I’m Just a Counselor Chapter 116

It must be really bad if Estella says her face doesn’t speak.

‘Oh, no, I can’t go see her now.’

As I fidgeted under the covers, the door opened quietly.

 

“Vanessa.”

 

I heard Jeremiah’s voice, low and hushed. I jerked my head toward him in surprise.

I could see his shiny silver hair. Fortunately, his face didn’t look as badly injured as I’d feared.

But I soon realized why Estella had said that. It wasn’t an exaggeration.

 

“Duke, are you all right?”

Jeremiah’s eyes were different than usual. They were tense and full of tiredness… Even when he was suffering from insomnia, he didn’t look like that.

I looked into his eyes, fidgeted, and opened my mouth to speak. But I couldn’t say anything more.

 

“……!”

 

Jeremiah lunged forward, grabbed my face, and kissed me, his lips rough.

It wasn’t a sweet, gentle kiss like the one we’d had with the Aurora. It was a very urgent, hungry kiss.

I closed my eyes, watching his eyelashes flutter.

A warm breath slipped between my lips, a breath that still had a slight tremor in it.

That alone told me how worried he was about me. I apologized and pulled him a little closer.

 

Our lips met, and I stroked the back of his hand as if to soothe him. Finally, the hand cupping my cheek relaxed, and the long kiss ended.

 

Jeremiah pulled back and let out a deep sigh. He lifted his hand to my forehead and checked it.

“You’ve lost your fever.”

 

“Were you… worried a lot?”

“Is that what you call it?”

Jeremiah raised his voice in exasperation, then lowered it again.

“You passed out in my arms and didn’t wake up for two days, and the doctor said it was serious.”

“Doctors exaggerate a lot, you know.”

“I… wondered if I did something wrong.”

Jeremiah mumbled melancholy as he sat on the edge of the bed, running his fingers through my hair. I squeezed his hand.

 

“You can’t blame yourself Duke, you gave me the cloak. It was the Duke who saved me.”

“I didn’t even realize you were in that state, and I just kept pestering you…”

 

“It’s not like that, you didn’t do anything wrong, so I don’t want you to look at me and think that, okay?”

“Vanessa.”

 

Jeremiah suddenly lifted his head and stared at me.

His eyes, which had been brighter than the aurora borealis, had sunk into darkness. I couldn’t help but feel sorry for him.

 

“…Vanessa.”

“Yes, go ahead.”

“I guess I’m in love with you after all.”

The unfamiliar word, love, flowed from Jeremiah’s mouth.

I stared at him, wide-eyed at the sudden confession. His hair sparkled like stars in the darkness.

 

“I wonder what it’s like for you this time?”

He asked me, but I hesitated for a moment, unable to answer easily, and instead of opening my mouth, I tugged at his clasped hand.

My strength was tiny compared to his, but he pulled away so easily.

I leaned in closer and captured his lips with mine once more.

Jeremiah seemed a little taken aback, as it was the first time I’d ever kissed him, but he quickly became skillful at it.

I was planning to keep it brief, but he took the initiative like it was nothing.

 

“hmm…”

I let out a small moan of embarrassment, but it quickly faded away. My heart was pounding like crazy.

I embraced him, knowing once again that it wasn’t his fault.

 

I was ashamed and embarrassed at the thought, but at the same time, I was overwhelmed, delighted, and so very much in love with this man.

But I was still a little short of courage to tell him that I loved him too, so I ended up answering him with an action instead, hoping that I could show him as much emotion as he was showing me.

 

The second kiss was just as long. After Jeremiah pulled our lips apart, I had to catch my breath for a long time.

“You’re really getting better, you.”

Jeremiah whispered huskily, our noses touching. I barely managed to steady my breathing and glanced over at him.

It looked more like Jeremiah than me who had gotten better. His eyes, dark and sunken, lit up once more.

 

“Vanessa.”

Jeremiah’s voice was melting. The hand that had been lovingly cupping my chin was now lightly stroking the nape of my neck, sending a light shiver down my spine.

 

I was embarrassed, so I feigned calm and pulled his hand away, then deliberately changed the subject.

“Tomorrow…, I heard that Estella’s birthday banquet is tomorrow?”

Jeremiah burst out laughing. He seemed to realize that I was trying to deflect, but he complied.

With a wistful glance, he pulled his hand away from mine and replied.

 

“Yeah. Thanks for sleeping off two days without anyone realizing it.”

“Well, that’s something I didn’t expect either. Anyway… all I did was talk, and I didn’t bring a gift.”

“Well, you’re not the only one who did nothing but talk, if that’s any consolation.”

My eyes widened at Jeremiah’s words. When I asked who it was, Jeremiah pointed straight to himself.

“Estella did all the preparations for the banquet.”

Of course, Estella didn’t really do all the work. Jeremiah had laid the groundwork. Some of it before they went to the mountain.

 

But Jeremiah’s words struck a chord with me.

 

“You seemed strangely cheerful back there.”

But Estella was Estella, even if she was acting like a princess. I smiled in spite of myself at her loveliness, then frowned again.

“Estella told me not to come to the banquet.”

“It’s absolute peace, and you’ll have to lie low tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow is Estella’s coming-of-age day… She’s going to be so beautiful… I should take care of her…”

“I’ll watch her for you, so don’t think about going against the doctor’s orders.”

Jeremiah said sternly and stroked my forehead.

“If your fever gets that high again, you’ll see Estella collapse, not to mention me.”

His not-so-threatening words finally gave up the last of my hope.

 

I thought I could ask Jeremiah to do something.

I was even more curious about the banquet Estella had organized, but Jeremiah was just as adamant as Estella.

 

I pursed my lips and let out a small sigh.

 

“Oh, by the way, Estella said she had something special planned for after the banquet…What is it?”

“Estella did?”

I asked, hoping to get a hint from Jeremiah, but he looked like he’d never heard the word before. 

 

I blinked at his counter-question.

 

‘If she didn’t tell Jeremiah, was she trying to sneak it past him? If so, I’d just spilled the surprise to Jeremiah.’

I scratched my cheek lightly and muttered an apology to Estella, but then I turned to Jeremiah, just in case.

 

“If Estella ever tells you this, you have to act like you’re hearing it for the first time!”

“……? Okay.”

 

Jeremiah looked confused, but he nodded and promised.

With that, I leaned back against the head of the bed, knowing that I had created a secret that Estella would never know.

 

My eyelids grew heavy, and the night was getting deeper. I opened my mouth, intending to dismiss Jeremiah and lie back down.

“Now, the Duke should go back to bed and get some sleep. You won’t be attending the banquet tomorrow.”

“Yes, I will be busy tomorrow.”

Jeremiah replied crisply, but despite his words, he had no intention of going back.

 

I stared at him, trying to hold on to my slipping sanity.

 

Jeremiah was leaning heavily toward me from the edge of the bed to kiss me. He didn’t bother to straighten up, but smirked when our gazes met.

I’ve been here before.

A long time ago, when I was first kidnapped by a trafficker…

But so much had changed since then, and seeing him in the darkness sent a strange tingle through me, a tingle that quickly traveled from the back of my head, down the nape of my neck, and into my chest.

I shuddered, my shoulders shaking. Jeremiah, who didn’t know if he knew me like this or not, twisted his fingers in my loose hair, whispered.

 

“Vanessa, can I share your bed with you?”

“……!”

“No, I didn’t mean it to make you blush like that…”

“Go…, just!”

‘I’m going to get pissed off again, and he’s making me do it!’

I kicked Jeremiah out and threw the covers over me as soon as he was out of the room.

 

 

* * *

 

 

The next day, the main hall of the Duke of Oppenheim’s castle.

 

A lavish banquet was in full swing, with many nobles from the north gathered there.

The nobles, dressed in their finery for the occasion, gathered around and chattered.

 

“Indeed, His Highness the Duke is so fond of the princess that he would organize a banquet of this magnitude…”

“It is indeed a banquet worthy of Oppenheim. It is like an imperial banquet.”

“My dear, madam, even if the imperial family is far away, you should be careful about saying such things.”

 

The owner of the ducal castle appeared among the nobles. When they spotted Jeremiah, they rushed forward to offer words of admiration and congratulations.

Jeremiah returned each greeting, which he would normally have ignored or accepted with a polite smile, and walked toward the center of the banquet.

His uncharacteristic demeanor indicated that he was in a very good mood.