Come and Cry at My Funeral - Chapter 30
And Izar glared at the knights around him with a dry gaze.
‘Who told her we were leaving?’
Without prior notice, she couldn’t have rolled out so prepared. Unfortunately for him, Izar missed the moment Van Dike subtly averted his gaze.
The shepherdess had already run up to him.
“I wanted to say farewell before you depart, so I came out.”
“It’s unnecessary.”
He turned away without facing her. Or, he would have turned away, had the shepherdess not daringly tugged at his sleeve.
“Duke, I wanted to give you this…”
If she hadn’t presumptuously pulled at his sleeve, he would have been utterly astonished. Looking down, the shepherdess hurriedly offered something she held tightly in her hand.
“Please accept this… even just this.”
In her small palm lay a black thread bracelet.
Seeing it, Izar almost raised his voice. But to maintain his dignity in front of all these knights at such a tranquil dawn, he forced himself to lower his voice.
“Why can’t you remember what I’ve said?”
It wasn’t as if his tone wasn’t harsh.
‘I told you not to act like a wife.’
But the woman, quick as a small prey animal, intercepted his words and spoke first.
“I remember. You told me not to act as your wife.”
“Then what’s the meaning of this?”
“This… it’s not as your wife that I’m giving this.”
The shepherdess cautiously raised her palm, looking up at him.
“It is as a village woman who admires you that I give this to you, Duke.”
“…”
“So, I have not gone against your words.”
Embarrassed by her own statement, Freesia pressed her lips together after speaking.
A gentle breeze swept between them just then. Even Izar found himself speechless when he finally faced her directly.
He had thought this several times before.
‘This shepherdess’s eyes are unnecessarily too big.’
And what he hadn’t noticed when she had those dead, old-woman-like eyes was now clear. When those large eyes were filled with life, they shone as clear as a forest on a summer day.
And those shining eyes make the onlooker forget their current thoughts, compelling them to keep gazing into them.
How long had passed like this?
Charles approached hesitantly and whispered to Izar.
“Milord, we must depart…”
“…I know.”
He was momentarily lost in foolish thoughts, captivated by the morning sunlight shining into those green eyes.
Yet the woman still gently held onto his sleeve, fidgeting.
‘I should just take it quickly and shake her off.’
Given her stubbornness, she seemed ready to cling and follow if he didn’t accept.
“Give it here.”
“Ah…!”
Izar almost snatched the thread bracelet from her. Without listening to whatever she was stuttering, he mounted his horse and did not look back as dawn broke.
***
Freesia, in truth, had no intention of giving the thread bracelet until the very last moment, even though it meant cutting into her sleep time to make it.
‘I should have just asked Sir Dike to deliver the dagger instead.’
She regretted it countless times but what was done was done. And she thought she should not have gone to see him off.
It wasn’t good to provoke Izar too much right from the start.
Yet, as she watched his silhouette disappear into the horizon, Freesia was thankful for the courage her limited life gave her.
‘I’m glad I gave it to him.’
She saw him put what she gave him into his pocket.
‘I’m glad I spoke true to my heart.’
It was fortunate that she could say even once during the time she had left that she loved him.
Why hadn’t she spoken such simple words in her past life?
Maybe she was too scared and overwhelmed by the circumstances.
‘I could have said it at least once when I was pregnant.’
With a self-mocking smile, Freesia turned towards the castle. There was a mountain of work waiting, so it was time to focus.
“…Oh.”
But suddenly, Freesia’s eyes widened with a chilling premonition. Thinking of the baby, her mind inadvertently drifted to her last days before death…
‘How did I die?’
She remembered up until her ‘husband’ left the room. She must have lived a bit longer after that.
She recalled trying to pretend everything was fine and attempting to continue her social activities as she slowly regained her health.
But her memories of those last days were blacked out.
‘…?’
Freesia rubbed her forehead and blinked a couple of times. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t remember her final day.
However, Thea, walking ahead, called out to her loudly.
“Madam! Madam, what’s wrong? We need to go inside!”
“Ah… I’m coming.”
Freesia shook her head vigorously and moved forward.
‘That matter isn’t important right now.’
It was better to extinguish the urgent fires first and think about it later.
