CHAPTER 26
Aizen rode in like a prince on a white horse, cutting through the wind.
Wow, he really did look amazing…
“Don’t come here, darling! It’s dangerous!”
You’re the fragile, sickly beauty type!
Ignoring my warning, Aizen dismounted and lifted me up, completely disregarding the groaning man who’d been stabbed.
“Are you all right? You’re not hurt, are you?”
“Y-yes. But how did you know I was here…?”
“Greta reported it to the ducal house and told me as well. What were you thinking? There’s a limit to recklessness—how could you follow them so blindly into danger?”
Aizen scolded me with a hard expression.
Thinking about how worried he must have been, I couldn’t say anything in return.
But still…
I quietly tugged at his sleeve.
“You can scold me later, but can you comfort me first? My heart’s beating so fast right now.”
I’d only rushed in thinking about the kids, but honestly, I’d been scared too.
If I had given in to that fear, I wouldn’t have been able to do anything.
Maybe that’s why—seeing Aizen, my ally, made me feel such relief.
He glanced down at my trembling hand, still clutching the stone tightly, and gently patted my back.
I suddenly threw my arms around him.
His awkward hand, stroking my back, stiffened instantly.
“I was really scared. I knocked out three guys with poison mushroom powder and freed the kids, but my hands wouldn’t stop shaking.”
“…For someone that scared, you fought quite well.”
“I can’t die before my handsome husband. That would be such a loss for me…”
Just as I was happily hugging him for a bit of healing therapy, an unpleasant voice cut through.
“Hey, you two! Did you forget I’m still here?! Where do you think you are, clinging like bugs and making out?!”
The man, who’d been writhing in pain on the ground, had recovered enough to stand.
“You dare ignore me? I’ll make you regret it…!”
He yanked the sword from his shoulder and charged—straight at Aizen.
“No! Don’t touch my husband!”
That face is a national treasure!
Without thinking, I squeezed my eyes shut and threw the stone in my hand.
*Thud!*
A sharp, satisfying crack echoed.
When I opened my eyes, the man lay limp on the ground.
Gasp.
Did I actually hit him?
I clasped my hands together and prayed over the unmoving man.
“Lord, I have righteously sent one to Your judgment. Please forgive me.”
“…Pfft.”
I looked up, startled by the quiet laugh above me.
Aizen had a hand over his mouth, trying not to laugh.
“What? What’s so funny?”
“Nothing. Let’s head back. The ducal knights will handle the rest once they arrive.”
“Okay.”
I dusted off my hands and followed Aizen.
When I saw him mount his horse, my shoulders drooped.
“I don’t know how to ride.”
“I’ll take care of that.”
“…!”
Aizen wrapped an arm around my waist and lifted me easily onto the horse before swinging up behind me.
Trapped between his arms, I rode comfortably.
Mmm, being in my handsome husband’s arms was the best.
I couldn’t help but grin quietly as the exhaustion melted away.
Then Aizen spoke softly.
“Don’t ever do something that reckless again.”
“Yeah, I got a little carried away this time, thinking about those missing orphanage kids.”
“…Carried away?”
He looked puzzled, as if wondering how a noblewoman like me could empathize with an orphan.
“Well, I actually got suspicious of the dress shop earlier and told one of the kids working there to quit. But she refused.”
I could understand why.
She probably thought no one else would hire an orphan like her.
Even if she quit, she’d have no way to survive.
“I understood her. Having to take responsibility for your life at that age must be terrifying. Other kids have parents to protect them, but she didn’t.”
“…My lady.”
Aizen looked at me with a strange expression, as if weighing something.
“Do you remember… not having parents?”
Ah.
Realization hit—I’d slipped up, thinking with memories from my past life.
“…I don’t have parents? I just felt sorry for the girl, that’s all…”
Come to think of it, did the original Jenna Kreutz have no family besides her husband’s?
Aizen hesitated briefly, then looked away.
“Ah, well… something like that.”
Hmm, so Jenna was an orphan too, huh.
“Anyway, do you think the kids who escaped are safe?”
“I saw the guards protecting them on my way here.”
“Phew, thank goodness. Matthias will be happy we found Anna. I just hope he doesn’t scold her too harshly.”
I sighed, shaking my head.
“He thinks he’s a burden to his family. Maybe that’s why he wanted to solve this alone—to prove he’s not.”
“What? That’s ridiculous. Of course he’s not a burden.”
Aizen frowned deeply, anger flashing across his face.
I blinked at him, surprised, and he awkwardly looked away.
“Oh, looks like you’re good at empathizing too, darling.”
“Yes, well… Anyway, the family’s just busy, but it’s all for his sake. No one ever saw him as a burden.”
“Did anyone ever explain that to Matthias?”
“…What?”
Aizen looked caught off guard.
I shrugged.
“He’s just a kid. You have to tell him with words, so he doesn’t feel anxious. You have to remind him you love him, even when you’re apart.”
Aizen’s lips pressed together.
His eyes flickered, stirred by something deeper.
After a long pause, he muttered to himself,
“…I see. Maybe that’s what we failed to do.”
Though his voice was subdued, his gaze seemed lighter, as if a weight had lifted.
After dropping Jenna off at the viscount’s manor, Aizen returned to the ducal estate.
The kidnapped children were examined by a physician under the guards’ protection, and everyone involved with the orphanage and the dress shop was arrested—
including the slaver Jenna had knocked out.
So technically, she did solve the case.
He chuckled at the memory of Jenna clasping her hands in prayer.
The truth was, it wasn’t Jenna’s stone that had hit the attacker.
Hers had fallen weakly halfway through its arc.
It was Aizen’s kick that had sent the stone flying straight into the man’s forehead.
Jenna had prayed, blissfully unaware.
That woman… she’s impossibly unpredictable.
He brushed his lips and finished his work.
The traffickers were all imprisoned and would face punishment.
The victims would stay temporarily in the ducal estate’s outer quarters.
Instead of resting afterward, he went to visit his nephew’s room.
*Knock, knock.*
“Matthias, are you asleep?”
“…No. I’m awake.”
Matthias opened the door, his face puffy from crying all day, dressed in pajamas.
Aizen stepped inside quietly and sat on the bed.
Matthias sat down beside him, a little distance away.
Matthias spoke first.
“I’m sorry.”
“…For what?”
“If I’d listened to you, none of this would’ve happened. I shouldn’t have gone on my own…”
He hung his head miserably.
Aizen frowned slightly and put a hand on his shoulder.
“That’s not something you need to apologize for. If anything, I should be the one saying sorry.”
“…Y-you? Why?”
“I’m sorry, Matthias. I used being busy as an excuse and didn’t listen to you. If I’d been a proper guardian, you—and others—wouldn’t have been put in danger.”
He meant it.
As both uncle and lord, the responsibility was his alone.
Neither Matthias nor Jenna bore any blame.
Still, Aizen had only ever tried to reason with them, thinking that would fix everything.
“But remember this—neither I, nor your grandparents, ever thought of you as a nuisance. You’re more precious to us than life itself.”
He ran his hand through Matthias’s golden hair and pulled him into an embrace.
“From now on, I’ll do my best to be your shelter. If you ever need help, come to me. I’ll always be here for you. I love you.”
Following Jenna’s advice, he forced down his embarrassment to express affection.
Matthias’s ears turned red to match his eyes.
“…Uncle, that was so cheesy.”
“Ahem… You could at least say something back.”
“I-I… l-love you too.”
“…Thank you.”
They separated, both awkwardly avoiding eye contact.
It felt strange to exchange those words for the first time, but a small smile formed on both their faces.
Time passed quickly.
Soon, it was the day of the Duke of Kalard’s banquet.
Since Greta wasn’t very skilled with styling, the head maid, Miriam, helped me get ready.
My wavy navy hair was tied half-up, with white ribbons on each side.
The makeup was light, and I wore only small pearl earrings.
The dress was a layered high-neck gown with white lace at the neckline and delicate floral embroidery across the blue fabric.
“I wore this when I was young,” my mother-in-law had said.
“It’s enchanted to stay warm, so you can wear it after a few adjustments. But it’s not exactly a party dress, so if you don’t like it…”
“No, please, I want it. I really do. I’ll cherish it. No one else could wear it but me, Mother.”
“…All right, then. It’s yours.”
I was happy—it meant a lot coming from her.
If she hadn’t given it to me, I’d have been stuck wearing a plain brown dress that had been shoved in the corner of the wardrobe.
I hadn’t been able to get a new one because the Julia Boutique situation had gone so badly.
So, thanks to my mother-in-law’s thoughtfulness, I actually looked presentable.
“Greta, Miriam, how do I look? Is it okay?”
“You look beautiful, my lady.”
“The dress suits you perfectly.”
Smiling at their compliments, I stepped outside.
Aizen stood waiting near the carriage.
He wasn’t coming with me to the party, but he’d come out to see me off.
“Darling! You were waiting just to see me off?”
“Yes. Have a good time. And please, try not to cause any trouble. All right?”
“Of course! When have I ever caused trouble?”
“…”
He smiled, clearly thinking of several examples but holding his tongue.
I grabbed his fingers with a hint of reluctance, and he flinched slightly.
“It would’ve been nice if you came with me.”
“I’ll pass. I don’t like crowded places.”
“Still, someday I want to go to a party with you. When you’re better, promise me you will.”
I lightly shook his hand as if pleading.
His lips curved a little higher.
“All right. Now go, before you’re late.”
“Okay, I’ll be back soon! See you later!”
I waved enthusiastically and climbed into the carriage.
It rolled off toward the ducal estate with steady energy.
