One Day My Sister Died - chapter 24

**Chapter 24: Without Knowing Anything**

It was only natural that such misunderstandings arose.

Yuan had a specific reason for her close contact with him—it was to hint that sharing ‘intimate warmth’ wasn’t some childish game, but a signal that they had a deeper relationship. This would work to her advantage in many ways.

If his last memory was simply her wiping moisture from his lips, how long could someone as sensitive as Claude continue to believe her?

“The young lord and Sir Lancelot seem to have arrived! They’ve always visited often, but lately, it seems even more frequent.”

Her thoughts were interrupted as the carriage stopped right in front of the mansion.

Seeing two black horses, which Lancelot always rode, standing at the entrance, Yuan felt a bit nervous as she entered the mansion.

When her eyes met those of the Reve brothers, who were in conversation with the butler Gustav, Yuan awkwardly bent and straightened her knees, offering a polite greeting.

“Oh, madam.”

Lancelot, sweeping back his caramel-colored brown hair, greeted Yuan warmly.

They had only exchanged simple greetings in the past, but this was the first time they were meeting face-to-face for a conversation since she had started staying at this house.

Unlike Lancelot’s warm and friendly demeanor, the future Marquis Reve, Eddie Reve, who had his long hair tied back, barely acknowledged her with a slight nod and passed by without further greeting.

Yuan, feeling uncomfortable with Eddie’s cold reaction, glanced at Lancelot.

Lancelot, like Yuan, had slightly drooping eyes and a slender face, giving him a bright and gentle appearance.

Always dressed meticulously, he would occasionally flash a playful smile, though Yuan didn’t see him as a man to be taken lightly.

It was only natural for a member of the distinguished Reve family to carry such an impression.

“Hmm, we’ll send the detailed documents from our family separately. As for you, madam…”

Lancelot, after giving instructions to Gustav with a practiced ease, scratched the back of his head awkwardly as he approached Yuan, making way for her.

“It might be best for you to go up and see Claude.”

“Is something wrong?”

Lancelot hesitated, considering whether to explain or not, before offering a soft smile.

“It seemed like the master of this house was looking for you earlier.”

With the right amount of politeness, neither too much nor too little, Lancelot quickly left the mansion.

“Um, madam.”

The butler Gustav, who had become much more courteous after handing over the ledger, gave something to Yuan.

It was a letter.

As soon as Gustav stepped outside to supervise the servants unloading the goods, Yuan, with stiff hands, opened the envelope.

**[To my ungrateful niece, Yuan Felice.
Did you think you would never face me again? You foolish and stupid… (omitted)
You only care about yourself… (omitted)
Even if you’re at that mansion, I’ll find a way to get you out… (omitted)]**

Yuan threw the letter, filled with her uncle’s scribbled handwriting, into the fireplace that had been warming the first floor.

Only after confirming that the ashes had completely burned did Yuan hurriedly ascend to the second floor.

Just as she knocked on the slightly ajar bedroom door, a sharp voice snapped from inside.

“Who is it?”

“I-it’s me.”

Though it was a trivial response, Yuan suddenly felt uneasy—was it okay to respond so casually without mentioning her name?

There was no response from inside for a long time.

Yuan hesitated, wondering if she should enter or not, before cautiously stepping in.

Contrary to her expectations that Claude would be lying in bed or lounging in a rocking chair, he was standing by the window, arms crossed, seemingly staring outside.

“Where have you been?”

His voice carried a hint of irritation.

Yuan’s gaze naturally drifted to the golden envelope sealed with purple wax lying on the table, but she answered first.

“I heard there’s a small chapel nearby.”

“Why?”

Before Yuan could finish her reply, Claude’s sharp retort cut through the air, causing her to blink her wide eyes for a moment before responding.

“…I went to pray.”

She couldn’t bring herself to admit she had gone to visit Louise.

The entire household kept silent on that matter, and Yuan herself had a secret hope to grow close to Claude so she could eventually ask about Louise. The lie made her feel guilty.

Fortunately, Claude seemed more fixated on the oddity of her actions rather than the reason for her visit to the chapel.

His well-defined brows shot upward in irritation.

“Did you get permission from anyone?”

“…”

A hundred excuses swirled in her mind, but in the end, she chose not to offer any.

In this house, Claude Yufrees was the law.

There was no reason to feel upset about it.

Claude was a patient.

Anyone who hadn’t experienced his suffering might have fought back against his sharpness, but Yuan had seen the pain that gnawed away at him. She had no desire to challenge it.

After receiving permission to stay in this mansion, Yuan had resolved to live with a sense of gratitude toward Claude, at least outwardly.

She would maintain a respectful distance with that gratitude. And if it turned out that her sister’s death was somehow linked to this man, she would part ways without hesitation, without sharing his pain.

“Don’t wander around without permission.”

Though Yuan wasn’t sure why he cared so much, she nodded obediently.

She had a feeling that even if she asked for permission in the future, Claude wouldn’t go out of his way to prevent her from leaving.

It was a strange instinct.

After all, she didn’t fully know this man yet.

***

“Please don’t be too upset, madam.”

As soon as Yuan left Claude’s room and felt a bit of the tension release, the butler Gustav quietly approached her.

Seeing the slightly downcast expression on her face, his own features softened with concern.

“Is there something wrong?”

“We are expecting a guest from the royal family soon.”

“What?”

Yuan’s eyes widened in surprise at the unexpected answer.

She suddenly realized that the servants who had been carrying water were nowhere to be seen, and the first floor looked deserted.

It was clear that the few remaining staff had gone to clean the separate hall in preparation for the guest’s arrival.

“His Majesty the Emperor will be arriving in three days.”

This time, Yuan was so shocked that she had to cover her mouth with both hands.

If it was the emperor, it could only mean *him*, Igor Yufrees.

The ruthless tyrant who treated human lives like flies, more interested in hunting than in governing the kingdom.

And according to the rumors, the very man who had caused Claude’s current condition, having seized the throne after the deaths of the previous emperor and empress…

“Please be understanding if The Master seems in a particularly foul mood or more irritable than usual.”

So that golden envelope earlier was indeed from the royal family.

It was this news that had put Claude on edge.

It wasn’t just his illness or fatigue that made him so sharp.

Having just burned her uncle’s letter in the fireplace, Yuan could fully understand.

“I understand.”

Gustav seemed relieved by her response, his lips stretching into a faint smile before he hurried off to the bustling preparations outside.

Yuan, too, quickened her pace, determined to see if there was anything she could do as the lady of the house.

***

Later that night.

Yuan, by now accustomed to the fuss made by Hanna and the other maids as they dressed her, donned a simpler outfit and headed toward Claude’s room.

She knocked, but receiving no response, she entered to find Claude slumped in the creaky rocking chair.

Whether Claude realized it or not, his symptoms had been progressing slower than before. The pain that used to seize him as night fell had started to come later and with less intensity.

Yuan quietly approached him, mindful of his current state.

He must have sensed her presence, but the only sound in the room was the rhythmic creaking of the rocking chair.

Glancing at the letter still lying unopened, Yuan stood silently beside him.

Tonight, she felt an urge to say something comforting to this man who seemed more melancholic than usual.

Not every uncle or relative in the world was as terrible as theirs.

Perhaps no one in the entire kingdom understood Claude’s hatred for the emperor as well as Yuan did.

If anyone could grasp his pain, it was her, as someone who shared it.

Since they would be living together like this, perhaps they could offer each other a little solace.

Just as she and Louise had grown close, finding comfort in each other despite their awkwardness as sisters reunited after ten years, bonded by their common enemies—their uncle and cousins.

“There are many people in this world who don’t feel like family.”

Creak—. Creak—.

“No matter what I say, it might not bring you much comfort…”

Creak—. Creak—.

“But you’re no longer in the palace. You’ve even started a new family of your own…”

As Yuan spoke of starting a new family, she hesitated slightly, but soon found the courage to continue.

“It might help to let go a little.”

In the dim light, Claude’s sharp eyes, like clear glass beads, gleamed as they met hers. However, his expression remained cold.

Yuan quickly added, “Would it help to think of them—of *him*—as no longer family?”

“You don’t know anything.”

A heavy silence fell, even the creaking of the rocking chair ceased.

“You don’t know anything. Don’t pretend you do. Just focus on your own business.”

“…”

“And stop wandering around alone.”

Understanding and communication, it seemed, were not the same.

Yuan stood there, feeling like someone who had just been hit by a massive wave, her body tense and unmoving.

‘This is nothing,’ she told herself.’

Focus on your own business.

Although she felt miserable, like her tentative efforts to connect had been harshly pushed away, Yuan recited her familiar mantra, steadying herself. She silently brewed him a cup of herbal tea.

Claude stared at the ceiling for a long while before finally drinking the tea once it had cooled, no longer steaming.

His brows twitched—pain had found him again.

Yuan extended her slender hand, using her finger to brush away a drop of tea that had trickled down his neck.

Whether from the pain or something else, Claude flinched, lowering his gaze from the ceiling to fix on her pale hand.

The moonlight caught on his long eyelashes, and Yuan found herself thinking how beautiful they looked.

Slowly, she leaned down, but instead of his cheek, she kissed the corner of his lips.

Her soft lips met the lingering trace of tea and his rough, almost bark-like skin.

Claude’s lashes, which had trembled slightly, stilled completely.

The texture beneath Yuan’s lips changed, softening into something smooth and warm.

She opened her eyes, gazing down at his serene, moonlit face.

The room was silent, save for their breathing, but it felt far less tense than before.

In sleep, Claude Yufrees face was perfect, like an angel that had fallen from the sky.

“Your face is so beautiful, why do your words always have to be so cruel?”

The ache in Yuan’s heart grew more intense, pounding inside her chest as she watched the moonlight trace along his long lashes and sharp nose.

Her stomach churned, a strange feeling creeping through her.

“Is it really so terrible to try and get along?”

She pressed her fingers gently to his brow, smoothing the frown lines that had deepened from pain.

As his furrowed brow relaxed, Yuan’s own knitted slightly.

“You sleep well without even knowing why. If anyone doesn’t know anything, it’s you.”