Evelyn’s shoulder hit the ground with a heavy thud. Georgiana leaned out of the window and whispered.

“Hey, are you OK?”

Seeing Evelyn groan and slowly sit up, she pointed off into the distance.

“Don’t go back the way you came. Take the forest path over there. If my brother wakes up and starts chasing you on horseback, he’ll catch you in no time.”

Still unsteady on her feet, Evelyn looked around for a moment.

Then she nodded her thanks to Georgiana.

After all, who wouldn’t want a wealthy sister-in-law?

It was probably Georgiana’s desire to have a wealthy sister-in-law that motivated her to help.

Evelyn was grateful either way.

Suddenly, she had a flashback to when they were children and used to crack open hazelnuts together during one of Georgiana’s visits to the orphanage.

“Thank you.”

Evelyn sincerely expressed her gratitude, then crouched low and made her way towards the forest.

The ground beneath her feet was damp, as though it had rained recently.

She relied on the lantern hanging outside the storage building.

However, it was clear that even that small light would soon be swallowed by the surrounding darkness.

Nevertheless, she didn’t hesitate to enter the dense forest.

She felt like a wild animal.

The memory of being beaten flashed through Evelyn’s mind, causing her to stop in her tracks. She gently touched her face, feeling it carefully.

She couldn’t tell if her face or her fingertips were numb. The dignity that orphans weren’t supposed to possess had been torn apart.

Her very existence had been shattered.

‘That’s right… This is all my fault. It was wrong of someone like me to even hope for happiness.’

As the world spun dizzily around her, Evelyn tried to keep herself together.

She pictured Henrietta’s face. If Henrietta were here right now, she would hug Evelyn tightly — and stubbornly.

Until the warmth returned to every part of her body.

‘No… No, this isn’t my fault. It’s not.’

Just before stepping into the forest, Evelyn paused and looked back.

The Morgan estate—once a place she had called home—was now no bigger than a thumbnail in the distance.

“Clinging to regrets here would only be lying to myself.”

As if sealing a vow, she muttered to herself and picked up her pace, determined to do what she had to do.

How long had she walked?
Just as the pitch-black sky began to fade with the faint light of dawn, a carriage lantern emerged through the gloom, rapidly approaching her.

Evelyn quickly realized it was a public stagecoach, the kind that picked up passengers at scheduled times. She waved her hand toward the light without hesitation.

Thankfully, the coachman spotted her, slowed down, and came to a stop.

“Evelyn?”
As she approached, the coachman — who was also acting as an attendant — stepped down from his seat and greeted her warmly.

“What brings you all the way out here at this hour? Were you waiting for a letter again today? But it’s still far too early.”

Mr Martin, with his broad, rugged face and prominent cheekbones, came over to her and spoke to her kindly.

Public carriages like his often doubled as mail carriers. He rummaged through the front of the carriage, pulling out letters one by one, but then shook his head regretfully.

“Sorry, there’s nothing for you today. But Evelyn?”

“Ah, sir…”

“Your face…”

“I need to get to Haytesfield right away. Right now.”

“What? What on earth happened to you, Evelyn?”

Startled, Martin rushed over to her. Evelyn leaned heavily on his arm, as if she were about to collapse.

“But I don’t have any money. There might be something in my bag if I look hard enough, but right now, I just… I can’t…”

“Oh, Evelyn… Who did this to you? Huh?”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry, but please help me. Please.”

What happened after that remained hazy in her memory.

She vaguely recalled being helped into the carriage.

She could still smell the damp rain on the passengers’ clothes.

Their curious glances flickered towards her.

She also recalled the strange idea that carriages seemed to jolt less when they were full.

And just like that, she fell asleep, a short, deep, dreamless sleep.

***

Henrietta stood before the main entrance of the Zahert Hotel, breathing out slowly.

She had steeled herself many times already, but taking that first step inside was still no easy task.

It wasn’t until morning, after finally getting a bit of sleep, that she had the presence of mind to ask herself a question she hadn’t considered the night before: ‘How does Prince William know who I am?’

Of course Henrietta recognised Prince William.

The recent evening banquet had been a welcome party for Hendrik, but it had also served as a celebration for William.

Henrietta had only attended briefly.

Even then, she had stood quietly near a wall, barely noticeable.

Yet despite that, Prince William had clearly shown signs of recognising her.

There was no other explanation for his behaviour last night.

‘So… how?’

The Zahert Hotel, the finest in the capital, was stunning even from the outside.

Its grandeur slowly chipped away at Henrietta’s fragile resolve.

The marble exterior exuded an air of elegance and classicism.

The intricately arranged stone sculptures surrounding the building

made it hard to tell whether it was a hotel or an ancient temple.

She thought there probably wasn’t a better place for royalty or nobility to stay.

This only served to make her feel all the more out of place.

“Ha.”

The roar of the fountain directly in front of the hotel’s main entrance drowned out her sigh.

A dry, dusty wind blew past her, but the sky above was vividly blue, with hardly a cloud in sight.

“I’m here to see Prince William. My name is Henrietta Maybelle Osborne.”

As promised the night before, the hotel staff seemed to have already been informed. Without hesitation, they guided her to the entrance of the building where the prince and Hendrik were staying.

“You may go inside. I’ll take you to the drawing room.”

“Wait, just… just a moment.”

Standing before the building, Henrietta suddenly found herself lacking courage. She took a deep breath to steady herself, and her thoughts turned to Evelyn, who had come to see her the night before.

Despite the clear signs of a severe beating on her face, Evelyn smiled. She apologised for being late, her voice catching with a sorrow that was impossible to miss.

Henrietta silently embraced her. As she gently reassured Evelyn that everything would be OK, she finally broke down in tears.

“I was so caught up in surviving the storms of my own life that I didn’t even see the hurricane that hit yours.”

Overwhelmed by a guilt that felt like an accusation. Henrietta cried with her, without fully understanding why.

Evelyn had always been beautiful. She was so beautiful that, for a girl without money, without parents, and without anyone to lean on her beauty alone could have been poison.

The world could never have been a fairytale for someone like her. And yet, Henrietta simply believed her when she said she was doing well. She told herself that was all she could do.

The person who brought Evelyn to the Schutzman estate last night was none other than Prince William.

Although he had mainly stayed at the hotel with Hendrik, he was officially a guest of the estate.

Had he not come to the estate last night, Evelyn might have spent the night standing in front of its cold iron gates.

That night marked the first time Henrietta had ever spoken to Prince William in person.

He was so kind that she wondered if it was really okay for a royal to be so gentle.

His gracious demeanour was unmistakably noble and reminded her of Hendrik. The benevolent royal — Hendrik.

Moreover, William was intelligent and considerate. He had disguised Evelyn as his personal maid and smuggled her into the estate.

Then he came to the annexe himself to find Henrietta.

For a foreign prince to respond to a young stranger who claimed to be there to see the estate’s tutor was extraordinary. Such behaviour was far beyond what one would have expected.

Whatever the reason, thanks to the prince’s discretion, Henrietta was able to meet Evelyn without Pierre finding out.

Otherwise, she would have had to parade herself in front of people, begging for permission to stay at the estate.

Seeing the surreal sight of a prince standing in her room, Henrietta absurdly thought that Huntingford’s future must be in good hands.

Recalling Evelyn standing beside the prince, smiling resolutely despite her wounds, Henrietta took a deep breath. She could hesitate no longer.

“I’ll go in now.”

At her words, the smartly dressed staff member gracefully extended his arm and led the way.

Having heard everything from Evelyn the night before, Henrietta was deeply shocked — so much so that her heart had been pounding irregularly for a while.

The firewood she had piled high for the trembling girl crackled and flared, casting flickering shadows across Evelyn’s pale face.

And yet, Evelyn spoke calmly. Her voice, at times like a delicate melody, flowed on.

William sat quietly in a wooden chair with his legs stretched out and crossed, observing her.

Though he showed no outward reaction, it was clear that this was his first time hearing the story as well.

When he’d first heard that Hangderhood had come under royal jurisdiction, his finely shaped eyebrows had twitched noticeably — undeniable proof of surprise.

“I’d like to thank His Highness. Would the Prince perhaps be willing to arrange a meeting?”

After Henrietta had carefully made her request, William remained silent for a moment, having heard the full story. Then he offered a gentle smile to match his kind expression.

“If you wish to meet Hendrik, come to the Zahert Hotel tomorrow afternoon. I’ll let him know.”

After William left, Henrietta moved quickly.

Since Hangderhood was under Robert’s control, Evelyn had stayed at the Schutzman estate out of necessity. However, that was no longer the case.

Besides which, the Schutzman estate wasn’t a suitable place to keep Evelyn. She bathed her, helped her change into clean clothes, and waited for dawn.

They had both dozed off briefly. By the time the pale blue light of dawn crept in, they slipped out of the estate together, quietly.

Spring frost had settled on the dense fog, making it difficult to see more than a step ahead. Yet the two of them, hand in hand, pressed on without hesitation.

By the time they reached her new house, the fog had cleared as if it had never been there. It was only when they stood before the door that Evelyn smiled lightly for the first time.

Once inside, they lit the fire and warmth began to seep into the damp air. With an additional lamp switched on, the items on the sitting room table became visible.

‘They didn’t throw them away.’

New candles, iris-decorated stationery, and a small plate and fork had been haphazardly stacked on the table.

Even though it wasn’t particularly high-maintenance, the newly sprouted leaves of the plant had withered and turned brown.

The family of sheep dolls standing nearby, once so cheerful, now wore unmistakably sorrowful expressions.

In short, everything had faded.

Back then, everything had sparkled. After all she had been through, Evelyn collapsed before morning had fully broken.

Henrietta hurried to fetch a nearby physician.

But the fever, fueled by shock and panic, refused to subside easily.

By now, Robert was probably aware of both William’s unexpected visit to the annex and Evelyn’s presence.

Henrietta quickened her pace down the long hallway of the hotel, urgency pressing on her heart.