probs thinks Richard has a mistress lol]
*****
Elisha stared at the document in front of her.
[Certificate of Divorce]
In Arencia, marriage was a pledge made under the protection of Arend, the goddess of love. Therefore, when a couple decided to get a divorce, they needed to ask for the goddess’s permission as well as blessings for both of them to find their respective true lovers and happiness in the future.
‘After this winter, I’ll become an adult.’ Elisha almost reached the promised age that they agreed on to get a divorce. In fact, even after she became an adult, she was willing to manage the territory affairs as Rubelin’s madam until Richard’s return. However, there was no need for further delay since Richard, the rightful owner, would return soon.
‘It seems that it’s all set. I’ve prepared the business funds, retirement funds…And since I did work hard and gave him enough affection, I’ll probably get a reasonable amount of alimony as well. Lastly, I already bought the villa in Sornetti…’
Earlier this year, through her friend, Ansel, Elisha bought the previous Lohengrin’s villa. It was possible because the Arden family expanded their territory to Sornetti a few years ago.
However, the villa had been vacant for a long time and was not well-managed. Therefore, Elisha asked Ansel, who stayed near Sornetti, to repair the villa. However, due to the damages caused by a typhoon this last summer, the repairing process was expected to complete in the next summer. Thus, the timing for completion was a bit off since Elisha would probably divorce Richard and leave the Rubelin’s mansion this spring.
‘Since I have saved enough money, I can just find a temporary place to stay.’ Elisha didn’t worry too much about it. She was preoccupied with something else. ‘I need to allocate some budget for the banquet to celebrate Richard’s return.’
Not long ago, the food shortage crisis was solved thanks to the mutual trade with the southern lords. In addition, the royal palace was also preparing a grand celebration for the war heroes, so Rubelin’s knights would definitely stop by the capital for a while before returning to the territory. Thus, there was no need to hurry.
‘Let’s call it a day and get some rest.’ Elisha got up from her seat and stretched her body. She left the office and started to make her way to her bedroom.
However, in the hallway, Ann suddenly rushed toward her. “Mi-milady!”
Elisha looked at Ann curiously. “Ann, what’s going on? Why are you in such a hurry?”
“W-we are running out of time!”
“What do you mean?”
“Young Master Richard……he’ll reach here soon!”
“What?”
“We need to prepare the banquet right away……”
Before Ann could finish talking, someone else also rushed toward Elisha. It was Aaron, Albert’s aide.
“Milady, the Master is looking for you.”
“Ann, I’ll listen to you later.” Elisha sent Ann back and headed to Albert’s bedroom with Aaron.
“Master, Milady is here.” Aaron waited outside while Elisha entered Albert’s bedroom alone.
As she entered the room, she could smell the strong scent of acrid herbs. It was the same scent she endured every morning when she came to give her formal greeting to the duke. Elisha took a deep breath and approached the bed.
There was a sick old man lying on the bed with a pale face. She could see the age spots on his face and hear his wheezing sound when she went closer. Nonetheless, his eyes were still ferocious, just like how she saw them for the first time.
“I came upon your call, Your Grace.”
“That fellow…… I heard that he’s returning to this mansion right away.” Albert, who was trying to talk more, stopped for a moment due to his sudden cough. “When Richard comes back, you need to coax him into having a child. By any means.”
“I’ve told you over and over again that’s the main purpose of feeding and raising you until now. If you can’t have a child, there’s no reason to keep you in this family. Take good care of your body while waiting for his return so you are in good condition to get pregnant right away.”
As he said that, Albert’s eyes burned with the last flame of his life. He was determined to achieve the last goal for this family before closing his eyes. To see the successor who would inherit this family was his life’s final mission. He looked as if every breath he took was full of determination to fulfill his last wish.
‘I wish I could fulfill the last wish of a dying old man, regardless whatever it is, but…… I don’t think it’s justifiable to trample on someone else’s happiness to fulfill that wish.’ Elisha didn’t feel any regret over not fulfilling his last wish. Nonetheless, she answered him obediently, “I shall do that.”
*****
A few days later, a messenger raven from the Rubelin’s knights arrived. It just delivered a short note saying that they would probably arrive at the mansion around noon tomorrow.
The Rubelin’s employees were busy all day, preparing to welcome the returning heroes as grandly as possible. It was a hectic day for Elisha too. As the day passed and the darkness fell, the night became calm and quiet, as if the busy atmosphere during the day was just an illusion.
That night, while everyone in the mansion was already asleep, expecting a happy mood tomorrow, Elisha was the only one who was still awake. ‘I can’t sleep……’
After tossing and turning in bed for some time, Elisha finally gave up on sleeping and went out to the balcony.
“Ugh, it’s cold.” She wrapped herself with a blanket to protect herself from the cold winds of early winter. However, the ruthless cold of Rubelin’s northern land still penetrated the blanket.
‘Well, I’m used to it now. Like how I’m used to the view in front me.’ From the balcony, she could see the panoramic view of the Rubelin estate. At night, the white snow covering the land reflected the moonlight, presenting a visibly calm scene. It looked so peaceful.
‘You’ve worked hard for the past seven years, Elisha.’ The memories of her constant endeavor to be recognized after Richard’s departure came to her mind. Those times were full of hardships, yet they were also fun and rewarding.
Elisha, who lived in the Rubelin’s territory for a long time, felt like it was her own hometown. ‘My Rubelin.’ It was the Rubelin that she had been taking care of for seven years. ‘It has only been seven years but I already feel this way. Somehow, I can understand a little why Albert is so obsessed and has spent his whole life protecting this land.’
‘Now that I’m leaving…… Somehow, I feel a little nostalgic.’ The sooner Richard’s return, the closer the day of her leaving. Thinking about it made her feel bitter.
‘By the way, Richard must’ve become an adult now.’ The last time she saw him was 7 years ago. Back then, he was already quite a bit taller than her, and now, he must’ve become even taller.
‘His personality is……still blunt like before, based on what I read from the letters.’ Even though she didn’t meet him during the last seven years, they exchanged letters every season. They simply asked about each other’s condition and shared short stories of their everyday life events.
‘His face……I wonder what he looks like now…’ She still remembered that he looked quite handsome when he was still young. However, her memory was a bit blurry so she couldn’t imagine his grown-up face.
As Elisha was engrossed in tracing back her memories with a frown on her face, a wind with a familiar scent blew gently. At the same time, the moonlight was subtly obscured by a shadow.
‘Huh…?’ Elisha looked up reflexively.
There was an unfamiliar man standing on the balustrade of the balcony. The man was tall, he had a slim yet muscular physique and a charming face that made it so she couldn’t take her eyes off him.
He stared at her with his eyes, which were as red as blood. His smooth black hair fluttered gently as the breeze blew. Standing in the moonlight, he looked like an angel who descended to the earth at night. Except that he didn’t have a pair of wings.
‘That face……’ Elisha, who was staring blankly at that man as if she was bewitched, finally remembered that familiar face. At that moment, her heart began to pound hard.
In the meantime, the man got off the balustrade. He stared Elisha in the eye and opened his mouth, “Hi, Elisha.”
His attractive low-pitched voice was carried on the wind. The ruby pendant around his neck sparkled in the moonlight.
(t/n: well, this is just a trivial thing. Do you remember that when Richard left, he said “Goodbye, Elisha”? And when he met her again, he said “Hi, Elisha.” It’s not obvious in english, but in korean, he said the exact same sentence which is “Annyeong Elisha.” Annyeong means both hi and goodbye, so it works in both ways. I just find it interesting that he said the same sentence during their parting and reunion.)