Chapter 10
A little while ago, Mei had used the excuse of adjusting her scarf to leave Lucilea alone.
She anticipated that once she disappeared, the chosen children would approach Lucilea.
“Humans tend to reveal their true selves in moments of crisis.”
In truth, Mei wasn’t particularly fond of Lucilea.
She disliked that the Grand Duke Elbadin had personally chosen her, assigned her to the fifth floor immediately upon arrival, and sent Mei to serve as the girl’s maid.
Nothing about it pleased her.
“What could he possibly see in such a unimpressive child?”
Yet in Mei’s eyes, it was clear that the Grand Duke treated the girl specially.
“Is it just her magical power? Because the Grand Ducal family lacks magicians?”
No, the Grand Duke wasn’t such a simple man.
There had to be another reason—but since Mei couldn’t discern it immediately, she felt frustrated.
After stepping outside through the corridor window, Mei observed the direction where Lucilea was standing from a distance.
The girl fidgeted with an excited expression, almost as if watching an entertaining play.
Following Lucilea’s gaze, Mei spotted Serdian, just returned from the battlefield.
“Ah, so it’s the young lord.”
Even he seemed to never have a peaceful moment.
“Well, that’s none of my concern.”
Mei leaned against a marble pillar, exhaling a sigh.
“I should’ve left long ago…”
She had entered the Grand Ducal household following Grand Duchess Radia, but with the duchess now dead, there was no reason to remain.
“They forbid me from killing anyone, yet give no tasks either.”
Years of excruciatingly dull time had passed.
Still, Mei couldn’t leave easily.
Traces of the Grand Duchess still lingered faintly in the house.
The peridot necklace Lucilea had chosen was one of those traces.
“I was a little surprised when she picked that necklace.”
It was made from one of the Grand Duchess’s own peridot keepsakes.
There were many more expensive and glittering necklaces, yet Lucilea had deliberately chosen this one.
Mei felt a mixture of relief and disappointment.
The necklace had gone unchosen for years, less shiny than others and with an outdated design.
Though Mei had hoped it would not fall into another’s hands, it had gone unselected for so long that she felt a twinge of irritation.
Then Lucilea chose it.
“I like this light green.”
“It’s as transparent and clear as Mei’s eyes. This dress is exactly the color I like. That’s why I like it!”
At that moment, Mei recalled Grand Duchess Radia for a brief moment.
“Mei, I like your light green eyes. They remind me of sunlight filtering through a forest. When I look at them, evil thoughts seem to lose their way.”
The two shared nothing in common—except for their appreciation of light green, like Mei’s eyes.
Yet somehow, it felt that Radia’s face, which Mei thought she had long grown numb to, overlapped with the little girl’s.
Mei let out a self-deprecating chuckle.
“I must be crazy.”
How dare one compare anyone to another?
Mei’s eyes sharpened as she looked at Lucilea.
“I mustn’t let my guard down.”
Perhaps the girl was a spy sent by hostile forces.
Her gentle gaze and tone, her expression eliciting pity, her scars, even her choice of words, which seemed sweet and considerate—all perfect tools for lowering defenses.
“She’s perfectly designed to break through your guard.”
And she was quite cute too…
Mei shook her head.
“I need to stay alert.”
Elbadin tended to be somewhat lenient with children Lucilea’s age, probably because of a child lost eight years ago.
“I must uncover it.”
Proof that the girl was a spy, proof that she posed a threat to the Grand Ducal family.
Mei’s gaze grew even sharper.
As time passed, just as expected, a group of children began to pick on Lucilea.
Mei’s thin gaze sank colder.
“Now, little one. What will you do?”
Reveal your true nature, little one!
But as time went on, the situation unfolded strangely.
“Let’s go! Let’s hold hands and ask directly! I want to know what trick I did that made the Grand Duke go along with it. I’m too curious!”
Gripping her wounded palms, Lucilea didn’t cry; instead, she grabbed the boys’ hands tightly, insisting on going to meet Elbadin.
“What? Does she mean to tattle on the Grand Duke?”
Does she think anyone can meet him just because she goes?
“No child has ever stepped forward to meet Elbadin first…”
None had. All had been intimidated and focused only on avoiding his presence.
“What a funny kid.”
Was she not afraid of the Grand Duke?
Perhaps she was putting on a bluff to scare the boys.
“If I push her a little more, her true feelings might come out…”
However:
“Huh? Why are you running? I said let’s go! Let’s go together and clear up the misunderstanding, okay?! I told you, I don’t want to fight. I want to be friends!”
“W-What?! Get away from me!”
One boy raised his hand to strike Lucilea.
Instinctively, Mei sprang forward and caught the boy’s raised wrist.
“M-Mei?!”
The little one’s tear-filled eyes met hers, and an inexplicable pain pierced Mei’s chest.
The look was like a baby animal meeting its mother after facing a predator alone—a mixture of relief and trust.
Mei looked down at Lucilea and muttered inwardly.
“…Lucky you today, little one.”
She couldn’t allow the child she was in charge of to be hurt.
So she had no choice but to intervene.
Mei smiled as if nothing had happened.
“Yes, that’s right! I am Mei!”
With Mei’s appearance, the atmosphere shifted instantly.
In Tessian’s eyes, he could see the suppressed anger accumulating sharply.
Mei stroked Lucilea’s head as the girl burrowed into her chest.
Then she looked obliquely at Tessian.
“Tessian. I will not report this to the Grand Duke. So step back. It wouldn’t do for a week’s confinement to turn into six months, would it?”
Tessian protruded his chin and said,
“…We’ll see.”
Hmph, the type who says “we’ll see” is never truly scary.
Mei smiled gently.
“Now, please go in, Tessian.”
“Fine! I’m going, geez!”
Tessian ran off, his face red with anger.
After the group disappeared, Mei bent one knee and sat down.
“Our Lucilea.”
She dusted the dirt from Lucilea’s dress.
“I thought you were a delicate greenhouse flower, but it turns out you’re more like a volcano ready to erupt at any moment.”
Volcano?
“Could it be… she heard what I said to Tessian earlier?”
Lucilea recalled what she had just told Tessian:
“Huh? Why are you running? I said let’s go! Let’s go together and clear up the misunderstanding, okay?! I told you, I don’t want to fight. I want to be friends!”
Though she claimed she didn’t want to fight and wanted to be friends, her true intent was half a threat: Could they dare say the same in front of the Grand Duke?
Indeed, the children were terrified and attempted to act violently toward her.
Though unavoidable for Lucilea, Mei likely saw through her strategy immediately.
“An adult like Mei would see the trick clearly.”
Lucilea lowered the corners of her eyes and asked sulkily:
“Are you disappointed?”
Because she wasn’t cute or adorable for her age?
Mei raised her eyebrows.
“Not at all. I thought it was amazing! I even thought your courage to face them head-on was impressive!”
Impressive…?
Lucilea giggled softly, blushing at the unexpected praise.
“But.”
Mei wrapped a scarf around Lucilea’s neck and spoke seriously.
“From now on, you must be careful. Boys your age are like ticking time bombs—no one knows what kind of trouble they might cause.”
Lucilea nodded.
“Yes, I will.”
She glanced at her wounded palm.
A ticking time bomb…
Clenching her fist tightly, Lucilea gritted her teeth.
“Try touching me again. I’ll show you something far worse and scarier than a ticking time bomb.”
Tooth for tooth, fist for fist, revenge doubled!
