I Refuse To Be A Character In A Novel - Chapter 31

The book she held in her hands was not a novel.

Zachary recognized it at a glance.

It was one of the many magic books he had gone through while looking for a reason that his wife could have suddenly regained her mana.

The book, like many others in the room, was written in the ancient Agrek language.

Because it was mostly used in magic records or religious ones, the language was only taught within the royal family, the temple, and to a few exceptional individuals out of necessity.

Yet his wife was casually flipping through its pages.

Standing behind her at an angle, Zachary felt dissatisfied that he couldn’t see the expression on her face.

He slowly approached her from behind and whispered in her ear.

“You seem to have broadened your field of interests while I was away.”

“Hup—”

The book she held fell on the floor with a thud.

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“You scared me! Why did you sneak up on m…”

The end of her words was blurred as she turned her head towards the duke.

Facing him at a distance close enough for their skin to touch at the slightest movement, Erna unconsciously held her breath.

“I knocked but you were too immersed in your book to hear it.”

The breath that came out with his words tickled her skin.

Before she could react, Zachary stepped back and walked around the table to face her.

“Are you interested in magic?”

He asked as he bent down to pick up the book that had fallen from her hands.

‘That surprised me!’

Erna patted on her chest as she inhaled a deep breath.

“… A little bit.”

‘Can you perhaps show me your magic?’

‘One day, maybe.’

A forgotten memory flashed in his mind.

With the book in his hand, Zachary leaned on the window frame.

“When did you learn to read Agrek?”

“Oh, I was taught by Saint Alois in the holy city when I was younger.”

“Saint Alois?”

Zachary raised an eyebrow at the name that flowed so naturally out of her lips.

“Yes. He’s one of the high priests who possess healing magic. He was also the one who would usually do my mana purification.”

‘Come to think of it…’

“Did you experience any more pain since last winter?”

“No.”

As if trying to figure out something, Erna searched the floor with her eyes.

“… I think it only happens when I try to use my mana.”

‘It was the case that time as well.’

‘I don’t even remember what I was trying to do…’

‘It must be because my memories were mixed with Charlotte’s that I ended up forgetting some of my original memories as well.’

“And yet you’re looking through a magic book?”

Taking two steps closer, Zachary looked over his wife with squinted eyes.

Erna looked back at him with a slightly guilty look.

“That… I was only curious.”

Her earlier figure as she hummed in a good mood while her legs swung like she was a little girl that had found a treasure, implicated something more than mere curiosity.

“You just said it yourself, that your body reacts when you try to use you try to use your mana. Don’t do anything reckless.”

Zachary emphasized his words in a firm voice.

“I wasn’t going to. You don’t have to treat me like a child.”
Erna mumbled with a dissatisfied expression.

“…”

That’s right.

She can take care of herself, but…

I can’t help but worry.

Ah…

As he came to realize the emotion he had, a soft smile spread around his lips.

Perhaps it was the first time in his life that Zachary ever had to worry about someone else without being obliged to.

‘Why are you smiling?’

Unaware of his inner thoughts, Erna brought her hand behind her ear in awkwardness.

The soft smile he had certainly made it seem as though he was dealing with a child.

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“By the way, what are you doing here?”

It wasn’t unnatural for Erna to ask so since she rarely encountered Zachary during the day time.

He was always busy managing the territorial affairs or training alongside his knights.

“…”

Zachary couldn’t answer.

He wasn’t sure why he went to the library either.

He had piles of documents to sort out and had to finish all of them before they left for the capital, but somehow his legs led him there.

Where she was.

Perhaps it was time to admit it.

Zachary might have enjoyed her company a little bit, but he didn’t want to let her know that just yet.

“I had some free time.”

His eyes looked over to her side.

“Magic doesn’t seem to be the only thing you’re curious about.”

Following his gaze, Erna remembered the books she had brought along with her.

She suddenly felt embarrassed as she looked over the cover of the book placed on top of the pile.

How childish it would seem for a grown woman to read a book that had a princess and a knight drawn on the cover.

“I’ve heard that you purchased quite a lot of romance novels, that seems to be true.”

“They’re not all romance novels, there are some mystery novels as well!”

Erna declared in a serious tone as if Zachary had made a grave mistake.

“Is that so?”

Approaching the table, Zachary put down the magic book he had in his hand as if it was worthless and grabbed one of her books.

In haste, Erna stepped down from the table and quickly reached out, trying to snatch it back from him.

‘I didn’t expect that she would react this way for a mere novel. What is it?’

“The countess’ invitation.”

As he read the title, Zachary gave Erna a meaningful smile.

‘Aaagh!  Why did you have to pick that one? That title is very misleading!’

“I didn’t know you were into that kind of thing.”

He held the book high above her head where she couldn’t reach and inquired with an amused expression.

“Is this the reason you’ve been spending a lot of time in the library?”

With flushed cheeks, Erna retorted urgently.

“W-what are you talking about? It’s a child-friendly novel!”

The tips of her ears that had turned red gave her an innocent look, and the eyes that looked up at him shook with embarrassment.

As his smile deepened, Zachary gently pulled her towards him.

Because she was standing on the tip of her toes, Erna easily fell against his chest.

Now he became seriously doubtful about her answer since his wife didn’t react to the sudden contact as she usually would, and only focused on reaching the book in his hand.

“Hmm… I wonder about it.”

“I told you it’s not like that!”