Warning – This is a psychological based adult novel. There might be some rape, violence and forceful love making scenes which might be uncomfortable for some readers. If you don’t like such contents then please avoid it.
- Play Maid
Chapter 4
Fluttering.
The sound of a pink silk dress brushing against the bushes echoed through the rose garden.
After the rain, a wind of refreshing air gently blew through the garden, and Heloise was moving towards the center of the garden, breathing in the wind to the fullest.
The ribbon attached to her high braided hair fluttered every time she moved, drawing attention, and the white neckline exposed underneath it was as dazzling as a flower, even without any accessories.
In her hands was a small basket and scissors.
She had just come out to pick flowers to decorate the crown prince’s bedroom and office.
Originally, I used to receive flowers every day from the imperial palace’s private greenhouse, but today was a rainy morning. When I saw the clear sky, my thoughts changed.
I quickly grabbed my basket and scissors and headed out to the garden, where the scent of roses soaked in rainwater spread everywhere.
There were roses still covered in morning dew. I couldn’t help but smile at the thought that if I harvested it before the sun rose high, I could bring it to the crown prince’s living room with dew on it.
Heloise, not caring that her dress was getting wet, walked freely amongst them and began to look closely at the roses.
Since it was a flower that was supposed to decorate the prince’s space, anything that looked unsightly was an immediate disqualification. Any petals that had fallen, were eaten by insects, or were not colorful were all set aside.
All of the flowers that bloomed in the crown prince’s garden were fine and beautiful, but Héloïse put great effort into finding the ones that stood out the most.
I was just cutting the red, pink and white roses that I had carefully selected and putting them in the basket.
“Would you please give me one too?”
An unfamiliar man’s voice came from behind.
“… … .”
Heloise turned around and looked at the owner of the voice. He was a handsome man with golden brown hair and warm brown eyes. He stood out in his well-dressed attire, as if he were from a good family.
Nevertheless, the moment I saw it, his name or title did not come to her mind. When Heloise tilted her head to see a face that seemed familiar at first glance, the man cleared his throat as if he was embarrassed.
“You don’t remember me.”
“Sorry.”
“This is Count Aster Kind. I saw you during my last visit.”
“Ah.”
Heloise answered briefly and nodded. Now that I think about it, he was one of the nobles who occasionally visited the Crown Prince’s palace.
“Hello, Count Asher.”
Heloise slightly bent her knees to show respect.
“You were in the garden back then too. I picked up the handkerchief you dropped… I guess you weren’t very impressed.”
He said with an embarrassed expression.
“Because I don’t have a good memory. And it was a very brief moment.”
“Isn’t there a saying that eternity is stolen in a moment?”
The Count smiled and continued. His sweet, gentle expression and fresh smile were enough to win the favor of girls her age.
He seemed to be the same age or younger than her. It was an unfamiliar experience for Heloise, who couldn’t remember how long it had been since she last talked to a man her age.
“Miss Héloïse, is there something on my face?”
Looking at her staring gaze, the young count cleared his throat and blushed slightly. Heloise was surprised at those words and asked back.
“Do you know my name?”
“Sometimes I saw you next to His Majesty.”
Since she never said it directly, she was sure that he heard it from someone else. It wasn’t often that she stood alone in the garden with a strange man, so Héloïse didn’t know what to say, so she just rolled her eyes.
“I heard that you are His Majesty’s favorite maid. Ever since you were young, you grew up like brother and sister.”
“That… … .”
“They say the Empress likes you like her own daughter.”
“They just pity me because I lost my parents when I was young. She doesn’t even think of me as her daughter.”
Heloise shook her head. Every time that happened, the Count watched her with rapt eyes as the ribbon tied in her hair passed by his cheek.
“I know that she values you so much that she doesn’t even show you to people. I was lucky that day to meet you.”
The young count looked genuinely excited. Heliose was both surprised and amazed at such a reaction.
“Then today… … .”
This was the crown prince’s garden. A place where no one can enter. It was a space where only people who had made an appointment with the crown prince could enter at a certain time.
“I’m on my way back after seeing Your Majesty. I came to run an errand for my uncle. Oh, my uncle is the Duke of Pensher. He is overseeing the construction of Her Majesty the Empress’s villa, which will soon be completed. I’m here to give it a cross-sectional view.”
The Count excitedly talked about things that were not even asked.
“But I was lucky today to meet Miss Héloïse.”
The man’s eyes were shining seriously. I didn’t know what to answer, so I just opened my eyes widely.
“Actually, I waited.”
“You?”
“I thought we might meet. You are a type of person who is rarely seen. It’s okay if you criticize me for loitering around with slightly impure intentions.”
Heloise smiled awkwardly at the Count’s words.
“… … Because I don’t really like moving around. And to serve His Majesty, I must always be there when needed. It’s a duty.”
At her answer, the Count spoke with an impatient look on his face.
“Were you picking flowers?”
“Yes.”
Heloise smiled as she looked at the flowers in the basket.
“Can you give me one too?”
“That’s not possible.”
Confusion appeared in the young count’s eyes at the sharp answer. Thinking she was too rude, she quickly answered in a bright voice.
“It’s His Majesty the Crown Prince’s flower.”
In response to her reply, the Count smiled awkwardly.
“Oh my, I coveted something precious.”
“There are a lot of roses, so I’ll turn a blind eye to you picking just one.”
She smiled softly and answered. At that moment, a light of admiration appeared in the count’s eyes.
“Then, would you please cut one for me too?”
The Count spoke without backing down.
“Yes?”
“No, I will buy it. That one flower.”
He searched through his arms and held out something in his hand. Heloise stared at what lay in his palm. It was a hairpin studded with small rubies.
“Oh, there’s no need to do that.”
Without another word, the count walked closer and pulled a rose out of the flower basket.
“uh?”
Without even realizing it, the ruby hairpin in his hand was replaced by the rose.
“The deal is done.”
He put a red rose in his jacket pocket and turned around with a grin.
This was when Héloïse, who had suddenly lost her flowers and obtained a hairpin, was following the Count with a blank gaze.
It felt like something touched the back of my head. When I looked up, I saw Risid sitting on the window sill looking down.
Heloise stood frozen and could not move. His indifferent, cold blue eyes held onto her feet as if he has used his magic, making it impossible for her to move.
There was no emotion whatsoever in those eyes. He seemed like a person with no emotions. As he looked down at me, I unconsciously lowered my head. Even though it was quite far away, the gaze that fell on the top of my head was hotter than the midday sun.
It was an act of instinctive fear, but avoiding his gaze was never a good thing to do. This was because there was always repercussions. As soon as the thought occurred to her, Héloïse hurriedly raised her head.
However, Risid had already disappeared from the window.
“… … .”
Heloise glanced nervously at the window. But she couldn’t find him. Her mind grew impatient, so she quickly gathered up her basket and began to make her way through those rose bushes.
Crack, thump.
The sound of a person, stepping up the stairs echoed through the wide hallway of the Crown Prince’s Palace. Whether it was a maid or anyone else, it was forbidden to run around and make noise like this unless it was extremely urgent.
The owner of the footsteps was Heloise. With a flower basket hanging on one arm, she frantically walked up the stairs to the crown prince’s office.
Even to me, the reflection on the polished white marble looked extremely rushed.
After jumping like that, when I actually stood in front of the office, I hesitated to open the door.
“… … .”
Heloise was passing time by reaching out and bringing it back again and again.
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