Chapter 80. If That Is What Is Comfortable for You
People have those moments..
That moment when you wake up from sleep sensing some sort of uneasy feeling.
Deborah also often had such moments, and right now was one of them.
Usually, when waking up, eyelids rise slowly and deliberately, but perhaps sensing the strange energy, her eyelids flew open instantly.
“…….”
Deborah blinked her eyes while remaining in the posture she was lying in, then quickly raised herself up from the spot.
“Ugh!”
A short gasp automatically escaped her as she felt a pain when standing up.
Clapping a hand over her mouth immediately, Deborah stealthily glanced over to the spot beside her.
“…….”
Seeing the man sleeping face down, without moving, Deborah finally let out a sigh of relief.
She then stared mesmerized at the man’s sleeping figure for a little while longer.
After being held in the man’s arms like that countless times throughout the night, now that a single night had passed, she wondered if it was all a dream.
It was hard to believe that the glittering Prince she had seen when she was very young was lying next to her like this.
—Ha… good…
When the memory of his low groans filling the night came back to her, a flush of heat spread across her face without her knowing.
She had never fully understood before what this bond between a man and a woman was.
Perhaps due to the men who occasionally displayed their unpleasant and blatant desire towards her, Deborah found this sort of thing uncomfortable and awkward.
She did not believe the chatter about how dazzling and happy a night spent with a loved one was, dismissing it all as exaggerated stories.
That might have been even more true because of the prejudice she held against her father, who had desired a woman but ultimately failed to take responsibility.
But now, things were different. No, she had come to believe it.
The time she spent with him last night, and before that, made her believe such things.
A happy smile settled on Deborah’s face as she looked at the man sleeping soundly.
“Sleep well.”
Whispering softly, Deborah finally stepped down off the bed.
It was time to put the happy moments behind her and return to her daily life.
☆☆☆
Edward found the situation utterly perplexing.
It had only been about an hour since he arrived at Elfengreen to meet Raymond.
The person who greeted the arriving Edward was the butler, Greig.
Though it was not a particularly early hour, he was initially slightly puzzled to hear that Raymond had not yet risen from his bed.
Since his friend habitually woke up precisely early, he wondered what was going on.
But soon, he thought, Well, everyone has days like that, and casually dismissed it.
When he said he would wait until Raymond woke up, the butler Greig showed him to the drawing-room.
Perhaps five minutes into enjoying the relaxation while drinking the fragrant tea a maid had brought, Cecilia suddenly burst into the drawing-room.
The siblings, famous for their beauty even within the Rubeck Kingdom, had a particularly close relationship with Edward since childhood.
Because the families were so close, they frequently visited each other, and thus he often met Cecilia, Raymond’s younger sister, in addition to his friend.
Of course, things had become a little awkward since they reached marriageable age, but regardless, Cecilia was like a sister to him.
Both families were subtly creating an atmosphere to pair the two of them, but Edward was, in fact, a little confused.
He didn’t know whether his affection for Cecilia was as a sister or as a woman.
In any case, such a Cecilia came into the drawing-room and suddenly began to complain through tears.
The content was that when she went to ask for the reason after being told that access to the second-floor outdoor terrace was prohibited yesterday afternoon, she was coldly driven away.
“Ed, how could Brother treat me like that?”
Her beautiful face was entirely overcome with tears.
Edward awkwardly forced a laugh, “Haha, haha.”
“He is just cold-tempered, isn’t he? Cecilia, you should try to understand…”
He meant to criticize her brother to try and lighten her hurt feelings, but look at her glaring at him even while he criticized her own brother.
Huhu, this is why you should never get involved in fights between these siblings…
Though this had happened dozens of times, making the same mistake every time—Edward thought he was truly hopeless.
“No, no matter how cold, indifferent, and heartless Brother is, he never treated me like that.”
“…….”
He had only said her brother was cold-tempered, but she was readily adding harsh words that he hadn’t even uttered.
However, Edward merely nodded his head and absolutely did not commit the foolish act of pointing it out.
“Ed, if you had seen that look in his eyes, you would understand how I feel.”
As she spoke, perhaps her brother’s face came to mind again, and Cecilia buried her face in a handkerchief and began to to sob again.
I wonder what on earth he did to make Cecilia this upset…
He had a cold personality, but anyone who knew him knew that he was always willing to give in to his sister.
It was hard to believe that such a Raymond had so coldly driven Cecilia away over something that seemed like a non-issue.
Of course, this was only hearing Cecilia’s side of the story, so it was difficult to judge easily.
“I’ll ask him properly later, Cecilia.”
As he approached and patted her shoulder, Cecilia quickly blinked her wet eyelashes, pressing away tears with her handkerchief.
“Will you really do that?”
“Yes, I’ll ask him in detail why he did that, so stop crying now. You’ll ruin your pretty face.”
At his gentle words, Cecilia instantly smiled sweetly and nodded.
Looking at her cat-like face, Edward couldn’t help but smile back.
☆☆☆
“They say there were a big fuss yesterday, right?”
“Yesterday?”
“Mistress Cecilia, I mean. I heard she was crying and making a scene, wasn’t she?”
“Ah, that.”
Today, the main topic of conversation in the servant’s hall was still the Cheisters family.
“What, ‘that’? Do you know something about it?”
Everyone’s gaze focused on the maid who nodded as if she knew something.
The maid quickly glanced around once, then covered her mouth with her hand and began to speak carefully.
“Well, I heard that Mistress Cecilia was severely scolded by the Duke yesterday and ran out sobbing uncontrollably.”
Upon the discreetly whispered words, gasps could be heard from here and there.
This was because not only was it surprising that the haughty Cheisters Lady ran out crying, but everyone was also shocked that the person who scolded her was the Duke himself.
Although he seemed gruff on the surface, everyone knew that the Cheisters Lady had a special affection for her brother, the Duke.
And they also knew that the cold-hearted Duke Cheisters only showed favor to his mother, the Grand Duchess, and his younger sister, Cecilia.
So, everyone couldn’t help but be shocked that such a great storm had erupted between the siblings.
“But what on earth was the reason?”
Everyone was curious about the reason that caused a rift between the two.
“Well… I don’t know the detailed reason, but I just heard through the grapevine that Mistress Cecilia violated the instruction not to approach the second floor—something like that?”
“The second floor? Ah, that access ban?”
“Oh, wait. Deborah, aren’t you in charge of cleaning the guest rooms?”
Someone suddenly interjected, and everyone’s eyes moved to the end of the table.
They were looking at Deborah, who was hunched over with her head bowed, acting as if she had no interest in the conversation.
Deborah flinched in surprise and raised her head with an awkward expression.
“Ah, that is…”
“Then how are you going to clean?”
Interrupting Deborah’s stammering, another maid posed a very pointed question.
Right, if access is forbidden, how on earth is she supposed to clean?
Amidst the murmuring, Deborah swallowed dryly, her face tense.
“W-when the ban is lifted… I will go then…”
Everyone initially viewed her highly suspicious behavior as suspicious, but fortunately, their interest quickly subsided, and they began chattering amongst themselves again.
Once everyone’s attention had drifted away, Deborah quietly let out a sigh of relief.
Just as I thought, she mused, clutching her chest, the story from yesterday is already circulating like this.
Suddenly, the conversation they had in the early hours of yesterday morning flashed through her mind.
—About the ban on accessing the second floor. Could… you stop doing that now?
—Why is that?
—It just… creates strange rumors, and it’s awkward, anyway.
—Then where are we supposed to meet? You don’t want people to see us, so I banned everyone from coming, and you don’t like that either.
His voice was heavily laced with annoyance.
So, Deborah carefully whispered the thought that she had been agonizing over.
—W-we can meet at night… like tonight, when I come to you…
Looking at her face, which was blazing red as if she had uttered some grand declaration, the man’s eyes narrowed into thin slits.
And after a long time, he finally spoke in a low voice.
—Well, it’s a shame—but if that is what is comfortable for you.
Though he said it was a shame, Deborah thought his face somehow resembled a gorged beast of prey that had swallowed its fill.
☆▪︎▪︎▪︎☆
Don’t show sympathy for Cecilia. You’ll be shocked after 🙂🥲
