Chapter 151

 

* * *

 

Claude’s words that they were “unlikely to receive an official complaint” proved true.

After that day, the only contact from the Middleton family was to inform Melody of the second visit date.

So Melody decided to ask him why he acted that way when he visited again.

“Well…”

He opened his mouth sullenly in response to her question. But upon noticing the home tutor sitting behind Melody, he lowered his voice slightly.

“…It’s embarrassing.”

“What is?”

“There’s something like that.”

When Stewart muttered “For a brat to do that to me…”, Melody soon realized what he was referring to.

“I’m sorry. Ronny likely didn’t mean any ill intent. He’s not a bad person, you know.”

Stewart looked somewhat surprised at Melody’s apology.

“Why are you saying that? Ah, you…don’t know?”

“Know what?”

“You don’t know? Anything at all? Really?”

With each question, his face grew more and more astonished, as if he couldn’t fathom how she could be unaware.

“…Well, no one tells me anything, so how can I know?”

He must have found that amusing, as he bent over briefly chuckling “Heh heh. Ah, really cute.”

His admiration only made Melody’s expression sourer. Noticing this, he waved his hand dismissively as he added an explanation.

“Not you, I meant the young master. So he didn’t tell you anything, huh…”

He slowly nodded before reaching his own arbitrary conclusion.

“Damn, you really were favored after all.”

It was the same thing he had said to her during the examination hall.

“Why, am I wrong?”

His eyes were filled with challenging force, as if daring her to refute him if she could.

“You’re not wrong.”

“Ha, so you admit it now.”

“But that doesn’t give you the right to make snide remarks about me receiving the duchy’s affection.”

As he tried to retort, Melody raised her voice slightly.

“Above all, if you’re ‘Mr. Middleton,’ you should know there was no impropriety in that examination.”

Melody emphasized his family name pointedly.

The minor Middleton Earldom had already produced three Imperial Records Keepers.

Stewart likely took the examination to continue that family legacy, despite failing it.

He stared at Melody a bit longer before hanging his head in seeming resignation.

“…Yeah, who can I blame? I never imagined the first part would test calligraphy.”

He grumbled resentfully with his chin propped on his hand.

“Admittedly, that was a bit too much.”

“But there were still those who passed, so in the end it just means I’m the one who messed up.”

Melody did not respond to his self-deprecating mumbling. As only the sound of the tutor’s knitting filled the quiet room, he frowned and asked,

“…Don’t people usually say ‘That’s not true’ as a formality when someone is being self-critical?”

“Oh.”

Melody lightly clapped before quickly offering the expected reply.

“That’s not true.”

“There, that’s enough.”

He waved his hand dismissively.

“It’s just ridiculous to even discuss an engagement with a child like you.”

For starters, Melody was six years younger than him.

Moreover, there had been unpleasant history between Stewart, Melody, and the Baldwin Duchy.

So when the elders of his family first proposed this marriage, Stewart had pleaded for them to drop it.

But all he received in return was scorn.

“You failed the examinations, yet you can’t even do this one task we instruct?”

Stewart could not refute those cold words.

The Middleton family had been sorely disappointed when he returned after failing the examinations.

But they were quite happy that the Higgins daughter had been seated next to him, thinking they could use that connection.

‘But I’ve gone too far for that to work now.’

He drained the rest of his tea before standing up, intending to tip the coachman decently and kill some time in town before returning home.

“You’re leaving already again today?”

“Yeah. Isn’t that what you want too?”

“Well…I suppose so, but…”

It felt rather unpleasant.

He felt tempted to pinch her cheeks firmly if he could.

“Well then.”

Upon reaching the entrance, Stewart placed his hand on his chest and gave a deep bow.

Melody lifted her dress slightly in return to curtsy politely as well.

“Please travel safely.”

After exchanging the perfunctory, heartless farewells of etiquette, he turned towards the carriage.

But just before he could climb aboard, Melody called out to stop him.

“Oh, um…”

It seemed something had occurred to her.

“…What?”

Melody gripped his arm tightly with both hands, her brow deeply furrowed in an intimidatingly sullen expression, as if about to say something unpleasant.

“What is it?”

Prompted insistently, Melody’s lips moved slowly.

“…Thank you.”

“What?”

His bewildered response made Melody answer reluctantly with the same sullen face.

“If that incident had become a problem, it would have caused me great trouble…thank you.”

Stewart felt rather strange.

His decision not to officially raise an issue over Ronny’s actions was partially for his own sake as well. Melody likely realized that much at least.

‘But to still go out of her way to thank me…’

It must be due to her nature.

Not kindness per se, but Melody Higgins seemed to have a stubbornness about resolutely acting on what she thought was right.

‘What she thinks is right…’

He paused as he was about to climb into the carriage. In fact, he also had something to say to Melody.

At the previous examination when he had failed, he had been so enraged that he ended up venting all that anger on the girl seated beside him unfairly.

“Um…”

So he should convey it to Melody as well.

Just as she had sincerely expressed her gratitude to him, albeit rather reluctantly.

“What is it, uh…”

“…?”

“About last time, when I said those things to you…”

He tried to force out the words somehow, but his lips would not move properly.

“Ah, damn it.”

As he fiddled aimlessly with his hair, the waiting coachman let out a loud sneeze.

“ACHOO!”

Startled by the undignified sound, Stewart hurriedly leapt into the carriage as if fleeing.

Once seated, he mustered his courage to look out the window, hoping he could still offer that apology.

But his foolish lips refused to move properly until the very end.

 

* * *

 

After bidding Stewart Middleton farewell, Melody returned inside the manor.

Since he had left much earlier than expected, she found herself with an unexpectedly large amount of free time until dinner.

‘Maybe I’ll do some painting for a bit.’

Her room already had a still life painting she had started working on last week.

She had taken it up for cultural refinement, though it could hardly be called “well-painted” even charitably speaking.

But Melody enjoyed filling the blank canvas with pretty colors, so she would paint whatever caught her eye whenever she had free time.

‘Well then, I should change clothes first.’

She had worn nice attire and  shoes for the date, but they were honestly quite uncomfortable in truth.

The high heels seemed pretty when she bought them, but she hadn’t expected them to be this unbearable to walk in.

As she gingerly took pained steps, a loud thump came from upstairs on the second floor.

Startled, Melody looked up to see Ronny there. He was frozen in an awkward posture, not moving at all.

It seemed he had been sneaking around trying not to be noticed by Melody when he accidentally dropped something in shock.

“…Ronny?”

At her soft call, he hurriedly began gathering the books scattered around him, seemingly intent on fleeing.

Realizing his intention, Melody immediately ran up the stairs towards him.

“Huh.”

Upon spotting Melody approach, Ronny instantly scooped up all the books and took off running towards his room.

“W-Wait a moment! Ronny!”

Despite Melody calling out loudly as she gave chase, he did not look back even once, just blindly running while clutching the stack of books to his face.

“Ronny!”

Her desperate calls did not change anything.

Melody began taking the steps two at a time to widen her stride in pursuit.

But that proved an ill-advised choice, as her uncomfortable high heel caught on the long hem of her dress.

“Eek…!”

In a rather pitiful display, Melody ended up tumbling down the stairs.

“Ugh…”

A pained groan escaped her involuntarily, every part that struck the stair edges aching terribly.

More than the physical pain, she felt utterly mortified.

Tripping over her own dress at her age, not even a child anymore…

Seated crumpled on the stairs, Melody buried her face in her hands, thoroughly humiliated.

“Are…Are you okay…?”

Then Ronny’s voice came from right in front of her.

Having fled when she was searching for him, yet appearing now to witness her shame felt rather vexing.

Melody raised her head while still scowling sullenly in annoyance.

As their eyes met, he flinched away guiltily, quickly averting his gaze.

“No…That is…”

“…I hate you.”

“Huh?”

Were those words so shocking? Ronny’s shoulders immediately drooped dejectedly.

“…Sorry.”

The mumbled apology made Melody shake her head as she lowered her arms.

Over Ronny’s slumped shoulders, a few servants could be seen lingering. But they soon withdrew upon confirming Melody was not seriously injured, likely worried that intruding further would cause Ronny to retreat into his room and firmly lock the door again.

“It’s my fault for making you run away like that.”

Melody’s continued silence seemed to worry Ronny, prompting another apology, which she gently waved off.

“I was wrong to run in this kind of dress too.”

His gaze trailed over the long lace hem dragging along the stairs and the fallen high-heeled  shoe that had come off in her tumble.

“Are you hurt anywhere?”

“Everything hurts so much.”

“Try sitting up straight then, if you can.”

At his suggestion, Melody slowly turned her body, producing some audible creaks and groans in the process.

He descended a few steps and grasped Melody’s right ankle.

His uncharacteristically gentle movements surprised her.

“Does it hurt if I do this?”