Crunch. Crunch.

Lila wandered leisurely through the quiet rear garden. Since arriving at the Grand Duke’s residence, this was her first time stepping outside the estate.

“Would you like to visit the greenhouse or the garden?”

It had been Emma who suggested the stroll. She seemed concerned about Lila doing nothing but sitting by the window, gazing outside.

“Am I allowed outside?”

“You’re free to roam anywhere within the Grand Duke’s estate. Everyone knows about your presence now.”

Emma was right. Every servant Lila encountered in the estate recognized her, and not just that—they seemed to regard her with fondness.

“We’ll serve you with all our hearts. Please take good care of us, Lady Lila.”

“Is it true you’ll become a knight for our house? That’s so cool!”

Smiling faces, expressions of awe, and curious glances greeted her everywhere. The staff of the Grand Duke’s estate didn’t hide their curiosity about their new resident.

“Thank you for saving His Grace.”

“Truly, thank you. We’re forever indebted to you.”

The older staff, in particular, repeatedly bowed deeply to Lila, expressing their gratitude.

“Yes, all right. Thanks. Take care of me.”

Lila kept her responses short and unemotional, staying consistent with the pretense that she struggled with the Empire’s language due to her Eastern origins.

This, too, seemed to have been arranged by either the Grand Duke or Emma. None of the staff seemed to find it odd when Lila replied bluntly, nodded silently, or gave only terse answers.

Even without the language barrier as an excuse, Lila wouldn’t have known how to respond. She wasn’t accustomed to people looking at her with such admiration.

For most of her life, the people she encountered were either terrified or furious. It made sense. Who could smile at someone who had come to kill them?

Eventually, Lila stopped meeting people’s eyes. She didn’t want to see their resentment or hatred.

But here, she couldn’t avoid it. The people of the Grand Duke’s estate seemed eager to make eye contact with her, to speak with her.

“I’ve got so much work piled up after taking a few days off.”

The Grand Duke has been incredibly busy lately. Yet, despite his hectic schedule, he still found time to wake Lila each morning under the guise of adjusting her eye color and personally put her to bed at night, claiming he needed to reverse the spell.

This morning was no different. After breakfast, he’d intended to have tea with Lila but reluctantly left when Elvin insisted on his attention. Knowing that his busyness was partly due to her presence, Lila felt a twinge of guilt.

“Hm.”

She lightly leaped over a tree root that jutted into the path. The garden, while designed for leisurely walks, was closer to a small forest in appearance.

“The weather is a bit chilly; perhaps the greenhouse would be better?”

“Maybe next time.”

“The greenhouse has rare flowers and trees imported from various countries…”

“I’ve been cooped up in my room. I want some fresh air.”

Although Emma had recommended the greenhouse, Lila was drawn to the open, expansive garden. Emma, slightly disappointed, had eventually led her there.

“The garden is designed to harmonize with nature. If you go deeper, you’ll enter the forest owned by the Grand Duke’s estate. Occasionally, small hunting events are held there.”

Once they reached the garden, Emma’s earlier disappointment gave way to enthusiasm. She excitedly shared tidbits about the area. If Hans hadn’t shown up midway, they might have ventured into the forest itself.

“I’ll be back shortly. Please look around while you wait.”
“Understood.”

After making Lila promise to wait nearby, Emma left, looking worried. Lila leaned against a large zelkova tree, patiently waiting for Emma’s return. But the chirping of nearby birds soon lured her deeper into the garden.

Tweet, tweet. Coo-coo, coo-coo.

‘What kind of birds are those?’

Listening to the various calls, Lila glanced up at the clear sky. The vivid blue reminded her of the Grand Duke’s eyes.

Has she ever experienced such peace before? Closing her eyes, Lila let the gentle breeze wash over her. She took a deep breath, inhaling the crisp, fresh air.

Before coming to the Grand Duke’s estate, her days had been akin to a constant battle. Grueling training sessions, dangerous missions, and a life that could end at any moment had kept her perpetually on edge, even on her rare days off.

“Phew.”

Lila had never imagined she’d be granted moments like this. Even after nearly a week at the Grand Duke’s residence, she still found herself wondering if it was all a dream.

Rustle.

The faint sound of leaves shifting nearby made her eyes snap open. She quietly reached for a branch lying beside her. Turning it lightly in her hand, she flung it toward the source of the sound.

“Ack!”

“Ahh!”

A brief shriek followed as two figures emerged from the bushes.

“Who?”

Lila tilted her head, examining the startled pair. They clung to each other, wide-eyed and looking up at her. With their light brown hair and deep brown eyes, the two bore a striking resemblance. Likely, they were twins of opposite genders.

“…! I’m so sorry!”

“Please forgive us!”

At Lila’s question, the boy and girl flinched, hurriedly bowing deeply in apology.

“We are Lou and Leigh, apprentices under Teacher Aria!”

“We acted rudely because we wanted to see you up close.”

Ah. Lila let out a small exclamation upon hearing their names. Now that she thought about it, she remembered seeing a boy and a girl standing by the door, carrying fabric and tools, when Aria had visited her yesterday with materials and jewels.

“Why did you want to see me up close?”

Lila asked out of pure curiosity, but the question seemed to startle the pair even more, as their faces turned pale simultaneously.

“We’re really sorry! Please don’t tell Teacher Aria!”

“It’s just, we heard you came from the Eastern Continent and saved His Grace the Grand Duke, so… Ahhh!”

Lou and Leigh stammered nervously, afraid Lila might get angry. They were terrified that if she complained to Aria, they might get kicked out.

“What’s so special about me coming from the Eastern Continent?”

“Pardon?”

The two looked up at her with wide eyes. They had braced themselves for an outburst, but Lila showed no signs of anger.

“You’re not mad…?”

“Not really.”

Lila’s tone was indifferent. If they had tried to attack her, that would have been a different story. But since they only wanted to see her, there was no reason to be upset. Seeing that Lila wasn’t angry, Lou and Leigh exchanged a quick, relieved glance.

“Well, it’s just that Lou admires martial arts from the East…”

“Really?”

“Yes! I originally dreamed of becoming a knight, but since my family is poor—oh no, that’s not what I meant to say! I’ve never met a warrior from the Eastern Continent, so I was curious about the martial arts and how you train…”

Leigh mumbled nervously on behalf of her timid brother.

“You want to see martial arts?”

She hadn’t particularly learned any Eastern martial arts—or had she? Lila tilted her head, unsure. She had been trained in various combat techniques, like swordsmanship, spearmanship, and hand-to-hand combat, but her instructor had taught her indiscriminately, so she wasn’t certain what she had actually mastered.

“Ah, no! Just seeing you throw that branch earlier was more than enough!”

Lou pressed his hand against his still-thumping chest as he replied. He had been utterly shocked when the branch Lila had thrown embedded itself precisely into the tree he had been hiding behind.

“It was like a throwing star or something… Amazing!”

Lou exclaimed, his face alight with excitement. He had heard that highly skilled warriors could turn anything around them into a weapon, even without swords or spears. But he had never imagined that even a mere branch could hold such power.

If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, he might have thought it was a throwing star or an arrow, not a simple stick. Even now, he could hardly believe it.

“That was incredible!”

“Yeah, it was terrifying, but absolutely amazing!”

The two exclaimed in unison. Lila’s expression grew complicated. She had never been praised or admired for attacking someone before.

“So, um, from what I understand… You’re from a country called ‘Muwon’ in the East…”

Seeing that Lila didn’t seem offended, Lou hesitated briefly before gathering the courage to speak.

“Muwon? Ah, is that so?”

“Huh?”

“Yeah, probably.”

Lila replied as if it were about someone else entirely. In truth, she had never heard of Muwon. If the Grand Duke hadn’t handed her an identification medallion yesterday and explained it, she would never have known.

“Wow! So you really are from Muwon! What’s the language like there? It must be very different from Imperial speech, right?”

“Who knows.”

‘I don’t even know that myself.’ Lila thought to herself, looking down at the pair eagerly waiting for her reply. With their round faces and bright eyes, they looked quite endearing.

“Probably different, I guess.”

“Wow!”

Lou and Leigh’s eyes sparkled every time Lila spoke.

“Um, if it’s not too much trouble… Could we hear you speak Muwonese?”

“…That might be difficult.”

“Ah! Of course, that was overstepping! I’m so sorry!”

Lou interpreted Lila’s response as a refusal and quickly lowered his head, looking upset. Leigh, following her brother’s lead, also apologized, her voice trembling.

“That’s not it…”

‘I don’t know either.’ Lila swallowed the words that had risen to her throat along with a dry gulp. She couldn’t possibly admit that, despite being identified as someone from Muwon, she didn’t know the language of that country.

“Hmm.”

Unsure of what to say, she glanced down at the two round heads of the bowing apprentices. Just as Lila was lost on how to handle the situation, it was once again Grand Duke Eustace who came to her rescue.

Appearing silently as before, the Grand Duke approached and gently embraced her small frame from behind, whispering with a soft chuckle.

“Found you.”

“Grand Duke?”

“So, this is where you were.”

‘I didn’t sense anything again.’ Lila pouted, momentarily forgetting her earlier predicament.

“You’re pouting again,” said Eustace with an amused smile as he lightly tapped her lower lip with his finger. Then he turned his gaze to Lou and Leigh, who were wide-eyed with shock at his sudden appearance.

“You’re Lou and Leigh, Aria Shui’s apprentices, correct?”

“Gasp!”

The two, frozen in surprise, gaped when the Grand Duke called their names.

“You—you know us?”

“Aren’t you the ones diligently crafting clothes for someone dear to me? Of course, I know who you are.”

Eustace’s eyes crinkled into a warm smile, causing Lou and Leigh’s faces to turn as red as ripe apples.

“This can’t be a dream if I can feel pain…”