The silence was heavy around the Litharons' home after news that Arthur didn't have much time left with them. It made the coughs that could be heard from his room all the more haunting. By that point, everyone could gauge how he was feeling that day based on how dry or wet the cough was.

Siverly had to stay away from the house and in their guesthouse because he felt like he was listening to a man slowly drown to death. At least there was plenty for him to research as he consulted Stanley with short letters sent through magic.

Both mages came to the same conclusion. Reading about "wasting" disease seemed to fit all the symptoms. Caring for those patients as a mage simply meant making sure they were comfortable because it was certainly a death sentence.

Always having been someone who believed magic could solve everything, Siverly found himself frustrated with the fact that there was nothing to be done. Yet he would try his damnedest with the time he had. Arthur was a willing patient when he was awake, fortunately.

On the other hand, since the old knight had insisted that he didn't want anyone fussing over him outside of Siverly, Irene and her family could only check on him a few times a day or his patience would disappear and he would snap at them.

"The weather is beautiful, yet it rains whenever my family visits," he would say through wheezes and coughs.

Arthur was right. Since the weather was warm, it kept everyone outside and not feeling like they were simply waiting around for the patriarch of their family to die.

Someone who wasn't used to sitting around and doing very little was Henry. He felt ever restless as he tried to sit in Arthur's study and lightly attend to things that might need oversight in these lands considering their usual lord was sick. Arne had a good handle on things, but there was much to learn that Henry was pleased he could help with.

The Duke's advisors had yet to pin down where he was. For now, it was a game of waiting for the letters to finally reach him. To his advisors relief otherwise, he had taken care of much of what he needed to before going off on his summer tour of the duchy—proving that he had somewhat gotten a handle on his duties. It meant that things could go on as is until he was required to attend to monster culling and winterization of, not only the Duke's Tower region and the wall construction site, but the duchy as a whole.

Between sitting with Arne as he understood how to lord over a place, the Duke seemed to have grown a wild hair because Irene followed her betrothed out the front of her family's home as he moved quickly, seeming to be on an unknown mission.

She felt worried considering he had just been visiting with her father, but it had been brief for him to suddenly come downstairs and head for the door.

"Where are you going?" Irene asked.

"To the village," Henry explained. "I'll be back bearing gifts for your father."

"Can I go with you?" she asked.

They had been spending every waking moment at one another's side other than when Henry was helping Arne. She felt a bit bare without him there.

A look of guilt was seen on Henry's face and he offered a small smile. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

"You're going to be mad at what I'm doing," he insisted. "But you can go along if you'd like."

Irene's reddish eyebrows lowered as she said, "Then I would like to go."

"By all means," Henry muttered before he stole a kiss from her cheek.

The dark-haired knight then brought the horses from the stables with their saddles already ready to go and he handed off Sammy to Irene. The pair mounted their steeds before heading towards the center of the village. Irene agonizing over the meaning to Henry's actions all the while.

Unexpectedly, they stopped in front of the inn connected to the pub her family owned. She could only follow along as they dismounted the horses and went inside.

"What are we doing here?" she wondered.

Her cousin, the barkeep, came forward to the edge of the bar he worked behind. He wore a somber expression as he saw who was entering his pub.

"Your Grace, how's he doing?" the barkeep asked, obvious to who he was referring to.

Word had been slowly spreading through this region. It wouldn't be good to keep the people in the dark considering Arthur's absence was keenly felt.

"As good as to be expected," Henry spoke up, not wanting to force Irene to say something she didn't want to. "However, I've been sent to town because he misses your ale. Could you spare me your largest mug and fill it to the top? I'll walk it all the way back."

The man, looking so much like Arthur but scrawnier, lit up at that.

"Of course," he said. "The ale and my treasury have missed him terribly."

Henry smirked at that and nodded.

Soon enough, the largest mug of ale was presented to the Duke. Henry paid for not only that mug, but the mugs of all those sitting in the pub at that moment which elicited cheers of praise for their understated Duke. Based on the blue tunic and brown leather workpants he wore, no one would think this man was the highest esteemed of Chemois.

When they stepped outside with Henry carefully walking the mug so not a drop would be wasted, Irene couldn't help turning to him.

"He shouldn't be drinking strong ale right now," Irene muttered, but her resolve was weak.

"Your father was talking about things he missed and I felt it my job to keep him happy," Henry admitted. "I would like to see my future father in law smile just as much as I would like to see his beautiful daughter smile as well."

Irene could only lightly sigh. She couldn't be mad at Henry for that. Even though they had been doing their best to ensure Arthur ate the most balanced and healthy meals he could, she hoped that the ale would take away from his obvious pain.

She had witnessed her father lose a hand and in that moment he seemed less pained than each time he had a particularly rough coughing fit.

"How do you think you'll manage getting this ale to him without spilling?" she wondered.

"Well, since help decided to come along, you'll pull the horses and I'll walk this ale," he responded with a smile.

It took quite a while to make it all the way there, but when Arthur was presented with one of his favorite drinks, he lit up a surprising amount. He even let out a rough "oho!" in his amusement.

For the first time in a while, he seemed to have the strength to push himself up as he drank down the ale and seemed to be in good spirits at least for a moment.

Words that would touch Henry's heart forever was when Arthur said, "I wish I had a bit longer with my son in law. Among a few of my biggest regrets in this life…"

"We will have to see what the next life has in store for us then," Henry responded through the lump in his throat and smiling despite it all.

The twinkle in Arthur's eyes seemed particularly bright that day.