"Don't do that from now on."
"..."
He still had no answer.
"You are my slave, but that doesn't mean you can get hurt because of me."
Her thoughts were so complicated that her words flowed out incoherently.
She was grateful, but this was a different matter. Shioana didn't want to see Etienne get hurt because of her.
They hadn't known each other for very long, and they weren't even of similar status, but she couldn't reveal it to Etienne or anyone else.
He was her friend.
She, her mind racing, spoke in a firm voice.
"Don't get hurt. This is my order as your master. Do you understand?"
At Shioana's command, Etienne just stood still.
A dry breeze of Regbel blew between the two of them.
***
Mrs. Hooper's lessons were more like bridal lessons than etiquette lessons, and they seemed more boring and useless than she expected.
"Miss Shioana, what do you think are the qualities of a good bride?"
"...Well, I don't know."
When Shioana hesitated, Mrs. Hooper shook her head.
"It's difficult to answer such a simple question. First, obedience, second, obedience."
They say that if you obey your father and older brother before marriage and your husband afterward, you can create a happy family.
Shioana felt like refuting it, but it wasn't exactly wrong. She was taking this class because of Eli...
"...Hmm"
Mrs. Hooper continued, smiling with satisfaction at Shioana's submissive attitude.
"Only a well-behaved lady can attract the attention of many gentlemen."
As the class dragged on, Shioana's face grew paler. It was something she'd never imagined happening while living at Regbel.
She is learning how to eat macarons while fluttering her eyelashes.
"And when you go out, you must always have a companion. When crossing the street, you must lift the hem of your dress with your right hand only up to your ankles."
'Mrs. Hooper would faint if she saw me climbing Regbel Mountain.'
When she climbed the mountain, she held her dress with both hands and lifted it up to her knees.
"Miss Shioana, these are things that the girls in the capital are taught from a young age."
Mrs. Hooper frowned as she lifted her tarnished gold-rimmed glass. She'd started this business because she was desperate to make ends meet after losing her husband, but guiding such a disorganized student was a daunting task.
"But I don't see Lord Evgenia today?"
As she looked around for no reason, Mrs. Hooper blushed slightly.
"My brother went to Highbell."
Mrs. Hooper looked slightly disappointed at Shioana's answer.
As the carriage carrying Mrs. Hooper disappeared, Shioana hurried out of the room.
"I thought I was going to die from the suffocation."
On days when Eli wasn't home, she always went for a walk. But today, she wasted precious time attending Mrs. Hooper's class.
As they walked, they arrived at the backyard, where they found Etienne chopping firewood. He continued working, oblivious to her presence, while Shioana sat down on a nearby stump.
Suddenly, tak.
As she continued to watch the simple act of a thick tree being split by an axe, her irritation subsided a little.
‘I really hate that class.'
But Shioana couldn't say that to Eli. He would get really angry if she did.
She was tormented by two feelings: she hated class, but she also didn't want to be hated.
"I don't think I'll ever be a good lady."
Shioana muttered to herself.
How much time has passed?
A considerable pile of firewood stood beside Etienne, and his forehead, face, and upper body were drenched in sweat. He roughly wiped the sweat with the back of his hand and lifted the axe again, and Shioana caught a glimpse of his bulging arm muscles through his rolled-up sleeves.
'How long are you going to keep chopping firewood?'
She scribbled on the ground with the tips of his shoes, or just wandered around aimlessly, but he still kept chopping.
Shioana picked up a small pebble from the ground and threw it near Etienne's feet. He didn't budge after one or two hits, so she threw the stone three or four more times.
"...?"
Only then did Etienne, who had lowered his axe, glance in the direction the stone had come from. Shioana was hiding her hands behind her back, pretending not to notice.
'...To be childish.'
He took a deep breath and looked around. There was more firewood piled up than Joseph had indicated.
"You didn't know I was coming?"
The impatient Shioana spoke to him first. Etienne put the axe back where it belonged and turned away.
In fact, he knew before she came to the garden. Her footsteps sounded like their owner's. He heard all the grumbling she'd been rambling about, and he even managed to suppress a chuckle.
'That's not wrong, though.'
Shioana was far from the elegant lady he had seen.
She climbed the hill without hesitation, and she treated him like a human being, even though he was a slave worse than a gutter rat.
But because of that, Etienne had to stay away from her.
On the other hand, Shiona was taken aback by his cold reaction.
'I thought we were getting a little closer, but no??'
Shioana wanted to know him more and more. Her desire grew so strong that at times she couldn't control it.
'Do I have to beg him to show his face?'
Shioana's expression darkened as she watched him, still standing with his back turned. As she clenched her fists in frustration, she saw something black crawling near where Etienne was standing.
'...venomous snake.'
The Regbel snake was so poisonous that even a large horse would die if bitten.
Before she could even warn Etienne, her body moved first. Shioana picked up the axe and struck the snake's head with it.
It happened in an instant.
"...!"
Etienne looked at the snake, which was cut in two, and at her, who was gasping for breath, in a daze.
"...I saved you again."
Her words brought back memories of the night he had tried to forget. After he opened his mouth to refuse the medicine, Shioana viciously injected it into him.
Yes, it was clear that he owed her his life.
Not only that, but an unfamiliar sensation that he had been suppressing and suppressing enveloped his entire body.
The blushing cheeks of a mountain climber, the sharp nose of Shioana as she smells the scent of roses, the pink lips calling his name.
Etienne's legs swayed for a moment as he felt dizzy.
"What, are you scared of snakes for nothing?"
She laughed at Etienne, her shoulders raised high.
At Shioana's words, he only let out a ragged breath.
"..."
What filled Etienne's confused eyes was fear.
The two-parted snake corpse rolling on the floor wasn't scary.
***
The quiet Regbel began to stir.
At Eli's invitation, guests arrived at Evgenia's mansion for the first time in over a decade. They usually enjoyed playing poker or hunting. Every day, the sound of gunfire and birds chirping echoed through the forest.
Martha hummed as she unpacked the large box.
"I can't believe how polite and handsome all your friends are."
Her voice was filled with an excitement that could not be hidden.
Everyone, including Martha, was excited when young men came to Regbel, where it was difficult to see people.
"Who said you were curious about that?"
Shioana responded nonchalantly.
Martha said, ignoring Shioana's response.
"How pretty would our little girl look if she wore it?"
Martha kept smiling as she took the newly fitted dress out of the box and put it away in the closet.
"But I'm saying that no one thinks of you as much as little lord does..."
The dress, crafted by Hybel's finest costume shop, was truly beautiful. The soft fabric was as delicate and fluttering as a butterfly's wings.
"Yes."
Shioana snickered as she saw Martha through the thin fabric.
'How can you be so cruel to a young lady!'
She used to curse Eli like that, but now she says no.
"By the way, the pack looks expensive..."
It was her first time wearing such an expensive dress. But knowing Regbel's financial situation all too well, she wasn't entirely happy. How on earth could Eli have come up with the money to order so many dresses, shoes, and hats?
'Surely not.'
Shioana tried to shake off all the ominous thoughts that were coming to her mind and focus on the book in her hand.
"Our young lady, you have taken care of all the household chores and are now an adult."
"Martha, don't you know I'm going to be an adult soon?"
As Shioana shot back sharply, Martha kept nodding her head.
"That's right. I made a mistake."
“That’s all you need to know.”
"Miss, I'll go down and get you some snacks."
As Martha left, having finished putting away her dress, Shioana quietly got up. She pretended to read the book the whole time, but in reality, nothing in it caught her eye.
"...Huh."
Her mind been in disarray lately?
Her heart was pounding, but a sudden, inexplicable anxiety weighed on her chest. She felt like everything was changing, but she couldn't quite place it.
“Everything will be okay.”
Shioana muttered, pressing her pounding heart with her hand.
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