Cecilia silently gazed at the woman’s figure shimmering above the surface of the water.
Lustrous blonde hair and amber eyes—a presence that exuded not just beauty, but a sense of sanctity.
Cecilia Weberdin, the eldest daughter of the Weberdin family—the most sacred noble house in the empire—was called the “Saintess” of the empire, a title befitting her appearance and status.
This was why she wasn’t free to go out, why she stayed confined to the marquisate far from the capital, and why she was treated like delicate glass, lest she shatter.
However, no matter how noble her outer appearance as a saintess may be, on the inside, regrettably, she was someone who had grown up in 21st-century Korea, having seen all sorts of filthy things.
Brushing back her golden hair rippling in the water, Cecilia firmly shook her head.
“Melanie. You don’t understand. The true terror lies within me.”
“…Sorry?”
‘What I mean is, it’s a miracle I didn’t kidnap that man.’
TL/N: LMAO, SHE’S SO REAL FOR THAT.
She swallowed the words she couldn’t bring herself to say. She felt sorry for Melanie, who was only concerned for her, but she had every intention of getting closer to that ‘stranger’.
Preferably, in a very private and intimate way.
* * *
The next day.
Melanie, unable to shake her worries, kept nagging and expressing her concerns until Cecilia went to bed. So today, Cecilia was supposed to quietly rest in her room… Supposed to.
Cecilia, who had been waiting for a chance, threw off her loungewear the moment Melanie stepped out.
Then, as if she had noticed the temporary butler’s absence,, she grabbed the cat that was following her around and tucked it under her arm before rushing out of the room.
Thanks to her fluffy companion, perhaps, she made it to the wall with ease, retracing her memories along the way.
The only problem was…
‘What excuse should I use to barge into the neighbor’s house?’
The thought didn’t last long.
Because the little troublemaker, as if it had never been calmly nestled in her arms, suddenly scratched the back of her hand.
“Ah!”
Startled, she let go, and the cat landed swiftly on the ground. Then, as if to show off, it leisurely slipped through the pet hole.
‘Well, there’s no helping it.’
She had no choice but to go after it before it ruined someone else’s flowerbed again.
As if waiting for this moment, Cecilia compromised and went through the pet hole again.
From the hole’s entrance, the cat’s dainty footprints trailed off, only to stop abruptly on the lawn.
Just like yesterday, Cecilia crossed the lush, green lawn.
Beyond the long and tall hedge made of boxwood was the western garden.
‘I hope the cat isn’t destroying the flowerbed again.’
Worry struck her belatedly, and Cecilia quickened her pace slightly.
What she saw at the end of it was not the ruined garden of yesterday, but a flowerbed filled with white daisies.
The flowers swayed freely in the wind, looking just like the froth of waves.
And at the center of the fragrant spring breeze stood Rien, as if out of a dream.
Wearing a gloomy robe that didn’t match the scenery at all.
‘Shouldn’t he be standing here like a painting in a picturesque scene? And then the female lead falls for him all over again—that’s the cliché, isn’t it?’
As she stared, troubled by the flaw in an otherwise perfect scene, he also seemed to notice her and strode toward her.
“Lady Webberdin!”
As expected, he must have headed to the western garden. A bundle of white fur was in his arms.
“I’m sorry. The cat escaped again… It seems to like this garden. It didn’t damage anything again, did it?”
“No, not at all!”
He quickly shook his head when she asked with concern.
Only then did Cecilia’s face brighten with relief.
“That’s a relief. I was worried it might’ve caused trouble again like yesterday… Oh, and the garden looks even more beautiful than it did yesterday. It’s like magic!”
Cecilia clapped her hands together and praised it. Half was genuine, and half was a sly attempt to close the emotional distance.
But Rien flinched and lowered his head, as if he’d just been scolded instead.
“Th-Thank you.”
‘Hmm, that doesn’t seem like a shy reaction.’
Because of the robe, she couldn’t read his expression.
Tsk, Cecilia clicked her tongue inwardly.
Then, suddenly, Rien bent down and plucked a few daisies at his feet, holding them out to her.
“Here. I thought you might like daisies…”
Cecilia blankly stared at the unexpected gift.
She did prefer plain wildflowers that bloomed naturally over artificially cultivated ones.
But more surprising than the fact that he had guessed her taste correctly was that he had given her flowers at all.
‘Wait, is this… is he trying to date me?’
As she stared at the gift with a serious look, his hand began to tremble slightly.
“If-If you don’t like it…”
Realizing too late, Cecilia hurriedly took the flowers.
“No. I love them. Very, extremely, utterly love them!”
Clutching the fresh stems tightly, she blurted it out.
This time, perhaps he truly sensed her sincerity, because the faint curve of a smile appeared beneath the robe.
It must be a smile as beautiful as the flowers!
What a shame that a wretched piece of cloth was hiding his face.
‘Should I just pretend I don’t know and rip it off?’
As she seriously considered how to get rid of that rag, the smile on his lips disappeared in an instant—as if it had never been there.
“…Your hand.”
“Yes?”
“You’re hurt!”
Only then did Cecilia glance at the back of her hand.
The scratch from the cat’s claws was redder and more distinct than she had thought.
“Oh, it’s just a strong-willed little guy.”
She lightly tapped the cat’s nose as it yawned cluelessly and responded nonchalantly.
It stung, sure, but it wasn’t like her hand had been cut off—it was just a scratch.
But Rien looked more shocked than she was. He bit his lower lip and suddenly grabbed her hand.
The warmth of his hand covering the wound felt a little hotter than normal body temperature.
“Rien?”
At the unfamiliar sensation, she called his name, and Rien flinched, quickly pulling his hand away.
“I-I’m sorry. I was just startled…”
He seemed genuinely flustered, as though he had committed a grave offense, and led her to a log bench near the garden.
“Please wait here for just a moment. I’ll go get some medicine.”
“It’s just a scratch, you don’t have to—Rien!”
Before she could even finish her sentence, he hurriedly ran off.
Cecilia stared blankly at his receding back, then lowered her gaze to the back of her hand.
She wasn’t sure if it was just her imagination, but the pain was barely noticeable.
‘Is it because the wound is shallow?’
Just as she was about to dismiss the need for treatment, Rien, who had vanished in an instant, returned with astonishing speed.
He dropped a small glass bottle filled with liquid and some bandages in a clatter, then roughly sat down at her feet.
“Pardon me for a moment.”
Rien hesitantly took hold of her fingertips, opened the bottle containing a pink liquid, and poured it directly onto the wound.
Just like when he had grabbed her hand earlier, there was a warm sensation, and then the wound healed completely without a trace.
“Is this… a potion, by any chance?”
In this other world, there were general medicines prepared by pharmacists, but there were also “holy water” and “potions” that guaranteed immediate effects.
The former were usually made by priests, the latter by mages, and both were extremely expensive.
In short, they weren’t the kind of thing to be used on a mere scratch.
“There’s no healer at the mansion… I apologize.”
Perhaps interpreting her shocked question as criticism, his broad shoulders drooped.
Even after treating her, he still looked deflated, so Cecilia deliberately opened and closed her hand, as if to reassure him.
“See? Thanks to you, it doesn’t hurt at all anymore.”
“But still…”
“Come now, don’t sit there on the ground. Sit here.”
She took hold of his wrist, pulling him from where he sat at her feet and guided him to sit beside her.
After placing the warm cat on his grass-stained knees, Cecilia gently touched a bunch of fresh wildflowers and asked,
“Do you tend the garden yourself? Are you the gardener?”
She asked, wondering whether she should treat him as the gardener for now.
After hesitating for quite a while, he slowly nodded.
“Master!”
A large man in a tightly-fitted suit came rushing from the mansion.
From afar, he could have been mistaken for a knight — a butler with an imposing build.
The butler was holding several small bottles, presumably medicines, but upon noticing the guest next to his “master,” he froze in place.
“…Where did he go? Ha ha.”
Then, with an extremely awkward movement, he began to retreat.
Only after the butler disappeared beyond the building did Cecilia turn to look up at the man beside her.
Rien was so tense that even his breathing had become shallow.
‘At this rate, it’s hard to even pretend not to notice.’
“You’re a better liar than I thought. Master?”
“That’s not true!”
He leaned in quickly and shouted urgently.
So flustered was he that his whole body jolted, causing the startled cat to leap off his lap and the hem of his robe to flip back slightly.
“I-I had absolutely no intention of deceiving or tricking Lady Webberdin…!”
“Whoa, calm down. I’m not angry.”
Cecilia raised both hands in a calming gesture.
His purple eyes, now finally meeting hers, were darting around like a guilty child’s.
“But…”
“I mean it. Do I look like I’m angry?”
“…No.”
She had already realized he wasn’t just a gardener.
Someone with that face, a mere gardener?
In a romance fantasy world where appearance was proportional to power, that was unthinkable.
‘He must have had another reason to hide his identity.’
Still, he looked like he was carrying the weight of the world on his shoulders just for telling a simple lie.
As she quietly watched the man who still seemed at a loss, Cecilia suddenly came up with a brilliant idea.
* * * *
If you want to support the Translator, Translator’s Ko-Fi:
