A Very, Very Busy Afternoon
“I’m so busy, why am I even doing this?”
Sigh.
I heaved another sigh, yet my fingers kept moving diligently, not minding how red they were becoming from holding the crayons.
Believe it or not, in my past life, I graduated from a vocational high school majoring in accounting.
A PowerPoint should always have a blue sea otter to stand out and look pretty!
“Haah, seriously busy. Suddenly, they want me to write a bucket list…”
I muttered softly, my complaints echoing quietly in the stillness of the study.
“You don’t have to if you don’t want to.”
“Nooo, but Uncle asked me to, so of course I have to. By the way, why do I have to make a bucket list anyway?”
I tried my best to look aloof, but—
“It’s going up.”
“Hmm.”
“It’s going up again, that thing.”
Uncle narrowed his eyes playfully, pointing at the corners of my mouth that were twitching upwards.
“Uhp!”
Startled, I quickly shut my mouth tight, causing my already puffy cheeks to swell even more.
Then, Uncle poked my cheek lightly with his long finger.
“Eek!”
Caught completely off-guard, I rolled over dramatically onto my side while writing my bucket list.
“Oops, my mistake.”
He turned his head quickly, pressing his lips together to hide his amusement, pretending to concentrate on his work again.
Is this really the ruler of the North? A hero of the Frozen Kingdom who pokes a five-year-old’s cheek and runs?
“Pfft… Hahaha!”
“…What is it now?”
Eventually, laughter burst out uncontrollably as I kicked my feet happily.
“Hahaha! Why did you ask me to write a bucket list anyway? Who’s it even for? You wouldn’t do anything from it anyway~!”
I laughed so much that my words jumbled together.
Uncle sighed softly, flipping through another page and muttered,
“Exactly. I have to see it first to know what I can fulfill. But if you keep dawdling like this, even if I want to give you something, I won’t know what.”
“Oh!”
My guardian, my provider, my bread, my water, my bed, my deity of daily needs had spoken.
If I wrote my bucket list, he’d fulfill it.
“I’ll finish it right now!”
With newfound determination, I sat upright, rolled up my sleeves, and got back to work.
‘Hmm. For starters…’
Using a red crayon I picked up randomly, I wrote:
[Visit the marketplace]
[Go shopping alone]
[Receive a surprise gift]
All done!
Of course, there were about 101 more items, but let’s skip those for brevity.
“Uncle! It’s done!”
“Then let’s go put it up on your bedroom door.”
“Eh?”
I blinked, confused.
Why would I display something so embarrassing?
“The servants and Knox asked. They want to fulfill your bucket list.”
“…!”
His words made my eyes ring with joy like bells.
Wait a minute.
I quickly rolled up the paper, grabbed another sheet, and said,
“Then I’ll make another one for public viewing!”
“Then what’s the one you’ve already finished?”
“A private one! Just for you, Uncle.”
Sharing my full 101-item bucket list with everyone in the mansion was a bit embarrassing. But Uncle, well, he was my guardian, my provider, my everything—so it didn’t matter.
After finishing the public version,
“Hehe, I’ll go attach this to my bedroom door!”
I giggled, stood on tiptoes, and opened the study door, rolling up the large paper carefully with my tiny hands.
The paper itself was light, but its length surpassed my height, so I had to carry it on my shoulder.
In a typical childcare novel, this would be when the doting father carried it for his child.
But this wasn’t a childcare novel.
Uncle glanced at me briefly before returning to his work. If I could do it myself, he’d concentrate on his tasks.
‘He’s truly like a real father.’
Simple and straightforward. Totally my style.
As I was carrying the paper down the hallway—
“Lady Aisha.”
Someone called from behind.
Turning around, I saw Mai approaching quickly with a warm smile.
“Hello!”
“Hello.”
Since Mai apologized, she smiled more often. At first, she had seemed serious and reserved, but now she frequently greeted me warmly.
“What’s this paper?”
“Oh, this? It’s my bucket list! I’m going to hang it on my bedroom door… Ah, it’s not because I wanted to, the Duke ordered me.”
“Oh, you’ve completed your bucket list. I’ve been waiting for it too.”
Mai nodded knowingly and naturally took the paper from me.
“Shall we go and put it up together?”
“Hee. Thank you.”
“But first, I have something for you.”
Mai hesitated briefly, then smiled shyly. Her right hand had been hidden behind her back.
“It might seem simple compared to the dresses and accessories you’ll have later, but…”
A blue box suddenly appeared.
“Would you open it?”
“…?”
My heart started beating fast as I accepted the box.
A beautiful blue ribbon decorated the package.
Carefully, I placed the box down, untied the ribbon, and opened it—
“!”
Inside lay a neatly folded scarf. Rich navy blended gently with pale sky blue, creating a lively yet harmonious look. At the center was an embroidered wolf, the symbol of Crost.
“It’s a gift?” I asked, surprised.
“You said you liked blue.”
Mai observed my reaction cautiously.
“It’s always cold in the North, so I knitted this myself. Do you like it?”
“You knitted it yourself?”
“Yes.”
My voice trembled in disbelief.
“You made it yourself because I like blue? And this is for me?”
“Of course. Do you like it?”
Mai anxiously checked my reaction again.
This was big.
Mai had knitted this scarf while thinking about me. A scarf that must’ve taken days!
“Th-thank you very much…”
Overwhelmed, I bowed instinctively. Mai quickly corrected me, “Lady Aisha shouldn’t bow to servants.”
Oops. Sorry.
“…”
Immediately, I wrapped the scarf around my neck.
My gift. A scarf Mai made while thinking of me.
My heart fluttered.
Less than a minute after writing my bucket list, I’d already checked one item off.
A few days later—
“Lady Aisha, are you feeling sick?”
Knox watched Aisha running past and asked a nearby maid.
“No, she’s just wearing it because she loves it. Mai gave her that handmade scarf, and she seems very fond of it.”
Knox observed silently as Aisha trotted away.
He wasn’t the only one watching her.
“Dandelion, wouldn’t it be easier to eat cake if you took off the scarf?” Lucas asked during dessert time.
“Oh, this?”
Her small face was barely visible, covered by the scarf.
“I can manage,” she stubbornly insisted, tilting her head upwards. She opened her mouth wide and plunged the fork vertically into the cake.
“…”
Confused, Lucas whispered to a maid,
“What’s up with Dandelion?”
“Well…”
Whispers quickly turned into exaggerated rumors throughout the mansion.
“Lady Aisha cried tears of joy after receiving Mai’s gift.”
“She loves the scarf so much she even sleeps with it on.”
“Mai researched Lady Aisha’s taste thoroughly to make that scarf.”
Walking the hallways. Eating meals. Changing clothes.
Each hearing a version of the story, Calypse, Lucas, and Knox thought simultaneously:
“She’s this excited about just one scarf?”
And then came the next day’s family dinner.
