Chapter 208 - Please, Don’t Go (1) (1/2)

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.