Duchess Mecklen’s Elegant Revolt - Chapter 18 Part 5

“Y-Your Majesty?”

The startled nanny called out to the Emperor again, but he ignored her.

As the Emperor brushed past, the nanny’s head turned to follow the movement of his robes. She reached out to grab him, but it was in vain. The knights had already surrounded her in a tight circle. One of them snatched the book from her hands.

“Are you alright?”

Ignoring the commotion with the knights, Lennoch’s first priority was to check on Eleanor. She felt a bit embarrassed by his thorough concern.

“I’m fine, Your Majesty. There’s nothing wrong… Ah.”

Eleanor had tried to step back as Lennoch approached, but a sharp pain surged through her injured ankle.

Noticing that she was hurt, Lennoch immEdeately identified where the discomfort was coming from.

“Pardon me.”

“No, Your Majesty…”

She tried to stop him, but the Emperor was already kneeling on the floor. As he asked her to lift her dress, Eleanor hesitated, then reluctantly gathered the hem slightly. His fingers brushed lightly against her delicate ankle, making her flinch at the unfamiliar sensation.

‘Don’t overthink it,’ she reminded herself.

Lennoch was simply checking for any issues. If she showed discomfort now, it might be misunderstood, though her entire focus was on his touch.

“Does it hurt?”

“N-No. I’m fine,” Eleanor replied quickly, lowering her dress as soon as Lennoch asked, avoiding his gaze.

As she looked away, her eyes suddenly locked with the nanny’s, who was still resisting as she was being dragged away.

“You… You planned all of this, didn’t you!”

The nanny shouted sharply, finally grasping the situation after seeing the Emperor acting kindly towards Eleanor.

“You whispered to His Majesty and set me up like this. I will never forgive you for this! If you think I’ll go down quietly, you’re gravely mistaken!”

“It seems she’s not quite giving up,” Lennoch muttered, cutting off the nanny’s wild accusations.

Eleanor had no choice but to tear her gaze away from the nanny.

“It’s just a minor injury. A bit uncomfortable, but I can walk.”

“How could you walk in those shoes? Walking barefoot is also out of the question,” Lennoch insisted, unwilling to concede.

After a brief back-and-forth, Eleanor realized how sensitive Lennoch was about her injury. Just like in Hadum, she noticed his guilt might resurface. Feeling her resolve weaken, she sighed inwardly.

‘This isn’t right,’ she thought, but still, she relented.

“Fine, Your Majesty. Do as you wish.”

“Thank you.”

Finally, at her consent, Lennoch let out a relieved sigh.

“Lean on me. Don’t hesitate.”

“……!”

Though it was easier said than done, Eleanor couldn’t avoid the Emperor’s arm as he gently lifted her. While she was startled by the sudden movement, she also felt a bit embarrassed. Resting her head slightly against his broad shoulder, Eleanor shyly covered her face with her hand.

As the Emperor moved, the knights standing by parted to make way.

“Lead the way, Your Majesty.”

The armed knights followed closely behind the Emperor in an orderly line. Bringing up the rear was the nanny, her spirit finally broken. Realizing that her pleas were falling on deaf ears, she had aged years in just moments. With both arms held, she was dragged out, her face drained of hope.

“I’ll summon a doctor as soon as we return.”

“…Thank you.”

Eleanor responded softly to the low voice that echoed above her. Somehow, his presence felt reassuring.

***

Several days had passed since Saruka left the village.

With the ever-watchful masked figure gone, the boy Lennoch felt much more at ease than before. Though the elder who led the small village spoke harshly, he had a kind heart. Life was still hard and exhausting, but the boy slowly began to adjust to this strange village existence.

“What are you doing, Vito?”

Late at night, Lennoch visited Vito’s small hut. Compared to others, Lennoch had become closer to Vito quite quickly.

Vito felt great sympathy for the child, who hadn’t even reached puberty yet but was already carrying stones and moving heavy sacks of fertilizer.

As Vito quietly took care of Lennoch, the boy naturally became fond of him, touched by the kindness of the older brother.

Smiling at the boy’s bright eyes, Vito set down the quill he had been holding.

“What’s that? A letter? Wow! Vito, you can write?”

Lennoch didn’t know how to read or write. His eyes were wide with curiosity as he glanced at the letter on the desk, looking up at Vito in awe. It was moments like these that Vito, a former slave from Bahama sold to Baden, revealed surprising talents.

“You’re not a noble, so how do you know how to write?”

Lennoch’s question was innocent. Having lived in the slums for so long, the boy admired anyone who could write.

Vito chuckled at the boy’s curiosity, feeling a bit awkward.

“Who are you writing to?”

The boy had learned to understand Vito’s gestures.

“Madam Caroline? You know her?”

Lennoch’s eyes widened in surprise when he realized who the letter was for.

Caught off guard, Vito nodded.

“Really? How do you know her?”

“……”

“Ah, it’s a secret, isn’t it?”

Although Vito was usually kind and affectionate, he didn’t answer the boy’s question this time. Feeling slightly downcast, Lennoch’s mood changed, and Vito hurriedly patted his head to comfort him. It was his way of telling the boy not to be sad.

“It’s okay, Vito. You can tell me when you’re ready,” the boy said, cheerfully despite his disappointment.

Touched by Lennoch’s bright attitude, Vito nodded again. Only the village chief knew that Vito exchanged letters with Caroline. Feeling guilty about keeping a secret from the boy, Vito folded the letter and tucked it between the pages of a book.

With an invitation to play, the boy happily leaned into Vito.

***

“You must avoid putting pressure on your foot,” the doctor instructed as he wrapped Eleanor’s ankle in bandages. “For a while, it’s best to rest with your foot cushioned and find a comfortable position to sleep.”

“I’ll do that.” Eleanor nodded.

After advising her to continue cold compresses before bed, the doctor gathered his things and stood up. “I’ll take my leave now, Your Majesty.”

“Good work.”

“If the pain worsens during the night, call for me anytime. I’ll come right away.”

“I will.”

After the doctor left, Lennoch moved his chair closer to the bed, where Eleanor leaned against the headboard.

“I’ll heal soon. It doesn’t hurt that much,” Eleanor reassured him, noticing his concern.

“I’m glad to hear that. But it’s better to keep applying the cold compress,” Lennoch replied, taking over the task of tending to her injured ankle.

Though it was a job that could have been done by one of the servants, the Emperor insisted on doing it himself, leaving the waiting attendants looking a bit unsure of what to do.

Then Eleanor asked, “By the way, where is the prince?”

“He’s in the room next to us. You don’t need to worry.”

Lennoch smiled gratefully at Eleanor’s concern for Hail. He then dismissed the attendants who had been hovering in the background. Once the two of them were alone in the spacious bedroom, Eleanor felt more comfortable asking her question.

“You… already knew, didn’t you?”

Although she didn’t specify, Lennoch quickly understood the intent behind her question and smiled slightly.

“From the moment I revealed the secret passage of Winston Palace to you, I had anticipated that something unusual might happen.”

Though he had given her the imperial dagger, it hadn’t been enough. Besides offering a guarantee of her status, he had also instructed her to show the dagger to the knights of Winston Palace and ask for help if needed.

“I instructed the knights to report directly to me without going through intermEdearies. You seemed reluctant to inform me of things beforehand.”

“…I’m sorry.”

Eleanor felt somewhat embarrassed. Unintentionally, she had used the Emperor’s knights to act behind his back. Though she had assumed it would be reported to him eventually, it still made her feel awkward.

She scratched her cheek shyly. “I wanted to talk to you after everything was over, once things had settled down. About Hail’s situation, and… I also suspected the nanny was deeply involved in the Empress’s affairs.”

“Is that so?”

“I wasn’t thinking clearly. I should have been more honest with you from the start and asked for help.”

At that moment, Eleanor wouldn’t have been able to argue even if Lennoch had been angry. Though she had stationed the knights as backup, she had still managed to injure her ankle due to her carelessness. And if the nanny had managed to escape, she wouldn’t have been able to face Lennoch at all.

“I must have been too caught up in Hail’s situation.”

“It’s alright.” Lennoch paused from his task of tending to her ankle and said gently, “I’ve always known you would never do anything to harm me. I also understand that what you did was for my sake.”

Eleanor was momentarily speechless at his boundless trust. How could he be so certain? His response was so different from Ernst’s, who had never trusted her no matter what she did. She found herself blushing.

“Did you read the confiscated diary?”

“I received it but haven’t had the chance to look at it yet.”

Lennoch’s attention had been focused entirely on Eleanor ever since she was injured. Glancing at the book the knight had placed on the table, he saw that, from the cover, it looked like a typical academic work.

Eleanor reached for the cold compress Lennoch was holding. “I can handle this. Go ahead and read it.”

“Is reading the diary more important than taking care of you?”

“…Of course.”

His obvious concern made Eleanor smile in embarrassment.

Reluctantly, Lennoch set the compress aside and opened Edea’s diary to begin reading. At first, his expression was calm, but as he continued, his face grew more serious. The atmosphere became tense, and Eleanor’s own expression gradually turned somber as well.

When Lennoch finally finished the last page, he closed the book with a firm snap.

“Have you read the whole thing as well?”