Chapter 40

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Chapter 40

“Let’s not talk. What am I going to say to Lady?”

In the end, Lange raised the white flag first. From the night he had been tormented by this woman, his bones started hurting so badly. He got up from his seat. He wanted to get away from this woman as soon as possible.

“Besides, don’t come to me so suddenly like this. People will get it wrong when they see it. What are you going to explain if there are rumors later?”

“Well, should I say that I have an affair with you?”

“I beg your pardon?”

At Janet’s absurd reply, Lange furrowed his brows. What the hell was this woman talking about? Seeing Lange’s expression, Janet smiled as if she was really pleased, pulling up the corners of her lips.

“It’s a joke. A joke. Like the past and now, Sir is not susceptible to jokes.”

“Stop talking like that, even if it’s a joke. How unpleasant. I’m not even your nanny to play with.”

“Because you’re really sensitive. I just joked about it once. But isn’t it pretty good? After all, I think everyone will be deceived if there are strange rumors that I’m also sleeping around.”

At Janet’s sly reply, Lange gasped in laughter. Was that supposed to be a joke? Absolutely not. From now on, he would lay the groundwork in advance. Because that woman was good at that kind of work. But that didn’t mean he should just stumble over it.

“Don’t make me out to be unscrupulous. I will be like the scum who covets someone else’s wife—”

“Oh, are you cursing your superior right now?”

“…….”

Lange bit his mouth quickly. Seeing it, Janet burst into laughter. It’s said that the enemy of a man is another man, that’s scary. Lange’s fists trembled at her sarcasm.

But he admitted that he had just gone too far. Because the scum he was talking about was his superior. As long as his superior was such a man, he shouldn’t have said that.

‘What’s wrong with Sir…!’

Lange turned his back, resenting Hert for not being here. Anyway, he was thinking of leaving this place. Otherwise, he will be swayed by Janet as he did before. But as he walked, he heard a voice calling for him.

“You know, Geoffrey.”

“What else is this time?”

“Isn’t it more convenient to say that we’re sleeping together?”

“What?”

Janet smiled and pointed to a man in the distance. There’s an old saying that went like this—speak of the devil and he shall appear. While Lange was still beside Janet, Hert saw them together and was quickly approaching this way. Lange put a hand on his forehead unknowingly and let out a sigh.

‘Doomed…’

When Hert hadn’t returned for a long time, Tessa nodded her head, then fell asleep. The room was full of sunlight, and it was warm even without a big fire, and as she lay down after eating, her body became tired and she fell asleep.

Tessa had a dream related to the past. After her reunion with Hert, she dreams of the memories of her past more and more frequently.

In her dream, Tessa was walking in the field. A green field of colorful flowers over the hill at the back of the orphanage was where Tessa often went to play, avoiding the eyes of the teachers.

‘Tessa.’

Of course, there was also the young boy, Hert, in the field.

‘Her, isn’t this flower so pretty?’

‘What?’

‘This pink flower!’

Tessa pointed her finger at a flower under her feet. Where she pointed, a small pink flower was in full bloom. Tessa started crouching down and looking at the flowers. When she lightly tapped the petals with her fingertips, the flowers swayed as if they were dancing.

‘How did it get here? It’s a flower I’ve never seen in this area.’

‘It must have come with the wind. The seeds are light and get blown in the wind.’

‘Is it like that? No, the bird might have brought it. There are many ways seeds can travel the world!’

‘Yes, it might be as you say.’

Perhaps because she liked the pink flower, but Tessa looked at it for a long time. Hert waited patiently for Tessa.

A cool wind blew. Under the clear sky without a single cloud, the two looked at the leaves of grass moving in the wind.

‘Her, you know. Sometimes I think that we’re also like seeds.’

‘…What are you talking about?’

‘We came here after traveling like seeds too. Just as this flower settled here, sprouted, and finally bloomed, we also flowed to Fitzgerald Orphanage, settled down and sprouted. And if we wait patiently, won’t the day come when flowers bloom?’

At Tessa’s words, she could feel Hert smirking. What, why was he smiling? Tessa turned her head to look at Hert, and he answered slowly.

‘I really hope so.’

At that, Tessa laughed softly. Then she brushed off her skirt and stood up and held out her hand to Hert.

‘Let’s walk a little more. The weather is so nice today!’

Hert did not refuse. He smiled softly, as if in response to Tessa, as he took her outstretched hand and stood up. She felt the warmth of his hand clasping her.

The girl and the boy roamed the whole field, laughing and chatting eagerly. They even made wreaths to cover each other’s heads.

‘Her.’

Tessa, who was looking up at the blue sky, suddenly spoke.

‘Her, what do you want to become when we grow up?’

The answer did not come soon. Hert looked up at the sky with a thoughtful expression on his face. Then he answered as if he had made up his mind.

‘…A knight. I will become a knight and protect the people I love.’

‘That’s really cool? You look like a knight from a fairy tale.’

‘Then Tessa… You?’

At Hert’s question, Tessa smiled as if she was happy just thinking about it.

‘Um, I… I just want to become an adult quickly. So I will leave this orphanage and live in a small house on my own terms.’

‘On your own?’

‘No, of course I’m going to live with you, right?’

Tessa turned her head to meet Hert, who was lying right next to her. You are my best friend. I wish we could live together. At Tessa’s words, Hert smiled softly.

‘Yes, let’s live like that.’

A soft voice. The lightly folded eyebrows were gentle, and the blonde hair reflected in the sunlight gleamed dazzlingly. His eyes were as pure and clear as if she was looking at the one and only jewel in the world.

Unknowingly, Tessa reached out to Hert.

But before Hert could even reach her, she gradually drifted away into darkness. It was a sign that the dream was coming to an end. Tessa was saddened.

Even though she knew it was a dream, she wanted to stay there a little longer. She wanted to go back to the time when everything was happy. But she knows she can’t.

Tessa woke up to the touch of someone touching her. In the darkened room, she saw Hert caressing her cheek. She woke up and called his name.

“…Hert?”

“Yes, it’s me, Tessa.”

“It’s you again…”

“Why, did you meet me in your dreams?”

At Hert’s quiet tone, Tessa closed her eyes again and nodded her head. Yes, you were there. Her pronunciation mumbles and flows haphazardly out of her mouth. Even so, Hert slowly nodded his head as if he understood Tessa’s words and tidied Tessa’s hair.

“What was your dream?”

“Long ago… A dream where we played in the field…”

“It’s a good dream.”

“Yes…”

The man’s hand was smooth and gentle, which made her feel good. Tessa gave her body to the hand and smiled a little without realizing it. It really feels like going back to that time. On a thundering day, Hert stroked her hair like this…

Tessa recalled the warm and gentle boy and called to him.

“Hert…”

“Yes.”

“I’m… sorry…”

The man’s hand stopped, but Tessa continued her words.

“I’m really sorry…”

“…….”

“Looking back, I… think I had… done nothing… for you. I’m sorry…”

She sold such a man as a slave through her ignorance. What should she do with this? Her tears were about to come out of her eyes.

Half-asleep, Tessa continued to say sorry to him, while she had no idea what she was talking about. But it will be fine. Because this will be a dream, too

Now Hert wasn’t the one to come into her room and stroke her hair. So this had to be a dream.

“The promise…”

“…….”

“I’m sorry I couldn’t keep it…”

Her tears flowed and wet her pillow. Tessa then let out a small cry. When Hert appeared in her dream like this, Tessa couldn’t hold back her weeping. She kept getting reminded that she had messed everything up. And it broke her heart that she could never go back when she was happy.

‘Yes, let’s live like that.’

As Hert said, she really wanted to live that way. He becomes a knight, and she gets a small house and lives there with him.

She didn’t want more. Just one thing. She just wanted that. But why has she become like this now?

She didn’t want gold and silver treasures and power like others, but her life was a mess.

Maybe it was because the desire to live with Hert was overflowing. Or did she want happiness like everyone else when she was just an orphan abandoned by her parents?

She doesn’t know which of the two. Because there was no one to answer her question in the first place. So it was even more sad. She’d rather have given up sooner if someone told her…

Tessa wept for a while, then fell asleep again.

Her vision went dark. She was still there, within the darkness.

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