Chapter 295: Warmth
Now that he thought about it, from the very beginning until now, Evelia had somehow gone from being “the person he trusted the least” to “the person he trusted the most.”
At first, she was someone he had to be constantly wary of, a “spy.” But now, she had become the person closest to him, his dearest lover.
Armand had so many things on his mind and had tried to talk himself through it. After all, that’s what he’d always done.
Throughout his life, he had always relied on himself to find comfort. Just like how he had that little habit of tapping his fingers when thinking. He was always talking to himself, looking at things from different angles, trying to come up with ways to solve his problems.
But, strangely enough, every time he came up with an idea from a different angle, he would later reject it himself.
Because in the end, those were just “different perspectives,” not really him. And the only solution he usually accepted was the one that came from the “real” him, his original thought.
He searched for countless side paths, but they all led him back to the starting point or into a dead end.
So really, “comforting himself” was just an excuse. Just him lying to himself with whatever reason sounded most acceptable.
But now… maybe Evelia could replace those fake versions of himself.
Even if her perspective wasn’t truly his own, Armand was happy to listen to what she had to say.
Of course, it had to be reasonable, because sometimes Evelia’s way of thinking was a little too strange for him to keep up with.
“……”
Armand let out a quiet sigh. His warm breath brushed against Evelia’s chest. He rubbed his chin against her softly, and the sound of their pounding heartbeats echoed in both of their minds.
“Eve.”
“Yes, I’m here, Mr. Armand.”
It was the same familiar exchange. But somehow, their voices sounded different now than before.
Armand’s tone was no longer as lively, and Evelia’s reply wasn’t cold or stiff anymore. It felt like he had given all of his gentleness to her.
“Eve… I…”
For some reason, the words wouldn’t come out.
Evelia should already know. She should know who he really was. His background, his fragile body, and how his illness was getting worse.
He might end up spending the whole winter under Evelia’s care. They had just gotten engaged, hadn’t even had a wedding yet, and she was already being burdened like a wife.
Or… maybe it would turn out even worse than that.
—So… should he tell her?
“I…”
—Should he tell her that he might not have long to live?
“I feel kind of…”
This winter was bound to be a cold one. A snowy season. A season that would test his will to live.
“…I feel kind of cold.”
In the end, Armand could only say it in such a vague way.
He couldn’t bring himself to let Evelia face his illness directly, so this was the only way.
He couldn’t say it out loud, afraid that if he did, people would be disappointed and slowly drift away from him.
He didn’t want to trouble others, but at the same time, he didn’t want to be forgotten either.
In the end, he was still someone who came from the House of Nightingales. Even though he had developed his own sense of self and had slowly walked out of that place, he couldn’t deny that the rules and mindset of that place had deeply influenced him.
Armand Systalia looked bright and cheerful on the outside, But deep down, he was a timid and insecure man.
His life had already taken a turn. There was no going back to being the boy once loved by his parents…
That boy named Aegmed Scassia.
Compared to how he treated others, Armand had already expressed quite a lot.
Because he truly trusted Evelia, and he saw her as the other half of his soul.
Maybe before he confessed his feelings, he hadn’t planned to rely on anyone emotionally. But once he realized Evelia had become his lover, he only wanted to let out all the weakness he had been hiding inside. Like a child, he just wanted to curl up in someone’s arms, even if just for a few seconds, as long as he could have a moment to rest.
So the cold he felt wasn’t really about his body.
It wasn’t just the chill of winter he feared. It was the feeling that everything around him was cold.
Of course, the people around him were good to him. Carle was a close and trustworthy friend. But Carle had his own family, and even if Armand wanted to lean on him, he couldn’t bring every burden to him, especially not for his friend’s sake.
The weight pressing down on him made it hard to breathe. It felt like his late friend’s soul was always sitting on his shoulder, making his body heavier and heavier.
“Mm…”
Evelia made a soft sound when she heard him. Under Armand’s gaze, she helped him sit up. She had him stand in front of her and looked him up and down.
“What’s wrong?”
Armand asked in confusion as Evelia examined him. Her eyes slowly scanned his body, and then she gave a small nod before lifting the hem of his shirt, which had been tucked into his pants.
His abdominal muscles were exposed to the air. Even though the room was warm, he still felt a sudden chill the moment the shirt was lifted.
“Eve? You—”
Before Armand could finish his sentence, the chill vanished in an instant, replaced by warmth pressed closely against him.
Before he could react, Evelia had already undone both of their coats, lowered her head, and dove straight into his shirt.
“?!”
In no time, she was pressed tightly against Armand’s body. Even though Armand was wearing a sweater inside, it had good elasticity. Evelia clung tightly to his skin. Her warm body was only covered by a thin layer of underclothing, which rubbed against him slightly as she adjusted her position, the contact very clear.
“Does this feel a little better, Mr. Armand?”
“Ah, um—whoa…!”
Before Armand could fully react, maybe because he tried to move but lost his balance, he fell backward, and Evelia fell with him, landing right on top of him.
“Did it hurt when you fell, Mr. Armand?”
Evelia’s soft body was now pressed tightly against Armand. Even though there was still fabric between them, there really wasn’t much difference.
She seemed very seriously concerned about whether Armand was okay, which made it hard for him to say what he was really thinking, even if he had thoughts about the situation.
Although the two of them had already “gotten close” before, Armand still got a bit shy sometimes. In moments like this, he felt like a nervous newlywed husband.
“I’m fine…”
Armand swallowed the extra saliva in his mouth and looked awkwardly at Evelia’s clear, innocent golden eyes, his face bright red.
Her gaze was so sincere that he didn’t dare think about anything inappropriate. For him, just being able to look her in the eyes in this kind of moment was already a big step forward.
“Are you really okay, Mr. Armand? I landed on you. It must have hurt, didn’t it?”
When Evelia said this, she also rubbed against him again, like it was just a natural reaction. It looked like she wanted to get up, but she was stuck inside Armand’s clothes and could only wiggle downward a little.
Right now, Evelia was nestled close to Armand’s neck, her body constantly shifting around his stomach. It made Armand let out a deep breath without meaning to.
“No—really, I’m fine. There’s a carpet here, see? It didn’t hurt.”
Armand said while rubbing his head against the carpet like he was trying to prove he was totally okay.
“You haven’t been looking well these past few days. What’s wrong?”
Even though Armand gave an explanation, Evelia still looked worried. After all, she really had noticed lately that Armand would space out more and more. Sometimes, he’d suddenly look around with a blank face, like he didn’t know where he was.
But after glancing around, he would quickly go back to normal. Maybe others wouldn’t notice such small changes in his expression, but Evelia always had her eyes only on Armand. Right now, to her, Armand was her whole world.
So even if Armand tried to hide it, Evelia could still see that something was off about him.
She just didn’t know what was causing it. She never thought about things like poison or anything serious. At most, she guessed maybe he wasn’t sleeping well. After all, Armand had always been the type to stay up late and sleep very little. Evelia had known this for a long time.
While asking him how he was, Evelia gently wrapped her arms around his waist. She listened to his heartbeat getting faster and felt how warm his body was becoming.
“It’s nothing. I’m probably just tired,” Armand smiled helplessly, letting Evelia’s hands rest on his back.
“...Then please rest well, Mr. Armand. You’re not feeling so cold anymore, right?”
Evelia also noticed his rising body temperature. It felt like just her being near had warmed up his chest so much he’d even started sweating a little.
“Ah—yeah, I’m much warmer now. Thank you.”
“Then, Mr. Armand, if you need rest… why not sleep here for a bit? I’ll stay by your side, so please relax.”
Since Armand had admitted he was tired, Evelia didn’t hesitate to invite him to stay. This time, she even leaned her whole body against his, hugging him tightly like she didn’t want to let go.
“This…”
“Mr. Armand…”
Evelia looked up at him with her eyes, like a little kitten begging for attention. Her fingers lightly scratched at the small of his back as if trying to get him to say yes.
“I still have to go to wor—”
“My dear husband… don’t you want to spend some time with your wife…? It’s so cold today…”
“—”
That line completely shut Armand up. She had him cornered.
Blushing, Armand finally nodded and agreed to her request.
“Alright then, Mr. Armand… come to bed with me…❤”
“...?”
But for some reason, even though Evelia looked sweet and innocent just a second ago, the tone of her voice suddenly changed after he agreed. It made Armand feel a strange sense of danger.
…Was she really going to let him just rest?