Chapter 20
Barath pestered Zart until dawn to give him the report he’d been putting off.
He told him that things were going well without him, but he couldn’t even find the main temple.
He laughed at the obvious and stayed up all night reading the report.
When he returned from his early morning workout, he was still in his office with a big smile on his face, and he had to listen to his voice until lunchtime.
His liver must have grown.
When Zart finally left and he was left alone, Barath casually opened the window and sat down next to him.
It had become a favorite pastime to sit like this and close his eyes when he had time to spare.
If he is lucky, he can hear her laugh, but usually he hears the rustle of her clothes as she walks.
Soon he started to hear the rustling of the moon. She must have started eating.
From where he was, he could see through the ceiling to Selene’s window table. She was probably relaxing there right now.
The curtains moved slowly in the breeze that blew in through the window, and the corners of Barath’s mouth, still closed and focused solely on his hearing, curved up in an arc.
Selene thought of the countless romantic comedies and dramas she’d seen and picked out the cutest heroine.
Imitating the actress wasn’t going to help her in the long run, and she’d be better off trying to mimic the charm that came from it.
As she was picking out a few of the types of endearments she thought she could try more easily, Anna came along.
Knock.
“Anna.”
There were two people entering the room. Anna turned slightly and pointed to the woman behind her.
“This is Methyle Augustus, Viscount Augustus, who has served the Grand Duchess for generations.”
Methyle bowed gracefully, bending her legs and head. The movement was so graceful that the hem of her dress folded with her posture.
Watching, Anna turned her attention back to Selene.
“She is a lady of good manners and a hard heart. I thought you might like to have her as a maid, so I brought her here.”
Zart’s sister, Methyle, was the young lady who had originally been chosen to be the Grand Duchess’s handmaiden. But a few months ago, she became very ill, and has been convalescing ever since, unable to enter the castle in time.
Fortunately, she had recently recovered from a near-death experience, and now Anna was able to bring her back to claim her promised place.
Anna watched the Grand Duchess’s expression carefully. It didn’t matter how trustworthy the child was if she didn’t like her.
The Grand Duchess didn’t look happy, but she nodded without comment, which was a relief. On the other hand, she felt bad for her.
She hadn’t asked for anything since she came to this castle.
She hadn’t complained about the simple meals and unglamorous clothing, and she hadn’t demanded that the worn tables in the corridor be replaced.
At most, she had asked to go out. A few coins from the Grand Duchess’s coffers.
It would be one thing if it were a woman who had an ulterior motive, but even this seemingly innocent and unadulterated duchess was worrisome in a way.
Anna expected the Empress to arrive as early as tonight, and no later than tomorrow.
The Empress may think she and the Grand Duke had married quietly and on paper, but there was no way the empress would not know. If she knew, she would of course come to see who it was that had married her brother.
Anna hadn’t told anyone yet, for there had been no letter or messenger, but she was sure that her favorite friend in the world would be at Velias Castle by tomorrow.
The Empress is the most precious woman in the Empire, a woman who has lived a life where she has never had to hide her feelings.
But how would she react to a woman who was born out of wedlock and rose through the ranks of the nobility to become the wife of her only brother?
Anna hid her worries as she looked at the Grand Duchess, who seemed to have a very kind heart.
The Empress was not the kind of person who would dismiss her brother’s wife because she didn’t like her, but she was also not the kind of person who would say the right things to please others.
***
Methyle followed Selene out into the corridor to get some sun.
She set the table and made tea, just as Anna had done.
Selene watched her closely as she sipped her tea in a somewhat distant manner.
Methyle Augustus was beautiful, with light skin, large, clear eyes, and delicate pink cheeks. Her full lips were red and full of fluffy fuzz, making her look very youthful.
She looked exactly how she’d pictured her this morning, exactly how she’d thought she would look with Barath.
The word cuddly suited Methyle, not her at all.
Barath’s shadow fell over Selene, who fidgeted with her goblet in her hand, unnecessarily giddy.
When he sat down across from the Grand Duchess, Methyle seemed a little hesitant, but then she began to stir the tea.
Selene could tell by the slight creaking motion that she was nervous now.
It was not unreasonable.
It was natural to be nervous in the presence of such a handsome man.
Just like she was.
For some reason, Selene’s gaze kept drifting downward.
She felt silly for practising her wink so hard on herself.
How unattractive it is when you’re both adults and married, but nothing happens.
She wonder if she thinks it’s cute when he winks at her out of the blue.
He’s lucky she doesn’t run away from him.
To Selene, the maid who shyly served us tea, visibly nervous, looked a hundred times cuter than she was.
She swallowed back a bitter laugh, feeling a sudden pang of melancholy that she hadn’t recognized until yesterday as anything but an excuse to avoid bed.
Barath followed Selene as soon as she appeared in the corridor.
He’d only seen her briefly yesterday, so he thought he’d ask her to dinner tonight, and if she refused, he’d have a bottle of low-proof champagne ready to lure her in with alcohol.
Sitting across from him, half worried, half excited, Barath looked at Selene, who kept avoiding his gaze, and wondered what else he had done wrong.
His throat burned at the thought of her not looking at him.
He glared at Selene and reached for the teacup in front of him. Then her eyelashes seemed to flutter.
He felt a strange sensation and dropped his hand from the cup and crossed his arms.
Then Selene’s eyelashes seemed to stop moving.
He watched, and when he picked up the cup again, Selene’s eyelashes immediately vibrated, and when he put it back down, they were fine.
… I don’t know what it was, but I felt like I was better off not drinking the tea.
Pushing the teacup aside, he waved his hand at the maid standing beside him, who, still terrified of the Grand Duke, bowed gratefully and fled.
As he watched Selene across from him, she seemed to be thinking to herself.
She dropped her head sullenly, her lips pouted, her eyes twitched, one eyebrow furrowed, and the corners of her eyes drooped as if she were about to cry.
It was funny and cute how her facial expressions changed all the time.
Barath snorted involuntarily, then stopped short when he realized what she was doing.
He coughed, cleared his throat, and knocked on the table.
Tok. After two taps, Selene peeked her head up, and he suggested.
“Why don’t you join me for dinner tonight?”
She blinked a few times, then nodded.
“Sounds good.”
Barath felt a flicker of pleasure at the affirmative answer, easier than he’d expected.
He hadn’t used the champagne he’d prepared as a weapon yet, so if she refused, he might ask her to take a walk and have a glass of bubbly.
Maybe she’ll agree.
He didn’t realize that what he was thinking was wrong.
Selene decided to get her head straight.
She searched for the source of her envy of a woman who was prettier than she was, and found that it was really just a desire to have Barath’ attention all to herself.
Once she realized what she was thinking, it opened her eyes a bit. There are so many girls in the world who are prettier than her.
If she were to become mentally weak every time she saw them, she would lose all her hair from stress.
She was already married and had a one-night stand.
After brainwashing herself into thinking that this was enough, Selene decided to stay true to her heart by remembering the phrase, “If I can’t have it, I’ll have it.
She didn’t seem to realize that her idea was subtly strange.
Having made up her mind, she wanted to spend more time with him, so she put on her best confident voice and asked.
“I was wondering if you’d like to show me around?”
Her voice sounded curious, but she was nervous that he would say no. After what seemed like an eternity of waiting for an answer, she saw his face slowly nod.
His red eyes, as intense as ever, seemed mysterious, and the corners of his mouth seemed to lift for some reason.
No matter how many times she blinked and looked again and again, a smile seemed to form on his face.
Selene thought he had a very nice smile, and she felt herself blushing and excited.
She avoided eye contact and played with her hair, as if he must know how she felt, but he came closer and reached out his hand.
Feeling flattered by his casual gesture, Selene took his hand with all the air of an elegant and sophisticated lady.
It felt good somehow.
She had the odd delusion that she could melt him with a practiced wink.
As Selene’s eyes met his as she took his hand, Barath had a giddy experience.
Her eyes, which he had always thought of as innocent as a child’s and cute as a bunny’s, suddenly changed.
He felt a chill run down his spine and the hairs on his back stand on end at the sight of those piercing eyes. His jaw twitched with effort.
She rose to her feet, hand in hand, her other hand resting on his forearm in a gesture of support. Selene handled his other arm as if it were her own.
It wasn’t really hers, but it felt that way to Barath.
He moved his arm in an awkward motion, like it was trying to attach itself to me but wasn’t really mine.
He tried to remember what it was like to walk naturally after lowering his arms to match her height, but he couldn’t remember.
His nerves were all on the arm that was touching her.
