My Wife Waited in the Wheat Fields - Chapter 32: Caregiving (3)

Elric began to mumble as he looked at the documents.

Tyria watched him silently.

At a glance, it seemed to be documents related to this year’s year-end financial statements.

It was a document that was probably only a bit of an afterthought, but the importance of it was immediately known once one mentioned it.

Tyria was suddenly uneasy.

It wasn’t that she didn’t trust Elric, but if he were clumsy and made a mistake with the numbers, it would lead to a disaster.

He might even have to do it many times over again.

Tyria’s body tilted more and more in Elric’s direction with her rising anxiety.

It was at that moment.

“U-Ugh! I’ve got this!”

Elric covered the papers with his arm.

He was like a child trying to hide side dishes on the dining table.

Why did he look like that, despite having the appearance of a burly adult male with a large build and distinct bodily lines?

“…I haven’t even taught you math yet.”

“I’ve been learning, and I’ll do it to the best of my ability!”

“Are you confident?”

The scratchy tone of her voice was something Tyria often exhibited when teaching.

Though she didn’t realize it, this tendency was imbued with a strange aura of intimidation.

A cold sweat trickled down Elric’s forehead.

Tyria narrowed her eyes.

“I don’t mind if you put things off, I don’t mind if you’re slow, but I don’t want you to make one mistake. That is an important document.”

“It is…”

“I asked if you were sure.”

Elric shook his head, unable to say yes.

It wasn’t a gesture of complete abandonment, though.

“But still, I can’t have you working, Milady. Let me try it first, and I’ll only ask about what I don’t know. Milady needs to rest.”

Tyria paused.

‘Once again…’

He had called her “Milady”.

All of this made her feel weak, and she couldn’t bring herself to argue with Elric.

Tyria finally sighed and nodded.

“…Remember, anything you don’t understand, you must ask for help.”

“Understood!”

Elric nodded vigorously, his face full of confidence.

He then turned his attention to the papers,

“…May I ask you a question now?”

He began.

There was so much she wanted to say, but she knew she needed to keep Elric’s spirits up, so she held back.

However, after five minutes spent on answering one question and an hour of more questions, she had reached her limit.

Tyria finally asked.

“If you’re going to do this, why don’t you just let me…”

“Nuh-uh!”

“…”

What could she do about his stubbornness?

Tyria thought to herself.

Despite the incident, Elric was slowly getting used to working alone.

For the next few days, all Tyria did was answer his increasingly infrequent questions and steal glances at him while pretending to look out the window.

She really had to.

Elric had forbidden her from doing anything else after all.

To recall a few memorable moments.

“I want to read a book…”

“You can’t. I don’t want your head to hurt from looking at words.”

She had asked him because her hobby was reading, but he had refused.

“Then embroidery…”

“No. It will take up your concentration and make your head hurt.”

Her favorite pastime, embroidery, was also forbidden to her.

“Even a brief walk outside…”

“Do you really wish for your cold to get worse?”

Even that was forbidden, because who the hell thought a few minutes of air would make a cold worse?

There was something Tyria realized now.

Elric saw her as a piece of glass that would shatter if he touched her.

It was nice to be cared for, but she didn’t like being seen as someone that needed to be taken care of.

It made her wonder why he was treating someone else as a child, when he himself was acting like one.

So many things went through her head about Elric’s behavior, but when it came down to it, Tyria didn’t say any of it aloud.

It wasn’t all bad, after all.

Like now, for example.

“You’re starting to lose your fever.”

He had put his hand on her forehead.

A short distance away, he was smiling to himself.

Happiness washed over her as she realized that what she had once dismissed as a dream, what she had once dismissed as something that could never happen, was actually happening.

A thrill ran through her when she saw those brown eyes holding her own.

At times, Tyria had to truly fight to keep her expressions from breaking free.

She had to endure the whole ordeal while her hands were still tied, and yet she couldn’t help but want to let out a bitter laugh at her own foolishness due to the duality of also wanting this situation to never end.

The prolongation of their time together was very satisfying.

“How are you feeling?”

“I think I can work now.”

“You can’t.”

“I’m….”

“Rest.”

Elric’s smile deepened.

The words that came out of his mouth were sweet indeed.

“I’ve never been more aware of what you’ve been through than I am these days, and I’m guilty of taking you for granted myself, so this is my way of apologizing.”

She really wanted to ask.

Was it really just a regretful heart?

Or did he have any other feelings for her?

Why did he especially smile so warmly at her?

One by one, she made up scenarios in her mind, only then to erase them.

Instead of embarrassing herself, she said something a little harsh.

“Then maybe you should let me read a book or something.”

“Mmm… as long as it’s not too difficult of a book, I’m fine with it. What would you like to read?”

“There’s a book with a brown cover on the second row from the top of the bookshelf. Please give it to me.”

Elric pulled out the book.

“It’s an encyclopedia of plants.”

“Yes.”

Tyria took the book and caressed the cover.

It had been in her hands for over eighteen years, and so it was covered in marks.

“Mmm, don’t be reading it for too long. It’s almost bedtime.”

True to his word, it was dark outside the window.

Tyria nodded in agreement.

“You should go to your bed, I’m going to read for a bit.”

“Of course. Then, I’ll see you tomorrow.”

Only after Elric had left the room did Tyria open the book.

There was no hesitation in her hands as she flipped through the pages.

If anyone asked her why she was reading something she had already read, she would only have one answer.

That it wasn’t about memorizing the content, but about reliving the memory of the first time she had read it.

-”If you don’t know it, study it!”

Gradually, she slipped into her memories.

It had been a life without a single good thing in it.

It was a life full of things she hated, even now, but eight-year-old Tyria had been living in such misery that she hadn’t really known why she was alive.

Well, there was only one reason.

Her little world, Wyvern, had become so much more.

When she thought back to that time, there was only one thing that came to mind.

Smack!

“I can’t do this!”

Punishment.

“I explicitly told you to review this by today. So, Young Lady Wyvern, have you really tried your best?!”

Tyria remembered being punished in Wyvern back in the day.

“Tense your calves!”

“…Yes.”

Tyria had been taught etiquette from the time she could walk on her own.

Her teacher was a countess who was well known in the area, and her parents had paid a great deal of money to have her teach her. Thus, they had wanted it all to be worth it.

Her father’s words were still something she remembered.

“As a noble, maintain your dignity. It is an absolute rule that you must never be seen holding a book if you intend to marry into a good household.”

Tyria really hadn’t known at the time why she needed to marry into a good family.

She didn’t know why she shouldn’t open her mouth when she ate, or why she should watch her steps, or why she shouldn’t raise her voice.

She had just thought it was natural because she had been told that from a very young age.

It wasn’t until she was an adult that she realized that it had been abuse, so it was no surprise what Tyria did at the time.

“I’m sorry…”

Tyria had lived a life apologizing.

She had to apologize for getting food on her lips, for running around, for being groggy in the morning, for not going straight to sleep at night.

That day was no different.

Tyria had failed to keep up with the Countess’ lessons in etiquette and was given the corporal punishment of a slap on the calves.

But, that hadn’t been the thing that was out of the ordinary.

“Your progress is slow today.”

The Countess had complained to her parents that their young lady’s progress in class was slower than her peers, and it had stung their pride.

They had been drunk, and their shallow sense of humanity had prevented them from saying a word to the Countess.

So, the incident had happened after the Countess had left.

“You can’t even do that much! Yet, we’ve invested so much in you!!!”

Bam!

Tyria had only been eight years old when she was punched in the face for the first time. [1]

And it hadn’t been isolated to a singular instance.

There were at least a dozen she could remember.

“Why! Why don’t you understand our hearts!”

The punches had been vicious, their voices fierce, and their bodies intimidating.

Tyria had apologized, as always.

“I’m sorry!”

But no amount of crying would stop their vicious punches.

Tyria’s face had been puffed up like a steamed bun that day, and she had spent the night in pain and fear.

That must have been why.

That had been why she had snuck out of the mansion, breaking the rule that she was never allowed to leave the grounds.

Perhaps she had wanted to reach out to someone for help.

“Hmm…”

With swollen calves from excessive slapping, Tyria had limped out of the mansion.

She had cried her way onto the street, her face red and bruised.

Elric had been the boy she had met with that day

“What’s with this ugly kid?”

In the present moment, she lived each day whilst crushing on him.

“Wow… A person can actually look like this?”

But, in retrospect, Elric’s first impression had been the worst.