Chapter 27
Barath had been thinking about Selene the whole time he stood in the cold water, so he could feel her creeping towards the door.
The minutes of cold water didn’t calm him down as much as he’d hoped.
No matter how he thought about it, the witch’s purpose was to shut him up and kill him. It was a strangling sensation, like a new kind of torture.
Barath shut off the water and swept his hair back with both hands. The cold water didn’t help much.
He frowned, beginning to get annoyed with his condition. He didn’t want to face her in this state, so he pulled on his robe in very slow motion.
That’s when he heard Selene’s trembling voice outside the door.
“You’re still there, aren’t you?”
He laughed at how shaky her voice sounded, like a goat.
Surely he had just been annoyed?
Something flashed through his baby goat brain.
She was the one who had followed him out of bed yesterday morning, asking where he was going.
He took a moment to recall her behaviour and smirked.
He must have been really mean to her, because he laughed again as he understood her behavior.
Gone was the Barath who had tried to comfort her when she burst into tears.
He was already looking forward to tonight.
He grabbed the doorknob of the bathroom, feigning nonchalance. The prospect of facing her in his robe after the shower was so unusually intimate that he was nervous, but he didn’t hate the feeling.
Barath opened the door, expecting Selene to blush, and almost slammed it back shut in surprise.
There she was, crouching right in front of him, being the coward that she was.
He had to look down for a long time to see her head, which was now glued to the floor.
When she saw him coming out, she freaked out and buried her face in her hands. She’s curled up in a ball like a hedgehog, so he can see how small she is.
When she wasn’t looking, he smiled to himself and went to find his clothes and put them on.
When the sun came up and Anna came to visit, Selene fled from his room like a runaway.
Barath was left alone in the empty room and glanced around at the spot she had left.
The bed lying haphazardly in front of the fireplace and the haphazardly pressed and dishevelled bedding were the only signs that she had been here.
He lay sprawled on the bed where he had laid Selene, and he could smell the faint scent of sugar, not as much from her.
Closing his eyes and taking a deep breath, he hesitated for a moment, his face flushed.
He admitted to himself that he was a pervert, and pulled the quilt she’d left untucked and buried his face in it.
It smelled thickly of sugar.
***
She doesn’t think she can ever live like this.
In the morning, she was fine. If she is really scared, she can go outside the inner castle. There are people everywhere in the outer castle. But what about at night?
She can’t even find Barath’s bedroom every time.
As the Grand Duchess continued to sigh, Anna spoke up next to her.
“Are you worried?”
Selene looked at Anna and blamed herself for her weakness. She hesitated only a moment before telling her the truth.
“The truth is, I’m a little bit haunted. A lot. I’m afraid of them, to the point where I think it’s a bit much, but I’ve heard Nephthys’ story.”
Anna didn’t react to the ghost story.
Frustrated by her lack of response, Selene elaborated.
“I’m worried that the ghost might try to eat my flesh if I’m alone.”
Anna smiled, thinking Selene’s concern was cute.
The smile made Selene think she hadn’t understood, and she started to explain again, but Anna spoke first.
“Nephthys is a ghost with a master. She knows her manners, respects life, and is a loyal servant of the Grand Duke, so you have no reason to fear her.”
What?
Selene felt dazed, as if she’d been hit with something blunt.
Then what did Barath say to her?
Anna continued.
“And ghosts are fiercely protective of their territory. The entirety of Velias Castle, both inner and outer, is Nephthys’ domain, and there are no other ghosts unless she allows it, so you have nothing to fear, either.”
Anna’s words had an odd edge to them.
She was describing the Nephthys as human.
Selene had unconsciously compared the ghosts of this world to my own stereotypical ghosts. She naturally pictured them as fearsome ghosts who held grudges.
Now that she thinks about it, that’s what Barath had said. She didn’t think anyone was afraid of ghosts.
Were the ghosts of this world just another creature to live with?
Anna looked at Selene’s pensive face and spoke again.
“Nephthys is very gentle and a little timid, so he won’t even approach you if she knows you’re afraid of her.”
As Anna continued, Selene found herself suddenly accepting Nephthys as just another class of creature.
A mammal. Birds. Reptiles. Ghosts(?)
And then, much to her surprise, the vague sense of fear seemed to fade. At the same time, a surge of resentment for Barath surged through her.
How funny she must have been. How… He would have laughed at her.
A series of images of her frightened, cowering behavior flashed through her mind.
The thought of crying and making a show of it at the man’s expense made her feel so high and furious.
She heard that when people get too angry, they can burst into tears.
Selene gritted her teeth as she felt the corners of her eyes moisten.
‘So bad!’
This evening, Selene, who is dining with Barath’s sister, pulls out the prettiest outfit in her wardrobe and puts it on.
It was a bright ivory dress that stood out from the crowd of darker colors that were all similar in design.
Selene turned to Anna behind her, looking a little nervous.
“What do you think?”
Anna was a beat too late with the clichéd answer.
“You look good in bright colors…”
Actually, Anna wanted to be more direct and say that the ivory dress looked good on her white skin and delicate features, and that the bright, warm colors gave the whole outfit an air of nobility.
But she refrained, thinking that such specific and pleasing words should come from the Lord’s mouth.
Not that her lord would ever get it right.
Selene nodded, satisfied that Anna’s answer was sufficient.
Her first impression of Barath’s sister was probably not a good one.
How pretty must have looked, ducking behind him and his sister to say a few words.
She was a little disappointed with the circumstances of their first meeting, but she still wanted to get along with his sister, and she wanted to look pretty, so she put on the necklace she had received from Barath.
She put the bracelets and earrings back as they seemed a bit overdone, and as she checked herself in the mirror, Anna came up to her.
“Let me help you straighten your outfit.”
She carefully slid the sleeves of her dress down to reveal her shoulders.
Anna seemed oblivious to Selene’s embarrassment. She casually fastened the brooch on her collarbone, smoothed out the folds of her skirt at her waist, and puffed out the dress to make it fuller.
The embarrassment of exposing her shoulders was short-lived.
As Anna’s touches refined the spiciness of the dress, she was increasingly reminded of Selene’s cheeks as she watched me in the mirror.
With her heels as her final weapon, Selene was a little more excited than usual, even for herself.
When she stepped outside, Chyntia and Barath were already ready and waiting for her.
Facing the two still cold, Selene smiled brightly at Sinia and greeted them.
“Hello, have you been waiting long?”
Chyntia smiled crookedly at Selene’s greeting, one corner of her mouth twitching upward, a smile that anyone else might mistake for sneering.
To Selene, however, her smile was so much like Barath’s that it seemed all the more familiar.
She could feel Barath moving closer to her.
Her anger at Barath’ ghostly antics hadn’t yet subsided, so Selene tilted her head so that her face was out of Chyntia line of sight and glared at him.
She elbowed Barath in the arm to indicate that he shouldn’t come any closer, then snorted and jerked her head in the meanest way possible.
There was no hesitation in her expression or action.
When she looked back at her poor, frightened past, she could have seen it twenty times over.
And now it seemed to make sense. That man could do her no harm with this little nudge.
Barath hadn’t taken his eyes off Selene since she’d walked through the inner gate.
She was pretty, he knew that much, but that outfit was downright cheating.
Her rounded shoulders drew his attention, and he repeatedly looked away, feeling a strange pang of guilt.
As he wondered how in the world he managed to walk up and stand next to her yesterday, he noticed that his sister was giving him a curious look in response to Selene’s greeting.
Deciding that he needed to get between the two women at once, Barath moved to stand in front of Selene, but was suddenly attacked by her, and had to stop short.
She nudged him with a soft elbow and locked eyes with him with a fox-like expression.
She shrugged her round, bare shoulders slightly, and her eyes squinted like they had when she was sunburned before.
Barath stared at Selene in bewilderment, and when she jerked her head away with a ‘huh’, her face began to burn.
He wondered if he was looking at her too stupidly, and maybe he looked like an idiot in her eyes.
He continued to glance over at Selene, policing my expression.
Somehow, and he couldn’t quite put his finger on it, she’d just given him a small, pretty look.
Towards him.
