Episode 67
Damian brought Lillian to the mansion where he resided.
Unlike at Fortier Manor, Damian was the only one living in the mansion owned by his family.
“Since I’m here anyway, feel free to make yourself comfortable. I’ll get the necessary things ready for you soon.”
“Thank you, Damian.”
Thinking that the house was really spacious to live in alone, Lillian looked around the familiar house. She had come a few times to meet Damian, but this place felt a bit desolate to be called a home.
“It feels like a cottage.”
It had the unique feeling of a house where no one lived. Was it because the house was too spacious and had too few servants?
In front of Lillian, who was seated in the living room, there were warm cups and fruits that could be easily picked up.
It was pomegranate.
“So, what happened? The esteemed young lady decides to run away.”
“…It’s not running away. It’s just time to leave.”
“Time to leave?”
Lillian, feeling hungry, spoke as she picked up a pomegranate seed and ate it.
“Dad brought in Odile Kenis. It might be for a short while, but if it’s really short, there’s no way he wouldn’t give her a room.”
“Are you thinking of letting her stay?”
“Yeah. But the problem is we couldn’t find a way to prove that she’s a fake. But I know for sure. The Temple is behind it.”
At Lillian’s words, Damian furrowed his brow.
“That doesn’t make sense. What’s the Temple doing?”
“I told you. They said the daughters of Moonlight are involved in this.”
“Again with that story?”
“It’s true! Lord Napier told me. The deceased Lady Maynard claimed in the temple that she was a daughter of Moonlight.”
Until she first heard the story, Lillian had thought she couldn’t be sure if Agnes was a daughter of Moonlight just by those words alone.
“But if the Temple is not only targeting Lady Maynard but also her daughter.”
The daughters of Moonlight are matrilineal kin, inheriting the traits of their lineage only from women. So if Agnes is a daughter of Moonlight, and the Temple is looking for the daughters of Moonlight for some reason.
“So, if they tried to take Agnes and her daughter, then all the stories fit.”
But even at Lillian’s words, Damian had a somewhat uneasy expression.
“I understand what you’re saying. But that’s the Countess’s affair, and we can’t definitively link it to the current situation.”
“No, it’s definite. There’s a connection.”
Lillian picked up another pomegranate seed. Perhaps because she was hungry, the pomegranate tasted extremely sweet.
“We just need to prove that Odile is a fake. Then I can reconcile with Dad, and with the Temple…”
With a thud, Lillian collapsed onto the sofa before she could finish her sentence. Judging by the deep, steady breaths, she seemed to have fallen into a deep sleep. Damian, still in the same posture as when he was talking to Lillian, watched her sleeping figure for a moment before approaching her. A satisfied smile crept onto his face.
“It’s better to be smart than stupid, Lily. Knowing too much can make you tired…”
Damian reached out to Lillian. His touch as he brushed her hair was gentle.
He gathered a handful of Lillian’s hair and lightly kissed it. Between the golden and brown strands, her hair looked soft and sweet.
Was it because of this? In Damian’s gaze as he looked down at the sleeping Lillian, there was an abundance of affection. It was akin to the gaze of someone admiring a masterpiece they had spent years creating. Indeed, considering the time and effort he had invested in winning Lillian over, it wasn’t much different.
Damian recalled the effort he had put into reaching this moment.
― Drive Lillian out of Maynard Manor. Then we can easily bring her here.
― We’ll set the stage. If Moonlight’s daughters could change their faces with divine power, why can’t we? We’ll make portraits following this one.
― If we can create convincing status and faces, it won’t be that difficult to extract Lillian.
Everyone said it was impossible, but in the end, he succeeded, and Lillian came to him.
‘Well, there were some variables.’
It was somewhat surprising that Lillian hadn’t accepted him until now.
After all, she had become such a kind and devoted friend.
And it was also surprising how much he had found out in a situation where no clues were given.
While he had hoped that Lillian would accept him and eventually reveal everything to her, she had ultimately refused him, and unfortunately, Damian had no choice but to resort to this method.
Fortunately, Lillian’s voluntary departure from the manor was lucky for him.
He gave a simple order to the maid.
“Noah, if someone from Maynard comes, tell them that Lillian doesn’t want to meet. Don’t tell her about it.”
“Yes, Your Grace.”
As the maid disappeared, he cautiously embraced Lillian and carried her to the bed he had given her, covering her with a blanket. His whisper as he lightly kissed her forehead was very affectionate.
“Have sweet dreams, Lily.”
We’ll soon be together.
* * *
The moment she found herself in a strange space, Lillian realized. This is a dream.
‘There are all kinds of dreams.’
Although she had heard of lucid dreaming, this was her first time experiencing it firsthand.
Lillian had always realized that it was a dream only after waking up.
And since Lillian’s dreams were usually based on her anxiety and memories, such a clear space was unprecedented.
There was no other way to describe the space where Lillian stood other than “strange.” There was no distinction between sky and ground, and no distinction between day and night. The space sometimes looked orange and sometimes looked purple, and it seemed both soft and hard.
‘So, it’s a dream, right?’
Above all, Lillian was in the form of a ten-year-old. The short hair and limbs felt awkward. Above all, the unfamiliar feeling of helplessness from her young body was the most strange. It was an uncomfortable dream.
Lillian took a step forward to wake up from the dream. Then, something familiar appeared.
“Lily!”
Surely not.
“…Swan?”
A lie.
Lillian almost blinked for a moment. But before she could wipe her eyes, Swan rushed over and embraced her, pulling her close. The weight of Swan’s embrace, the warmth, the sensation of her long hair brushing against her cheeks—everything was just as Lillian remembered.
“Swan…!”
Lillian hugged Swan tightly and burst into tears.
“Swan, I missed you so much. I’ve been really struggling. So, so difficult and lonely… I just… I just want to give up on everything…”
“Haha! Lily, you’re such a crybaby. Have you been through a lot?”
“Y-yeah… Sniff, sniff, I-I just… I just want to keep what you left for me, but to do that, I have to lie, and my dad only, only likes Odile, and he doesn’t, doesn’t believe me…!”
Because there were so many difficult things, Lillian’s words became a mixture of tears and sobs, losing coherence. Swan laughed at her and then hugged her tightly.
“Our Lily, you’ve gotten even more difficult since I last saw you.”
“S-sniff, don’t, don’t tease me…”
“I’m not teasing you. I mean you’ve become stronger, which means you can play pranks. That’s how much you’ve learned to trust other people. Thanks to that, I could rest easy.”
“I-I don’t understand…”
I became stronger, so you could rest easy? What does that mean?
Lillian blinked her wet eyes and murmured, but Swan just smiled and wiped away her tears with her sleeve. Just as Lillian was about to stop crying, Swan took her hands. A breeze brushed past Swan’s long hair.
“You know, Lily, you can do anything you want.”
“Huh?”
“If you just… realize it a little.”
“What? Say that again.”
Lillian didn’t hear properly because of the wind. Sensing the impending end, she hurriedly asked again, but instead of answering, Swan just smiled.
“I love you so much, Lily.”
You were the best thing I ever had.
