Chapter Thirty-one: Farewell (Julius’s POV)
“Karen, from now on, call me Helfried instead of ‘your grace’.”
“And I’d like you to call me Alise, Karen. I hope we can remain good friends.”
“Me too!”
Sieg pushed between his parents and hugged Karen.
“I’m sad that you’re leaving, Karen. Will you come to visit? You can make anything you want in our kitchen!”
“Hehe, thank you, Master Sieg. Next time I’ll come make seafood curry.”
Since then, Karen had made curry several times but couldn’t recreate the panacea. While it did become a potion, its effects were limited to enhancing health rather than being the cure-all that could heal any status ailment.
Perhaps she had chosen to pretend she couldn’t recreate it to protect herself. Sensing that Julius and his family might try to take her in because of it—Karen would act disappointed when the curry didn’t become a panacea. Still, she kept inventing various dishes like "curry with fried egg" and "cutlet curry," serving them at their makeshift dinner parties.
Eating them brought a sense of satisfaction throughout the body—a magical effect. Since the amount of magic in it wasn’t very high, it didn’t interfere with Julius’s internal magical power, making it easy to enjoy despite its magical effects. It was certainly delicious, and even though it wasn’t a panacea, he looked forward to the next time. But today would be the end of those pleasant days.
Sieg clung to Karen, looking up at her with watery eyes.
“…Can I call you Sister Karen?”
“Eh?”
“If you let me call you Sister Karen, it’ll feel like you’re always close by, and I think that’ll help me feel braver on scary nights.”
Karen’s eyes widened in surprise, but after glancing at Helfried and Alise for confirmation, she looked down at Sieg with a smile.
“I would be honored to be called sister by you, Master Sieg.”
“Thank you! Sister Karen!”
Karen embraced the clinging Sieg. Though Sieg’s eyes were brimming with genuine tears, his gaze toward Julius over Karen’s shoulder was calm.
Julius was impressed—as expected of his brother’s only son, who was urging him to take action to keep Karen connected to the Ehlertt family even though she had chosen not to marry Julius.
But Julius found himself unable to act. Karen approached him herself.
She was no longer the Karen who would blush and look away whenever their eyes met. Karen looked straight up at Julius and said:
“Master Julius, I’m terribly sorry for making you go along with my foolish wishes.”
Karen bowed her head. When she raised it again, her light blue eyes held strong resolve, with no trace of the previous warmth for Julius.
For the first time, Julius noticed they were the color of the sky.
“I thought if I married you, Master Julius, who’s famous as the most eligible bachelor in the country, I could become somebody too. I wanted to ride on your many accomplishments and pretend I had grasped some brilliant glory. But that was wrong.”
Julius wondered if it really was wrong. The young ladies who approached him all desired what they could gain by becoming his wife. Even Helfried’s attempt to offer Julius to Karen was for the same reason. After all, that’s what political marriages are all about.
“Karen. Don’t you think you could have had both me and the appraisal mirror by marrying me? Why wasn’t that acceptable?”
“There’s a huge difference between borrowing a husband’s possessions and having something of my own.”
Karen answered without hesitation. Her unwavering response left Julius feeling a heaviness in his chest. She had wanted Julius so badly before, but now her feelings had changed. Had Karen chosen to distance herself out of fear of him after all?
“Besides, if I married you, Master Julius… um… it would be too distracting.”
As she said this, she awkwardly averted her gaze from Julius’s steady stare. For someone supposedly afraid of Julius, Karen’s reaction was rather strange. Julius leaned in to peer at Karen’s face as she tried to look away, studying her closely.
Her face quickly turned red. Julius felt oddly relieved to see how her sky-blue eyes grew heated when he moved closer.
“Um? What is it… you’re too close!”
“You say you don’t want to compromise and that it would be distracting… I wonder what exactly you mean by that.”
Wasn’t she saying she didn’t want to marry him because she had seen his cruel side and found it terrifying? Karen’s nose nearly brushed Julius’s, causing her to gasp. Bright red and with moistened sky-blue eyes, Karen backed away from Julius, crying out:
“I only said ‘compromise’ because I thought that unless I was that blunt, Lord Helfried wouldn’t understand that I genuinely desire something else! I never meant to insult you, Master Julius, so please spare me…!?”
“Spare you? What exactly would you like me to do?”
“Could you please not bring that beautiful face of yours so close to mine…!?”
Despite Karen yelling like a cat with its fur standing on end, Julius didn’t feel the slightest hint of fear from her. Perhaps it was because of that bright red face.
“Does my face being close cause you some trouble?”
“It’s so distracting my brain melts!!”
Karen cried out, holding her head. While it was impossible for a brain to actually melt from someone’s face being close, Karen seemed dead serious.
“I won’t be able to focus on alchemy at all! Because I’m a romantic at heart!!”
Julius was dumbfounded by Karen’s desperate cry, coming right after she had confessed her desire to forge her own path as an alchemist.
“Ahaha! That’s so like you, Sister Karen!”
“Oh my, how adorable.”
“Julius, you mustn’t interfere with Karen’s wishes.”
Seeing Sieg, Alise, and Helfried laughing, Karen became teary-eyed while maintaining her red face.
“I’m truly sorry for saying such selfish things…”
“No, without hearing it put that strongly, I certainly wouldn’t have understood your heart’s true desire. I was also biased as Julius’s brother.”
“I’m really, really sorry.”
Karen bowed repeatedly to Helfried. Though she seemed afraid of him, Julius’s brother looked down at her with gentle eyes. They were the same eyes he used when looking at family.
Eventually, Karen glanced at Julius again.
“Um, I probably shouldn’t worry, but… I haven’t hurt your feelings with what I said, have I…?”
Karen nervously studied Julius. This kind-hearted girl, who had worried more about hoping the culprit was an outsider for Sieg’s sake than lamenting nearly being killed, was now anxious about whether she had hurt Julius.
She wasn’t afraid of Julius, nor had she come to dislike the idea of marrying him. She was simply Karen, who wanted to be an alchemist, apparently feeling guilty about pursuing her own desires out of her inherent kindness.
If that was the case, it was the duty of one who had received her kindness to dispel that guilt. Julius put on a perfect smile.
“You, our family’s benefactor, merely expressed your heart’s desire. Far from being hurt, I want to support your dreams.”
“Ah, of course. It’s not like you would be hurt just because the marriage with me fell through.”
As Karen laughed and sighed in relief, Julius felt something catch in his heart as he watched her. Karen straightened her posture and looked up at Julius again. The fresh breeze played with her soft brown hair as she gazed at him with sky-blue eyes.
Looking down at Karen, Julius’s eyes softened as if he were gazing up at a clear sky.
“Thanks to you, Master Julius, I was able to take my first step. My excitement about your achievements and desire to get closer to you gave me the push I needed.”
This girl, who had been abandoned by her fiancé and, after drinking in despair, impulsively requested marriage to Julius as her reward—her radiant smile now was completely different from her pale face when they first met.
“I’m sorry for being so selfish. But truly… thank you.”
When Karen raised her head after bowing, her smile was so dazzling it seemed to shine. Before Julius knew it, he had taken her hand.
It was the hand of someone accustomed to manual work, with fingers not as delicate as those of a noble lady. Following the strange emotion welling up in his chest, Julius kissed her fingertips.
“I sincerely support your dreams, Karen, and I hope they come true.”
When he looked up at Karen after saying this, she was bright red and moving her mouth wordlessly. Though she seemed to want to say something, the words wouldn’t come out. As he watched, she finally managed to squeeze out:
“This is revenge for what I said about compromise… isn’t it…!?”
Despite her intention to show respect, Karen spoke as if out of breath. Perhaps even this kiss on her fingertips would be an obstacle to Karen’s dreams.
Even so, Julius felt no remorse, and couldn’t help but laugh at Karen’s flustered state.
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