After several sleepless nights spent painting, Winter felt as though she had no strength left.

As dawn broke and she had finally finished, she began packing away her art supplies.

Although her mind was elsewhere, her hands moved out of habit, carefully putting away each brush and tube of paint.

She placed the heavy brush case in her worn leather bag first; its corners were softened and polished by years of constant use.

Next came her palette, several glass bottles of paint, and a box of charcoal.

By the time she carefully tucked in her favorite sketchbook, the bag had grown noticeably heavy.

Once everything was packed away, Winter took a moment to clean her workspace thoroughly — a routine she had repeated countless times over the years.

She spent more time than ever on every detail.

Her hands moved carefully over every surface in the studio, making sure that nothing was overlooked.

Whenever tears threatened to spill over, she silently forced them back.

Only once everything was in its proper place did she pick up a pen and start writing a letter.

—

[Dear Master,

It saddens me that I must say goodbye to you in a letter that is far too short.

Thank you for sharing your invaluable guidance with someone who could offer nothing in return.

I still remember the day I first stepped into this studio. I was so happy that it felt as though I had gained the whole world.

The memories I made at Vartz will stay with me forever.

Thank you for accepting me as your student.

I am sorry for not living up to your expectations.

Please take good care of your health.

Winter Wood]

—

She did not want her final farewell to be tainted by resentment or regret.

After all, Ellen was the only person to welcome Winter when she had nowhere else to go.

Even after placing the neatly folded letter on her mentor’s desk, Winter found herself unable to leave immediately.

With reluctant steps, she wandered through the studio one final time.

Every corner held memories that she could not easily let go of.

It was only after a long time that she finally made her way outside.

Dawn was just beginning to break across the horizon.

The winter streets were quiet and almost deserted; they felt cold and painfully empty.

And so, with the first light of morning, Winter left Vartz behind.

***

Although her final destination was her hometown, the train ticket Winter held was not for it.

To reach the small rural village of Ceres, she would first have to travel south and change trains en route.

She had relentlessly chased a dream for years, to the extent that even the briefest moment of rest felt like an indulgence she could not afford.

But perhaps it was time to stop.

At least for a little while.

For now, all she wanted was to go home.

After all, her father had left the capital under difficult circumstances.

She could only imagine that he was struggling too.

‘I’ll greet Father first, and then…’

As Winter stared out of the train window, her gaze eventually fell upon the bag containing her sketchbooks and art supplies.

Wherever life took her, she knew she could earn a living as a painter.

And yet, despite everything, her thoughts inevitably drifted back to Eden.

How had she fallen so deeply in love with a man from such a different world?

If only she could turn back time…

Would she have chosen differently?

She didn’t know.

Loving Eden Mayer had felt as natural and inevitable as breathing itself.

But now, he was someone she could no longer allow herself to think about.

For her own sake, she had to let him go.

‘Pull yourself together.’

Shaking her head, Winter forced herself to stop dwelling on the past.

It was over.

She still had no idea what kind of life awaited her when she returned home.

But whatever path she chose, it would have nothing to do with Eden.

She pulled her bag onto her lap, wrapped her arms around it, and pulled her shoulders inwards.

The man sitting next to her had fallen asleep almost as soon as the train left the station; his loud snoring filled the carriage.

Feeling uncomfortable, she pressed herself closer to the window, trying to create as much distance between them as possible.

***

“What brings you here without even sending word first?”

After travelling for a week, Winter finally arrived home to find herself faced with an unexpected situation.

She had spent the journey worrying about how she would confront her father about her sudden return to Ceres.

But this……was beyond anything she could have imagined.

Her gaze moved between her father, the middle-aged woman standing beside him, and the teenage girl who looked about fifteen or sixteen.

The moment she unlocked the door and stepped inside, she was greeted by the warm, cozy atmosphere of a family who had just shared a meal together.

For a brief moment, no one spoke.

An awkward silence settled over the room.

Then Jeffrey, who had been standing rigidly in place, finally stepped forward.

“Ah… come in first, Winter. This is Mrs. Karen. You remember her, don’t you? You used to see her when you visited the tailor shop as a child. And this young lady is Cosette.”

The tailor’s shop?

Only then did faint memories begin to surface.

Karen.

The woman who ran the shop alone after separating from her husband.

Winter had never visited her often, and they had never been particularly close.

A moment later, Karen greeted her first.

“It’s been a long time, Winter. Your father told me about the exhibition you held in the capital. Congratulations.”

“…Hello.”

Winter moistened her lips, feeling uncomfortable in a way she couldn’t explain.

She shifted her gaze from Mrs Karen, who was standing beside her father, to the teenage girl offering an awkward greeting.

The three of them looked like a warm, loving family.

And yet, Winter felt like an outsider; she felt like she didn’t belong there.

Only then did she begin to notice how different the house had become.

Even her mother’s photograph, which had once hung on the wall, had disappeared.

“Since when…?”

Winter murmured, her strength suddenly draining away.

No one had ever mentioned—even in passing—that Mrs. Karen and her daughter were living here.

Meeting her gaze, Jeffrey hurriedly stepped in.

“Let’s go upstairs and talk in private first. I’ll explain everything.”

He led the way upstairs, repeatedly running a hand through his hair, and finally opened the bedroom door.

Even from behind, his uneasiness was impossible to miss.

Without saying a word, Winter quietly surveyed the room.

It was familiar.

And yet it also felt strangely unfamiliar.

The curtains were new.

The bed had been replaced.

There were decorations she had never seen before and the furniture had been rearranged.

The truth was impossible to ignore: This room, which had once been hers, no longer belonged to her.

It belonged to someone else.

“When did they move in?”

“…Well…”

Jeffrey hesitated, unable to answer immediately.

“So… it’s been a little over a year. I wanted to tell you sooner, but… there never seemed to be a good opportunity. Mrs. Karen and I… we’ve known each other for a long time.”

The longer Winter remained silent, the heavier Jeffrey’s sigh became.

“I was going to tell you soon. I really was.”

“Father.”

“I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to hide it from you. I just… didn’t know how to bring it up.”

Winter said nothing in response to his feeble excuse.

She had been worried about him the whole time.

Given how hurriedly he had returned to Ceres, she had imagined him living alone, weighed down by regret and hardship.

Yet he had been living a peaceful life all along.

For a long moment, Winter looked around the room silently.

It felt as though every trace of her existence had been erased.

None of her belongings remained, nor any of the small things she had touched every day.

There was nothing left to suggest that she had ever lived there.

The room felt completely unfamiliar.

Just then, Jeffrey, who had been watching her reaction cautiously, spoke again.

“Um… about that.”

He hesitated before continuing.

“Please don’t say anything to Mrs. Karen or Cosette.”

“What?”

Winter asked, stunned.

“Ahem.”

Clearing his throat, her father lowered his voice even further.

As though he was afraid that even a single word might carry beyond the room.

“I’m talking about what we discussed in Vartz. Well… it isn’t exactly something worth sharing, is it? Nothing good would come from people finding out. And it all happened a long time ago.”

“…”

“You understand, don’t you? It’s far better for an old man like me to spend his remaining years with someone he knows and cares about than to live alone.”

Only then did Winter finally understand what her father was truly worried about.

This was her first visit home since she left for the capital.

The round trip alone took nearly two weeks, and she had never previously been able to leave the atelier for such a long time.

Yet her father had never once asked why she had arrived without warning.

Instead, he seemed only concerned that the two people downstairs might discover his past.

“Father… is that all you have to say to me?”

Fortunately, her voice didn’t shake as badly as she expected.

Jeffrey avoided the question and quickly changed the subject.

“…More importantly, is it really all right for you to be away from your atelier for so long? How long are you planning to stay here?”

There was a subtle sense of urgency in his voice.

Winter didn’t need to hear anything more.

She already understood.

Her father wanted the situation resolved quietly.

He wanted her to return to Vartz as soon as possible.

That was all.

Years ago, after his affair was exposed, he deceived the other woman and fled with his family to a distant town.

Now, he was doing the same with another woman and her daughter.

At every turning point in his life, he had chosen the easiest path — the coward’s path.

Whenever he was faced with the consequences of his actions, he ran away.

And even now, nothing had changed.

Did he realize how much pain his choices had caused to those who loved and trusted him?

In that moment, the final pillar supporting her shattered heart gave way.

The pillar she had been leaning on had collapsed without warning.

There was nothing left for her to hold onto.

There was no one left she could turn to.

And yet, strangely, she couldn’t cry.

When she had boarded the train, she had felt lost and heartbroken.

But she had never felt this empty before.

Not when Eden ended their relationship.

Not when her mentor told her to leave the atelier.

She had endured all the fear and heartbreak because she had believed that she still had somewhere to return to.

She had been disappointed in her father before.

But despite everything, she still believed that he was the one person she could trust.

And now…

The child growing inside her remained silent.

That secret was hers alone to keep.

It was a burden she would have to bear alone.

“I’m tired today. I think I’ll rest early.”

“Ah, of course. You must be exhausted. This used to be your room, after all. Get some rest.”

Eager to escape the awkwardness, Jeffrey hurriedly rose from his seat.

He seemed far more concerned about the two people downstairs, who must have been taken aback by Winter’s unexpected arrival, than he did about his long-lost daughter.

The kind, dependable father she had remembered was gone.

He had been nothing more than a comforting illusion she had created for herself.