The lake with vibrant lotus leaves, pink flower buds, and yellow daffodils was dreamlike in its beauty. The children splashed around in shallow areas with fewer plants, while guards stood nearby holding large parasols to shield them from the sun.

“It’s peaceful,” Mrs. Devaka murmured languidly. “I wish every day could be like today…”

My ears perked up. Unlike me, who managed the café, Mrs. Devaka spent all day in the Duke’s mansion. She must have her own hardships. I carefully began to speak.

“Ma’am, is something troubling you? Is Elodie being difficult or…?”

“It’s not that,” Mrs. Devaka shook her head. “Rather, we’re doing so well it’s almost embarrassing. Everyone treats us kindly. It’s just…”

I waited patiently for her to continue. Mrs. Devaka looked around as if afraid someone might overhear, then finally spoke.

“…I’m afraid he might come looking for us.”

Mrs. Devaka’s voice was quiet, but couldn’t hide its trembling.

“He appears in my dreams and startles me awake. If he comes to the Duke’s mansion and causes trouble, I worry we might have to leave…”

“Ma’am,” I quickly spoke before Mrs. Devaka could spiral into more terrible thoughts.

“That won’t happen. Even if he does cause trouble, you’re a guest guaranteed protection by the Duke himself. You’re someone who needs to be protected, so please don’t worry.”

“Still…”

“If you’re that worried, I can send someone to check on that man’s current situation.”

“…Oh, Miss Bertin!”

Mrs. Devaka gripped my hand tightly and burst into laughter.

“Yes. That man.”

“Actually, I don’t even want to call that subhuman trash a man. How could anyone hit their own family?”

“You’re right.”

Fortunately, Mrs. Devaka’s mood improved quickly.

“It’s too hot here, so I’m going to dip my feet in the water.”

“Oh, Miss Bertin. Let’s go together!”

In the end, Mrs. Devaka and I also enjoyed the cool water, splashing around in the lake like the children.

“Mom, I’m thirsty.”

“Candy too!”

“Me too.”

It didn’t take long for the tired children to rush out of the water.

“Lemonade!”

Elodie shouted excitedly as she gulped down the cold lemonade kept cool in a bucket of ice. The other children did the same.

“Whew, it’s really almost summer now.”

“Indeed, it is.”

Mrs. Devaka agreed with me.

“You work so hard, Miss Bertin, running the café during the day and taking care of Elodie at night.”

“I’m doing what I want to do.”

It was true. If I hadn’t wanted to, I could have sent Elodie to the Duke’s mansion alone. And if I hadn’t wanted to run the café, the Duke would have provided ample living expenses separately. I wanted to do both things well because they were what I chose, and I felt proud that everything seemed to be going smoothly.

“Miss Bertin, you really are an amazing person.”

“I think I’m pretty amazing, too.”

Mrs. Devaka burst into laughter at my response, which showed not a trace of modesty.

“Then I’m lucky. To be able to become friends with such an amazing person.”

“Friends…?”

Mrs. Devaka’s face momentarily stiffened before relaxing with effort. I quickly tried to recover the situation.

“I, I was just surprised! It would be an honor for me if you became my friend. No, after all the help you’ve given me…”

Mrs. Devaka’s face grew increasingly rigid. By now, I could tell I was rambling painfully.

‘…This isn’t what I meant.’

Of course, I didn’t dislike Mrs. Devaka. It’s just that since I had been dropped alone into this world, I hadn’t felt like I had anyone I could call a friend. I simply hadn’t realized until now that Mrs. Devaka—who had helped me without expecting anything in return, and whom I had recently grown closer to by helping her—could be such a person to me.

“Please don’t misunderstand. I…”

“Miss Bertin.”

Mrs. Devaka quietly spoke.

“Have you never had any friends until now?”

“….”

“It’s okay.”

She answered seriously.

“I wasn’t a child with many friends either. So I know exactly how it feels when someone approaches you for the first time.”

“Mrs. Devaka…”

“You know, I think we’re close enough now to call each other by our first names. Besides, this surname really irritates me.”

My eyes widened involuntarily. Come to think of it, Devaka was the surname of the man who had been violent toward the weak. No wonder she disliked it.

“If it’s alright with you, please call me Hilde.”

“…That’s a beautiful name. It suits you well.”

I wanted to say “Please call me Aria too,” but the words wouldn’t come out properly.

“Thank you. May I call you Aria? You don’t mind, do you?”

“O-Of course not.”

I nodded awkwardly. Mrs. Devaka—no, Hilde—was smiling and handing me a box of cookies she had prepared as snacks when—

“Ambush!”

One of the knights screamed. A chill ran down my spine as Hilde and I jumped to our feet. Even though this area was somewhat secluded, it was bold for someone to attack members of the Duke’s household.

I immediately looked for the children who were returning from the lake. Naturally, Hilde’s children were trembling with fear, but Elodie…

“Hi, hiccup, hic-hic!”

She was so shocked and terrified that she was hiccupping and could barely breathe.

“Get to the carriages!”

One knight shouted loudly while swinging his sword. I ran toward the carriages, embracing both Elodie and Candy at once.

Fortunately, the three knights skillfully held off what appeared to be more than ten bandits, buying us time to board the carriages.

The carriage wasn’t large, and with two adults and three children inside, it was cramped, but this was no time to complain about such things. I bit my lip.

“What about Felicita and Sonya…?”

“I saw them getting into another carriage.”

Hilde quickly answered, then checked on the children’s condition.

“Children, don’t cry. The knights will defeat them all.”

“B-But…”

“What if they can’t?”

Elodie was clearly different from Paul and Candy, who, despite being frightened, still asked various questions. The child was no longer hiccupping. Seeing Elodie frozen, deathly pale and not making a sound, my heart tightened.

‘Please, please…’

Elodie had grown up among human traffickers. Could she bear the thought of being kidnapped again? She must have directly witnessed what happened to people abducted by human trafficking rings. This situation was practically triggering her trauma directly, which made me worry about her even more.

“Elodie.”

I called to the child quietly.

“The knights are fighting bravely. And the Duke knows we’re here, so we’ll be able to return home safely.”

“…Aria.”

Elodie looked up at me with a blank face. Behind those empty eyes seemed to hide a level of terror I couldn’t even imagine.

“What if they’re too late?”

“They won’t be late.”

“I’ve seen them be late many times. When they’re late, everyone…”

“This time will be different.”

I answered firmly and embraced the child.

“We’re not even that far from home, right?”

“It is far.”

In truth, Elodie was more correct. It had taken a full two hours by carriage to reach this place from the Duke’s mansion.

If there were someone to deliver the news, that would be fortunate, but if there wasn’t, they might only notice our misfortune by midnight. But negative thoughts wouldn’t help now, so I was trying my best to gather my thoughts and comfort Elodie when—

“Mom!”

Paul cried out and clung to Hilde. Without any warning, the entire carriage had started to move. Were they our allies, or the bandits? Unable to tell the situation, we were trembling inside the carriage when someone suddenly flung the door open.

We didn’t need to ask which side they were on. A rough-looking man with a face that could only appear in children’s nightmares frowned as he peered in at us. I bit my lip.