Chapter 57

"Don't worry. This mind will be cleared up soon."

Cedric raised his labored face and looked at his master.

He wasn't expecting anything from her in the first place. It was good enough that he could just be by her side.

“I am concerned about the anguish she’s going through.”

Matheus’s heavy voice descended. Cedric just kept his lips shut.

“For now, just think that Julia is safe. If she needs our help, she will definitely contact here."

As if Matheus evoked, he changed the direction of the conversation. There was a depth that could not be hidden in the words that followed.

“The only thing I am worried about is…her health."

Currently, Julia's condition was very precarious.

For some reason, a significant amount of her power returned to him.

He could feel it.  Because the holy power in her heart was originally his.

It seemed like she used her power for some reason. Or it was just time for the lights to go out.

Since she survived under that cliff, her vitality was like a burning embers. It was weak enough to be easily extinguished by even the slightest rain and wind… Now he wasn't quite sure when and how the rain and wind would blow her out completely.

“Matheus, I will go to the estate where Gabrielle and the children are.”

While Matteus was worried, Cedric calmly asked for permission.  He was planning to go there and check their safety in person.

And if possible, he also wanted to find out where Julia was.

Matheus held Cedric's shoulder lightly with his hand.

“Yes, be careful.”

At that moment, Cedric, who slightly curved his lips, nodded helplessly.

***

Winter was long over. The full spring has arrived.

Julia, who had not been outside her for a while, went for her first daytime walk after coming here.

She walked for a while along the promenade in front of the villa.  With each step she took, the pleasant sound of the rustling grass was pleasantly heard.

As the day dawned, the wide fields that had been buried in the snow were also filled with green.

It was the warmth of spring that melted Julia's frozen heart, even for a brief moment. Julia briefly looked back on her past two months.

During those long days, Fernan didn't ask her for anything.

He didn't even try to take her to his castle, and he didn't force anything, not even the slightest. Indeed, as if to prove his words that being by her side was all he wanted. He was also reluctant to see her, and he never came to visit her as meaningless as before.

Instead, at night, he would disappear after watching her sleep for a long time.

When Julia woke up from time to time with a hand caressing her cheek, she would hear him murmured in a quiet voice.

She was asleep, so she didn’t understand what he was saying.

It was a series of unfamiliar behavior that she couldn't understand and didn't want to understand.

Julia shook her head slightly, clearing the thoughts from her head.

At that time, Melissa, who had been following her, suddenly spoke to her.

“Your Grace, aren’t you cold?”

Then Julia looked back at Melissa and shook her head lightly.

"No, I'm fine."

Now she didn't have to wear thick winter shawls.

As she continued to walk, Julia looked at the wild flowers that filled both sides of the promenade.

Then, with a sudden thought, she opened her mouth again.

"Melissa."

“Yes?”

Melissa came closer. Melissa has been by her side for the past two months.

As before, Melissa was the only reliable person for Julia.

Although they parted one year, her thoughts were still there.

So she thought that maybe Melissa could help her send a letter to the monastery.

“Has your Highness ever commanded the servants not to leave the villa?”

“No, he didn’t give me such an order. But we will probably need permission to go out.”

Melissa gave a quick reply. After contemplating for a while, Julia spoke again.

“Actually, I want to send a letter to the place where I used to live… If you leave the villa, can you send it?”

She couldn't get out of here.  Of course, the other day Fernan said she could go anywhere, but that didn’t mean she could interact with the Holy Land.

If she sent the letter herself, it was clear that it would fall into his hands before the letter even left.

“Yes, yes. It's easy."

“Thank you, Melissa.”

It was only then that Julia slowly opened her mouth as if she was relieved.

Even if she was safe, she wanted to tell the monastery. Everyone must be very worried about her by now.

She had no intention of asking them for help. Because it might hurt them too.

“By the way, do you plan on going back there again someday?”

Melissa looked into her eyes and asked cautiously.

Julia, who was seen through Melissa's eyes, was still coldly closing her heart to Fernan.

She didn't even look at him when he came, and when he spoke to her, she barely responded. Watching her hardened expression as if it was uncomfortable for Julia even being with him.

Having only seen her like that for two months, Melissa had no choice but to worry about whether Julia was okay to be here.

“Yes…..I can't stay here."

Julia meekly answered.

She had a place she had to go back to. Now, although she was being obedient because she didn’t have a chance, her thoughts had not changed.

Julia looked at Melissa, who looked at her worriedly, and remembered other faces.

Gabrielle and the children, Cedric, and everyone who lived with her in the monastery.

Strangely, when she thought about whether they were doing well, her heart would pound and beat dangerously. As if somewhere in her heart was uneasy.

‘…why?'

Julia, who had been walking with a confused face, turned around.

When she returned to the villa, Julia's expression gradually hardened.

Because Fernan, standing near the doorway, was watching her from afar.

While avoiding his gaze, Julia moved her steps firmly.

She tried to walk past him, but Fernan followed her straight inside.

“I heard you sent the doctor back this morning.”

A calm voice came from behind her.  Julia climbed the stairs without stopping her steps.

“You are still not feeling well.  The heat is the same."

“…  ”

“I called another doctor, I think it would be better to check again and get a new medication.”

Julia, who was walking quickly down the hallway, stopped for a moment.

Suddenly, Fernan was close to a distance away.

She did not look back at him, but replied sternly.

“I don’t want to receive treatment anymore. Just keep giving me the medicine I’m taking now."

She continued to take the medicine because it prevented the apparent symptoms to some extent.  But seeing doctors was no longer meaningful.

After reciting as if to notify, Julia moved her feet again. Normally if she cut him off like this, he wouldn’t follow her anymore.

But today, for some reason, his footsteps did not stop.

His big hand grabbed the doorknob before Julia. His arms touched slightly behind her back.

"Julia."

Fernan, who narrowed their distance as if imprisoning her in his arms, opened his mouth slightly.

“I will do as you wish.”

It was a voice that descended nervously. Julia stiffened her body for a moment.

His low voice continued to flow over her head while she couldn't even look behind her because of the close distance.

"So, please look at me just once."

His hand, holding the doorknob as if suppressing something, gained strength.

Julia avoided him every day and pushed him away.  She never gave him a long glance.

She did not know that it crushed Fernan's heart every day. Julia, who was silently looking at the back of his hand, did not look back, but slowly moved her lips.

"Let me go."

At the same time, she gently touched the back of his hand as she grabbed the doorknob.  She felt the back of his firm hand twitch.

At Julia's touch, Fernan gently removed his hand.  At that moment, Julia, who grabbed the doorknob and turned it, slowly entered the bedroom.

Without looking back at him even once, she closed the door behind her.