Instead of My Stepsister, I Have Become Engaged to the Son of a Marquis, Who Is Said to Only Have a Year Left to Live - Chapter 28

Chapter 28
Quiet night

“Lionel-sama, your footing seems to be getting firmer and firmer.”

　While staying at the villa for a while, Lionel practiced walking almost every day. Edith, who was next to him and holding his hand, blushed and smiled. Arche also clapped her small hands enthusiastically every time Lionel took a few steps.

“Onii-sama, keep it up! You’re doing really well.”
“Thank you, Edith, Arche.”

　Lionel wiped the sweat from his forehead with his arm and gave them a bright smile.

“I feel like the path to a hopeful future is gradually becoming clearer. I’m starting to feel like being able to move my body freely like before and living a normal life is no longer a dream.”

　Edith and Arche exchanged glances, and both smiled at Lionel’s words.

“With all your efforts, Lord Lionel, I’m sure you’ll be able to get your body back to normal.”
“If you’re a hardworking Nii-sama, you’ll be fine!”

　She opened her mouth after giving a comforting pat on Lionel’s back, who had been practicing walking until the sun was setting and the area was dyed red.

“Lord Lionel, you must be tired after practicing walking so much today. The sun is setting, so shall we return to the villa soon?”
“That’s right, Edith. Thank you for joining me in practice today. Let’s go back together, Arche.”

　Lionel took Arche’s little hand while sitting on a wheelchair that Edith had brought closer.

“Yes, Onii-sama!”

　Arche nodded vigorously, turned to Edith, smiled, and shook her brother’s hand tightly.

“…Onii-sama’s hands have gotten much plumper and stronger than before. Before, I felt like they would break if I squeezed them too hard, so I touched them gently, but now they’re fine.”

　Seeing Arche’s innocent smile, Lionel was taken aback and closed his mouth for a moment, then he once again placed great pressure on her small, soft hand in his palm.

“Yeah, I’m fine now… I’m sorry I worried you, Arche.”

　Edith also felt her heart warm at the interaction between the two of them, and she slowly pushed her wheelchair towards the villa, matching Arche’s pace.

＊＊＊

“…Arche-sama, you fell fast asleep immediately.”

　Edith, who had just been reading a picture book to Arche as she slept peacefully in her small bed, smiled at Lionel in the wheelchair next to her, with the page of the book she was reading still spread out on her lap.

“Yeah. You must be tired because you ran around a lot today.
…I’m sorry Arche kept asking you for a picture book, even though you must have been tired.”

　Edith shook her head, smiling.

“No. I’m an only child, and I’ve always longed for a younger sister or brother, so I’m actually quite happy. Arche-sama is very adorable.”
“Arche seems to have grown very attached to you. It seems she has really come to understand your warm personality. …She lost her mother at a young age, and then there was my illness, so I’m sure she has been burying her desire to be pampered deep in her heart and holding back until now. When Arche looks at you, she now sees a member of the family.”
“Fufu, I guess so. I’m having a lot of fun spending every day with Arche-sama.”

　After giving Edith a grateful smile, Lionel looked out the large window nearby and up at the beautiful starry sky above them.

“Maybe it’s because it’s a new moon today that the stars are clearer than usual.”
“Yes. It’s a beautiful starry sky, as if the stars would fall at any moment… Ah, it’s a shooting star.”

　Edith let out a small cry as she spotted a streak of light twinkling across the night sky.

“Did you see it just now? Lord Lionel?”
“Yeah. I realized it thanks to you.”

　Edith and Lionel looked at each other and smiled. Lionel looked up at the starry sky again and narrowed his eyes as if recalling a time long past.

“…When I used to come to this villa every year, before I got sick, I never even thought about wishing on a shooting star. This is an old story, but…”

　Lionel continued, his eyes fixed on the starry sky.

“Until I fell ill, I had never really had any hardships. I was born into the privileged position of a marquis, and although it may sound like I’m bragging, I was never inferior to anyone else, no matter what I did. Whether it was studying or sports, I was always able to surpass others without putting in much effort, and I never questioned that. It was only when I lost my mother that I realized there were things in the world that didn’t go the way you wanted them to, but that was about it.”

　Edith nodded at his words, remembering Eugenie saying that Lionel was perfect in both studying and sports.

“…Looking back, I was probably a bit arrogant back then. I thought it was foolish to entrust a simple prayer to a shooting star. I didn’t say it out loud, but I thought that if I was going to pray, I should just put in the effort. To me, it was natural that I should smoothly walk the path that was prepared before me as the eldest son of a marquis, so I didn’t question it at all, and I think I was also somewhat insensitive to the feelings of the people around me. But the world I had seen was turned upside down after I fell ill, and it became the complete opposite.”

　Lionel let out a small sigh.

“In the past, most people would look at me with a favorable look, but after my health began to deteriorate and I quickly became thinner, I could only see any other people with pale, frowning faces or looks of sympathy. No matter how hard I tried, my body gradually became unable to move the way I wanted it to, and I was no longer able to do things that most people take for granted. It was frustrating and painful. My chances of inheriting the Marquis’s family were also dire. As my body writhed in pain, I wondered why I was the only one to feel this way, and I felt a strong desire to cling to anything, anything at all. So much so that I even entrusted my heartfelt prayers to a shooting star.”

　Imagining the pain and loneliness Lionel must have felt, Edith gently placed her hand on his. Lionel stared intently at Edith’s face.

“But it wasn’t until I got sick that I realized something. The people around me… especially my family, showed me how much they cared about me. I finally realized how grateful I was for those warm feelings. Also, I’m grateful for the kindness and gentleness shown to me by others at random moments. If I had never experienced being in a weak position, I might never have realized this in my life… Maybe I’ve become a little more human.”
“I believe that you have always been a kind person, Lord Lionel. But even so, you must have realized many things through your illness.”

　Edith felt that Lionel’s kindness and strength of heart were things he had developed since he was a child and that they were not something that could be acquired overnight. However, his feelings also seeped into Edith’s heart.
　Hearing Edith’s words, Lionel smiled and took her warm hand between his own.

“…And then I met you. I cannot put into words how much I was saved by your warmth, kindness, and smile when I met you. Even the doctors had given up, but you continued to patiently support me. Without you, I wouldn’t be who I am today, and I still believe that you are an angel or a goddess sent from heaven.”
“No, Lord Lionel. I’m not like that…”

　Edith shook her head, a flush rising to her cheeks, and Lionel gently embraced her.

“Thank you for everything, Edith. You are truly an irreplaceable and precious person to me.”

　Lionel paused for a moment, then loosened his hold on Edith and looked at her, her cheeks flushed with embarrassment.

“…I’ve been taking care of a letter from your stepfather, the Earl of Oak Ridge, asking you to come back home. Do you have any idea what it might be?”
“Stepfather…?”

　Hearing her stepfather’s name gave Edith a bad feeling. Lionel noticed that Edith’s expression had darkened, and he stroked her hair softly.

“I’ll go with you to the Oak Ridge House. I honestly don’t think you were treated fairly there.”
“…”

　Edith was taken aback by Lionel’s sharp and unexpected words, but he smiled brightly to encourage her.

“If there’s anything I can do for you, Edith, please rely on me. I want to be of some help to you.”
“…Thank you very much, Lionel-sama.”

　Although Edith found Lionel’s words reassuring, she wondered what purpose her stepfather had in sending her the letter, and as she felt a sense of anxiety spreading within her, she sighed softly in her mind.