I Think My Fiancé Has Regressed

Chapter 28: Dreamweed (3)

After finishing up the last of the cleanup in the secret garden, I headed straight to the church where Alex would have been taken.

It was hard not to be concerned about his injuries, so of course I couldn’t leave him alone.

When Alex told me that he would arrest Miss Sierra and that he would try to overcome the dreamweed’s brainwashing on his own, I did not actively stop him.

It was undoubtedly a contributing factor to Alex’s injuries.

If I had intervened in the middle, at least he wouldn’t have had to stab himself in the thigh.

Fortunately, the Academy has a church and a senior priest for times like this, but that doesn’t erase the wrong I did to Alex.

It wasn’t hard to find the room where Alex was hospitalized.

As soon as I was escorted by the priest up to the second floor of the Academy Church, I saw Alex’s entourage waiting outside a doorway.

Our eyes met, and Dale was the first to recognize me and greet me.

“Hi, Ariana, I’m sorry I didn’t greet you properly, I was just in a hurry.”

“That’s okay.”

At least Dale was waiting outside the hospital room, which meant he wasn’t in life-threatening condition.

“Is Alex in there?”

“Uh, yeah. He just got out of the urgent care, and he’s resting now.”

“Good.”

Now that I knew it wasn’t a major injury, I was able to lift a weight off my shoulders.

“If I were to visit Alex in his hospital room right now, do you think there’s any risk of him getting worse? If there’s a risk of that, I’d probably visit a little later.”

“Not really. On the contrary, if I send Ariana away, I will be scolded by Alex later.”

“No way.”

Before I opened the door to Alex’s hospital room, I said what I needed to say to Dale, his attendant.

“…I’m sorry for hurting Alex.”

“What?”

I got a confused response, but I had to say what needed to be said.

“I should have considered that this could have happened, or at least had Dale or one of the church priests around to help at any time.”

“I suppose that’s not really an option, since we’re not allowed to have people with us inside the Academy.”

“That’s true, but I should have at least not said anything that sounded like I was trying to force Alex to fight the effects of the dreamweed.

In the end, it’s because I was a little too honest about my feelings that Alex ended up in the church like this.”

“I’ve already told you that it’s not your fault, Ariana. I’m the one who used the sword on my body as shock therapy, and the one who started it all was Miss Sierra.”

“Still….I’m not without fault.”

As the butler who’s been with Alex the longest, I’m sure Dale’s concern grows every time Alex gets into a dangerous situation like this.

Even when Alex threw himself in for me and nearly put his life in danger, he was by Alex’s side, watching him get up without missing a beat.

In that way, I, who always hurt Alex, am in a position of shame that I can’t even lift my head in front of Dale.

“Ms. Ariana, do you mind if I put up something I dared to say?”

“Yes, you can say anything.”

“To be honest with you, Ms. Ariana, I can never thank you enough.”

“…What?”

I asked, bewildered by Dale’s out-of-the-blue compliment, and his mouth formed an explanation for his earlier words.

“Two years ago. That’s when Alex suddenly started acting weird.

Ever since he started acting out of character, I’ve been, to my shame, a little suspicious of his behavior. This is despite my title as Alex’s personal attendant.

His behavior over the past two years since entering the academy has been quite different from the person I once believed him to be.

As he cut off all ties with those around him who criticized Miss Sierra, as he abandoned his fiancée Ariana and spent time with women outside of the academy, I became increasingly suspicious.

Thank goodness he dramatically reverted back to his original self half a year ago. If he had kept her around, he might have brought the entire kingdom of Leavrov into crisis.”

“…No way, that’s too much of a leap.”

“I seriously thought so at one point.”

How could it have come to that?

I agree that Miss Sierra is a troublesome person in many ways.

But if she somehow managed to work it all out and become queen, I’m sure she knew her stuff and handled herself well after that.

I just can’t see the fall of the Leavrov kingdom happening.

“As someone who once felt that way, I have a great deal of respect for you for that reason.”

“…Suddenly?”

“You didn’t let Alex’s sudden change in demeanor discourage you, Ariana, and you believed in him until the very end, when he returned to the right path.”

“…….”

“Having seen up close the way Lord Alex has treated Lady Ariana over the years, I can’t help but admire your heart.”

“…That’s true.”

“The fact that you didn’t do anything about Sierra’s outrageous behavior, and the fact that you forgave Alex as soon as he returned to his normal self was because you trusted Alex deep down.”

“…….”

As I sat there and listened to Dale, I honestly couldn’t help but feel pricked by my conscience.

I hadn’t done anything when Miss Sierra stuck by Alex’s side, because I’d dismissed it as the game system’s coercion at work.

My willingness to forgive Alex as soon as he changed his mind was simply a judgment call based on my own feelings.

I know best that I don’t deserve this praise, but more than that, I know what I need to do in this situation.

“It’s nice that you think so, and I appreciate that.”

In this situation, it’s better to take the other person’s favor in stride.

If they already have good feelings for you, why devalue them by denying it?

I know I shouldn’t trust favors without expecting something in return, but at least from Dale’s perspective, there’s no reason to lie to me, Alex’s fiancée.

“And while we’re on the subject of consequences, it’s not all bad that he was carried to church today.”

“What?”

“Because right now, Alex’s body is being pushed to its limits. The wounds from last winter’s raid on the demon nest haven’t fully healed, and there have been long stretches of time where he’s been getting less than two hours of sleep a night because of his student council duties.

The student council duties have been greatly reduced thanks to Ariana, but he’s eventually returned to his old lifestyle, claiming to use his spare time for other things.”

“…Really?”

“I’ve been suggesting that he goes to church and get a medical checkup or something, but he never seems to listen to me.

Now that I’ve somehow succeeded in pushing him into the church this time, we can spend this summer making sure every inch of his body is taken care of.”

“I’ll tell Alex that, too, and please take this summer off.”

“If you say so, I couldn’t be more grateful.”

I can’t believe he’s already putting himself through this just to see what happens later.

The fact that he’s been able to run day after day on less than two hours of sleep means he had such a capable butler by his side.

With a slight bow of his head, Dale expressed his sincere gratitude.

“…I’ll take good care of Alex in the future.”

“I’ll keep Alex in my prayers, too.”

After Dale and I exchanged a brief moment of silence, I opened the door to the hospital room containing Alex.

The first thing I saw as the door swung open was the horizontal bed, and I met Alex’s gaze immediately.

“Ariana.”

As if anticipating what I was going to say, Alex simply called my name with a sheepish look on his face.