Chapter 12
From early in the morning, one corner of the garden was bustling.
When Ellen counted the days, she realized—today was the day Roy was supposed to visit. That kid who pretended to be an adult.
Over the two years since she had entered Elenoa’s body, she had observed him carefully, and she had come to the conclusion that he was… a little strange. Sometimes he was incredibly calm and mature, but most of the time, he was just like an ordinary boy.
That, in itself, wasn’t unusual. The odd part was something else.
Whenever he did something a child might do—like running recklessly down the hallway or making a fuss about food—he always glanced around afterward to gauge the reactions of the people around him.
Do they scold kids a lot in his house? Why’s he always so cautious?
And yet, for a child who seemed to be so wary of others’ reactions, he still carried an air of quiet confidence about him. Kids really were impossible to figure out.
Roy still reminded her of Eun-ho. In the way he spoke at times, in certain little actions—it was like Eun-ho’s shadow lingered around him.
Because of that, Ellen was often startled when she saw Roy. How could two people be so similar?
Maybe it was because he reminded her of Eun-ho, but from the very first time they met, she hadn’t found Roy to be unfamiliar or difficult to like. And she liked him even more for always bringing chocolate cake with him.
“My lady. Would you like to wear this dress today?”
The voice snapped her out of her thoughts. A maid stood before her, holding out a pink dress, waiting for Ellen’s answer.
“No. We’ll probably play in the garden, so I want something I can move around in. Bring the light green dress from the play clothes we bought last time.”
She spent so much time rolling around on the grass that her clothes were wearing out quickly. Of course, for a family with the wealth of a count’s household, wearing an outfit once and throwing it away wasn’t a problem—but Ellen, with her past life memories, still thought it wasteful. That was why she had set aside several green-toned dresses for play.
After changing and having her hair arranged, Ellen dismissed the maids and pressed herself against the window.
Immediately, Marsha tried to pull her away.
“My lady, it’s dangerous to lean out like that!”
She wasn’t hanging out of the window—just resting her arms on the sill. It only looked like she was dangling there because she was short.
“It’s not dangerous! I’m holding on tight.”
As she and Marsha argued, a carriage appeared in the distance. It stopped briefly in front of the main gate, then passed through.
“He’s here! Chocolate cake! …and Roy.”
Marsha was the only one listening, but she still felt a bit guilty shouting only about the cake, so she quickly added “and Roy” to the end.
She dashed away from the window, ready to kick open the door and run, but Marsha caught her at once. Straightening the dress that had been wrinkled during the struggle, Marsha said:
“My lady, were you about to kick the door open again?”
“No. I was going to open it nicely with my hands. Really.”
They both knew it was a lie.
“You mustn’t run inside the house. And you must open doors with your hands. Especially in front of guests.”
“Okay.”
She answered meekly, sensing Marsha wouldn’t let her go otherwise.
“Good. Now, let’s go greet our guest.”
The moment she was released, Ellen took quick little steps, and once she was sure Marsha couldn’t see her anymore, she dashed down the stairs to the first floor.
When she saw Roy coming into the mansion, she called out:
“Roy-oppa!”
Roy, who had been responding to the butler Albert’s greeting, turned to her with a smile and held up a cake box. Ellen beamed instantly.
“How have you been?”
Finding her reaction adorable, Roy tapped her lightly on the head before handing her the box. Ellen took it, passed it to the butler, and led Roy to the drawing room.
“Aunt and uncle? Shouldn’t I greet them?”
“Mom went to inspect the territory, and Dad’s in the capital.”
Ellen leaned back on the sofa as she answered. Hearing the adults were away, Roy relaxed into his seat as well.
“Now that you mention it, my father said he was going to the capital too. Must be some political meeting.”
He reached for the teacup a maid brought.
“If we need anything, I’ll call you. You can go,” Ellen said, dismissing the maid.
Roy gave her a look as if to ask what she was plotting.
“Roy, let’s go out.”
“Where?”
“Just… the garden. The weather’s nice.”
Ellen grinned.
“Elli, Elli!”
Roy called to her as she kept tugging him toward a far corner of the garden.
When she finally turned, he took her wrist gently to stop her.
“Where are we going without a word? The inside of the garden all looks the same. If you go too far, your legs will hurt walking back.”
She ignored him and kept going.
“We’re almost there.”
Reluctantly, he followed—nearly bumping his nose into the back of her head when she stopped abruptly.
“Here we are.”
It was just a corner of the garden.
“Roy, move those vines.”
Without a word, Roy rolled up his sleeves and pulled the vines aside, revealing an indentation in the wall.
He hesitated, looking back at her. She pointed with a bright smile.
“Ta-da—dog hole.”
Yeah, it really does look like a dog hole, he thought but kept the comment to himself.
Ellen crouched down and pushed a stone aside with practiced ease, revealing a clean hole through the wall.
“Is this… okay?” Roy asked.
She shrugged and crawled through first.
“What are you doing? Come on!”
With a sigh, Roy rubbed the back of his neck and followed her.
When he emerged, brushing off his clothes, she pointed toward the forest.
“Let’s go.”
“What? In there?”
“Yep.”
Her answer was so confident it was almost comical.
Roy stopped her.
“Elli, you can’t just go into a forest. There might be dangerous animals, you could get lost… oh, and if you wander into the wrong place, the spirits could get angry.”
Smiling faintly at his list of warnings, Ellen asked:
“Roy. Do you think this is my first time going in there with you? Or does it seem more like I’ve been in and out on my own countless times?”
He fell silent. She had gone straight to the hole without hesitation, pushed the stone aside like she’d done it a hundred times, and walked with complete confidence.
She took his silence as an answer.
“It’s not dangerous in there. Trust me. Let’s go.”
“Trust me”? Roy snorted.
“Alright. Let’s go.”
“I’ve been coming here for about two years,” Ellen said lightly as they walked.
“There’s only one path, the forest isn’t dark, and there’s a lake inside. It’s nice.”
Roy chuckled at her tone—it was like she was boasting: We have this, does your house?
“If it’s so great, why didn’t you show me earlier?”
“You saw the dog hole. How could I just show that to people? It’s a security flaw.”
It was surprisingly sensible. Roy gave her a quick side glance and ruffled her hair.
“Roy, you’ve been ruffling my hair a lot lately.”
She smoothed it back down with her fingers.
“It’s a compliment. You’re being good. Ah, but if you don’t like it, I’ll stop.”
After a moment, she replied:
“I don’t mind. I’ve liked it since I was little. Just don’t do it when my hair’s styled or decorated.”
“I won’t. If it’s tied up, it’s a pain to fix.”
She gave him a look that said, How do you even know that?
“I just do. Seems obvious,” he added.
Strange kid. He noticed things beyond his age—like how he always gave her sweets when she was in a bad mood.
Her eyes said it plainly: You’re fascinating.
Soon, they reached the lakeshore—open grass, still waters, and gentle hills beyond.
Roy stopped, taking in the scenery. It was like something out of a fairy tale.
“Elli, this isn’t just ‘nice.’”
She smiled proudly, taking a deep breath of the fresh air.
“It’s not that big, but it’s not just quaint—it’s majestic, right? It’s even better when there’s fog.”
“Yeah, I bet. With fog it’d feel almost magical—”
He suddenly turned to her sharply.
“Elli, you came here on foggy days too? What were you thinking?!”
“It’s fine.”
She smiled, but fell silent when she saw he was serious.
“Elenoa Quinter. The reason I go along with your stubbornness most of the time is because, for all your childishness, you know where to draw the line.”
The word “childish” caught her ear, but she listened quietly.
“I want to say yes to you as much as possible, but not on this. This is about your safety.”
When she nodded, his tone softened again.
“Nothing’s more important than your safety. I don’t want you to get hurt. On foggy days, don’t come to the lake or into the forest. Understood?”
Ellen remembered her past life, when she liked to hike even on foggy days—and Eun-ho, who would sigh and tell her to skip hiking in bad weather.
“…Alright.”
She looked at his serious face and agreed.
As they walked around the lake, Roy spotted a clearing.
“That spot would be great for training.”
“Training?”
“Yeah. I’ve been learning swordsmanship since last year.”
Ellen gave him a surprised look. To her, Roy still seemed like a child, so the thought of him learning swordplay felt both strange and a little unwelcome.
Still, as heirs to noble houses—his, a border marquisate; hers, a count’s—they would both have to undergo basic training. She suspected she would be starting her own next year.
