19. Falling Night

“Welcome!”

“It’s been so long!”

These were friends she hadn’t seen since they last visited when Saena was sick. She was extremely happy to see them.

Moreover, today they would all stay overnight together, which made it even more exciting. She felt butterflies in her stomach.

Since nobles use private rooms even as infants, sleeping together with others is a very rare and unfamiliar event. Noble ladies especially never show their bare faces or nightwear even to friends. They think it could become a weakness.

Therefore, wearing nightclothes and showing faces without makeup was itself evidence of great intimacy.

“Did everyone bring their nightwear?”

“Yes.”

“Something s*xy?”

“…What?”

Kirsten suddenly took Saena’s luggage, saying she needed to check what nightwear she brought.

“Oh my, it’s all covered up. All covered. Don’t you have any other nightwear?”

“…No. They’re all similar?”

“Too long! Too thick! Too stuffy!”

Though she didn’t understand why nightwear needed to be short, thin, and revealing, Saena just quietly rolled her eyes.

“Next time when I get my nightwear made, I’ll have some made for you too.”

“……”

Saena couldn’t bring herself to say it was fine and just kept her mouth shut.

The four changed early into comfortable indoor dresses and had dinner together, then moved to the playroom. They played board games and chatted while drinking tea. Finally, they changed into their nightwear.

In the end, Saena took Yolly, who had accompanied her today, to Kirsten’s bedroom.

“You need to be really well-behaved today, okay?”

“Kyang?”

When she arrived at Kirsten’s bedroom with Yolly, who looked confused, everyone was already gathered in their nightwear.

“Now, shall we begin our proper gossip session?”

“How exciting.”

In front of the fireplace, thick rugs were already layered, with cushions and blankets abundantly set up. Finger foods and drinks that could be easily consumed were also prepared.

It was just the right atmosphere for comfortably lounging around with a drink.

“Oh, Kiki. Your nightwear is quite s*xy today?”

At Evian’s compliment, Kirsten pulled up her skirt hem to reveal her thigh and smiled.

“Hehe. How is it? The design is quite thrilling, right?”

“Yes. Get married soon.”

“Whoever becomes your husband, sister, they’re going to eat you right up.”

They must be familiar with Kirsten’s taste, as they’d had pajama parties before. The extremely thin design of the nightwear made even Saena, another woman, blush, but Evian and Floria just giggled and left it at that.

“…Hmm?”

She realized she wasn’t the only one showing an awkward reaction.

Yolly, who had been following along well until now, was showing signs of being very uncomfortable. Then he turned his back and slowly crept under the sofa, refusing to come out.

“Yolly? Yolly?”

“Oh my, what’s wrong with him?”

“What are you doing, come here! Coochie coochie!”

Everyone tried various ways to get Yolly to come out, but he just went in deeper.

‘Could it be… because he’s male?’

Looking at the clever fellow’s behavior and reactions… it seemed like a plausible hypothesis.

With everyone in intimate attire… especially Kirsten’s nightwear being too s*xy… either he became too embarrassed to look, or he was trying to find a blind spot to peek from…

“……”

Saena’s brows furrowed as she looked at Yolly with suspicious eyes. She thought it might be better to take him back to the room.

“Yolly, I’ll take you to the room. Come here.”

It seemed it wasn’t for peeking after all, as he immediately scurried out and jumped into her arms at her words.

Though they were gathering to play and would sleep in the same space, private rooms were still provided. They needed somewhere to put their belongings and change clothes. She left her disappointed friends and took Yolly to the room.

Saena was about to head back immediately but changed her mind. Her stomach felt a bit heavy after eating more than usual, and knowing that returning would likely lead to more eating, she decided to take a light walk first.

She draped a shawl over her nightwear. Saena’s nightwear wasn’t as thin as Kirsten’s, so this was enough.

‘I wonder if the garden is open.’

She felt a bit hesitant since it was someone else’s house. She couldn’t give the impression of wandering around everywhere, so she pondered briefly where to walk.

‘Ah, I think there was a gallery corridor this way.’

She was somewhat familiar with the layout of the Ackroyd house from her previous visits.

Though not extremely bright, there were lights, so she thought she could at least look around, and Saena started walking.

She moved slowly, pulling her shawl tighter against the slightly chilly feeling. As the paintings on the wall began catching her eye one by one, Saena focused on examining them visually.

“…Saena?”

“Eek!”

Thinking she was alone in the corridor after sunset, the sudden voice made Saena genuinely startled.

“Did I scare you? Sorry.”

“Ah, Kayan.”

It was Kayan.

Though he couldn’t be seen earlier, they somehow met by chance in such a place.

“I heard there’s a pajama party today, so you came too?”

“Yes.”

Though she wore a shawl, realizing she was facing Kayan in her nightwear made her start feeling slightly embarrassed.

Thump. Perhaps meaning not to mind it, Kayan draped a thick coat over Saena’s shoulders. With the large coat on, it became hard to tell whether she was wearing nightwear or not. It also warmed her up when she had been feeling slightly chilly.

“Thank you.”

“It’s nothing.”

“But Kayan, why are you here?”

“Ah, I was heading up after finishing work when I sensed someone here, so I came to check.”

“Oh, is this somewhere we shouldn’t wander at night?”

“Not exactly, but it’s an area where employees implicitly don’t walk around.”

“I see.”

Though she wasn’t an employee, she thought she should look and head back.

“Besides the paintings, there are sculptures over there too, have you seen them?”

“Huh? No?”

At that moment, Kayan offered to guide her. Before she knew it, Saena followed him deeper inside.

“These two are part of a series. They’re also posthumous works. Do you know this piece?”

“Ah, yes. Wow, I didn’t know the Ackroyd family had this.”

Turning the corner revealed many masterpieces by great artists she had never seen before. Saena looked around eagerly with wide eyes.

There were so many magnificent works that it was regrettable she couldn’t see them in more detail due to the dim lighting.

“Come see them again when it’s light out. It’ll feel different.”

“Yes. I think so too. The shadows are– Eek!”

Perhaps because she was walking while focusing too intently on the sculptures, her foot caught on the corner of the carpet.

Kayan tried to catch her but was too late. Her body had already slipped past his hands and lurched forward. Thinking she needed to grab onto something, she tightly hugged the solid object in front of her.

“Gasp.”

Fortunately, as soon as her foot came free from the carpet, she managed to find her footing and avoided falling completely.

“S-Saena! Are you alr… huh?”

Kayan hurriedly approached and grabbed her arm to help her up.

“Ugh…”

She didn’t know what she had grabbed onto, but it was so hard that the inside of her arms hurt. She might even bruise. When she slowly raised her head, she met eyes with pupilless eyes.

“Eek?!”

She was startled for a moment, but soon realized the pupilless eyes cast in deep shadow belonged to a statue, not a real person.

‘Ah, that scared me.’

As she let out a small sigh of relief and stood up, she realized how strange her position and state must look to others. Saena was tightly hugging the nearly n*de male statue’s thigh area with her face practically buried against it.

What she had been admiring just moments ago as an excellent work that wonderfully captured beautiful masculine beauty had now become the object of her resentment — ‘Why did this have to be here…’

“……”

Kayan’s silence suddenly became very concerning.

The thought of turning to look at him made her too embarrassed.

Saena helplessly dropped her head. But that… made it look like she was bringing her face close to the statue’s intimate area again.

‘Aah, how could I lower my head in this position!’

Saena startled and suddenly let go. Her body, already precariously hanging, fell right onto her b*tt when she released her grip.

“Ah!”

Though Kayan had been holding onto her so she didn’t fall completely, she instead fell while grabbing his arm.

“Saena! Um, are you okay?”

“Uh, well……”

As she scrambled to get up, their eyes met.

Saena buried her face in her hands from embarrassment.

“Heh.”

A strange deflating sound came from Kayan, then,

“Ahahahaha!”

He finally burst into loud laughter.

“Hey! Why are you laughing!”

Seeing Kayan doubled over with laughter, Saena felt embarrassed, then resigned with a sigh, and finally found it funny herself.

“Pff… ahahahaha.”

In the end, Saena joined in the laughter too.

“……”

After laughing for a while, only her laughter remained. With a smile she hadn’t yet managed to erase still on her lips, Saena looked at Kayan and was startled.

His dark eyes were staring intently at Saena. More precisely, at her lips.

“……”