Vol 11 - 23

Vol 11 - 23

Kyle was engrossed in the newspaper. It wasn’t clear whether he didn’t hear or pretended not to hear with an impassive face flipping through the newspaper. Christoph continued to speak after watching Kyle for a while.

“Moreover, when mentioning Riegrow and Tarten, it goes beyond the scope of trustworthiness and reliability. Even if Tarten turns his back on Riegrow to cooperate with someone else, it shouldn’t lead to him stabbing Riegrow.”

Moreover, given Rick’s temperament, he would also not think that he would be blatantly stabbed in the back like that. Christoph said this with a bit of melancholy emotion and then ended the succinct sentence.

"That is, they almost accepted any action from him, or let him do whatever he wanted, but still made sure to maintain their relationship with the Riegrow family."

“……The more I hear, the more ominous it sounds……”

I was still pulling at my hair, which was pinned up. I wanted to tear it out but thought better of not harming myself and let go.

“If that’s the case, then it can be concluded that Ilay’s position in this event is very important.”

I sighed and exaggeratedly spread my arms. But there was no answer to that statement.

“When we meet Richard, we’ll know.”

Kyle folded the newspaper and said.

As soon as that name was mentioned, the expression on Christoph’s face vanished. Taeui just glanced at him quietly.

“Um…… really want to have dinner together in this house?”

There are many reasons why facing each other directly seems difficult. At least even if the food is delicious, it’s hard to enjoy it.

But Kyle picked up the last newspaper and opened it and spoke calmly.

“Unless he definitely lets go of me first, I have no intention of letting go. And anyway, in this situation, the one who got ‘hurt’ is not Riegrow but Ilay himself.”

“And you know, it’s not always the guy who gets stabbed in the back like that which is truly extraordinary.” – Kyle added with a slightly pleased mischievous tone.

Thinking back to the times Ilay mentally tortured Kyle, I understood that the feeling was not just an illusion.

**************

Darkness fell over the face.

The intense red light shining above Christoph’s tightly closed eyes was obscured and turned blue. Christoph slowly opened his eyes.

“Oh, did I wake you?”

Jeong Taeui stood above him, holding a large bucket. It might just be a feeling, but there seemed to be a foul smell emanating from the bucket.

“What’s this bucket shaking in front of my face?”

Christoph spoke coldly. If released, the bucket would directly hit his face.

“Huh? Oh, it’s fertilizer. Peter told me to bring it here.”

“Because it’s made from natural ingredients, it stinks, right? But it’s natural.” – I added naively and grinned broadly. Christoph stared at me with a deadly gaze.

“If it’s natural fertilizer then……”

“Ah—what’s it called in German, um…… Kompost? Fertilizer?”

I shook my head and mumbled while searching for the right word as Christoph immediately moved aside and sat up.

“Are you shaking that thing right in my face?!”

“Ah, sorry. I thought you were sleeping.”

“Even if I was sleeping, don’t bring it too close!”

Christoph shouted angrily. “Yes, sir.” – I obediently put the bucket down next to me and sat down beside Christoph under the tree where Christoph had been lying. I seemed comfortable as I leaned my head against the trunk and closed my eyes while Christoph still stared intently at me.

“Like it?”

Christoph suddenly asked. I merely rolled my eyes at Christoph and replied succinctly: “Yeah.”

“Wow, you really like going into the forest in Dresden.”

Christoph nodded, murmuring, and suddenly Taeui burst out laughing. Christoph frowned, not understanding, and shook his head.

“The one who likes going into the forest is you. You ride horses almost every day. Even when the horse is injured and can’t be ridden, you still go.”

Jeong Taeui spoke while laughing. Christoph coldly shook his head.

“I don’t really like the forest that much. It’s just less crowded there, and I don’t have to face more people than in the manor.”

That place was always quiet and secluded.

During that time in Tarten when he was still struggling for the succession and his schedule was packed, he hardly had any rest. Among the few places he could find tranquility outside his bed, that was one place where he could be at peace alone.

“Really? Why is that? The forest is so beautiful. At least you don’t encounter many others there…… Oh, there was that time you met Richard.”

I hesitated as if it were odd. I seemed to remember something and added, making Christoph raise his eyebrows.

“It’s rare. He doesn’t often go there.”

Christoph said, and Jeong Taeui looked even more surprised.

“I thought he often walked there because he knew the path so well.”

“Ah…… it’s been a while since he’s been going regularly. Olivia likes walking in the forest.”

Her physical condition was weak, so she seldom walked in the forest, but when her health was good, she would occasionally sit and rest near the entrance to the forest. Christoph had seen her several times like that. And each time, Olivia always had a bright smile. Even though Richard just smiled lightly beside her, she didn't realize that Christoph was actually uncomfortable.

She always smiled. Every time Christoph saw her there, she was cheerful. No matter when.

——Does Olivia really like me? ……No, if it was me, it wouldn’t be like that.

Suddenly, a gentle yet malicious voice rang in his ear. It was a recently heard remark.

Beside Christoph in silence, Taeui looked up at the sky and whispered.

“Olivia…… sounds like Oliver. Then she’s also like Richard, right?”

Christoph was silent for a while then slowly said.

“Not exactly like Oliver, but enough to recognize that they are siblings……. And I hate that.”

He hates it. Not hate, but dislike. Although it wasn’t so, she was Richard’s sister and even looked like him. So he didn’t want to approach.

Not yet.

Every time Olivia saw Christoph from afar, she would happily approach. Always like that, without exception. So frequent it was strange.

“Even if I spend more time there just lying down than walking around, I still meet her more often than others. Every time she sees me, she approaches. So each time – or sometimes occasionally – I wondered. Why is that? Does she really like me?”

Christoph clamped his mouth shut.

In the end, those doubts would never be resolved. And now it could no longer be dealt with.

I tilted my head to look at Christoph then looked up at the sky.

“So…… maybe if you stayed longer, you’d also like Olivia.”

I spoke as if talking to myself and when Christoph looked at me in surprise, I just scratched my head and added.

“Usually thinking like that means it’s so.”

Christoph blinked: “I guess.” He murmured and tilted his head in thought for a while, but still couldn’t make sense of it.

He quietly watched Taeui for a while. After observing Taeui’s relaxed face leaning against the tree trunk for a long time, Christoph suddenly said.

“Jeong Taeui. I like you.”

I opened my eyes and looked at Christoph. I seemed confused and surprised and didn’t take my eyes off Christoph.

“…… I thought so, but now I’m not sure. I really……”

Christoph stopped midway and just stared intently at Jeong Taeui.

While the two were looking at each other, Taeui seemed embarrassed and was about to say something but just then.

“Are you two here together?”

The glass door leading to the living room opened, and Kyle stepped out.

He had been pulled away early to go to the company and had just returned, still in his suit. But right in front of them, he immediately stripped off his clothes and was left only in his underwear, then walked over and jumped into the swimming pool next to them. Along with the loud splash, water sprayed near where they were sitting.

After diving underwater for a while, Kyle suddenly surfaced, breathing heavily in a refreshing way, and wiped his dripping wet face with his palm.

After trying to wipe his face several times with his fingers, Kyle inadvertently caught Jeong Taeui’s gaze. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he exclaimed:

“Hey, Jeong Taeui, I remember Peter is waiting for you in the front garden. I think you were supposed to bring him fertilizer, right?”

“Oh? ……AH!”

Jeong Taeui, with a regretful expression, quickly stood up.

I grabbed the bucket I had set down, waved goodbye to Christoph hastily, and hurried away.

Christoph, who was sitting nearby, watched as Taeui’s figure disappeared behind the building. Meanwhile, Kyle swam back and forth a few more times in the pool, and finally, as if satisfied with his laps, let himself float on the water.

“If I think about it, it’s not surprising that you like Tay, considering your personality…… But Tay is off-limits. Ilay genuinely values him. Even though I see it every day, I still can’t believe it.”

While floating on the water, Kyle suddenly voiced his unexpected thoughts. Only then did Christoph turn his gaze from where Taeui had disappeared to look at him.

As if those simple words contained a vague worry. Kyle might have been concerned about whether Christoph and Rick would have a conflict, or perhaps he was feeling sympathy for Christoph.

“Why do you like Jeong Taeui?”

Christoph asked. Kyle squinted and smiled, unfazed by the unexpected question.

“Because he’s beautiful.”

“……”

“Huh?”

“……Nothing, nothing at all.”

Christoph widened his eyes at the brief response, then shook his head.

But upon reflecting once more, it made sense. That radiant beauty truly defied description.

“Indeed.” – After being convinced upon further thought, Christoph nodded to himself and asked again.

“Is that really so?”

“Yes.”

This time, the answer came immediately and without hesitation, leaving Christoph at a loss for words, so he remained silent.

How could one know? How could one understand such a thing?

Christoph stared at the man with wrinkles at the corners of his eyes, not from age but from smiling, and whispered. Yes, that was something easily said.

It could be easily spoken. Even if one didn’t think so or didn’t realize they didn’t think so, it could still be easily said.

It seemed Kyle also heard Christoph’s whispers.

Kyle turned his head to look at Christoph and then slowly stood up from the water. He jumped out of the pool and sat down seriously. Unexpectedly, he spoke with a serious tone.

“Have you ever thought that words have power?”

Christoph frowned and looked at Kyle with suspicion. He shook his head.

"I don't think so."

“If we hear something said to us repeatedly, we might start believing it without even realizing it. Depending on the circumstances, that can be a very scary thing.”

Christoph looked at Kyle with a strange expression. He couldn’t understand what Kyle was trying to say.

Kyle had always been like this for a long time. Ever since Christoph was very young, there were things about Kyle that Christoph couldn’t comprehend. Christoph couldn’t understand many things others said in general, but this was different.

Sometimes, when those of the same lineage ‘brothers’ gathered, most of them were friends around Christoph’s age. Among them, Christoph was one of the older ones, but Kyle was much older than Christoph. Among those of the same lineage, Kyle was the oldest. When Christoph first met him as a small child, Kyle was already a mature adult compared to the other peers.

Strangely, although Christoph was young and Kyle was clearly more mature than most adults, at some point, he became someone with careless and quirky habits. Perhaps Christoph’s childhood memories were mistaken.

One of those quirks was this. Sometimes he would say things that were hard to understand, leaving the listener puzzled as to what he was really implying.

Kyle wrinkled his wet eyebrows, blinked vaguely, and smiled faintly.

“That’s why important words should always be thought over many times before being spoken.”

“Important words.” – Christoph whispered in response. “Yes, important words.” – And Kyle, as if soothing a child, repeated after him.

Christoph stared at Kyle, then suddenly voiced thoughts that had crossed his mind a few times before.

“Kyle. I think that the older you get, the more childlike you become.”

Christoph’s words made Kyle blink in surprise with a puzzled expression.

“If I remember correctly, before I was even chosen as a successor candidate – back when you were still at the talent education facility – you were a mature person with sharp intellect and deep thinking, always admired by adults. A mature person full of willpower and wisdom…… To put it simply, you spoke little and often pondered, making you seem very composed.”

Kyle clutched his chest as if struck by a blow from the reminder of memories from over twenty years ago.

“Ah…… yes…… that was a shameful childhood…….”

“What made you change like this?”

Could it be the pressure of inheriting the family business, or having a relative with mental illness? While Christoph murmured such thoughts, Kyle only smiled bitterly.

“People really don’t know who they truly are until a certain point…… But why are you saying such heart-wrenching things now……?”

“You said to think carefully before speaking. I’ve thought about it several times.”

“No, no, Christoph…… that’s not what I meant…….”

Kyle lay down and rolled onto the grass, flipping over. As expected, his posture, lying on the ground with his knees in the water and his stomach on the grass, didn’t look like that of an adult at all.

“So, what is it? What are the important words that need to be thought over several times before being said?”

When Christoph asked, Kyle raised an eyebrow and grinned: “Hmm”, sinking into thought.

“Right, like these words. I like Tay. I also like Rita and Peter. And Ilay…… Ilay, I have to think a little more.”

Kyle suddenly looked gloomy as if darkness had clouded his mind.

“That guy is a heavy burden on my life. But to love such a burden requires continuous effort and practice.” – He whispered gloomily, and when his eyes met Christoph’s, he realized he was speaking nonsense and sighed. Then he smiled wearily.

Christoph looked enviously at the deep wrinkles at the corners of Kyle’s eyes. How could one smile so much that it created such wrinkles on their face? And Kyle suddenly smiled gently. Those wrinkles deepened.

“And Christoph, I like you too.”

Kyle’s words left Christoph expressionless. He stared at Kyle as if he had heard something very strange and entirely unexpected and slowly tilted his head.

“Me?”

Christoph blinked in surprise, and Kyle generously smiled and nodded. After a moment of thought, Christoph shook his head and replied uncertainly.

“I’m not sure.”

“Is that so? I thought you liked me too.”

When Kyle responded in surprise, Christoph didn’t think for too long before rolling his eyes and whispering to himself.

“That’s never going to happen.”

Christoph frowned slightly, but Kyle didn’t seem to care about his expression or the answer to his question: “Really?”, and laughed out loud.

“People don’t necessarily have to understand themselves.” – Kyle added, and those words sounded quite negative, but Christoph only looked at him with a strange expression.

Not knowing what to say. Somehow. Uncertain. But regardless.

Christoph lightly tapped his forehead, feeling a bit confused with the fragmented and unclear emotions that suddenly surfaced.

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