Chapter 20
Eric pushed aside Aria’s resistance and quickly laid her down on the bed.
Aria twisted and turned her body, but he grabbed her hand trying to escape and bound it tightly upwards.
No matter what I do, I can’t control him. At this rate, I will be swallowed by him and shattered.
Can this ridiculous relationship continue? I’m scared and terrified.
The moment countless thoughts surrounded him, Eric’s thick hand gently touched his cheek.
Startled, Aria squeezed her eyes shut tightly.
“It seems you even fear me in your dreams. I’m also a foolish guy. Even though I knew you hated me, still, I…
His voice, uttered in his sleep. At the words mixed with a short sigh, Aria slowly opened her eyes.
Then, Eric, who had been looking down at him, met his gaze.
The eyes filled with a distant and sorrowful gaze towards someone, something we had never seen in him before, who was usually so cold and composed.
In the face of the unfamiliar alienation, Aria’s pupils flickered for a moment.
“Maybe this person just needs someone’s affection too…”
That was the moment. Eric’s body suddenly began to shake violently. It was a seizure.
He raised his body and grimaced in pain, his face contorted.
The veins filled with strength began to stand out clearly on the heavily flexed forearm.
“Ugh…!”
Eric’s forehead was beaded with sweat. The drop of sweat rolled down and fell on Aria’s cheek.
He clenched the blanket tightly and let out a rough breath. Aria hurriedly lifted her upper body.
At that movement, Eric’s half-closed pupils turned towards her.
He reached out as if to confirm something. That touch reached the hem of Aria’s skirt. In that moment, a desperate longing mixed in his eyes.
“Even if it’s just a welcome, please stay by my side…”Please don’t go…Ugh! Ugh!”
Finally, the large hand slipped away, and Eric collapsed onto the bed.
A stunned Aria, taken aback by what had just happened before her eyes, turned her gaze towards the fallen Eric.
His eyes were quietly closed, as if it had never happened, amidst his hair soaked with sweat.
With her eyes still fixed on Eric, Aria got up from the bed.
Was it greed to think I could cure the curse? Was it a fleeting thought that drove me mad?
Gripping the disheveled clothes tightly and hastily gathering the medicine, just as I was about to rush out. Suddenly, the voice from earlier stopped him in his tracks.
“Stay by my side…”
The image of Eric, both wretched and pitiful, kept haunting my mind.
A person with no one to take care of them. What is that person struggling and enduring for?
Things that have already happened. Time that cannot be reversed, as if by fate.
What does it matter now? I’ve done my part. But why…….
With a brief sigh, Aria turned back to Eric.
I wiped the sweat soaking my whole body with a handkerchief and then covered myself with the blanket that had been thrown off.
Aria’s complex gaze met Eric’s. Have I ever looked at his face so closely?
Thickly layered eyelashes, deep-set eyes, sharp nose and jawline. Although he had a different charm from Edward, he was also a handsome man.
No, maybe he’s just handsome. He was a person who had all the qualities that would make high-society ladies fall in love at first sight.
But in Aria’s eyes, he was just a poor boy who only stared out the window. No, it was because of that boy that she couldn’t turn away.
Aria recalled Eric’s appearance as a boy.
When Aria wasn’t around, he would always just stare out the window or lie in bed.
But at that time, Eric had a different expression than he does now.
A smile that stretches wide across the lips. A pure smile blooming on the face.
The boy back then had hope and a little happiness. Unlike now…
That made Aria feel guilty and heavy-hearted.
Eric opened his eyes to the harsh sunlight streaming through the gap in the window.
My body felt lighter than usual. It seemed like I had fallen into such a deep sleep that I even forgot whether I had a nightmare last night.
It was literally a refreshing morning like I had never experienced before.
He awkwardly got up and suddenly, feeling a sense of alienation, looked around.
The warm sensation felt as if someone was staying here with him.
He vaguely remembered the dream he had the previous night.
Aria, who was caressing and wiping my body that was groaning in pain.
It was a sweet dream I never wanted to wake up from.
The body of Aria, whom he held in his arms, was emaciated, but even that felt beautifully alluring, as if it possessed the seductiveness of a woman.
Eric touched his lips to feel the remaining warmth.
The touch of lips as luscious as red roses and skin, the heat mark engraved on the slender nape.
It felt like my lower half was getting firm again.
“You’re going crazier and crazier.”
Eric muttered to himself and stood up, wearing only his robe.
As I flung open the window, the fragrant scent of lilac flowers wafted in on the breeze.
Soon, a knock was heard from outside. It was Aria.
Eric absentmindedly looked up at the clock on the wall.12 o’clock.
Since the first time she gave her order, she had never once broken that time. She was a woman who was painfully precise in everything she did.
Eric tied his robe and spoke to Aria outside the door.
At the sound, Aria naturally entered and set down a tray with Earl Grey tea.
Aria, who had lightly tidied up the messy bedding, approached slowly and offered tea.
For a moment, savoring the scent that brushed his nose, Eric stared intently at her.
“By any chance… did someone come in here last night?
Aria, with her brown hair neatly tied up, shook her head as she looked at Eric.
No. Is there something going on? It seems that your message is incomplete.
Eric’s indifferent gaze fell on her hand as she wrote her note.
Instead of answering, Eric lightly grasped Aria’s right hand and opened it.
“Fortunately, it healed well.”
Eric gazed intently at Aria’s wound.
The pupils of Aria, who was looking at him, trembled slightly. She quickly pulled her hand away.
[Young master, the count just sent a message.]He says he has somewhere to take you out together.
Eric’s gaze at the note became complicated. His gaze was entangled there for a while.
Aria subtly lifted her eyes and stole a glance at Eric.
Unlike the previous day, Eric’s complexion brightened. The treatment from the previous night was not in vain. It was really a relief.
At that moment when Aria was lost in thought, Eric’s footsteps headed straight for the wardrobe. As he took off the robe, his smooth back muscles were fully revealed.
With her face flushed, Aria couldn’t bring herself to properly see his back and turned her gaze downward.
In an instant, Eric, who had changed into a black uniform, turned his head slightly towards Aria, who was standing behind him.
“Have the horse ready in front of the annex. Wet your throat a bit If you’re going to run a long distance, you’ll use up a lot of energy.
Perhaps Eric seemed to know where the count was headed. At his command, Aria nodded.
An early spring afternoon with the sun shining down. Count Dennis, mounted on his horse, was leading his horse with Eric following a short distance behind.
As we crossed the winding river flowing through the trees and passed the canyon carved into the land, a village nestled within the vast forest began to come into view.
On the surface, it was a peaceful village, but the farmers living there were diligently fulfilling their respective roles.
Welcoming the spring, a horse with a gleaming shoulder yoke, reflecting the sunlight, was plowing the firm ground in the southern part of the farmland.
The farmers heading north into the dense forest were heavily burdened with iron weapons to mine mineral resources.
To the north of the farmland, a high iron cage that had not yet been retrieved stood prominently.
It was a kind of boundary line that the royal family had established to manage the northern region all this time.
However, by the order of Emperor Carlos, the northern mines were once again placed under the management of the Bailey family.
