If I Disobey the Duke - Chapter 116

Sore Finger (1)

Hundreds of hooves thundered against the ground, making it quake.

The soldiers lined up as they blocked the entrance to the Ataka Plateau.

The ones sitting inside the barracks rushed out.

“Sandstorms… T-the knights are back! Build your camps!”

Before the sentence was completed, the leader of the knights arrived in front of the barracks.

In front of the soldiers who were saluting in haste, someone jumped off the horse.

“Those… killed. Please bury them in the honored hall.” A voice that became shriveled as if it had been gnawed with sandpaper. It was Ivan who ran side by side with Vlad from the front.

Ivan lay chin down in front of the barracks. He was as messy as everyone else, thanks to his coarse, dusty skin and unshaven beard.

The other knights were still deathly envious though. He still looked better than them.

Only their monarch was unharmed. Even the rough dirt added to his wild beauty.

Vlad got off his horse without hardship.

Ivan muttered, closing his eyes as he lay down at the entrance to the barracks, “Even during the war, he didn’t rush like this… Did Madam appear in his dream last night? Cough!”

Vlad walked over, pointedly ignoring Ivan’s grumbling, he rolled up the barracks’ tent .

The sand and dust on the floor were blown away.

The knight waiting inside stiffened and saluted.

Vlad narrowed the distance in front of him. “Report.”

“I have collected all of them! From the left, there are also those sent by Cadis, the Knights of Nature, the administrators, and Priest Nerva.  Finally, Madam…”

“Get out.”

“I have received your orders!” Relief colored the knight’s face as he left the barracks.

Long after his letter was sent. Vlad stood with his mouth shut. Staring at the long wooden table in the center of the barracks.

Normally, he would have washed off. There was no such time to do that now.

He painted this moment endlessly in his mind as he ran a ten-day journey in four days.

It seemed that only he and that box in which the letters were stored were the only ones left in the entire world.

A small box that fit in one hand. It was as if she was in that little box.

The urge to open it up, and the hesitation not to act violently, were tangled in confusion.

He let out a deep sigh.

As if hanging from an anchor, he moved one step at a time and opened the box.

“…”

He felt dizzy. His pulse pounded as if his heart was beating out of the nape of his neck.

He couldn’t believe it, even as he saw it with his own eyes.

A sheet.

On a red velvet lining lay a letter the size of the palm of one’s hand.

It was sealed with the de Winter seal, so it was true that Lily had sent it.

It was only a letter from a woman who panicked because she was afraid that her husband would die.

She’s just intimidated because she’s alone. That’s…

His heart sank. The black mist of fear creeped from his toes.

Did you happen to have any problems?

Another fever or illness. Or, even a problem with personal information because there was not enough security…

“…It cannot be.”

She couldn’t have reported it in a single letter if it was such a big deal.

After making a rational decision, he exhaled a sigh of relief. Soon, a strange bitterness filled his mouth.

“One sheet… I’m correct.” He struggled to open it. Anyway, it was better than looking into an empty box.

She had something to say to him.

His heart pounded. Perhaps it was just sent as a reply.

When he opened the letter, he saw a fluid and elegant handwriting.

When they were recently married, he vaguely thought she didn’t know how to write.

Even in aristocratic families, illiteracy prevailed. In particular, women used to be banned from learning due to patriarchal beliefs.

So this fluid cursive writing by Lily was quite special in its own right.

He was hopelessly caught up in anticipation.

“Vlad. I am doing very well…” he began. His voice got smaller and smaller.

* * *

The golden light pouring down from the study swept over Lily’s white and elegant neckline.

Her slender frame stood out thanks to her

neat hair and ivory-colored dress that exposed her from the shoulder to the collarbone.

As she leaned her elbows against the table and interlocked her hands, the lace adorning the sleeves of her elbows drooped.

It was a dress that smelled of spring.

It would be nice if her expression was as bright as a spring flower, but her eyebrows were furrowed in pain.

“My back hurts…”

It was self-inflicted. She fell asleep on the desk. Her back pain made her dream last night more vivid.

Both cheeks heated up. Even though no one was watching, she lowered her head in embarrassment and rested her forehead on the clasps of her hands.

What stupid thoughts have I been thinking since broad daylight…

“Chief Executive Hans Stofler arrived!”

At the cry of her guard, Lily lifted her head.  Then she hastily fanned her hands to cool her face.