Spring in My Grasp - Chapter 44

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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(44) Warm Soup for Weary Days

What Rowan had overlooked, however, was that Alexis took far greater interest in her than she realized, and that he kept a watchful eye on the Glister Family.
“It is confirmed, my lord.”
Before him stood one of his Shadow Operatives—a trusted instrument of his will. Since becoming a Holy Knight, Alexis had cultivated many direct subordinates, but none earned his confidence quite like these shadows.
They operated in darkness both day and night in place of the Holy Knights, gathering intelligence and conducting necessary transactions. Alexis, a man prone to worry, had stationed several of them to guard and monitor both the interior and exterior of the castle.
He had ascended far too swiftly for comfort, and he possessed no noble house or friend he could truly trust. Thus he regarded contact from other families with acute sensitivity, and the Glister Family—his own blood—was no exception.
“Does my wife know of this?”
“She was the first to notice, my lord.”
The Shadow Operative spoke. Alexis’s jaw tightened. When he learned the Glister Family had been sending gifts to Rowan with regularity, he immediately identified the sender.
It was impossible that it came from his mother, yet he needed certainty. As it turned out, the gifts had been sent consistently by his sister-in-law, Audrey.
When Alexis discovered this truth, he found himself utterly bewildered. She had been so hostile toward both him and his wife. So, seized by a terrible suspicion, he had investigated the origin of the cookies—only to uncover something far more appalling.
“At least there is that mercy.”
For a long while afterward, Alexis remained silent. He had his Shadow Operative trace where Audrey purchased the cookies and sent them to Rowan, only to discover it was no ordinary shop.
It was an establishment frequented primarily by high-class courtesans, and Audrey had been placing regular orders there to send to Rowan. The shop sold an impressive variety of desserts, but its true revenue came from cookies laced with forbidden substances.
‘My sister-in-law has audacity.’
Though he attempted composure, his fists clenched involuntarily with rage. Yet when he learned that Rowan, having noticed early enough, had ceased eating the cookies and destroyed them instead, he felt as though a great weight had lifted from his chest.
“Do not trouble yourself overmuch, my lord. A taste or two should cause no lasting harm to her constitution.”
“I suppose not.”
Alexis’s voice fell flat and hollow. Yet upon reflection, the scheme had been far more cunning than a simple poisoning. Had Rowan experienced an immediate reaction to the gift he—or rather, Audrey—had sent, she would have been beyond saving.
Instead, by consuming them over time without awareness, her body would have deteriorated gradually beneath the influence of such insidious toxins, all while the cookies exhaled their deceptive sweetness.
-I’m happiest when I’m resting with something delicious to eat.
One night, after the two of them had enthusiastically drunk beer together, they lay sprawled across the bed. Rowan, having consumed cheese and beer with the appetite of a whale, spread both arms wide across the mattress and murmured those words.
-I love falling asleep on a full stomach.
-You should digest first.
-No. I get drowsy after eating.
And with that, she had drifted into sleep with the most contented smile, without another word.
Alexis, who rarely grew intoxicated no matter how much he drank, lay still beside her and gazed at Rowan in silence. She slept without a trace of wariness, innocent as a child. He watched her for a long time, his expression tender.
It was strange. This was neither desire nor excitement, but something entirely different—an emotion that rippled through him like a longing to shield her from all the world’s pain.
It was always this way. Though Rowan handled her responsibilities with admirable competence, he found himself constantly wishing to protect her. Just as she was now—sated and content.
“This cannot stand.”
His teeth ground together. When Rowan had received those cookies, what expression had crossed her face? At first, she must have eaten them with relish, suspecting nothing.
But when she later learned the truth, what light had shone in her eyes? The mere thought of those blue eyes dimmed by sorrow made his chest feel as though it might burst.
Alexis’s eyes, which had been fixed upon the window, closed. A heavy silence filled the office. When he opened them again, his gaze burned with resolute determination.
***
Lately, Alexis has been coming home later and later. When he returned deep into the night, Rowan approached him with a soft giggle.
“It seems the High Priest’s patience has finally worn thin.”
“….”
Exhaustion etched across his features, Alexis gazed at Rowan in silence.
“Even during the honeymoon period, he granted you leave, but now he’s working you mercilessly.”
Though she giggled, her heart ached nonetheless. Coming home in the dead of night and leaving at dawn meant Alexis had barely slept in recent days.
“Get some rest. Are you leaving at dawn again tomorrow?”
Alexis collapsed onto the bed, shielding his eyes with one arm, then slowly turned his gaze toward her. Rowan sat beside him, looking down at his weary form.
“Hmm? What’s wrong? Is something odd about me?”
After Alexis stared at her for a long moment, Rowan felt self-conscious and touched her face. She wore no cosmetics, but she had bathed.
Alexis extended his hand toward her as she caressed her cheek. Suddenly drawn into his embrace, Rowan giggled softly once more.
“You must be exhausted, truly.”
“I’ll have it all handled soon.”
Alexis drew a deep breath, turned his body, and wrapped his arms around Rowan’s waist.
“It’ll be over soon….”
So utterly drained was he that sleep claimed him before he could finish his words.
Watching him quietly, Rowan rose, draped a blanket over him, and left the room. On her way to the kitchen, she encountered Lea.
“Why aren’t you sleeping?”
Lea asked.
“I wanted to prepare some broth ahead of time.”
“Broth? Suddenly?”
“Yes. He seems terribly exhausted lately with all his work. Since he’ll be rushing out again tomorrow, I thought it would be nice if he drank some broth I made before he left.”
“I can instruct the kitchen staff. You needn’t do it yourself, my lady.”
Rowan shook her head with a calm smile at Lea’s suggestion.
“Back when we lived in the Annex, whenever he came home drunk, he always drank the broth I made. It was simple—just herbs and vegetables simmered for stock—but he seemed to enjoy it. I want to make it myself so he can have it before leaving tomorrow.”
“Now that you mention it, it feels like such a distant memory. I wonder how much the Annex has changed now.”
“Without anyone living there, it’s probably grown gloomy again.”
The two chatted as they arrived at the kitchen.
“Back then, it felt like we were struggling, but… I still miss those days. We had our own quiet joy living together, just the two of us.”
“I could only endure it because you were there, Lea. Honestly, if I’d been alone in that place, I think I would have fallen into despair.”
Rowan’s thoughts drifted to Ureia, Alexis’s aunt. In that grand mansion, his aunt had been confined to the Annex like a prisoner, abandoned by family. Alexis too had wandered, estranged from his kin, the two of them leaning on each other for survival.
She recalled that deep night when a drunken Alexis had stumbled into her room by mistake, tears streaming down his face as he apologized. And the emotion she sometimes glimpsed in his eyes when he looked at her.
Rowan exhaled silently. It was a fierce, unwavering conviction—as though he regarded her as family.
“My lady, what brings you to the kitchen at this hour?”
Though the evening had long passed, the kitchen still bustled with activity. The castle’s kitchen operated without pause.
“Goodness, this is my first time in the kitchen here, and it’s enormous.”
Rowan stepped inside and clicked her tongue in amazement at the scale.
“Is there something you wish us to prepare?”
“I’d like to cook something.”
“If you tell us what dish you’d like, we’ll prepare everything at once.”
“No, no, don’t worry about it. There won’t be any guests to entertain at this hour anyway—go get some rest.”
“But ma’am, surely we should—”
The servants in the kitchen all protested, insisting they should help rather than let their mistress cook alone, but Rowan firmly dismissed them all and ushered them out.
“I work better by myself!”
Once she’d sent all the servants away, Rowan glanced around the kitchen and blinked as she looked at Lea.
“Hmm? You should go rest too.”
“I’m not tired.”
Lea approached with a playful smile.
“My duties have changed since I came to the castle, so I haven’t cooked here in ages. I was hoping we could chat and cook together like old times.”
“Aren’t you exhausted at this late hour?”
“Not at all. I’m thrilled just thinking about making a midnight snack.”
Rowan looked around the kitchen, then turned to Lea with a matching smile.
“I was planning to make a restorative meal for my husband, but it looks like we’re making our own midnight feast instead.”
“Two birds with one stone.”
That night, the two women cheerfully cooked late into the darkness, eventually collapsing in contented exhaustion.

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This chapter was translated by Lunox Novels. To support us and help keep this series going, visit our website: LunoxScans.com
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