TYWML 05

Chapter 5. Johannes’s Proposal
May 5, 2024

Just as Riena was about to call for the maid waiting outside, her expression suddenly darkened.

“Oh, right. There’s a guest who arrived at the mansion ahead of you. We’ll make sure your paths don’t cross, but there’s a chance you might run into him while walking around. Would that be alright?”

“Are you referring to Baron Rotman, the one I saw earlier?”

“…Yes.”

Riena let out a bitter smile. She tried hard to maintain her expression, but she couldn’t quite hide her displeasure behind a bright smile.

Johannes, too, matched her serious expression.

“I know it’s presumptuous of me to ask, but… is something going on with you, Lady Riena?”

“…”

“I heard earlier that Baron Rotman is your fiancé.”

“That’s not true!”

Startled by her own raised voice, Riena let out a small sigh and lowered her tone.

“It’s true that talks of marriage with Baron Rotman happened without my knowledge. But a fiancé? Absolutely not. I have no intention of marrying him.”

“So that’s why you looked so troubled.”

Johannes rose from his seat and carefully sat beside her. His large hand gently covered Riena’s two hands, which she had been clasping tightly.

Riena flinched slightly at the soft touch on the back of her hand and looked up. Their eyes met, and Johannes smiled.

“I was going to keep this to myself, but given the circumstances, I can’t stay silent anymore.”

“…?”

“The reason I came all the way here was to see you, Lady Riena.”

“…What?”

Johannes let out a small, awkward laugh, as if he were embarrassed.

“After I last saw you, I couldn’t get you out of my mind. I wanted to reach out, but I didn’t know how. We weren’t exactly close, and I thought you’d be startled if I suddenly contacted you.”

“…”

“I never imagined I’d suffer from lovesickness, but here I am, at this age, burning with a late fever.”

Riena blinked, speechless, unable to grasp the situation.

“I finally mustered up the courage to send a marriage proposal to the Duke of Dyke, but I received no response. Heartbroken by the rejection, I left the capital and traveled for a while. It was during that time I belatedly heard of the Count’s passing.”

“A… proposal? When did that happen…?”

“I sent it earlier this year. So it’s been, what, about half a year?”

“Half a year…”

Seeing Riena lost in thought, Johannes continued.

“You were very affectionate toward the Count, weren’t you? I was worried about how you must’ve felt after losing someone so dear. That’s why I wanted to come and see you.”

“I…”

“And if I had the chance, I wanted to convey the feelings I never had the chance to express.”

Johannes gently pulled her hand and placed a kiss on her pale knuckles. It was a deeper and more affectionate gesture than the one he had made when they first met.

“Lady Riena. It may seem sudden, but after seeing what just happened, I can’t bring myself to leave you like this.”

He whispered with his lips still resting on her hand.

“When I return to the capital… will you come with me?”

“What do you mean…?”

He met her gaze and smiled warmly.

“I’m proposing to you, Lady Riena.”

* * *

“So what you’re saying is… Lady Riena received proposals from two men at once?”

“I never thought she had that kind of charm. She never seemed interested in romance or marriage. If it were Lady Bianca, I could understand…”

“Well, she is beautiful. Men would go crazy for her. Or maybe there’s something going on we don’t know? Wouldn’t be the first time a noble lady had two faces.”

“Oh, stop it.”

The laughter of the maids carrying laundry echoed down the hallway. Watching their retreating figures, Riena deliberately stomped her heels as she walked.

Normally, her shoes wouldn’t have made such a loud noise—but this time, they echoed through the corridor.

The maids reflexively turned, and their faces instantly turned pale.

“L-Lady Riena! When did you come out?”

“Just now.”

“Oh… uh…”

Unable to speak directly, the maids exchanged nervous glances. Riena tapped the shoulder of the maid standing to her right and whispered into her ear.

“I already know you talk behind my back.”

“Gasp… I’m sorry…”

“It’s alright. I imagine you need some amusement while doing such hard work.”

“That’s not what I meant…”

“But still, it’s not proper to speak so loudly when there are two guests staying in the mansion. What you just said was offensive not just to me, but to them as well. Your voices were loud enough to be heard on the second floor.”

The Dyke family—including Riena—lived on the third floor, while guests stayed on the second.

“I-I’m so sorry! Please forgive me. I swear I’ll be more careful. No, I’ll work like I’m not even alive!”

“Me too! Please have mercy…”

“I won’t fire you. But I hope never to hear something like that again.”

“Th-thank you! We’ll be more careful!”

Riena walked past the two maids who were bowing deeply. Behind her, she could hear them exhale in relief.

“I really thought I was going to get fired. Of all people, why did it have to be Lady Riena who overheard us?”

“Watch your mouth. You were just scolded, and you’re already talking again?”

“Ugh…”

Riena pretended not to hear their whispers.

Under normal circumstances, servants who gossiped about their master would be dismissed. These two, too, should’ve been fired.

But she didn’t. Because firing them wouldn’t fix the real problem.

After the death of Count Dyke, the Countess had taken full control of the household. The once-humble Countess now reigned like a queen, and Bianca—who was treated like an outsider—grew bold and assertive.

With the Countess pushing for Riena to marry Baron Rotman, the servants quickly adjusted to the new power structure. They cozied up to the Countess and subtly disrespected Riena.

Even if she fired these two, the overall sentiment among the staff wouldn’t change.

‘And Mother wouldn’t even approve the dismissal anyway.’

Knowing the Countess, she might actually praise the maids for insulting Riena.

Riena rubbed her temples, her face hardening.

‘Sir Belliar wouldn’t have wanted this kind of situation either…’

Two days ago, word of Johannes’s proposal to Riena had spread throughout the mansion.

Because it was inappropriate for an unmarried man and woman to be alone, they’d left the parlor door open and placed a maid nearby. That maid had shared what she saw with her colleagues.

And as gossip tends to do, the story quickly spread without legs, reaching everyone within hours.

Worse yet, the rumors soon twisted into fiction.

They now said that Riena and Johannes had long harbored feelings for each other but had been kept apart by Count Dyke’s opposition. And once the Count died, Johannes had finally come forward to propose.

It was complete nonsense.

Riena let out a disbelieving laugh.

“What the hell did you do?”

Suddenly, a sharp voice rang from the side. Turning her head, she saw Bianca leaning against the wall with her arms crossed.

Bianca tilted her head and slowly scanned Riena from head to toe.

“Didn’t think Lord Belliar’s type was this kind of woman. So, how exactly did you seduce him?”

“…What?”

Riena frowned at the blunt question, but Bianca continued unfazed.

“What did you do to make him propose to you?”

“I don’t know.”

That was the very question Riena herself wanted to ask Johannes.

“You don’t know? If you don’t know, who does?”

“I’m just telling you I don’t know. What else do you want me to say?”

“What?”

“And why are you so concerned about who proposes to me?”

“That’s because—!”

Bianca’s face, already flushed, turned crimson with anger.

“Because he’s too good for you! I just feel sorry that Lord Belliar is being fooled by someone like you! Of all the women he could’ve chosen… why you?!”

Bianca yelled and then clamped her mouth shut.

“Anyway, you’d better watch yourself. Your fiancé, Baron Rotman, is still here, remember?”

“He’s not my fiancé, I told you—”

“Well, he doesn’t seem to think that.”

Bianca glanced toward the stairs. Riena followed her gaze—and there, storming up the steps with a scowl, was none other than Baron Rotman.

“Lady Dyke! We need to talk—!”

“…Ugh.”

Riena sighed and pressed her forehead with her palm before turning on her heel. She ignored the shouts of Baron Rotman and the maids trying to stop him, and entered her room.