“And my lady, please speak comfortably. To speak formally to someone below you……”

“Then I will.”

Catherine replied with a broad smile. Nancy, momentarily looking at her with a slightly blank expression, soon smiled back.

Catherine is someone who will soon leave. She’ll depart in a year, so there’s no need to form deep connections with these people. Just maintain an appropriate distance, and when it’s time to part, part refreshingly.

“Miss?”

Nancy was a maid who had served at the ducal mansion for 10 years. She explained that her mother had been Lorendis’s wet nurse, and she herself became a castle maid by following her mother to the ducal mansion. Nancy took great pride in House Helen, a pride evident in her every expression.

“Do you like the room?”

Catherine looked around the room before answering her question.

“Yes. I like it.”

“I’m glad you like the ducal mansion too. But now that you’ve come to the north, you should bathe first. First-time visitors to the north always suffer from body aches and colds.”

The northern Helen duchy was famous for its harsh winters, as it barely experienced spring, summer, and autumn before winter arrived.

‘I hate being sick.’

So Catherine finished bathing quickly with Nancy’s help. After warming her body in hot water, she felt languidly relaxed.

“Are you tired from just finishing your bath?”

“It’s not the bath, but the warm room that makes me a bit sleepy.”

Catherine carefully dried her wet hair with a towel and let her long hair cascade down below her waist.

“My, Miss, your hair is so beautiful. I’ll just dry it with the towel and brush it right away.”

Catherine sat at the dressing table, fiddling with her hair. Warm heat rose from her body fresh from the bath.

Nancy untangled the knotted hair with the brush and neatly groomed it. Catherine carefully observed herself through the mirror. Her blonde curly hair settling down looked like a rain-soaked puppy.

“Nancy, since you’ve worked with the duke for 10 years, you must have known him for a long time.”

“Yes. I know a little. Is there something you’re curious about?”

“What kind of person is the duke?”

Nancy answered Catherine diligently. However, it was a very textbook answer.

“His Grace may appear cold, but he’s warm inside.”

“Warm, you say?”

Her words broke with doubt. Warm? She looked blankly at Nancy, as if asking if she was talking about someone else, but Nancy continued.

“He’s a good person, but people around him don’t recognize that. We’ve been worried about him. His Grace only wanders battlefields, and His Majesty has been pressuring him to marry since last year…… But His Grace was away at war, do you know how precarious the situation was?”

For this story to come from a maid’s mouth, Lorendis must truly be under pressure from the emperor.

Lorendis hates being bound. To such a person, marriage is a shackle. This was evident from how long Lorendis wandered battlefields. Then, if she drew a line saying ‘I won’t bother you,’ would Lorendis appreciate that?

‘Maybe Lorendis would like that……?’

After the brushing was done, Catherine changed into a light lavender dress. It seemed to be indoor clothing as it was lightweight. Still, due to the northern characteristics, it had warm fur decorations.

“Since you didn’t bring any spare clothes, I prepared guest clothes for you. Do they fit well?”

“Thank you.”

“Northern clothes suit you very well.”

It was more luxurious than what she wore at the residence. The soft lining made it feel good, and the warm layered shawl was comfortable.

“How would you like me to do your hair?”

“Just. Put it up comfortably?”

“You want an updo. I have just the right hair accessory. How about this butterfly pin? I’ll use this.”

Her hair was secured with a light, elegant pin. Letting some side hair down made it look more natural.

“The outside air is cool. Would you like to take a walk?”

“Am I allowed to go outside?”

She thought her freedom would be completely suppressed, but apparently not. When Catherine asked, Nancy replied with embarrassment.

“That’s not something you need my permission for. Come this way. I’ll guide you outside the mansion.”

Catherine wrapped her shawl around herself and went outside.

She walked around the garden, enjoying the breeze. White clouds spread beautifully across the blue sky. It’s always pretty. Why had she been looking at the ground all this time when looking up at the sky once wasn’t difficult? She smiled faintly, amused by the past.

‘Let’s move slowly.’

Catherine carefully reviewed her plans. She has limited time. Even with an uncertain death date, she should get a diagnosis first. For that, an outsider would be better than an insider. Insiders are Lorendis’s people, making it difficult to avoid his ears.

“Where is the duke now?”

“At this time, where would he be…… At this hour, he might be overseeing the knights at the training ground?”

Nancy answered but was visibly cautious.

“However, the master doesn’t like being disturbed during training……”

As Lorendis had wandered battlefields for a long time, he was strict in spaces dealing with knight training or swords.

To Lorendis, the training ground was more solemn and sacred than a temple or imperial palace. His beliefs could be glimpsed from this aspect.

—Clang clang!

The outer wall of the training ground was built with sturdy bricks. Already, the distant sound of wooden swords clashing fiercely echoed from inside.

“It’s fine. If I feel like I’m disturbing, I’ll watch from afar and then leave.”

“Then I’ll escort you. Helen’s knight building is famous for being magnificent and enormous, and all of Helen’s military power comes from there.”

Helen brought glory to the empire through conquest wars, and the source of that glory was military power. From the perspective of small countries, they were predators and violent rulers.

“If you walk straight from here, you’ll reach the training ground. There’s a lot of dust inside, do you want to see it directly?”

Catherine walked carefully along the outer wall and stood on the training ground’s observation deck. Then she looked down. The open view was refreshing.

“My lady.”

While she was looking down, someone grabbed her from behind.

“Oh, you’re here?”

“Don’t stand too close to the castle wall. Wooden swords often break and fly this way.”

Lorendis seemed to have been overseeing the knights’ training, as he wore a light shirt with wrist guards. The guards were iron armor, secured with sturdy straps.

“Why did you come here?”

“I wanted to ask Your Grace something. Are you busy?”

Training resumed with the knight commander at the center. Heavy shouts burst out with each coordinated move. Catherine flinched each time, and Lorendis blocked her view of the training area as he answered.

“You can tell the butler if you need anything.”

“I think I need to ask you directly. Do I need to ask the butler about going out and such?”

To contact an outside doctor, she needed freedom to go out. Unaware of her scheme, Lorendis asked back.

“Why do you need to go out?”

“I left in such a hurry. You see, I need women’s items and necessary luggage. I don’t have any belongings from the residence.”

“I’ll assign you escorts tomorrow, so you can go.”

Catherine nodded readily.

What’s so special about a beautiful farewell? If she ends this life beautifully, that’s a beautiful farewell.

That’s also why she easily accepted this marriage. Perhaps she could end her life more comfortably. At life’s last moment, even a single snowflake falling would be nice. Just that would be enough. Nothing more to wish for.

“Should I assign female escorts?”

“Please send whoever is available tomorrow.”

“Yesterday I thought it was just my mood, but now…”

Lorendis showed confusion as he watched Catherine, who had dropped her guard. Understandably so, as Catherine treated Lorendis with no wariness and complete ease.

“You seem like…… someone who’s about to leave somewhere.”

Catherine flinched and avoided his eyes.

* * *

The next day, Lorendis sent an escort. Her name was Deborah, a knight with auburn hair tied up, wearing the knight uniform she had seen before.

“I’m Deborah, assigned as your escort today. The carriage is ready, so I’ll escort you outside.”

Helen’s knights wore black uniforms with laurel drawings, and their ranks were distinguished by the number of laurel epaulettes. The higher the number of laurels, the higher the rank, and Deborah had two laurels.

Two laurels indicated she was an official knight of Helen. Deborah saluted and stayed by Catherine’s side.

“I’m counting on you.”

Catherine covered her face with a lace hat and got into the carriage. It was to minimize exposure on her first outing.

“My lady, we’ve arrived.”

Helen’s capital looked like an urban area on a snowfield where snow had melted. White buildings stood in rows, and all the roofs were pointy.

“Is it fascinating?”

“Yes. Where I lived, the roofs were mostly flat.”

“Helen is a region with frequent snowfall. That’s why the roofs are made high and steep to withstand the weight of snow.”

Perhaps due to the frequent snowfall, the buildings in Helen shared a similar design. The roofs were pointed, the walls were thick, and the tall brick structures exuded luxury.

From white bricks to purple bricks. Buildings made of colorful bricks, all looking similar, densely filled the streets. From the outside, they all looked alike, making it easy to get lost. That’s why the maid Nancy also came along to guide the way.

‘A small party of just two.’

Catherine followed them, lifting the edge of her lace hat with her fingertips. The lace swayed gently with each step.

“Be careful, Miss. This area is crowded, and it’s easy to get lost if you lose focus for just a moment.”

* * *

‘I should find a doctor soon.’

Helen’s streets were complex. Each street was numbered, and the paths from Helen district 1 to 5 were congested.

Catherine walked and walked through the streets if Helen.

People from the territory surged like waves from alleys everywhere. And Catherine was swept along as if pushed by the waves.

‘Miss, it’s easy to get lost if you lose focus.’

At that moment, Deborah’s warning, “It’s easy to get lost if you lose focus,” flashed through her mind. And Catherine’s feet stopped abruptly. In an unfamiliar path with many people, she had taken a wrong step and……

“I really got lost.”

Catherine discovered herself standing alone in the middle of the road and sighed shallowly.