Chapter 31
Ersivan lifted her limp body into his arms. She was so light that she barely amounted to half his size, yet her body burned with fever.
He pressed his forehead against hers, gauging her temperature. Given the heat radiating from her skin, he could already guess the severity of her condition.
“Your Highness, is something wrong with the young lady?”
“Her fever is severe. Whether it’s merely exhaustion or something more serious, we’ll need to confirm.”
“…She will likely be fine. Please don’t worry too much. I will summon the physician at once!”
Once Hyde had left, Ersivan found himself alone, silently gazing down at the frail body resting against his chest.
Even at a glance, she weighed far less than the average adult woman, a fact that made his brow furrow involuntarily.
Next, his eyes fell upon her sickly pale complexion, tinged with an eerie blue. She looked hauntingly lifeless, almost like a corpse. The sight unsettled him.
Carrying her upstairs, he stepped into her room and carefully laid Diana on the neatly arranged bed.
Tilting his head slightly, he brought his face close to hers, hovering just above her lips. A faint breath escaped from them, granting him a small measure of relief.
Concerned that her fever might have worsened, he placed a hand against her cheek.
Sensing the warmth, even in her unconscious state, Diana instinctively nuzzled into his touch with a faint smile.
…Relief?
The unfamiliar feeling stirred within him, unsettling him further.
“You must not die yet.”
Ersivan rationalized his thoughts, forcing himself to accept the situation logically.
There were still too many things he needed to hear from her, and too much left for her to do.
Therefore, for now, her life still had value.
Ersivan stared at his hand, now caught in her gentle grasp. He made no move to pull away. Instead, he let her hold it as if it belonged to her.
“My lady! Are you all right? You have no idea how worried I was!”
“I’m sorry for causing you concern. Perhaps the carriage was too cold—I suppose my body just reacted poorly.”
“Everyone was so worried that they stood outside your door all day!”
Even as she tended to Diana, Daisy never stopped talking—not even for a second.
Diana wished she would at least pause while she ate, but Daisy remained just as chatty, even while feeding her spoonfuls of porridge.
As a result, Diana had been chewing on the same mouthful for what felt like ages. No wonder the porridge in her bowl never seemed to diminish.
“I’ll take over.”
Without making a sound, Ersivan entered the room and took the tray from Daisy’s hands.
“Ah, yes! Please be careful—it’s still hot!”
He took the chair Daisy had been sitting in and settled himself beside Diana.
“How are you feeling?”
“Much better, thanks to you.”
He scooped an appropriate portion of porridge and brought the spoon close to her lips.
Being fed by someone else—especially Ersivan—felt strangely embarrassing.
Seeing her hesitation, he lightly shook the spoon, silently urging her to eat. Reluctantly, Diana parted her lips.
“You must continue resting for now. You understand that, don’t you?”
“…Yes.”
As she opened her mouth for another bite, she hesitated, her expression shifting slightly.
“That means you are not to even think about attending lessons.”
The anticipated warning came swiftly.
Daisy.
So, she had tattled on her.
Diana had merely mentioned that she felt well enough to resume lessons soon. She hadn’t expected Daisy to report it to Ersivan so quickly.
“…But they’re important.”
“And?”
“If I skip lessons, I’ll forget things. If I stop practicing, I’ll lose my skills… Then I’ll have to start all over again, which would be a waste.”
Knowledge must be built like a habit—neglected even for a day, and all progress could vanish in an instant.
That was something she had heard countless times in the Count’s household.
She wondered if Ersivan shared the same belief.
Perhaps, even as he prioritized her recovery, he secretly worried she would fall behind in her studies.
“Why are you even considering such a trivial thing?”
But his short, dismissive response shattered her assumptions.
The way he spoke made it seem as though she was the strange one for thinking that way. A faint crease formed between his brows.
“…Because I want to improve. Whether it’s riding, swordsmanship, or anything else…”
Diana wasn’t entirely sure why she was being reprimanded, but she still attempted to explain herself.
Yet, Ersivan seemed more exasperated than before.
His eyebrows shot up, his lips twitching as if to hold something back. Finally, he ran a hand down his face, struggling to suppress his irritation.
“You are already doing more than enough. You can afford to forget about such things for a while. Right now, your priority is recovery—so make that your new lesson.”
“…Understood.”
“And I never want to be greeted with such a dramatic collapse again. Do you understand me?”
With a hint of irritation, he scraped up the remaining porridge from the bowl.
Diana quietly accepted the final spoonful.
The texture of minced beef filled her mouth—had it all sunk to the bottom of the bowl?
Watching him stiffly clean up the tray, she suddenly recalled what Daisy had said earlier.
“His Highness was terribly shocked, my lady! His face went completely pale as he kept asking about your condition—I was worried he might faint right alongside you!”
“That’s an exaggeration.”
“If you say that, His Highness will be the one feeling hurt! He stayed by your side longer than anyone else, you know!”
According to Daisy, Ersivan had visited Diana multiple times whenever he had a free moment.
Even when she was being examined, he had lingered by the door, unable to stay away.
Looking at him now, the dark circles beneath his eyes were evident.
Had he really not slept?
She didn’t understand why he was taking such an interest in her well-being.
Was he simply that determined not to let her die by anyone else’s hand?
What she had once considered a jest now seemed like a plausible truth.
“You must have been worried about me.”
“Do you think I could have been at ease?”
“But it’s not as though I was dying.”
“You say that, but do you remember what you looked like? You appeared no different from someone on their deathbed.”
His pale face shook slightly as he recalled the memory.
Afraid that Ersivan might probe her about that day, Diana averted her gaze to an arbitrary spot in the room.
“…Anyway. So, Evan, are you saying you want me to just sit still and rest?”
“At least until I believe you’ve recovered sufficiently.”
“‘Sufficiently’—that’s an awfully vague measure. What if I were to say I needed a full month to recover?”
“Then I would wait for you.”
“And if I said a full year?”
“I would wait for that as well.”
More pretense.
She had heard enough of it to grow weary, yet today, it was oddly reassuring.
As they say, it is often better to deal with a thoroughly wicked man than one who is only halfway bad.
And Ersivan, who would likely carry out every word he spoke if it meant winning her over, was undoubtedly that kind of man.
“The wedding is in less than two months, you know.”
“If you remain bedridden, I will simply slip the ring onto your finger in silence.”
“How romantic.”
“You do have a preference for such things.”
One thing she had come to learn recently—Ersivan Valencia was someone who held grudges.
Diana curled her fingers, absently rubbing them together as she glanced at him. Ersivan, watching her, smirked slightly.
“That is true.”
A chuckle finally escaped her lips.
For a fleeting moment, a hint of vitality returned to her pale face.
“That, too, is a hardship you must endure.”
Suddenly, her father’s words resurfaced in her mind.
The man who had treated her like a lifeless doll, devoid of feeling.
Had he even spared a moment’s thought for her upon hearing that she had collapsed?
If he had, it was likely out of fear that his cruelty would be exposed rather than genuine concern.
Ah, damn it.
A lump formed in her throat, sharp and painful.
She knew what the sudden sting in her nose meant.
Reaching behind her, Diana clenched the sheets in a desperate attempt to ground herself.
“Ah…”
But despite her efforts, tears still fell.
The warm droplets rolled down her cheeks, staining the blanket beneath her. The fabric darkened where they landed, leaving behind an irrefutable trace.
“…Have I upset you?”
“No, of course not. I just… miss my family, that’s all.”
Unsure of what to say, she blurted out the first excuse that came to mind.
It was a poor one.
And shameless, too.
After all, Ersivan had no family to speak of.
Not only that, but Lillian’s father was one of the people who had disrupted his peace.
To cry over the Count and his wife in front of Ersivan—wasn’t that the cruelest form of mockery?
“Ah, I’m sorry. I must have been thinking nonsense because of my headache.”
Diana waved her hand dismissively, trying to downplay it.
She needed to stop crying, yet her tears refused to obey her.
Ersivan’s slender fingers brushed against her damp cheek, the warmth of his skin seeping into hers.
He lingered near the corner of her eye before softly caressing her cheek.
She wanted to read his expression.
But as it turned out, that ability of hers was tied to her strength. In her current state, it failed her completely.
Then, in a voice laced with gentle resolve, he spoke.
“I will become your family. So do not grieve too much. This will be your new home, and we will strive to give you as much love as your family once did.”
They were bound by marriage.
At best, their relationship was nothing more than ink on paper.
To whisper such sweet promises under such circumstances was nothing short of deceit.
She knew that his words, like any family’s assurances, were nothing more than sugar-coated lies.
And she also knew that there would never come a day when Ersivan was truly sincere with her.
Falsehoods are always sweet.
But swallowing them recklessly would only lead to disaster.
If she indulged in them now, she would only end up spitting out a misery too great for her to bear.
She no longer had the strength for such suffering.
“Thank you. I will also do my best to be a perfect family member to you. To fill the gap of the last ten years…”
Had she not endured her father’s cruelty so recently, she might have let her emotions get the better of her.
But instead, Diana steeled herself once more.
She would survive.
She would endure, no matter what.
And one day, she would exact her revenge on her father.
