~Chapter 14~
Lily, who had fallen into the snow, got up with Blake’s rough help.
“Lily Hedwick, are you okay?”
Sometimes, Lily clearly felt how big Blake was compared to her.
He was so tall and strong.
Honestly, she was a little surprised when he rushed at her.
‘Nobles aren’t this big.’
There were many differences between the upper class and the working class.
Nobles—both men and women—had pale, thin bodies, as if they never worked.
‘Some noblemen have strong legs because they ride horses, but that’s it. Their bodies are not like people who work.’
But Blake’s body was… even with clothes on, his muscles were so clear that Lily had to look away.
‘Even army officers aren’t like this.’
Blake liked close-combat weapons instead of guns, so his body was especially strong.
Lily was shocked by his sudden move, but Blake thought something else.
“Healer!”
He tried to take Lily back to the castle, and Lily finally came to her senses.
“Wait. I’m fine. It was just soft snow.”
“But—”
“I can answer before you even ask—no, the world hasn’t ended and I’m okay. That’s good, right?”
“What do you mean?”
“Your face just looked so scary, Mr. Blake.”
But Blake couldn’t calm down.
He even checked her head carefully, wondering if she was talking nonsense.
Lily only pretended to fall, so at most her thigh or hand would hurt, but Blake couldn’t figure it out.
She wondered for a second—
He looked like a soldier who’d just seen his friend get shot with an arrow.
‘Is he always this worried?’
Next, Blake shouted at Sebastian.
“Sebastian!”
The poor boy just waved his hands.
“I bumped her softly! It was an accident!”
“She already hurt her ankle!”
“Sorry to interrupt, but it’s been healed for a long time.”
Lily was a healer.
She wasn’t amazing, but she healed fast.
“How many days?”
Blake didn’t know, so he snorted and picked Lily up.
This time, instead of holding her by the waist, he lifted her onto his shoulder.
It was a big improvement.
No one—not even Blake—noticed how he was changing.
Lily just made a face as her stomach was pressed against his strong shoulder.
‘He’s ignoring my healing powers!’
But Blake, who didn’t know she was a healer, misunderstood her look.
‘She’s a proud young lady in the strangest ways.’
He thought, ‘You should stop acting like you’re unbeatable by age ten.’
But it was kind of cute, so he smiled a little.
“Looks like you’re not really hurt. But don’t act like a child.”
“I want to go to the stables, not the castle. And I don’t like you right now.”
“Really? I like you today.”
Lily had said the same thing before:
“What a shame. From today, I think I started to like Mr. Blake.”
Lily was so surprised that she smacked his back.
His strong muscles didn’t hurt at all.
As they joked and walked back to Winter Castle…
A certain teenager was left behind.
“Master?”
Sebastian mumbled, looking shocked.
“M-master? What about me? I only get to come once a year…”
But there was no answer.
For now, everyone forgot about him.
Sebastian was upset.
‘Wow, she’s something else.’
He thought about Lily.
Just for a little bump on the shoulder, she acted like that.
Sebastian had big dreams. Someday, after living outside, he wanted to be Blake’s assistant.
Serving such a great master—wasn’t that the best job?
But…
“They’re together again!”
He saw Blake and Lily through the window.
In just one day at the castle, those two always seemed to be together.
Jealousy burned in his eyes. He thought the place next to the master should belong to him.
Sebastian quickly put on his hat.
A maid carrying tools scolded him.
“Hey! Are you going to see the master again? If you have nothing to do, help out!”
“Don’t stop me, Aunt Victor!”
“Don’t cross the line with the master. He’s kind, but we should be grateful.”
“I know!”
Everyone at the castle knew Sebastian well.
So they sighed and warned him,
“If you bother the master and Lady Lily, you’ll be in trouble.”
Sebastian ran outside, his breath fogging in the cold air.
“Master!”
“……”
Blake ignored him, so Lily greeted him kindly.
“Hello, Sebastian.”
“Where are you two going?”
“To the stables. Coco—that is, Dominic—is pregnant. We’re checking on her.”
“Why are you going, Lady Lily?”
“Because horses are cute.”
Sebastian thought about Blake’s favorite black horse.
He couldn’t see what was cute about that scary horse.
Anyway, he followed the two of them.
Blake opened the stable door under the oil lamp and frowned at Sebastian.
“You want to come in? Dominic is sensitive right now.”
“But Lady Lily is going too.”
That was because Dominic liked Lily. Even more than Blake.
Blake was too proud to admit it.
He still couldn’t believe Dominic liked Lily more.
“Do what you want. But if you get in the way, I’ll kick you out.”
The stable, made of brown wood, was always clean.
Lily greeted Dominic in her graceful way.
“Coco!”
From a stall, the black horse poked out her head.
Yesterday, she’d been happy to see Lily, but today she looked uneasy.
“Are you feeling okay?”
Lily noticed and approached carefully.
Dominic snorted softly, and Lily patted her head with cool hands.
“Maybe today is the day we’ve been waiting for, right?”
“Does Dominic seem different?” Blake asked, taking off his heavy coat.
“I think she needs some better hay,” Lily said.
As she turned to do something, Sebastian jumped in.
“I’ll get it!”
Lily felt a little awkward and looked for another job.
“Then, I’ll get water—”
“The water barrel’s still in the same place. Hehe.”
Sebastian fetched the water, getting between Lily and Blake.
Both the horse and Blake gave him a cold look.
Sebastian was making things awkward for Lily.
“Coco, want a carrot…?”
“I’ll give it to her!” Sebastian grabbed the carrot from Lily’s hand.
That’s when Dominic finally got mad.
Dominic knew it wasn’t Lily’s white hand holding the carrot.
This stranger didn’t even smell as nice as Lily.
So, instead of the carrot, Dominic bit Sebastian’s head.
“Aah!”
“Oh my.”
“Help me!”
Sebastian squirmed, caught between the horse’s teeth.
His desperate look made Blake and Lily help him.
Sebastian was finally free, but his hair was wet with horse spit.
It was a terrible feeling.
Lily scolded the horse.
“Coco! You silly thing, you shouldn’t bite people. I’m disappointed in you.”
Blake wanted to argue.
This wasn’t a big deal.
That boy had walked over corpses in war before.
He could have told the truth and said that out loud,
but instead, he just grabbed Sebastian’s arm and pulled him outside.
“Master?”
“I told you if you get in the way, I’ll kick you out. Dominic is about to have her baby, so go tell the castle.”
“I’ll be good from now on!”
Blake’s face was cold.
“Tell them not to let anyone in until I come out.”
Normally, even if the workers played around, Blake would just sigh and let it go.
But now, he looked different—a real wolf leader during a dangerous hunt.
Sebastian’s knees felt weak and he was out of breath.
“M-master…”
He wondered,
‘What is so special about that woman to make him so mad? Why did she come here?’
The workers had warned Sebastian not to tell anyone that Lily lived here,
but they never told him the real reason, in case he caused trouble.
So Sebastian was left frustrated,
not knowing Lily was hiding from her husband.
“Go back.”
Blake acted like he was finished talking.
The door slammed shut right in front of Sebastian’s nose.
