Chapter 13
It was a predictable story.
He must have been targeted by the scheming faction.
And ‘Lacey’ ended up being the one to deal with the aftermath.
The deeper I dug into ‘Lacey’s’ circumstances, the more uncomfortable I felt.
“I’m sorry. I didn’t think it would go that far.”
“Now that you know, just go back. Quickly, before the Head Maid sees you.”
Sonia spoke as if coaxing a child, pressed something into my hand, and then disappeared back into the crowd of her colleagues.
I unwrapped the clumsily wrapped package she had given me.
“Carrot cookies?”
Did she think carrots would be more effective than a whip?
“But I don’t like carrots…”
Still, it was Sonia’s thoughtful gesture, so I rewrapped them and put them in my pocket.
If possible, I wanted to grant Sonia’s wish. But realistically, it was impossible.
With a sigh of regret, I pulled a note from my folded sleeve.
It was a note that had been slipped through the crack in the door just before I left my room.
I have to leave earlier than planned.
Before I go, can we meet one last time?
Blake Tawera
That night, I heard Blake was outright expelled from the castle.
“Honestly, because of that temper of his… Eek!”
The moment I recalled Ash Carnish’s face, I crumpled the note.
But it would be a lie to say I bore no responsibility for Blake’s punishment.
I heard Blake was now living in a tent on the hill outside the castle.
Apologizing would require a bit of an adventure…
“Hmm, she said it’s fine as long as the Head Maid doesn’t see me, right?”
In that case, there was a way.
* * *
One of the perks of working as a maid was learning which halls were busy and which were quiet at any given time.
Thanks to that, I managed to slip out of the castle through the least guarded gate.
But, unsure of who I might run into, I hid my body among the trees.
The Tawera merchant group was scheduled to leave around noon. Even if I ran, it would be cutting it close.
“Oww, my calves hurt.”
I was already exhausted, even though I had barely passed the edge of the forest.
This was all because Lacey had eaten a poisonous plant.
She apparently mistook it for a rare medicinal herb called Veronica grass.
They said she was unconscious for about a week after being carried to the herbalist grandmother’s hut, and she became as gaunt as a patient who had been bedridden for months.
At first, even maintaining a sitting position was difficult.
The herbalist, Grandmother Bianu, stood in my way, asking what use they had bringing a child like this here. Because of that, the errand runner from Carnish Castle had to come back a month later.
My plan was to gather information from Grandmother Bianu during my stay at the hut.
“Stop asking useless questions and just sleep like a proper patient should! Why go out of your way to cause worry?”
Time and again, I gained nothing and only got scolded loudly.
“But what can I do? I’m worried!”
Both the chance to become Ash’s dance teacher and the opportunity to become an art appraiser for the Tawera merchant group had flown away.
When I thought about having to start from scratch to find a way back to Euphorian, my vision grew dark.
As if dark clouds had gathered in the sky.
“Huh?”
Were there really dark clouds? Why did it suddenly get dark?
“Watch out!”
The moment I looked up and heard the warning were almost simultaneous.
What passed over my head wasn’t a cloud.
A U-shaped metal piece I felt I’d seen somewhere, primal and sturdy muscles. And a whinnying sound.
A horse. It was a horse.
A horse was jumping over my head.
“Kyaaah!”
I thought its hooves would kick my skull. I curled my body faster than lightning. Desperately covering my head was also an instinctual act.
Was it over?
Just as I was about to feel relieved.
“Neighhh—”
The horse that had landed turned and looked in my direction.
“Wh-what the…?”
Its flaring nostrils reminded me of a bull seeing red.
Why was a horse running wild in the forest?
Its black mane was long and glossy. It was clearly a horse of good pedigree.
Was it now stomping the ground as if about to charge at me?
Good grief. Does it really think it’s a bull?
“I, I need to run… Oof!”
A sharp pain shot up from my ankle, and my balance broke.
My vision spun. I felt nauseous, as if I was about to vomit.
I couldn’t possibly stand up. I tried to crawl on my knees, but…
“Neigh!”
The horse leaped high as if to pounce on me.
Dear God.
Am I going to be trampled to death by a crazed horse like this?
Without even catching the real culprit who framed my father, let alone setting foot on Euphorian’s soil?
So meaninglessly?
The shape of the horse preparing to land grew closer.
“Kyaak!”
I squeezed my eyes shut.
“Neighhh—”
There was no bone-crushing pain.
Instead, my waist felt ticklish.
I cautiously opened my eyes a slit and saw the black horse rubbing its nose against my side.
“Huh?”
Even when I tried to crawl away to create distance, the horse followed, keeping its nose pressed against me.
“Why, why is it doing this?”
Its appearance, chewing as if on grass, suddenly reminded me.
I have the cookies Sonia gave me in my pocket, don’t I?
“Hey, are you okay?”
Just then, a worried voice called out from the distance.
A young man was running quickly from the far end of the forest.
“Sorry for startling you. This guy suddenly started acting up, and I lost the reins.”
A rough fabric shirt and suspender pants.
Seeing him skillfully pull the reins to calm the horse, he seemed to be a groom, but…
“…It doesn’t suit you.”
“What? What doesn’t?”
Your face and your clothes.
“Ah, it’s nothing.”
He had sharp, clean features and deer-like eyes that stood out.
Along with that, his dazzling blond hair… and his flawless emerald-green eyes also seemed somewhat noble.
Crucially, the aura surrounding his entire being was kind and calm.
It felt more like seeing a clergyman than a groom.
“Are you perhaps the new maid I heard about? The one from Euphorian?”
Was it an inferiority complex?
To my ears, it sounded like, ‘Are you the problem child who caused a major incident?’
I felt so ashamed I wanted to run away.
“Um, yes.”
“I’m really glad to meet you. I’m from Euphorian too.”
“You too?”
“Yeah. I moved here when I was little, so I’m practically a local now. But I never imagined I’d meet someone from my homeland.”
That’s what I wanted to say.
“I lived in the capital. Where did you live?”
“My hometown is Portman, but I lived in the capital recently. So, how long have you been living here?”
“Roughly about 10 years?”
Then he probably doesn’t know much about the current situation in Euphorian.
I felt a wave of disappointment wash over me along with the gladness.
“But it’s strange.”
Yet, for some reason.
His gaze as he looked at me seemed to tremble.
“You look like Princess Lacey.”
“…What?”
“Ah, sorry. That was rude of me…”
His voice, trailing off, carried a sense of distress.
Had he heard the news of my death?
More than that, his reaction was concerning. It seemed like he had seen me before.
Then again, if he lived in the capital, it wasn’t entirely impossible.
“I’m really sorry. You haven’t been at the castle long, and you had to go through this.”
He squeezed his eyes shut, then opened them with a smile.
The heavy air that had surrounded us cleared away instantly, like sunlight breaking through.
“I’m Daniel. Nice to meet you.”
The man, Daniel, held out his hand.
My body felt so weak I didn’t think I could stand up on my own. As I reached out to take his hand for support…
“My name is Lay… Oof!”
The moment I put weight on my left foot, a sharp pain surged.
“Are you hurt? Is your leg sore?”
I bit my lip tightly and nodded up and down.
The man’s face clouded as he bent his knee to check my ankle.
“It looks like you sprained it. Do you think you can walk?”
What a disaster.
In this state, I can’t go meet Blake.
I shook my head vigorously.
Daniel turned his back to me and lowered his stance, as if to offer me a piggyback ride.
“I’ll take you to the apothecary. Luckily, the herbalist grandm… Oof!”
“Are you okay?”
Just then, the black horse, Victor, stamped its hoof on Daniel’s back, separating me from him.
“Victor! What are you doing?”
So the horse’s name was Victor.
The fact that it had a name suggested its owner was someone important.
“Did you forget what the Young Master said about behaving well and being calm?”
…So it was Ash Carnish’s horse.
No wonder it was so fierce and reckless. The owner and his horse seemed to be a match made in heaven.
“Neigh!”
Victor shook its head vehemently, asserting its innocence.
Then it snorted and lowered its head.
“Huh? What’s wrong?”
“*Purring sound*—”
A sound like it was being affectionate and its soft forehead rubbed against the nape of my neck.
Why is it acting like this?
I looked at Daniel, seeking an explanation.
“…It seems to like you.”
“Is that so?”
Wasn’t it just after the carrot cookies Sonia gave me?
Daniel’s bewildered expression confirmed the truth.
I could see its tail swishing softly back and forth by its hind legs far behind it.
Hmm, its behavior, almost like a puppy, was kind of cute…
No sooner had I thought that than Victor grabbed the back of my collar with its teeth.
“Victor, what’s wrong this time?”
This time, it pulled me towards its flank.
What does it mean?
“I think it wants to give you a ride.”
‘That’s strange. It’s not in its nature to take to people so easily…’
Daniel muttered almost inaudibly, then let out a deep sigh.
“Excuse me.”
“Huh?”
He grabbed my waist and lifted me up effortlessly.
To have such strength in such a slender body.
In the blink of an eye, he seated me on Victor’s back, coiled the reins in his hand, and spoke.
“Let’s go to the apothecary and get you treated. Grandmother Bianu should be back by now.”
My eyes widened at the familiar name.
“Grandmother Bianu is here?”
