Chapter 7 - A Natural Nigh

7. A Natural Night

Anna, who came to announce that the meal was ready, was about to faint when she saw me wet and wearing Altair’s coat.

It seemed that she realized her mistake of not having prepared a towel beforehand.

After wiping my body with the towel that Anna had prepared in haste and changing into dry clothes, I finally regained my composure. I also had time to ask about the situation.

“Anna, do couples share bedrooms in the east?”

“Of course. A couple would definitely share a room.”

Anna tilted her head as if I was asking something obvious.

“I see. I had no idea.”

“Is it different in the capital?”

“It’s completely different. A couple sharing a bedroom… I have never thought about it. Besides, the lord hasn’t been here for two days, so I thought it was a room for myself.”

“On the first day, Madam collapsed because she was sick, and yesterday she was very drunk, so I’m sure he told you to rest comfortably. He’ll probably be sleeping here from today.”

“F-f-from today?”

I can’t believe I have to sleep in the same bed with Altair from today. It felt like the sky was falling.

‘I have a bad sleeping habit…’

He might find it annoying and even open his eyes in a terrifying manner, and shout, ‘You, sleep on the floor!’

Fortunately, there is a sofa in the room. Even if I was kicked out of bed, I wouldn’t have to sleep on the cold stone floor. It’s not that big of a sofa, but I could squeeze my body a little bit.

“Is the sofa strange?”

Anna tilted her head as if I looked strange measuring the size of the sofa seriously.

I shook my head in a hurry and took my eyes off the sofa.

“Oh yeah. Did you tell the butler?”

“Yes. He’ll see you soon. But he said something strange.”

“What do you mean?”

“There’s still five hours left.”

“Five hours……?”

I looked at Anna, wondering if there was a hidden meaning that I didn’t know, and she shook her head as if she didn’t know.

“It’s probably some nonsense. Don’t worry about it, have your meal first, madam!”

* * *

Pavel, the butler of Aylesford Castle, appeared exactly five hours later, as he had foretold.

“I greet you formally, Madam. This is Pavel.”

Pavel was a man with blond hair and purple eyes. Holding a pile of books piled high up to the bottom of his chin, he wore glasses, which made him look quite strict.

I don’t think he’ll tolerate a single mistake. In addition, his curt expression made him seem like a hard person to get close to.

‘But strangely, his face is familiar to me.’

He shrugged and put the pile of books down on the table. I stared at Pavel’s face with a strange hint of déjá vu.

“I’m his younger brother.”

“What?”

“Didn’t you keep looking at me because I looked like Blan?”

“Oh! The knight who acted as the groom’s representative?”

“Yes. I am his brother. Feel free to call me Pavel because the Lord does the same.”

To be the younger brother of the kind person who helped me in a difficult situation. I felt a little relaxed since I was a little nervous from the strict impression.

“First of all, I thought you would want to know the situation of the castle today, so I brought the books from the past three years. I do have the warehouse key, but they don’t have any…”

Pavel lightly shook his head as if he was embarrassed.

“As expected, things aren’t very good?”

“A look around and you’ll soon find out, but Aylesford is a barren land. It is difficult to farm, so we have to depend on ancillary sources of income.”

“If it’s an ancillary source of income……?”

“It’s a beast hunt. Goblins and griffins often come down from the Dragon Mountains that block the eastern part of the Empire. If a beast appears in a nearby territory, our knights will take care of it and receive a reward. I’d say it’s kind of similar to mercenaries.”

Making money out of the Knights. The noble knights of the capital would never understand. However, as I am not a knight and I do not know much about their pride, I kept that part in mind.

“That’s not a regular source of income. It’s not like beasts will show up every time whenever we need it.”

“Yes, that’s right. That’s why the land is in a bad situation. Would you like to look around the castle first? They say it’s better to see it once than hear about it a hundred times.”

“Well… First, I want to take a look at the ledger. The castle tour is next.”

“Okay, if you need any guidance, feel free to come to me. Do you have any other questions?”

“I don’t have one right now. Just…….”

I took a deep breath, hugging one of the books piled up on the table in my arms.

“I got married without knowing what Aylesford is like or who the Lord was, but I want to do well. I’ll work really hard, so I hope I am able to receive a lot of help from you. I look forward to your kind cooperation.”

The words that came out took a lot of courage, but the response I received back was silence.

I glanced at Pavel’s face and saw that he was just blinking his eyes with a sullen look on his face, as if he had heard something completely unexpected.

Should I have not said that?

I was about to blush from the embarrassment.

“Really… You hit what I had to say, madam.”

Before I knew it, a smile hung around Pavel’s mouth. But it was for a very short time.

After erasing his smile, Pavel, who reverted back to his sullen face, bowed his head in a polite gesture.

“We, the Aylesford and the Lord look forward to your kind cooperation.”

* * *

‘What time is it?’

I looked out the window rubbing my stiff eyes from reading the books.

It was a bright day when Pavel handed over the books, but before I knew it, the world was buried in pitch darkness. I was greedy to get the books as soon as possible, and time went by so quickly.

‘Ugh… My body feels so stiff…….’

I liked to sit with my hips in one place and read a book, but again, working and reading were very different.

I got up from my seat and stretched. Then I found a big coat hanging on the wall.

‘Gasp! That’s… … !’

The coat in question was the one Altair covered me with.

The moment I saw it, Anna’s voice passed through my head.

‘I think he is going to sleep here from today?’

The subject was of course Altair.

I was so distracted by the books that I had completely forgotten that important fact!

The sun has already set, so you never know when Altair will strike. I glanced at the door anxiously and sat quietly in the chair.

When in Rome, do what the Romans do. Since this is the eastern part, it is right to follow Eastern culture. I made up my mind like that, but I couldn’t help but be nervous.

I am an adult, and I am a man’s wife. It’s normal to spend the night with your husband.

When you chose to marry as a way to leave the capital, weren’t you determined to be willing to accept it?

Of course, it was unplanned that the husband would be the scary villain that I wanted to get away from…

I gulped down and looked at Altair’s coat. The size of the coat that wrapped my body tightly determined Altair’s physique.

Altair was a forceful man. Not only is he big, but his whole body looked as hard as steel.

What the hell would it be like to accept such a person with your whole body? The more I thought about it, the more I became afraid.

I lay on the bed with my eyes wide open and willpower burning in order not to be overcome by fear.

‘Oh, come on, come on! It’s not a big deal!’

“Achoo!”

Perhaps due to my bluff, the sneeze broke out quickly.

* * *

‘Yes, I’ve been burning my will like that’s all.….’

Surprisingly nothing happened that night. Far from happening, Altair didn’t even show up.

It was the same after that. One day, two days, three days passed, but Altair, who sarcastically said, ‘Are you telling me to ask permission to my wife’s room!’ did not show up.

As time went by, my tension, which I was so anxious about saying, “Bring it on!” decreased day by day.

‘Maybe it’s true.’

Melissa had informed me of some rumours when I was marrying Baron Aylesford. Among them, there were rumours that Baron Aylesford was a eunuch.

Although most of Melissa’s words were false, the story of the beggar baron and the man’s problem may have been true.

“This is the knights’ quarters.”

I let go of my thoughts at the sound of a voice next to me.

After reviewing the books for three days, I decided to take a look around the castle starting today. The guide was Pavel.

Pavel meticulously guided through the Aylesford Castle with his signature sullen expression.

He wasn’t talkative, but he was a good guide who gave the necessary information. Thanks to his efficient guidance, I was able to quickly grasp the structure of Aylesford Castle.

The combination of the castle’s appearance and the information obtained from the books allowed me to prioritize what I had to do first.

‘The first thing to do is to make money.’

There were a lot of places to repair, but the budget was insufficient. The remuneration received by catching a beast was not very large, and it was not a regular income, so we cannot rely solely on it.

‘I’ll have to think more about how to make money.’

It was a great harvest just to have something to do.

I looked out the window with a lighter heart. I could see the knights training through the hazy glass. Among them was Altair.

He walked among the knights, pointed out the posture, and led the training by giving direct demonstrations. Even the smallest movement was so stealthy that even an outsider could tell that he was excellent.

“I… Pavel.”

I pondered for a moment before asking Pavel.

“That… Do you know where the Lord is sleeping these days?”

“My Lord? Isn’t he sleeping in the room?”

“He hasn’t been in the room for days. So, just in case.”

“Yes?”

Pavel opened his eyes wide as if it was his first time hearing it.

He frowned at what he was thinking and touched his chin, then moved forward and opened the window that had been closed, then with his head out and called Altair in a loud voice.

“Lord!”

His voice was so loud that he caught the attention of all the knights.

“A few days ago, you told me to clean up a room so you could get some sleep? Do you sleep there these days?”

“Pavel. Can’t you see I’m training right now?”

Altair replied irritably to Pavel’s question. The low growling voice gave me goosebumps, but Pavel was not intimidated at all.

“You’re not really sleeping there, are you? I mean, I just laid out a bed to sleep on!”

“Don’t nag me! It doesn’t matter where I sleep!”

“Ho. You really must be sleeping there. Why do you leave your room and go to sleep there? Yes?”

“So why are you so curious about that!”

“I’m not curious. I asked you instead because Madam was curious!”

“What…?”

Altair’s gaze, which was looking at Pavel, went sideways and turned to me, who was standing a step behind.

The moment his red eyes faced me.

Altair’s face hardened.