I had lived for so long as an adult Korean that I forgot a simple fact—three-year-olds usually don’t know how to read.
A flower? Should I draw something like a flower?
Or maybe a futuristic sci-fi scene?
But would Dad even like that?
Having lived all my lives, past and present, far removed from art, my mind felt like a blank slate.
“Why are you hesitating? Should I help you?”
Betty, who had been standing aside, approached me as I fumbled around amidst the 152 crayons.
Now that I think about it, doesn’t Betty know Dad better than I do?
“Does Dad like anything in particular?”
“Well… Master doesn’t usually express strong preferences for anything…”
At least he’s not the type to complain about food.
That’s a pass.
“Oh, but he really dislikes the Duke… No, wait! Madam! Master is very fond of her!”
But Mom is gone.
Betty seemed to realize she had said the wrong thing while trying to change the subject. She bit her lip, looking slightly flustered.
So Dad dislikes Grandpa but loved Mom.
…That’s a bit unfortunate.
Betty observed my expression and tried hard to lighten the mood.
“O-Of course, Master also loves the two young masters and you very much.”
So Dad loves Mom, and he loves us siblings.
Hmm.
I hesitated for a moment before picking up a black crayon.
‘Dietrich has black hair and golden eyes.’
After getting scolded by the nanny and having his snacks taken away, his chubby cheeks had slimmed down a bit, and he had grown taller.
It felt like my perspective had changed somehow.
Since Dietrich always walked around with a mischievous smile, I made sure to draw his lips curved upward as much as possible.
“Are you drawing your father, young miss?”
“No, this is Dietrich.”
“The 2nd young master, then. The young master resembles your father very much. Both your father and the young master have the same hair and eye colors.”
Then should I draw Dad with the same colors as Dietrich?
According to Laura, Dad is taller and more robust than Ralph, so I drew him big enough to fill the left side of the paper.
“What about Mom? What does she look like?”
“Your mother looked just like you, my lady. She had beautiful pink hair and bright blue eyes.”
I switched to a pink crayon and drew myself and Mom together.
I made myself small and Mom big.
Since I didn’t know what her face looked like, I tried to make her resemble me as much as possible.
After filling in the drawing, the right side felt a bit empty.
Apparently, besides Dietrich, I have another older brother.
Unlike Dietrich and me, he lives at the main house, so I’ve never seen him—Erich Callenberg.
“How should I draw Erich?”
“Are you referring to the eldest young master? I’ve heard he has black hair like your father and blue eyes like your mother.”
“Betty, have you never seen him?”
“No, unfortunately not.”
Anyway, I suppose I’ll draw him as a mix of both Mom and Dad.
I sketched Erich slightly larger than Dietrich, even though I’d never seen him before.
After drawing all five members of my family, the not-so-small piece of stationery was completely filled.
‘This reminds me of my elementary school days.’
Back then, I hated art class because I had no family to include in my family drawings.
I liked the director and my friends at the orphanage, but they felt different from the family that other kids talked about.
I stared at the stationery for a while.
For today, I didn’t particularly dislike the time spent drawing my family.
‘Our family.’
The words were so unfamiliar that I couldn’t bring myself to say them aloud, only repeating them silently in my heart.
“I’ll wrap it in cloth, place it in an envelope, and make sure to deliver it to the Master.”
“Okay.”
Betty hugged me tightly once before carefully wrapping the drawing in a clean cloth.
Shaking off my sentimental feelings, I turned my gaze toward the window.
Through the butler’s office window, I could see the back of the butler seated at his desk.
‘Huh? It looks like he just got up?’
As the butler stood up and unlatched the window, I quickly hid in the shadows of the curtains.
Thanks to my room being slightly higher up, I could look down at the butler without him being able to see me clearly.
The butler glanced around a few times before extending his fist into the air.
‘It looks like he’s holding something.’
Just as I was about to press closer to the window for a better look, a gray bird, seemingly thrown by the butler, took off vigorously into the sky.
It flew away so quickly that I couldn’t properly see what kind of bird it was.
Still, it was most likely the pigeon I saw earlier, wasn’t it?
To anyone watching, it looked like he was secretly sending something.
“Are you watching the scenery outside? You shouldn’t lean too close to the window; it might be dangerous, young miss.”
I had seen everything I needed to.
Without hesitation, I stepped out from behind the curtains.
***
For days, I kept guessing what might have been in the letter the butler sent, but I couldn’t come to any conclusions.
I couldn’t even figure out who it was sent to.
I speculated everything from reporting our activities to Grandfather to possibly having a hidden family in the duchy, but without an answer, all my guesses were just fantasies.
‘Surely, he isn’t conspiring to steal like that previous servant, is he?’
Having experienced both lone thieves and groups of accomplices, that part worried me the most.
‘During the last incident with the thief, the old butler was badly injured…’
Hmm.
Something warm seemed to rise inside my throat, and I had to pause for a moment to calm down.
“I’ve never stolen anything in my life!”
Huh? Did I accidentally say my thoughts out loud?
Startled, I covered my mouth and peeked toward where the voice came from.
The sound came from… over by Dietrich’s bedroom?
Why does this house never have a peaceful day?
“The young master’s pocket watch, which was claimed to be lost, was found in your room. Do you still plan to lie?”
“I have no idea why the pocket watch ended up in my room, but I swear I didn’t steal it!”
“So, are you saying the pocket watch just magically ended up in your room?”
The questioning voice belonged to the butler.
Even the security guards sent from the main house had been summoned.
The man, restrained by the guards and forced to kneel on the ground, was a familiar face to me.
His name was Zeke. He worked in the kitchen and held the position of sous-chef.
Zeke, who could be considered the second-in-command of our household kitchen, was usually reserved and stoic.
But now, his neck veins bulged as he protested vehemently.
“Wait a second. The baby’s here.”
I tried to slip into the group as quietly as possible, but Dietrich spotted me immediately.
Dietrich grabbed my hand and stood in front of me, shielding me.
Peeking out from behind him, I saw the butler and other employees from the main house giving me haughty nods of acknowledgment.
“What’s going on? What’s wrong? Why is Zeke like that?”
“Well…”
Dietrich, who usually spoke frankly, hesitated awkwardly. His unclear response was interrupted by the butler, who stepped forward.
“The sous-chef has stolen the young master’s belongings, and we are discussing his punishment, young miss.”
“That’s not true! I’ve never seen that item until this morning!”
Zeke’s face was flushed to the point of almost bursting.
“The young master’s pocket watch seems to have gone missing last night. It was definitely there the day before. So, what were you doing last night?”
“Since I have to work during the day, isn’t it obvious that I’d be sleeping at night?”
“Do you have anyone who can vouch for you being asleep?”
“Well, no… I’m still unmarried… Ah! There’s Karl, the servant in the next room! He’s a night owl, so he would’ve noticed if I had been moving around!”
“Karl?”
“Yes! He’s a servant sent from the main house, so you must know him, Butler!”
“That’s problematic.”
The butler stroked his chin as if in thought.
“Karl requested leave last night. He said there was an urgent matter at home, so I let him go. He won’t be back for a month.”
“What… That’s so sudden…”
“I was told his younger sibling fell ill.”
Though Zeke continued to insist he hadn’t stolen anything, his confidence faltered without a witness to back him up.
