CH 48

Ciel stopped thinking about his better physical condition and focused on the dull pain on the back of his neck, which he rubbed with one hand. This was a very familiar sensation.

In the past, whenever it came to the point that he was so out of it that he passed out while being guided, he would wake up with no memories of the guiding session. Instead, he always felt that the back of his neck felt strained.

His fingertips trembled slightly. His body quivered with delight.

He was still not one-hundred percent sure, but some vague expectations had arisen within him. What if God had taken pity on him? What if He brought Seohyun to this world?

No other explanation made sense if not this.

How else could it be explained that another separate person had the same habits, the same gait, the same guiding as his wife?

In the first place, he had already gone through several situations that were equally illogical.

For one, it was a fact that the saintess had the ability to travel to other worlds by way of dimensional shifting. Likewise, he also traveled to another new world through that method of dimensional shifting.

Furthermore, his regression was even more difficult to explain in words.

So, even if there was no way for it to sound plausible, how could it be said that it’s ‘impossible’ for his wife to have been brought back here?

All possibilities must be left open until proven false.

As long as he could be with Seohyun again, he was ready to endure everything. He would do absolutely anything at all.

However, before that, there were some things that he had to look into.

“Ah… The potatoes here are all cooked,” the baron lamented.

“…You’re growing potatoes here?”

“It seems like my wife made the servants plant some…”

Arthur took out a few potatoes and, lightly, patted away the dirt and took a bite.

“It’s cooked perfectly. Well, it tastes good, but… My wife will definitely scold me.”

“…I shall apologize to the Baroness properly.”

“…Not at all, Duke. We were able to eradicate the monsters easily thanks to you, so you don’t have to… Mmh, well she wouldn’t say that’s right either. Then, Your Grace’s apology, I will accept it with gratitude.”

“Pfft…”

Ciel briefly chuckled while listening to Arthur say that. It was very unusual for an aristocrat to do so, but still, it was pleasant to see the baron be so frank and open about just how whipped he was by his wife.

“I’ll even clean up this mess perfectly. You don’t have to worry.”

“Yes, I’ll leave it to you, Duke. Then, shall we head down?”

“Of course. But before that…”

Ciel used his wind power to dig up all the remaining potatoes out of the ground. Just one look at them and it’s obvious that they’d been well roasted. He couldn’t hide his embarrassed smile.

When the two of them descended the mountain, David was the first to find them, and so he ran out of the mansion.

“Are you alright, Duke?”

Ciel greeted David with a much more favorable look in his eyes than when they first met. He couldn’t help but think that the men of this household were so genuine and transparent.

“Yes, I’m fine. By the way, where is the Baroness?”

“Oh, Mother went to my younger sister’s room just now.”

“She did? I sent back the Lady and Aiden to the mansion first before confronting the monsters. Nothing should have happened, but did she get hurt anywhere?”

“No, sir. I also heard that the Young Duke had arrived safely and is now resting in his chambers. Mother went to my sister’s room because she suddenly said that she’ll be eating dinner at her room separately.”

“…I do believe it’s fairly normal for noble young ladies to eat alone often. It seems that the Baroness takes good care of her then.”

“No, my sister always eats together with us, but all of a sudden, she’s saying that she’ll eat alone in her room. That’s why Mother had gotten worried.”

“She said that?” the baron asked.

“Yes, Father.”

“Huuuh, why is my daughter doing something she normally doesn’t do?”

“She’s become an adult now, Father, it’s natural for her to start doing things she never did before.”

“So you’re saying… That I won’t be eating together with my dear daughter today…?”

“…Father, you can’t force Rin out.”

“Haa…”

Arthur let out a long, heavy sigh filled with regret. The food was so much better whenever he ate together with his daughter and the whole family, that’s why he always went home for mealtime no matter what. But he couldn’t believe that they wouldn’t be complete today.

With a forlorn expression on his face, Arthur trudged into the mansion.

“You should go in and wash up first, Your Grace,” David said.

“Sure. I’ll be in soon, you should go first.”

“Alright.”

As soon as David disappeared through the front doors, Ciel headed for the stable at a rapid pace. After checking the horses’ feet, he asked the stableman who arrived after him.

“Which one of these horses is the Young Lady’s?”

“Ah, yes sir. It’s that white horse over there.”

After receiving the stableman’s answer, Ciel turned at once. And when he saw that it was the horse with muddy feet that he checked earlier before the stableman arrived, he felt an indisputable surge of joy.

He hurried back to the mansion, but before he returned to his assigned guest chambers, he first apologized to the baroness and explained what had happened up in the mountain.

Then, as soon as he came into his chambers, Aiden hurriedly walked up to him as if he had been waiting.

Aiden’s face was flushed with excitement as he said,

“Brother! I think Lady Closch is an Esper, too!”

His remark came out of left field. Ciel couldn’t help but ask.

“Why do you think so?”

“When I held her hand, it felt quite peculiar.”

“You held her hand?”

He left them alone briefly, yet they held hands in the meantime?

It was the simple act of holding hands, yet discomfort strangely arose from within Ciel.

Not even realizing it, Ciel grimaced bitterly.