20. Before I Knew It
20. Before I Knew It
“I’m off to work, but make sure to get some rest. All right?”
“Okaaaay.”
After we finished our breakfast with my in-laws, Mr. Fisalis carried me back to the bedroom and laid me down on the bed before reminding me to stay there. He’d already said that exact thing loads of times on the way. Did he really trust me that little?
“Dahlia, Stellaria, you need to be careful too.”
“Understood.”
And he wasn’t just getting on my case, because he made sure to tell the maids as well. And even if he hadn’t, my ankle is swollen and hurts. I can’t even walk on it, so I’m not exactly going anywhere! Jeez.
“Cercis, if you don’t leave soon, you’re going to make Father Fisalis wait.”
“You’re right. I’ll be going, then. Make sure to—”
“I know already! Have a good day!”
Since I couldn’t make it to the entrance, I had to see him off at my bedside. I felt kind of bad for telling him to have a good day with my face screwed into a pout, but he deserved it for being so obstinate. He gave me an uneasy smile and a light hug before leaving the room with Rohtas.
Once I was sure the door was closed, I let out a sigh. “Mr. Fisalis tried to gloss over this, but...is everything really going to be okay?”
“What do you mean?” Stellaria asked as she arranged the pillows on my bed.
“I mean, he mentioned a strategy meeting, and that his work would be getting busy.”
“Er... I don’t know much about the matter, but it’s nothing for you to worry about, Madam. Leave all the difficult things to Master. You just need to rest and focus on healing your ankle,” Dahlia said, smiling awkwardly. She probably just imagined him going on a rampage through Aurantia, too. It’s Mr. Fisalis, after all. It’s pretty easy to picture.
“I can’t concentrate like this! Nothing good ever happens when he’s busy!” And the scheming looks on his and his father’s faces! Those complacent smiles were terrifying!
I didn’t know how their strategy meeting was going to go, but what would I do if there was another war? Especially if this was the catalyst for it... I prided myself on not being too self-absorbed, but this whole situation definitely revolved around me. I wouldn’t be able to live with myself if I got the entire country caught up in a war because of all this! I could never put Mr. Fisalis or any of the other knights in danger. Please, settle things peacefully!
While I stewed in my own imagination...
“Oh, don’t worry. Let’s just keep an eye on things for now. We need to get your bandage and medication changed,” Stellaria said, taking hold of my injured leg.
I couldn’t exactly argue, so I just laid back against my cushions. Both of the maids hurried to work on the bandages. When they took them off, I saw that my leg was swollen to nearly twice its size. I definitely wasn’t going anywhere on that leg. I was, in fact, completely stuck here.
My lunch was brought up to my bed, along with a huge pile of books to keep me occupied, but I really wasn’t built for sitting around. After lunch, I was completely bored out of my mind.
“This is bad. I’ve been injured for half a day and I’m already sick of it.”
“That’s way too soon!” Mimosa, who was brought to supervise—I mean, keep me company—laughed. Since she couldn’t do much else while she was pregnant, she was the perfect candidate for it. “Let’s get you a wheelchair for when Master isn’t home. That way, you could go for walks.”
“Really?”
“Really! I’ll have Bellis prepare one for you.”
“Great! Thanks!”
I’d thought the night before that a wheelchair would be too much, but staying in bed was horrifically boring, so I changed my tune pretty fast.
That night, Mr. Fisalis came home only a little later than usual. It was a bit of a let-down after he said he’d be so busy. Did the meetings go okay? He didn’t shirk his duties again, did he?
“I’m home, Vi. Have you been good?”
“Welcome home. I stayed in bed all day! I’m bored out of my mind!”
He’d come straight to the bedroom after coming home, and asked about my day as he gave me a hug. Of course, I replied truthfully!
“But Mr... Ahem, Cercis, you aren’t home much later than usual,” I asked, looking him in the eye with the unspoken question. “You didn’t dump your work on someone else, did you?”
“Yeah, I am. My job in the chivalric order is important, but nowhere near as important as taking care of you right now,” he replied sweetly with a sparklingly happy smile.
Too sweet! I’m getting cavities, Mr. Fisalis! “I don’t think so, but...”
“It was a joke. I was busy during the day, but we were just on standby through the evening, so I got bored.”
“Really?”
“Really. I’ll get changed quickly so we can go down for dinner.”
“Okaaay.”
Considering his line of work, I couldn’t pry much. I was worried, but I’d have to back down for now. He’d probably tell me everything he could when he was ready.
After that, Mr. Fisalis carried me down to the dining hall. I felt bad for him having to carry me every single time, so I really hoped Bellis would get me a wheelchair soon. Although Mr. Fisalis seemed incredibly happy taking care of me...
Once we finished dinner, he carried me to the salon so we could have an after-dinner cup of tea before bringing me back to the bedroom for a bath (assisted by Stellaria!). Afterwards, he changed my poultice and bandages, but...
“Stellaria can change my bandages for me~”
“But I want to do them. Don’t worry about it.”
“Huh...”
My complaint went in one ear and out the other. Anyway, he was so happy that I expected him to burst out into song, so I shut myself up. Also, he was actually really good at wrapping bandages!
And so that was how my life went for a week. My wheelchair was ready the day after Mimosa suggested it, so I was able to move around the manor without Mr. Fisalis’s help. I was so glad that I could go out into the gardens, but my glee only lasted a short while before I received some sad news.
There were going to be large-scale renovations done to the gardens.
“Why? The gardens are wonderful just the way they are,” I complained, looking out the salon window at all the servants busy outside. Rohtas was out there too, looking at some kind of blueprint with Bellis.
“That’s true, but a lot of the trees are reaching the end of their life, so they’ve decided to replant them all. Since there were so many, Master just suggested they do a large overhaul,” Stellaria explained as she pushed my wheelchair.
“So it was Mr. Fisalis, huh? I see.”
“Because of all that, there are holes all over the gardens right now. It would be too dangerous to bring you out in a wheelchair, so perhaps you should just watch it from the inside.”
“Okaaaay...” Since I couldn’t walk on my own two feet, I decided to just be a good girl. I didn’t want to cause any more trouble than I already had!
Despite claiming that he was busy at his job, Mr. Fisalis was coming home at his usual time. Once he was home, he’d come straight to check on me before going with Rohtas to see the gardens. Every. Single. Day.
“You’re really enthusiastic about the garden, aren’t you Cercis?”
“Yeah, just a bit. I’m trying to make sure it’ll be done by the time your ankle is healed, so you just sit tight until then. All you need to do is focus on getting healed up.”
“All right.”
“Well then, I’ll be off to see to today’s garden work. Rohtas, don’t forget the plans.”
“I have them right here.”
After saying that, the two men set off for the estate grounds.
So I’ll be able to see the new gardens once my ankle is healed, huh? I hope that’s sooner rather than later.
I might not have been able to go outside, but I’d been having tea with Mother Fisalis in the salon more often since I could get around the manor just fine. She told me all kinds of stories to keep me occupied—things from the territories and things she’d seen on trips. I was jealous of the life she’d lived, free from worldly cares.
Today’s stories were all about when she was young—turns out she was the queen’s childhood friend—but I suddenly had a thought.
“What ever happened to the Aurantian royal siblings?” I asked.
Back on the night of the party, they’d been bound and taken away by the knights, and I hadn’t heard a thing about them afterwards—not even about them going back to Aurantia.
“Ah, they’re locked up in the noble’s jail!” Mother Fisalis replied lightly.
I see. So they’re still here... No, wait—there’s a special jail for nobility?!
“So they actually do send nobles to jail?”
Since I hadn’t had much to do with the palace, this was my first time hearing about anything like that. I didn’t even know that jail was split up by rank like that.
“Yep! They’re left over from long, loooong ago, back when Flür’s internal affairs weren’t all that peaceful. Some ancient royals were tragically caught up in a coup and imprisoned there. Unable to move on after their deaths, their souls still wander the halls at night...”
“Gyaaaaaah! Mother Fisalis, please, stop!”
I wanted someone to talk to, but stop with the ghost stories! When I screeched and covered both of my ears, my mother-in-law laughed at me like this was all hilarious.
“Oh Vi, I’m making all of this up! You’re such a scaredy-cat! The noble’s jail is mentioned in royal history books, but I didn’t know they were anything but legends until now. There hasn’t been much use for them in such tranquil times, after all. But I think the commoner’s jail would be just fine for those two.” Mother Fisalis, don’t grin so broadly! It’s still scary!
But I guess the two Aurantians really were being imprisoned. I mean, of course they were. It hadn’t looked like they’d be let off easy, with the king, Mr. Fisalis, and every other knight closing in on them...
“...Are they hostages?”
“Don’t worry about it, Vi!” she said, evading the question with another smile.
“But I’m really curious!”
“You’ll find out soon enough. Ah, wonderful weather we’re having today. I hope the garden renovation finishes soon!”
“...Yes, I do too.”
She very obviously changed the subject. That must have meant that she wasn’t going to say any more no matter what I did. Yes, I successfully read the mood!
Another peaceful week went by.
One day, Mr. Fisalis came home at the same time he always did. And, as always, he came straight to the bedroom to see me. But this time, he was in top spirits the moment he walked in, and he gave me an overly tight hug. It hurts! Did something good happen?
When I groaned from the too-tight hug, he apologized and let up.
“I’m home, Vi! And I’ve got a big present for you!” he said, grinning ear to ear.
A present? Did he bring some kind of delicious sweet for me?
“Welcome home. A big present?” I asked, seeing that he wasn’t holding anything.
“Yep! Our problems have been solved! Aurantia gave up without a fight!”
Oh, so it isn’t sweets. ...Wait.
Mr. Fisalis had a big smile on his face, but that news was even bigger! By “gave up” he meant “surrender”, didn’t he? Was the whole country gone?! What happened in the last two weeks?!