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IGF 2
“Oh dear. I’ve been caught. I was planning to give it to you as a birthday present since your birthday is coming up soon.”
“For me?”
Because the fabric of the handkerchief was a luxury item not commonly used in the convent, Roselyn had assumed it belonged to one of the retired noblewomen who occasionally stayed at the monastery. To think it was a birthday present for her. Unable to hide the flush on her face, Roselyn absentmindedly stroked the handkerchief.
“I’ll bring it to you once it’s finished, so please be patient for a little while.”
“But Sister, such a luxury is too much for me.”
Knowing how small the nuns' stipends were, Roselyn was suddenly overcome with worry. She hoped Sister Josephine hadn't overextended herself for her sake.
“Think of it as payment for the medicine you've made for me all this time. After you went through such hardships because of me, don't talk to me about it being 'too much.'”
Josephine reached out and took Roselyn's trembling hand in hers. Since Roselyn had secretly gathered herbs and brewed medicine for her as she grew frail with age, Josephine's strength had returned considerably. However, not long ago, Roselyn had been caught by the Mother Superior for secretly manufacturing medicine and had been forced to offer prayers of repentance while submerged in a tub of ice water.
Since she had suffered such ordeal because of her, a mere handkerchief was nothing. Josephine wondered when the tiny girl who had appeared with such sorrowful eyes had grown so much. For six years, Josephine had cherished Roselyn, admiring how she refused to succumb to her circumstances and strove to do whatever she could. Josephine wanted to do everything for her.
“Since taking the medicine, I’ve become well enough to sit and embroider for this long, so this is all thanks to you, Roselyn.”
“I’m just so glad you’re feeling better.”
Roselyn's blue eyes sparkled with pure joy. The herbology her mother had taught her personally before she passed away was a greater treasure than Roselyn had ever imagined. The names of various medicinal herbs and plants, the methods of refining them, and how to combine them to double their efficacy without side effects. Her mother had been so well-versed in herbology that it was fair to say she knew almost everything, and she had been generous in passing that knowledge down to Roselyn.
Thanks to her mother's knowledge, Roselyn had grown up healthy without a single bout of illness. Herbology was the precious legacy her mother had left only to her. She was truly grateful that she could use that legacy to help someone she cared for.
She thought of the research journal filled with her mother's dense handwriting. Along with the Bluebell family necklace her mother had left behind, it was a keepsake that Roselyn had to recover.
The reason Roselyn had endured and remained at the convent without running away was precisely because of those keepsakes. A necklace embedded with a blue gem, said to be passed down through generations of women carrying the blood of the Bluebell family. She had heard that the necklace possessed a mysterious power that even her mother did not fully understand. Her mother had once mentioned that she had saved her own life thanks to the unknown power of the necklace.
「If it weren't for this necklace, I might never have met you, Roselyn. I will uncover as many secrets as I can about the necklace from now on. So that our little princess can be safer and happier.」
And the research journal, which her mother had spent her entire life studying herbology, was just as precious to Roselyn as the necklace.
However, as soon as her parents passed away, her stepmother, Selena, had seized them under the pretext that Roselyn was too young to manage the keepsakes. Since she would soon reach adulthood, the excuse of her being young would no longer work, and she would be able to get her mother's keepsakes back. Everything would be resolved.
Unaware of what would happen the very next day, Roselyn smiled happily, recalling those magical words once more.
“You say you're from the Count Bluebell's estate?”
“Yes, Miss. The Madam ordered us to bring the young lady back immediately.”
The maid, who had arrived with a coachman since early morning, came straight to Roselyn as soon as she had a brief meeting with the Mother Superior. Because of the way they hurried her with irritated faces, Roselyn found herself outside in a daze, still struggling to grasp what was happening. But even after blinking several times, the crest of the Bluebell family she knew so well was engraved on the carriage before her.
“Could you wait a moment? I need to say goodbye to the sisters and pack my things.”
“There is no time for that, Miss. We will send someone to collect your luggage later, so please get into the carriage now.”
“But, returning so suddenly is...”
What on earth was happening that they were dragging her away as if she were being kidnapped? Regardless of whether Roselyn's expression turned grave, the maid and coachman continued to rush her, leaving her flustered. They pressed her so insistently that before Roselyn, who had climbed into the carriage in a blur, could even sit down, they slammed the door shut and departed.
Countless trees lined up in rows passed by the carriage window. Having lived almost like a prisoner in the convent, she was momentarily distracted by the changed scenery of the streets she hadn't seen in a long time. The streetscape was more vibrant than she remembered, and atop a large fountain newly built in the plaza, a golden angel was firing an arrow. Seeing the glittering shops brought back memories of walking through the downtown area with her mother.
The smile her mother wore with the sunlight behind her as she placed sweet snacks from a street vendor in her hand; the feel of the cozy scarf and bonnet purchased from a dress shop lined with luxurious fabrics; the servants who greeted her warmly and the blue roof of the Count's estate when she stepped off the carriage with a flushed face.
The days when she lived as a carefree daughter of a Count tickled her heart. However, the gap between those dream-like days and her current reality quickly pulled her back into the carriage. As a wave of anxiety belatedly washed over her, she slowly fluttered her eyelashes in the wind.
In five more days, she would be an adult. Selena must know that, which is why she was calling her so urgently. Perhaps she intended to coax her or threaten her.
I must stay strong. Her lips quickly turned red from the way she chewed on them. Whether the carriage knew of her troubled heart or not, it sped even faster toward the capital as soon as it passed the downtown area. As the speed of the passing roadside trees increased, familiar scenery came into view. Spotting the roof of the Count's estate in the distance, Roselyn took a deep breath to calm her racing heart.
The carriage passed through the smoothly manicured garden and stopped in front of the main gate of the mansion. Stepping out of the carriage alone without an escort, Roselyn gazed blankly at the estate, finding solace in the fact that the mansion's appearance had not changed at all in her memory.
“Please come inside. You must wait here until the Madam returns.”
The maid, who practically pushed her toward the drawing room, immediately disappeared somewhere to call for Selena. Roselyn sat slowly on the couch and let out a hollow laugh. To be treated as a guest in her own home. She felt a renewed realization of how she had been treated before being sent to the convent. After sitting for a long while in the silent drawing room where not even a cup of tea was served, Selena returned, her face having become even more beautiful over the past six years.
“It’s been a long time, Roselyn.”
With her dark brown hair elegantly pinned up, Selena's face bore the deep, languid air characteristic of a noble living a life of abundance. Compared to Roselyn's hands, which had grown rough from working all day at the convent, Selena's hand holding the fan was smooth and fair without a single blemish.
“Have you... been well?”
“Thanks to you.”
The moment she faced Selena, she couldn't shake the feeling that she had been transported back to the past. The numerous resolutions she had made to be confident and reclaim the Count's house upon reaching adulthood vanished like scattered grains of sand before her stepmother's sharp gaze. In this moment, she realized she might never fully escape from the fourteen-year-old Roselyn who had been abused by her stepmother.
“Yes. I hear you'll be an adult soon?”
“...In five more days.”
“How time flies. Anyway, I called you to celebrate your upcoming birthday and to discuss your wedding, which will take place on that day. Everything else is prepared, but the dress shop said that for the final fitting, the measurements must be taken in person.”
Roselyn could not immediately comprehend what she had just heard. As she chewed over Selena's words several times, her face turned pale with shock. What did I just hear?
“What do you mean? A wedding?”
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