Madam Mancini glanced upstairs with a worried look.
"It's good to work hard at anything, but I think you might be too absorbed in something that is supposed to be fun. You and Aileen."
One person went out fine but came back with messy hair and covered in dirt, and the other person was sick, so it was worth worrying about.
'Aileen's problem isn't really horse riding.'
I smiled brightly and obediently answered Madam's advice.
"I will, Ma'am. I'm a little worried about Aileen. Would it be okay if I came up with something to check on her?"
Madam Mancini looked at me with a happy expression and nodded, and several maids waiting in the kitchen quickly prepared soup and soft bread and handed them to me.
As I stood up and headed upstairs, I felt Daniel's persistent gaze following me, but I pretended not to notice and continued walking.
Whether you show interest or not is no concern to me.
***
Knock knock.
There was a light knock and a weak voice came from behind the door.
"Come in."
When I opened the door and went inside, Aileen, who had been lying on the bed, jumped up as soon as our eyes made contact.
I put down what I brought with me on the table with a friendly smile.
"You said you couldn't come to dinner because you weren't feeling well, so Madam told me to bring Aileen something to eat."
She turned pale, as if she had seen a ghost, and chewed her lips.
After confirming that there were no maids around, I slowly closed the door.
Her body flinched when she heard a clicking sound.
"I will eat later. I'm not feeling well right now."
"Okay, then."
In response to my soft answer, she glanced at me with anxious eyes.
It was none of my business whether she ate the food I brought or not.
You don't have to eat food to have a conversation.
"I thought we might have a story to share."
I thought I heard the sound of her taking a breath, and then Aileen turned her head towards me with her teeth clenched.
"I don't know what you're talking about."
You may or may not know that a face that desperately denies it gives me more confidence.
The shaking fists were pitiful.
It's surprising that a person could be ruined by a whip wielded by that hand.
"It's a horse with a good pedigree that Rosalyn gave me as a gift."
"..."
"I said that to show off, but the truth was a bit different."
Aileen stirred the soup, which she refused to eat, and carefully scooped up a spoonful and brought it to her mouth.
The taste of the soup was great as the ingredients melted together.
I continued speaking slowly, savoring the savory taste on the tip of her tongue.
"While I was circling the course, I heard a scream from somewhere, so I went over and saw that Rosalyn's horse was running wild."
At a glance, I saw Aileen's hand gripping the hem of her dress so hard that it was wrinkled ugly.
"Luckily, I saved Rosalyn, who almost fell off a cliff with the horse and when I calmed the horse down and looked at it, to my surprise, we found a small pin in the hoof."
"..."
"A pin with a very bright blue sapphire, Aileen."
When I smiled brightly, she hid her shaking hands through her dress.
"From what I remember, wasn't the thing you boasted about at the dinner table, saying it was something Madam personally bought, something similar?"
"Yes, a hat pin with a sapphire in it is a common item. The other ladies present were also wearing hats."
"Then can you show me Aileen's pin? I want to see how they are different."
Aileen, who had fought back sharply, became as stiff as a stone statue.
I leisurely admired her devastated face and looked down at the empty soup bowl.
"Well, I guess I'll have to ask Charlotte to bring a bowl to your room later. You have an appetite today."
I, who was tapping the empty bowl, looked up and smiled.
"Rosalyn's personality is such that she will never sit still the moment she realizes that what happened today was deliberately done by someone. Yes?"
"..."
"I have nothing to lose, so even if I incur Rosaline's wrath, I will only suffer..."
When I put down the spoon to make a clanging sound, Aileen shook her shoulders greatly.
"Aileen has ugly parents and brothers. It is said that Baron Vernon's territory is a very underdeveloped area and that he relies heavily on merchant merchants to provide daily necessities. It would be difficult to turn an enemy of a big nobleman who could put pressure on the 'top', such as the Wilder family."
The lips, which had closed several times, finally opened. In the meantime, her small whisper came out so weakly that you couldn't hear it unless you listened carefully.
"What do you want?"
"Well. What do you think Aileen wants from me?"
She raised her head and glared at me, probably because the question made me giggle.
Her round, gentle eyes were filled with tears.
"Do you feel like something has happened to you since you are holding on to people's lives?"
The crying voice sounded very pitiful.
"You saw me being insulted right there. They say they put people right in front of them and made them a laughingstock. I didn't do anything. I guess something bad happened. To Rosalyn."
Aren't you likely to have an irritated morning due to very trivial things? For example, the dream was violent. You were not satisfied with the breakfast.
The sun was too strong. The weather was hot and you were irritated.
"Is that a reason to harass people?!"
"Oh my God, Aileen."
I pretended to be exaggeratedly surprised, covered my mouth, and continued talking as if it were funny.
"Aileen didn't have a particularly great reason when she poured hot tea over my little maid's face and cracked her delicate skin, right?"
Just because she was my maid. It was for one small reason: she was holding my hand.
Aileen's face was filled with astonishment at my words, which I pointed out quietly.
"How could you..."
Annie's condition, which I heard about through Hugh, was shocking. After beating a person mercilessly to the point where not a single part of her body was intact, she handed her over to a gambling den and left her there. She once again used a tactic that could have killed someone based on a few words she heard publicly.
Even though she was caught, she was in tears as if she was a victim, which was truly ridiculous.
Therefore, I had no choice but to tilt my head and ask.
"Compared to Aileen, isn't Rosalyn very sweet? She didn't hit you with a cane, and she didn't hit your tea."
I couldn't tell if it was cold sweat or tears, dripping down her chin and onto the floor.
The round, cute face she was so proud of became distorted and ugly. It was as if the world had collapsed.
***
After a while, the 'mutually useful' conversation ended and faint sobbing could be heard from behind the closed door.
I waved my hand at the maid who was just entering the room.
"She barely fell asleep, so it would be best to go in a little later. Aileen is sensitive to sleep."
"Yes, Miss."
As I watched the maid who responded obediently go downstairs, I suddenly felt stuffy, so I wrapped myself in a shawl and slowly headed downstairs.
I was thinking of getting some fresh air.
The moonlight over the garden at night was brighter than expected, making it easy to walk along the path.
A cool wind passed by my face. The fresh scent of flowers came from all directions.
[Master.]
'I know.'
Before Windy could warn me, I already knew someone would be in the garden.
A gardener who has worked for a long time under a difficult Viscountess would never leave the door to a garden without even lights open late at night.
I should have left immediately when I noticed that someone was there, but...
"Lady Isabella?"
For some reason, I didn't want to do that.
At least for today, I wanted to find something that would comfort me because I was feeling particularly exhausted.
Something that can never be found in the rooms of a bleak mansion.
The face of someone who saw me from afar and was walking towards me was clearly visible under the moonlight.
"I thought you went to bed because it was late at night."
"I see. It's time to sleep."
I nodded obediently and suddenly asked a question without knowing why.
"So you're telling me to go back? Wandering around the garden late into the night isn't something a respectable lady would do, is it?"
Daniel, who had blinked at my words, thought for a moment and answered quite seriously.
"Hmm. I didn't mean it that way. Which one?"
He glanced at me and continued speaking with a smile.
"I felt very lucky. As expected, it was nice of you to come and see me."
"..."
I should correct the statement that Eric had an oil gland under his tongue.
Every child of a noble family seemed to have at least one oil gland under the tongue. This guy and that guy are so talkative.
Support Novellatte!
Comments
Post a Comment