C197
-"Terence?"
He didn't answer my calls either.
His eyes were clearly on me, but for some reason, I had the feeling that what Terence was looking at wasn't me.
He regained his senses and responded only after I called his name again.
-"Terence!"
-"... Yes?"
-"What's wrong? You look too pale. Do you have pain anywhere?"
-"No. You don't have to worry."
-"But suddenly..."
-"I felt a bit dizzy. I guess I'm too drunk."
-"Already? Although we've drunk together many times, I've never seen Terence drunk."
-"That's right. Curiously, today I got drunk quickly. I think it's because I'm still fatigued."
-"Oh well, we just arrived."
-"Would you like to stop drinking now?"
-"It's okay. Oops, I stained all my clothes. It's embarrassing, so I'll have to change later."
After setting the glass aside, he continued eating normally as if nothing had happened.
I had no doubts until then.
This was because Terence, who had been working tirelessly since Miloam and was injured in the battle with Shadow, deserved to rest.
The events of that day seemed to remain just as an embarrassing memory for me.
But there was a problem: Terence's attitude had strangely changed after that day.
-"Terence, stay with me tonight..."
-"I'm sorry, Ethel. There's something I haven't dealt with yet, so I have to go."
Even when he was in a good mood, he hurried away if I tried to take one more step.
Especially when it came to alcohol, he strictly avoided even light accompaniments when eating with me.
But I never thought that Terence's love for me had cooled down.
-"Ethel, are you going out?"
-"Yes, I'm going to Duke Cassius's house to return this bill."
-"Why don't you go later? Your complexion doesn't look good, probably because you haven't fully recovered from your fatigue."
-"Is that so? I feel fine."
-"Actually, it's because I want to be with you today. Can you not go?"
-"... Hmm, from what I heard, it seems like you're tired."
Except for a few moments, he always wanted to be by my side.
He always had me in his sights, and every time I tried to lift something, even a little heavy, he would come closer and lift it for me.
Gradually, I realized. It was clear overprotection.
At first, I thought it was because I was fighting for my life in the demon territory.
However, when I thought about it again, I never felt that Terence was particularly overprotective of me, even though he had also experienced the Siege of Miloam right after that.
I searched my memory and suddenly remembered an incident that happened a few days ago, during dinner.
"Definitely, his attitude was a bit strange from that moment on."
But for what reason? Is he upset because I spat wine?
At that moment, Terence's face, as pale as a sheet of paper, flashed through my mind.
I felt like I had seen that face before.
-"Ethel, Ethel! Snap out of it!"
-"Ethel, it's okay. I understand everything, so stop talking now. The doctor will come soon. You'll heal when the doctor comes. If only he would come... Damn it, why isn't he here yet?"
A face and a voice full of despair, and the face of a man who kept shouting my name.
Yes, it was the same Terence when, in my second life, I drank poison and he saw me die.
Feeling my heart suddenly chilling, I squeezed my hand tightly.
When I choked while drinking red wine as red as blood, Terence remembered the moment I spat blood and died in my past life.
When I thought of it that way, I understood his attitude of treating me like a fragile glass artifact.
My heart tightened.
Although I was the person involved, what happened at that moment was just a thing of the past, to the point that it took me too long to remember it, but for Terence, it was still a vivid nightmare.
Every time he overprotected me, my heart ached when I imagined that he would put on a kind smile on the outside but would actually remember the events of that day.
I lay down on the bed and sighed.
I wanted to tell him immediately that I was okay and that he should let go of the painful memories, but I couldn't easily bring the words out of my mouth.
If I were in his place, it was obvious that I wouldn't have been able to do the same.
"If I had seen Terence sacrifice his life for me right in front of me, if I had to watch helplessly until the warmth of my beloved faded away..."
It would have been incredibly painful.
Perhaps to the point where I would never have courage or hope in my life again.
"But he can't go on like this."
It seemed that Terence's symptoms were not a problem that could simply be resolved with the passage of time.
When I told him that I would go out again today, Terence looked like a puppy caught in the rain.
It seemed like he was trying to hide it from others, but I could clearly see that he was anxious.
Moreover, when I left Margaret's mansion, meeting him seemed like a form of overprotection.
But what can I say...?
My thoughts were mixed because I wanted my words not to sound like I was reprimanding Terence or taking his trauma lightly.
At that moment, Lucy entered my room.
-"Are you worried about something?"
Through soul resonance, Lucy knew approximately what Terence and I had experienced in our past lives.
In other words, she was the perfect person to discuss my concerns with.
-"That's all."
Lucy, who listened to my entire story, gave me a simple answer.
-"Isn't it better to face it honestly?"
-"... Hmm, is that really the case?"
-"Since something like that happened in a past life, it would be natural for my master to be cautious. However, the two people I've seen so far were honest with each other, so they could work together to overcome various difficulties and trials."
-"It's embarrassing to hear that."
-"My master loves the prince, and he loves my master too, so as long as they convey their honest feelings, it will definitely be a problem that can be resolved without difficulty."
I looked silently at Lucy.
-"What should I say? It seems you've matured a lot."
-"What?"
-"When I first saw you, you really didn't understand people's emotions. You said you were greedy."
-"... I think I've probably learned a lot while living with my master. Thank you."
I gently stroked Lucy's fur, who had learned to speak like an adult.
-"But isn't it true that my master is greedy? I've seen her laugh many times while looking at her savings book."
-"That's too much. Everyone else is like that too."
I hugged the cute ball of fur and went to sleep. I promised to speak openly tomorrow with Terence about the issue of overprotection.
The next day, I woke up in the morning, got ready quickly, and went to Terence's palace.
-"His Royal Highness had some matters to attend to, so he left the palace early in the morning."
But the person waiting for me was Jack, who announced his absence.
For some reason, I felt doubts.
I never heard that he had an agenda today.
Of course, there is no law that obliges him to inform me of his schedule all the time, but Terence has been informing me almost every day lately without me needing to ask.
If there wasn't much to say or discuss, it meant he had free time all day, and Terence didn't specifically mention his schedule yesterday.
-"Can I ask what it's about?"
Just in case, I asked Jack.
-"The central newspaper of the capital requested an official interview about the Siege of Miloam..."
-"Oh? Isn't that something he did yesterday? I heard that from Terence."
Jack made a sharp expression.
-"Oh, I guess I was mistaken. That's right! You're right. The central newspaper of the capital was yesterday, and today is an interview with a foreign press..."
-"That's a lie. The place where Terence was interviewed yesterday wasn't at the central newspaper of the capital, but elsewhere."
-"Well, that's..."
-"Jack, please tell me the truth. Where did he go?"
-"I'm sorry! I can't tell you!"
He suddenly bowed his head.
-"But you don't have to worry! It's not a dangerous matter, and His Highness the Prince said he would return today!"
-"But why won't you tell me?"
-"It's ultra-secret... I'm sorry."
At that moment, I obediently stepped back.
He said it's ultra-secret, so what else can I do?
However, it wasn't dangerous, but when I saw Terence leaving his assistant Jack behind, I couldn't help but think that the ultra-secret matter was a very personal matter.
"Is he deliberately avoiding me? Did he notice that I wanted to talk to him today?"
No matter how I looked at it, it was a useless assumption, but my mood plummeted.
I was about to return to the annex, but then I changed my mind.
It didn't fit my temperament to simply wait patiently for him to return.
Time passed, and evening quickly came.
I was in a certain place within Terence's palace when I heard the sound of someone shouting.
-"Ethel, I'm here."
It seemed that Terence had finally returned from his errand.
-"Why are you in a place like this?"
He looked around with a puzzled expression.
This was understandable since this was Terence's personal training ground where he normally trained his body.
I left him a note telling him that I was here and that I would stay in the training ground all day.
-"I heard that you also ate here. Why...?"
-"Wait a moment, stay there."
Dressed in simple clothes suitable for training, I stopped the man who was worried about me and approaching me.
-"Watch carefully."
Then, suddenly, I put my hands on the stone floor and began doing push-ups.
-"Ethel?"
Even as he said my name, I finished the push-ups without saying a word and then moved on to doing squats.
-"Ethel, now..."
After completing the set number, I finished the exercise and approached Terence.
Perhaps because he was embarrassed by my inexplicable actions, Terence took a step back and bumped his back against the wall.
I put both hands on the wall, trapped him in my arms, and shouted.
-"Don't run away from me, Terence!"
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