Rosalyn made her way to a quiet spot away from the hall and sat down on the stairs. The light fabric of her dress, designed to keep her from feeling weighed down while dancing, did nothing to shield her from the biting cold. The chill cut through her sharply, causing her body to shiver uncontrollably, her teeth chattering together.

Despite this, the music of the ball still reached her ears, faint but persistent, mixed with the cheerful laughter of the guests. As she sat there, listening from a distance, a wave of realization washed over her. She couldn’t help but feel how foolish she had been, once so captivated by the naive fantasies of her past. Huddling her arms around herself for warmth, Rosalyn lowered her gaze to her feet, lost in the quiet emptiness.

“It’s OK. Being ignored is nothing. At least they don’t hit me… That’s not so bad.”

She was muttering such pathetic self-suggestions to herself when –

“Aren’t you cold?”

A voice suddenly broke the silence. Startled, she turned her head to find a pair of indifferent blue eyes staring down at her. Rosalyn’s eyes widened.

‘Hadn’t he left?’

Her confusion only lasted a moment before she became aware of her damp cheeks. Realising it too late, she quickly lowered her head in embarrassment.

“The air is cold.”

“I’m fine.”

A faint, barely audible voice escaped Rosalyn’s lips, her jaw trembling from the cold, making it difficult to string even a short sentence together. Johannes’ eyes flickered to her pale cheeks. Completely exposed to the cold, they had lost all colour, taking on an almost bluish hue. Instead of trying to persuade her further, he simply unfastened the cloak draped over his shoulders.

With a fluid motion, he spread it wide and gently wrapped it around her shoulders, her head stubbornly lowered. Rosalyn’s shoulders flinched at the sudden warmth that enveloped her.

“If you don’t want to go straight to the carriage, don’t resist. You’ll only end up exhausting yourself for no reason.”

By the time Rosalyn finally lifted her eyes, Johannes had turned away as if his task was complete. Even after he was out of sight, she stood there, her eyes still fixed in the direction he had gone, her face clouded with confusion. 

‘Why?’ 

She tightened her grip on the cloak, its warmth now contrasting with the cold that still gripped her. This could not have been Raphael’s orders. If anything, he would be the one most pleased if she fell ill in this cold.

Staring in the direction Johannes had disappeared, she bit her lip before slowly letting go of the hand that had gripped the cloak so tightly. Her gaze fell briefly on the golden laurel embroidered at the edge of the fabric before dropping lifelessly.

Whatever the reason, the cloak he had given her was warm. Beneath the thick fabric, she could feel the heat slowly seeping into her body, thawing the cold that had gripped her for so long.

And in that gentle warmth, the sharp vigilance she had maintained began to melt away.

From that point on, every ball that followed was a repetition of the same events. Rosalyn could hardly believe that she had once been so excited at her debut – now she had lost all interest in such gatherings.

Despite this, Raphael continued to send invitations, as if testing her patience. In response, Rosalyn continued to attend the balls, but she was no longer as reckless as before.

Instead of standing next to ladies her own age waiting for an invitation to dance, she chose to converse with the noblewomen gathered at the edge of the ballroom or to spend her time playing cards with middle-aged gentlemen.

Despite her age, Rosalyn never found it difficult to socialise.

She possessed intelligence and refined manners, and with her moderately cheerful personality, she could quickly befriend anyone. This was her greatest asset.

Even those who harboured ill feelings towards the Delmart family felt a certain affection for the young lady of the house who, despite everything, treated them with warmth.

As a result, the time she spent at these gatherings was quite pleasant in its own way.

But when her companions left her to dance with their husbands or fiancés, or when she suddenly became angry for no apparent reason, she would go out on the terrace and sit there in a daze.

And each time, as if by some uncanny intuition, this man would always find her. Without a word, he would hand her his cloak, only to disappear as suddenly as he had appeared.

Whenever she draped the soft, well-groomed cloth over her shoulders, all the praise she had received throughout the day, as well as her fiancé’s insults, faded into insignificance.

Johannes’ small, seemingly trivial gestures stirred far greater emotions in her than anything else.

Without realising it, she found herself thinking more and more about this man. When she made chocolates for the bazaar, she even set aside a special batch – one just for him. Eventually it became clear what all these signs were pointing to.

As time passed, the once naive young girl had matured into a full-grown woman, and the figure that had quietly settled in her heart became clearer and clearer.

Raphael’s cruel behaviour no longer had the power to wound her, but the presence of a man she could never truly call her own had settled deep in her heart, growing into an overwhelming, distant despair.

However, beyond the simple acknowledgement of these impure feelings, a deep sense of self-loathing would often consume her.

In the end, caring for her was nothing more than an extension of his duties. How pathetic she must be to allow herself to feel joy or sorrow over such a trivial and meaningless gesture.

The more she dwelt on this obvious truth, the more her feelings of inferiority and self-loathing intertwined, making it impossible for her to accept his kindness unreservedly.

In reality, she had no trouble pretending to be kind to those she didn’t really care about… But whenever Johannes showed her kindness, she found herself testing him again and again.

A twisted desire would rise within her, threatening to tear apart the smooth facade she had carefully maintained.

She didn’t even know why. If anything, she should have been even more careful to maintain her perfect facade in front of him.

She already knew that her feelings had a predetermined end. She wasn’t naive enough to believe otherwise – desperately trying to make sense of his kindness would only make her feel unhappy.

And yet the form of her first love, now rooted in her heart, was nothing but ugly.

She couldn’t understand why. If anything, she should have been more careful to maintain her perfect facade in front of him.

She knew only too well that her feelings had an inevitable end. She wasn’t unaware that forcing meaning on his kindness would only bring her more misery.

And yet the first love that had taken root in her heart was nothing but something ugly.

“Th-Thank you for your help.”

“Why are you in the corridor?”

He dismissed her gratitude without a second thought and got straight to the point.

“Ah, well…”

Only then did Rosalyn realise how she must have looked in his eyes. At the end of the path she had been heading towards was a terrace leading outside.

It suddenly occurred to her that she might have looked suspicious. Instead of seeking help when her dizziness returned, she had headed straight for the exit.

“N-no! I didn’t want to leave, I just wanted to go out on the terrace for a moment…” 

She rushed to explain, but in her panic her words were all over the place. She hadn’t really wanted to go anywhere, so what did she mean by wanting to go out on the terrace? The words felt stupid and she could feel her face growing hot with embarrassment.

As she desperately tried to think of a way to save the situation, he spoke.

“Do you need a healer?”

“No!”

Her answer came out almost as a scream, causing the man’s brow to furrow slightly.

“Please… just forget what you saw today.”

“Why?”

“No one else can know.”

After saying it out loud, she realised that it was, if anything, a relief that Johannes was the one who had seen her like that.

At the very least, he wasn’t the type to go around spreading other people’s business.

It was still an unfounded trust, but compared to the soldiers or Frederick, he was the better option.

“It happens from time to time. I’ve had these attacks since I was a child, so there’s no need to call a healer.”

“If it’s been going on since childhood, you must have been prescribed medication a long time ago.”

At his answer, Rosalyn fell silent for a moment.

Medicine?

The Duke had never considered treating his daughter. Whenever she suffered a respiratory attack, his only ‘cure’ was to lock her in a dark closet.

Not only did he never give her any medication, he considered her condition a disgrace. Instead of ensuring that she received proper treatment, he focused solely on hiding it from others.

“It really isn’t that serious an illness, Sir Moore.”

Rosalyn lifted the corners of her lips as if to insist on her innocence.

“I really don’t need a healer. As long as you promise not to tell anyone about what happened today, I’ll go straight back to my room.”

Johannes was silent for a moment.

He probably couldn’t understand why she was so stubborn about something so trivial. Avoiding his gaze, Rosalyn lowered her eyes to the side.

“I will do as you wish, my lady.”

But he accepted her request without resistance.

Rosalyn, momentarily surprised, soon relaxed in relief, the tension draining from her face.

“Thank you, Sir Moore.”

With that, their conversation ended and Rosalyn turned to return to her chambers.

Johannes silently followed her movements with his eyes.

Even after a severe attack, her face remained pale and her unsteady steps looked as if she might collapse at any moment.

But just as she was about to fall, she quickly straightened her back – a habit ingrained in her over the years, an instinctive effort to maintain her composure.

For a brief moment, he considered offering her support, but dismissed the thought just as quickly.

He looked away and walked on.

In the end, his only duty was to watch the Delmart siblings for any suspicious behaviour – any further involvement was unnecessary.

Now that Rosalyn’s engagement to the Emperor had been annulled, her affairs were no longer his concern.

That was all their relationship had ever been from the beginning.