Chapter 40 – Didn’t You Prepare For This Much?

On the day Eloise left home for the second time, she was composed without shedding a single tear. Her family was the same; they exchanged calm hugs and kisses in turn.

It was a bittersweet realization that one could get used to even sad things, offering a small comfort to her aching heart.

“Then I’ll be going.”

“Yes, take care…”

“Write to us, Elsie. Promise?”

After his sudden confession, there had been no meeting with Archibald. 

He had no reason to visit, and Eloise hadn’t gone to church since then.

So when the coachman offered to take Eloise, she firmly refused his kindness. She had left all her luggage behind, so she didn’t have a heavy bag, and she wanted to walk and think about various things.

As she retraced the painful days of the past and pondered the uncertain future, she walked silently, breathing in the vivid autumn air, until she reached the place where the stagecoach stopped.

The coach she soon arrived at was bustling with quite a few passengers.

A few months ago, when she first took the stagecoach, it was very early in the morning, so there were hardly any people. Naturally, it felt unfamiliar.

In truth, Eloise herself had changed as much as the day had.

Leaving her family to go far away now felt quite ordinary.

Compared to that day when she sat in a corner with a frightened rabbit-like face, she was now calm enough to be believed as a different person.

Back then, she was mostly afraid because she was leaving home so recklessly, but now it was different.

After all, Brightnum was no longer an unimaginable unknown world to Eloise. She could vividly recall the streets of the capital with her eyes closed.

The cool breeze brushing her cheek in the summer, the bustling afternoon of the central square.

The busy noise of the bead factory and the damp smell inside Mrs. Mullich’s house. And even the man standing in front of that house’s gate on a rainy night…

‘Eloise.’

The refreshing scent that became more distinct in the rain and the warm body heat she felt when embraced by him, the trembling breath and the low, resonant voice, the transparent light green eyes that held only her.

She had to forget all of it now, and she would. The only unchanged fact was that she was leaving to forget him.

Overcoming the time she was infatuated with him was the only way to be happy beside the people she cherished.

* * *

“Miss, are you alone?”

She knew from previous experience that the coach would stop in a secluded area far from the bustling streets.

There were so many low-life men in the capital that you could trip over them.

And, despite her desperate wish to hold onto time, she had grown into a young woman.

‘Miss Sarah is undoubtedly beautiful, but you’re the one who drives men crazy…’

Eloise shut her eyes tightly, recalling a memory she didn’t want to remember.

Her expression seemed to trigger something, as a man with a sly look raised an eyebrow and blocked her path.

“Huh? Miss, can’t you hear me? I’m asking if you’re alone.”

“…I have company.”

Without looking at the man, Eloise replied and passed by him, thinking that she’d soon meet Mrs. Mullich, so it wasn’t a lie.

‘Ugh, awful. Did he drown himself in alcohol until morning?’

This time, she had deliberately timed her arrival in Brightnum for the morning, but experiencing this even in the morning was just frustrating.

It might be a side effect of being in a large, bustling city, but it was truly tiresome.

“Where’s your company? If you’re lying, it’s no fun.”

“Ha, really…”

After spending over a day and a half in a crowded coach, Eloise was utterly exhausted. Her whole body felt stiff.

However, Eloise was confident she could outrun a staggering man like that.

Tightly tying the laces near her ankles, she took a deep breath and started running with all her might.

“Hey, hey! Look here!”

As expected, the man couldn’t keep up with her. Just when she felt like her lungs would burst, Eloise stopped her trembling legs.

“Haa…”

In the distance, she could see the central square greeting the morning. Gentlemen and ladies dressed in various styles, horses and carriages, and pedestrians in worn hats were busily coming and going.

Feeling relieved now that she was safe, Eloise suddenly felt sorrowful.

‘If that man hadn’t been drunk, or if I wasn’t good at running, I would have faced a horrible situation as soon as I arrived in the capital, right?’

Living as a woman is quite challenging. In Maybury, she could live somewhat peacefully, but there was no freedom.

Especially for women, even a minor incident quickly became gossip. People there had too little entertainment, so they were overly interested in others’ every move.

On the other hand, in Brightnum, there was freedom. But there were too many men who approached rudely without knowing manners. Of course, if she had been with family or companions, it would have been different, but it didn’t apply to Eloise, who was completely alone.

She loved the free-spiritedness of the capital, but sometimes, like today, she had to rely on luck in difficult situations.

She didn’t want to resent being born a woman, but…

‘Still, at times like this, I can’t help but feel dispirited.’

Already exhausted from the uncomfortable position during the long coach ride, Eloise felt as if she could collapse on the street at any moment.

Tapping her legs that felt like they would burst, Eloise thought it was quite a splendid new start. Of course, it was ironic.

“Ugh, it’s cold…”

Moreover, as the thin sweat she had broken into cooled, she felt a chilling coldness.

She had forgotten that the weather here was cooler than in Maybury.

Wearing only a shawl over a thin poplin dress, Eloise shivered like a wet cat, hugging her arms.

“Let’s go quickly.”

Although Mrs. Mullich and her cat might not welcome her warmly, at least Eloise felt that everything in that house would be welcoming.

Especially that cozy bed.

She decided to put aside her plan to visit the factory later today.

It seemed better to rest well today and visit the factory early tomorrow morning to talk with Mr. Woodley, the manager.

With such busy thoughts, she pushed through the crowd and ran, soon finding herself in front of the red brick house at 4 Nostown.

The long trailing vines seemed to have grown a bit darker in color.

Eloise ran up the more than ten stone steps in one breath and knocked on the door vigorously.

“Madame! Mrs. Mullich!”

Eloise felt a sudden surge of emotion at the fact that she had a place to return to in this unfamiliar city.

Yes, this was quite a splendid start. Just as she was about to knock again, the door creaked open.

Eloise smiled brightly, her hand still in the air.

“Madame! I…”

But the person who opened the door was a rough-looking man. Eloise’s smiling face froze.

“Who are you?”

The strong smell of alcohol and the deeply flushed face reminded her of the young man she had encountered when she got off the coach.

However, the man in front of her was balding and had a protruding belly, looking to be at least fifty.

He even held a bottle with a brown liquid in one hand.

The liquor in the glass bottle sloshed as if it would spill any moment whenever the man waved his arm roughly.

“Who are you, I said?”

“Uh, I’m Eloise Bailey, lodging here… Is Mrs. Mullich inside?”

Even as she answered the man’s harsh question, Eloise was struck with fear.

His eyes, wide open, were bloodshot red, chillingly so. It was clear he was too drunk to have a coherent conversation.

“She’s not here!”

At the man’s fierce retort, Eloise’s shoulders flinched involuntarily.

She had no idea why someone like him was here, but she didn’t dare ask, nor did it seem like he would answer even if she did.

For a moment, she wondered if he was the protagonist of the occasional arguments she heard from the front door, but if so, it was even more unrelated to her.

Eloise thought of going to the second floor to rest and parted her lips.

“…Then I’ll wait inside.”

At that moment, the man, who had been staring intently at Eloise’s face, suddenly reached out and grabbed her left shoulder.

Startled, Eloise shook off his hand.

“W-What are you doing?”

“I’ve been in a bad mood since morning, but you came.”

The rough touch made her feel both unpleasant and scared. Was he trying to kick her out?

She realized her assumption was wrong the moment she heard the man’s next words. More precisely, when she saw his lewd smile.

“If you’re lodging, you must have come from far away. Didn’t you prepare for this much, coming to the capital alone as a woman?”

“What…”

The man’s hand, gripping her shoulder, started to roughly squeeze her slender arm.

As Eloise’s face turned pale with the overwhelming unpleasantness, the man’s hand holding the bottle neck approached.

It seemed he intended to pull Eloise into an embrace.

“Ahhh! Let go!”

Eloise, squeezing her eyes shut, screamed shrilly and pushed the man away.

However, the dull thud and the sound of the glass bottle breaking that followed sent a chill down her spine.

When she opened her trembling eyelids, she saw the man sprawled at the bottom of the stairs, glass shards scattered everywhere, and bright red blood spreading from his head, soaking the ground.

“W-What do I do…”

The sudden horror turned her vision white. Eloise’s body collapsed helplessly to the floor.