MHM 5

 “I'm pretending not to see. I think the Countess would be embarrassed.”

Charles finished speaking and walked straight ahead.

“Umm…”

Iana hesitated with a flustered expression.

It was well past midnight.

How could one explain a noblewoman running barefoot in the garden at this late hour?

While she was pondering, Charles had already walked quite a distance away.

"Let's forget it. His Highness said he'd pretend not to have seen anything anyway."

Just as Iana was about to give up and go in the opposite direction,

“Shoes! Where did my shoes go?”

It seemed she had dropped one of her shoes while running in a hurry.

She had no choice but to go back the way she came to find the lost shoe.

If the Countess's shoe, who rarely goes out, was found in the garden, it would surely raise suspicions.

She searched for the shoe desperately, but it was nowhere to be seen.

“Where did I drop it?”

At that moment, Charles was walking ahead with his hands behind his back.

‘Why do I have to run into him again?’

Iana hid behind a large tree to the side, her face flushed with embarrassment.

But Charles, having spotted her at some point, was walking towards the tree where she was hiding.

‘Why, why is he coming this way?’

One step. Two steps.

As Charles got closer and his large shadow began to envelop her,

Iana spoke in a trembling voice.

“Y-Your Highness, w-what…”

“…”

For some reason, Charles seemed to pass by silently this time as well.

It was at that moment.

Thud-.

The green leather shoe she had lost fell to the ground.

“Shoe.”

Charles whispered as if he was on a secret mission and walked straight ahead.

“Ah…!”

Only then did Iana relax and let out a small sigh.

But when she tried to put on the shoe, she found a white handkerchief inside.

‘He put it in so I could wipe my feet.’

She quickly wiped her feet with the handkerchief, put on the shoes, and followed Charles.

“Your Highness.”

Charles stopped with his back still turned to her.

“Thank you for finding my shoe.”

“I just picked up what I saw.”

“And the reason I was running like this at night…”

Just as Iana was about to explain the situation, Charles turned around and spoke.

“You don’t have to tell me. Everyone has their own stories they can’t share with others, don’t they?”

“…”

“Rather, I feel sorry for intruding on the Countess's private time. Goodbye.”

Charles finished speaking and walked indifferently ahead.

“Your Highness.”

Iana called out to him again.

“Do you still have something to say?”

“There’s no path that way. You have to go back the way you came.”

At her words, Charles looked slightly embarrassed and turned back, walking towards her.

“…I see. Thank you for telling me.”

Charles smiled awkwardly, looking a bit sheepish.

‘Are the rumors wrong? Or is he just in a good mood today?’

Iana doubted because Charles’s demeanor was so different from the rumors.

“Please go ahead. I will look around here for a bit and then leave.”

“Then I wish you a peaceful night, Your Highness.”

Iana bowed and walked away.

By the time she reached the entrance of the garden, she glanced back slightly at Charles.

Charles, who said he would look around, was standing in front of a tree, watching her leave.

“What is he looking at?”

Iana walked towards the inner castle, still clueless.

With each step she took, the moonlit grass glistened like jewels.

* * *

The next morning, Riel was lost in thought, fiddling with the leaves of a potted plant by the window.

“You’re just a maid too.”

Since yesterday, Iana’s words had been bothering her.

She had said it as a joke, but it wasn’t the usual docile tone Iana used.

‘Why only me…’

Riel felt wronged once again.

Starting as equals, both daughters of a Marquis, she and Iana had the same opportunities.

But due to her father's poor judgment, Riel was now a maid while Iana remained the mistress.

'Being sickly and useless...'

Riel found it especially hard to bear seeing Iana seemingly living a happy life after marriage without any effort.

Now, it felt like she was the only one suffering.

‘Iana, I wish you were just a little bit unhappy. Like before.’

Riel’s sharp nails dug into the plant’s leaves, causing it to shake violently in the wind as if struggling.

Knock knock knock.

“Hey! Riel, are you in there?”

The door burst open with a knock, and Vera entered with a tray.

Bang-

Vera set the tray down on the table and said,

"I'm already swamped preparing meals for the knights, couldn't you at least fetch your own meals? What’s this about, making another maid serve you?”

“...”

Riel only left nail marks on the leaves, saying nothing.

“Do you know how busy we are? We have to run errands for the knights, prepare for the banquet, and clean the gallery for the noble guests arriving this afternoon.”

Vera listed all her tasks on her fingers.

“You should at least do this. It makes you look more vibrant.”

Riel instantly understood what kind of person Vera was.

A simple, bright girl with good social skills.

With her unique friendliness, Vera had become close to Iana, who had only recently joined the Count's household.

“Of course, I heard about you. The Count said you’re from a rebel family and shouldn’t stand out, right? But still…”

‘A maid from a rebel family.’

That remark irritated Riel greatly. She wanted to twist Vera’s delicate neck.

At that moment, a good idea came to Riel’s mind. She approached Vera with a kind smile and said,

“I’ll help. With cleaning the gallery.”

“Really?”

“You came all the way up here because of me when you're busy. I should help.”

“Then just take care of the lady's medicine and come to the gallery. Oh, I’ll show you the path only maids use later. Then you won't run into the master.”

As Vera left the room, Riel said with a meaningful smile,

“Sure. Thanks.”

* * *

That afternoon in the reception room.

Iana was having tea time with noblewomen who had come to attend Charles’s welcome banquet.

While the ladies chatted, Iana stared at Charles’s handkerchief in her hand, deep in thought.

‘Is it right to return a handkerchief used to wipe feet?'

She had washed Charles’s handkerchief clean last night and dried it thoroughly in the sunlight.

‘But it’s still a handkerchief used to wipe my feet. Should I give him a new one instead?’

Nevertheless, she thought it was only polite to return someone else’s belongings.

As Iana was fretting over the handkerchief, one of the noblewomen asked slyly,

“Countess, is it true that Grand Duke of Erbin is so terrifying?”

“I heard such rumors, but...”

As Iana tried to speak, another noblewoman interrupted.

“They say His Highness beheads any maid who isn’t pretty on the spot!”

“That’s not...”

Just as Iana was about to correct them, the butler’s voice was heard from outside the parlor.

“His Highness the Grand Duke has arrived.”

Iana and the noblewomen stood up in unison.

Creak.

The parlor door opened, and Charles entered with the noblemen he had first met.

At that moment, the noblewomen gasped at the sight of Charles in his knight’s uniform.

“Oh my!”

His silver hair was neatly combed back. He wore white pants and a navy jacket embroidered with gold lilies, the symbol of the Rubena Empire.

Over this, he draped a cloak adorned with ornate gold epaulets.

He exuded the dignity and restraint of a knight.

“Wow...!”

The noblewomen gazed at Charles in awe.

“Thank you all for coming.”

Charles approached and greeted them formally. Carrion, who stood behind him, introduced the noblewomen one by one.

As the introductions were finishing, Iana and Charles’s eyes met. She glanced at the handkerchief in her hand.

“Since His Highness is here, I will guide him around the castle.”

At Carrion’s words, Charles and the noblemen led the way, followed by Iana and the noblewomen.

Iana wanted to return the handkerchief to Charles, worried that last night's outing might be discovered.

But she couldn’t think of a discreet way to do it.

Just then, Charles fanned himself lazily and spoke nonchalantly.

“It’s a bit hot. Could I borrow a handkerchief?”

As he spoke, his gaze was already on Iana.

When she offered the handkerchief, the noblewomen simultaneously extended their hands.

“Here you go, Your Highness!”

“Thank you, Countess.”

Charles naturally took the handkerchief from Iana.

But then, he started wiping his face with the handkerchief that had been used to clean her feet.

“Your Highness, that…”

As she tried to stop him with a flustered expression, the gallery doors swung open wide.

It was then.

Carrion shouted sharply.

“What’s wrong with that?”

The face of the statue of the Goddess of Suffering was melted and corroded beyond recognition.

At that moment, Iana realized.

‘Time has changed. That incident happened in autumn!'