Episode 180. I’ll Be Right Back
The day of departure to Elfengreen had already approached right before her eyes.
Since the plan to spend the winter in Chambrin had already been completely revised, adding one more person to the list did not change much.
Moreover, it was even more so if that person possessed a simple body without a single proper piece of luggage.
Just like the violent words telling her to follow like a dead mouse as she was told, the method of informing her of the departure was also extremely unfriendly.
Last night, right before she went to bed, a knock suddenly rang out of nowhere.
The person who opened the door and came in was none other than the butler of Chambrin.
-He said that we will depart before noon tomorrow, so understand that and be prepared.
With those words, the butler, who had a cold impression, left the bedroom as if he had completed his mission.
Deborah, who had been standing with a dazed face for a long time, urgently moved her steps toward the door.
She was planning to go and argue about how he could decide so suddenly, and by himself without a single word.
However, just before she grabbed and turned the handle, her movement came to a sudden halt.
It was because the chilling warning of the man she had heard a few days ago came to mind.
Those words telling her to stay quiet and not to cross his nerves if she wanted to see even the face of the child.
She was naturally angry enough to have her stomach turned upside down at the action of threatening her by taking the child in her womb as a hostage.
However, because she knew all too well that what the man said would not end in a simple threat, she could not ignore it either.
No matter how angry she was, for now, there was no choice but to suppress it and follow as she was told.
Deborah, who tossed and turned all night long, eventually told the man guarding outside the door that she wanted to see the Duke as soon as it became early morning.
To the man who kept scratching his head with a troubled face as to what he had heard, Deborah said again that it was an important matter so she must see him.
Only then, as if he could not win against her, the man called someone nearby and quietly whispered words.
Exactly ten minutes after that, a knock rang out.
“Follow me.”
At the man’s action of gesturing with his head to follow, she was momentarily dumbfounded.
Naturally, she thought he would come to the bedroom himself…
Anyway, when she thought that she could escape this bedroom for the first time in almost a week, despite this situation, her heart began to thud.
The place she arrived at following behind the man was the grand reception room on the floor right below where the bedroom was.
Inside there, the moment the figure of the man sitting in front of a round table came into view, strength began to enter tightly into her body involuntarily.
Raymond’s brow, which had been leaning against the back of the chair, narrowed slightly upon seeing Deborah approaching.
“Sit.”
The moment she finally stood in front of the table, Raymond scanned Deborah up and down once and pointed to the opposite chair with a gesture of his chin as if commanding.
Deborah moved slowly and sat on the chair.
No… she tried to sit.
However, perhaps because it was a period a month before giving birth, to be honest, sitting down and standing up from a chair was not as easy as before.
Still, because she did not want to show a ridiculous appearance in front of the gaze watching intently, Deborah moved as slowly as possible.
Even if she did so, the only action she could do was not letting out a groaning sigh, though-.
Deborah, who barely succeeded in sitting on the chair, soon lifted her head and looked at the man in front of her.
“I have… something to tell you.”
“…”
She tried to open her mouth carefully, but he still stared intently at Deborah’s face with that exact same gaze.
Wondering if something was smeared on her face, out of embarrassment, she involuntarily fumbled her cheek with her hand, but as expected, nothing was caught.
In that instant, finally, the sound she had been waiting for from the opposite side was heard.
“What is it that you have to say.”
At the low, locked voice, Deborah snapped her head up.
What was visible at the end of it was a face the same as usual.
Only then did Deborah’s expression return to that expression from when she first entered the reception room.
“I want to go to the cabin for a bit.”
“…The cabin?”
As if he had heard unexpected words, Raymond’s brow furrowed slightly.
Well, it was not that she couldn’t understand.
Since the words that had come out of her mouth so far were all about how she wouldn’t follow him, to let her out of here, and things like that, it would naturally be puzzling that a completely different word came out suddenly.
As if that thought hit the mark, words asking for the reason flowed out of Raymond’s mouth immediately.
“What are you going there for.”
To what earth are you going to such a completely worn-out cabin for—
Deborah, who understood the hidden meaning inside the short words, urgently opened her mouth.
“……Because I have things to pack and bring.”
At the returned answer, Raymond’s brow crumpled this time as well.
An expression that was even more difficult to understand.
To be honest, it was something anyone would think looking at it.
An appearance that looked extremely shabby and worthless, which was hard to call fine even as a compliment.
In such a situation, what on earth could there be that could be called luggage to pack.
It was obvious that it would be something miserable whether one looked at it or not.
He could not understand the opponent who said she would pack such a thing, but he didn’t want to understand either.
“Do not do useless things and stay put.”
At the words of refusal that cut off sharply, Deborah’s face turned into an anxious complexion in an instant.
“It’s because I absolutely… absolutely have something to bring.”
“…”
“I’ll be right back, right back. It won’t take long. Really… it is.”
“…”
“I’ll ask you… like this.”
With an extremely anxious look, Deborah looked at the blue eyes that moved slowly as if lost in thought.
How much time flowed like that.
Raymond’s gaze suddenly directed toward the large grandfather clock hanging on one wall of the reception room.
A time when there were still about two or three hours of leeway until departure.
It was a time when going to Deborah’s cabin and packing up her luggage wouldn’t be much of a strain.
Raymond, who made that judgment, stood up directly from his seat with long strides without delay.
Staring down intently at the face of Deborah, who was surprised by the sudden action, Raymond spoke as if commanding.
“Lead the way.”
At those words, it went without saying that Deborah’s eyes became round like a rabbit’s eyes.
☆☆☆
During the entire time they walked side by side, the two people did not say anything.
No, there was nothing to say in particular.
What on earth could there be for words to share between the two.
More than that…
Deborah’s eyes directed carefully to her side.
To the man who was walking without any words while standing by her side.
“…”
Of course, she did think that he wouldn’t let her go alone.
Since he was a person who had a little—no, in fact, almost non-existent trust in her, it was natural that he wouldn’t readily permit her at the words that she would go to the cabin.
Even if he permitted it, she thought he would just attach someone and tell her to go…
She really never dreamed that he would step forward himself like this.
Thinking about how her heart had withered with anxiety over what to do if he didn’t permit it until the end despite her request, it couldn’t help but be a fortunate thing even to this extent.
Of course, the discomfort was to the point of being indescribable, enough to make her breath suffocate.
Phew— it was when she let out a small breath so as not to be heard.
Before she knew it, the cabin began to be visible in front of her eyes.
In an instant, an unknown emotion swirled inside her chest.
The place where she had been staying all along since coming here.
The small nest that the Bailey couple had prepared for her.
Although it might be a small and shabby cabin to others, perhaps because she had dreamed of a future of giving birth to and raising a child there, it was a place that had already become of special meaning to Deborah.
And…
Deborah’s footsteps began to quicken visibly compared to before.
Unlike what she had worried about, the door of the cabin was well closed.
She had worried about what to do if it was in that exact state from a week ago by any chance, but perhaps Maria had locked the door meticulously as she visited.
Click.
As she opened the door and entered, the cozy interior of the cabin entered fully into her field of vision.
Deborah scanned that scenery once with her eyes and soon walked quickly toward the bedside.
To be precise, the small wooden chest of drawers placed beside it.
Deborah, who stood in front of it, opened the second drawer and began to pull out things one by one.
Those things made of a pale cream color were none other than baby supplies.
A few pieces of newborn robes, swaddling clothes, and even dozens of diapers contained in the drawer below it.
Although it was a clumsy skill, they were things she had diligently made one by one from the moment she knew she had a child.
How anxious her heart had been, wondering if she would leave this behind by any chance…
Deborah let out a sigh of relief and began to quickly transfer and contain them into the rattan basket placed beside them.
Although it was a bit tight, as she pressed and contained them, she could barely stuff down to the very last piece.
Deborah, who lifted the basket, finally looked around the interior of the cabin slowly and put it in her eyes.
And then, she finally turned her body and walked toward the doorway.
The gaze of the man who was standing outside the door looked down intently, for a long time, from the approaching face of Deborah to the things contained in the basket held in her hand below.
What should she call that expression…
It was a very peculiar expression that could not be explained in a single word.
Toward such a man, Deborah nodded her head once and spoke.
“Now everything is done.”
It was an unwanted thing, a thing she wanted to avoid so much, but in the end, fate made Deborah head toward that place once again.
That place which was the beginning of all these things, Elfengreen.
It was the moment when the last prelude of that giant fate was slowly opening.
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