After Retirement, Living a Stud Life in Another World - 30
Chapter 30: It Hurt Quite a Bit!
Today, three days after the incident, I still can’t go to school. Gretel’s exceptional light magic healed my injuries, but it took some time for the lost strength to recover. Tomorrow should be fine. If it weren’t for Liese-nee’s magic, it would have taken much longer. Her water attribute healing magic, while not instantaneous, greatly aids in restoring lost strength.
“Well, it’s good it ended like this.”
According to Sieg-niisan, that’s how it is. When I directed a protesting gaze at him, he calmly responded.
“Oh, I wasn’t worried at all. After all, Gretel wouldn’t render her beloved Lutz permanently incapacitated. Her lightning and fists are expressions of affection… awkward, but that’s her.”
“If that’s the case, she could express it with words…”
“She’s not capable of that. Because she can’t express her love in words, her physical expressions become more extreme, I suppose.”
Hmm, maybe that was careless. I knew I was liked in a casual, playmate sense, but I never thought of being considered as a marriage partner or someone for procreation. If Gretel did have some “feelings” for me, the events of that day might have been quite cruel. While being bound by the unavoidable contract of marriage with the royal family, I should have been more careful about how to convey it to her.
But if Gretel did see me as a potential husband, the outcome of that day might have been inevitable. Considering her personality, if she heard about my engagement to the princess from someone else… she would definitely be furious. I wish she could have spared me from the excessive abuse, but thinking of her firing lightning while shedding tears, my chest aches. Maybe I should have explained the situation directly to her first… Oh well, in the end, the outcome of being scolded might not have changed.
“But now that you’ve entered into a contract with the royal family, it’s impossible for Lutz to marry into the Hanover Marquis family. Too bad.”
Looking at it from the perspective of the family, engagement with the royal family should be a reason for celebration, but Sieg-niisan’s voice carried a melancholic tone. Well, from his childhood, playing with Gretel and me, he probably envisioned a peaceful future where she and I would be together. I don’t have such sentimental attachment due to my lost memories, but thinking of her shedding tears during the brutal treatment, I feel a pang in my heart. Maybe, unintentionally, I’ve come to like her “as a woman.”
“Yeah…”
As the conversation somehow tapered off, a silence began to settle between us. Just when a silence was beginning to fill the space between us, I lifted my head at the sound of a knock on the bedroom door.
“A guest is present. May I bring her in? It’s Miss Margarete, the daughter of the Hanover Marquis.”
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As soon as Sieg-niisan heard Gretel’s name, he hastily left the room. He said, “You two probably have a lot to talk about,” but it seemed more like he escaped to avoid being caught in the crossfire.
Soon after, Gretel entered. Her usual lively demeanor, which was so natural, seemed to have disappeared, replaced by a somewhat fragile appearance. When she saw me sitting up in bed, her expression momentarily relaxed as if relieved. But in the next moment, she blushed and averted her eyes.
“Welcome, Gretel.”
“Yeah. Um… you seem to be okay.”
“Ah, yes. You took care of my severe injuries on the spot, and Liese-nee has been applying her water healing magic for the past few days, so… I should be able to go to school tomorrow.”
“I… sorry. When I heard that Lutz got engaged, I got angry without asking for the details and went on a rampage… I was stupid.”
What’s going on with her? I’ve seen her cursing and berating me, telling me to die like an idiot countless times, but this self-reflective Gretel is the first time I’ve seen.
“Did you… hear the details?”
“Yeah, from Lady Hilda.”
I see, it’s Mom. Well, Gretel admires ‘Hero Hildegarde,’ so she probably accepted it obediently because it was Mom’s words. I kept my mouth shut and decided to accept her words.