"You mean the wedding?"
"Yes."
Now Kaian no longer needed to show deference in front of his butler. Baron Colon, a powerful figure in the territory, possessed the wisdom of a man worthy of his years.
"We should also prepare a new bridal gown for Claudel to wear."
He said aloud what he wanted. Then his loyal and capable butler would do whatever it took to make it happen.
*It's really unfair.*
Unfortunately, the woman he'd given his heart to was the daughter of his enemy's family, so he couldn't express his feelings to his heart's content.
He'd thrown away that wedding! Of course, he'd hurried back, saying he didn't need Vermont's blessing. He hadn't even seen Claudel in her bridal gown! Where had the clothes gone that he should have removed with his own hands on their wedding night?
Regardless, Kaian felt so wronged he couldn't stand it anymore.
"Hmm, then it's a Temnes family tradition to have two weddings."
"A Temnes family tradition?"
"Yes. Isn't it tradition in Temnes to hold a wedding ceremony at the estate after bringing home a bride?"
"But why didn't I do it?"
When Kaian asked foolishly, the butler made a stern face, as if unable to tolerate such nonsense.
"You ordered me not to prepare for the wedding because you couldn't accept a bride from Vermont."
"...I did?"
"Yes."
"I said that?"
"Didn't you insist on not having a three-day celebration?"
It was truly deplorable. Claudel standing at a wedding in the North, wearing an abundance of large jewels—but he couldn't remember her expression or anything like that. All he remembered was that she'd looked like a prisoner in restraints.
For her petite, slender frame, jewelry with refined design, delicate craftsmanship, and understated elegance suited her better than thick, chunky pieces. This was something he'd discovered after visiting the jewelry store several times for her.
She'd been flashy and overdressed, but he'd thought it ridiculous that she was wearing something that didn't suit her. In truth, Claudel was so beautiful that nothing wouldn't suit her.
It had been Kaian's own fault for forming a prejudice at first glance. He should have looked properly. What was wrong with not being able to have a proper conversation with her on their wedding day, which only happened once in a lifetime?
He was very obsessive. Once his thoughts fixated on the wedding, he became deeply attached to the idea.
"A Temnes family tradition? Keep that."
"That's a bit—"
As Kaian unconsciously frowned, the butler quickly explained.
"Isn't it a local custom in Rowan to hold ceremonies once at the bride's house and once at the groom's house? The wedding at the groom's house is held the same day the bride arrives, so that time has already passed."
"No. Find a way."
Looking at Kaian, the butler remembered something from before. When Claudel had been dying from consumption, the Lord had looked just like this when he'd told the butler to find a way to save her.
*Why did you treat someone you care for so much like that?*
The butler had expressed his opinion several times to Kaian about the wedding, but had been ignored. Both then and now, Baron Colon's position was that since they were welcoming the Duchess of Temnes, the event should have been held with proper formality and without regret.
As the family's butler, he could never ignore comments like "It's disappointing," "it's inadequate," or "it's insufficient."
Kaian had told him to prepare a gift for the wedding night, but while preparing it hastily, Antjone had gotten into an accident and there'd been a disaster. The butler knew very well that even though the ring had been completely resized, it still hadn't found its owner.
"I think there was a time about one hundred twenty years ago when a bride arrived but the wedding wasn't held that day."
"Did something like that happen?"
"Yes."
The reason was that a huge typhoon had swept through the entire Rowan territory. It hadn't been a good situation to invite guests and hold an outdoor ceremony. The bride had arrived early in the morning, but the butler had managed to find records showing the ceremony scheduled for that day had been canceled, and the wedding was held a month after the typhoon damage was repaired.
"Yes. That should suffice."
Kaian said with satisfaction on his face.
"Summon Madame Marcel."
---
I suddenly looked out the window. The weather in Rowan was unimaginably mild for December, and flowers were still blooming in the green landscape.
"It won't snow here."
Hannah laughed at my words.
"I'm so happy it doesn't snow."
"They say if you enjoy watching snow fall, you're either a child or a dog."
Even Madame Marcel made a joke, and the three of us laughed amiably.
Today I was learning as Madame Marcel taught me how to weave lace by hand. The lace forming under Madame Marcel's hands in various designs was so fascinating to watch that Hannah and I put down what we were making to observe her work.
*Knock knock.*
There was a knock outside, and a servant came looking for Madame Marcel.
"Madame Marcel, the Lord is looking for you."
"The Duke? Suddenly?"
"Yes. Please follow me now."
Madame Marcel stood and looked at me in confusion.
"It's just entertainment, so don't worry—just go."
"I'll return quickly, Duchess."
*What's going on?* Madame Marcel tilted her head and followed the servant out, leaving Hannah and me in my room.
"What could be happening?"
"Well, let's ask when she returns."
We tried to make the lace we'd learned from Madame Marcel, but when something oddly distorted emerged, we laughed aloud and eventually put down the tools again.
"I want to eat an apple."
Hannah was delighted by my sudden words.
"An apple?"
"Yes. It's so unexpected, isn't it?"
I was slowly recovering, but my appetite wasn't returning quickly. Could it be that a broken heart could hurt the body like this?
I'd been quite healthy before contracting consumption. My slim, slender build was simply how I was born, but having grown up climbing mountains and swimming in rivers, I hadn't been physically weak.
But after what had happened with Kaian, sometimes my stomach truly hurt and it was difficult. Anyway, considering the times when Rowan's food had been so delicious I'd been embarrassed by my obsession with eating, I thought not being able to eat like now might be better. But Hannah and Madame Marcel grew restless watching me skip meals and waste away.
It really wasn't their fault. Even though confessing to Kaian had been something I'd wanted, they seemed to feel as if something had gone wrong because of them.
"It's unexpected. If you want to eat it, tell me quickly."
"Are there no apples?"
"What could be missing, my Lady? This is Rowan, not Valmonde."
"They made alcohol entirely from apples picked in autumn."
I'd taken a bite of the apple from the basket at the estate festival. The taste of freshly picked, crisp apples had never been so refreshing and good.
As I thought about it, my mouth began to water, as if my appetite was increasing again.
"No way—is an apple all you want? Apple pie was served for dessert a few days ago."
"So I suppose that's it?"
"There must be something else to eat. I'll go to the kitchen and ask."
Hannah quickly disappeared, but after a while she returned with the orchard manager.
"My Lady! I heard the orchard manager came to the castle today?"
"Yes?"
"Hello, my Lady. It's been a while since we last met."
"You..."
I recognized the orchard manager with a hat pulled over his gray hair. It was this man who'd brought me an apple, saying it was his first gift when I'd been down in the village rehearsing for the festival.
"It's called Burbrook Kanden. In Rowan, you can eat apples all year round."
He set down a small basket of apples in front of me.
"If you send someone at any time, we'll prepare them for you, whether aged or freshly picked from the tree."
"Thank you."
I picked up an apple. As soon as I saw it, I felt an appetite for food for the first time in a long while.
I quickly bit into the apple as Hannah wiped it off and handed it to me.
*Crunch.*
As the tart taste spread in my mouth, my somewhat depressed mood seemed to lift.
"You said Burbrook?"
"Yes, my Lady."
He didn't withdraw even then, and I smiled at the orchardist who was watching me eat the apples.
"I'll call for you from time to time from now on."
"Please do so."
Even after the orchard manager left, I ate as many as three apples.
"Oh my, why are you doing this all of a sudden? You won't be able to eat dinner like this."
"I know."
I wiped my hands and looked blankly out the window. Maybe it was because I'd filled my stomach for the first time in a long while, but I suddenly felt generous.
*Kaian told me to have a child.*
He'd said that if there was an heir, I might be trusted. And I'd said I would try.
My love wasn't over yet. If I couldn't give up and it wasn't finished, I should try if there was something I could do.
"Hannah, can you please call a doctor?"
"A doctor?"
"Bring the resident physician. Shouldn't he have returned by today?"
There was a resident physician inside Rowan Castle. It just so happened this doctor was in charge of my treatment. When I'd been bitten on the leg by a crocodile, he was the doctor who'd performed the surgery and treated me for consumption. But he'd had to leave the castle for several days on business.
*If I can't have children because of consumption, I should talk to someone who's treated it.*
I'd long since been cured of my illness, and few people knew about the consumption. So when I'd met with other doctors in the capital and even after returning to the territory, they'd never asked about my physical condition or aftereffects.
"My Lady, it's been a while since we last spoke."
"How have you been?"
"Yes. But what's the matter?"
"I want to know about my physical condition."
I asked calmly.
"Can I have children?"
---