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Chapter 7 : Understanding (10)
*****
When they arrived at the mansion and entered with messy hair and a dress that was out of shape, the waiting employees gasped.
'What the hell happened to the lady that made her look like that?'
They looked at the haggard Regina, but didn't say anything useless. Those who took their eyes off her disheveled appearance quietly lowered their heads.
"I've got the bath ready."
Sally calmly led her to the bathroom.
Regina, who obediently followed her, was washed clean and returned to her original, soft appearance.
After washing up, she went back to her room, sat on the sofa, and left Sally with her wet hair. She fell asleep easily as someone else's hand brushed her scalp.
As a result, she really seemed to have fallen asleep.
She opened her eyes as she came to her senses vaguely at her gently swaying body. In the small light in the dim room, she could see the blonde hair at first glance.
".....Arsene?"
A husky sound came out as if the voice had subsided.
Arsene, who was taking her somewhere, could be seen smiling faintly.
"Sleep more. Because morning is still far away."
She tried to come to her senses, but the words that came down quietly covered her again. It made her feel so comfortable that she leaned against him, trying hard not to open her eyes.
He slowly put her down as he walked a little further. Her dark hair spread like paint smeared on the soft bed.
He carefully covered her with a goose down quilt and took his hand off her as if to leave.
Then, her limp white hand shook the air and caught his finger.
"Don't go....."
It was like that. Regina mumbled with her eyes half-closed. Maybe it was something she said without thinking in her sleep.
But it was enough to stop Arsene.
As he was about to leave the room, he stopped and stood there. And after a while, he sat down in a bedside chair without letting go of her hand.
Her hand clasped Arsene's long, straight finger and wouldn't let go. It was as if the strength of her strong grip was keeping her awake.
He really liked the fact that she was clinging to him as if there was nothing else she could hold on to, as if he was the only person she could rely on.
"..... Regina."
As if answering the name that was being called softly, the hand that had been slowly loosening was squeezed again.
She was a person who kept everything in her heart and buried it. Even if she had to get help, she felt like she depended on it.
At this moment she was completely leaning on him. As if she really trusted him.
She looked infinitely weak.
And even that look was lovely.
Arsene stroked the black hair that was spread out on the bed with his free hand.
The dark night sky was held in his hand.
Even if she tries her best to get out of his grasp, even if she really runs away from him, the night will returns again.
*****
After that day Arsene again restrained her from going out.
"I couldn't let you out because I'm anxious. Since you keep getting caught up in incidents, please forgive me for having to do this."
Of course, there was no place as safe from everything as the Greroy mansion.
But she didn't have time to be stuck in the mansion.
Regina pretended to be at home quietly on the outside, but she somehow got in touch with Ella and handed her the medicine and got her money.
Demand was rapidly increasing as the efficacy of the drug began to spread word of mouth. But she was the only supplier, so she had to move around busily.
Sometimes she even asked Sally to buy herbs, which are ingredients. She was a faithful helper of Regina.
One curious thing was that she had never asked a question about this errand. It's not once or twice, so she might be wondering why Regina need something like this and what it's doing.
One day, on the contrary, Regina carefully asked.
"Sally. Aren't you curious about what I'm doing?"
Sally, who was helping brew the herb, raised her head. She looked up into those pink eyes filled with puzzlement and nodded her head.
"I'm curious."
She said without hesitation. In response, Regina fell further into the labyrinth.
"Then why don't you ask anything?"
Sally put the finished herb aside and started brewing other herbs.
"I didn't want to pry into something the lady wouldn't tell me."
In a word, it meant waiting for Regina to tell her.
Regina pondered how far she could tell. Sally will know when she runs away one day, but at least not now.
"I'm making money selling it. It's a personal fund I'm saving behind Arsene's back."
If she knew how to properly grasp the situation, it was a story she would already know.
But no matter how much she trusted Sally, this was a slightly different matter.
If later she ran away, Sally was caught helping her. At that time, the key could be whether she knew and helped or not. Of course, by that time she'll be back to the Blois mansion.
"My lady, it's all right. I don't mind what you do as long as you don't hurt yourself."
Sally shook her head as if she was okay with Regina, who drooped her eyebrows and chose to speak.
Regina felt more sorry for that. She can't believe she can't confide in someone who thinks about her this much.
"I'll tell you everything later."
In the end, all she could say was that.
In addition to making special drugs, she moved constantly.
It is noticeable to move suddenly one day after staying still, but if she moves actively every day, she can reduce the eyes that follow her when she tries to escape.
Therefore, today she decided to send the mail herself and go out to return the book she borrowed from the temple library.
Fortunately, Arsene was not at the Imperial palace.
Iz caught up with her, but couldn't stop her from going out.
The letter in Regina's hand was a reply to Aconite Hillluens.
< Dear Lady Hilluens.
I'm glad your treatment went well. Still, I don't know if there will be any aftereffects..... >
Although extremely formal, the letter, which began with Dear Lady Hilluens, inquired about her condition, such as her treatment.
She wasn't the type to write a long letter, but she had no choice but to fit into the aristocratic society.
She went on to talk about something else for quite some time, and then when it got down to about the end of her letter, the purpose of this letter was revealed.
<If that's what the young lady wants, let's do it.
If you set a date and time, I will visit the mansion according to that date.>
When she wanted to give something to Aconite, who was injured while trying to protect her, the reply that came back was that she did not wish for anything.
However, when she asked again because she thought it was not the right way, she received a request saying, "Then please have a tea time with me."
Previously, she had refused because she was reluctant, but she was about to send a positive reply because it wasn't particularly difficult to have a cup of tea together once.
She also took the book she had borrowed from the temple library and left the mansion with Iz. She did not seem to be very pleased with this outing, but she quietly followed her.
Regina went to the post office, sent her letter and went straight to the temple. In fact, today's business was all simple, so it could have been done by someone else. It was purely her stubbornness that it came out directly.
Wanting to spend a little more time outside, Regina wandered around the temple a little while slowly looking around the library and returning books. Then she even contemplated going to the prayer room.
Thinking of Iz waiting outside the temple, she hesitated about what to do, but somehow she thought the temple was noisy.
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