—
“Do you feel uncomfortable being with me?”
When Cedric asked indirectly, Julia quickly shook her head in surprise.
“Not at all. I just feel like you’re going through a lot of trouble because of me…”
“If that’s the only reason, then I think we can continue to be together, don’t you?”
“But…”
Julia looked at him with a slightly puzzled expression. She couldn’t gauge why he was doing so much for her.
“Please let me watch over you until you adapt to your new life.”
“…”
“It might seem presumptuous, but when I see you, I think of my old self.”
It wasn’t just because of Mateus’s request that Cedric had helped Julia until now.
Seeing her struggling to survive and escape from her past constantly reminded him of his own past.
Cedric was once a slave from a small country.
Born with rare and mysterious holy power, he was exploited from a young age for his master’s benefit.
In the dark and endless suffering, it was Mateus, his current mentor, who helped him escape.
Though their situations weren’t exactly the same, Cedric felt a deep connection with Julia from the beginning.
Just as he was saved by Mateus and found a life as a priest, he hoped she could find happiness with his humble help.
Cedric smiled gently at her.
“So please, don’t feel uncomfortable with me helping you.”
Cedric, who was tapping his chin thoughtfully, suddenly spoke up.
“You said you wanted to make friends. Will you consider me your first friend?”
“…”
Julia looked at him with wide eyes and then slowly smiled.
“Yes, I would like that.”
Julia, too, had felt an inexplicable closeness to Cedric from the start.
Maybe it was because she first met him when he looked like a child.
He was as refreshing as greenery. She had thought so before, but talking with him always made her feel at peace.
When he looked at Julia with soft eyes, she finally felt at ease and smiled back.
* * *
After a long journey, they arrived at the Holy Country, a place that exuded an old-fashioned yet grand feeling.
The architectural styles of the buildings everywhere revealed the deep history of a country that worshiped God.
While Julia was staring blankly at the monotonous streets, she felt a sudden throbbing in her chest and placed a hand over her heart.
In truth, she hadn’t been feeling well during the entire trip.
Despite having rested for quite some time at the monastery, she didn’t feel much better.
As she took a slow breath to calm herself, the carriage passed through the forest and entered the fortress.
They arrived in a village that had a distinctly rustic feel.
There were pastures with flocks of sheep and shallow streams flowing everywhere.
But what immediately caught Julia’s attention was the endlessly stretching grassland in the distance.
Her eyes began to sparkle as she stared blankly out the window, forgetting her pain.
She had never seen such a peaceful and beautiful landscape in her life.
As the carriage continued to travel along the field covered with greenery, it soon stopped in front of a large stone building.
Their destination was Yendrika Monastery.
The first thing that caught her eye was the sight of children laughing and playing in the small front yard.
“Julia, you can get out now.”
Cedric, who opened the door, gave her a small smile. Julia got off the carriage with a trembling heart.
As soon as she got off the carriage, a middle-aged woman standing in the yard warmly welcomed them.
“Oh my, you must have had a hard journey!”
“It’s been a long time, Gabriel. How have you been?”
Cedric grasped the woman’s hand with a delighted expression. Gabriel was a long-time administrator at the monastery.
The monastery was primarily a place where priests lived together, but it also served as an orphanage.
Gabriel was someone who took in and cared for children with nowhere else to go.
She was like a parent to Cedric as well, according to what Julia had heard on the way.
“Uh… hello.”
Julia, who had been hesitating, cautiously greeted Gabriel. Gabriel let out a belated “Oh my!” and grabbed Julia’s hand.
“You’re Julia, right? I heard about you from Mateus in a letter.”
“Yes, I’ll be staying here for a while.”
“Stay here? Think of it as your home and feel comfortable. You’ve had a hard time, haven’t you?”
Warm eyes. A voice as warm as those eyes. Gabriel’s kind gaze made Julia lower her head unconsciously. She felt like she was going to cry.
“Yes, I understand without you saying it.”
Gabriel gently patted the back of Julia’s small hand.
Most of the children at this monastery had been abandoned or suffered abuse.
To Gabriel, who had long cared for such children, someone’s pain was very apparent.
To her, Julia was just a very young and wounded child.
“From now on, only good days will come. Okay? Just think about being happy.”
Julia nodded, lifting her reddened eyes. Gabriel’s words spread like magic in her mind.
Only good days will come. You can be happy. For the first time, she felt a sense of certainty in her usually unstable heart.
“Who is she?”
At that moment, a child tugged at Gabriel’s clothes and asked. The child’s curious yet wary eyes were fixed on Julia.
“She’s the sister who will be staying with us, Theo. Now, say hello to her.”
“…”
The child named Theo hesitated before hiding behind Gabriel.
“The children here are still a bit wary of strangers.”
Gabriel whispered in a small voice. Julia bent her knees to be at Theo’s eye level.
“Hello, Theo? I’m Julia.”
“…”
“Nice to meet you.”
When Julia smiled reassuringly, Theo blinked his big eyes and moved his small lips before completely hiding behind Gabriel.
Julia slowly stood up. She felt that both she and the children would need time to get used to each other.
After moving to her assigned room, Julia unpacked and sat on the bed for a while.
It was a cozy and tidy room, small but sufficient for one person.
From the window, she could see a small backyard. In one corner of the yard, spring flowers were blooming beautifully.
Julia approached the window and looked at the flower bed with an excited expression.
In the center of the flower bed, her favorite white lily of the valley was blooming abundantly.
The flowers swayed gently in the wind, as if welcoming her new beginning.
Life at the monastery flowed smoothly.
The village where Julia stayed was one of the most remote and quiet territories in the Holy Country.
The south was covered with vast grasslands, and the north was surrounded by mountains that marked the border with another country.
There was almost no interaction with other regions, so a peaceful and leisurely atmosphere prevailed.
The unfamiliar peace that she had never felt in the Empire came to her daily.
It didn’t take long for Julia to fall in love with this village.
During her stay, she helped Gabriel take care of the children at the monastery.
Initially, the children were wary of her, but they gradually opened up to her kind demeanor.
“Wow!”
Julia smiled softly as she watched the children run and play among the swaying grass.
It was a blue and serene day, perfect for the end of spring.
“Julia!”
At that moment, a little girl with an adorably tied-up hair ran towards Julia. The girl’s name was Rosemary.
Rosemary was an active child who had been particularly comfortable around Julia since their first meeting.
“This is for you, Julia!”
Rosemary grabbed Julia’s hand and pulled it. When she looked to see what the child was doing, the girl slipped a flower ring made with her small hands onto Julia’s finger.
The ring, clumsily made by the child’s little hands, was a mess, but Julia stroked Rosemary’s hair with a delighted face.
“Thank you, Rose. It’s really beautiful.”
“Hehe!”
Rosemary’s eyes sparkled as she looked at Julia, who was happily gazing at the cute flower ring.
“You know, I’m going to marry a prince later! I’ll wear a pretty dress in a big palace, and I want shiny jewelry too!”
“Then you can be a princess, Rose.”
Julia nodded in agreement, brushing aside the child’s disheveled hair. Rosemary looked at Julia intently and asked,
“Who will Julia marry?”
Julia, taken aback by the sudden question, widened her eyes and couldn’t answer immediately.
After a moment of hesitation, she casually replied,
“Well… I’m not sure. Who would be good?”
“Julia should marry a prince too! Let’s be princesses together!”
Julia just smiled softly at the cheerful Rosemary.
After chattering for a while, Rosemary ran off to join the other children.
Julia watched her quietly, then lowered her gaze with a subtle expression.
Sometimes, when moments like these brought back memories of the past, she didn’t know what to feel.
It had only been one season, but it felt like a long-forgotten memory.
Was it because she was satisfied with life here?
Or was it because she desperately wanted to forget the past?
However, when she couldn’t help but recall those memories, it brought back other memories as well.
The first person to come to mind, naturally, was Fernan.
‘I’ll probably keep thinking of him for a while.’
She had loved him sincerely, so she wouldn’t forget him for a long time.
Julia, who had been lost in thought, turned her gaze to the meadow beyond. This place was now her home, her life.
One day, she hoped that recalling the past wouldn’t affect her anymore.
🥰✨