Shioana, wearing a blue muslin dress and a shawl with lily embroidery, walked slowly through the garden.
The scent of ripe apples wafted through the air, making it seem like summer was truly upon us. Red and white roses were in full bloom between the withered vines.
As the scent of roses wafted through the wind, a humming song flowed from the girl.
"I wish every day was like today."
A day without any worries or pain.
As she gazed at the beautifully blooming red rose, she naturally remembered someone's red gaze.
'Why do I keep thinking about that lowly thing?'
Shioana, who had been shaking her head, bit her lips tightly.
In fact, even while she was lying in bed sick, she thought of him the whole time. To be precise, she pictured his two eyes.
The crimson eyes, as if set with rubies, lingered in her mind. Shioana, who had been hovering in one spot, soon found the answer.
'It's been a while since I've seen someone my age.'
After her mother passed away at Regbel, there weren't any balls or tea parties. She had no contact with relatives or other guests, so her only social contact was with her older brother, Eli.
'I was always alone.'
Not only did she have friends, but Shioana didn't even have a single toy in her body.
Because she always inherited things that Eli got tired of playing with or broke.
Shioana, who had been staring intently at the red rose, reached out without thinking. Then, a thorn pricked her pear, drawing blood.
"...Ahh!”
The sharp pain made Shioana collapse to the ground. The thorn was so thick that it felt like a large hole had been ripped through her finger.
'What the hell is this, you idiot?'
As she was looking at the flowing blood with pity, she heard the sound of grass being stepped on nearby.
"...Oh."
The figure with his back to the sun gave off a very familiar feeling.
‘You’ve grown more.’
How did he grow so well despite the harsh climate of Regbel? His appearance had changed so much in less than a year since he arrived. Perhaps he was not her age, but rather older.
'Yeah, it's definitely awkward to call him a boy.'
Shioana thought so as she watched his broad shoulders taking on the manly physique.
Then she quickly hid her injured finger behind her back. After all, she was his master, and she couldn't continue to show him such foolish behavior.
"It's nothing, just go over there and see."
Shioana tried to sound polite. But then a tear formed on her eyelashes and rolled down her cheek before she could wipe it away.
"...!"
He knelt down, wearing a shabby but clean white shirt and a pair of dark brown trousers. A cool aura and the smell of sweat emanated from him at the same time.
Looking down at his stubborn-looking chin, Shioana snapped angrily.
"How cheeky! Why are you so disobedient?"
Even with the fire in her blue eyes, the opponent showed no sign of retreating. He reached out with a large hand and grabbed Shioana's wrist.
"What, what are you trying to do?"
'Avoid that guy at all costs.'
She heard there was a slave who abused a noble lady.
She doesn't know why Martha's request came to mind now.
“If you dare to do such a thing...!"
Shioana wanted to swear and threaten him, but she trailed off because she didn't know what to do. Shioana struggled to free herself from his grasp, but she was no match for his strength.
As he stared at her pale face, he brought her bloody finger straight to his mouth.
Shioana's body froze as the incident happened so quickly.
"...!"
The sound of sucking fingers filled the space between the two.
The sensation of his tongue wrapped around Shioana's finger was truly peculiar. It was a feeling she had never felt before.
It felt like she was falling off a cliff or plunging into a deep lake. No, it felt like thousands of wildflower seeds were blooming in her chest.
After a moment, he stopped sucking her finger and turned his head. Shioana's cheeks flushed as she looked down at his saliva-soaked finger.
It wasn't the first time something like this had happened.
She's sure Martha would have done the same thing if she'd been pricked by a thorn, but it felt completely different now.
"You, you really need to get beaten some more..."
Her heart was pounding so hard that she couldn't even speak properly.
How dare you, a lowly person who does menial work, touch my precious body!
It would be normal to be angry, but she couldn't understand why her heart was pounding so hard.
"People are talking, where are you looking!"
Whenever he sucked her finger without hesitation, his ears would turn red, and he couldn't even look Shioana in the eye properly.
'What? Are you embarrassed?'
He acted so recklessly and without fear, and now he's reacting like that. Has he finally realized his mistake?
A strange sense of satisfaction spread through Shioana's chest as she saw his helpless face.
"I am a lenient master, so I will forgive you this time, but next time I will not let you off easy."
He had been staring down at the ground under Shioana's stern gaze, but nodded. Shioana lifted her chin at his gesture, a gesture of complete submission.
"What are you doing? Pick the roses quickly."
At her arrogant command, he abruptly stood up, plucked the most blooming rose, stripped it of its thorns, and offered it to her. Shioana, looking down at the rose, smiled brightly.
"If only it had been like this from the beginning. Starting today, I will make you my dedicated servant. So, know that from now on, you will do everything I tell you to do. Got it?"
Actually, there was no need for a dedicated servant or anything like that.
“Why is there no answer?”
When she asked him again, smelling the roses, he nodded again. The incomprehensible smile bothered her a little, but he was always a bit strange, so she simply ignored it.
"I'm going for a walk, so you escort me from behind."
Shioana, clutching a rose, acted as if she were strolling down a crowded street.
Even though it was summer, a man a head taller than her was following closely behind Shioana as she wandered through the desolate garden of Regbel.
***
Beginning that summer, the two began spending more time together. Shioana visited him from time to time.
"Did you forget what I told you to do when I called?"
He stopped working and ran to Shioana's call, panting.
He stared blankly at Shioana, her blue eyes sparkling with anger like twinkling stars.
"Don't be so cheeky again."
No slave would dare look at his master's face like that. Only when Shioana pretended to stamp hard on his foot did the slave raise his head.
"I'm going to climb that mountain today."
He frowned at her plan, remembering Martha's request.
'You mustn't do anything that will make Master Eli nitpick. Got it?'
Martha still disapproved of him, but it seemed she couldn't break Shioana's stubbornness.
When he showed a slight hesitation, Shioana, with both hands at her sides, put on a relaxed expression.
"It's okay. Brother will come back at dawn and won't wake up until night."
And then they passed the backyard and entered a narrow path leading up to the mountain.
After a short summer, Regbel was already covered in the shadows of winter.
The wind that brushed her nose was quite sharp, and the flowers on the side of the road had already fallen long ago.
Even though she was climbing a gentle mountain without any trees, her dress kept getting caught, so she kept lifting both sides with her hands and making a squeaking sound.
“It's all here!”
It took an hour to get to the top of the mountain, and the Regbel where they live was visible at a glance.
Stone houses were scattered here and there, and the endless fields were filled with a yellow aura. Sheep and goats leisurely grazed among the yellow bushes that stretched out to the horizon.
"...Ugh."
As he was struggling to climb the mountain, Sioana laughed loudly at him.
"Try swallowing your saliva quickly. It'll make breathing a little easier."
He followed her advice, and the pain in his ears that felt like it was going to split was somewhat relieved.
Shioana opened her mouth as if talking to herself.
"This is the closest place to heaven in Regbel."
His eyes were deeply locked as he stood at an appropriate distance behind Shioana.
Her wavy brown hair, which reached down to her waist, blew in all directions in the wind.
His gaze fell on her round, bulging forehead, blankly staring up at the sky, without even thinking about grabbing the hem of her fluttering dress.
Shioana Evgenia was truly extraordinary, more so than any woman he had ever seen.
The day he arrived at Legbel, the moment Joseph took off his cloak, he couldn't see anything because of the sudden light.
As things slowly came into view, the first thing he noticed was Shioana. Pale skin, a slender face, luscious brown hair, and slender shoulders.
And fear was blooming in her blue eyes.
It's annoying.
Etienne stared at the brown hair blowing in the wind.
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