You’ll Regret It - Chapter 23

“So….this, the Count’s bedroom?”

 

“Yes. And I’d appreciate it if you called me ‘Lark’ instead of Count.”

 

“Well, that’s not the point, lord!”

 

Yuri’s face began to turn blue. She always thought that this room was her own room, as she always slept in this room.

 

In the midst of this, the man who corrected her by telling her to call him ‘Lark’ was ridiculous.

 

“It is very important to me.” (Lark) (*he meant it’s important to him that she calls him ‘Lark’)

 

She could feel it every time she saw his face, but he was overly handsome. For some reason, she couldn’t stand to tell him to go.

 

“Ha, but this is the Count’s bedroom!”

 

“I don’t care whether it is or not.”

 

Larkshid swept his hair a few times, and spoke kindly to Yuri.

 

“This castle has not received guests for a long time. So, there was no tidy room.”

 

“Then….”

 

“I thought your father wouldn’t let you marry me.”

 

At that moment, Yuri’s face darkened a little. His eyebrows twitched as he looked at her face.

 

‘Are you responding to the word “father”?’

 

Larkshid put aside his thoughts and spoke kindly to Yuri.

 

“There…I know your health is bad…… ”

 

“So…..”

 

“Of course I should give you the best bedroom.”

 

Well, the first room she received felt strangely unorganized. Was it because Yuri was a patient, so he treated so kindly? Yuri nodded her head. They were strangely convincing reasons.

 

However, that didn’t mean Yuri wasn’t embarrassed.

 

“Then Count….Where have you been sleeping?”

 

“The office. Rather than that, call me Lark.”

 

After giving up his bedroom, he has been living in the office?

Yuri looked into his eyes.

 

A person who was kinder than she thought. Yuri looked at his face. When their eyes met, there was a faint smile on his expressionless and calm face.

 

“…ha, thank you.”

 

The ant’s voice was louder than this. With a small murmur, Yuri thanked him.

 

“It’s what I should do.”

 

Her face turned red with an unfamiliar sensation. Being worried by others felt better than she thought.

 

***

 

After a few months, Yuri had a lot of energy. Rumors spread that the priests of the temple were going in and out of the Count’s house day by day, and it was true. So far, Yuri’s health had improved significantly.

 

“Isn’t it cold?”

 

A friendly voice echoed through the room. Larkshid said so, and looked at Yuri quite affectionately.

 

He was a really friendly person. He inspected Yuri’s room every day, and never came closer than necessary. There was no touching, and it was natural to see him always trying to make Yuri at ease.

 

“I, I am… I’m fine.”

 

How many days has this been already? He spent most of his time with Yuri. Yuri didn’t want to get used to it, but it seemed he’s already gotten used to it to some extent.

 

“Your face is not good.”

 

“I had a bad dream……”

 

“Dreams are the opposite. Don’t worry too much.”

 

Yuri had been very nervous these days. She calmly nodded her head. Already, she had had the same nightmare for several days.

 

‘Surely… It must be a vain dream.’

 

Yuri looked at Larkshid. He was still in good shape. To say that such a person would die was nonsense.

 

The content of Yuri’s nightmare was simple. Larkshid will die.

 

Yuri looked around, diverting her attention.

 

“The flowers in the vase are really pretty.”

 

“Yes?”

 

“Uh, the flowers…”

 

Yuri looked at the vase full of flowers. In the north, where the weather was basically cold all year round, flowers were very rare. Most of them were only used when confessing their love or at funerals. The flower industry did not develop around the northern part, so it was not easy to even get flowers.

 

“Well…”

 

His brow seemed to frown for a moment. Yuri spoke quietly.

 

“It’s, it’s pretty. I think it’s pretty…… .”

 

She looked out the window. It was snowing again. Rumors spread that the Count loved his wife, and for his wife who liked flowers, he would decorate her room with flowers every day.

 

Yuri, in her heart, hoped that the rumor would be true.

 

“La, Lark.”

 

Every time Yuri called him ‘Count’, he pointed out every time.

 

And, after two months had passed, Yuri was finally able to put his nickname on her lips.

 

“Why do you call me?”

 

“La, Lark…Oh, why don’t you wear glasses?”

 

Yuri learned a lot about him. He doesn’t wear glasses when working. One of his few hobbies, he wore glasses only when reading.

 

“Do you like me wearing glasses?”

 

“Well, that’s not it.”

 

“Yeah. Because I don’t like it either.”

 

Then he smiled softly. Larkshid was not good at joking. Yuri was curious about this person. Was it out of curiosity? She was curious about his behavior, and she was curious about his mind. She didn’t know what this feeling was, but the time with him felt like warm sunshine.

 

Suddenly, he had become something most special to Yuri.

 

‘Ha, what is it?’

 

Yuri followed him and smiled softly. When Yuri smiled like that, Larkshid looked at her with a lovable gaze.

 

‘Every time you look at me like that…… ’

 

Perhaps misunderstanding, but it made her feel like she had become special to him as well. Time seemed to go by too quickly, so her heart was nervous and she was afraid. But every time she called his name,

 

“Larkshid.”

 

“For a while, you called me Lark.”

 

“Well, I just like it…… ”

 

Yuir felt as if she had entered a hot water bath. Her heart warmed, and she felt awkward. She wanted him to feel what she was feeling.

 

“Even if you’re going to move on like that, I have to say this.”

 

“Uh, what… .”

 

“I heard that Yuri skipped dinner yesterday.”

 

“Oh, no.”

 

“Do you know your body condition?”

 

“I, I, I am healthy…… .”

 

Yuri spoke awkwardly. However, there was no way that Yuri could be seen healthy in his eyes, a former knight who protected the empire from evil beasts.

 

“You are weak.”

 

“How many times did the priests look at your body and bite their tongues?”

 

He then turned the page of his book. He has become much sweeter. Yuri liked his kindness. To the extent that it felt like this was not real, he was really kind to Yuri.

 

‘I wonder if that’s what it’s like to be loved.’

 

Love. Yuri thought of an awkward word. Surprisingly, with that one word, her mind was calmly organized. As it was from the beginning, the word was not awkward even though it was the first word to come out.

 

Yuri blinked. Did she really love him? Did she love him as a family? Yuri thought of the Duke’s family.

 

‘I’ve never received a letter..… .’

 

She thought she loved them. She couldn’t give up her family. For some reason, she hated them too, but on the one hand, she still wanted to keep in touch with them.

 

Slowly, her thoughts were organized. Yuri hoped to reconnect with her family.

 

‘As before… I don’t hate them.’

 

And the reason was simple. Yuri was extremely happy. She was happy with Larkshid. The reason she no longer hated her family for sending her to him was because of Larkshid.

 

“…… Are you still writing that letter?”

 

“Ah yes. If I don’t write a letter now…… It’s a little awkward.”

 

Larkshid looked dissatisfied. However, she wanted to tell him that she was ‘writing to thank you for meeting you.’ But she was too shy to say that.

 

“That, just…It’s like a habit.”

 

“…..”

 

“Hey, don’t you like it?”

 

“…… If you like it, do it.”

 

Yuri wrote a letter each week to the people of the Duke’s house. Since she came to the North, she has sent a letter every week without a miss, but never received a reply from them.

 

“…… are you okay?”

 

Larkshid was not happy with that. What a kind person. For Yuri, Larkshid was always the one who made Yuri look forward to things.

 

What she thought was okay, he was the one who made it really okay.

 

“What, what are you talking about?”

 

“…you know but still ask.”

 

Yuri found Larkshid, who spoke in annoyance, to be very cute. It must have been scary at first, but seeing that he looked cute, it seemed like a long time had passed.

 

“Oh, thank you… … … .”

 

Larkshid had a strangely wrinkled face.

 

“I don’t like them.”

 

“…… I’m sorry.”

 

“You write a letter every week. No one has ever replied.”

 

Seeing him like that, Yuri smiled softly. He was a little jealous. Yuri was reluctant to get along with other people, but whenever she did, he did not hide his discomfort.

 

“… Lark….I’ll write you a letter.”

 

A warm room, warm people, and Larkshid always listened to her with a friendly voice.

 

Yuri recalled the people in the Duke’s house. People were friendly, but all were businesslike. Yuri’s words did not matter to them, and she had to follow the orders of Herian and Adres. Besides that, Yuri was often ignored.

 

“That, you don’t say it, you give it secretly.”

 

Larkshid was different. He really seemed to be making atonement for Yuri, just as he said. He always put Yuri’s wishes first, and he didn’t even let Yuri walk on her legs. Thanks to this, it was rare that she ever walked on her own feet.

 

‘It reminded me of my father holding me.’

 

She remembered herself being overwhelmed by that unfamiliar feeling. It was now a broken memory and a lost heart. But Larkshid was different. When she was with him, she did not remember the past. Instead, she could imagine a future with him.

 

“…… Ah, I see. While you sleep, I’ll leave it secretly.”

 

Yuri smiled. Was this a normal relationship? Yuri looked at him as he was reading the book. Larkshid responded to her words while looking at his book.

 

“Yeah. That would be nice too.”

 

Was this really love? Yuri recalled that she had never been loved before. She had no memory of receiving it, so she didn’t even know if this was love or not. But what’s so lovely about her for him to love her?

 

“Useless.”

 

Neither her father Aslan nor her brothers Herian and Adres loved her. At that time, she had taken such a treatment for granted.

 

“Lark.”

 

However, the treatment she received from Larkshid was unusual. Yuri wanted to be confirmed.

 

“Yes?”

 

“Do you…. by any chance….love me?”