“Me?”
You're indeed crying.
Erne got up. He didn't hear any noise, but just in case, he grabbed his sword and went out into the hallway.
Ugh, ugh, ugh-
Sob-
A wet cry soaked my earlobes. Something black. His eyes met with two gleaming eyes amidst a substance that was darker than the darkness of the night, unidentifiable in form.
Eyes without whites.
Goosebumps ran through his entire body. The moment their eyes met, they disappeared somewhere. In an instant, to a place he couldn't tell where.
"..What."
Erne looked around like a man who had missed an enemy right in front of him a beat later. Was the hunched shadow disappearing around the corner of the hallway an illusion or a reality?
Ern couldn't take his eyes off the dark eyes that stared at him for even a split second.
“Ugh, shoulder.”
The next morning, I fetched water from the kitchen and rubbed my sore shoulders and neck. I didn't feel like I had slept well the night before.
“I really thought a ghost had appeared.”
The dream was so realistic. I was so scared last night that I thought I was going to die, but when morning came, my fear was gone.
“It’s cloudy.”
Erne, who was just coming out of the room, muttered as he looked out the gloomy window.
Looking at the dark clouds gathering, it seemed like it was going to rain soon.
“It would be perfect for a nap.”
Last night was practically an all-nighter. I finally fell into a light sleep at dawn, but even then I was woken up by the sound of Judith moving around busily.
Looking back, what happened yesterday just seemed like a vivid nightmare.
“Are you talking about taking a nap as soon as you wake up?”
“There’s nothing special to do.”
Erne shrugged and deliberately sat down comfortably within sight of me.
“No, why are you lying there? It’s not like I’m making fun of anyone.”
“Why not, that’s right.”
I could even hit that handsome face, I had another realization today.
“When on earth are fake IDs going to come out?”
“You want to get rid of me quickly, don’t you? Well, you can date comfortably without me. I understand.”
How long is that guy going to keep teasing me with that? I glared at Erne with force in my eyes. Erne was laughing, whether I did or not.
“If this continues, I’ll end up remarrying.”
“What are you going to do?”
"What?"
“No, if you find a good man, you should do it. You don’t have to live as a widow your whole life.”
I wouldn't make a big effort to remarry, but if I found a good person, I might. I was keeping the door of possibility wide open.
“Sir Erne will remarry if a good person comes along.”
“I’m going to live with a new identity, so it’s my first marriage.”
“Wow, you did really well.”
I muttered to myself as I checked how dry the roses hanging upside down had become. Of course, my voice was loud enough for Erne to hear.
“But I wonder who would take a man who has been lying down since morning.”
“Don’t worry about it, Miss Harrington. I have a line of women who want to marry me, even if it means lying down all day, not just in the morning.”
A quiet night with rain that started to fall late in the evening pitter-pattering against the window.
For some reason, I couldn't sleep and tossed and turned in bed for a long time.
Ugh-
Again, again.
"Yes."
The man who answered shyly was holding a large bouquet of roses in his hand.
I looked at the bouquet, then at the handsome man's face, then clapped my hands.
“Did we meet here once before?”
“You remember me. I’ve seen you a couple of times.”
As expected, he was a man with a face. A man like that came to me with a bouquet of flowers and spoke to me? What could it mean?
'Even if I say it myself, Judith is quite pretty.'
I fiddled with my hair for no reason and then pushed it behind my ear.
“Do you have anything to say to me...?”
“Would you please accept this? ...It’s a gift for the Baroness.”
The man held out a bouquet of flowers. The name was hard to hear because a carriage passed by, but I, who was from the Baroness's family, naturally assumed that the flowers were meant for me.
In my past life, I was too busy making money to date, but it seemed like things would be better in this life.
“I want to make a special candle for Young Lady.”
"Yes?"
The corners of my mouth, which had been rising in a curve, stopped at an ambiguous spot.
I'm a candle maker, and you want me to make a special candle for myself? That doesn't make sense.
“Would you please make a special candle with these flowers just for Baron Briggs’s daughter?”
The man's name is Zark VanHenson.
He was thinking about a special gift for his lover, Lady of Baron Briggs, before proposing to her. Then, he happened to see the colored candles that Judith was selling and a great idea came to him.
It is to dry the petals and decorate the candles. Dry the red roses for Baron Briggs's daughter and decorate the red candles.
Then, saying that it would be a much more meaningful gift than a bouquet of flowers, Zark even paid the deposit.
"You were a married woman. What should I do to miss our Lady of Harrington?”
“Why me?”
“...No, that’s not it?”
My ears turned bright red.
I shouldn't have asked Erne to come with me. I would have just looked embarrassed after pushing myself to deliver everything at once.
No, Mr. Zark should have said from the beginning that he wanted to order a production, what would happen if he just handed me a bouquet of flowers? Honestly, how many people would not misunderstand that situation?
“Be honest with me.”
“What is it?”
“Did you worry about whether you should tell him that you were a Countess and not a Baroness? Did you?”
Thanks to that, Erne was happy.
As soon as Zark entered Baron Briggs's residence, handing her a bouquet of flowers and a deposit, he was laughing his ass off. And he did so all the way back to the mansion after delivering the next order.
I'm dying of rage. I took advantage of Erne's moment of inattention to throw a punch at him, but Erne easily dodged it by simply shaking his shoulder.
Today too, the fist that couldn't hit Erne cried.
“You said you’d buy me beef jerky.”
“Just buy it as you see fit.”
Since I didn't feel like buying Erne beef jerky right now, I took out a coin and tossed it to Erne.
“With that, buy some jerky and a new water bottle, and bring me five potatoes. Sir Erne, you can keep the rest of the money.”
“How can I buy all that with this?”
“Find out.”
“What, are you a punk?”
Erne threw the fairy tale and caught it, muttering with a mischievous expression.
“If you just answer one thing, I’ll go and get it quietly. If that guy had confessed to you earlier, would you have accepted it?”
“Oh, really!”
Erne teased me to his heart's content, then disappeared after receiving two more silver coins in exchange for keeping him quiet.
I, who entered the mansion alone, immediately started drying roses.
If you put a bunch of dried roses on top of a soft red candle, it would definitely be gorgeous.
“Should I try adding dried flower petals here and there?”
I took a small ring case out of my basket, thinking about the different shapes of the candles.
“Can you put this ring in the candle?”
“Is this inside a candle? I could put it in, but then the candle would get on it and I wouldn’t be able to put the ring on.”
“It doesn’t matter. I just want to have a little fun.”
It was the first time in my life that I had been asked to put a ring in a jar.
“It’s definitely not for proposals, but it still looks pretty expensive.”
Zark said that he bought the rings from a market stall on a festival day and shared them as a joke, but they didn't look like rings sold at the market.
“Well, it’s none of my business.”
All I have to do is make it as ordered. Erne teased me because of Zark, but he offered me an amount that was worth the teasing.
“I guess he loves Young Lady very much.”
I put the ring back in its case and put it in the drawer, then sorted out the payments I had received today and the new orders.
I checked the remaining amount of ingredients, added the newly purchased powder, and tried making a blue-tinged candle. After eating dinner and bickering with Erne, who teased me whenever he had time, I finished up the remaining work and it was close to midnight.
I climbed onto the bed, rubbing my stiff shoulders. I was halfway to falling asleep as I slowly crawled under the covers.
Sob, sob-
What does this mean?
My eyelids fluttered. I remained motionless and listened. All I could hear was the sound of the wind blowing eerily outside the window.
Sob-
But then again the sound of crying was heard.
What could it be? Is this the sound of someone crying?
The man who answered shyly was holding a large bouquet of roses in his hand.
I looked at the bouquet, then at the handsome man's face, then clapped my hands.
“Did we meet here once before?”
“You remember me. I’ve seen you a couple of times.”
As expected, he was a man with a face. A man like that came to me with a bouquet of flowers and spoke to me? What could it mean?
'Even if I say it myself, Judith is quite pretty.'
I fiddled with my hair for no reason and then pushed it behind my ear.
“Do you have anything to say to me...?”
“Would you please accept this? ...It’s a gift for the Baroness.”
The man held out a bouquet of flowers. The name was hard to hear because a carriage passed by, but I, who was from the Baroness's family, naturally assumed that the flowers were meant for me.
In my past life, I was too busy making money to date, but it seemed like things would be better in this life.
“I want to make a special candle for Young Lady.”
"Yes?"
The corners of my mouth, which had been rising in a curve, stopped at an ambiguous spot.
I'm a candle maker, and you want me to make a special candle for myself? That doesn't make sense.
“Would you please make a special candle with these flowers just for Baron Briggs’s daughter?”
***
The man's name is Zark VanHenson.
He was thinking about a special gift for his lover, Lady of Baron Briggs, before proposing to her. Then, he happened to see the colored candles that Judith was selling and a great idea came to him.
It is to dry the petals and decorate the candles. Dry the red roses for Baron Briggs's daughter and decorate the red candles.
Then, saying that it would be a much more meaningful gift than a bouquet of flowers, Zark even paid the deposit.
"You were a married woman. What should I do to miss our Lady of Harrington?”
“Why me?”
“You were all excited because you thought you were being confessed.”
My ears turned bright red.
I shouldn't have asked Erne to come with me. I would have just looked embarrassed after pushing myself to deliver everything at once.
No, Mr. Zark should have said from the beginning that he wanted to order a production, what would happen if he just handed me a bouquet of flowers? Honestly, how many people would not misunderstand that situation?
“Be honest with me.”
“What is it?”
“Did you worry about whether you should tell him that you were a Countess and not a Baroness? Did you?”
Thanks to that, Erne was happy.
As soon as Zark entered Baron Briggs's residence, handing her a bouquet of flowers and a deposit, he was laughing his ass off. And he did so all the way back to the mansion after delivering the next order.
I'm dying of rage. I took advantage of Erne's moment of inattention to throw a punch at him, but Erne easily dodged it by simply shaking his shoulder.
Today too, the fist that couldn't hit Erne cried.
“You said you’d buy me beef jerky.”
“Just buy it as you see fit.”
Since I didn't feel like buying Erne beef jerky right now, I took out a coin and tossed it to Erne.
“With that, buy some jerky and a new water bottle, and bring me five potatoes. Sir Erne, you can keep the rest of the money.”
“How can I buy all that with this?”
“Find out.”
“What, are you a punk?”
Erne threw the fairy tale and caught it, muttering with a mischievous expression.
“If you just answer one thing, I’ll go and get it quietly. If that guy had confessed to you earlier, would you have accepted it?”
“Oh, really!”
Erne teased me to his heart's content, then disappeared after receiving two more silver coins in exchange for keeping him quiet.
***
I, who entered the mansion alone, immediately started drying roses.
If you put a bunch of dried roses on top of a soft red candle, it would definitely be gorgeous.
“Should I try adding dried flower petals here and there?”
I took a small ring case out of my basket, thinking about the different shapes of the candles.
“Can you put this ring in the candle?”
“Is this inside a candle? I could put it in, but then the candle would get on it and I wouldn’t be able to put the ring on.”
“It doesn’t matter. I just want to have a little fun.”
It was the first time in my life that I had been asked to put a ring in a jar.
“It’s definitely not for proposals, but it still looks pretty expensive.”
Zark said that he bought the rings from a market stall on a festival day and shared them as a joke, but they didn't look like rings sold at the market.
“Well, it’s none of my business.”
All I have to do is make it as ordered. Erne teased me because of Zark, but he offered me an amount that was worth the teasing.
“I guess he loves Young Lady very much.”
I put the ring back in its case and put it in the drawer, then sorted out the payments I had received today and the new orders.
I checked the remaining amount of ingredients, added the newly purchased powder, and tried making a blue-tinged candle. After eating dinner and bickering with Erne, who teased me whenever he had time, I finished up the remaining work and it was close to midnight.
I climbed onto the bed, rubbing my stiff shoulders. I was halfway to falling asleep as I slowly crawled under the covers.
Sob, sob-
What does this mean?
My eyelids fluttered. I remained motionless and listened. All I could hear was the sound of the wind blowing eerily outside the window.
Sob-
But then again the sound of crying was heard.
What could it be? Is this the sound of someone crying?
I opened my eyes but stopped. There was only Erne and me in this mansion. So is this the sound of Erne crying?
Ugh, ugh, ugh-
The voice was too sweet for that. It was creepy, like a woman crying or a child crying. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
Ugh-
The sound of crying is getting closer.
Don't open your eyes.
The sound of crying brushed past my ears. I instinctively felt I had to pretend to be asleep.
But from the moment I had that thought, my eyelids began to flutter on their own.
And for a split second, through slightly opened eyelids, I saw it.
Something black, staring blankly at me.
Meanwhile, in Erne's room.
Ugh-
Erne, who had been keeping his eyes tightly shut because he couldn't sleep, opened his eyes to the sound of crying from afar.
Ugh, ugh, ugh-
The voice was too sweet for that. It was creepy, like a woman crying or a child crying. The hairs on the back of my neck stood on end.
Ugh-
The sound of crying is getting closer.
Don't open your eyes.
The sound of crying brushed past my ears. I instinctively felt I had to pretend to be asleep.
But from the moment I had that thought, my eyelids began to flutter on their own.
And for a split second, through slightly opened eyelids, I saw it.
Something black, staring blankly at me.
***
Meanwhile, in Erne's room.
Ugh-
Erne, who had been keeping his eyes tightly shut because he couldn't sleep, opened his eyes to the sound of crying from afar.
Who is crying at this hour? Is it Judith?
"...”
Did I hear wrong?
"...”
Did I hear wrong?
Erne, who had raised his upper body slightly, laid back down when he could no longer hear the sound. After all, there was no way Judith would cry.
He couldn't help but laugh again as he recalled Judith shyly turning her head, thinking that she was being confessed to by Zark.
I thought you were only interested in money, but I guess you also want to date?
“But isn’t it the wind?”
Her husband is alive and well. When she needs him, she calls him “honey, honey” so often, but when it comes to this, she says “no” again. How annoying...
Sob-
He couldn't help but laugh again as he recalled Judith shyly turning her head, thinking that she was being confessed to by Zark.
I thought you were only interested in money, but I guess you also want to date?
“But isn’t it the wind?”
Her husband is alive and well. When she needs him, she calls him “honey, honey” so often, but when it comes to this, she says “no” again. How annoying...
Sob-
You're indeed crying.
Erne got up. He didn't hear any noise, but just in case, he grabbed his sword and went out into the hallway.
Ugh, ugh, ugh-
Sob-
Erne, who was about to take a step toward Judith's room, turned his head in the opposite direction.
“..."
There's no one there.
He walked slowly, muffled by his footsteps. There was no sign of life behind the pillars, above the ceiling, or anywhere else.
The moment he quietly pulled out his sword,
Sob, sob, sob, sob-
“..."
There's no one there.
He walked slowly, muffled by his footsteps. There was no sign of life behind the pillars, above the ceiling, or anywhere else.
The moment he quietly pulled out his sword,
Sob, sob, sob, sob-
A wet cry soaked my earlobes. Something black. His eyes met with two gleaming eyes amidst a substance that was darker than the darkness of the night, unidentifiable in form.
Eyes without whites.
Goosebumps ran through his entire body. The moment their eyes met, they disappeared somewhere. In an instant, to a place he couldn't tell where.
"..What."
Erne looked around like a man who had missed an enemy right in front of him a beat later. Was the hunched shadow disappearing around the corner of the hallway an illusion or a reality?
Ern couldn't take his eyes off the dark eyes that stared at him for even a split second.
***
“Ugh, shoulder.”
The next morning, I fetched water from the kitchen and rubbed my sore shoulders and neck. I didn't feel like I had slept well the night before.
“I really thought a ghost had appeared.”
The dream was so realistic. I was so scared last night that I thought I was going to die, but when morning came, my fear was gone.
“It’s cloudy.”
Erne, who was just coming out of the room, muttered as he looked out the gloomy window.
Looking at the dark clouds gathering, it seemed like it was going to rain soon.
“It would be perfect for a nap.”
Last night was practically an all-nighter. I finally fell into a light sleep at dawn, but even then I was woken up by the sound of Judith moving around busily.
Looking back, what happened yesterday just seemed like a vivid nightmare.
“Are you talking about taking a nap as soon as you wake up?”
“There’s nothing special to do.”
Erne shrugged and deliberately sat down comfortably within sight of me.
“No, why are you lying there? It’s not like I’m making fun of anyone.”
“Why not, that’s right.”
I could even hit that handsome face, I had another realization today.
“When on earth are fake IDs going to come out?”
“You want to get rid of me quickly, don’t you? Well, you can date comfortably without me. I understand.”
How long is that guy going to keep teasing me with that? I glared at Erne with force in my eyes. Erne was laughing, whether I did or not.
“If this continues, I’ll end up remarrying.”
“What are you going to do?”
"What?"
“No, if you find a good man, you should do it. You don’t have to live as a widow your whole life.”
I wouldn't make a big effort to remarry, but if I found a good person, I might. I was keeping the door of possibility wide open.
“Sir Erne will remarry if a good person comes along.”
“I’m going to live with a new identity, so it’s my first marriage.”
“Wow, you did really well.”
I muttered to myself as I checked how dry the roses hanging upside down had become. Of course, my voice was loud enough for Erne to hear.
“But I wonder who would take a man who has been lying down since morning.”
“Don’t worry about it, Miss Harrington. I have a line of women who want to marry me, even if it means lying down all day, not just in the morning.”
***
A quiet night with rain that started to fall late in the evening pitter-pattering against the window.
For some reason, I couldn't sleep and tossed and turned in bed for a long time.
Ugh-
Again, again.
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