Chapter 16

It was late at night.

A pitch-black darkness had fallen—a night when everyone else was fast asleep.

Though Winderton Castle had been in chaos lately, at this hour, it was peaceful, so unlike the day.

That peacefulness was shattered by the sharp sound of something breaking.

Betty, who was keeping watch outside Lirie’s bedroom, rushed inside at the commotion.

“My lady!”

The sight before her was devastating.

The window was wide open, letting in the cold night air.

Lirie was standing in her nightdress, and at her feet, a vase lay shattered beyond recognition.

“My lady! Are you all right?”

“……”

If she wasn’t careful, Lirie could easily cut herself on the broken glass, so Betty approached her carefully.

“M-my lady…?”

“……”

Even as Betty called to her, Lirie gave no response.

Her eyes, unfocused and vacant, showed no sign of awareness.

Lirie stood upright, but there was something wrong about her.

“My lady, are you all right?”

Betty kept speaking to her, but Lirie couldn’t seem to come to her senses.

Instead, the moment she heard Betty’s voice, she began to move—and the cruel sound reached Betty’s ears.

The shards of the broken vase dug into Lirie’s feet as she stepped on them.

Blood welled up and began to flow, but Lirie didn’t even flinch.

Not even the slightest wince, not even a scream escaped her lips.

Instead, she simply wandered around the bedroom in that state.

Betty, unable to believe what she was seeing, could only shed tears.

“M-my lady…”

Afraid that Lirie might end up hurting herself even more, Betty couldn’t bring herself to do anything.

“My lady, please, you have to come to your senses. Please?”

“I’m not—I’m not a Scarlett… I’m not!”

The moment she heard Betty’s voice, Lirie began screaming, as if possessed by some kind of fury.

Yet even so, her words remained the same.

It was a deep, seething anger at the House of Scarlett, carved into her very bones.

“No, I’m not! I’m not!”

In agony, Lirie grabbed handfuls of her hair and screamed.

Because the bedroom door was open, Edward, hearing the commotion, entered the room.

“What is going on here?”

Even though it was the middle of the night, Edward appeared as composed as ever and demanded an explanation from Betty about the situation.

“I—I’m not really sure, Your Grace.”

Unfortunately, Betty had no words. She’d never seen Lirie like this before, either.

“Hah…”

Rubbing his brow in exhaustion, Edward turned to look at Lirie.

What caught his eye before her tear-stained face was the blood trickling from her feet.

“Tsk.”

Clicking his tongue as soon as he saw her wounded feet, Edward strode over and scooped Lirie up into his arms.

“Let go! I said let me go!”

Lirie struggled wildly, but Edward didn’t stop.

“That’s enough. Calm down.”

Placing Lirie on the bed, Edward ordered Betty to fetch the doctor.

Betty hurried off and soon returned with the resident physician. Edward issued a brief command.

“Give her a sedative and treat her feet.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

After the doctor gave Lirie a strong sedative, she quickly fell asleep.

Once he confirmed she was out, Edward rose and turned to leave the room without hesitation.

“Your Grace!”

It was Betty who stopped him.

“What is it?”

No matter how much he despised his wife, it seemed too cold-hearted to simply walk away while she was injured.

Betty was compelled by her worry for Lirie.

“Could you please… stay with her until she wakes up?”

“Just as selfish as your mistress.”

With a short retort, Edward left the bedroom.

Only then did Betty truly understand how deeply Lirie had been wounded by him.

“She won’t be able to walk for a while, so you’ll need to take care.”

“I understand.”

The doctor did what he could, then addressed Betty in a curt tone.

Not that it was surprising—he was a servant of Winderton Castle, after all.

“The lady has somnambulism. I can’t say why she’s come down with it, but she’ll have to take care not to disgrace the House of Winderton.”

“……”

With that, the doctor left the bedroom, showing not a hint of concern for his patient.

He was far more worried about how Lirie’s condition might reflect on the House of Winderton.

How could they be like this?

The moment he was gone, Betty trembled with rage.

Clearly, Winderton Castle was not a normal place. It was no wonder Lirie’s health had suffered here.

“If only I had more strength, I’d take my lady and run far away…”

Betty took Lirie’s hand in hers and sat at her bedside, remaining there until dawn, never leaving her side as Lirie slept.

***

When I woke up, Betty was sitting beside me, fast asleep while holding my hand.

“Betty?”

I tilted my head as I looked at Betty, who had fallen asleep sitting up.

I couldn’t remember anything from the night before.

‘Why is Betty in my bedroom?’

Careful not to wake her, I slowly got out of bed and placed my feet on the floor.

“Ow!”

The moment my feet touched the ground, a sharp pain shot up from the soles, making me let out a short gasp.

Only then did I notice my feet—both were wrapped in bandages.

“How did this happen?”

I stared at my bandaged feet and muttered the question to myself.

The previous night, I’d slept deeply.

I’d taken a sleeping pill and, for once, I was free from the insomnia that had plagued me.

Maybe that’s why I felt light and refreshed that morning.

But the unexpected injuries and the bandages soured my good mood.

Had something happened last night? Was it possible I just couldn’t remember? I racked my brain for any hint of what occurred, but there was nothing—no memory at all from last night.

“This is strange. I can’t remember anything.”

The unease and sense of foreboding grew inside me.

When I gathered myself and looked around, I noticed that the vase that always sat atop my table was gone.

Just yesterday, it had been there. But when I woke up, it had disappeared.

“My feet, the vase… what’s going on…”

For some reason, the pain in my feet forced me to stay in my bedroom.

At first, being confined to my room felt suffocating, but I’d gotten used to it.

In fact, it was easier this way—not having to see Edward, Lady Eteil, or the servants who hated me, or to engage in any pointless fights.

“I was already upset about the bruises on my hand, and now my feet…”

Betty avoided answering when I asked her how I got hurt.

She only looked at my bandaged feet with a sad expression.

I was sure Betty knew something, but she didn’t want to talk about it, so I stopped asking.

Well, it must be fine.

If it were something serious, Betty would have told me.

I chalked it up to just an accident in my sleep and let it go.

The problem started about a day after I injured my feet.

“My lady. Lady Eteil has summoned you.”

As I was spending my days in my bedroom, the butler approached and relayed Lady Eteil’s order.

I hadn’t seen her since the sleeping potion incident, so the thought of facing her made me uncomfortable.

“Do you know why her ladyship wants to see me?”

“I only received orders to bring you, my lady.”

The butler stood firmly, leaving me with no room to refuse.

So, dragging my injured foot, I made my way to Lady Eteil’s quarters.

“Mother, may I come in?”

I opened the door and entered.

Lady Eteil was enjoying her tea time with the window thrown wide open, the morning sun pouring in.

There was no trace of the cruel side she’d shown me before—she looked every bit the refined noblewoman.

‘She really is impressive.’

Watching her elegant tea time, I found myself inwardly acknowledging her.

Maybe this was what it took to be respected as the mistress of Winderton Castle.

“Mother, what brings you to call me here?”

I put on a bright smile and used the word “mother.”

“Come, sit down, Lirie.”

Lady Eteil also smiled warmly and affectionately called me by name.

The atmosphere was icy, but both our faces wore pleasant expressions.

“There’s something I’d like to ask you to do today.”

Lady Eteil’s words almost made my expression crack.

“Please, go ahead, Mother.”

Please, let nothing happen.