Surviving As An Obsessive Servant Chapter 194 - Side Story Chapter 19

After that, Ethan grew day by day. He learned to roll over, stand up unsteadily, and even toddle around.

Of course, he didn’t always do only the kinds of cute things that made them adore him endlessly.

Sometimes, he caused a bit of trouble too.

For example, he once scribbled all over the wallpaper with Edric’s charcoal.
—At that, Alexis had been pleased, saying Ethan had “a wide range of senses.”—

Or he spilled Lobel’s cosmetics all over the floor, making a complete mess.
—At that, Alexis was delighted again, saying the boy showed “a wide range of talents.”—

Edric wasn’t as tolerant as Alexis, but he still laughed off Ethan’s mischief most of the time.

But today, it was hard for him to hold back a sigh.

“…Haa.”

With a troubled look, Edric glanced around the bedroom.

The gifts Lobel had given him were all scattered in disarray.

It was amazing how Ethan had managed to dig up the things stored carefully in a box under the bed.

Holding a half-torn, crumpled candy bag, Edric sighed in despair.

“…Oh dear.”

It had been the first candy Lobel ever bought him, so he had treasured it dearly. He hadn’t imagined it would end up like this.

Still, he had no intention of waking the sleeping child beside the open box to scold him. The same would hold true tomorrow.

No matter how precious Lobel’s gifts were, they could never be more important than the child.

And yet, to him, Lobel was even more precious than the child.

…If Lobel finds out, she’ll be upset. I’d better clean this up quietly.

The good news was that Lobel was currently visiting her family.

And he had discovered the mess before any of the maids had.

The Denkart maids were discreet, but since Lobel was close to many of them, it wouldn’t have been strange if word got out.

So, Edric quietly began to clean the room.
And as he did, he couldn’t help but marvel at his son.

Ethan had made such a thorough mess that Edric had to go through every corner carefully for hours.

Finally, when even the smallest scraps of paper were safely back in the box, Edric let out a long breath of relief.

“…Thankfully, the letters are unharmed.”

The other items were precious too, but the letters were special.

They were the ones he’d gotten back from Alexis right after returning from the three northern strongholds.

Reading them helped ease the longing he’d felt when he couldn’t see Lobel during that time apart.

Staring down at the box, Edric smiled faintly.

“…It’s been a while since I last read one of Lobel’s letters.”

The moonlight was bright enough that he didn’t need a lamp to read.

With that thought, Edric took the thick bundle of letters and sat by the window.

He often reread her letters like this.

Back then, he had avoided reading them too often, afraid that longing for her would shake his resolve. He hadn’t even wanted to receive them.

It had been a place too harsh to survive with a soft heart.

But now, rereading them in peace, he felt something different—
a strange, tender emotion that blended the feelings of then and now.

…

His eyes stung slightly as he began to read.

Dear. Young Master Edric

It’s me, Lobel. You haven’t forgotten me, have you?

Don’t you dare say you have, even as a joke.

If you do, I’ll storm into your dreams tonight and take away the blanket you love so much.

They say it’s cold up there—are you keeping warm?

Honestly, the capital is colder than the southeast. Especially now that it’s winter.

As time passes, I miss our land more and more.

But even more than that, I miss you, Young Master.

I miss you so much.

Just as he reached that part, a small voice called out to him.

“Father.”

“….”

At some point, Ethan had woken up and was rubbing his eyes.

Edric quickly composed himself and went to hug the smiling child.

But then Ethan tilted his head and asked,

“Why are you crying?”

“…Because I miss Lobelia.”

“Mother?”

The name Lobelia was familiar to the boy.

Edric hadn’t wanted to refer to Lobel only as “your mother.”

So he always used her name instead. Even though it embarrassed her, she understood his feelings.

“It’s late. Let’s go to bed.”

“What’s this?”

Ethan pointed his small finger to the bottom of the letter.

He probably recognized Edric’s name—it appeared often enough around the house.

But Lobel’s name was rarer.

Right. It’s about time he started learning to read.

Compared to Edric, who hadn’t learned until he was over twelve, Ethan was far ahead.

As Alexis had said, the boy had remarkable talent in many areas.

And plenty of curiosity too.

Feeling delighted as a father, Edric asked brightly,

“Do you want me to teach you?”

“Yeah!”

“Watch closely. This is the most precious word to me.”

 

Lobelia

 

“Lobelia.”

Just as Lobel had once taught him, Edric carefully wrote out each letter with great care.

Ethan tilted his head, looking between the word in the letter—Lobel—and the one Edric had just written—Lobelia.

“They’re different…”

At his son’s sharp observation, Edric only smiled quietly.

His thoughts drifted back to the past.

Lobel hadn’t written it in her letters, but she had told him once. And she had surely hoped he’d notice.

Knowing her now, that was just like her. If she hadn’t meant for him to understand, she would never have told him her real name at all.

Meanwhile, Ethan glanced between the paper and his father again, puzzled.

Why is Father smiling?

But before long, sleepiness won over, and he curled up in his father’s arms.

The next day, Ethan ran to greet Lobel, who had just returned from her parents’ home.

“Mother, Mother! Father wrote this for me!”

“Oh? What’s this?”

“He said your name is the most precious word to him!”

Lobel stared at the name written on the paper for a long while.

Then she chuckled softly.

“Then, shall I write my most precious word too?”

 

Lobelia ♥ Edric

 

Seeing that, Ethan puffed out his cheeks in protest. He was upset his name wasn’t there.

But Lobel pretended not to notice.

Then Ethan suddenly brightened and shouted proudly,

“Then I’ll do it with Grandpa!”

“Yes, yes. Go ahead.”

Lobel waved and laughed as the boy ran off.

Well, what could she do?

“After all, we promised to write our most precious words. I can’t lie to him about that.”

She smiled shyly, a faint blush coloring her cheeks.

 

 

 

 

  ****

 

 

 

“Darling, darling.”

…Did something good happen?

Edric blinked in surprise.

Lobel was usually bright, but today she seemed especially cheerful.

Come to think of it, she’d been that way since the moment they woke up.

…What’s going on?

As she skillfully adjusted his cravat, she asked,

“You know, how are you feeling today?”

Without thinking, Edric smiled.

Lobel was the most curious person he’d ever met. Even when they were young, she would ask about the smallest things most people wouldn’t even notice.

Young Master, how’s this pillow height? Isn’t the sound of the rain outside lovely? Does the medicine taste okay? — things like that.

And that habit hadn’t changed, even after they’d become lovers and then husband and wife.

No one was as curious about Edric as Lobel was.

And he liked that about her—very much.

He never felt the urge to talk about himself with anyone else, but with honest, open Lobel, he wanted to share everything.

Still, he needed to give her an answer.

With a warm tone, he replied,

“I feel good.”

“Do you know what day it is today?”

“Of course. It’s been exactly fourteen years, nine months, and twenty-seven days since we met.”

“…”

…Was that not it?

Edric stared at the silent Lobel, puzzled.

She was smiling, but somehow, her smile looked… off.

That was strange. As far as he knew, today wasn’t any special day—no annual family gathering with the Flors, no particular anniversary.

He did have an appointment at the royal palace this morning, but that was nothing out of the ordinary.

So what was it?

As he wondered, Lobel asked,

“Do you really keep count of that?”

“…Not on purpose.”

He used to, but not anymore. Now it was just habit—a number he remembered without meaning to.

Just then, he heard a faint sound from outside the door. Hurrying to finish the conversation, Edric suddenly remembered something.

Ah. Lobel said she wanted to go on a picnic with Ethan.

Both their families had been looking forward to that.

The weather was nice, so it would be a perfect day for it. He had official duties today and tomorrow, but after that, he’d have time.

He mentioned his schedule gently, implying she could go ahead as planned. Lobel nodded.

“I’ll go, then.”

As they exchanged their usual goodbye kiss, Edric paused.

There was something in her gaze—a hint of dissatisfaction.

“…Is there something I don’t know about?”

“Of course not. Go on, I’ll be waiting.”

Her tone was a little too stiff—definitely hiding something.

But Edric didn’t press her further.

When Lobel didn’t answer even after being asked this much, it meant she really didn’t want to talk about it.

He sighed as he took reluctant steps toward the door.

…I’ll ask her when I get back.

 

 

 

 

 

*****

 

 

 

 

After seeing Edric off, I muttered weakly to myself,

“Honestly… how can a person forget his own birthday again?”

Edric had never cared much for birthdays.

But at this point, it was almost frustrating for me.

After all the hardships he’d been through and all that he’d accomplished, couldn’t he at least learn to enjoy himself a little?

“Mother! Mother!”

With a cheerful call, the door burst open.

And there appeared a beautiful little face—one that would surely break hearts, whether male or female, when he grew up.

…He was my son, but still. He was really handsome.

Just like my mother always said—it was a blessing he didn’t take after me.

“…Mother, why are you wiping your eyes with a handkerchief?”

“Some dust got in. Anyway, did you sleep well, Ethan?”

“Mhm. Did Father already leave?”

“He did.”

Ethan’s face clearly showed his disappointment. For the past few days, he’d been going on and on about “Father’s birthday, Father’s birthday,” so he must’ve been hoping to celebrate together.

But at my next words, his expression brightened immediately.

“We’ve prepared a surprise party. Let’s get ready and go to the capital.”

The moment I said it, all trace of sadness vanished from his face, replaced by excitement.

He had stayed in the capital before when Edric had business there.

But he’d never gotten to enjoy a party like this.

Though, judging by the sparkle in his eyes, I had a feeling that wasn’t the only reason for his excitement.

“Then I’ll get to see Grandpa too, right? Since he’s in the capital!”