“Miss.”
“…….”
Mary pulled back the curtains sharply and called for Summer. However, Summer did not respond at all.
Mary approached the bed with a slightly incredulous expression and asked, “Miss, is your goal to starve yourself?”
“Mary, just leave me alone.”
Only then did Summer mumble from within the bed, wriggling around.
“How much longer do you want to be left alone? You’ve been lying in bed for four days without eating anything.”
Mary sat at the edge of the bed, looking at Summer with concern. Summer had been holed up in bed for days, not eating or drinking anything.
The moment she stepped outside, it felt as if the Grim Reaper would come to take her, so she never left the bed.
At night, Summer screamed from nightmares, and during the day, she was lethargic.
“Duke Bertrand sent a letter again today. Should I read it to you?”
“…….”
She didn’t say she didn’t want to hear it. Even while refusing all visitors and isolating herself, Summer still read Russell’s letters diligently.
They were her only means of communication. It was a one-sided affair, with Russell sending letters without any reply.
“I’ll read it for you. Please, Summer. I just want to check if you’re okay. Do you remember what I said by the lake that day? I will be sad, so please don’t think strange thoughts.”
“…….”
“And if you’re having really bad thoughts, then think of me instead. What color was my hair under the sunlight? What were my eyes like?”
“…….”
“What was my voice like? Summer, I want to see you before I forget your voice. Please allow me to visit.”
“……I refuse.”
Under the white blanket, Summer’s voice trembled. Mary let out a quiet sigh.
What on earth was that witch whispering about now? Mary didn’t like the witch named Pei.
She made the young lady depressed, anxious, and precarious. If this continued, Summer would wither away in this world, devoid of any connection to the original one.
Like autumn leaves that crack and make a loud noise at the slightest touch.
“I’ll write a reply saying you’ll allow the visit.”
At Mary’s words, Summer sat up abruptly. She should have used this method earlier. Mary smiled triumphantly.
Summer’s appearance under the blanket was terribly disheveled. Her hair was a tangled mess, and her pale face was shadowed with dark circles.
“I told you to refuse!”
“Why should I follow your orders, Miss?”
“What?”
“Since you’ve given me your soul, my soul now moves according to my will.”
“But you’re my maid.”
“Then I’ll just resign. What’s the big deal?”
Mary shrugged her shoulders and smiled brightly. She always looked exhausted while working, but for some reason, her face was quite fresh when she mentioned resigning.
“Me, Mary, you!”
“What are you going to do about it? I can’t just leave you like this. If you could get better on your own, I would have left you alone, but it’s clear that you’ll only get worse if I do.”
“……Why are you doing this to me?”
“I always say this, don’t I? I want you to love this world. So I want you to stay here.”
“What if love is forced?”
“What do you mean by that?”
As Mary wrote a reply to Duke Bertrand saying, ‘The young lady has allowed the visit,’ she asked.
Mary was Summer’s maid, housekeeper, and friend.
“If loving this world is the only way, what will you do?”
“I guess I’ll have to try to love it. I’ll try to find something beautiful in it, no matter what.”
“…….”
“It’s not just you who finds this world terrible.”
“Haha, Mary. You’re a person of this world.”
Summer exhaled in exasperation and shook her head. While she appreciated Mary’s attempts to empathize, it didn’t resonate much with her.
Mary took a deep breath, as if she had expected this, and began to speak.
“After I gained a soul, living trapped in this mansion with these ghostly, faint beings is also terrible for me.”
Mary lightly tapped a ghostly maid that brushed past her with her fingertip. They were so faint that it was hard to even say they existed.
“Miss, do you think others are any different?”
“…….”
“Does Duke Lancaster live in this world because it’s maddeningly lovely?”
“……Stop it.”
“Does Dudley, who is close to you, say this world is lovely?”
“Stop it!”
Summer shouted, clutching her head with both hands. The way she shook her head as if she couldn’t bear to hear more was truly unhinged.
“I’m also terrified. It’s terrifying to think that you leave me among these ghosts and contemplate dying every day. You’re all I have, yet you only think about leaving me.”
“But there’s Daisy.”
Summer shot back, glaring at Mary as if to say not to shift the responsibility onto her.
Mary understood that Summer was struggling. But.
“Is Daisy any different? The Daisy you see is probably a child who smiles brightly like a wildflower in spring.”
“…….”
“You wouldn’t know that she cries almost every night in the attic. You’re too busy and burdened with your own matters.”
“……Daisy?”
This was the first Summer had heard of it. She had been so eager to avoid the dreadful mansion that she had hardly gone outside.
She had no interest in the affairs of the mansion. She thought they would manage just fine on their own. No, she didn’t even think that.
Summer and Mary’s eyes met. The moment Summer saw Mary’s reddened eyes, she felt something was wrong.
“Why do you think Daisy wouldn’t be struggling? Daisy isn’t an idiot. She knows what you’re thinking, Miss.”
“I…….”
“You must be terrified and in pain too. As you can see, this world is a stage made for the protagonist, and we are merely props beneath it.”
“…….”
“But, Miss. Is the world you want to return to really that different?”
“What?”
Summer retorted sharply. Mary’s expression remained calm.
“How wonderful must that place be for you to want to return?”
“Because my family is there. My friends are there, and traces of my life exist there.”
“Are there none here?”
“They aren’t my parents. And this world wants to erase the traces of my life.”
“Well.”
“…….”
“Do as you wish, Miss. But don’t forget that Daisy and I have feelings too.”
“Mary……”
“I’ll take my leave now. I need to send the reply.”
Mary politely bowed and left the room. Left alone, Summer looked dazed.
What could she, an outsider, possibly do here? The world was a well-crafted play, and we were merely minor characters performing the roles the world wanted.
Summer sank to the floor with a pained expression. She wanted to cry out loud, but no tears came.
“How, how does this end? How?”
No one existed to answer Summer’s question. She clutched her head. She needed to confirm what had happened to her original self.
But she was afraid. What if, really, what if.
Summer gasped, pounding her chest as if she were about to suffocate. No matter how hard she pounded, it was difficult to breathe.
“…….”
“Summer.”
Had he rushed over as soon as he received the reply? Russell’s hair was slightly disheveled.
Summer quietly observed his crooked tie and slightly wrinkled black shirt before taking a step closer to him.
“You look as if you’ve seen a ghost.”
Summer said gently as she straightened his crooked tie.
“Summer, were you unwell?”
“Yes. I was very unwell.”
“…….”
“It hurt so much I couldn’t even breathe.”
“I was worried you might…… feel that way again.”
“That won’t happen. I can’t afford to do that recklessly anymore.”
“……What do you mean?”
“I’m sorry. I don’t have the energy for games of deception.”
“It’s alright. More importantly, I wanted to know if you’ve heard any news.”
“News?”
Summer guided Russell to the gazebo in the garden. There were refreshments and tea prepared by Mary in the gazebo.
Summer sat down first, and Russell took a seat opposite her.
The scenery of Count Lindsey’s estate was warm and beautiful today as well.
Little birds flew by, poppies swayed gently in the wind, and the fragrant scent of white lilies planted in front of the mansion wafted through the air.
There were only a few days left of this. Summer smiled faintly.
A dreadful yet beautiful place.
“There’s going to be a royal event.”
“Is that so? I’ve never seen one. I guess the world has really fallen apart.”
Summer mumbled as she poured black tea into her cup. In the original story, there wouldn’t have been any royal events after the coming-of-age ceremony.
By now, Julian and Ian should be focusing on Julian’s age issue and the rival, Perotia, before they embark on a full-blown romance.
But somehow, the story wasn’t flowing according to the original. Well, a royal event wouldn’t drastically change the ending.
“……The world has fallen apart. Do you know something?”
“No. I’ve just been a bit crazy lately. Understand?”
“Summer, you’re not crazy. First of all, a crazy person doesn’t say they’re crazy.”
“You’re still the same, Russell.”
“Didn’t you already know about the war?”
“……What?”
Summer, who had been pouring sugar cubes into her teacup and stirring with a spoon, suddenly froze.
War? Why is that coming up now? In the original story, the war had already ended before Julian and Ian met.
There hadn’t been a single mention of war since then.
“Looks like you haven’t heard.”
“What…….”
Russell took a sip from his teacup and set it down before speaking.
“There was a clash at the western border. They demanded that we bring ships and open trade routes. When we refused, thirty citizens of the Empire were killed.”
“…….”
Thirty lives.
Is it okay because it’s fictional? After all, when I return to the original world, it will just be a line in the book saying, ‘A war broke out, and many people died.’
But why are my hands trembling like this?
“Because of this, His Majesty has declared war, and the date of departure has been set.”
“When is it?”
“In three days.”
“That’s quite soon.”
“They said they would hold a grand banquet at the palace tomorrow evening.”
“That’s absurd. Isn’t it just a forced justification to have a party?”
“I think so too.”
Russell nodded with a faint smile. But soon, his expression darkened.
“More importantly, my close friend has been appointed to lead the charge, and I’m worried.”
“…….”
Why does a bad premonition always come?
“Ian has been appointed to lead the charge.”