Chapter 30
“Mom, mom!”
“Our Aria, you’re so lively this morning….”
From early morning, Aria was full of energy. Perhaps it was because she was still young, but Charlotte, with her eyes only half open, stroked Aria’s head as she wriggled in her arms. When Suu poked its head out as well, she gently scratched under its chin.
Charlotte, who was usually weak in the mornings, had started waking up without tossing and turning ever since she met Aria. Anna said it was a good habit… No, it wasn’t good. It was exhausting. Very much so. But even today, Charlotte forced herself up and held Aria in her arms.
Aria always smelled like blankets that had been dried under the sun. Her skin was soft, and her sapphire-blue eyes shimmered like waves. When Charlotte buried her face into Aria’s snow-white hair, Aria burst into laughter and wrapped her arms around Charlotte’s neck.
My Aria, you’ve gotten so heavy. When we first met, you were so light I thought I was holding a feather…
Wearing a thick robe over her nightclothes, Charlotte went down to the dining room. Having grown accustomed to Nostri’s cold, she could now tell if the day was mild or if a snowstorm was coming. Today was… mild. Still, for breakfast, she wanted warm mushroom soup and grilled beef.
Anna had made a special fox snack for Suu. Suu buried its face in the bowl and finished it off, but Aria was staring very seriously at the mushroom soup in front of her.
“Aria doesn’t like mushrooms.”
“But mommy likes mushrooms.”
“Mm… Aria will eat mushrooms….”
Aria pouted, gripping the spoon with a sulky look before putting it in her mouth. The steaming soup contained sliced meat and thinly cut mushrooms. She chewed happily when it was meat, but when she bit into mushrooms, her chewing slowed, and she puffed her cheeks.
Charlotte laughed and, when Aria swallowed, dipped soft bread in the soup and fed it to her.
“Our Aria, judging by that face, you just ate some meat!”
“No!”
“Your cheeks were puffed up just a moment ago!”
“Hmph!”
Anna poked Aria’s cheeks and placed soft milk pudding in front of her. Aria, who loved sweet things, clutched her bread tightly and her eyes lit up.
“Milk pudding!”
“I made it specially. But you have to finish your food first, okay?”
“Yes!”
Excited at the thought of pudding, Aria began eating the soup without even checking whether she scooped up mushrooms or meat.
Charlotte and Anna quietly chuckled. It was a peaceful morning. But then, just as Aria was finishing her bread while staring longingly at the pudding, a letter arrived—from Baroness Bervel.
“The stag crest…?”
The moment Charlotte saw the stag emblem of House Bervel stamped on the letter, her heart sank. It could have been an invitation or a casual greeting, but instinct told her otherwise.
She smiled at the curious Aria and hurriedly broke the seal with anxious hands.
<To the esteemed Lady Blanche,
I hope this letter finds you well. I am writing in response to the correspondence I sent to the Kennys family. Lord and Lady Kennys have expressed a favorable opinion regarding the adoption of Aria, and they are eager to meet with you as well. They have conveyed that they intend to visit the Nostri territory as soon as possible. As there are limitations to what can be explained in writing, I plan to deliver their reply to you in person. Could you kindly let me know when you might have time… (excerpt)>
Charlotte couldn’t read further. It wasn’t that the content was bad—on the contrary, it was good news. The Kennys couple had reacted positively to adopting Aria. For Aria’s sake, Charlotte should have been glad. Yet, her heart felt as though a needle had pierced it.
“Mom.”
“Yes? What is it, Aria?”
“Mom, are you hurt?”
Charlotte froze for a moment, then quickly shook her head. Lifting the corners of her lips, she smiled warmly. She couldn’t let Aria see her sadness. All she wanted was to give Aria joy, to surround her with happiness—at least until the day she would be adopted and leave Nostri.
“Anna, please place this letter on my desk in the study. …Hide it among the other letters so Aria doesn’t see it.”
Aria handed the letter to Anna, then smiled brightly as if nothing had happened.
“Aria, is there somewhere you want to go today?”
“…”
“Mom will take you anywhere you want.”
Yes, instead of dwelling on sadness, Charlotte should give Aria good memories, beautiful moments. That was the only thing she could do for her. Aria hesitated, then chirped like a little chick:
“Aria wants to go to the winter lake.”
“The winter lake? The one where we took the boat?”
“Yes!”
“Alright then, let’s go after pudding.”
“Mom, I want more mushroom soup.”
“Hm?”
She’s finally started liking mushrooms? Charlotte smiled and stood up. A maid offered to bring it, but Charlotte refused and headed to the kitchen herself—planning to heap an extra portion into the bowl.
Left alone in the dining room, Aria squeezed her bread tightly, then hopped down from her chair.
“Squeak, squeak.”
She wandered about making mouse sounds.
Through the slightly open window, a black-furred mouse with red eyes appeared and scurried toward Aria. Suu, having just licked its bowl clean, perked its ears, bared its teeth, and lunged.
“Suu, no!”
“Hissss!”
Suu let out a sharp, warning cry, intent on killing the mouse, but Aria blocked its path. Suu tugged at her skirt, trying to pull her away, but Aria patted its head as if to say it was fine. Frustrated, Suu jumped onto her shoulder, glaring at the mouse.
“Here, take this.”
Aria crouched down and offered her remaining bread to the mouse, whispering softly:
“Eat this… and go find the letter in mommy’s study, the one with the stag on it.”
With fur-lined hood and cloak bundled around her, Aria looked like a little snowman—ready to roll away at any moment. Charlotte, worried she might trip, held her hand tightly as they set off for the winter lake.
Thanks to the baroness’s tea party, she had been there once before and thought she could find the way again. She was wrong. Terribly wrong.
“Aria, where are we…?”
Reaching the forest entrance was easy. Charlotte remembered: walk straight, your feet sink in the snow a few times, and then the wide, beautiful lake appears. But no matter how far they went, there were only thick, tangled branches closing in around them.
Fearing she might lose Aria, Charlotte carried her carefully through the snow that reached her ankles. She regretted not bringing Anna along. She had insisted she didn’t need to come, but… Charlotte sighed, her breath a white mist.
“…Don’t let me reach the lake….”
As she searched for the way, a rough male voice carried faintly through the trees. Familiar. It sounded like one of the mountain rangers. Just as Charlotte turned her head, Aria wriggled free.
Startled, she set her down—but before she could stop her, Aria darted ahead.
“Aria!”
Charlotte’s heart leapt as she ran after her. Losing Aria in the forest would be disastrous. Lifting her skirts high, she sprinted through the snow.
At last, the forest opened, and brilliant light reflected off the snow so brightly she had to squint. The winter lake lay before them.
“Aria, you can’t run off like that. You scared mommy.”
Charlotte scooped Aria into her arms, holding her tightly, afraid of losing her again. By luck, they had found the way. But something was strange—the greenhouse was missing. Turning around, she finally spotted it far across the lake. They’d come out from the wrong side.
“Mom, look at this.”
“Oh? A scale!”
In Aria’s hand was a shimmering, transparent white scale.
It felt cold and sharp, like a shard of ice, yet gleamed brilliantly, as if it were an uncut gem.
Why is a scale here? Are there fish in the lake?
Just as Charlotte leaned over the water to look, a faint groan reached her ears. She froze and hugged Aria tightly. It wasn’t the ranger’s voice.
Carefully, she followed the sound. Normally, she would have fled, but this was a voice filled with pain. If someone was hurt, she had to help.
But when she found the source, her breath caught.
“!”
She flinched and stopped in her tracks.
It didn’t seem human, yet it had a human form.
Charlotte stepped back instinctively—not from fear, but from awe. It was so beautiful she forgot to blink.
Leaning against a tree, it was something—or someone—so dazzling it seemed unreal.
People sometimes wrote in novels of beauty “so maddening it drives you insane.” That was exactly it. Maddeningly beautiful.
Its hair fell past its waist, like starlight pouring down, swaying lightly in the breeze. On its exposed skin gleamed scales—identical to the one Aria had picked up—each reflecting a mystical light.
Its sharp claws might have been frightening, yet they too were breathtaking, like crystal sculptures carved to perfection.
Charlotte breathed in and out slowly, mesmerized. She had never seen anything like it. Human…? She still couldn’t tell. Yet she stepped closer, one small step at a time.
When she was close enough to touch, she reached out carefully. Just as her fingertips were about to brush its cheek, it seized her wrist.
“I told you not to come closer…!”
The voice, torn with strain, rumbled from deep within its chest. Rough, yet hauntingly captivating. And then—it looked at her.
Charlotte met its eyes, silver pupils gleaming through the strands of hair.
Without thinking, she whispered:
“…Duke Valiant?”
