Penelope continued speaking with a confident tone. Her eyes showed not a single crack of doubt.

“Listen, innocent girl. Even if Kian breaks off his engagement with me as he says, it won’t be for you. He’ll find a suitable noble lady instead.”

“……”

“Oh, don’t worry too much about it. You won’t be abandoned. Of course, you might remain just a toy, or be stashed away in storage, only taken out when he remembers you.”

…She hadn’t done anything right either, but.

As the sarcasm crossed a line, Vivianne’s fists clenched involuntarily.

Yet at the same time, she felt a contradictory desire to understand why Penelope was so pessimistic.

She wanted to see what darkness lurked on the opposite side of the rosy future she had envisioned.

Perhaps that was reality.

“…Why are you… saying these things?”

“Why? Because of succession, of course. Do you think you’ll bear a Larson child? No, even if you did, what good would it do?”

Bearing Kian’s offspring was her purpose. Penelope repeatedly stabbed at her, seemingly knowing exactly where her vulnerable spots were.

“What do you mean it would do no good?”

“I mean the child you bear won’t be recognized. Kian knows that better than anyone, so he wouldn’t look to you for an heir. Would he want a child born from someone whose background is unknown?”

“……”

“A noble’s marriage is a union between families, not a simple love game.”

Marriage is not a simple love game. It was exactly what her father had said in the Mermaid Palace. There, Vivianne had also been of noble birth, and though she had tried to go against her father’s wishes, she couldn’t, which led her to come here. So, she understood what that meant.

Under the sea, she had been of noble birth.

“And Kian isn’t the man you think he is. Do you have any idea how many years our engagement has lasted? Why do you think I’ve waited for him? That man… his hobby is draining people’s blood until they die.”

Penelope’s lips curved up self-mockingly.

“He might be someone who never intended to be with anyone in the first place. Wake up from your dream quickly.”

After spilling out her words, Penelope stormed out. Vivianne stared blankly at the space she had left.

Her mind felt overloaded.

* * *

The dressmaker’s shop said they would deliver the dresses to the mansion when they were completed. Her wardrobe would soon be full of new dresses, but her heart felt empty and hollow.

Vivianne sat at the table looking at a picture book. By now, she could stumblingly read short texts. Matilda had brought her fairy tale books.

Most were stories of princes and princesses meeting by fate, falling in love at first sight, and overcoming adversities to be together. Vivianne loved such stories. Most of them ended with “they married and lived happily ever after.”

“Matilda.”

“What is it, Vivianne?”

“Does marriage bring happiness?”

“What’s with that sudden question?”

“Well, in fairy tales, everyone gets married and lives happily ever after.”

Matilda found it difficult to answer easily, seeing Vivianne’s somewhat troubled expression.

“Hmm, I wonder.”

“How was it for you, Matilda?”

“For me?”

“Yes. You got married and had Theodore, right?”

“You’re curious about everything, Vivianne. It’s such an old memory, I can hardly remember.”

Despite Matilda’s glib response, Vivianne still looked unsatisfied.

“But why are you asking about this?”

“Just because all the fairy tale endings are the same. ‘They married and lived happily ever after.’ Reading it makes me feel good, but in the world, there must be people who can’t marry the ones they love.”

Vivianne lowered her eyelashes and closed the fairy tale book.

According to Penelope, her own situation was a prime example. Of course, Penelope’s situation was the same.

“I wonder if they can still be happy.”

“Well, that’s hard to say. It’s different for everyone.”

“I suppose so.”

“Did something happen, Vivianne?”

Matilda asked in return.

Vivianne only smiled faintly, without giving a proper answer.

“What’s certain is that not everyone who marries becomes happy. Fairy tales are about princesses and princes. Not everyone in reality can become a princess or a prince.”

Matilda was right. Even Vivianne, who had been a princess under the sea, became a nobody here, and Kian wasn’t a prince either.

Perhaps happy and ideal fantasies only existed in picture books.

“Will Kian… marry his fiancée?”

She asked out of frustration, knowing there was no definite answer. She knew it was a meaningless question, but she just wanted to ask someone, to vent her feelings.

Matilda seemed unsure of what to say to Vivianne and remained silent for a moment.

“Actually, I met Kian’s fiancée at the dressmaker’s shop today.”

“Are you talking about Lady Steward?”

“Yes, that’s right. I wasn’t going to tell you because I was worried, but I want to be honest with Matilda. Please listen, even if it seems unsightly.”

Even while speaking, she found it hard to raise her gaze. If their eyes met, she might break down crying at Matilda’s understanding look.

“Unsightly? Speak freely.”

“She said that I could never marry Kian. She said that even if she breaks up with Kian, he will meet another noble lady.”

“…Is that why you looked so gloomy?”

“Yes.”

Her voice was slightly choked. She wanted someone to tell her it wasn’t true, but realistically, it was an issue that couldn’t be denied.

“I thought it would be enough just to be by Kian’s side, but when I thought about it more, that’s not true either. Serving tea… I felt upset thinking about another maid doing it. It means being close to Kian in his bedroom.”

“If that’s what you’re worried about, Vivianne, rest assured. These days, he doesn’t have anyone else serving him tea.”

Matilda offered this information wanting to help somehow, but it seemed Vivianne didn’t hear.

“…I’m sorry for whining, Matilda.”

“It’s okay. You can always do that with me. And that fiancée is quite annoying, isn’t she?”

When Matilda suddenly badmouthed Penelope, a small smile spread across Vivianne’s lips.

“Yes, a little.”

“I shouldn’t say this, but I’ve watched that woman since she was young, and she always showed bad signs.”

It was childish, but it felt like the knot in her heart loosened a bit.

“So don’t take it to heart too much. Okay, Vivianne?”

Just because she tried not to dwell on it didn’t mean she could stop.

Thinking back, at first she had just wanted to see him one more time, and then her only goal was to touch him.

As her feelings grew, she kept wanting more, and a thirst developed. She gasped for breath like someone who had drunk seawater.

“Um, Vivianne. Would you like to learn embroidery? It’s just my thought, but since your hands are small and gentle, I think you’d be good at making delicate things.”

“Embroidery?”

“Yes. I know how to do it a bit.”

Matilda smiled and took out a handkerchief from her pocket to show.

“See, you stitch flower patterns or name initials like this. What do you think? Isn’t it pretty?”

“Yes, it’s so cute. Can you make ribbon shapes too?”

“Of course. If you have any shape you want, tell me. I’ll find a pattern for you.”

“I’d love that, Matilda!”

Vivianne smiled brightly, seeming to have forgotten her earlier sadness.

“Can I make one for Kian too?”

“Of course. This is just an old superstition passed down among sailors, but they say if you give someone a handkerchief with their name embroidered on it, they’ll return safely without accidents. Believe it or not, it’s the thought that counts.”

“I love things like that. I want to make one!”

After being so downcast, her face immediately brightened at the suggestion of something new.

“I’ll help you. This is something you can keep forever. The master will surely love it.”

Though there was still some time left, she had heard that the master’s sailing schedule would soon be set. It could be his last voyage, as he planned to apply for retirement.

If she could prepare a small gift for that occasion, Vivianne would be delighted.

That’s what Matilda thought.