Little Tyrant Doesn’t Want to Meet with a Bad End - Chapter 485.2
Chapter 485.2: Just Accompanying You To Bed (2)
…
The thing I’ve been worrying about still happened in the end.
In the guest room, Roel listened to Charlotte’s story with a heavy heart.
He had considered many possibilities regarding what could have happened to Charlotte. He suspected that it might have something to do with Bruce’s mysterious affliction, but the situation was worse than he had expected.
The one who was ailing wasn’t Bruce but Charlotte.
His mind went blank the moment he heard about it from Charlotte. His ears buzzed as if they couldn’t accept what they had just heard. This was a huge shock to him, especially since he knew that the affliction was currently incurable.
The Rosa Merchant Confederacy had paid astronomical sums to engage the services of the church’s bishops and renowned scholars, but none was able to make sense of Bruce’s affliction. All the wealth and connections, but Bruce was still helpless before the affliction.
That was how scary it was.
Charlotte’s situation was only going to be worse. The Soulcalming Lamp that had run out of oil wouldn’t be potent enough to simultaneously suppress both of their afflictions.
Roel despaired at the cruel reality, but he quickly snapped out of it and pulled himself together. He couldn’t be weak, not at a time like this.
Looking into Charlotte’s eyes, he saw her dilemma. She didn’t want to part with him, but she was also hoping that he would leave so that she wouldn’t infect him with her affliction. Seeing that, he rose to his feet and walked up to her.
“D-darling? What are you going to do? Wait, no, you can’t…”
In spite of Charlotte’s flustered refusal, Roel approached her and sealed her lips. She initially tried to push him back, but she soon succumbed to the emotions she had suppressed for the longest of time.
Her body gradually relaxed as their kiss deepened, leaving no room for anything other than intermittent gasps of air between them. It felt like a long time before the two of them parted lips with heavy pants.
“Darling, y-you can’t. If you catch the affliction as well…”
“You would have caught it long ago if the affliction was truly contagious. Look at those around Uncle Bruce. Aren’t they all fine?”
Roel calmly assured the woman in his arms, but that wasn’t enough to quell Charlotte’s unease.
“But the affliction stems from a curse. If the curse spreads…”
“… It’ll be my fate if that happens,” Roel replied.
Roel gently placed his hand on Charlotte’s cheeks and gazed into her emerald eyes. His heart ached at the thought of the emotional turmoil she had been through.
Several years ago, when the two of them was in the Witness State, Charlotte chose to entrust her hopes to him and stand alone against the despairing gray ashes of Sire Darkness.
It felt like a replay of the same situation.
She knew that he was the one who supplied Bruce with Sarchorme’s Soulcalming Lamp, but she still chose to step away from him so as to not spread the affliction to him. It was a foolish but touching gesture. Even the most heartless of people would be touched by her self-sacrificial spirit, let alone Roel.
Roel felt a flood of affection for Charlotte, and it made his face redden a little. He understood Charlotte’s worries, but he had no intention of backing down here.
“I don’t know how your affliction came about, but Charlotte, just like how it was a few years ago, I won’t leave you to the lurch.”
“Darling…”
“Really, I don’t know what to say about you. The Witness State is one thing, but I won’t allow you to make the decision this time too. I forbid you from facing this alone. For this matter—no, it should be all difficulties we’ll face in the future—I hope that we can face them together.”
“!”
All difficulties we’ll face in the future?
Charlotte’s heart skipped a beat.
The promise for two people to face all difficulties together had deep significance on the Sia Continent. Those words were part of the wedding vow, making them as good as a proposal.
Those were the words she had been dreaming of for the longest time, but hearing them now left her feeling conflicted instead. Tears glistened in her eyes as she rested her head on Roel’s chest.
“… Why are you saying that now?”
“It’s because it’s now that I’m saying those words.”
“… You dumbo.”
“You’re the one who is a dumbo. Even after so many years, you’re still thinking of running away from me to confront your problems alone…”
Roel stroked Charlotte’s smooth auburn hair before pulling her closer in. No words were exchanged between the two of them; they soaked themselves in each other’s warmth and vented out a year’s worth of yearning.
A gentle atmosphere drifted into the quiet guest room. A blissful smile slowly emerged on Charlotte’s tearstained face.
After a long embrace, the two of them finally parted a little.
“Putting aside your physical condition, are you feeling better now?”
“Mmhm. I feel euphoric. It feels almost like a dream.”
“It’s not a dream. I won’t allow it to turn into one.”
Roel gently wiped away the tears on Charlotte’s face as the latter nodded. It was then that she was suddenly reminded of something.
“Right. I have to release Grace.”
“You… imprisoned Grace?”
“She was going to snitch to you, so…”
Charlotte’s face reddened. Roel revealed a helpless smile.
Under Charlotte’s order, it didn’t take long for the black-haired maid to return to the guest room.
“Lord Roel, you have probably heard the story by now, but I’d still like to verify if you’re aware of our young miss’…” Grace asked anxiously.
“Yes, Charlotte has told me,” Roel replied calmly.
“… I’m sorry, Grace. I was too obstinate,” Charlotte earnestly apologized to the loyal subordinate who had accompanied her all her life.
From the moment she entered the room, Grace could already tell from the harmonious atmosphere between the couple that her young miss’ plan had fallen through. She heaved a sigh of relief, gladdened that her young miss wouldn’t have to face this crisis all alone.
“Lord Roel, our young miss only hid this matter from you because she was afraid that the affliction would spread to you. I ask for your understanding on this matter,” Grace apologized on behalf of her young miss with a graceful curtsey.
Roel shook his head, expressing that he wouldn’t take it to heart.
Grace looked at the couple sitting next to each other on the sofa, and a glint flashed across her eyes. She realized that this might be a good opportunity.
The two lovebirds hadn’t been able to spend any time together over the past year due to the heavy responsibilities they shouldered. The ‘Roel X Charlotte Ship’ was simply too overloaded that there was not much she, the captain, could do to make the ship set sail. But now…
Without any hesitation, Grace interrupted her own flow of mana, causing her face to pale within the span of a few seconds. Then, she crumbled weakly to the ground.
…
Grace had fallen ill.
What illness is it, you’re asking? Don’t stick your head where it doesn’t belong. The important thing is that she’s ill.
The convoy doctor took a look at her and diagnosed it to be a case of exhaustion. Charlotte immediately ordered Grace to take a rest.
A problem quickly surfaced: Now that Grace is ill, who is going to take care of Charlotte?
Grace had been with Charlotte from a very young age. The trust shared between them was not something that anyone else could replace. It usually wouldn’t be a big deal for Grace to take a brief rest from her responsibilities, but this was a huge issue when Charlotte was this ill.
Charlotte couldn’t be left alone given the severity of her condition.
By a stroke of coincidence, it just so happened that there was another person in the convoy who could take care of Charlotte, and he quickly volunteered himself upon learning of the problem.
“Don’t worry, you can leave Charlotte to me. What do I have to do?”
In Grace’s resting room, Roel enquired about what he had to take note of while attending to Charlotte’s needs. The maid revealed a warm smile.
“Lord Roel, all you have to do is to accompany her in bed.”
