My Secret Flower - Episode 3

He looks at me, his eyes hazy as if he’s drunk with sleep or intoxicated by the painkillers mixed with sleeping pills. I meet his gaze directly, smile brightly, and busily move my hands again to finish unwrapping the bandages.

“It’s fortunate that your wound is almost healed. I told you that it seems like you’re moving around on your own when I’m not watching, and if you keep doing that, the wound could reopen and delay the healing. If you want to get better quickly, I hope you’ll stay still and be good.”

The attending physician, suspicious of the recurring wound openings, decided it would be better to have someone secretly watch him when he’s alone and assigned a knight to him. According to the knight, he gets up on his own without making a single groan, sweating profusely, and just stands by the window, staring blankly at the sky.

What kind of story does he have? How did he end up appearing before me in such a state? What is his identity?

I was full of questions, but I deliberately didn’t ask. Ever since that day he appeared covered in blood, he hasn’t uttered a single word, as if he’s taken a vow of silence. Maybe he really lost his voice. I decided to wait until he speaks first.

Carefully removing the bandages around his chest and shoulders, being mindful not to reopen the wound, I wrung out the wet towel again and gently wiped around the injury. His body was so firm. His skin was smooth and fine, making it quite pleasant to the touch.

‘As beautiful as his eyes. Really.’

It’s a bit upsetting that he’s covered in scars, but I can’t help but feel excited and have butterflies in my stomach thinking about what he’ll look like when all these scars are gone.

As I was concentrating on wiping him down, I felt a tingling on my forehead. I slightly lifted my head and our eyes met. He was looking at me without the slightest wavering.

“…Do you not like that I’m wiping you down myself?”

He lowers his gaze again and turns his head slightly towards the window. I feel a little disappointed that the person who always stared intently at me is averting his gaze first.

After wiping down his upper body, where pretty, bulging muscles are forming, I raised his upper body and wiped his back, revealing his sexy figure. All that’s left is his lower body.

“Is it okay to take this off?”

Instead of pants, he’s wearing a cloth that barely covers his pelvis and thighs, fastened with a string, for treatment. If he hadn’t been awake, I would have just done it without asking, but since it’s a rather private area to show to others…

He didn’t answer my question, only his pupils trembled. It was an ambiguous expression, neither affirmative nor negative, but since I have to wash his whole body anyway…

It’s not an easy task even for me, so I made a firm resolution and concentrated on wiping him down, trying not to think about anything as much as possible. I tried hard not to look at that area.

“Phew, all done. I’ll cover you with a new cloth again. Just wait a moment.”

Afraid of making things awkward, I deliberately smiled brightly and placed a fluffy, well-dried cloth under his bottom. Then, I laid him down properly again and wrapped the cloth around his front, tying it with a string.

“From today, I won’t wrap bandages anymore, I’ll just apply medicine. If the wound reopens again, the bed will be a mess, and you’ll be in a lot of pain too. You really shouldn’t move. Understood? I told you that’s how you can get better quickly.”

Does he know how upset I am that the wound keeps reopening? He’s such a quiet person, and he can see the sky well enough while lying down, so why does he go to the trouble of moving and looking at it from the window?

It belatedly occurred to me that he might still be wary. Just like animals need an adjustment period in unfamiliar places, it’s probably the same for people.

So, from that day on, I did all the work I had entrusted to the servants with my own hands. Everything from feeding him meals to giving him medicine and washing his body.

Because I’m the only person he doesn’t seem to be wary of.

The first time is difficult, but as I did it, I gradually became more interested. I was also proud to see his wounds gradually healing with my own eyes.

And a few days later, the doctor who examined the man smiled contentedly and nodded.

“Fortunately, the nerves and muscles in his leg don’t seem to be damaged. However, it will be impossible to walk immediately, but it’s not an incurable injury, so if he recovers well, he should at least be able to walk without any problems.”

“Any aftereffects?”

“He won’t be perfectly fine like he was before the injury, but that also depends on how hard he works on rehabilitation himself.”

Still, I was relieved that he wouldn’t lose the use of his leg. If there was no hope, he would have been greatly disappointed and frustrated.

The man’s face also began to brighten at the doctor’s words. I smiled proudly, thinking that I had made a good decision to not ignore his injuries and decide to treat him until the end.

“Did you hear that? You can get better. So, hang in there a little longer.”

I massaged his left leg diligently with my own hands to encourage him, as he might damage his leg muscles if he couldn’t walk for a long time. It was my first time giving someone a massage like this, having been born a noble, so I was clumsy, but he just stared at me without saying a word.

“Lishua.”

“Ah! Father. Did you come all the way here? You should have called me.”

It was when I was massaging his leg that day. I was caught by my father, who came in without knocking, and I suddenly felt so embarrassed.

My father simply praised me for doing a good job of treating the injured man. Perhaps it was because so many people had died from the epidemic.

However, he was very displeased with how enthusiastic I was about his treatment. He clicked his tongue, saying I was wasting unnecessary effort, but I didn’t pay any attention. I knew he was just jealous because I didn’t do those things for him.

My father, jealous? My mother would laugh in heaven if she heard that.

“I heard the story from the doctor. He’s young and in good physical condition, so it seems he’ll be able to walk safely without taking too long.”

“Yes. The doctor I initially entrusted the treatment to said it might be hopeless, it was so serious, but if he didn’t have the will to live, it might have been dangerous.”

“I won’t have to see a dead person in the mansion. More than that, Lishua, follow me for a moment.”

My father, who was leaving the room again, seemed to have something to say to me. I quickly tidied up the man’s blanket and followed after my father.

“What do you want to say?”

My father, who stopped in the hallway not far from the guest room where he was staying, handed me a letter.

“There’s something about you in Joanna’s last will. I thought it would be right for you to see it yourself.”

My mother’s will…

When I first received it, I thought it was right to show it to my father first, so I hadn’t checked the contents. I carefully took it with trembling hands, glanced at my father, and unfolded the letter to check the contents.

It said that she had sensed her death as the epidemic began to spread in the capital and hastily wrote a few words. A member of the salon she had visited a few days ago had suddenly collapsed, and upon checking her condition, it seemed that her skin had already begun to rot, so she seemed to have been hiding her illness. She had confirmed that he was infected with a highly contagious epidemic, so most of the nobles who attended the salon would probably lose their lives.

I could feel how urgent the situation was in her calm handwriting. Seeing the familiar handwriting made me miss my mother even more. I held back the tears that were welling up and continued reading, and there was indeed something about me at the end.

She said that she had no regrets because her two older sisters had found good matches and were living happily, but she was concerned that she hadn’t loved her youngest daughter, who was a late bloomer, enough. Lishua is strong and knows how to distinguish things better than anyone else, so if she wants to work for the family with her own will, it would be good to entrust her with it. Since her marriage hasn’t been decided yet, she hopes that Lishua will be able to marry whoever she wants and live freely.

I’m not usually one to cry a lot. But I was overwhelmed by the countless scenes of my mother cherishing and loving me.

“Mother always worried about my future. Even when facing death, I guess I was still on her mind.”

“She often said that you were her biggest concern. Well, she said it was because you took after me, which was a problem. I don’t think that’s a big problem, though.”

I had heard several times that my eldest sister was particularly like my father and lacked compassion. I didn’t think I was that bad, but my mother seemed to think that there was no difference between my eldest sister and me.

Somehow, it’s a bit of a shock.

“So, what exactly is the reason you showed me this will?”

“It’s as it says in there. Your opinion is the most important, so I’ll ask. What is your will? Do you really want to receive heir education?”

That was something I had been constantly discussing with my mother for a long time. I asked if only boys could become heirs, and what would happen to our family, which had no sons. So, my mother said that if I loved and cared for the family, I could be the heir.

So, I had decided. I would protect our Marquis of Mariel family and territory in the future.

“I want to formally receive heir lessons. I will take responsibility for the family after my father.”

“Our kingdom doesn’t have a history of women receiving heir education yet. It won’t be easy. Will you still do it?”

“What in the world is easy? I heard that His Majesty the King was very opposed to my mother and father’s marriage. Nevertheless, it was concluded because there was that much determination and resolve, wasn’t there?”

“…Yes, you’re right. Then, I’ll start intensive education from tomorrow. The butler will bring you the details in documents, so look through them in advance.”

“Yes, Father.”

It’s been a long time since I’ve seen my father’s bright expression, as if he’s very pleased with my decision.

Others might argue how that’s a smiling face, but that expression, where his stiff face slightly relaxes and his lips twitch, is not commonly seen. It was an expression that was only occasionally seen when he was disarmed by my mother’s charm, so it felt somehow new.

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