“Would you like to take a look around the training grounds?”
Hubert, now much more polite, asked Hestia. Instead of replying, Hestia simply glanced around. She noticed the knights standing behind Hubert.
Three vice commanders stood behind him, and beyond them, the regular knights were lined up in perfect rows and columns.
The way they were looking at her had changed from just a moment ago.
‘Looks like this was the right move.’
If she hadn’t called out Hubert’s behavior, even the lower-ranking knights might have ended up ignoring her.
She didn’t mind if they didn’t pledge loyalty to her.
But if something important happened and they ignored her orders, acting independently, that would lead to serious trouble.
‘I can’t afford to let my guard down from now on…’
As she scanned the knights, Hestia suddenly stopped in her tracks.
Her body tensed, and she looked almost frightened.
One of the knights, who had made eye contact with her, asked cautiously,
“My lady?”
Hestia snapped back to reality. Everyone around her was giving her strange looks as if wondering what was wrong.
To regain control of the situation, Hestia asked the knight who had spoken, “What’s your name?”
“…It’s Lloyd.”
Lloyd. He was one of the vice commanders that Albert had mentioned earlier.
Hestia rubbed her neck and began looking more closely at the knights’ faces, one by one.
“…Lady Frost? Is something the matter?” Hubert approached and asked, causing Hestia to flinch slightly.
After a brief silence, she put on a blank expression, as if she had never been frightened in the first place.
“My apologies. Let’s continue the tour.”
Hestia moved away from Lloyd.
Once she had gone, the knights began murmuring amongst themselves.
“Lloyd, do you know Lady Frost?”
“No way. This is the first time I’ve seen her.”
“Then why did she act like that?”
“She seemed terrified, didn’t she?”
“Well, Lloyd is called a demon in the order…”
“You do train the knights in some pretty creative ways.”
Lloyd frowned at his laughing comrades.
‘There’s no mistake. I know that look.’
It was the same look he had seen in the eyes of enemies he had faced in battle.
A look of pure terror, as though they were staring death in the face.
But why would a noble lady he was meeting for the first time give him that look?
***
“This is where we store the weapons. We keep extra swords and spears here, just in case. And if you follow me this way…”
As Hestia followed the guides around the training grounds, she tried to calm her racing thoughts. Ever since earlier, her throat had felt tight, and it was hard to breathe.
Leonhard, who had been holding her hand and watching her closely, spoke cautiously.
“…Are you alright?”
“Sorry?”
“You seem uncomfortable. If you’re not feeling well, should we head back?”
Upon hearing this, Albert and Hubert, who were walking ahead, turned to look at her.
Realizing that she wasn’t in good shape, Hestia wiped her pale face with a shaky hand.
“…I’m sorry, but let’s save the tour for another time. I’m suddenly not feeling well.”
“No problem at all. Please visit again whenever it suits you.”
“Let’s get back to your room,” Leonhard said, gently guiding her as she struggled to walk.
As they left the training grounds, Hestia glanced back at Lloyd one more time, cold sweat running down the back of her neck.
‘I knew it.’
There were a few other faces she recognized as well.
The sensation of something tightening around her neck, even though nothing was there.
Even though it had been ten years, the memory was still clear.
The memory of her final moments before she returned to the past.
***
“Would you like me to bring you some tea, my Lady?”
Back in her room, Hestia collapsed onto the sofa, clutching her throbbing head.
Seeing how pale she looked, Leonhard didn’t know what to do.
“Are you sure you’re okay? Should I fetch a doctor?”
“No, I think I just overexerted myself. I’ll feel better after resting for a bit.”
“But—”
“You have lessons soon, don’t you?”
“Yes, you have lessons with your tutor soon,” Albert chimed in from behind.
“I can postpone the lesson,” Leonhard said, his face was sulky.
“You shouldn’t,” Leonhardt frowned but Hestia firmly stopped him.
“You’ve already postponed your lessons for several days because of the Duke’s affairs. You need to get back to your routine. If you start putting things off, it becomes a habit.”
“But you’re not well…”
Hestia understood that it wasn’t because Leonhard was trying to slack off. He simply wanted to stay and take care of her.
“I’m really fine. If my condition worsens, I’ll call for the doctor.”
In truth, she didn’t want him near her right now.
‘Even though it was someone else who swung the sword, it was Leonhard who gave the order.’
To be honest, whenever her eyes met with Leonhard’s red ones, flashes of the day she died would sometimes resurface, sending chills down her spine.
“Let Lady Frost rest, and we’ll take our leave,” Albert said, gently pulling at Leonhard’s reluctant hand.
Leonhard dragged his feet toward the door, but just before it closed, he turned to look back.
“I’ll come right after my lesson. Rest well.”
Hestia smiled and waved him off instead of replying.
As soon as Leonhard left and the door closed, she let out a deep sigh, burying her face in her hands and lowering her head.
Hilde, along with the newly assigned maids, Gemma and Karin, cautiously observed her.
“My Lady, would you like some tea?”
“Forget the tea. Bring me some cold water or something to drink.”
“Of course. I’ll prepare a light snack as well.”
Sensing that Hestia wasn’t feeling well, Hilda used refreshments as an excuse to leave the room with the other maids.
Finally, Hestia felt she could breathe and collapsed back onto the sofa.
“That’s right… Back then, they all called Leonhardt ‘Lord Duke,’ and they were dressed as knights.”
It was only natural for knights of the Duke’s house to be by Leonhardt’s side before her regression.
How could she have only realized that now?
“Lloyd, and six others.”
There were a total of seven knights who had captured her and her siblings.
She remembered at least seven faces.
“But something doesn’t add up. Leonhardt was supposedly killed in a staged accident before then.”
The reason Count Humphrey had acted like Winston belonged to him was because he believed that Leonhard was dead.
So the duke’s men should have also thought Leonhard was dead…
“Anyway, it’s true that they’re loyal to Leonhardt, who reclaimed the dukedom.”
Just thinking about Lloyd and the other knights sent chills down her spine and made her break into a cold sweat… but if she set aside her personal feelings, it also meant there was no one as trustworthy in this estate as they were.
“Looks like we have some orange juice and cookies.”
Hilde and the maids had returned.
Hilde cheerfully placed the refreshments in front of Hestia.
Hestia, who had been sitting on the sofa staring into space as if she was lost in thought, looked down at the delicious-looking cookies.
“Thank you, I’ll enjoy them.”
Seeing her smile as usual, the two maids who had just been assigned as her personal attendants silently breathed a sigh of relief.
‘She seems to be feeling better now, doesn’t she?’
‘We were worried about what would happen if she got upset.’
Although they were grateful that Hestia thought highly of them, they still found her a bit intimidating.
It was because of the rumors they had heard.
An 18-year-old girl from a branch family, newly appointed as the young lord’s guardian.
There were rumors that this young woman, barely an adult, wouldn’t be able to handle the duties of her position, let alone manage the household affairs.
Many worried that she was just a figurehead, and that her father, Derek, or the head butler, Albert, would be the ones running things behind the scenes. But contrary to these expectations, from the moment they met her, she had been far from ordinary.
Her charisma was of an experienced noblewoman, with a clear ability to separate personal and professional matters, along with a confidence that left no room for hesitation.
In all these aspects, she reminded people of the late Duke.
But with that came a sense of distance, leaving them unsure of how to interact with her.
They had assumed they wouldn’t be able to speak comfortably with her like before…
“Would you like some cookies too? There’s too much for me to eat alone.”
“…Pardon?”
“I regret not being able to talk properly earlier because there were so many people. By the way, what are your names?”
As she spoke to them in a friendly manner, like an old friend, the two maids were taken aback.
However, seeing Hilde naturally sit on the opposite sofa, they cautiously sat beside her.
“I’m Gemma.”
“I’m Karin, my lady.”
“Gemma, Karin. Got it. Neither of you looks very old, maybe mid-twenties?”
“Yes, that’s correct. We’re both 26 years old.”
“Hmm, that’s a good age.”
Is that something an 18-year-old would say?
“The truth is, I’ve been trying to act strong so people don’t underestimate me. Since I’m young, I was worried maybe they’d think I was just some clueless girl.”
“Ah…”
“I’ll keep acting this way because it’s necessary, but it does get exhausting. So, when it’s just us, I’d like to be a bit more relaxed.”
Momentarily caught off guard by Hestia’s sudden change, they sighed in relief.
It wasn’t a sudden change; this was her true self.
‘Come to think of it, even I had those same thoughts.’
‘If she didn’t act this way, people might secretly look down on her.’
Now, for the first time, the maids saw her as an 18-year-old girl, and they sympathized with the weight of the responsibilities on her shoulders.
“It’ll take some time for me to get used to life at the estate. When that happens, I hope you both can help me. Will you?”
The two exchanged glances and smiled.
“Of course. That’s our duty, after all.”
“We know it can’t be easy living here on your own. We’ll do our best to make sure you don’t feel too lonely.”
“Thank you. Even at my family’s home, I wasn’t very formal with the maids or servants. So, I hope you’ll take care of me. You can think of me as an older sister if it helps.”
“If that’s what you’d like, my lady.”
Though they didn’t cross any lines due to the difference in their positions, but the atmosphere had relaxed significantly compared to earlier.
Hestia chatted with them warmly and then cast a glance at Hilde.
Hilde quietly nodded in understanding and sipped her drink.
With an even deeper smile, Hestia continued her conversation with Gemma and Karin.
