After Kuhn’s meeting with Zenard at the palace, he made to clear up his life at Blaise mansion as quickly as possible. There was no time to delay with the possibility of Carlisle losing his sanity once again.
Kuhn had been ordered to stay on vacation until Mirabelle returned to the south, and he could not disobey Carlisle’s orders without preparing a replacement. Kuhn had promised to protect Mirabelle for Elena as well. While keeping that promise wasn’t part of his mission, he did not want to create an uncomfortable situation.
‘Is this enough?’
Kuhn planted his replacement in Blaise mansion so Mirabelle wouldn’t be left unprotected. It was true that Carlisle’s ambush caused Kuhn to hasten his departure from Blaise Mansion, but Mirabelle’s extended stay at the capital made it difficult for him to remain as well. He could not truly complete his mission, but it was a situation that Carlisle and Elena had to understand.
‘But why do I feel like I’m forgetting something?’
Although Kuhn completed his arrangements to leave Blaise mansion, he had the uneasy feeling that there was something he overlooked. No matter how hard he puzzled over it, however, he couldn’t recall anything else to take care of.
Kuhn set aside the idea from his head and prepared for the last remaining task. He had to tell Mirabelle that he was leaving the mansion.
‘…I don’t know how it will go this time.’
Before, Mirabelle had stubbornly refused when Kuhn expressed his intention to re-enter the Imperial Palace as a family servant. But the circumstances were different now. This time his decision would remain unchanged, and it would not reflect her opinion at all.
And…it was the best farewell Kuhn could have.
*
*
*
It was early evening and the sun was beginning to dip below the horizon. The mansion hallway was illuminated by a red glow, but Kuhn walked towards Mirabelle’s room without even turning his eyes towards the window. He arrived in front of the door and knocked.
Ttog ttog.
A voice answered from inside the room.
“Who is it?”
Kuhn answered in his usual monotone.
“…It’s Kuhn.”
Udangtangtang.
There was crashing sound from inside the room. Kuhn was puzzled by the sudden noise, and Mirabelle’s voice replied from beyond the door.
“P-please wait a moment.”
Kuhn could dimly make out Mirabelle’s footsteps pattering around the room with his heightened sense of hearing. He waited there until he was granted permission to enter. In general, male servants did not often enter their master’s room, and unless he was required to carry heavy objects for her, he refrained from being here as much as possible.
He realized that he had never knocked on Mirabelle’s door to ask for permission to go inside before. Today was his first time. The fact that this would also be a goodbye did not suit the situation much—just like Mirabelle and Kuhn.
Kuhn gave a wry smile as he watched the dying sunlight touch the door, lightly at first, before turning into a rich red hue. In a way, it was like seeing a flower bloom. Mirabelle’s face entered Kuhn’s mind.
‘She’ll grow up soon.’
Although she looked young now, in time she would mature into a splendid woman. Kuhn wouldn’t be able to see her growth, but there was one thing he was sure of.
‘…She will be dazzling.’
When he had escorted Mirabelle to the Imperial Palace to visit Elena, he had watched Mirabelle from behind, sometimes catching glimpse of her warm, bright smile that was unique only to her. While Elena was beautiful, her sister Mirabelle would also grow up to be breathtaking.
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By then, Kuhn’s existence would be completely forgotten. Even if he could appear in front of Mirabelle, his background was far too poor for her to talk to him.
Today would be the last time.
The last time she would annoyingly recommend him delicious dishes, or drag him somewhere where she wanted to go, or…or for her to look into his eyes and smile at him.
Today he would return to his original quiet life. Somehow he didn’t feel as happy as he had expected.
Kuhn was lost in thought for a moment, when the door finally opened and Mirabelle poked her head out.
“Kuhn, why are you here at my room?”
“I have something important to tell you.”
“Please come in.”
Kuhn normally would have turned down entering her private room, but this was his last day, and so he nodded.
As he stepped inside, he found the space cutely decorated with warm colors. It was a world of a difference from his own sparse, bleak room.
A teddy bear sitting at her bedside caught his eye. He had never noticed it before; when he had entered Mirabelle’s room after she collapsed at the picnic, the room was too dark to make out any details.
The teddy bear had the same unusual color as Kuhn’s hair. He suddenly remembered the first words Mirabelle had spoken when she first saw him.
— …My…teddy bear?
Something stirred inside Kuhn as he looked at the plush toy. Mirabelle followed his gaze and realized where he was looking at.
Dadadag!
She rushed to the bedside to block the teddy bear from view, her face flaming in embarrassment.
“D-did you see it?”
“What do you mean?”
“No, if you haven’t seen anything…”
“The teddy bear? Or my clothes that the bear is wearing?”
“…!”
Mirabelle’s face turned redder than before.
Kuhn remembered the night he first met Mirabelle. She had been on the ground, whimpering in pain from her illness.
— Don’t…leave me alone. When I’m sick…I hate being alone. It’ll be fine if you stay a little bit…so please stay here…
He had put her in bed, but she wouldn’t let go of his jacket. Kuhn had hesitated. He easily could have made her let go, but her words had hooked into his mind. He left her the coat that the teddy bear was wearing now, looking like Kuhn did from that night.
She really did like him. His chest tightened.
‘…What is this feeling?’
There was a ticklish sensation in his heart.
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