How The Sub-Male Lead’s Stepmother Teaches Love – Chapter 84

Author: Chewyy

“Originally, it was given to me by the young master and I kept it, but I forgot to give it to you.”

“Card? Could it have been written by Noah?”

“Yes. When you were in the capital, you sent him a gift.”

“Gift? Ah, yes.”

You’re talking about a scarf.

I nodded and picked up the card on the desk. Lucious gave me a brief explanation.

“This is a thank you card that the master wrote to you.”

[To Lady Howard.

First of all, I would like to apologize if you were confused by receiving the card without me seeing you in person.

I know that it is right to express my gratitude face to face, but since I am not able to leave Ajas Castle due to my limited age, I had no choice but to express my gratitude in writing.

The gift you sent was gratefully received. I don’t think I can repay the favor you’ve done me with a thank-you card, but right now…since I have no choice, I’m going to plan for the future. If I have the opportunity, please allow me to meet you in person and express my gratitude.

The wind is very cold. I heard that the capital is warmer than here, but since it is winter, a chilly wind will blow.

However, I hope you receive this card in a warm place. I hope you have a day as warm as the favor you have shown me. From Ajas, posted by Noah.]

I couldn’t tell whether to cry or smile at Noah’s thank you notes written on a small card.

I was so surprised that I even asked Lucious.

“Is this really what Noah wrote? I wonder if someone wrote it for him.”

“No, it was written by the young master himself.”

If Noah’s card had just said two sentences, ‘I received your gift well. thank you.’, I would have been happy.

‘But he wrote it like this that even adults find it hard to fill in…?’

‘What kind of education does a five year old need to be able to write cards like this?’

“This…How am I supposed to reply here?”

I don’t think I could write a card like this, and even if I could, I didn’t want to.

Even if we weren’t related by blood, we are now family. What family in the world sends a card like this to thank them for giving a gift?

‘Of course, when Noah wrote this card, I wasn’t even engaged.…’

I put Noah’s card on the desk and thought about it for a while.

When it was time to go to sleep, I thought and pondered for a long time even after everyone else had gone.

And came to a conclusion.

“I will not reply.”

‘I’ll say thank you for the thank you card!’

Didn’t Noah write on the card too? ‘If I have the opportunity, please allow me to meet you in person and express my gratitude’

What this means is that it’s better to say thank you in person than in a letter.

Even though he didn’t mean it that way, I decided to think that way.

“Noah is probably asleep by now, right?”

It would be best to talk about cards tomorrow. With that in mind, I turned off the light and lay down on the bed.

Suddenly, the story Hannah told me came to mind. When I asked her what time Noah had classes, she told me the answer.

“Well, I know it’s past nine.”

The current time is 10 o’clock. It was a time when a normal five-year-old would have fallen asleep.

A normal five-year-old would have been asleep by now.

‘He is probably asleep by now, right?’

I was sure that would be the case, but for some reason, I had a hunch that it would not be the case, passing through my anxiety.

I crossed my arms and thought about it, then got up, holding the lantern.

‘I’ll have to take a look for a moment.’

After seeing Noah sleeping deeply, I thought I would be able to sleep comfortably as well.

With that in mind, I put a shawl over my pajamas and left the bedroom.

“Marquess Where are you going?”

“Oh, my mother, I’m surprised! Eh, Sir Ethan?”

Surprised by the black shadow, I raised my head and looked up to see Ethan blinking as if he was a little surprised too.

He reflexively let go of the hilt of the sword he was holding, and after confirming that there was nothing wrong with me, he spoke up.

“I was escorting. Or, more accurately, guarding.”

“Aren’t escorts supposed to stay at the door instead of going off duty…By any chance yesterday? Or even now?”

“Yesterday Leona was guarding, and the day before yesterday I was guarding.”

“I see…”

They must have taken turns guarding my room, minus Catherine, who had left with Leonhard for the gates of Hiyela.

I thought if I sent them off to sleep, that would be the end of their escorting for the day. Now that I realize that wasn’t true, I feel stupid.

Ethan, who had no way of knowing how I felt, asked me in a sincere voice.

“May I ask where you are going? If you have any errands to run, I will call a maid.”

“No, I don’t need anything, I’m just going to visit Noah for a while.”

“Young Master?”

“Yes. Why? I can’t do that?”

At my question, a look of confusion passed over Ethan’s face.

“I only protect the Marquess’s safety, you don’t need to ask my permission. Please go, I will take care of you.”

“Yes, thank you.”

Ethan took the lantern I was holding and started walking ahead. Most of the servants working in the castle had turned off the lights in the hallway and had gone to sleep, so the dark hallway, lit only by the lanterns, had a gloomy atmosphere.

‘I’m glad I have Ethan. If he hadn’t been there, I would have gone back to the room without even being able to walk a few steps.’

I walked carefully, receiving a silent bow from the guards guarding the hallways and stairs. It was not my intention to walk closely behind Ethan.

“But will the escort stand all night? Are not you tired?”

“They can’t join the Heilang knight if they are exhausted because they didn’t have one night’s sleep.”

‘Well, I guess I won’t be able to join Heilang.’

“Then how many days can you stay awake?”

“I’ve never intentionally stayed up without sleeping, but…The mission kept me awake for up to three days.”

‘three days?!’

“Really? That long?”

“Not very long. Catherine said she never slept for a week.”

‘Wow, that’s amazing…’

“Is that why you liked her?”

“No, I fell in love with Catherine because—”

I saw with my own eyes that Ethan almost took the wrong step.

Ethan, who had an excellent sense of balance to avoid falling, turned to look at me with a red face.

“Marquess, If you suddenly ask me something like that…”

“Why? You said I don’t need to ask for your permission, right?”

“Marquess!”

“Okay, sorry. Did I ask something too personal?”

“……”

Ethan, who seemed to have a lot to say and had a very complex expression, rubbed his face several times with his hands and then said,

“Let’s go.”

and hurriedly moved his feet again. I followed him without saying anything.

Everywhere we went, there were carpets on the floor, so our footsteps didn’t make a lot of noise.

So, in the still quiet hallway, Ethan’s voice was suddenly heard.

“When I was a kid, my nickname was Ethan the Coward.”

“huh?”

“If I step forward with enthusiasm, I often end up ruining things by withdrawing at an important moment. I was a child worse than a coward, back then.”

In the middle of the dark hallway, Ethan’s back with a lamp in his hand shone in the middle of the dark corridor.

Ethan continued his words in a voice as faint as the light.

“My dream was to become a knight on such a subject. No, I thought I would be able to muster the courage I need at an important moment. But how can I change the essence of myself just because the ground on which I stepped changes? Even when I was taking the knight’s test, I tried to run away. But Catherine…”

‘Did he remember what happened at that moment?’

Ethan, whose voice was hoarse for a moment, took a deep breath and spoke in a quieter voice than before.

“She pushed me in the back….I could not be a coward. From then on, whenever I needed courage, I always thought of her. Then, it made me feel brave, like a lie.”

“…..”

“I confessed to Catherine…If it’s a mistake, it’s probably a mistake. But the old me would have run away before I’d even opened my mouth in such a crowded place. I was only able to make that mistake because it was her, really.”

After finishing speaking, Ethan lightly cleared his throat as if he was embarrassed.

His ears, illuminated by the flickering lamp, had already turned red.

unsure of what to say in response to his surprisingly sincere statement, I clenched my fists and whispered softly.

“Okay. Starting today, I’ll be on Sir Ethan’s side…”

“Yes?”

“Of course, if Cathy doesn’t like you, there’s nothing I can do, but I haven’t heard anything like that.”

“Oh, no, you don’t need to do that…”

However, Ethan could not finish his sentence and just rubbed the back of his neck. I giggled looking at him like that.

Ethan, whose ears were turning redder than before, raised his index finger and pointed across the dark hallway.

“That room over there is the young master’s bedroom.”

“There?”

I kept quiet until Ethan, with the lantern, moved a little further in that direction. and I narrowed my eyes until I could see the door.

“There is no escort in Noah’s room?”

“Even though he is five years old, he is the bloodline of Ajas, even with his pattern revealed. Plus, it’s inside the castle. When he goes out, two knights of Heilang will follow him as escorts. But I heard he rarely goes out.”

“Really?”

Well, I had just confirmed with my own eyes that the security at the castle was very strict.

‘There is no need to guard the front of the room.…Then there’s no need to protect my bedroom too, right?’

“Light is leaking through the crack in the door.”

“What?”

“It looks like the young master isn’t sleeping yet.”

Ethan spoke in a whisper, his voice becoming quieter. A little surprised, I checked the bottom of Noah’s bedroom door.

Ethan must have noticed my gaze and turned off the lamp he was holding. Then, it was clear that new light was leaking out of the door.

“No, what time is it now…”

I was a little confused, so I went straight to the door and knocked lightly.

“Noah, are you in there?”

— “mother?”