The Countess's Body Has Disappeared - Chapter 68

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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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Chapter 68
A short laugh escaped Esmeralda’s lips.
She shook her head slowly as she spoke.
“If she were vulgar enough to be swayed by that, she’d have accepted your proposal already. I had no idea you could be so clumsy, Lieutenant.”
“Cecilia was already frightened enough. I didn’t want to scare her further with difficult words. And after lying about my age, I was too ashamed to play the adult now.”
“You lied about your age? How on earth did you manage that? You don’t look like a newly hired maid in this house…….”
As Esmeralda asked with a wrinkled nose, Davion’s neck flushed an even deeper red.
“I pretended to be someone else for a while. I’d rather not go into the details.”
“And here I thought you were shrewd. Be honest now. How many times have you actually been in love?”
“Just once during my Military Academy days. I was deployed to Kalita right after graduation — where was I supposed to meet women?”
“People manage to meet others somehow. Well, so you really are inexperienced, aren’t you?”
Autumn leaves swirled in response to Esmeralda’s bright laughter, dancing on the wind.
“But setting that aside — it looks to me like the one who’s frightened is actually you, Lieutenant.”
Davion’s eyebrows twitched, and now his expression was openly confused. In the meantime, Esmeralda pulled out her lipstick, applied it, and glanced at him with a smile.
“You’re worried that if you approach this seriously, she might run away, aren’t you? But isn’t marriage frightening for everyone, regardless of status? Why don’t you simply be honest now and ask her what she really wants? Precisely because she isn’t the vulgar sort, her desires will be clear.”
Esmeralda capped her lipstick and added,
“And don’t be too childish about it. People look frivolous that way.”
She swept the items from her hands into her coat pockets, then gave Davion—who had sunk into deep thought—a playful wink.
“Wait five minutes after I leave before you head out. I came out here under the pretense of using the lavatory, so if we go back in together, it might look odd.”
With that, Esmeralda turned back toward the Manor, kicking at the fallen leaves as she went.
Meanwhile, Cecilia had been diligently pulling the cart and had by now reached the vicinity of the Incinerator.
When their eyes met again, Davion awkwardly raised a hand in greeting. But Cecilia simply gazed at him for a moment, then turned her head away.
Davion thrust his hands into his trouser pockets and let out a soft chuckle.
She’d said she wished he would marry Esmeralda as soon as possible…
The woman was terrible at hiding her jealousy.
* * *
Fortunately, Cecilia had been able to secure Blake’s permission.
And so her duties at the Main House were suspended for the time being. Betty, predictably, had been furious (she’d even remarked that young people these days lack a sense of responsibility…though Cecilia had paid that no mind whatsoever), but after a few days, Betty eventually resigned herself and accepted Cecilia’s care.
On a weekend morning, Cecilia slept in for the first time in ages.
The Curtain that Davion had hung was doing its job perfectly. But this time, the culprit that woke her from her deep sleep was not sunlight.
“Cecilia!”
Ruby bounced on her stomach, calling out. As Cecilia stirred groggily and tried to pull the blanket up over her head, he went a step further, even fluttering his wings.
“Cecilia, wake up! Emergency situation, emergency situation!”
“Enough. You always call every little thing an emergency……”
But as she was about to drift back to sleep, something unfamiliar suddenly caught her eye. Looking closer, she saw that Ruby was holding what looked like a black tuft of hair.
That’s…….
“That couldn’t be a strand of hair, could it?”
Cecilia propped herself up on her elbows and asked.
When she reached out to grab his beak, Ruby quickly jumped down from the bed and scurried away with quick, bounding steps.
“I was trying to chase him out, but that male just barged in on his own!”
Cecilia’s mind was foggy, and it took her a few seconds to understand what Ruby was saying.
‘M…male?!’
As if struck by lightning, she snapped awake, scrambled out of bed, and rushed downstairs. Sure enough, she could already hear the sound of laughter—haha, hoho—coming from the stairwell.
Cecilia gripped the doorframe and caught her breath.
Davion was sitting in a chair with his back to her, but he twisted around to face her. Betty spoke in an excited voice.
“Oh, look who’s come to visit.”
Davion smiled, his eyes crinkling at the corners. A crow feather clinging to his hair suggested the struggle that must have unfolded before he came to the Cabin.
“You should greet him, Cecilia.”
As Cecilia stared at him with a frown, Betty’s voice cut through like a blade.
Cecilia grudgingly bowed her head. Davion’s smile deepened.
On the side table sat a framed Photograph of Cecilia. Betty, speaking with unmistakable excitement, resumed their conversation.
“It seems like just yesterday the young master was this small, and now he’s become such a fine man.”
“Time really does fly, doesn’t it?”
“I wonder how our Theodore is doing—have you heard any news of him? Even the smallest word…….”
Before Betty’s fierce gaze could reach her, Cecilia took a step back and closed the Bedroom door. Only then did she notice the Basket sitting on the Kitchen Dining Table.
She could guess why Davion had come on a weekend morning. Of course, the Basket was just a secondary reason.
Cecilia drained a glass of cold water and sat in a chair at the Dining Table, jiggling her leg anxiously.
About ten minutes later, Betty’s Bedroom door opened. Cecilia jumped to her feet and shoved Davion roughly against the nearest wall.
“Whoa, terrifying.”
Wedged between her and the wall, Davion raised both his hands in surrender as she pressed her fingers against his chest and growled like an angry hyena.
“You didn’t tell Grandmother about us, did you?”
“Your raven is completely violent…… and you’ve got something in your eye right there.”
“Don’t change the subject!”
Davion reached toward her eyes to point it out, then quickly raised his hand again and pressed it against the wall instead.
Cecilia was breathing hard now, almost trembling. Davion was beginning to feel genuinely frightened of her.
“I didn’t. I was going to show you your photograph, and we just happened to exchange a few words.”
“And what about marriage?”
“Whose marriage? My engagement, you mean?”
“Ours! Us! ‘Us’!”
Davion made a show of stuffing something into his mouth.
Cecilia finally stepped back and rubbed her eyes roughly with her sleeve. But just as she was about to let out a sigh, Betty’s voice rang out from the bedroom.
“Offer our honored guest a proper cup of tea before they leave!”
It had been ages since Betty raised her voice that way. Davion’s eyes immediately gleamed with delight, and he burst out laughing.
“You hear that? I’m finally getting VIP treatment in this cabin!”
“Cecilia!”
When Betty called out again, Cecilia, who had been at a loss for words, finally raised her voice just as loudly in response.
“Yes! I heard you!”
She glared at the grinning Davion, closed the bedroom door, then went to the kitchen and set the kettle on. She pulled out a chair from the dining table and gestured toward Davion.
“Sit. I’ll pour you some tea.”
Davion sat at the table with his chin propped on his hand, watching Cecilia as she worked in the kitchen.
“We don’t have proper teacups in the house.”
After a few minutes, Cecilia set a plate of fruit and a mug on the table. Davion pulled out the chair beside hers and tapped it lightly.
“It’s fine. Sit down. You need to eat breakfast too.”
Only after checking Betty’s firmly closed door one more time did Cecilia sit in the chair, carrying the basket with her.
At last it seemed an opportunity had come to have a serious conversation with her. Davion carefully broached the subject, spearing a slice of apple on a fork and offering it to her.
“I’ve been building up a secret fund.”
Cecilia’s brow furrowed slightly. She didn’t yet understand what he meant, so she just chewed the apple in her mouth.
Davion let out a sigh.
“It’s money I’m setting aside in case the family cuts us off after you and I marry. Esmeralda has been helping me with it.”
The wrinkles between Cecilia’s eyebrows deepened. She set down the apple and slowly twisted her torso; Davion, like a guilty man, averted his gaze and scratched his eyebrow with his thumb.
“Esmeralda knows what we are to each other. The engagement with her—we agreed on it beforehand in secret, just for appearances to keep the adults from knowing. While I was hospitalized, that woman came to see me, didn’t she?”
“……Did you ask her to do that?”
“There’s one more thing. After you hear this, you might…… get angry.”
Dreading what reaction Cecilia would show, he pushed the hot tea away. With anxiety drying his lips, he hesitated, and finally—closing his eyes—he confessed.
“The car accident. I caused it deliberately.”
Before opening his eyes, he drew in a deep breath, as if to steel himself.

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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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