There was a silence between them, as if time had stopped for a while, but Liddell was the first to recover.
He rushed over to Frederick, who was standing stunned in front of him, and patted him on the back.
At that moment I was surprised when he slipped away, but I just looked back and immediately hugged Liddell.
“Oh, Liddell, I must have been trapped here as a child.”
She was relieved that he hadn’t rejected her, but her heart was blocked at the thought of the circumstances of her childhood.Frederick’s large body trembled.Liddell rubbed his back reassuringly.
Liddell rubbed his back soothingly. “Sir, please stay calm. Let’s go back to the castle.”
“I’m sorry I got you into this mess.”
He looks distressed. He looks pale.
“Anyway, let’s go now and head back to the castle.”
Liddell leads him out of the tower and reassures him.
◇ ◇
After returning from the tower, he seemed to be in shock for a while, but after a cup of hot tea, he calmed down a little.
“Sir, I think we’re done here.”
Liddell saw Frederick’s heavy heart and worried.
“Liddell, I remember one thing. These letters were carved with a spoon when I was a kid.”
He had a desperate childhood. What the hell happened to him?
“Sir, I don’t need an apology. I’m happy enough the way I am. So please, no more searching for the past.”
Liddell pleaded. I don’t feel particularly bad about being married to him. In fact, I’m happy. I shudder to think what would have happened if I had stayed with my birth family, which has now been taken over by relatives.
“But that doesn’t mean I’m faithful to you.”
“It doesn’t. The master is a man of integrity. You forgot because you don’t want to remember, right?
“I am running away from myself. And yet I want to have a normal marriage with you…. Isn’t that cowardly?
“Cowardly? What’s wrong with that? If it’s so hard for you, why don’t you just run away?”
Frederick looks up, startled by Liddell’s unusual tone.
“If you don’t like it, why don’t you just run away as fast as you can! I’m sure you’ve fought many battles, master. Have you never run away from an enemy you can’t defeat? Have you ever charged with your men against an enemy you knew you couldn’t defeat?”
“… I don’t remember, but if I had, I wouldn’t be alive today.”
Frederick replies as Liddell’s momentum drives him on.
“This is a strategic retreat. You can run, run, run around. We don’t need to be hurt twice by remembering a painful past we’ve forgotten.”
“Liddell… Thank you.”
With those words, he gently embraced Liddell.
From then on, although she sometimes saw her husband in a state of depression, he gradually regained his strength.
He worked diligently on the estate as if he had forgotten the day he went to the tower. He established a new silver mine, recruited men not only from the area but also from neighboring areas, began paving the roads, and was industrious.
One day at dinner, her husband said to her.
“The construction of the inn is finished. I have a request for you.”
“Yes, sir?”
I will finally be able to help him. I’m glad to hear that.
“I can see by the castle that I have no taste, so I need you to help me with the decor.”
Things have changed a lot since Liddell has lived in the castle, but it still seems very sturdy.
“The first mansion I lived in was very nicely decorated,” he said.
“Yes, that seems to be where my grandmother lived after my father took over the reigns.”
I was a little surprised when I first heard that.
“Oh, really? Does that remind you of…?”
She looks at him uneasily.
“No, I was just looking at the records.
“You’re still looking for the past.”
Liddell was worried about him. What if he remembered his past when it was gone, what if one day he was the same as before?
“Don’t worry, I won’t take it too hard. I’ll always come to you when I need something.”
She says this, smiling softly.
