Chapter 99
Joseph, feeling needlessly proud, answered arrogantly.
“What is it, Lady Raskyle? I thought you had no interest in me.”
At the same time, Gideon was at the central watchtower for the hunting competition. He leaned on the railing, watching Lilietta smile at the young duke below.
She handed him a handkerchief and said something, smiling so beautifully it was dazzling.
The crowd grew noisy, and the young duke’s face turned red. He began babbling foolish words with exaggerated gestures. The pathetic sight disgusted Gideon.
He already knew what she would say and what she would hand over today. He also knew that giving a handkerchief at the hunting festival was no more meaningful than sharing one dance at a ball.
Only between people with mutual feelings did such gestures matter. Lilietta had no interest in Joseph at all.
Still, knowing this didn’t stop the twisted feelings rising inside. Gideon took his hand from the railing, shoved it into his pocket, and muttered:
“…This is making me crazier than I thought.”
The Raskyle family’s tent was so large it looked more like a house.
Hanna, who had been busy decorating and helping her lady prepare, finally had free time after the opening ceremony began. She crouched in the back corner of the tent.
Carefully, she pulled something from the pocket hidden inside her apron: a small golden revolver.
A few days ago, Lilietta had casually asked while brushing her shimmering golden hair:
“Hanna, which do you like best—silver, gold, black, bronze, or white?”
Bewitched, Hanna had stammered an answer.
“Uh, I… I like gold.”
The next day, her lady had gifted her this revolver.
“It’s for practice. The chamber is blocked. First, get used to the gun with this. Once your stance is perfect, I’ll give you real bullets.”
That day, Lilietta personally taught her how to hold it, how to clean it, and the basic shooting posture. Hanna learned everything in a daze, as if it were a dream.
…It still feels like a dream.
Her lady guiding her hands, placing the revolver in her grip, correcting her stance—it was unreal.
Hanna gazed at the little golden revolver with shining eyes, trembling as she touched it. The cold, smooth metal finally made it feel real.
But then— Ah! A smudge!
Her dirty hands from working had left marks on the pretty barrel. Panicking, Hanna quickly pulled out a handkerchief and polished it until it gleamed like a mirror. Her silly smiling face reflected back at her.
It’s too wonderful. I love it so much.
Since Ethan had become strange, her heart had been heavy. But now she felt light, as if she could fly.
Thinking of him—especially of how he had looked at her lady’s back in the parlor—still made her chest tighten painfully. But with this golden revolver in her hands, it felt like everything would be okay.
Yes, whatever. None of it matters.
Her lady was always the best, and Hanna felt proud to serve House Raskyle.
When Lilietta stepped out of the tent today, dressed by Hanna’s careful hands, people around had gaped in awe. That had filled her with pride.
Her work was joyful, her fellow maids were kind, her wages were generous, and now even her impossible wish to learn shooting had been granted by her lady.
Sometimes it feels lonely without family… but still.
Unlike other maids, she had no greedy relatives trying to sponge off her wages, nor parents or siblings causing trouble.
So she thought not having family wasn’t so bad. She had lived at Raskyle estate since she was young, surrounded by many servants, and never felt too lonely.
Still, one day I want to marry and have children. My own family.
Until recently, she had always imagined Ethan in that role. But thinking again, it didn’t have to be him. She could find happiness with someone else too.
I’ll grow older, become head maid or maybe a nanny… and care for my lady’s children. If my child could play with hers, I’d want nothing more.
That was Hanna’s dream.
Honestly, she was satisfied with her life. Happy even.
Ethan still weighed on her heart, but she believed time would heal it. After all, he had been too handsome from the start—too burdensome.
So this is enough. I want to live just like this.
Then she remembered her mother, Joanna.
Her mother’s last words, whispered while holding her in a desperate embrace:
“Hanna, never search for your father. Don’t even wonder. You don’t have a father. He’s no father at all—only a demon who brings disaster. If he ever learns you exist, you’ll never live in peace again.”
“House Raskyle will be your shelter. Stay here, live happily. Please, my beloved daughter… just live happily.”
That was her mother’s dying wish.
I don’t want to know. I don’t need a father.
Hanna wasn’t clever, but she wasn’t stupid either.
From her mother’s origins, her circumstances, her last words, she could guess.
She knew what sort of man her father must have been, how he must have treated her mother, why her mother had fled all the way to Raskyle while pregnant.
I don’t care who he was. I just want to live without ever knowing. I want to keep this life. But…
She remembered the night ten years ago. The night when someone forced her body to move against her will. The night she had kidnapped her lady.
Her lady’s words echoed again:
“The thing that controlled you ten years ago—the kidnapper. Its identity, and the reason it could control you, might be connected to your bloodline.”
Her mother had been right. Hanna had no father. Only a demon, only disaster. Something that could ruin her life.
If disaster comes, if I can’t avoid it by ignoring it… then at least I should know what it is.
She also remembered her lady’s words:
“After the bloodline test, your identity will be revealed. If you want, you could reclaim it.”
That meant if she didn’t want to, she never had to reclaim it. She could just live as she was.
Even if they test me, I’ll stay like this. I don’t want to be tied to disaster. I want a normal life. This life is good enough.
Hanna trembled in fear but finally made her decision.
If my lady needs it, I’ll allow the test. But I’ll never reclaim that identity.
She stroked the polished revolver with her eyes, then tucked it back into her apron pocket.
Just then, another maid appeared behind the tent.
“There you are, Hanna! I’ve been looking everywhere!”
She spoke in excitement.
“Someone’s here for you. A servant of House Naparoa. He’s really handsome!”
“For me? Why?”
“He saw you earlier and said he has something to tell you. He looked so shy!”
The maid laughed mischievously. Hanna followed her, dazed.
“Sh-shy?”
“His face was red! But what will you do? You already have Ethan! You’d better refuse politely!”
“No… I don’t. Not anymore.”
The other maid looked shocked.
“What? Did you fight with Ethan?”
Hanna almost answered, then closed her mouth. Because right there, she saw Ethan.
His golden-brown hair caught the light as he packed up supplies at the front of the tent. Beyond him stood a nervous young man she didn’t recognize.
Hanna whispered to the maid:
“That’s him?”
“Yes! But really, what happened with Ethan? Aren’t you going to tell me?”
“Later.”
Lifting her chin, Hanna walked past Ethan and approached the stranger. She barely listened to his greeting, her thoughts lingering on the man behind her.
Is Ethan watching?
If she were with another man, would he feel a little jealous? A little regret?
She still didn’t understand why Ethan had pushed her away so coldly, why he told her to give up. The words he had spoken in the corridor outside the parlor—she had been too afraid and too confused to understand them.
I want him to regret it. Just a little.
So when the Naparoa servant asked if she’d like to take a walk, Hanna immediately agreed.
“Yes. Let’s walk together.”
Deliberately, she nodded loudly, making sure Ethan could see, and took the man’s outstretched hand. Then she followed him into the forest.
