Chapter 153: The Habit of Apology

Chapter 153: Chapter 153: The Habit of Apology

The field surgeon finished gathering his medical supplies.

Cassiel remained silent for a moment, his gaze fixed on Elysia.

Then he spoke.

"Bran, walk the surgeon out."

"Yes, Your Grace."

The surgeon bowed.

"Your Grace."

"And the rest of you, step outside."

The guards and attendants immediately withdrew.

Soon, the room fell quiet.

Only Elysia and Cassiel remained.

Elysia shifted slightly in her chair, careful not to disturb her injured knee.

A flicker of unease stirred in her chest.

Cassiel looked grim.

Was he angry?

Perhaps he was displeased that she had come all the way to the army camp, interrupted his military council, and then managed to injure herself before he could even finish his work.

That would certainly make Draevenor Manor look careless.

If Vaelen had not grabbed her like that, none of this would have happened.

Still, she had no intention of making matters worse.

She would be living under Cassiel’s protection from now on.

She could not afford to upset him.

"You..."

Cassiel had barely begun when Elysia immediately spoke.

"I’m sorry!"

Cassiel blinked.

"For what?"

Elysia lowered her eyes.

"I didn’t mean to fall."

Her voice was soft and earnest.

"Please don’t be upset. I’ll be more careful from now on. And if you’d rather I not come to the army camp again, I’ll stay at Draevenor Manor. I won’t cause trouble."

A faintly apologetic smile touched her lips.

Cassiel’s expression did not soften.

If anything, his brow drew tighter.

"I am angry."

Elysia’s heart sank.

She had known it.

But before she could think of what else to say, Cassiel continued.

"But I’m not angry at you."

She looked up.

His gaze was steady.

"Elysia, why are you apologising?"

She froze.

Cassiel’s voice remained calm.

"You came to bring me medicine. That made me happy."

Elysia stared at him.

"What I was discussing with them matters, yes. But you matter too. Those things don’t cancel each other out."

His eyes narrowed slightly.

"And Vaelen was the one who grabbed you. He’s the reason you fell and hurt your knee. That wasn’t your fault. Why are you taking it all on yourself?"

Elysia’s lips parted, but no words came.

A sharp sting rose behind her eyes.

She did not know how to describe the feeling.

Since her family had suffered one loss after another, no one had stood up for her like this.

In the life she remembered before, whether it was Vaelen or Deborah, whenever something went wrong, somehow it always ended up being her fault.

Over time, she had grown accustomed to apologising first.

No matter what happened, she assumed she must have done something wrong.

But Cassiel was looking at her as though that was the most unreasonable thing in the world.

The faint sound of wheels moving outside broke the silence.

Cassiel shifted closer.

"There is something else."

Elysia looked up at him.

His eyes were steady.

"Elysia, you don’t have to act tough."

"I’m not acting," she replied instinctively.

She straightened slightly.

"I’m Calen’s daughter. I shouldn’t be afraid of pain."

For the first time since entering the room, Cassiel actually smiled.

"Calen’s daughter isn’t human?"

Elysia was caught off guard.

Cassiel tilted his head slightly.

"Look at me. I’m His Majesty’s most trusted brother. People call me ruthless. But if someone runs me through with a blade, I bleed like anyone else."

Elysia had no answer to that.

Cassiel reached towards the small jar of ointment the surgeon had left behind.

"Give me your hand."

Elysia obediently extended her scraped palm.

Cassiel took the ointment and spread it gently over the raw skin.

His movements were careful, almost painstakingly so.

Elysia watched him silently.

Cassiel’s mind was in a storm.

Just last night, he had been tending to her injuries too.

She had married into Draevenor Manor expecting to live comfortably.

Why did she keep ending up hurt?

A husband who could not shield his wife from harm had failed her.

Yet here Cassiel was again, tending to her himself.

When he finished applying the ointment, he leaned closer and blew lightly over her palm.

Elysia’s fingers curled instinctively.

She was about to thank him when Cassiel set the jar aside.

"Let’s go."

She blinked.

"Go where?"

A faint smile touched his lips.

"To the palace."

It took Elysia a moment to understand.

Then she shook her head.

Cassiel lifted one brow.

"You don’t want to?"

Elysia nodded seriously.

"You’re His Majesty’s brother. Of course you’re close. But Vaelen is His Majesty’s son and the heir to the Crown Prince’s Wing."

She paused, choosing her words carefully.

"If you bring me to the palace and tell His Majesty that Vaelen caused my injury, he might scold him for your sake."

Her gaze lowered.

"But that would embarrass His Highness, and it would reflect poorly on His Majesty as well."

Cassiel listened quietly.

Elysia continued.

"I don’t think it’s necessary."

Her voice remained gentle.

"I only hurt my knee. It isn’t worth creating trouble between the royal family and Draevenor Manor."

Cassiel’s gaze rested on her for a long moment.

The concern in his eyes had not disappeared.

If anything, it had deepened.

He had expected Elysia to be frightened after what happened.

He had not expected her first instinct to be protecting everyone else from the consequences.

Again.

Always.

She thought of herself last.

Cassiel’s expression became unreadable.

Outside the room, footsteps approached.

The carriage was ready.

But neither of them moved immediately.

For a brief moment, the room remained quiet.

Then Cassiel said,

"You’re worried about me."

The realisation seemed to lift his mood. A subtle smile touched his lips.

Elysia lowered her gaze.

"It was only a strained knee. It’s already been treated. I really don’t want this to strain the bond between you and His Majesty because of me."

Though they were brothers, there was still a line between ruler and subject. Even blood brothers could turn against one another. Power made everything more fragile.

She would not gamble with that.

Cassiel had treated her well. She wanted him safe.

And if anything happened to him, Draevenor Manor would be dragged into danger. As his duchess, what kind of future would she have then?

"So," she said gently, "let’s just go back to Draevenor Manor."

Cassiel shook his head faintly.

"No rush. We’re heading to the palace first."

Her shoulders drooped.

"Why?"

He looked at her.

"Elysia, do you remember Lieutenant Rennor?"

"Yes," she said quietly. "He’s been held in Noverk for years."

Not long ago, Ismeria had brought Adela to Caelvyr because of him.

Cassiel continued, "Ismeria told me she received a letter from him."

"On the surface, it looked like a simple message saying he was safe in the north and encouraging them to join him in Noverk. But hidden inside were coded signals."

At the words coded signals, Elysia quickly covered her ears.

Cassiel’s lips curved slightly.

"What are you doing?"

"If I hear something confidential, that’s not good."

He raised a brow.

"You think covering your ears will stop you from hearing?"

She hesitated.

"Well..."

He gently lowered her hands.

"And don’t move around so much. Your knee isn’t fully healed."

His gaze lingered on her bandaged palms, and his voice softened.

"It’s fine if you know."

He explained plainly.

"According to the code, Lieutenant Rennor believes he has a chance to escape back to Aveanlor. He wants my help."

Elysia’s eyes widened.

"These past few days, I’ve been busy because of this. I’ve been working through every possibility with the generals. First, we have to guard against a trap from Noverk. Second, we need to decide who rides north to meet him."

"Then what did you decide?" she asked. "Who’s going?"

Cassiel did not answer directly.

"We’re going to inform His Majesty."

He glanced towards the direction of the command tent.

"The note Vaelen delivered earlier was about this. I need to report in person."

She paused.

"Then you should go. I’ll return to Draevenor Manor."

Cassiel reached for her hand, careful not to disturb her injured palm. His thumb brushed lightly across her fingers.

"But I don’t want to go alone."

A faint warmth spread through her chest.

"Come with me?"

His voice was low, almost coaxing.

Elysia drew in a slow breath.

"All right."

She carefully rose, and Cassiel immediately steadied her.

"But once we’re there, you’re not telling on Vaelen."

A hint of amusement flickered in his eyes.

"I won’t."

Only then did she relax.

They travelled towards the palace by carriage.

By the time they arrived, dusk was nearly over.

Inside the study, King Zephyrus was buried beneath stacks of reports, rubbing his temple with clear frustration.

When Milo announced that Cassiel and his duchess had arrived, the King’s expression brightened immediately.

"Quick, send them in."

Elysia entered with Cassiel and started to offer a formal greeting, but the King beat her to it with a long sigh.

"You’re finally here. Look at this. What am I supposed to do with these reports?"

He waved a document in Cassiel’s direction.

"This one has spent three months asking if I’m in good health. If I weren’t, I’d have handed matters to Vaelen already. What a waste of parchment."

He grabbed another sheet.

"And this one wrote just to say his daughter-in-law had a big, healthy baby boy."

Elysia blinked, caught off guard.

Cassiel, however, sounded calm.

"That would be the prefect of Elwoodmere."

The King looked up in surprise.

"How did you know?"

"Last time I was here, Your Majesty mentioned his daughter-in-law was about to give birth. He didn’t know whether it would be a grandson or granddaughter and was anxious."

The King nodded in realisation.

"Right. That’s him."

He dipped his pen in ink with a faint snort.

"All day long, they fill pages with nonsense."

Elysia silently worried for the prefect.

He’s about to get scolded, isn’t he?

The King began writing.

"In that case, congratulations."

Elysia froze.

His Majesty was congratulating him?

She glanced at Cassiel.

He merely stood there, looking as though this was perfectly ordinary.