Why the Northern Duke Wanders the Snowfields - Chapter 37

“Abbu, abubu. Abaa.”

Kaeloc looked at the round head sitting on his lap, gazing out the window with curiosity.

Back at the cabin, he had thought the baby was just something that ate, slept, and relieved itself, but now strength had come into its neck and waist, and it looked quite proper.

Kaeloc pressed the baby’s round, soft cheek.

“Eah, kyaaa.”

The baby, who turned to look at him once, broke into a wide smile, eyes curving and mouth opening.

The small lower teeth that had come in stole his attention.

Ha.

How can you be this cute?

“Don’t you miss your mother?”

Apparently not, as Theo pressed his forehead against the window again and rolled his eyes busily as he looked outside.

Unlike the empty snowfield, the round and pointed roofs and the buildings painted in various colors seemed fascinating to him.

“Am I the only one who misses her?”

They had only just set off, but he already wanted to see her and touch her. It felt strange not having the small body beside him that carried a faint floral scent.

“If you don’t remember greetings or dining etiquette, don’t act carelessly and just ask for understanding. She’s a kind person, so she won’t say anything. And since she’s the one who raised you from when you were a baby, she’ll definitely help you recover your memories.”

Recalling Aubrianna’s advice, Kaeloc pulled the baby, who was half leaning out the carriage door, back in and sat him upright.

‘Those memories.’

Do I really need them? Kaeloc wrapped one arm firmly around the baby’s waist and rested his chin on his hand.

Do I?

In the first place, living as a hunter wasn’t bad. Just as he began to feel a sense of emptiness, a beautiful woman and a lovely baby rolled into his life. His lovely lover, and his son.

“Duke, huh….”

His finger tapped against his cheek. Even without his memories, he could tell that the position of a duke who governed a territory was filled with responsibility and duty.

‘Even without me, if things run well, is there really any need for me to be the duke?’

He wanted to hold out as long as possible. He wondered if there was any way to delay entering the ducal castle as much as he could.

‘If I reveal that I’ve lost my memory, they probably won’t make me do anything anyway.’

“Kyahhh. Abbuahhh.”

As if he had spotted something, Theo began to struggle, and the strength was more than expected, so Kaeloc almost dropped the baby.

“You little brat!”

When he looked out at the street over the bouncing baby’s head, he saw someone walking a large dog.

Its fluffy tail swayed, and its four legs moved briskly in rhythm with the person’s steps. The baby’s gaze was fixed on it, unable to look away.

“Do you want that dog?”

“Kkaa. Bbu-bbu.”

Seeing that he liked animals, it seemed this one had the qualities to become an excellent hunter as well. Kaeloc’s eyes softened warmly as he looked at the round back of the baby’s head.

***

Agnes Bellone, a relative of King Cedran Maric III of the Kingdom of Trilan, was of noble blood and had grown up receiving a proper royal education, so she had almost never encountered someone who lacked basic manners by nature.

The people she usually met were noble ladies and members of the royal family. Among them were those who were arrogant and those who were foolish, but the situation before her now was something she was experiencing for the first time, and it left her flustered.

“Kaeloc, eat slowly.”

As always, the duke’s appearance was impeccable. A handsome face inherited from his parents, a dignified physique, and flawless attire.

But only his outward appearance was presentable.

Seeing him after several months, he was cutting at the plate with his knife and stuffing food into his mouth with his eyes wide open.

The grating sound of the plate being scraped and the smacking sounds filled the greenhouse garden.

Agnes pressed her throbbing forehead with her fingers and said, “Even if you’ve lost your memory, I can’t help but feel hurt that you treat me so awkwardly.”

After swallowing his food, Kaeloc shrugged, wiped his mouth with a napkin, and looked at Theo.

As one of the countess’s maids fed the baby finely chopped meat and vegetables while holding him on her lap, he spilled half and played with the rest in his hands.

Following his gaze, the countess stroked Theo’s cheek with a sentimental expression.

“He’s exactly the same as you were when you were little.”

“…Is that so?”

“You had a hearty appetite just like that. And look at this hair.”

The countess reached out and gently touched Theo’s deep blond hair.

“It’s the same color as your mother Cecilia’s.”

Agnes lifted her head and glanced at Kaeloc’s black hair.

“When you were first born, yours was this exact color too, but as you grew, it changed to the Tennant family’s hair color.”

Kaeloc saw a trace of regret in her violet eyes, which proved her royal bloodline.

“There’s no trace of Cecilia in you anymore.”

Kaeloc shrugged again.

He’d heard that she died giving birth to him. Since she was someone he had no memory of from the start, he felt neither regret nor loneliness.

Still, thinking that she would have been the same age as the countess if she were alive made the faint lines at the corners of the countess’s eyes and her wise gaze stand out to him in a new way.

“This child takes after his grandmother perfectly.”

The baby looked at Agnes with round sky-blue eyes and smiled brightly.

“It’s a little darker, but it resembles Cecilia’s eyes.”

Kaeloc set down the napkin and let out a short breath. From the moment they met, she welcomed him, asked if his body was alright and how he had lost his memory, and then kept looking only at the baby.

‘It seems she called me here just to look at Theo’s face and sink into her regrets.’

Just as Aubrianna said, there wasn’t a single thing that could help him, but the food suited his taste perfectly.

After enjoying even the satisfying dessert, Kaeloc looked around.

Perhaps out of consideration for him, who had lost his memory, they had prepared a full-course meal not in the large dining room but inside a glass greenhouse.

Because the sunset was delayed with the changing of the seasons, the inside of the greenhouse shimmered everywhere with scattered sunlight, and everything his gaze fell on was beautiful.

Breathing in the fragrant scent of flowers, Kaeloc muttered, “It would’ve been nice if Aubrianna came with us.”

As if she’d heard his voice, Agnes asked quietly, “Come to think of it, how is Aubrianna?”

How is she? She didn’t even invite her, so why ask?

He found it strange, but assumed it was just a habitual courtesy among nobles.

“Well, she’s probably waiting for me and the baby in the inn room.”

I wonder if she ate dinner properly.

There wasn’t much conversation and he had finished all the food, so he felt like he could leave now, and he began to grow restless.

At Agnes’s signal, a maid took the baby, who was beginning to get sleepy, and started putting him to sleep.

“When her health improves, make sure to bring her along next time.”

Kaeloc tilted his head and straightened his back. “Whose health are you referring to?”

He couldn’t understand Agnes’s words. He was the one who had lost his memory, and as seen, his body was healthy.

“Who else? Aubrianna, of course. I heard her condition hasn’t been good since returning from the snowfield.”

Her condition hadn’t been good, but she recovered soon after.

There’s no way that guy Sion would know that.

Kaeloc sharply studied the countess’s face, but all he could sense from her gentle expression was concern for Aubrianna.

Sion had clearly told him that the countess had invited only Kaeloc and the baby.

‘Why would he lie….’

A sense of foreboding struck him, and Kaeloc abruptly stood up.

“I need to go.”

“Right now?”

Startled, Agnes glanced at Theo, who had just fallen asleep in the maid’s arms, then grabbed Kaeloc’s hand.

“There’s something important I need to discuss with you.”

“I’m sorry, but it would be better to do that next time.”

Having lived as a hunter in the snowfield, his sharpened instincts continued to warn him of danger.

“I’m worried about Aubrianna being alone.”

“I suppose it can’t be helped.”

Agnes instructed the maid to carry the sleeping baby and accompany him back to the inn, but Kaeloc refused and took Theo into his own arms.

“If anything happens, come to me without hesitation.”

Agnes quietly spoke as she studied Kaeloc’s stiff expression.

“I know you’re in a difficult situation right now. And when you return to the ducal castle, there will likely be even more confusing matters. So come to me anytime.”

Was it that she had weak lungs by nature?

Although she’d returned from recuperation for a chronic illness, Kaeloc silently offered proper courtesy as he looked at the still pale woman’s face.

As soon as Kaeloc boarded, the carriage sped away, and Agnes watched it with a worried expression, murmuring, “Goddess, grant that child the strength to overcome this harsh world.”

***

Agnes’s villa was located on the outskirts of Tennant City. By the time they headed toward the inn in the bustling district, the sun had completely set, and everything around them was pitch dark.

Bang! Bang!

Razen, who was riding through the darkness, was startled by the sound ringing from behind and turned his head.

He instructed the coachman to slow down slightly and opened the window connecting the driver’s seat and the carriage.

“What is it? Your Grace?”

“Where is Sion?”

“Why are you looking for Sir Sion?”

In the carriage sunk in darkness, only the massive silhouette of the man holding the baby was revealed by the lantern hanging on the window. Only his deep blue eyes gleamed coldly like a beast’s.

“Since I’m the duke, is it wrong for me to ask where my aide is?”

At that moment, a chill ran down the back of Razen’s neck, and goosebumps rose. The surrounding air tightened with tension like a drawn bowstring.

“Th-that can’t be….”

As Razen’s darting eyes rolled around, the gaze hunting its prey followed him.

Hiccup.

“Th-that, he is probably, pro-probably at the du-ducal castle. Yes. That’s right.”

The spring night was still chilly. But Razen’s body trembled from a colder, sharper presence than that.

“Go as fast as possible.”

“Y-Yes! Your Grace!”

When Razen gestured to the coachman, the wheels began to spin faster.

“Hyah!”

As the four horses raced forward, Kaeloc’s chest began to burn blacker and blacker.

Kaeloc carefully held the sleeping baby close and held his breath.

It felt like he would only be able to breathe again once he saw Aubrianna’s face.