The Mansion Awaits Spring - Chapter 176

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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 176
April said nothing, merely watching him with a wary gaze, and Pejin sighed.
“I was hoping to slip past this… but I suppose I deserve the scolding.”
April asked him.
“Did you hear what I said?”
“What did you say?”
“That we should meet at the Cafe in April.”
“When?”
“While you were having surgery.”
“I was unconscious then. How could I have heard?”
“Then how did you know to come?”
“Well… I thought you’d like it?”
At Pejin’s uncertain reply, April murmured a soft “ah.” Yet she didn’t approach him, nor did she continue speaking, so he opened his mouth again.
“Did I forget something? Why do you look like that?”
“I’m thinking whether I should kill you.”
“Yes, I opened my eyes with such effort just to be killed by you.”
“I might bury you here. Every autumn when the leaves turn red, I’ll remember you.”
“Why are you so cruel?”
“I’m not cruel. You’re just someone I hate.”
……
“I hate you so much it’s not worth crying over.”
Pejin considered two possibilities.
Either she was scolding him for doing something reckless, or for coming when he didn’t need to.
He’d resigned himself to scolding either way.
He’d tried to charm his way out of both, but this situation—hearing that she hated him—he hadn’t prepared for that.
Terrified she might cry, Pejin hurriedly wrapped one arm around her.
April had no strength to push him away, so she accepted his embrace. He wanted to see her face, but she wouldn’t lift her head from his chest. His heart plummeted. Anxiety made his limbs go numb.
After catching her breath within his hold, April slowly pulled away from him and spoke in a measured voice.
“Now go. You have much work to do in Rasa.”
“At least have a cup of tea with me.”
“Coffee.”
“Coffee? You don’t drink coffee.”
“I do now. I’ve been busy.”
“I thought as much.”
Because Pejin held an umbrella in one hand, he pulled off his gloves with his teeth.
He tucked them in his pocket and placed a hand on April’s forehead, finding her body heat distinctly elevated compared to the cool air outside.
Pejin clicked his tongue and said.
“You have a fever.”
“What’s that to you?”
“Nothing. Which is why we’re going to the Cafe.”
……
“I’ll just have coffee with you and then leave. Stop glaring at me. You’ll wear holes in that handsome face of mine.”
“You’re not handsome.”
“You’re quite angry. That can’t be right.”
Pejin spoke shamelessly and waited for April to take a step.
She didn’t comply easily, but Pejin—thinking of his own karma—never hurried her.
After staring at him for a long time, April spoke again.
“Why didn’t you just die?”
“I’m sorry. I should have told you.”
“How did you get me to sign a consent form like that?”
“I’ve never married before either. I didn’t know the procedure worked that way.”
Pejin offered excuses while visibly struggling to hide his unease.
April gripped his arm tightly and looked up at him.
“Don’t lie to me anymore.”
“I won’t. Never.”
“If there’s something you need to tell me, say it now. Anything you’re hiding from me.”
“There’s nothing hidden, but what I need to say is…”
Pejin made a pained expression, then carefully lifted the arm she was gripping and pointed to his trachea, being cautious not to let her hand slip away.
“My trachea is damaged. If there’s any fog again, I’ll have an attack, they said.”
……
“Don’t make that face. You told me to speak honestly.”
Pejin whined with a note of coquetry.
April clenched her teeth, swallowing the tangle of emotions that rose within her. Then she walked ahead.
“Let’s have that coffee. I’ll send you off quickly.”
Pejin followed her.
* * *
When the two appeared at the Cafe, filled with figures from Right Island’s Social Season, the room fell momentarily silent. But soon it filled again with dance, song, and conversation, and April gradually blended into the atmosphere with unhurried grace.
Even the nobles who usually gathered only among themselves seemed to fit in everywhere here.
Scholars, artists, and journalists exchanged knowledge with one another. The attention of the crowd was particularly focused on April and Pejin today, allowing both to engage in diverse conversations with many people across various fields.
The dominant topic of discussion in the Cafe today was undoubtedly the Rasa Empire Emperor’s address.
Of course, the presence of Pejin—who could be said to be the central figure of that speech—made conversation hesitate at times, but some, emboldened by drink, asked him bluntly what they wondered about. Pejin endeavored to make them understand the situation as much as he could.
Through conversation, they gradually overcame the despair brought on by the unstable times.
April was surprised to discover that Pejin had learned far more than she’d expected and thought with considerable depth.
Conversely, Pejin scrunched his face in disbelief and asked April.
“How do you know science?”
“After I bought the brewery, I had no choice but to study. You’ll do the same once you hear Kritz’s sighs.”
“So that’s the kind of person he is… And I’ve invested so much in science? Why am I getting praised?”
“I invested the gas fees you gave me into basic science. The more I talked with Kritz, the more it seemed like necessary investment. You told me to use it however I wanted.”
“Then you’re the one who invested, not me. Why am I getting all the credit? Though I do like being praised.”
The two spent more time in the Cafe, speaking of many things.
Throughout, Pejin never strayed far from April, and whenever he could, he made use of his charm—flattery, jokes, apologies, and above all, his face, his greatest weapon—to make her smile. Thanks to this, April’s mood soon lifted.
After all, he had been injured helping her achieve her goals, and moreover, the fact that he would have to return to Left Island was having its effect.
“I won’t see you for a while.”
April murmured this as they left the Cafe.
Pejin had to return to the Empire to delay the inevitable war as long as possible. During that time, the likelihood was high that the two would go longer without seeing each other than the entire period Pejin had spent bedridden.
Pejin, jacket already fastened, glanced at her and replied.
“I’ll keep writing to you.”
“That’s allowed?”
“It is. Of course they’ll censor everything, but who’s going to confiscate a letter that only talks about how much I love you?”
He spoke lightly and extended his arm, gesturing for her to link hers through it.
April wrapped her arm around his and headed toward the Promenade near the Cafe.
The brief shower had stopped, and the sky was clearer than it had been before they entered the Cafe. Just a hint of sunset glow colored one horizon, but the opposite sky remained clear and vast blue.
Walking slowly along the Promenade, April asked him.
“You’ll really write ‘I love you’?”
After a long pause, Pejin—thanks to April’s delayed question—laughed and replied.
“I’ll write it honestly.”
Then he stopped walking, leaned down close to her, and watched her face as he spoke.
“And after that, later on.”
“Later… when?”
“After I’ve repaid the debt for the life I owe you.”
Tree branches still swayed and waves still crashed. Through the sound of those waves, Pejin’s roughened voice emerged deliberately tender.
“Would you love me just a little then?”
April froze at his question.
Pejin, seeing her taken aback, smiled with childlike brightness. Then he straightened and continued.
“No, I thought that if I didn’t see you for a while, eventually I’d be fine. But I wasn’t fine at all. I missed you terribly.”
……
“I missed you so much. I didn’t even know I loved you this much.”
Pejin found it difficult to meet April’s gaze, so he turned his eyes toward the distant Promenade and continued speaking.
“I thought love was only love at first sight, you see? But it seems like it’s not just that. Love is also an experience, I think. You grow to love the time you spend together, and you grow to love them within that time, and…”
Having said this, Pejin gathered his courage and looked at her again to continue.
“So perhaps that’s why even couples who’ve lived together for decades can still speak of love? They loved at first sight, and decades later, they still do.”
……
“I want to spend that kind of time with you.”
April said nothing, merely looking at him.
He revealed his feelings for her easily.
Not only Pejin himself, but those around him—eventually even April—had come to notice an affection so evident it was unmistakable.
And yet his view of love as he spoke it now felt unfamiliar. At this moment, Pejin finally seemed to her like a man truly in love.

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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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