The person who saw Lynn’s hair looked surprised. She looked around in confusion. Unfamiliar men were standing beside Paul and Bestie all staring at her.
A sense of unfamiliar unease quickly spread through her body. A voice in her head urged her to run away, but her body wouldn’t listen.
‘Run away. Quickly!’
Though someone in her mind kept warning her, her feet glued to the ground. She couldn’t decipher any kindness in the gazes fixed upon her.
Approaching Paul, Lynn cautiously retrieved her hat. With eyes full of fear, she quickly put the hat back on while scanning her surroundings.
“W-what’s going on?”
“Come here, Lynn.”
She looked at Paul, who was addressing her gently with awkward eyes. Paul had never called her like that before.
Looking back and forth between Bestie and Paul with a puzzled expression, she couldn’t find any clue to the sudden situation. Lynn’s eyes darted around anxiously.
“Is this the one?”
The man in black clothes asked, and Paul nodded nervously in response.
“Oh, yes, yes. She is the one that Nari is looking for. Wait, when did you put on your hat? Take it off, quickly!”
“…What?”
She blinked in surprise. At her reaction, Bestie snapped impatiently.
“Didn’t you hear? I said take off the hat.”
“However…”
“Oh, for heaven’s sake. How frustrating.”
As Lynn hesitated with an uneasy expression, Bestie, who had come closer, swiftly snatched her hat off. It all happened so quickly that Lynn couldn’t stop it.
Her beautifully arranged silver hair spilled over her shoulders, hidden under the hat until now. A small sigh escaped the lips of the people looking at her simultaneously. It was embarrassing and bewildering to expose her hair in front of everyone.
“Is it her, Nari?”
When Paul asked eagerly, the man in black nodded his head. Startled, Lynn tried to hide her hair back under the hat, but it was too late after people had already seen it.
“So, as you said… Will there be compensation?”
Instead of answering Paul’s question, the man tossed a small pouch onto the ground.
Clang!
Paul’s face lit up as the coins in the pouch hit the ground loudly. Despite the man’s attitude being rather unpleasant, Paul showed no reaction.
Bending down to pick up the pouch, Paul immediately opened it to check its contents. The man, ignoring Paul’s movements, glanced briefly at Lynn before leaving the inn with the people he had brought.
“Oh, thank you. Nari. Lynn. Quickly, follow Nari.”
“…Yes?”
Paul’s words confused to spread across Lynn’s face. It was utterly incomprehensible that she was told to follow the unfamiliar man standing before her.
“Sir?”
“What are you doing? Hurry up, follow him.”
“What do you mean?”
Her voice began to tremble with moisture. Paul, looking at Lynn with disdain, clicked his tongue.
“You’re acting like a foolish girl. From now on, that person is your master.”
“What?”
“The owner has changed. You fool.”
It was only after hearing Bestie’s words that Lynn realized what had happened to her was indeed real. Paul had sold her to a stranger who didn’t know her.
Terrified, she fell to her knees, clutching onto Paul’s trouser leg, begging desperately.
“Sir, I’ll do my best at anything. Please don’t send me away.”
Despite her pleas, Paul didn’t even bat an eyelid. As Lynn’s voice grew louder in desperation, he grew irritated.
“Ugh, you’re making so much noise. I told you to get out. The nobleman bought you, not me. It’s none of my concern. Hurry up and leave. You might end up angering the nobleman. I don’t want any trouble coming my way.”
“Please, sir.”
Lin looked at Paul with pleading eyes, but it was in vain. Despite several attempts to push her away by kicking, Lin’s tenacity made it difficult for Paul to shake her off. Soon, Paul’s face was filled with irritation.
“This girl!”
Unable to bear it any longer, Paul forcefully kicked Lin’s arm that was holding onto his leg. Then, as if he couldn’t stand the sight anymore, he moved away. Seeing Lin being ridiculed and crying, Beshti, observing everything, laughed mockingly.
“There you go. Didn’t I tell you? Your hair is causing trouble. I told you to hide it well. Look at you, Lin, feeling pitiful. Go and serve the old lady well. Who knows? Maybe you’ll end up in the government of some old noble. Oh my, if that happens, don’t forget about me.”
Listening to Beshti’s words, Lin could understand. No matter how much she cried and clung on, this situation wouldn’t change. As always, she decided to accept the current situation passively.
Stopping her tears, Lin stood up from her spot, brushed off the dust from her skirt, and wiped away the tears on her cheeks with the back of her hand. Suddenly changing her attitude, Lin appeared strange, earning a puzzled look from Beshti.
Ignoring Beshti’s gaze, Lin raised her hand to tidy her hair once again before walking out the door. As she stepped outside, she saw the man she had seen earlier waiting by the carriage.
“Let’s go.”
The man waited until she got into the carriage before joining her. Soon after the two of them boarded, the carriage departed.
At the age of twelve, she was young but old enough to understand that unexpected things happen. Though her heart was pounding with anxiety and fear, she tried her best not to show it. Thinking that life wouldn’t be much different from staying at the inn, she gradually calmed down. She wondered if anything could be worse than being punished by Paul.
Lost in thought for a moment, Lin cautiously asked the man sitting across from her, “What will I be doing? Sir?”
Her tone, quite different from the bright red eyes that had been crying just a moment ago, sounded dull. The man seemed puzzled by Lin’s response and hesitated for a moment before slowly parting his lips.
“You’ll be serving the young lady.”
“Young lady?”
Her expression relaxed considerably at the words spoken by the man. Worried about being sold off as an old noble’s concubine, as Beshti had warned, she was relieved that it wasn’t the case.
Grateful for her stroke of luck amidst misfortune, she listened as the man’s voice continued in her ears, “Is she the master’s daughter?”
In response to Lin’s question, the man smiled silently.
“I haven’t introduced myself, have I? I am Marvin, the steward of Duke Elrufus’s estate. So, Miss Elizabeth is not my daughter but rather my master.”
Lin nodded at Marvin’s explanation.
“Your job at the Duke’s estate will be to accompany the young lady.”
“Yes.”
“It would be best not to upset her. You must be very careful because she has a sensitive and irritable temperament.”
Lin smiled silently at Marvin’s face. It wasn’t much of a problem. She had been living by Beshti’s side, enduring her irritability and tantrums whenever she got the chance.
As Marvin continued to stare at her face, he spoke again.
“There will also be things you need to do in place of the young lady, and you may be busy all day.”
“May I ask what things I need to do in place of the young lady?”
As Lin cautiously asked her question, Marvin hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Things that the young lady cannot do, given her status.”
With that remark, the two of them ceased their conversation.
The Duke’s estate was quite a distance from the inn on the outskirts of the capital. Lin couldn’t help but think that she wouldn’t accidentally run into Beshti and Paul if she didn’t make an effort.
She felt regretful for not bidding farewell to Minos. Would he worry about her sudden disappearance? She was worried.
Yet, she also felt a mix of fear and anticipation about the new environment she was about to enter. As she gazed out the window Lin’s face betrayed a hint of fear and excitement.
* * *
“Oh my, why are you so thin? How am I supposed to dress you up for the young lady like this?”
Mrs. Julie scolded Lin as she wiped her body and clicked her tongue. As soon as they arrived at the Duke’s estate, Marvin handed her over to Mrs. Julie, a skilled maid, and then disappeared somewhere.
Julie, startled by the grandeur of the Duke’s estate, grabbed Lin, who stood there dazedly with her eyes rolling around, and led her somewhere.
Then, before seeing Miss Elizabeth, Julie insisted that Lin needed to be thoroughly cleaned and began to undress her baggy clothes. Lin, flustered, tried to block Julie’s strong hands in any way she could, but to no avail.
Suddenly finding herself naked and flustered, Lin crouched down, unsure of what to do.
Approaching closely, Julie picked her up and placed her in the bathtub, starting to wash her. During her time at the inn, Lynn had tried to keep herself clean, but thorough washing with cold water was challenging.
Under Julie’s firm touch, Lin began to feel cleaner.
“Oh my, now you look presentable.”
Julie wiped the sweat from her forehead with relief after finishing the bath. Lin was then dressed in clothes provided by Julie and once again dragged somewhere.
“Come on, eat. You’re so skinny, tsk tsk.”
Julie sat her down in one corner of the busy kitchen, handing her warm soup, bread, and fresh fruit.
It had been a long time since someone prepared food for her, and seeing the food made her feel very hungry.
As she hurriedly ate, Julie began to click her tongue again.
“Tsk tsk. You need to be fed while giving you work to do.”
“…Thank you.”
When Lin had eaten halfway through her meal, she cautiously greeted Julie. Julie smiled warmly and gently stroked her slightly damp hair.
“Remember, if you ever get hungry, come find Julie. I’ll give you anything you want. You need to eat a lot.”
Watching Julie’s smiling face, Lin began to harbor a glimmer of hope that life at the Duke’s estate might not be as bad as she had feared.
