Chapter 155
Chapter 155
'……I suppose that's true.'
At the end of Sophia's soft murmur, a strange silence settled over the table.
Clink.
The sound of the teacup being set down rang unusually clearly in my ears.
It felt as though she'd started to say something, then swallowed it.
I wasn't so oblivious that I could miss that subtle difference in nuance, as though she'd deliberately gulped down a word she'd been rolling around on the tip of her tongue.
'What had she been about to say?'
I was curious, but I didn't bother asking.
The moment I asked what was wrong and pressed her on what she'd been about to say.
It would obviously come across as personal interest in her.
I lowered my gaze and quietly stared only at the yellow flowers in the crystal vase.
I thought the awkward atmosphere would continue for quite some time.
But perhaps not, because a light laugh soon came from across the table.
"Young Master Farne, how should I put this? You're rather defensive."
"Defensive? Me?"
I said it, but that hit a little too close to home.
"Yes."
Her blue eyes curved playfully.
"Even though I acted as though I had something to say just now, you don't seem curious in the slightest. It's as if you're building a wall high in advance in case I cross the line."
"Of course not. I simply didn't want to disturb you while you were fully savoring the tea's flavor, my lady."
In fact, she was right.
"Wouldn't it be a shame if this excellent blended tea grew cold?"
I deliberately lifted my teacup and took a sip.
Sophia laughed aloud at my shameless answer.
"Your excuses are quite polished, too."
"…I was being sincere."
"Hehe. But, Young Master."
"Yes."
"No matter how solidly you build a wall."
Sophia's clear voice softly cut through the air.
"When you keep showing such warm concern from beyond that wall like this, it makes me wonder whether the wall has any reason to exist in the first place. Did you know that?"
"……"
My fingers tightened almost imperceptibly around the handle of my teacup.
I had to answer carefully.
"Kind? Me? That's absurd. I'm merely showing the proper courtesy to a young lady who took time out of her valuable day to be here."
"I'm talking about that courtesy of yours, Young Master."
Sophia tilted her head slightly.
Her hair swayed, and her distinctive, comforting scent wafted over me.
"Are you just as kind to everyone else as you are to me…?"
"Other people? Whom do you mean?"
"Just… the female students at the Academy. Or ladies from other families who have dealings with House Farne."
An escape route had opened up.
I could answer this honestly.
"Yes. I treat everyone the same."
"……As I thought."
Sophia narrowed her eyes into a smile.
"For some reason, that sounds a little reassuring."
"……Reassuring?"
Wait a second.
Why?
If I'd just heard those words, the normal reaction would have been, 'So I'm being treated as just one of the random women around him.'
Sophia lightly swept a strand of fallen hair behind her ear with her long, pale fingers and smiled faintly.
"At least, it means there still isn't one special person in the Young Master's heart."
"……"
This was insane.
There had been no direct crossing of boundaries or physical contact whatsoever.
We were merely sitting across from each other with a teacup between us, yet the tension drifting through the air was somehow far too sweet.
"……My lady."
I barely recovered my composure before calling out softly.
"I should say this in advance, in case you misunderstand."
"Yes. Please do."
"I'm not a particularly romantic or sensitive man. I'm just a blunt bastard who hates troublesome things and thinks comfort is best."
I put up as formidable a wall as I could in protest, but even so, Sophia neither looked away from my eyes nor backed down.
"It doesn't matter."
"……Pardon?"
"I'm fine with you being blunt. And it's fine if you hate troublesome things."
Sophia smiled brightly.
The greenhouse's dazzling sunlight shattered across her yellow dress.
"You say you hate troublesome things so much, yet you went and put these beautiful flowers in a vase for me like this."
Her gaze turned toward the yellow flowers in the center of the table.
"That's enough for me."
Ah.
Stop making this any sweeter.
This is driving me crazy.
Why have so many people been coming to me lately and telling me that that's enough?
"……Let's finish our tea. It'll get cold."
"Hehe. Yes."
We enjoyed our tea for quite some time, exchanging small talk that was by no means light.
As the sun gradually slanted outside the window and the air inside the greenhouse grew languid.
"Shall we get up soon?"
I rose from my seat first and picked up my coat.
"Yes. I suppose we'd better."
Sophia also rose gracefully from her seat, barely concealing her disappointment.
* * *
We got up and walked side by side toward the botanical garden's entrance.
The atmosphere between us had changed unmistakably from when we first entered.
But then.
"……Haa."
Sophia's breathing began to grow faintly labored as she headed toward the entrance.
That wasn't all.
The pleasant flush that had colored her cheeks just moments ago had now faded into pallor.
No.
But it's so hot in here.
Could she be feeling unwell?
Her complexion… it was going downhill in real time.
Of course, because of her naturally narrow eyes, the change was incredibly subtle.
Why?
Maybe it's because of what I've been through with Lucius.
The changes in this woman's expression stood out to me in such detail, as if someone had zoomed in a hundredfold.
I continued studying her profile out of the corner of my eye.
She looked so pitiful that the bright yellow dress seemed almost beside the point.
Even her gait had slowed noticeably, and she looked as though her legs might give out and leave her crumpled on the spot.
'This is going to be a real problem.'
What if Sophia actually collapsed here?
What the fuck would I say to Lucius?
I'd feel too fucking guilty to look him in the face.
'This won't do.'
[Ability Activated: Fixer]
[Uses Remaining Today: 3/3 → 2/3]
I pictured a concrete goal in my head.
Using 'Fix it' would be dangerous.
'Improve this person's physical condition right now.'
Wooooong─!
The peculiar tingling wave that accompanied the activation of the ability swept through my entire body.
The sensation of my body floating free came with the immediate loss of control over it.
Right.
I just need to fix her up, send her home, and go home to get some rest.
But then, all of a sudden.
'W-wait, what?'
Snap.
"……!"
My hand shot out and caught Sophia's limp, delicate little hand.
Sophia flinched in surprise.
The other people leaving the botanical garden also stared at me with startled eyes, as though they'd witnessed something shocking in broad daylight.
Monkey's Paw, you fucking piece of shit!
"Young Master Farne……?"
Sophia looked up at me, startled.
Her eyes trembled minutely, unable to find anywhere to settle.
I wanted to let go immediately, but of course I couldn't control my own body.
Fwoosh─.
Warm, refined mana began flowing through my palm into her skin.
"……Ah."
Warmth quickly spread through her ice-cold hand.
The stiff joints in Sophia's fingers slowly softened and melted.
At the same time, a healthy flush began rushing back into her previously pale cheeks.
Her labored breathing settled as calmly as if it had never been troubled, and the crease between her brows, which had made her look pained, smoothed away completely.
Her face brimmed with vitality.
When I saw Sophia's complexion, now so much more at ease, a sigh of relief escaped me before I knew it.
But.
"Oh my."
"Look over there."
Whispers from nearby struck my ears.
There were quite a few nobles coming and going near the botanical garden's entrance, and their gazes were fixed on our clasped hands.
They all covered their mouths with fans, pretending to be cultured, but their eyes were already sparkling with the question, 'What sort of shameful public display is that in broad daylight?'
'Fuck.'
This is fucked.
This was definitely going to be splashed across the front page of the social gossip rags tomorrow.
With some trashy headline like 'Second Son of House Farne Passionately Snatches Lady Rohanna's Hand at the Botanical Garden in Broad Daylight!'
I never should have trusted that click.
While I stood there, flustered and frozen.
"Pff."
Sophia looked down quietly at her hand caught in mine, then let out a breathy laugh.
Her blue eyes swept over the gazes around us once.
She seemed to realize that I was desperate to escape the situation, but.
Rather than even trying to pull her hand from mine, she gently squeezed it, threading her fingers a little more deeply between mine.
Then, in a soft voice pitched slightly higher so everyone around us could hear, she said,
"Young Master. From now on."
Her cheeks flushed prettily as she smiled, her eyes curving.
"If you ever feel like holding my hand, please feel free to do so."
My head began to pound.
What was that quick thinking? Had she taken after Lucius?
I could hear the surrounding whispers transform completely—from calling me a common bastard dragging around a tired lady to discussing the romance between a bold young master and a shy young lady.
She had packaged me as the era's testosterone-fueled man who had gotten caught up in the mood and grabbed a young lady's hand.
"……Haha."
The corners of my mouth, which I'd forced upward, twitched.
I was damn grateful that she'd salvaged the situation.
But I couldn't shake the feeling that I'd been thoroughly fucked over in a different way.
It felt like I had one more excuse to make to that bastard Lucius.
"I'm sorry."
I finally let go of her hand carefully.
My fingertips slowly drew away, as though reluctant to part.
Even as Sophia withdrew her hand, she never looked away from me, meeting my gaze with a deep, unwavering look.
* * *
After leaving Argen Botanical Garden, I accompanied Sophia to the Rohanna family's carriage.
Before she climbed into the carriage, Sophia turned toward me.
Her hands were folded neatly in front of her, and a lingering smile rested on her lips.
"Thank you so much for today, Cassian."
It was the first time she'd called me by my name instead of Young Master.
"I'm glad to hear you enjoyed yourself, my lady."
"Yes. I enjoyed it enough that I'll never forget it."
"You don't have to go that far."
"Oh, come on."
I mean it, though.
She added quietly,
"The scent of the flowers we smelled today has become, thanks to you, something that reminds me of one more person besides my mother."
Why does it feel as though that one person is me?
I'm afraid it isn't just my imagination.
After saying that, she smiled with her eyelids lowered slightly and climbed into the carriage.
Clip-clop. Clip-clop.
The carriage slowly grew more distant.
I stood there quietly until the carriage disappeared from view.
'……Something.'
There was a ticklish feeling in one corner of my chest.
At the same time, a chill slowly crept up my spine.
The question was, could I really be the only one who felt this?
Emotions—and words—are things people exchange, after all.
Somehow, even though I hadn't done much, it felt like we'd made more emotional progress.
It also felt like I'd just realized I actually did possess a conscience.
Because right now, I really, really miss Elysia and Lily.
Suddenly, the voices of my older sister and younger sister, who used to click their tongues at me in my past life, struck my ears like auditory hallucinations.
-"Hey, you. If you keep sending mixed signals like that while pretending to draw a line, you might really end up getting hit by frost in the middle of summer and freezing to death. Watch yourself."
-"No, please stop saying such ominous things."
-"Sounds like a lie, right? But it's true."
"……"
I stared blankly up at the sky.
The warm sunlight of spring was definitely pouring down.
Yet somehow, a bad feeling crept over me that I really might get hit by frost in midsummer and die.
I'm getting the chills.
Fuck.