Chapter 30 - Volume 2 (1/2)

The bright sun’s rays descend gently this morning. Like always, I went to see this man – my husband – off to the door as he left for his work in the palace.

「When do you plan on coming home tonight?」

「……Earlier than usual.」

「Ahaha, but I suppose I shouldn’t get my hopes up then.」

I said that, smiling sweetly. In response, he made a very reproachful face. When it came to this man, even the most difficult to compliment expression of his looked beautiful. But I wasn’t going to be fooled by that. I could count on my fingers the number of times he actually came home 『earlier than usual』 in the past several months.

He doesn’t make it on time for the conventional dinnertime; if he’s unlucky, he gets home after midnight. The reason he returns so late isn’t just because of the people who keep trying to meet him and chase after him since he’s ‘the savior of the world’, but it’s also simply because of his own personality.

Even though he doesn’t hesitate to get rid of annoying things, he never refuses any sort of work given to him. There’s just one reason for that: he himself doesn’t dislike working.

I know how to describe a man like this. Namely, a research idiot. If I had to describe it in the words of the 『past』 『me』, he’s what I’d call a workaholic.

In the end, he must enjoy immersing himself into research one way or another. Well, it’s good to love what you do as a job, and I myself don’t want to have a shy, happily newlywed lifestyle so I’m not complaining. In fact, spending a life like that with this man sounds nothing but terrifying.

Saying things like, 「Welcome home, dear. Would you like to have dinner? Or have a bath? Or, have me?」 That’s just too unreasonable to ask of me. It’s good to have a healthy husband that stays away from home. That’s a wise saying.

But, however. It’s really annoying that I have to obediently accept this reality. The reality that I end up constantly waiting for him to come home, without having dinner or end up staying awake really late.

Though, it can’t be helped, can it? Because I want to tell him, 「Welcome home,」 no matter how late it is. Because I do think, ‘I want his home to be me.’ I can’t help thinking that they do use the term for someone like me as ‘crazy in love’.

「I’ll be heading off.」

「Alright. Have a good day.」

He realized that I meant to wait until however long it took for him to get home. He said nothing more, softly kissing my cheek before getting on the carriage.

I watch the carriage as it leaves the estate, making clattering sounds, and I grab my cheek. Just where did that distrusting, misanthropic man learn how to do such a thing like this?

It’s been several months since we got married, and our physical relationship has definitely increased with great vigor. But I still can’t get used to it. In fact, I feel like I’ve actually started getting more nervous about it. So this is what ‘marriage’ is like? Something’s wrong with me for having my heart throb like this, so unbecoming for my age.

Closing the door to our mansion, I hold my still hot cheek. The estate, quiet as death, isn’t particularly big. But for two people, it’s more than enough, vast and spacious.

Even the standard regular aristocrats employ servants as a minimum, to take care of their daily needs. And for a hero, it wouldn’t be strange if we employed several servants and did nothing ourselves. But things wouldn’t work that way. Although he was a hero, there were still many people fearful of his jet black hair. Even trying to take applicants for it would be unthinkable.

Perhaps fortunately, in the Adina family my wet nurse also worked as our maid, and we had no other servants. Because of that, I inevitably had to take part in some chores like cooking, cleaning, and doing the laundry. More importantly, my housework skills that the 『past』 『me』 knew came in handy.

The mansion we live in is rather spacious for just the two of us. Although there are places I can’t manage just by myself, I compensate for that by borrowing his magic. For example, having him use wind magic to dust an area that I can’t reach, or having him use water magic to do the washing. When I earnestly murmur, 「Magic is so convenient,」 he says in a tired voice, 「It’s just like you to make me do things like this.」 But I digress.

Right now, I have no intentions of stopping doing the housework. Even though it’s nothing to be praised for as an aristocrat’s wife, let alone a great hero’s wife. Like always, I see off my husband as he leaves for work, then tidy up the tableware from breakfast, and lightly do the cleaning. If the 『past』 『me』 had gotten married and become a housewife, she might have spent her life like this.

After finishing up the general housework, I find myself basically having more free time than I know what to do with. That’s my present state. I do get invited to evening parties or tea parties but since my marriage hasn’t clearly been made public for now, I can’t carelessly attend.