Chapter 43
“Olga, would you like to wait here for a moment? Should I go ahead first and check it out?”
Olga grimaced.
“No! Let’s go together. I can’t just let Anastasia get eaten alone.”
I felt a slight doubt about whether the knight, who seemed clueless, could really eat us.
I glanced at the knight waiting for us from a distance.
He emitted a threatening aura, warning us that he was a dangerous presence, yet he approached us offering to guide us, which was puzzling.
If he were truly dangerous, Ash wouldn’t be coming and going freely in this place, right? Or maybe he would’ve hired wizards to deal with him already.
I calmed my emotions and reassured Olga.
“If things get too dangerous, I’ll even become bait for you.”
“…Anastasia, you’re treating me like a child.”
Olga spoke with a disgruntled expression. I softly comforted her in a low voice.
“I know you’re frustrated and in pain. I know how it feels to be helpless.”
I slowly moved forward. The knight, keeping a large distance ahead, walked further.
I consciously tried not to stare at the ghostly figure, unsure of what it was.
That knight, too, seemed to confirm that we were following by the sound of our footsteps and didn’t bother to turn around.
“I’ve never seen such a big horse before.”
Olga, noticeably relieved, whispered as she let her guard down. The black and blue-coated horse looked enormous even from a distance.
“It looks just like a mythical beast. I’ve read about it in books, but I heard they went extinct a long time ago.”
Olga put her arm around my neck as she intently observed the horse.
Five minutes? Ten minutes? It felt like a very short time had passed. We quickly left the forest, and Olga, excited, pointed towards a path that led to a human settlement.
“Anastasia! There’s a path over there!”
It wasn’t the same exit we came through, but it was a road where people seemed to be walking.
I looked back at the direction the knight had gone. I was about to apologize for my misunderstanding, but he was already gone.
It felt strange, as though I had dreamt it all.
“Anastasia, this is very close to the Marquis’ estate, isn’t it?”
I fixed my gaze outside the forest as I responded to Olga’s words.
“Really?”
“Can’t you see the large mansion over there? That’s the Cloud Marquis’ mansion.”
A striking mansion built with red stone came into view. It stood out so much that I couldn’t help but say,
“We really need help, so let’s go. They won’t turn us away, will they?”
Well, I hoped that at least Olga would be accepted.
Olga burst out laughing.
“Ash is a surprisingly nice person, even though he’s picky about who he shows kindness to.”
We walked towards the Marquis’ mansion, attracting the attention of passersby. When I finally reached the mansion, my legs trembling, the guard at the entrance was shocked when he saw Olga in such a pitiful state.
“Miss Olga? What happened?”
Olga unconsciously used a tone that drew people’s sympathy and asked,
“I had some trouble. If you don’t mind, could you call Ash for me?”
The stunned guard quickly ran inside the mansion, and not long after, Ash appeared. As he got closer, his white face with faint freckles hardened.
“Olga?”
He gave us a side-long glance, then asked,
“What happened to you?”
This time, his question was directed at me. I tensed slightly.
“Olga hurt her ankle really badly. I’m fine, but could you at least help her?”
I tried to look as pitiful as possible, and Ash, with an exasperated expression, said,
“Looking like that, and you’re asking me to do something? Both of you, come inside.”
Ash stepped forward, then stopped, letting out a sigh that clearly expressed his frustration. He then turned around and grabbed Olga away from me.
Only then did I finally straighten my back. Ugh, I heard a cracking sound just now.
Olga, as if waiting for her turn, clung to Ash.
“Ugh, Ash! I was so scared!”
“I bet it was you causing trouble again.”
Ash clicked his tongue, scolding her.
I awkwardly tried to fix my hair, which had been tangled while I was in the mess, as I walked into the mansion.
The Cloud Marquis’ mansion smelled strongly of musk and was covered in leather—leather, and more leather.
Everywhere I looked, there were various brutal hunting tools hanging carelessly.
On the wall leading to the stairs in the hall, there were portraits of Balthazar Cloud, Carnelian Cloud, and Ash Cloud.
Adel looked just like his father, but Ash resembled his mother, Carnelian, more, except for his hair color.
Ash ordered the servant in a haughty tone,
“I’ll be in the parlor. Bring the doctor.”
I followed him inside and waited outside the parlor as Olga received her treatment.
Seeing me standing there with my dress still wet, a maid brought me a towel.
“Thank you.”
I smiled, and the maid blushed.
“It’s nothing. I’m just doing my job.”
A little while later, Ash came out. As soon as he saw me, he snapped,
“Are you out of your mind?”
I frowned as I was suddenly scolded.
“What did I do wrong…?”
“What are you doing not taking a bath right away? What if you catch a cold and die? Were you too much of an idiot to tell the maids to take you to the bathroom?”
Excuse me?
The maids, who didn’t seem to understand the situation, surrounded me.
“Miss, please come with us.”
“We’ll escort you to the bathroom.”
I was so flustered that I couldn’t even speak and was dragged away.
Later, I tried to tell them I could wash up by myself, but no one paid attention.
They even tried to give me a full massage, which I had to politely refuse, sweating profusely.
Fortunately, no one seemed to pay attention to the faint soot marks left on my palms.
Before I went to wash, I looked into the mirror and understood why Ash was being so kind.
I looked much worse than Olga. My hair was so tangled that I seriously considered cutting it, and my dress was covered with dirt and leaves.
I felt utterly defeated as I wiped my dirt-covered cheek.
If I were Ash, I would probably send this dress for cleaning right away. Ugh, it’s so dirty…
How could the maid blush after seeing me like this? And Olga! At least she should’ve told me to wipe my face!
“A lady, the water is ready.”
“Ah, thank you. Please take care of it.”
The maids were thrilled as they took care of my bath, admiring how my face and skin looked even better after I was cleaned up. They carefully combed my hair until it became soft again.
After all the praise, I was dizzy when I left the bathroom.
Looking at the excited maids, I started to wonder if this place was truly the lair of future evil.
Even though the Cloud Marquis had no daughter, the servants here seemed accustomed to taking care of me.
It seemed that young ladies my age often visited the Marquis’ mansion to play with Ash.
Of course, considering Ash’s dislike for close relationships, they didn’t act too recklessly.
The problem was the dress to change into, but the maids showed me a dress they had prepared in advance.
“This dress was left by the Miss from the Bliss family. She said you wouldn’t mind wearing it. Lord Ash threw it, or rather, gave it to us. This one is the most modest, according to her.”
I took the dress with a reluctant expression.
The dark purple dress, with a deep cut in the back and a slit on the side of the skirt up to the thigh, looked incredibly uncomfortable! The back could be covered with my long hair, but a slight mistake in posture would expose my legs.
I quickly rummaged through my dirty dress, but it was impossible to wear it again.
“Ugh.”
As I hesitated, the maid whispered softly,
“Miss, you have no choice.”
In the end, I changed into Lernet’s dress. Olga was sitting by the fireplace, warming up with cocoa.
“Olga, how’s your ankle?”
I sat next to her, hurriedly adjusting my dress to cover my legs. Olga shyly smiled.
“I’ve received treatment and took painkillers, so it’s bearable. Thank you for bringing me.”
I tilted my head.
“But, Olga, aren’t you changing your clothes?”
Her dress wasn’t as dirty as mine, but it must have been uncomfortable since it was wet. Olga just sat near the fireplace, letting it dry.
Her complexion, which had started to return to normal, grew pale again.
“I don’t think it’s dirty enough to change. Also, I heard the dress belongs to the Bliss lady… I would never want to anger her.”
Olga shuddered at the thought. Just then, Ash walked in and sat across from us with his legs crossed.
“You went into Gringriad, didn’t you?”
His voice had a cynical tone. I thanked him with a hint of sarcasm.
“Oh my, Ash, thank you for picking out such a lovely dress for me.”
Ash reacted sharply,
“Don’t say something that could be misunderstood, okay? It annoys me.”
But for some reason, his face was red…
I glanced at Ash, who seemed overly sensitive right now. I figured that if he was this aware of me, he might even be kinder.
“Can I ask you a favor? My escort and coachman are probably still waiting for me at the entrance of the forest.”
“…Just send a servant to bring them.”
He nodded, and a servant left. I couldn’t help but admire him.
“He’s quite considerate.”
“Right? Ash likes beautiful women, so he’s kind to anyone!”
Olga was overly blunt. Ash raised an eyebrow.
“I can hear everything, Olga.”
“Hehe, by the way, I met someone amazing in the forest. A knight riding a special horse…”
“A knight?”
I joined in.
“Have you never seen him, Ash? He’s the one with no head.”
Ash looked at me with pity in his eyes.
“I can’t believe you’re both like this. You must have been mentally shocked.”
I was really, really frustrated.
“I’m telling the truth! Right, Olga?”
“Yes, I saw him clearly. He was wearing a helmet, so I’m not sure if he really had no head, but…”
At a critical moment, Olga hesitated. Ash started to pity me.
