Chapter 58

The sky was completely gray, as if snow would fall at any moment. In the increasingly cold weather, the fireplace at the Dinever estate never had a chance to cool down. Vivian and Ian, who were used to living in warm places, were particularly sensitive to the cold. Perhaps because the sun was hidden behind the dark clouds, today felt especially chilly.

In the room that used to be the Duchess’s office, which Vivian was borrowing, she couldn’t take her eyes off the many documents. Watching her from in front of the blazing fireplace were Aitor, Ian, and Zero.

“Sis is strange.”

“Yeah, she seems a bit like that.”

“Woof!”

A Teria and two people began whispering with their heads together.

“Honestly, I don’t really like studying. But Sis is always reading or studying. I like Sis, but not when she’s studying.”

“I see.”

“Woof!”

Vivian paused from turning the next document and looked up at them.

“Who talks about someone behind their back so loudly?”

At Vivian’s words, Aitor, Ian, and Zero flinched and raised their heads.

“Was my voice too loud? Haha, ha.”

Aitor laughed awkwardly and scratched the back of his head.

“Sis! Let’s go play!”

Ian seized the moment when Vivian looked away from the documents and got up to run to her.

“Sis has work to do…”

At Vivian’s words, Ian clung to her hand and started shaking his body. Seeing this as a game, Zero also bit Vivian’s skirt and began shaking it.

“Aitor!”

Vivian, swaying back and forth, called out to Aitor for help, but he just propped his chin and smiled without moving.

“Ah, alright. I’ll play with you once I finish this!”

Vivian was always weak against Ian. In the end, she declared her surrender.

After finishing her urgent tasks as promised to Ian and Zero, Vivian left the office, and Tia greeted her with a bright smile, holding out a coat.

“Weren’t we just going to play at home?”

“Oh, come on! It’s a rare day when the Young Lady decides to rest, so we can’t just stay at the estate. Aitor and Ian are already prepared, so you just need to get ready.”

Vivian, putting on a thick coat she wouldn’t wear in Raspol, tilted her head.

“Where are we going?”

“To Lake Duroco.”

“Duroco?”

“Yes. It’s a famous lake on the outskirts north of the capital, where people from the capital visit at least once during the summer.”

Vivian quietly repeated the name of the lake, recalling a time she had heard of it before.

“Isn’t it too cold to go now?”

Lake Duroco, known as the green eye of the forest, was located in the mountains north of the capital, making it a place where people’s footsteps ceased in winter.

“There’s no one there, so Zero can go too, they said.”

“Right, there’s Zero.”

Vivian nodded as she blinked at Tia, who was lifting her arms to wrap a scarf around her.

“But who said that?”

“Pardon?”

Tia, excited about the rare outing, quickly blinked at Vivian’s question.

“Did I say that? Haha. I just heard Charlotte say it was nice…”

Vivian gave Tia a suspicious look as she hurriedly dodged the question, but then a thumping sound came from the end of the hallway.

“Sis! Hurry up!”

It was Ian, already prepared and waiting.

“Young Master, you’ve waited long! Let’s get ready and go, alright?”

Vivian set aside her suspicion at Ian’s urging and headed toward him. Tia sighed in relief as she watched her mistress’s back.

“Phew. Almost got caught.”

Tia, with a lifted corner of her mouth, quickly followed behind Vivian.

* * *

“I wish the weather were nicer.”

The sky looked like it could snow at any moment, but it remained overcast without any snow.

“Still, it’s fortunate there’s no snow. If there were, the carriage would have had to go even slower.”

The largest carriage from the Dinever estate was heading into the forest where Duroco was located. Zero and Aitor had suggested going separately, but they had to ride together due to Ian’s strong objection.

Even though the carriage felt cramped with the large Zero inside, Ian couldn’t stop smiling.

“But is it okay to play with us today?”

He didn’t help when Ian and Zero were overwhelming her.

Vivian chuckled at Aitor’s belated concern and nodded as she brushed aside Zero’s wagging tail from in front of her face.

“As expected of you, Vivian.”

Ian, seeing Aitor give a thumbs up, followed suit with his short, plump thumb. Contrary to the overcast weather, the atmosphere inside the carriage was bright.

The carriage entered the forest. After traveling a bit on the bumpy road, it gradually slowed down and came to a stop.

“You’ll have to walk a bit from here.”

At the coachman’s words, Vivian’s group got off the carriage and started walking toward the lake. As Tia mentioned, not a single person was encountered while walking through the cold winter forest to the lake.

“Wow. Sis! Hurry up!”

Ian, who had run up a gentle slope, turned around and eagerly called for Vivian. She hurried her steps to catch up.

“Oh!”

Perhaps she was in too much of a hurry. Vivian lost her balance after stepping on a slippery stone.

“You need to be careful, Vivi.”

Aitor, who was following behind, supported Vivian.

“Hah… If it weren’t for you, Aitor, I would have definitely fallen.”

Vivian patted her chest in relief.

“Let’s go!”

“Ah! Aitor!”

Aitor grabbed Vivian’s hand and started climbing the hill. Vivian, who had been sighing with relief, was startled and called out to Aitor.

“So you don’t fall again.”

Aitor, who was walking ahead, said. Even though Vivian insisted she was fine and could walk carefully, Aitor tightened his grip on her hand and continued walking silently.

They reached the end of the hill.

“It’s amazing.”

The lake, surrounded by dense trees beneath the high mountains obscured by clouds, was frozen in its clear state. Ian and Zero were already running wildly around the lake.

The cold, refreshing scent of the forest filled Vivian’s nostrils.

“Young Lady! It’s so amazing!”

Tia, who arrived late, couldn’t help but exclaim at the scenery.

“It must be even more beautiful in summer.”

Hearing that people held horseback riding gatherings here in the summer or came for picnics to escape the midday heat, Vivian also wanted to visit.

“Ian! Be careful not to fall!”

Vivian shouted as she settled down on a flat spot.

“Don’t worry!”

Watching Ian shout not to worry made Vivian worry even more. Seeing this, Aitor snapped his fingers in front of Vivian’s eyes.

“You don’t have to worry since Zero is with him.”

“But…”

“Vivi, you worry too much about Ian.”

“I can’t help it. I promised Mother I would protect Ian.”

Vivian still looked worriedly at Zero and Ian, who were playing like a foal.

Suddenly, Aitor stood up and extended his hand to Vivian.

“If you’re that worried, would you like to go over there?”

Vivian took Aitor’s hand and stood up. They moved past the uneven stones and reached the transparent, frozen edge of the lake.

“You can see the bottom!”

The lake, frozen while revealing its bottom, created another magnificent view.

“Well, it’s not fully frozen yet, so we should stay around here.”

Aitor looked toward the center of the lake and stepped onto the ice.

“A-Aitor! It’s dangerous!”

“Haha, it’s fine. It seems solid enough here.”

Aitor jumped up and down in place, teasing Vivian, who gestured for him to come back, stomping her feet in surprise.

Vivian closed her eyes tightly as Aitor jumped on the ice.

“Hahaha. Vivi, you’re such a scaredy-cat.”

At Aitor’s cheerful laughter, Vivian opened one eye and, seeing Aitor unharmed, opened both eyes wide.

“Are you… okay?”

“Of course.”

Seeing Aitor genuinely unharmed, Vivian let out the breath she had been holding.

“Do you want to come up, Vivian? It feels like floating in the air.”

Aitor extended his hand toward Vivian again. She looked at Aitor’s bare hand, not wearing gloves despite the cold, and then saw Zero and Ian.

Zero and Ian were already playing on the lake. If Ian tried to go somewhere dangerous, Zero quickly blocked him.

Watching them, Vivian gathered her courage and took Aitor’s hand.

“Eek, ah!”

As soon as she stepped forward, Vivian slipped and tensed up.

Aitor quickly caught Vivian’s waist and pulled her into his arms. Terrified, Vivian didn’t even realize she was nestled in Aitor’s embrace, keeping her eyes tightly shut.

“Vivi, it’s okay. I’ll hold you tight.”

“It’s so slippery. I feel like I’m going to fall…”

Vivian gripped Aitor’s hand tightly, as if it were her lifeline.

“I promise you won’t get hurt.”

At Aitor’s gentle words, Vivian slowly opened her eyes. What she saw was the transparent bottom of the lake, with her forehead resting against Aitor’s chest.

It truly felt like her feet and Aitor’s feet were floating in the sky.

“It’s amazing…”

Aitor chuckled softly, seeing Vivian still gripping his hand tightly.

As she carefully looked down at the ground and tentatively moved her feet, Vivian suddenly lifted her head.

“I just got inspired for the winter ball decorations! We can decorate the floor of the winter ball like this! What do you think?”

“Haha, hahaha.”

Aitor burst into laughter, seeing Vivian thinking about work even here. After laughing for a while, Aitor gently released Vivian from his embrace.

When Vivian looked up, Aitor smiled brightly at her.

“Shall we dance?”

“Dance? Here?”

When Aitor nodded, soft music began to play in Vivian’s ears.

Vivian looked around at the sudden music, but there was no orchestra in this cold winter mountain.

It seemed the music was only audible to Vivian and Aitor.

“Would you like to dance with me?”

Aitor politely asked Vivian for a dance.

“I-I can’t dance.”

It was the first time she would dance since the debutante ball when she danced with her father. Just thinking about it made Vivian’s face flush, and her body, which had just started to relax, tensed up even more.

“I was just thinking about the winter ball floor decorations…”

“Don’t worry. There’s no one here. No one to laugh at you if you can’t dance. No one.”

Aitor said as he pulled Vivian closer, holding her hand.

In that moment, Vivian thought Aitor’s words were more magical than the music only she could hear.

Under Aitor’s lead, Vivian began to move slowly. As her tension eased, she unconsciously started moving her feet to the music.

The ground no longer felt slippery. Even difficult moves flowed smoothly. Vivian’s previously tense lips relaxed into a pretty curve.

A small snowflake fell from the sky between Vivian and Aitor.