Chapter 76

~Alexis’ POV~

Thirteen days have passed since they stayed in Mullen.

Although it was newly built, the usable site itself was much narrower, so the size of the castle was much smaller than that of the mansion in Meyer. Fortunately, Luci seemed to like this current life much more.

Yesterday, while planting the apple tree he ordered, Alexis told him that the apples would ripen in the fall. Luci was beyond ecstatic. Naturally, when Alexis told Luci that they would have to leave this place tomorrow, he became very upset.

Alexis took a vial out of his arms and took a sip. It was the medicine that Edith had brought to him, telling him that he had to drink it.

– It’s medicine made from the leftover scraps from making the young master’s medicine so you must take it. If you don’t drink it, you might lose consciousness while inspecting the estates. You don’t really want that, do you?

The Tassart herb left a cold sensation as it traveled down his throat. His mind became clearer.

He was forced to drink the medicine from Luci’s share but not because of Edith’s threat. This visit was a break that may never come again so he couldn’t possibly ruin this dreamlike time with them.

“Your Highness.”

Kathleen knocked on the door from outside and said.

“Can I come in?”

“Come in.”

Alexis hid the vial and turned towards the door. With her puffed cheeks and a fluttering pale pink dress, she looked more lively than ever.

“I’m here to ask you something.”

If they were in Meyer, she would have sent a servant to talk to him, but in Mullen, he was able to talk to her face to face. He realized how precious it was to be able to directly hear the words coming out of her lips, even the smallest details.

“I want to go out with Luci for a while in the evening. I heard that the night market is open today.”

“Why all of a sudden?”

In Mullen, there’s a market that does business every day, and occasionally, there would be night markets whenever merchants from other territories visit. They sometimes sold goods from the South or the North, so commoners were quite interested, but for Kathleen, these items were nothing new.

“I heard there was a merchant selling loquat seedlings. Luci liked the loquat berries you gave me last time, so I wanted to buy seedlings, but they’re a bit hard to find.”

Since loquat was a precious fruit, it was more difficult to obtain seedlings than its actual fruits. If it gets hit by a cold wind while transporting, it would be damaged immediately, so even merchants would want to sell it as soon as possible.

“I’m thinking of going out with Emily and Luci later.”

“Let’s go together.”

He wanted to see her proudly looking at Luci, who would be happy. But Kathleen tilted her head and asked.

“Didn’t you have an appointment with the people managing Mullen this evening?”

“Oh, right.”

He forgot. Before they leave Mullen the next morning, he has to go to a place to meet with the vassals who manage the estate and inform them of his plans for future management.

“I will postpone my appointment. Adjusting the departure date won’t be a problem.”

“No. Those people must have been waiting for a long time to meet with the lord, but if you postpone it a few hours before the appointment, they will definitely be very disappointed.”

Kathleen dissuaded him with an embarrassed expression on her face.

“Don’t worry too much, we’ll just be out for a while.”

She was right. Leading the estate is one of the important duties of a lord, but he has not taken good care of it until now. He had to treat the vassals properly at the start of his first tour of the estates.

Alexis said impatiently.

“I’ll send an escort.”

“It’s not Meyer, it’s Mullen. There’s no need for an escort.”

“You never know what’s going to happen, and if people flock, it can be dangerous.”

If people flocked to the night market where the merchants had stalls, there was a high possibility that an accident would occur in a busy place. Kathleen nodded her head multiple times.

“Then let’s do that.”

He pulled a bag of gold coins from the drawer and handed it to Kathleen.

“Don’t ask how much the seedling costs, buy it with this.”

The expression on her face as she took the bag became strange. Alexis added hastily.

“If you want something else while looking around, buy them all.”

“……Are you giving me all of this?”

“Yes. Use it however you want.”

This amount of money was a humble price for her to stay with him. If he could, Alexis wanted to give her everything he had.

“Even if I buy everything in the night market, it wouldn’t be this expensive.”

However, Kathleen took only one gold coin from the bag and returned it.

“This is enough.”

Kathleen smiled. His heart ached so much that he trembled at her smile, but eventually calmed down.

The scene from four years ago, when she threw everything away and left with only her old bag, seemed to overlap.

‘What am I thinking?’

Now and then are different.

Alexis looked at his wife, who was smiling in front of him, and painstakingly erased his anxiety.

“Then I’ll go now. I need to get ready to go out.”

This was different from before. She was excited to go to the market and be out for the first time in a while. After Kathleen left, Alexis summoned one of the Mullen knights and ordered him.

“Escort Kathleen once she goes to the night market.”

“Yes, my lord.”

He was thinking that a Mullen knight would be able to cope well with an unexpected situation here rather than a knight from Meyer.

A few hours later, the dinner that he had forgotten started. Alexis was going down to the dining hall when he saw Emily walking out the door with a large sack.

‘What will they be buying, to need that much?’

Should he have given her more gold coins?

He was worried, but as he didn’t know about life outside the castle, he entered the dining hall, thinking she wouldn’t buy things for nothing.

The vassals were overjoyed that the Grand Duke Walten, instead of his aide Viscount Rylent, had come directly to Mullen as its lord.

“As much as the Lord has trusted us, we will continue to do our best to take care of Mullen.”

“That’s right. My lord, this wine is made from white grapes grown directly in Mullen. Viscount Rylent wanted it too, but we saved it to give it to the lord for when you come. It tastes very good.”

He tried to refuse, but became interested as they recommended it several times. He took a glass and drank. It was a bit rougher than the wine he drank at Meyer, but the mild flavor and light taste were quite good.

‘Will Kathleen like it too?’

Come to think of it, he had never seen her drink alcohol. Alexis took another sip. He liked the feeling of it going down smoothly. Even those who did not like alcohol could easily have this with a meal.

Alexis asked them.

“I want to present it to the Grand Duchess, do you have any left?”

“Of course! It’s an honor.”

The vassals said that they had brought a whole barrel with them. It was enough to give some to each vassal at the next estate.

The white wine made the meeting progress smoothly. Alexis was generous and promised to listen to some of their grievances and resolve them.

“I don’t know what to do because you are so generous. Then I’ll see you when you leave tomorrow. My lord.”

The drunken vassals left after thanking him several times. As Alexis headed to the bedroom alone, he noticed that it was now dark outside the window.

“When does the night market end?”

“It will still be in full swing. When merchants come from another territory, it is usually crowded until dawn.”

The Mullen servant, who was following him, answered. Alexis nodded his head and climbed the stairs. He didn’t want to disturb Kathleen, who had just gone out after a long time.

Unlike the light taste, the white wine seemed to have quite a bit of alcohol. He sat down on the sofa, rubbing his stinging forehead, and closing his eyes for a moment.

And when he opened his eyes again, the moonlight in the night sky was shining softly. Sensing the stillness outside, he figured that it was dawn.

‘Drunk with just a bottle of wine.’

It was ridiculous. He had never gotten drunk even after drinking five bottles of alcohol by himself. He wondered if it was because he hadn’t drank for so long, but on the other hand, it was funny. The only thing that changed was leaving Meyer and living with Kathleen like a village man.

Maybe he was living the life he had dreamed of all his life, and he didn’t even know it. A faint smile crept across Alexis’ lips as he leaned back on the sofa.

He used to fantasize about it the whole time when he was imprisoned in the dungeon of the Empress’ Palace. The cold and gloomy nights in prison often passed quickly when he imagined that he would like to live in a small castle with a vegetable garden where greens grow and fruit trees were densely packed, and spend the whole time with his loved ones.

It was a dream far too big for the six-year-old Alec to achieve, so he had forgotten about it, but it was a dream he had already achieved before realizing it.

Alexis staggered off the sofa and headed for the next bedroom. He wanted to see his family sleeping peacefully. A woman who sleeps with her face buried in the white sheet and the boy who sleeps just like her with his silvery hair scattered randomly.

He wanted to reaffirm the fact that the scene in his dreams was no longer just an illusion.

As he entered the bedroom, only the empty moonlight greeted him, not the scene he had expected. He suddenly felt drunk. Alexis stood there blankly, trying to understand the situation.

‘Did you leave the room for a while?Are you in the bathroom?’

If the night market ended late, it was possible. But the reason, which gradually brought his sobriety back together with a chilling cold, made him come to a conclusion he did not want to believe.

Kathleen hasn’t come back yet.

Alexis left the bedroom and quickly went downstairs. A knight from Mullen, who was conducting the night roll call from downstairs, approached.

“Your Highness, what’s wrong?”

“Has the Grand Duchess not returned yet?”

“Pardon? Yes.”

At the words of the knight who affirmed with a puzzled face, his heart dropped to the lowest depths.

She really hasn’t come back.

The unpleasant familiar feeling slowly began to wrap around him.