At the mouth of the alley, the carriage stood and pinned against it was the man who had dragged her there. An arrow jutted from his shoulder.

This was her chance.

Sveta ran with all her strength in the opposite direction.

Only when she reached the far end of the alley did she realize what had happened.

A man, towering like a giant, stood there with a bow in hand.

“You’d better step aside.”

The low voice that ordered her to retreat left her unable to move.

She stared at him, spellbound.

His golden hair gleamed like silk.

His straight nose and crimson lips seemed to belong to someone from another world.

It was as though rays of light fell only upon him, dazzling her eyes.

His green irises, faceted like gemstones, held the sharpness of a bird of prey.

He nocked an arrow tipped with an eagle’s feather to the string.

It flew, unerring, and struck once more into the shoulder of the man pinned to the carriage.

“Uaaagh!”

A terrible scream shattered through the alley.

“So, some people still behave like this.”

“…….”

“There won’t be any more of it after today.”

His gaze shifted downwards and rested on Sveta alone.

“So be at ease.”

Sveta collapsed like sand crumbling to the ground.

Something was strange. The sound in her ears, the beat of her heart, the volume of air filling her lungs.

His low voice reverberated in her ears like an aftershock. Her heartbeat shrank and swelled irregularly. A faint, warm scent lingered at the tip of her nose.

“You seem to be all right now.”

“…….”

He slowly withdrew his gaze. Then, without hesitating, he turned away.

Even his steps were unhurried and elegant. The golden cloak trailing behind him swung heavily, as though bearing the weight of fate itself.

Only when he had disappeared at the far end of the alleyway did Sveta feel able to breathe again.

After that day, astonishingly, the ruffians disappeared without a trace.

Around that time, Sveta found herself developing a new habit of wandering down that alleyway whenever she could, as if to forget her own pitiful circumstances.

‘He doesn’t come anymore…’

She should have asked his name. She should have at least said thank you.

She longed to see him once more, even just once. That was all she wished for.

Yet the event that would change her life occurred less than a fortnight later.

As she walked through a narrow alleyway and turned the corner, a powerful force hit her, lifting her off the ground.

A carriage had careered into her without warning. She barely had time to register this before her consciousness slipped away.

“How pretty…”

When she opened her eyes again, she found herself under the gaze of an odd-looking baron with l*stful eyes. Beside him stood his mistress.

Dalia became strangely fixated on her. She refused to let Sveta out of her sight, not even during private medical procedures.

“Aaagh…! Why! Why!”

“It is certain, my lady.”

She cried out to the apothecary who had just told her that she was going through premature menopause.

“It seems that the compounded medicines you took in the hope of conceiving have harmed you instead.”

“What… what am I to do…”

Dalia paced in agitation before suddenly turning her head towards Sveta, who had been lingering nearby with wary eyes.

Dalia’s gaze gleamed dangerously.

“Giving birth isn’t the only way to have a child, is it?”

“My lady? What do you mean by that?”

“You may leave now.”

She dismissed the apothecary, then hurried around Sveta, flitting about excitedly.

Finally, she stopped, smiled gently and held out her hand.

“Come here, child.”

Sveta hesitated, then took her hand.

“From now on, call me Mother.”

Her heart pounded violently.

‘Mother.’

A word for something she had never once possessed.

‘Is this truly all right…?’

While she hesitated, Dalia’s gaze sharpened.

“…Yes, Mother.”

The word passed her lips for the first time—dangerously sweet.

“That’s it. Just like that.”

By the time he reached middle age and had still never married, the baron left Dalia in a constant state of fear that he would abandon her. So she made Sveta the chain that tied him to her.

The girl she had taken in and who now called her mother was entered into the records as the Baron’s daughter.

No one knew what schemes Dalia had employed, but there must have been secret dealings behind closed doors. Whatever they were, the result was plain: Dalia became the mother of the Baron’s daughter — and thus Baroness Luce.

Thus, a strange and fragile family came into being.

◯◯◯

Nearly four years later, Sveta encountered that radiant man again — the one she had buried deep in her heart.

One winter night, thick with falling snow, her foster mother suddenly declared—

“While we are staying at the Duke’s estate in Renan, we will look for the Baron.”

“Yes, Mother.”

A few months earlier, Baron Luce had vanished after being summoned to the capital of Renan by the King.

Given his involvement in countless shady dealings, the baron’s disappearance came as little surprise. Rumors spread that he had amassed his fortune through human trafficking in the borderlands, and his loyalty to a tyrant responsible for unspeakable atrocities was reason enough for him to be rejected by society.

Some even claimed that his disappearance was his rightful punishment.

Cruel to all but his mistress and even his own brother, the Baron left behind few mourners. So it seemed almost inevitable when his elder brother, Baron Norian, stepped forward and declared that he would take charge of the estate, seemingly prepared.

Of course, nothing was to be granted to a mere mistress.

Confronted with the looming threat of being cast out of the mansion, Dalia’s fragile mind began to unravel further.

“Lord Noma is from the same province as me. He has kindly agreed to take us in.”

Thus, they were spared from being thrown onto the streets. Thanks to Lord Noma, the duke’s mother and Dalia’s childhood friend, Dalia and Sveta were granted residence at the ducal estate in Renan.

On their first day there, Dalia sternly warned Sveta:

“Live as though you were a shadow in the shade.”

“Yes, Mother.”

“His Grace, the Duke of Strilland, has a rather peculiar temperament. Catching his eye will not end well. So do not dare go near the main building.”

Dalia always mixed exaggeration and lies into her words. Although Sveta did not fully believe her, she replied meekly.

“…Yes.”

Winter passed and spring arrived. The unfamiliar surroundings gradually became something she could grow accustomed to.

Now, Sveta realized that at least part of what Dalia had said was true. She had not only heard of the duke’s peculiar obsession with cleanliness, but also the public rumors that circulated openly throughout the estate.

“Master despises the barbarians.”

After getting to know her, one of the kitchen maids confided in her cautiously.

“And no wonder — he was the only child to survive ‘Bloody Saturday’.”

“…Bloody Saturday?”

“You know—the incident twenty-four years ago.”

The maid lowered her voice.

“For the blessing ceremony, noble children had gathered at the Neutral Temple, and…”

Though her words trailed off, Sveta knew exactly what she was going to say. It was common knowledge that the Zloytans had set fire to the temple, abducting and slaughtering noble children in the process.

She had only asked because she hadn’t recognized the name ‘Bloody Saturday’.

“On that day, the princess of Prisada, the prince of Teris and our lady of the house, along with many other noble heirs, were killed.”

“…….”

“Master saw the massacre with his own eyes and fled alone. Just imagine how deep his hatred must run.”

Not long after, Sveta came to confirm the truth for herself.

◯◯◯

“That foolish mare will be put down soon.”

Startled by the gruff voice behind her, Sveta quickly turned around, her hand still on the brown horse she had been stroking.

A stable hand with a wild, curly beard was standing where she had been looking. He met her gaze and flashed a genial smile.

She often came to watch the horses when there was no one else around. Apparently, today she was not alone.

“But she looks perfectly healthy. Why kill her?”

“Well…”

The stable hand scratched his forehead and smacked his lips a few times before speaking.

“She doesn’t obey at all — she’s undoubtedly deaf — and she’s vicious to boot. More than one strong lad has been thrown and injured by her.”

“…….”

“She’s so difficult there’s no hope of ever riding her. She’s to be put down tomorrow.”

“Tomorrow…?”

“Maybe she knows her death is near. Strangely enough, she’s been calm today, but a beast’s nature doesn’t change. Be careful, miss.”

Sveta stroked the horse’s glossy, light-brown coat. They said it was vicious, yet with its round eyes blinking pleasantly, it looked nothing but gentle.

“Other than its pretty coat, it seems to have no use at all.”

“What’s its name?”

“You mean this one? As if it would have a name. Ever since it was a foal, we just called it ‘Soon-to-Die.’”

“‘Soon-to-Die’? How could you…”

“It’s from a fine bloodline and is strikingly handsome, which is why they spared it. But it’s been nothing but trouble.”

Sveta ran her hand along the horse’s long neck. It was a foolish beast, doomed to die, with nothing valuable about it except its handsome exterior.

It saddened her. Too much like herself.

Looking into the horse’s round eyes, she saw her own reflection and said stubbornly:

“I’ll call you Round-Eyes. Your eyes are too pretty.”

“Round… what?”

“Where is the Duke?”

“He should be in the Revenew Forest around now. But—”

Sveta gave the horse’s neck one last stroke before dashing straight toward the forest.

She could think of nothing but saving the horse from its death.

She thought she heard the stable hand shouting behind her that she must not go that way.

The moment she entered the forest, a wide clearing opened before her eyes.

There were two men there: one kneeling, and one knight standing.

Sensing at once that something was amiss, Sveta froze.

She had made enough noise to be noticed, but the knight seemed not to care. He drew his long sword.

With a steely shrring, the sound raised gooseflesh.

The man kneeling on the ground trembled violently and raised his head. His wandering gaze landed on Sveta in an instant. His face twisted into something strange as he shouted in haste:

“W-wait! Sir Knight, I have something to confess!”

He was one of the Zloytans. Just as Sveta recognized him, he too recognized her.

“Hey! Leather Doll! You b*tch—”

But the blade fell mercilessly.

He died before he could finish speaking. His body collapsed, gushing blood.

Suddenly, her ankle began to throb with pain.

“Ugh…!”

For a moment, she felt as though she had gone back to the time when daggers were thrown at her endlessly. She felt as though she were a human target again, and as though the shackles around her ankle had tightened. She staggered backwards.

After stumbling a few steps, she hit something hard on her back.

As she slid weakly to the ground, two solid arms reached out and steadied her.

“Did I startle you?”

A low voice rumbled through a broad chest and thudded against her back. Her heart began to beat unevenly and irregularly.