Chapter 21
A faint blue dawn crept into Beth’s bedside.
Having tossed and turned all night without sleep, Beth’s eyes bore the marks of fatigue, darker than the light of dawn. Moving cautiously so as not to wake those who had worked the night shift, her footsteps were careful and deliberate.
In truth, there wasn’t much preparation to do.
Instead of the old nurse’s uniform she wore all the time, she was wearing a dull brown coat over an equally old one-piece dress. However, thanks to the neat owner’s personality, the clothes, although worn, were clean and had a faint scent of soap.
“Hmm, Beth… Where are you going?”
Dixie, who shared the bed next to hers, rubbed her eyes and asked. Beth paused what she was doing and quickly opened a notebook within reach.
[Sorry. I have to go out this morning.]
“Going out? Alone?”
Should she mention that she was going with Duke Debert Cliff?
Dixie, quick to catch on, didn’t miss the brief hesitation in Beth’s eyes. Suddenly, the sleepiness vanished from Dixie’s gaze, and her eyes narrowed suspiciously.
“What’s going on? That’s suspicious.”
Beth quickly waved her hands in denial. Rather than making up a lie and risking needless speculation, she decided it was better to tell the truth. After all, Dixie wouldn’t misunderstand her relationship with Duke Debert.
[I’m going with Duke Debert Cliff. The lady asked him to accompany me.]
“What? Debert?!”
Unfortunately, Beth still didn’t fully understand her friend. Dixie, who had been half asleep just moments ago, suddenly sat up straight.
Going out with Duke Debert? While Lady Molly occasionally permitted the nurses to get some fresh air, it had been a long time since that last happened. As the frontlines worsened, they had no choice but to remain isolated.
A strange gleam appeared in Dixie’s scarlet eyes, and Beth quickly scribbled with her pen.
[It’s work!]
Dixie barely glanced at the notebook and immediately began rummaging through the basket under her bed. The reason for the outing didn’t matter to her. It had been ages since something exciting happened, and she wasn’t about to let it slip by.
“It’s a date, it’s totally a date.”
Humming a tune, Dixie examined her clothes, and no matter how many times Beth shoved the notebook in her face, she only waved it away dismissively.
“Yeah, yeah. I get it. It’s work. I’ll pretend it’s work.”
Expensive clothes that seemed out of place on a shabby bed began to pile up.
Ines had once chided Dixie after seeing her luggage, asking, “Why on earth did you bring these?” But Dixie had always replied smartly, “They bring more peace to my mind than whisky.”
“Take that off right now.”
That’s why she brought them. With a satisfied smile, Dixie handed over a white silk dress. The white silk dress, adorned with lace embroidery on the chest, seemed like it would suit Beth perfectly.
Reluctantly, Beth gave in to Dixie’s insistence and changed into the dress.
The overly soft fabric felt strange. The silhouette that revealed her curves was also embarrassing.
“Hmm, you look too pale because you’re so fair. Try this on.”
This time, Dixie handed her a black velvet dress. Small silver jewels were embedded at the ends of the sleeves and collar like stars in the night sky. A silly thought crossed Beth’s mind—could these be real jewels? Given Dixie’s wealthy background as one of Wayne’s rising elites, it seemed entirely possible.
Beth fidgeted uncomfortably in the unfamiliar clothes.
“Perfect! I paid a fortune for this, but it’s absolutely made for you.”
Beth’s face flushed bright red as she caught a glimpse of herself in the mirror.
The dress, which came down below her knees, revealed her figure more than she expected, especially compared to the white dress she had just worn. If the white silk dress felt like a nun’s habit, this one was the opposite.
Beth quickly began unbuttoning the dress. How could she possibly meet him wearing something like this?
Dixie, however, looked disappointed.
“It’s so pretty, though. But I guess it’s a bit much for you. Then…”
The shabby nurse’s quarters had somehow transformed into a boutique from Wayne.
Dixie rummaged through the pile of clothes, searching for something else.
“This! This should fit you perfectly.”
The final dress she offered was similar to Beth’s nurse’s uniform but in a deeper shade of sky blue. The pearl buttons, neatly fastened up to the neck, complemented Beth’s delicate features.
“Goodness. Everything else was just a warm-up for this.”
Dixie clapped her hands silently in mock joy.
“It’s finally found its rightful owner. You should keep it.”
Startled by her words, Beth quickly began unbuttoning the dress. But Dixie sighed softly and gently rebuttoned it.
“I don’t like such modest clothes anyway. Aren’t we friends? Was that just in name only? Can’t a friend give another friend a gift like this?”
Dixie pouted dramatically. It was a playful cunning, knowing exactly where her friend’s weaknesses lay.
Seeing the troubled expression on Beth’s face, Dixie swiftly changed the subject.
“You’re not going to wear that dead oak of a coat over this, are you?”
She quickly snatched away the coat that had suddenly become a dead oak and handed Beth a navy cape coat instead. It was similar to the one Raphnel had worn a while ago.
“That rude princess wore something like this too. I bought it a year ago, and it’s still in fashion. I really do have an eye for these things.”
When Dixie pulled out Beth’s black hairpin, her ebony hair cascaded softly over her shoulders. Beth, finally giving up her stubbornness, allowed her friend to take over.
While Dixie was busy arranging her hair, Beth glanced down at her idle hands.
Sometimes, she felt a deep sense of helplessness at her inability to speak. Last night was one such moment.
In the middle of an unfamiliar barracks, darkness descended, obscuring everything around her, with no one to help. If only she had been able to scream.
She dug her nails into her opposite palm, leaving brief white marks that quickly faded back to normal.
No matter how many times she traced letters on the Duke’s rough hands, her delicate fingers left no trace, much like now.
Did he even know how much she resented that uncomprehending gaze, that indifferent face that seemed incapable of understanding her precarious feelings?
At that moment, she nearly shed a tear. Whether it was out of pity for herself or because of the bitterness in his eyes, she still couldn’t tell.
Lost in thought, Beth didn’t notice when Dixie finished with her hair and applied a soft shade of lipstick to her lips, giving her a touch of life.
One might wonder why she was bothering to dress up in a field hospital, but Beth had always dressed plainly, even shabbily, since her days in nursing school.
Dixie had often gifted her clothes, shoes, and accessories, but this impeccably proper young lady would always leave them behind in a corner of Dixie’s dormitory room.
It had always frustrated Dixie that she couldn’t do more to help Beth, who always seemed to be struggling.
Dixie, filled with satisfaction, handed a mirror to Beth.
Beth looked radiant, like a lily blooming in early winter.
“If I were Duke Debert, I’d propose to you today.”
Debert and a proposal?
The two words were such an odd combination that Beth couldn’t help but burst out laughing. It was the first time she had laughed since arriving at the front line.
At that very moment, Debert was already waiting outside the nurses’ quarters for Beth to come out. The same spot where he had stood last night, and the night before that, beneath the window.
The window was half open, as it had been when Debert arrived. He had come early and was simply waiting patiently. His sleepless eyes felt heavy.
He had stolen a sedative from the woman by deceiving her, so he had plenty to take as usual. As always, he would just wash it down with alcohol. There was no guilt in deceiving her.
And yet, somehow, he wondered if he might try to keep his word for just one day.
“I want to stop taking the medication.”
He couldn’t help but smirk at the smooth lie he had told.
A voice chattered through the open window. It couldn’t have been Beth’s.
How did she laugh, he wondered? Since she couldn’t speak, would her laughter be silent too?
Boredom led Debert’s mind to such useless questions.
If she were to disappear, would he even be able to find her?
He probably wouldn’t. After all, she was a woman who couldn’t make a sound.
If she were to hide somewhere deliberately.
If she were to disappear.
The thought once raised led to more questions.
Disappear. He mulled over the final question.
The field hospital was constantly changing people, unless someone had an extraordinary will, like Ines, who had come to endure hardships with her fiancé. Those who had arrived with Lady Molly had stayed longer than most.
But it wouldn’t have been strange if Beth had disappeared at any time.
She had endured more than her share of bad luck, so if she packed her bags and fled to Wayne one morning, everyone would likely understand.
“Oh! The Duke is here!”
The sound of footsteps on the stairs, which had so often irritated him, came through the thin door.
And soon, the woman who had been the subject of Debert’s thoughts appeared.
She peeked out the door, but someone must have pushed her from behind because she stumbled forward into Debert’s view.
Debert’s gaze slowly swept over Beth.
The saying that most men don’t notice small changes in a woman didn’t apply to him.
As the commander of the Imperial Army, observing, remembering, and identifying was his life’s work, and he noticed the difference in Beth as if he had a sixth sense.
Unlike usual, her hair, which was now loose around her shoulders, blew gently in the wind. The slightly wavy style made her slender figure stand out even more. Her lips, no longer stained with blood like when she was lying on the operating table, but warm and soft, also caught his eye.
Beth fidgeted with her fingers, feeling uneasy under Debert’s predatory gaze.
They were headed to a small village about half an hour away by carriage.
Though the village hadn’t been attacked yet, they needed to prepare for any eventuality. That’s why they weren’t wearing uniforms or nursing clothes. It was easier to pass unnoticed as civilians.
Perhaps that’s why Debert wasn’t wearing his usual uniform but instead a sharp leather coat typically worn by the nobility of Wayne, paired with shoes instead of military boots.
At that moment, he was no longer Commander Debert, but Duke Debert.
Even without knowing he was from the Cliff family, anyone seeing him would instinctively bow their head to him, such was the different kind of pressure he exuded when not dressed as a soldier.
He offered his arm, slightly bent.
Beth’s clear eyes filled with questions as they met his.
“May I have the honour of escorting you?”
“Have a great date,” Dixie whispered from behind the door, her voice lingering in Beth’s ears.
(T/L: I am so excited for the next chapter!!)
