Chapter 1
The crimson twilight was staining Aliciya’s path.
It had been a mistake to get greedy and gather more herbs. The days had grown longer, so she thought it would be fine—but she hadn’t expected the sun to set so quickly.
Aliciya had no choice but to quicken her pace.
Sweat trickled down her forehead beneath the hood she wore.
If she was any later, her mother would start to worry…
At the thought of her mother, Aliciya’s brows furrowed.
It had already been two years since her mother, Rozen, had fallen ill and taken to her bed.
Her mother, who had endured every hardship to give birth to and raise Aliciya at the young age of eighteen.
In the end, she had collapsed before even reaching forty.
If only she had had a husband to rely on—but unfortunately, Rozen had been alone.
No… not even merely alone.
In her youth, her beauty had caught the eye of the local lord, Duke Viclus, who coveted her.
Despite already being promised in marriage to another, she had been forced to become the lord’s woman. And when she conceived his child, she was cast out by the duke’s wife.
It was fortunate enough that she had not been expelled from the Viclus territory altogether.
Then again, a penniless commoner girl was hardly worth the trouble.
Was she not a woman who had even been abandoned by her own parents because of the lord?
After that, Rozen lived alone in a deserted cabin deep in the mountains, a little distance away from the village.
The villagers branded her a prostitute, making it impossible for her to associate with others.
The one person who continued to help her was her former fiancé, Peter.
He persistently supported Rozen so that she could reintegrate into society and find work.
Thanks to Peter’s help, Rozen came to work with the village apothecary, allowing her to raise Aliciya.
“Aliciya, you’re already twenty-two… Time truly flies. That little child who used to trail after Rozen has grown so much.”
After finishing the morning’s busy work and taking a short rest, the apothecary, Uncle Minor, spoke.
At his words, Aliciya smiled and expressed her gratitude.
“It’s all thanks to Uncle Peter and you, Uncle Minor. If it weren’t for the two of you, I…”
Since she was young, Aliciya had helped him with his work alongside Rozen. In return, he had taught her everything—from knowledge of herbs to how to run the shop.
He wanted to do everything he could for Aliciya, who would one day be left alone without Rozen.
“But, Aliciya… isn’t it about time you started a family?”
At his words, Aliciya made an awkward expression.
Uncle Minor wasn’t wrong.
At twenty-two, she should have been married long ago. Some of her friends were already married with children.
But…
Aliciya slowly shook her head.
“I’ll think about it once Mother gets better.”
How could she leave when she had to care for her sick mother?
Besides, who would accept the daughter of an unwed mother?
She knew she was of marriageable age, but given her reality, Aliciya had long since given up on the idea of marriage.
All she wished for was for her mother to recover and live a long life with her.
That was all.
Yet Uncle Minor continued to persuade her.
“To be honest, Aliciya… you know my son Tom, right? He’s already twenty this year. What do you think? You’ve known each other since childhood, so it wouldn’t be awkward. More importantly, you understand each other’s circumstances. Tom is very worried about your mother as well. If the two of you took care of Rozen together and ran this shop, wouldn’t that be nice?”
Aliciya knew Tom well.
They worked together at the shop, so she saw him often.
He would sometimes tease her and also look after her attentively. Come to think of it, he often blushed when he looked at her.
But he was two years younger than her, and about the same height—she had never thought of him as a man.
…Still, I’m not really in a position to be picky.
“Thank you for saying that, Uncle… I’ll talk to Mother about it.”
Aliciya was grateful that Uncle Minor would suggest she become his daughter-in-law, despite her being the daughter of an unwed mother.
His proposal would make her mother, Rozen, very happy.
All her life, her mother had wished for Aliciya to find a proper husband.
She would often say that she had no greater wish than to see Aliciya married before she died.
‘If I tell her this when I get home, she’ll be happy, right? Then I’ll finally get to see her smile again.’
Thinking of Rozen, who had already resigned herself to death, Aliciya’s chest tightened.
If only they had better conditions and proper treatment, she might have lived longer.
But unfortunately, neither Rozen nor Aliciya had the money for that.
A woman alone could barely earn enough to survive.
On top of that, the taxes in the Viclus Duke’s territory were exorbitantly high.
Everything she earned was drained away in taxes, and what little remained was just enough to scrape by. Saving money was out of the question, and their circumstances never improved.
Lost in thought as she walked, Aliciya soon found the cabin she shared with Rozen coming into view.
Tall oak trees stood proudly in front of the house, their leaves lush and full.
In the small flower bed, lily-of-the-valley blossoms shyly bloomed.
They were useful as medicinal herbs, but also pleasing to the eye—so they had planted them. Rozen loved those flowers dearly and often embroidered them.
Carrying a basket full of herbs, Aliciya headed toward the house.
Then—
The sound of something shattering came from inside.
Soon, her mother’s furious voice rang out.
“Get out!! Who do you think you are, coming in here?!”
Another crash followed.
Someone had clearly entered the house.
Since only women lived there, thugs occasionally came by.
Thinking her mother was in danger, Aliciya threw down the herbs she was carrying and ran toward the house.
Of all days, Uncle Peter wasn’t coming today…
Voices of unfamiliar men echoed from inside.
“Please, just tell us where the young lady is…!”
“She’s not here! I’m alone! There’s no ‘young lady’ here!!”
“The Duke is looking for her! Do you really think you can hide her?”
“…No! No, she’s not here!! There’s no such thing as the Duke’s daughter here!”
…The conversation was not what she had expected.
Aliciya’s steps halted in front of the door.
They were looking for her. Her mother’s frantic denial.
And now, after all this time, the Duke of Viclus was searching for her?
…Should I run?
Overwhelmed by the sudden flood of information, Aliciya fell into confusion.
As she stood there, unable to decide, everything suddenly went quiet.
The commotion inside had stopped.
Then, a young man’s voice spoke.
“Wait.”
At his words, the others turned their attention to him. Breaking the brief silence, he continued,
“…Someone is outside.”
Before Aliciya could decide whether to flee or not, the door opened.
What met her eyes was the wrecked interior of the house, her mother flushed red with agitation, and knights surrounding her.
Among them, a blond knight stepped forward toward Aliciya.
“Aliciya.”
Without courtesy, the knight pulled back her hood.
Her reddish-gold hair cascaded down.
Under the twilight, her hair gleamed like golden wine.
At the unmistakable reddish-gold hair—the mark of the Viclus line—the knights let out sounds of admiration.
They were certain they had found the right person.
The blond knight spoke to Aliciya.
“The Duke of Viclus summons you.”
“…Why would the Duke—?”
“Don’t go, Aliciya!!”
As Aliciya turned toward her mother’s desperate cry, the knight added,
“You would do well to come. If not for yourself… then for your mother.”
