ALL NOVEL chapter 10
10 – Eilen
Since the war between Westbern and Silverwood began and the outer walls were taken, I couldn’t sleep as usual at the scheduled time.
Because at least one person responsible for guarding against enemy attacks had to stay awake. Currently, I, Sijangjang (or Master), and Satrisia take turns sleeping, 3 shifts in total.
The problem is that the enemies don’t always attack at a set time. Whenever they make a short movement, everyone is forced to wake up, and those who try to sleep in the morning are often disturbed by the noise from the sunlight or soldiers and vassals within the castle moving around during the day.
“Why are you telling me this? I’m in the middle of my morning nap. Damn it.
I’d rather be in a state of severe exhaustion, so that no matter how bright the sunlight is, or how noisy people are, I could just close my eyes and the film would stop rolling with a thud…
Lately, all I do is give my subordinates various odd jobs, have regular meetings with high-ranking officers, and monitor the enemy’s futile activities, so I don’t have to exert myself physically…
So even though I have some energy left, sleep doesn’t come when I close my eyes vaguely, and only the intense sunlight and the noise of the people around me keep ringing in my ears.
Then, if my body were to be full of vitality, I wouldn’t want to get up because I’m so tired.
If I end my nap like this, I won’t be able to sleep and will have to stay awake for at least another 8 hours…
But even after being awake for those 8 hours, I’ll probably fall into a deep sleep the next time I sleep, due to sheer exhaustion…
Lately, the problem is that the kamusins Westburn hired have even made siege weapons, so there’s no telling when they might launch a full-scale attack like the previous battle outside the walls.
Thump!
Whirr
Creaking
Squelch squelch
Thud
Whisper whisper
Crash!
Plop plop
“…”
Clatter clatter clatter clatter!
Thud!
“aaaRGH!!!!!!!!SMFI!”
I heard the sound of the blacksmith pounding the iron in anger and got up, shaking my head in frustration. I really couldn’t get any sleep.
I can’t live like this. War is definitely not something people should do. It’s what crazy people do. In that case, my father was definitely crazy. And I’m going crazy too.
Bang!
“Count?! What’s going on?”
Whether she heard my scream or not, Eileen hurriedly opened the door to my bedroom and came in.
I didn’t even have the energy to answer Eileen. Seeing me like that, Eileen came over and held my face with her small hands.
“Oh my, the circles under your eyes… Count, can’t you sleep at all…?”
“…”
I just looked at Eileen with tired eyes. Then, Eileen, with a worried expression, climbed onto the bed and. Wait, Eileen, what are you doing right now…?
Soft
Eileen placed my head on her lap. Then she gently pressed her thumb against the corner of my eye.
“…When I was young, there were many nights when I couldn’t fall asleep. Whenever that happened, my mother used to do this for me.”
Gently
“Ah.”
“Does it feel refreshing?”
Using her thumb, Eileen softly pressed and massaged the area around the edges of my eyes.
Because she applied pressure to my eyes with her fingers, it was slightly painful whenever Eileen pressed firmly. But as I became accustomed to the discomfort, I felt the tension that had been building up in my eyes, just as Eileen said, slowly dissipating and a cool sensation taking over.
While receiving a massage that encompassed not only my eyes but my entire face, I felt a comforting and soothing sensation. The surrounding noise seemed less audible, probably due to Eileen’s breathing.
“…You’ve been going through a lot lately, haven’t you? You don’t have to answer.”
“…”
“Suddenly rising to the position of a viscount and fighting in a war, I think it must be very difficult for you.”
“…”
“…If you ever face more hardships in the future and have trouble sleeping again, please ask me to give you an eye massage. I’ll be ready to help you anytime…”
Listening to Eileen’s words, I suddenly felt grateful towards her.
Come to think of it, there were quite a few times in the past when I made mistakes or did something wrong, yet Eileen helped me get through them. Like the incident where I lost my Limer gold coin that I mentioned when explaining it last time, or when I often played truant because I found learning Lutener boring, even though my father wanted me to train as a knight instead of pursuing priesthood…
In this era, there were no proper parenting methods, let alone modern-day standards set by Dr. Oh Eun-young. Even if they existed, I wouldn’t know if such parenting methods included things like TV or smartphones.
In other words, parents in this era had no choice but to discipline their children as they were told since there was no other way if the children didn’t listen to them.
Yeah, it really sucks.
Although my memories from past lives were limited, I vividly recalled how difficult it was every time I received severe punishment from my father. My siblings had always been medieval, so they managed well from the beginning…
Ah, I remembered the punishment I received when I committed a real big mistake for the first time. I was beaten by my father like a dog until blood oozed from my skin and my buttocks turned into hard rocks.
Being a person who still possessed some modern-day sensitivities, it was shocking for me since I hadn’t experienced anything like that before in my past life. Now that I think about it, my hips seemed to have melted since then…
What’s more shocking is that people didn’t find it strange that I was being beaten until I was almost dead at that time. It was the moment I cursed my birth into this world.
That’s why I was truly grateful whenever Eileen saved me from almost getting punished.
Come to think of it, most of Eileen’s scoldings were done for my sake. But I avoided listening to her because I didn’t want to hear those things… How pathetic I must have been.
However, a new question suddenly arose. Why does Eileen treat me so well? I haven’t done much for her, specifically…
Because I’m handsome? Well… I’m not ugly, but people always said that my brothers were more manly and magnificent.
To make myself look good as the son of a viscount? Why bother with someone like me, who is merely the third son? If that was the case, it would have been better to impress my eldest brother Cendric or even Bendric.
In reality, it seemed like Eileen’s family also wanted to marry her off to Cendric, and Cendric didn’t like her. Moreover, my father refused to let his first son, Cendric, marry into the count family. But my father, originally a viscount, married a noblewoman and elevated his status… That’s a bit strange.
To resolve this question, I opened my mouth while receiving support from Eileen’s lap pillow and facial massage.
“…Eilene.”
“Yes? Lord Viscount.”
“Why do you always treat me so well?”
“…”
**
That’s right. When did I start harboring feelings for you, My Lord?
‘Eilene, when you go to the Silverwood Viscountcy in the future, make sure to make a good impression on Candric, the son of the Silverwood Viscount. If you marry him, who is the heir to Viscount Ruurain’s brother-in-law, our family will prosper even more.’
“Yes, Father.”
“Candric, my lord. You must not miss today’s knight training. Last time, you skipped it and angered His Lordship…”
Slap!
“What the hell is this annoying interference about?”
“Ah, uhm…”
“Hey, check if my master or father is coming when I’m having fun. If they catch me, I’ll be in real trouble.”
“Eilene, didn’t my brother go too far? Let me apologize on his behalf.”
“Oh, no. Lord Benedric.”
“I prepared a snack as an apology. Would you like to eat it with me in my room?”
“T-Thank you. I’ll gladly eat it.”
Thump!
“..! M-My Lord, what is this…?”
“hehehe, don’t give me that look. You’re the woman sent by Baron Baren. That pig-like scum. He wanted to marry you off to my brother to elevate his status, right? You think there are only one or two like you around here?”
“Please let me go..!”
“Hey, you’ve already been marked by my brother. Even if you die and wake up again, you won’t be able to marry him. So why not be with me instead? At least I’ll take responsibility, right? So resist less and obediently… Agh!!! My manhood!!!”
Crack!
“How dare this woman hit my son?!”
“Sir, it’s just that…”
“I was just trying to comfort Eilene because she got hurt by Lord Candric, but she suddenly attacked my manhood!”
“What?! Baron Baren, I never expected this from you! How did you raise your daughter?!'”
“…I am truly sorry. If you give me one more chance, I will properly educate her.”
Thump! Thud!
“You useless woman! If you couldn’t make a good impression on the eldest son, you should have at least made it on the youngest! What on earth have you done?!”
‘Ugh, ugh… Father, father… please…’
‘Did I raise you by feeding you and clothing you for this? If so, go and offer your body to them or do something!!!’
‘Ugh, sniff, huh. (Mother…)’
‘What’s wrong, Eileen? Why are you crying here?’
‘Sob, Lord Edric…’
‘How did you get such a big bruise on your cheek… oh, there are so many bruises elsewhere. What’s this, did you go somewhere and get beaten up?’
‘Oh, no…’
‘No, huh… here, let me put this on. This stuff stings but if you put it on where you got hit, the swelling goes down quicker. I just got smacked by Dad too. Damn, it hurts…’
‘Thank you…’
‘Lord, are you slacking off again?’
‘…oh, Eileen. I don’t feel like studying today. Just looking at words is making my head spin and I feel like I’ll throw up…’
‘Last time, you skipped out and got a severe scolding from the Marquess…’
‘I’ve been smacked so many times that I’m used to it now. Even if I get hit again, it’ll be fine.’
‘I will inform the priest that you’re in too much pain to attend class.’
‘Really? Thanks, Eileen!’
‘…You’re welcome.’
**
Drung-.
Eileen looked at Edric’s face, already deep in sleep from her recent questions. She placed a kiss on Edric’s ear.
“The reason I have come to love you… is probably because you were the only person I met who had the respect, consideration, and kindness that most people didn’t show me.”
Eileen eventually couldn’t tell Edric everything.
But. If Lord wishes, someday, someday…
Will the day come when she dedicates everything to him.
Eileen thought.