Chapter 20
Karina was gazing out the window at the increasingly bare trees. It seemed that in just a few more days, all the leaves would fall.
Soon, there was a knock at the door, and Becky entered with an apple pie.
“Have you been feeling down from staying indoors lately? Sweet things are the best remedy at times like these.”
It seemed she had noticed that Karina had been listless for some time. Karina felt a pang of guilt but picked up the spoon without revealing her feelings.
“And I have something for you. When I checked this morning, there was a letter addressed to you, Miss.”
“A letter?”
Becky rummaged through her pocket as she spoke. Karina, who had been nibbling at her food without much appetite, raised her head.
Her heart began to race over nothing more than a single letter.
It wasn’t for a good reason. After checking the sender of the letter, Karina let out a sigh, half of it relief and half disappointment.
“Why, Miss? Is something wrong?”
“Nothing. The pie is delicious.”
“Right?”
As Karina brushed off the topic, Becky’s face brightened, and she left the room. Karina immediately put down her spoon.
‘I thought this was finally a letter from Phyllis this time.’
That was the reason she had been holed up in her house for the past few days.
On the day Phyllis had visited for the first time in a long while, Karina had unintentionally revealed her deeply hidden thoughts.
‘Shouldn’t we start bringing up the topic of breaking off the engagement with the adults soon?’
Even she was surprised at how casually the question had come out of her mouth. But at the same time, it was something that had been bottled up inside her for so long, waiting to burst. Winter was already fast approaching. It had become a time when she could no longer avoid the issue, even if she wanted to.
Karina had hoped that he would simply nod and share his thoughts without hesitation.
‘Ah, yes. You’re right. It’s already that time, isn’t it?’
But that wasn’t the case. Phyllis had only left behind a vague response that couldn’t even be considered agreement before changing the subject.
Although Karina was taken aback in the moment, she couldn’t bring herself to bring up the topic again. No matter how much she pretended to be fine and continued speaking, she felt like she would only end up making herself miserable.
“…Should I be the one to bring it up first, after all?”
She deliberately muttered aloud as if to make it seem like she could have done it all along but hadn’t.
Of course, that wasn’t the case. Karina had no choice in the matter. What could she possibly say to her parents? No, was there even a situation where she could explain herself? She couldn’t do anything. Nor did she want to. What had protected Karina up until now was a pitiful silence.
Karina bit her lip as she opened the letter. As soon as she unfolded the stationery, she saw the name always written in the same place.
『To my dear Miss Karina.』
It was now a familiar handwriting—Noah’s. Seeing the neat penmanship lifted her spirits, even if just a little. Ever since she had fixed his door, Noah had occasionally sent her letters, and these short letters had become Karina’s small joy.
The content wasn’t particularly special. It was filled with his feelings from the day or trivial anecdotes.
『Thanks to you, Miss Karina, I managed to get through another night safely.
Kaya snored so loudly that I had to move to the hallway, so it was a bit noisy, but I’ll be sure to repay your kindness.
P.S. Did you know that if you sleep in a warm place, your mouth doesn’t freeze up?』
『Reed, who left home yesterday, came back today.
It seems he forgot my face because he tried to bite my finger. It was a gloomy day.』
『After being away for two days, I came home today and went on a walk with the dogs. I’m curious what you did, Miss Karina.
P.S. Below is a portrait of Reed that I drew. Doesn’t it look a little similar?』
Reading the stream-of-consciousness writing felt like being swept up in a trance, leaving her mind blank. As Karina slowly read through today’s letter, a small smile began to spread across her face.
When she reached the part where several crumpled circles, supposedly representing the dogs, were drawn, she even let out a small laugh. It was always like this. Though she couldn’t make sense of what he was saying, at some point, she would find herself smiling without realizing it.
‘I’ve thought this before, but he’s really bad at drawing.’
Feeling an odd sense of competitiveness, Karina eventually picked up a pen and paper. It wasn’t until she had already filled the back of the stationery—meant for her reply—with sketches of Edel that she realized what she had done.
As she slapped her cheeks to bring herself back to her senses, her eyes caught the last line of the letter, which she hadn’t read yet.
『How have your days been lately, Miss Karina?』
For some reason, that one sentence stood out more than anything else. Karina picked up her pen again.
『I’ve been doing well. The days are getting colder, so take care not to catch a cold.』
As always, her hand slowed down as she wrote her reply and eventually came to a stop. In the end, Karina pushed aside the first piece of stationery. A new sheet was soon placed on the desk.
『What do you do when you don’t feel like doing anything?』
A short question was written far below the first paragraph. She didn’t even know exactly what she wanted to say.
After hesitating for a long time, Karina folded the letter and placed it in an envelope.
“This kind of question should be fine. We’ve exchanged letters so many times already.”
Her muttering, clearly meant to convince herself, was an added bonus.
She absentmindedly poked at the still-warm pie with her spoon. Karina deliberately took a large bite. As the crisp apple pieces crunched in her mouth, leaves fluttered down outside the window.
As she quietly watched the scene, Karina tilted her head.
“Could it really be the apple pie?”
At some point, the melancholy she had been feeling had eased considerably. Even after swallowing the pie, her mouth still tasted sweet.
A little while later, Becky, who had been called back, was moved when she saw the empty plate. She practically skipped as she carried the letter away.
Karina left her embarrassment behind and stood up. For some reason, it felt like today was going to be a better day than usual.
***
The door opened with a soft click. Phyllis, who carefully closed the door behind him, walked down the hallway. Along the way, he handed the medicine packet he had been holding to the butler, Derrick. Once again, the contents from the previous day had remained untouched.
“Phyllis.”
“You’re early today.”
“Yeah. How is Mother?”
In the middle of the hallway, Cornell approached and asked. Phyllis gave a bitter smile and shook his head.
“It’s the same. And you? Were you okay today?”
As soon as she heard the question, Cornell clasped her hands over her mouth and came closer.
“Don’t be surprised. I passed the first round of evaluations in one go for the first time!”
“Really?”
Phyllis widened his eyes and asked again. Cornell nodded enthusiastically, her face flushed with excitement.
It seemed that while she had been pushing herself a bit too hard, her efforts were finally paying off. Phyllis, who was about to congratulate her, suddenly hesitated.
“At this rate, I think I’ll just barely finish everything before winter arrives. Before the first snow!”
Cornell clenched her fists as she expressed her excitement, but Phyllis couldn’t share her joy.
Quick to notice, Cornell soon calmed down and asked,
“What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
It was no use trying to hide his expression after the fact. In the end, Phyllis made up an excuse.
“Well, it’s just that my mother isn’t doing well… I’m a little worried about what’s ahead.”
Since it wasn’t entirely untrue, Cornell nodded in understanding. Their conversation naturally continued until they reached the stairs, where it finally came to a halt. After saying goodbye to Cornell, Phyllis turned and walked away.
As soon as he entered his room and closed the door, the guilt he had been suppressing came rushing in with a vengeance. With heavy steps, Phyllis walked to the bed and sat down, running his hands over his face.
‘I should have told Cornell.’
He still hadn’t brought up the topic of breaking off his engagement with Karina to either of their families. Of course, even if he had mentioned it, Cornell likely wouldn’t have cared much. After all, the engagement between him and Cornell was only a promise between the two of them.
Still, the fact remained that he was being indecisive. Phyllis let out a deep sigh.
‘Yeah. It’s really time to end this.’
He knew it was far too late. That’s why, now that he had realized it, he needed to act quickly.
Lying down and staring at the ceiling, Phyllis placed an arm over his forehead.
A slight breeze seeped in through the slightly open window. The air was cold enough to be mildly irritating. After lying there for a while, Phyllis closed his eyes. He didn’t want to block out the chilling air.
***
The nearly fallen leaves had turned the Earldom courtyard into a carpet of flowers. The footsteps of passing servants paused for a moment.
Soon, Phyllis and Cornell appeared side by side from the main building’s hallway.
“Come down, Cornell.”
“Okay.”
Phyllis descended the stairs first and held out his hand. Cornell took his hand and followed him down the stairs.
On the table in the middle of the courtyard lay a single golden ginkgo leaf.
As Cornell sat down and looked around, she picked up the ginkgo leaf. Then, she held it out to Phyllis, who was still standing.
“Look at this, Phyllis. Isn’t it pretty?”
At that moment, another person walked out from inside the mansion. It was Karina.
“Miss Karina has arrived.”
Phyllis gave Cornell a faint smile before walking toward Karina.
“You’re here?”
“Yes. Sorry I’m late.”
“No need to apologize. We came early.”
When Phyllis held out his hand, Karina’s gaze dropped downward.
Karina slowly descended the stairs. Phyllis withdrew his hand and watched as she stepped onto the ground.
“You’re here, Miss Karina.”
Cornell stood up from her seat and greeted her. Karina walked to the opposite side of the table and sat down. Once everyone had gathered, the maids brought out tea and snacks. A faint orange scent filled the courtyard. In the silence, Phyllis was the first to speak.
“It would’ve been nice if the others could have joined us, don’t you think?”
Karina nodded while holding her teacup. Phyllis looked at the empty table with a troubled expression. Originally, he had planned to gather the family together, but the meeting had been canceled due to his father’s schedule.
Though he understood it couldn’t be helped, today he resented his father more than ever. There was something that absolutely needed to be said in front of everyone.
“That’s true. Now that I’m here, it feels a bit disappointing.”
After a long pause, Karina spoke, looking at Phyllis. Her gaze was dry.
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Imntru
I’m glad Noah’s goofy as$ has been there for Karina- glad she didn’t have to keep pushing her hurt down or holding onto her feelings. Now if Phyllis and Cornell could just get their sh*t together and stop involving themselves in her life that’d be amazing.