“Good morning.”

As usual, Lila only woke up well into the day. The difference today was the presence of someone cheerfully greeting her in the morning.

“Emma?”

Lila, still savoring the soft silk pajamas as comfortable as the plush bed, reacted a beat late to Emma’s greeting. Emma smiled warmly at Lila, who gazed at her with half-dazed, sleepy eyes.

“Did you sleep well last night?”

“…Yes, I slept well.”

A quiet voice slipped through her slightly parted lips.

“Then shall we get up and start the day?”

Lila accepted the glass Emma handed her. The cool water flowing down her throat cleared her mind.

“I…”

“When did I fall asleep?” 

Lila murmured quietly as she held the glass, trying to recall. Memories surfaced of her dozing off in the study after eating dessert and being carried to her room by Grand Duke Eustace. Her last recollection was changing into the pajamas Emma had brought and slipping under the covers of her bed.

“Yawn…”

Stretching as she stepped out of bed with a tousled face, Lila let out a small yawn. Despite sleeping for what felt like a long time, she still felt drowsy. It was as if her body was trying to make up for all the sleep it had missed.

“But why are you here, Emma?”

As her drowsiness subsided, curiosity bubbled up. Emma bowed slightly, her eyes crinkling gently.

“Allow me to formally introduce myself. I am Emma Lowes, and from today, I will be attending to you, Lady Lila.”

“You’ll be attending to me?”

Wasn’t she introduced yesterday as the head maid? Lila blinked, her expression puzzled.

“If you’re the head maid, doesn’t that make you someone important? Like a steward or something?”

“That’s correct. In terms of the imperial palace, my role would be equivalent to that of a chamberlain.”

“Then why?”

Lila tilted her head in confusion, her expression clearly showing she couldn’t understand. Emma pulled back the curtains that had been covering the window, letting light flood the room.

“His Grace personally requested it. He wanted only the best care for you in every respect. Naturally, that meant I should take the role myself.”

“Then who looks after the Grand Duke?”

“The second maid, Hans, already handled His Grace’s needs. Outside the estate, his attendants take care of him.”

“I see.”

Lila didn’t know who Hans was, but she vaguely remembered meeting one of the Grand Duke’s attendants in the study yesterday. Recalling the pale-faced man who had greeted her, Elvin, she nodded. Though she didn’t fully understand how everything worked, it seemed there wasn’t any issue.

“Well then, I’ll be in your care.”

“I look forward to serving you as well.”

Emma opened the window wide to let in fresh air before approaching Lila again.

“If you’re not too hungry, shall we start by washing up? It’ll help wake you.”

“Okay.”

Feeling slightly self-conscious about not having bathed for the past few days, Lila nodded quickly. Emma expertly led her to the bathroom. It was clear preparations had already been made—the ornate bathtub was filled with steaming water.

“Let me know if it’s too hot.”

“It’s fine.”

With Emma’s assistance, Lila undressed and cautiously dipped her foot into the water before stepping in fully.

“Ah…”

As her body submerged, Lila exhaled in relaxation. It had been so long since she’d enjoyed such a comfortable bath. Back in the imperial palace, hot water had been a luxury. The shabby bathroom in her quarters always had only cold water.

Sometimes, she’d light a fire in the backyard to heat water, but even that wasn’t easy. During her missions, she’d return covered in blood and dirt, forced to wash in icy water that stung her skin, whether it was spring or winter.

“I’ll add a bath bomb now.”

Lost in her memories, Lila watched as Emma dropped a round bath bomb into the tub.

“Wow.”

Lila marveled as sky-blue foam bubbled up, her excitement evident. When she scooped the foam with her hands, it felt like holding a fluffy cloud. While she was captivated by the endlessly rising bubbles, Emma gently began washing her with a soft towel.

“Is there anything uncomfortable for you?”

“Mm…”

Lila let out a relaxed sigh as Emma’s hands kneaded her shoulders and arms. After lathering up some soap to wash Lila’s hair, Emma straightened up.

“Close your eyes so the soap doesn’t get in them.”

Like an obedient student, Lila tightly shut her eyes, making Emma chuckle softly at how endearing she looked.

Hot water poured over Lila’s head, causing her to shudder like a drenched raven, shaking her head instinctively. Emma rinsed her hair a few more times before wrapping the wet strands in a towel.

“You can stand up now.”

As she stepped out of the tub, a large towel was wrapped around her small body like a blanket. Lila felt like a baby as Emma carefully dried her off.

“I’ve prepared a comfortable home dress for you. It used to belong to the former duchess, so it might be a bit big. I did make some alterations, though…”

“It’s fine.”

With Emma’s help, Lila put on a home dress for the first time in her life. After dressing her, Emma retrieved a red ribbon adorned with amethyst from a drawer in the vanity.

“I’ll tie the ribbon for you.”

Emma tied the ribbon between the lace collar of the dress and adjusted her outfit. Lila awkwardly looked at her reflection in the mirror.

Having only ever worn plain, dark-colored clothes, she felt unfamiliar with her current look: a white lace dress with a ribbon.

“The dress is still a bit loose, isn’t it? I’m sorry about that.”

“It’s okay. It’s comfortable.”

Lila stopped Emma, who was about to tighten the waist with a string. She found the looseness more freeing.

“That’s a relief. Then I’ll dry your hair now.”

Emma led Lila to the vanity with a relieved expression. Once Lila was seated, Emma applied a light moisturizer to her face, removed the towel from her hair, and used a magic tool to create warm air to dry it.

Watching this, Lila widened her eyes.

“Emma, are you a mage?”

“Calling myself a mage is a bit much. I’m just a first-circle magic user.”

“That’s amazing.”

Lila exclaimed in admiration, her black eyes sparkling. Emma blushed slightly, smiling at her enthusiasm.

“In the Eustace family, the standard is at least third-circle, so it’s not that impressive.”

“No, it’s incredible. There are so many people who can’t even reach the first circle no matter how hard they try. It’s really amazing. You’re amazing.”

Lila spoke unusually fast, her words tumbling out. Emma blinked in surprise before softening her expression into a gentle smile.

“Thank you. I’ve heard you’re an impressive martial artist yourself, Lady Lila.”

“I’m not a swordmaster yet.”

“His Grace said there’s hardly anyone in the empire who could rival you.”

“Really? I’m not sure.”

Lila knew she had reached the upper limits of a sword expert, a level many admired, but she wasn’t sure of her exact capabilities. Assassination relied more on swift movements and precision to kill the target than on raw swordsmanship.

“Still, I think I was the second strongest after the instructor in the imperial palace.”

Her instructor probably had a better chance of becoming a swordmaster than she did. Lila frowned slightly as she thought of the instructor who had trained her over the past eight years, a towering presence she had never been able to surpass.

“I see. If you ever have the chance, it might be fun to spar with the knights of the family.”

“Do you think I could?”

“Of course! Just mention it to His Grace.”

Emma imagined that a single word from Lila could summon the entire family’s knights to the ducal estate’s training grounds the next day and laughed at the thought.

“After breakfast, I’ll give you a quick tour of the mansion.”

“Okay.”

“In the afternoon, a tailor will come to take your measurements and design clothes suited to you. You can pick your favorite design from the options.”

“Got it.”

“I think we’ll also need to call a hairstylist. Your hair is quite damaged.”

As Emma combed her hair, she brought out camellia oil, warmed it in her hands, and applied it thoroughly. When she had finished, the uneven length of Lila’s hair became more noticeable.

“Lady Lila, if you don’t mind me asking, who cut your hair?”

“I just cut it myself.”

‘Was it that bad?’ Lila rolled her eyes nervously. She’d never cared much before, but now that Emma mentioned it, even she could see that the lengths on both sides didn’t match.

“Hmm, if it’s alright with you, may I trim it a little?”

Emma hesitated briefly before cautiously speaking.

“Do as you like. Oh, but I don’t want it cut too short.”

“I’ll just even out the length a little.”

Emma retrieved scissors from a drawer and carefully trimmed Lila’s hair bit by bit. With soft snipping sounds, black strands of hair fell to the floor.

“Are you planning to grow your hair out?”

“Maybe? If it gets inconvenient when I move, I’ll cut it again…”

Lila trailed off, watching her hair fall to the floor. For someone who moved her body and wielded a sword, shorter hair was undeniably more practical.

She vaguely remembered having hair long enough to touch her waist when she was very young, but ever since she began training, she had kept it short—not by choice, but because others insisted.

“I was secretly trying to grow it out.”

Lila admitted honestly after a moment of hesitation.

“I see.”

“Someone cut it once a few months ago.”

“What?”

Emma froze at the unexpected revelation. Unlike the startled Emma, Lila recounted the story with an indifferent expression.

“Someone in the palace didn’t like my hair… It used to reach around my chest, but they said it was unsightly and just cut it off. I was so upset at the time that I started growing it out on purpose.”

Lila spoke matter-of-factly, recalling the events of a few months ago. When she reached the pinnacle of a sword expert, she was summoned to the emperor for the first time in years.

Her instructor had mentioned that reaching the highest level of a sword expert at such a young age was the fourth occurrence in the empire’s history.

“You’ve done well. As someone who taught you swordsmanship, I’m proud.”

“Congratulations. Both His Majesty the Emperor and His Highness the Crown Prince will surely be pleased.”

Even her normally stoic instructor and the emotionless head steward had offered their congratulations for her achievement. But not the emperor. Instead, he had been furious.

“Just the highest level of sword expert? You were supposed to become a swordmaster, yet you’re so mediocre.”

Rather than praise, the emperor scolded her for not yet reaching the rank of swordmaster.

“Such an eyesore! Your hair is so long and unkempt—it’s a disgrace to a martial artist!”

In his anger, the emperor grabbed her chest-length hair and, without warning, used magic to cut it.

“It’s my hair, and he cut it as he pleased. It annoyed me so much that I decided to grow it out to my waist just to spite him.”