Chapter 102
It was a strange feeling. Adrina knew that Dimitri didn’t like them. Adi didn’t have any positive feelings toward Dimitri either.
“So this is where you were.”
But now Dimitri was wary of Lev and…
“I was looking for you because I had something to ask.”
Showed behavior as if protecting them. It was hard to put into words, but Adi became certain of it from his sharp attitude toward Lev.
“I was worried.”
“…”
The word ‘worried’ really didn’t suit Dimitri at all.
After looking Adi up and down, Dimitri turned to Lev and said, “Lord.”
“Yes.”
“Lord Adrina Din is new to Ionad. Though you’re both knights, it’s inappropriate for an unmarried woman and man to move to secluded places alone.”
“…”
Secluded? What was there to call secluded about this completely open space? However, Lev could only move his lips without protest under that sharp, dismissive gaze.
“We have business to attend to, so we’ll be going.”
With those words, Dimitri stood beside Adi as if to escort them. Adi stared blankly at Dimitri. When met with Adi’s look that seemed to ask why he wasn’t going ahead first, and their stance that questioned why he was standing there, Dimitri’s lips drooped.
Such an innocent child…
“Shall we go ahead, Lord?” Dimitri said.
“Thank you.”
Adi answered and took the lead. Dimitri, following behind her, glanced back slightly. It had been a while since he’d seen the Grimaldi knight’s uniform.
“Still disgusting.”
Dimitri muttered. His voice was so quiet that no one heard it.
❖ ❖ ❖
The rose garden was farther from the Duke’s residence than expected. Upon leaving the garden, the smell of grass hit strongly. It was definitely more bearable than the scent of roses.
That place brought back unpleasant memories. While Adi was wondering why people liked roses, a pointless question, they stopped at the sound of “Adrina” being called from behind. When Adi turned around, Dimitri asked.
“Did anything happen to you?”
Was he genuinely worried? Why? It was incomprehensible. When Adi just stared blankly up at Dimitri without answering, his expression urged a response.
“No, I’m fine.”
“What were you thinking, following when called?”
His tone was reproachful. The intention was unclear. Was he worried or criticizing?
“Don’t you know how dangerous it is? This is the court.”
“I apologize.”
“Maintain your dignity.”
“Was what just happened undignified behavior?”
At Adi’s question, Dimitri closed his mouth. He seemed to carefully recall what he had said before answering, “…No, not this time.”
“That was overstepping on my part. I apologize. But it’s true that you did something dangerous.”
“I don’t know court culture. There’s no one to teach me what’s what.”
Dimitri’s expression twisted again. His face clearly said ‘what am I supposed to do with this?’ As Adi stood watching Dimitri pause to consider, they thought he might tell them to return to Woodpecker rather than cause trouble here. But then Dimitri carefully began, “If you’re amenable…”
“Would you like me to teach you court etiquette?”
“…”
This was unexpected.
“Me?”
Adi questioned. No matter how they thought about it, Dimitri being this cordial made no sense.
“Don’t you dislike me?”
“You’re also a member of House Woodpecker.”
Was it that he couldn’t bear to see someone bearing the Woodpecker name embarrass themselves?
“Besides that.”
Dimitri looked down at Adi. He always had that expression of looking down on others. It seemed arrogant but somehow natural.
“Knowing etiquette allows you to handle situations when others try to insult you or when problems arise. You should know it for your own honor’s sake.”
Honor. What a strange word that was. When Adi nodded, Dimitri continued to ask.
“…Did your original family teach you nothing?”
“I wasn’t taught etiquette.”
Adi answered.
“I hear such things are typically taught by one’s mother. Since it’s a family matter.”
But she hadn’t done that.
“My mother…”
Adrina recalled that beautiful woman. Though they vaguely remembered her being beautiful, they could no longer properly remember her face. The last time they saw her was at Adrian’s burial.
What expression did she wear then? They only remembered the black clothes and black veil. Who was it that threw stones at them? Did that even really happen? The events of that day seemed so surreal that memories came in fragments. Adi tried to recall the Countess from further back.
So she…
“She stayed in her room all day. She seemed somewhat all right until my sibling’s health declined.”
It was green wallpaper. Not the kind treated with arsenic poison, but dyed with grass pigment. Her room, as deep green as the Grimaldi forest, felt beautiful yet sometimes eerie. Mother would sit on the yellow rose-embroidered sofa, wearing a thick negligee, legs drawn up and wrapped in her arms, staring at them. Perhaps she was looking at Adrian.
She would smile as if the children were utterly lovable when she looked at them, but sometimes she would cast them aside with a look of revulsion. They couldn’t remember if it was themself or Adrian who was cast aside then.
Sometimes mother would throw things and cry, letting out screams full of despair. The Count wasn’t there. He had left the estate to stay in Ionad, and everything at the estate was under her control. She didn’t seem to enjoy that situation.
When did it begin? The screaming decreased. It was around the time when a maid brought in a water pipe for her use at the estate. Supposedly bought from somewhere in the Eastern Continent. After that, that acrid smoke constantly filled the room. Like fog in the forest, within it she smiled faintly. That smile might have been meant for Adrian.
“She always lay about in her room, smoking.”
Or perhaps it was meant for them?
“And occasionally she would write letters to someone in beautiful handwriting. They were greetings, but she never actually invited people over.”
The servants and maids would talk about how bright and beautiful the Grimaldi mansion once was. Adi couldn’t believe their claims that people would visit in summer because it was cooler than other estates in Dalkatir. Grimaldi was gloomy. Just like its name.
The only things that rose were tobacco smoke, or if not that, the smoke from burning wood. Watching the smoke rise from the forest, Adrian would fear they might be burning witches. Looking back now, it was probably just hunters.
But it was frightening then. The grey sky, the cold air, the dark forest and rising smoke, the wailing sounds were too much for a child to handle.
Still, Lady Grimaldi did go outside. She had to manage the estate. She seemed to put all her energy into estate management, always collapsing afterward. While it was normal for nobles not to care for their children directly, she seemed to show no affection at all. Perhaps it was just toward them.
The following memories are hazy. There were almost no good times. Especially after Adrian fell ill.
“My mother seemed isolated there.”
Was it from then? That she began to fall apart even more.
“As if she had chosen it herself.”
Or was it much earlier?
“That once beautiful person…”
“You know of her?”
Adi looked up at Dimitri as they asked. They hadn’t thought about it when they first met. When they heard the name Adrina Din, they had simply assumed they were Bert Din’s niece. Looking now, there was a resemblance. Those large, warm brown eyes.
“Yes, I saw her a few times.”
“I thought Woodpecker had no relations with Grimaldi.”
“We don’t.”
“Are you perhaps from the North? I guessed from your name.”
“Yes, I am from the North. Near Grimaldi… actually.”
A touch of warmth seemed to pass through his eyes as he said this.
“Do you miss it?”
“…As I age, I find I miss it somewhat.”
Dimitri said. He looked into the distance as if recalling the past.
If he was from the North, which part would it be? Was it on a cliff like Grimaldi? The man seemed to suit the forest quite well. If he grew a beard and wore a thick hat, he would look right at home in the Northern mountains.
But Dimitri was clean-shaven and wore neat clothes. His fastidious appearance, with his cravat tied up to his neck despite the southern heat, made sense now that they knew he was from the North. Adi touched their own cravat. They too had it tied up to their neck on this hot summer day.
“In my youth, I hated it too. The North was the worst.”
In his youth, he says.
“It’s not as bad now as it was then. But the fact that I feel nostalgic suggests some emotions still linger.”
Would they too come to miss the North when they grew older?
…Even though they didn’t want to?
“If you wish to learn court etiquette, let’s try to arrange a time. I understand you have some free time outside of training and duties.”
“I work nights, so I can adjust to whatever time suits you.”
“Let’s set a schedule that won’t interfere with our duties.”
After saying this, Dimitri checked the time. Facing him as he looked like he really needed to go now, Adi said, “I’ll be in your care.” Dimitri narrowed his eyes as he looked down at Adi, then,
“Yes.”
He smiled.
“Let’s get along well from now on.”
It was an unexpected expression. That look was quite warm.
Lilina
Omg is Uncle Dimitri going to be Adi’s father figure…🫣