“But the scale is truly enormous and it’s filled with all kinds of trees from every corner of the world, and it’s really…… you’d forget to breathe!”

Rose was a maid about two years older than Meliciel, and perhaps because they were close in age, they seemed to get along well.

The two of them kept talking while the wash water was being prepared. The sound of Rose’s bright laughter rang out.

She probably ought to rein her in.

But watching Meliciel laugh along, Belita had no choice but to leave them be.

What a harmless person she is.

“There’s really a fruit shaped like that?”

“Oh goodness. You have no idea how unsightly it is.”

Meliciel laughed out loud. Belita gently spoke up.

“My lady, it’s time to change your clothes.”

“Mm-hm.”

Belita helped Meliciel undress after she finished washing. She still felt a surge of anger every time she saw the blue bruises covering Meliciel’s body.

She heard a rough account of what happened at the ducal residence, but who could bring themselves to strike such a small body.

Cruel people.

Perhaps because of that, Meliciel’s expression darkened sharply every time she undressed.

Poor dear.

“Oh my.”

Rose spotted the red mark on Meliciel’s collarbone and covered her mouth. She saw a similar mark a few days ago too, and even then the maids struggled to keep their expressions in check.

Anyone could see it was a mark left by the Grand Duke.

Rose was the only one noticing it now, and the sound slipped out before she could stop it.

Meliciel caught on a beat late and fumbled to pull the blanket up to cover herself. She looked embarrassed.

“I, I’ll do the rest myself. I want to rest now.”

“Yes.”

Belita kept her composure and tidied up the room. She was about to leave with everyone else when Meliciel spoke up softly.

“Um.”

“Yes, miss.”

“Thank you.”

That small voice tickled Belita’s heart, and the hearts of the other maids.

Belita and the maids slipped out of the bedroom, let out the sighs they were holding in, and chattered with flushed faces.

“What was that? She’s too adorable.”

“I know. Rose, you talked with her so much. Lucky you.”

Rose lifted her chin with pride.

“Earlier, when the young lady looked at me…… my heart just, boom, started pounding like crazy.”

“Quiet, all of you.”

Belita gave a soft warning.

She couldn’t begin to guess what the Grand Duke was thinking.

In truth, the Grand Duke was not as licentious as the rumors suggested.

Belita watched him since he was a child and knew his fastidious nature well.

It wasn’t a fastidiousness about things so much as about people. His distrust of relationships ran deep.

So she expected him to be cold and distant with the Grand Duchess-to-be…….

And yet he went and left a mark of ownership right there for all to see.

Most of the servants knew, though it was kept quiet, that the Grand Duke had a lover he couldn’t forget.

Everyone believed that lover was the late Lady Viviana, but Belita, Mihael, and Chayden alone knew the truth.

That the one the Grand Duke couldn’t let go of was a person named Lani.

Belita had to do her best to make sure the young lady wasn’t hurt by the past. She steeled herself.

She had to protect the young lady.

Still, she thought that perhaps a new light might yet shine through.

***

“It’s no use.”

Meliciel muttered blankly and set down her pencil.

The situation was clearly serious. She couldn’t draw anymore.

She could only vaguely guess that her spiritual power went haywire after the big fight with Yulina, and she had no real solution.

“It’s not working……”

She shook her head, nearly in tears, but the result was the same. Her hand was stiff, like it belonged to someone else.

She had to paint. Even under a false name, she needed to claim the reputation of a divine painter.

It wasn’t only about gaining proper authority from Duke Dexter. She needed to train the divine painter’s power to ward off misfortune and poison.

Even if a child came, it meant nothing if she couldn’t protect it.

What Meliciel feared most was failing to protect a child again.

To protect a child, Meliciel needed power.

“What do I do?”

Meliciel muttered and pushed the blank paper and pen aside. If Kahar found out she was a divine painter, it would be trouble.

He said what he wanted was a Grand Duchess with no power of her own. So she couldn’t openly ask for a painting teacher or seek treatment.

To keep a secret, she needed someone she could share it with…….

Meliciel pulled the bell cord. Before long, Rose appeared.

The young maid with brown hair and dark amber eyes was exactly to Meliciel’s liking.

Her bright, sharp eyes and lively energy lifted people’s spirits. At first she thought Rose was wary of her, but it seemed Rose was simply being careful.

The moment Meliciel spoke to her, Rose stuck close to her side and never stopped chattering.

“Did you call for me, my lady?”

“Yes. Could I have lunch in the dining room today?”

“Are you sure you’re up to it?”

Rose opened her eyes wide and looked Meliciel up and down carefully.

Then she tilted her head slightly with a pitying look.

It seemed the people here thought of Meliciel as a gravely ill patient who could barely move.

“You might collapse.”

Rose’s reaction was unwelcome, and Meliciel felt the need to prove her own health.

“If it’s not far, I can manage easily.”

“……”

“I mean it.”

“Then I’ll help you get ready. Please tell me right away if it gets to be too much.”

“Yes. Light clothes like before, please.”

“If you’d like, my lady, I could carry you?”

Rose held up her arms and showed off her muscles, but Meliciel shook her head and laughed.

She needed to walk on her own to build up her strength anyway. As long as she didn’t push herself too hard, she could manage daily life well enough.

First, she needed to get out of this room.

Without being able to paint, she couldn’t contain her spiritual power. She needed to release it gradually outside, or practice ward-maid work, or find some way to expend it.

This power would become a resource for Meliciel someday.

When she went down to the dining room with Belita and Rose, Kahar was already there.

She thought it would be good to see him, and if not, then it couldn’t be helped, so she was in luck.

“I hope you’ve been well.”

Kahar slowly lifted his head at Meliciel’s voice. A displeased smile touched his lips.

“You seem awfully eager to get on my nerves.”

It was nothing but an annoyance to him, but Meliciel needed points of contact with him.

Being told to stay quiet didn’t mean she could truly let herself be forgotten.

“It’s mealtime.”

“This way, my lady.”

Meliciel was assigned a seat at the far end of the table, directly across from Kahar.

The table was so long that Kahar’s place settings on the opposite end were barely visible.

“The weather is nice.”

“It’s ordinary.”

Kahar answered with a slight frown, in a tone that showed little interest in Meliciel.

In fact, Kahar cut his attention from Meliciel and resumed his conversation with Mihael.

“I was thinking it might be good to invite the High Priest, even for an informal ceremony.”

“Then His Majesty will want to attend as well.”

“Is that all right?”

“Sure, try it.”

Mihael, who was trying to slip the emperor into Kahar’s wedding under the guise of being unassuming about it, cleared his throat.

Shallow schemes didn’t tend to work on Kahar.

“But still, it is your wedding, Grand Duke……”

“Which is exactly why I want it done quietly. It’s a formality anyway, and I know the flies will come swarming. If my aide is going to deal with all of them, hand it over.”

“Ahem. No. Then, I’m not sure if I should say this, but……”

“Don’t.”

Kahar cut off Mihael’s careful words and took a sip of red wine. Meliciel’s gaze landed on his elegant hand.

One of the times she could truly feel that Kahar was born an aristocrat was during meals.

In the past, living as Kahar’s shadow, she watched him eat many times. Every time she watched him dine with refinement from one step behind, she felt a fresh kind of shock.

Neat fingers, clean movements, the act of finishing a meal gracefully with minimal motion. It sometimes looked like art.

For Meliciel, who grew up grabbing bread, cheese, and lukewarm water however she could, the noble table was still something she struggled to grow accustomed to.

Admiration and envy, resentment and curiosity toward Kahar stirred inside her in a tangle. She would have to get used to things like this going forward.

“My lady.”

Mihael’s voice reached her where she was caught in her thoughts.

“Pardon me, my lady.”

Meliciel realized belatedly that she was being addressed and barely managed to answer.

“……Yes?”

“We were thinking of beginning preparations for the wedding gradually. Is it truly all right to have no guests?”

“Ah, I……”

“The young lady’s opinion isn’t needed.”

Kahar cut off Meliciel’s answer in one stroke.

“This isn’t a matter where your opinion carries weight either, so you needn’t concern yourself with the wedding going forward.”

Kahar’s attitude was firm. Meliciel’s involvement was not required.

“Continue eating.”

Meliciel felt a sudden surge rise in her chest. But there was nothing she could do.

The many stewards and maids. Time flowing quietly and in order.

And Meliciel, sitting to one side of it all like a stranger.