Even getting up from the king’s bed took great effort for Malyn. She had rung the maid’s bell twice, but only Layla had come. It made sense, though. Twilight had already passed and the light of dawn was slowly filtering in. The other maids were probably tired from waiting all night and had fallen asleep. In the early days they had waited outside Malyn’s room, but now Layla was the one who regularly waited outside the King’s chamber with the guards. She had probably only woken up when she heard the bell.

Layla paused when she saw Malyn sitting wearily at the edge of the bed. Malyn’s hair was disheveled as she sat slumped over, and when she saw Layla, she let out a small laugh. Thinking about it, Layla had entered the king’s chamber before to help her, but she would always hand her over to the other maids afterward. She probably didn’t really know what to do.

Malyn raised her hand and pointed to a cloth hanging in a corner of the king’s chamber. Layla hurriedly grabbed the cloth and unfolded it. Malyn, her hair still messy, brushed it aside, took the cloth, spread her legs, and began to angrily wipe between them. Although there wasn’t much to clean, she continued to roughly scrub the insides of her thighs until they turned red from the coarse fabric, and she kept at it for quite some time.

Exhausted, she threw aside the cloth and saw that Layla was holding a cloak. Malyn put on the cloak and looked at Layla. Normally, due to the weakness in her legs, she needed two maids to support her as she walked, but if she relied only on this princess, they might both end up on the floor. So she decided to walk on her own.

So she took slow, careful steps. She didn’t know where the shoes she had worn earlier had gone, but she didn’t bother to look for them, as she didn’t want to risk waking the king. She walked out barefoot, feeling a chill and a shiver run through her. As soon as she stepped out, the guard closed the door behind her. Layla followed her, looking visibly uneasy.

To get from the king’s chamber to Malyn’s room, they had to pass through one hallway and a large corridor. After walking for a while, they would reach a garden and a second hallway leading to the building where Malyn’s room was located. In the center of that garden was a fountain with warm water that flowed even in the depths of winter—a fountain the king of Veldam liked to show off to foreign envoys and lords.

As they entered the hallway crossing the garden, the sound of the fountain reached them. It seemed the fountain was running even at this early hour. Listening to the sound of the water, Malyn felt conflicted. She wanted to jump into that fountain. She was so cold, and her feet were freezing.

Just then, Layla, who had been following behind her the entire time, quickened her pace, moved in front of her, and lowered herself. Malyn instinctively stopped, looking down at the top of Layla’s head.

Slowly, Layla took off her own shoes and placed them in front of Malyn. Seeing this, Malyn gave her a questioning look, and Layla sighed softly as she spoke.

“At least wear these.”

The shoes Layla wore were the leather ones given to the maids. The slightly worn toes, showing that she was finally getting used to the castle, were now placed in front of Malyn’s bare toes. Malyn stared at the leather shoes. She felt a strong urge to kick them away with her foot, but at the same time she wanted to quickly slip her freezing toes into the warmth of those simple shoes.

It wasn’t Malyn who made the decision, but Layla. Layla looked up at her hesitantly and reached out to take Malyn’s bare foot in her hand. Despite having spent the entire night crouched outside the King’s chamber, Layla’s touch was surprisingly warm and Malyn instinctively surrendered to its comfort. She allowed Layla to lift her foot and guide it into the shoe. Her foot slid inside the shoe, leaving a space almost the size of her fist.

Not only tall, but with big feet.

Malyn thought, blinking as she looked at the oversized shoes now on her feet. When Layla stood up after helping her into the shoes, all Malyn could see were Layla’s pale, bare feet. Small scars marked her ankles and Malyn knew what had caused them – injuries from when they had crossed the mountains together.

It was a strange situation. The princess was still a princess, and the maid was still a maid. Seeing Layla give her her own shoes made it clear. Even after walking barefoot across the mountains, Layla hadn’t once asked a maid to give her her leather shoes, and now she was offering her own shoes to the maid who was walking barefoot down the corridor. A sudden sense of deprivation filled Malyn. No matter how elegantly she held her head high or smiled like a princess, she would never truly become one – and in that moment she felt it deeply.

Layla, unimpressed by the sight of Malyn’s bare feet, took her hand. Startled by the sudden touch, Malyn quickly withdrew her hand and Layla whispered quietly,

“The shoes are too big, so it will be hard for you to walk. It would be better to hold on to me and walk while I support you.”

“…”

Hearing that, Malyn found she had no real argument, but she remained standing, looking at Layla without moving. Eventually Layla sighed softly and added,

“If you don’t want to hold my hand, you can press down on my shoulder for support…”

” With your height?”

A sharp remark slipped out of her mouth in an instant. Layla let out a soft “ah” and closed her lips. It was almost impossible for Malyn, a full hand’s width shorter than Princess Layla, to press down on her shoulder. Malyn gritted her teeth, pouting slightly as she looked at Layla, then clicked her tongue and grabbed her left elbow.

“Let’s go like this.”

The sudden shift to informal speech made Layla pause and look to the other side of the garden. Between the pillars of the corridor, a gardener who had risen early could be seen yawning as he walked. Malyn always spoke informally to Layla, no matter who was around. But today, for some reason, she felt strangely out of place.

Malyn’s gaze was drawn to the expression on Layla’s face as she looked at the gardener.

It was only a fleeting moment. In the pale morning light, sunlight softly illuminated Layla’s eyelashes, casting a delicate, transparent glow. The light was so clear that it highlighted even the fine hairs on her face, weary from a sleepless night. Her eyes, watery in color beneath her lashes, seemed to gaze past the gardener toward some distant place. Her pale lips parted slightly, as if she were about to say something and then, suddenly, the light was gone.

Malyn flinched, startled. It was nothing, really – Layla had merely turned her face towards her from the direction of the garden. But she had been so focused on that moment that it felt as if all the light illuminating Layla’s face had vanished, leaving only darkness. Surprised, Malyn let go of Layla’s arm, but Layla, even more startled, instinctively grabbed her hand.

“Ah.”

Malyn recoiled in shock and instinctively looked up at Layla. Layla’s blue eyes blinked several times in surprise, then softened slightly.

Even in front of the king who had bitten her flesh, she had remained calm, but now, strangely, she couldn’t.

***

As soon as they returned to the room, Layla summoned the other maids to bring hot water. Just because she’d worn a single shoe didn’t mean her feet had warmed up. Malyn stood there idly, watching as the bathtub filled with hot water. Layla, rolling up her sleeves, gave Malyn a curious look. Without a word, Malyn stepped into the tub.

As her frozen toes touched the hot water, it felt as if they were melting. Normally she would have rubbed her hands in and out of the water, but this time her eyes never left Layla.

It was only when Layla brought over a bottle of scented oil, sleeves rolled up, that Malyn finally spoke.

“You’ve become quite accustomed to this.”

“…If I remain clumsy, it’s hard for both you and me,” Layla replied a beat later as she unscrewed the cap. But as soon as her eyes met Malyn’s, who sat with her chin resting on her arms atop her knees, Layla quickly turned her face away. Despite saying that it would be hard on both of them if she didn’t get used to it, she still acted as if she had no desire to look at someone else’s body—stubbornly reserved to the end.

Finally, Malyn took the sponge and the oil and salt mixture from Layla’s hands. Layla looked startled, but Malyn shook her head.

“Like I said, I’m tired. If you bathe me, it’ll take all day. I’ll wash myself, so go ahead and make up my bed.”

Even after saying that, Malyn stared at the sponge for a long time after Layla had left. It was strange. Perhaps Layla was just getting used to her duties. Before, Malyn had found it amusing to tease her by asking her to wash her br*ast, but now she didn’t like to do it anymore. It seemed her heart had softened because of Layla’s kindness, like when she gave Malyn her own shoes.

She didn’t wet her hair, as she couldn’t bear to wait for it to dry if she did. Malyn was truly exhausted and just wanted to sleep. She felt that her restlessness and fatigue would only go away if she could finally rest. After drying herself off and stepping out, she saw the loungewear that Layla had brought for her. Malyn put it on, deliberately shaking it out a bit with her rough hands, causing a little dust to rise from the fabric.