Chapter 55
“It is said that especially magnificent fireworks have been prepared this year to commemorate the victory.”
Andrew simply delivered the facts plainly.
However, Agnes instinctively understood the meaning hidden within those words.
‘……He’s trying to talk about the trauma.’
The objective hidden behind the justification of the splendid festival known as the fireworks display was clear.
“I heard that you, Agnes, show a strong reaction to the smell of gunpowder.”
Finally, the main point was revealed.
“To be precise, I heard you suffer from seizures. Is that correct?”
‘Seizures.’
Though it was merely a medical term, Andrew’s words always left a disgusting aftertaste.
The inner ends of Agnes’s eyebrows gathered minutely.
A single word can be this unpleasant. Such a thought brushed past.
“……That’s right.”
Various emotions were mixed within the short answer.
Embarrassment, unpleasantness, and an inevitable resignation.
However, Andrew instead pulled the corners of his mouth to the sides and showed a smile.
It made him look like a person full of anticipation at the thought of implementing a new treatment.
“I see. In that case, preparation will be necessary.”
Yet, Andrew’s words alone were strictly those of a doctor worrying about a patient’s safety.
“When the fireworks explode, there will be a strong smell of gunpowder. Will you be alright?”
“…….”
“Besides the smell of gunpowder, are there any other triggers for your seizures?”
Agnes could not answer readily.
Andrew did not wait even for that brief moment.
“The Eve Festival has various stimuli. Smells, lights, sounds. Everything explodes all at once.”
As if planting a sense of urgency in Agnes, Andrew gradually increased the speed of his speech.
“That is why we prepare in advance. You wouldn’t want to faint in front of everyone either, Agnes.”
Andrew soon added in a gentle voice.
“You are following the leg treatment well. You trust me this time too, right?”
Agnes’s insides slowly turned stiff.
“I admit there were parts of my previous treatment that were a bit excessive. However, haven’t I adjusted them well after hearing what the Duke said? The new treatment will be the same.”
In fact.
The rehabilitation treatment that had been conducted excessively for nearly two hours had just been changed to be split into thirty-minute sessions each in the morning and evening.
Andrew pulled the corners of his mouth further up to maintain a reliable expression.
“When exposed to continuous stimulation, the fear response gradually weakens. In psychiatry, this is called ‘exposure therapy.’”
Andrew continued speaking calmly with his fingers interlaced.
“It is a method of experiencing the cause of anxiety at the strongest level and repeatedly exposing one to it until the fear disappears.”
Gradually, an undisguised excitement mixed into Andrew’s voice.
“Of course, there are opposing opinions.”
He laughed shortly.
“But if performed under the management of an expert, there is no treatment more certain than this.”
Agnes cast her gaze downward.
‘Exposure at the strongest level…….’
She wanted to refuse.
However, no such authority to run away was given to Agnes.
Her legs were still tied to the wheelchair, and Lionel had not agreed to a change of doctor.
There was only one thing she could do.
To engage in the treatment as sincerely as possible.
Only then would she be able to receive a gaze resembling tenderness from Lionel even just one more time.
She knew it was a foolish thing.
But a person who had never been fully loved had to prove themselves even in that way.
Just as she once had for her family.
To avoid being ignored, she had to become a human who did not betray trust.
That was the only way she knew to seek affection.
Even while handling numbers so rationally, reason did not work in this area.
This was, at least for Agnes, not an area where an answer could be obtained by calculating and trying hard.
“Since it is a modern treatment method, it might be burdensome.”
Andrew bowed his head softly.
“But do not worry. It will proceed safely.”
His eyes curved slightly.
“There is some time left until the Eve Festival, but this treatment takes a long time. It would be best to start tonight.”
Agnes did not answer.
Instead, she clenched both hands tightly.
Above her legs, her hands trembled minutely.
‘……What time is it?’
In Adrian’s office.
Agnes, sitting in the center, directed her gaze toward the clock every few minutes.
Transaction documents and bills were scattered across the flamboyant desk decorated with gold leaf on the corners.
She kept checking how much time was left until it was time to return to the mansion.
After Lionel returned from the North, she had always looked forward to the time of going home. But today was not like that.
For the first time in a very long while, she felt like she didn’t want to return to the Duke’s residence.
The thought of meeting Andrew already made the end of her solar plexus tighten heavily again.
“Is there some urgent matter?”
Adrian, sitting with his legs arrogantly crossed, swept his hair up with a comb. With an aura of not letting even a single strand stick out.
His fingers, wearing a thick-set ring, sparkled.
“If not, why are you so unable to concentrate today?”
Irritation was mixed in his tone.
Orders for wigs were flooding in due to the Eve Festival preparations.
Using that as a pretext, Adrian raised his voice today as well, saying that the supply price must be adjusted before the new stock goes out.
“The negotiation with the Costia trading company is set for tomorrow, so be prepared.”
“Tomorrow? The date is too sudden. A little more time to prepare—,”
“What do you mean, time. When was it that you checked the Castia documents, yet you say you still need time to prepare? There will be no change to the schedule, so be aware of that.”
Adrian tossed the documents onto the desk with a thud.
“And His Majesty has decided to stage a dance drama at this Eve Festival. He says he must soothe the hearts of the Imperial citizens which have been unsettled since the terror attack.”
He muttered that he didn’t know why it mattered whether those without money were unsettled or not.
Adrian grumbled as if the Emperor were being peculiar.
“In any case, he wishes for the dance troupe owned by the Grand Theater to take charge of the stage for that dance drama. And he instructed for the Bardo trading company to oversee it.”
Adrian gave his hair one last long sweep upward in dissatisfaction.
“But the contract case with the Grand Theater hasn’t been resolved yet, has it? How incompetent, tsk.”
“It is only that the processing is slow because it is being conducted in writing; it’s not that there is no progress at all.”
“What does that matter. Whether you can process it quickly or not is what’s important.”
Adrian leaned back in his chair and snapped his fingers.
“It is a task received by His Majesty’s command. It is a matter concerning the honor of the Bardo trading company.”
He looked at Agnes for a moment and then held out a piece of paper as if showing mercy.
“It is the place where the owner of the Grand Theater stays.”
The paper spun once in the air and fell onto the desk.
‘Bel-Air Townhouse, No. 3.’
The address was written there.
“There was a rumor that the person there is also not physically whole, just like you. So they must be insisting on only written negotiations because they don’t want to show their unsightly appearance.”
Adrian snorted.
“In any case, it worked out well.”
As Adrian curled his lips up, his even teeth were revealed.
His white teeth, sparkling under the light of the bulb, felt nauseating today.
“Who knows? Maybe those who are lacking will communicate better with each other.”
In an instant, the air in the office distorted quietly.
“His Majesty’s expectations for this Eve Festival are very high. You know what you have to do, right?”
Adrian, having put down the comb, now picked up a handkerchief and began to wipe the gem of his ring after blowing on it.
“Whether you use your broken legs to gain sympathy or evoke a sense of kinship, just do it.”
Strength entered Agnes’s hand as she picked up the paper with the address.
Adrian was exceptionally talented at making a person’s deficiency into a laughingstock.
“Whatever means you use, change the mind of the Grand Theater’s owner and make them continue the contract with us.”
“Don’t speak in that manner.”
“What? What did I do?”
“Always being sensitive about useless things.”
Adrian crumpled his face as if he had been pointlessly provoked.
Adrian stood up and lightly patted Agnes’s shoulder.
“What are you doing? If you have time to nitpick my words, move quickly.”
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