Although I anticipated at least some bone-breaking pain, for some reason, instead of feeling pain, it felt like I was laying in a large cradle, all snug and comfortable.
Moreover, the scent of cedarwood that I had picked up from the cardigan earlier gently stimulated my sense of smell.
What’s this…?
In an unexpected turn of events, I frowned and slowly opened my eyes only to see the chest of a man wearing a black silk shirt.
“What is this?”
Unable to hide my perplexity, I lifted my gaze and found myself staring into the eyes of the man beneath me – the very man I had been observing earlier.
Realizing the situation belatedly, I hurriedly got up, fanning myself desperately to cool my flushed face.
I was embarrassed and ashamed to have been in such a position with a stranger, even for a moment.
“Um…”
After I stood up, it was only then that the man leisurely began to rise.
“Excuse me for this, especially since we have not met before.”
“…It’s not like that.”
“Excuse me?”
Attracted by the man’s low murmuring, she took a step towards him.
Then, the man shook his head as if to say it was nothing and spoke.
“Any injuries?”
“Ah, no, thanks to you.”
It was extremely fortunate that the dress remained unharmed as well. Had there been even a slight blemish, she would have felt terribly sorry towards Eliana who had worked so hard on making the dress.
Then, it occurred to her, had she thanked this person yet?
Suddenly realizing she hadn’t yet expressed her gratitude to the man, she awkwardly lifted the corners of her mouth.
“Thank you for your help.”
“I merely did what should be done.”
His tone carried an authoritative feel, yet his voice was indifferent yet kind.
Judging by his aura and the way he spoke, he didn’t seem to be a commoner. He appeared to be a noble of high status.
I stared at the man brushing off his robe, thinking. Then, offering him a handkerchief to easily wipe the dirt off his face, I asked,
“Since we’ve met like this, it must be fate. What’s your name?”
“Isn’t it polite to introduce oneself before asking for the other’s name?”
The man burst into laughter at my question and replied,
“……”
The sight of his pleasant smile made my stomach churn involuntarily.
For some reason, this man reminded me of a boy from my memories.
It was as if longing had created an illusion, and I found myself staring intently at him.
Just then, as the moon emerged from behind the clouds and its light illuminated his figure, I could clearly see the iris of the man’s eyes.
“!”
Behind the white mask, his eyes were violet, resembling that of a violet flower.
The moment I realized this, I froze, forgetting even to breathe.
When I lived as a commoner, I occasionally met people with eyes tinged with violet.
But only one person had such vivid purple eyes.
…Ruth.
“Could your name possibly be…”
“Sister!”
Just as I tried to calm my pounding heart and speak, Ian’s voice calling me from above reached my ears.
Why now of all times?
I felt an overwhelming sense of disappointment that I couldn’t hide.
While I was worrying about what to do, the sound of Ian’s footsteps searching for me was getting closer.
“It seems he is looking for you. I better leave now.”
What brought me back to reality from being drowned in myriad thoughts was the man’s low voice.
Only then did I come to my senses and grabbed him as he was about to turn away. I felt an urgent need not to let him disappear into thin air, as if he would vanish somewhere right then and there.
“Can we, can we meet again?”
Without any hesitation, the man drew a beautiful curve with his lips.
“Yes.”
It was a brief answer, but it relieved all my anxieties. With that, I slightly relaxed and let go of his wrist, and he swiftly disappeared beyond a nearby wall.
“Have you been here, Sister?”
“……”
I watched until the man disappeared from my sight, and then I looked at Ian, who had approached me by then.
“You found me quickly.”
“It seemed like I saw Sister’s hair from this direction, so I came to see.”
“So, why were you looking for me?”
“Mother is looking for you.”
“Ah.”
It seemed that my mother had noticed my absence from the ballroom and was looking for me. It was time to return.
I erased from my mind the dreamlike encounter with the mysterious man and walked towards Ian and the ballroom.
“Right, by the way, did we mostly gather the information we wanted?”
I casually asked as we were heading to the ballroom, and Ian responded with a soft smile in his eyes. His smile was so filled with satisfaction that I knew what his answer would be.
“It seems like it’s going to get interesting from here.”
It was a gamble, but somehow, his words felt trustworthy.
“Yes. Then, I hope you continue to work hard for the family, Duke Obelton.”
“Of course, my lady.”
We both spoke playfully to each other and entered the ballroom, receiving as much attention as when we first arrived.
***
Ian’s words that things were going to get interesting were not wrong.
After Ian inherited the title, he and his mother managed to reclaim the Obelton family’s assets that had been absorbed into the royal treasury.
They revived the business that had been faltering in the absence of the Obelton family, and made the family once again the center of social circles that had gradually forgotten about them.
When Mother and Ian took on such tasks, my sister and I managed the internal affairs of the family.
We personally selected and employed servants, and gathered talented individuals to form a knightly order.
Thus, the Obelton family gradually returned to its former state, though it took a year to do so.
“Sigh.”
I sat in an armchair, propped my chin, and looked out the window.
It felt like just the other day we had returned to the mansion, but in the blink of an eye, a year had passed, and it was winter again.
After staring outside for a long while, I turned my gaze back to the book I had been reading.
The book I was currently reading was about a princess trapped in a tower and a knight who rescues her, a story that may seem cliché.
Maybe that’s why, even as I watched the beautiful scene of the princess and the knight swearing eternal happiness to each other, I couldn’t help but feel bored.
After a few seconds of battling with the letters on the page, I finally closed the book, pondering over whether to go outside to see the snow for the first time in a while instead of continuing to read, and sipped on my lukewarm tea.
While I was doing that, someone knocked on the parlor door gently.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, milady.”
“Ah. It’s the butler. Come in.”
I easily recognized the owner of the voice coming from outside the door. That’s because, within the mansion, the only person with such a deep voice was our butler, Ronald.
Ronald was the butler we hired a year ago because he had a good record and seemed like a nice person.
As soon as I gave my permission, Ronald entered the parlor, slightly bowing.
“People from the royal palace have arrived. His Excellency has ordered to host them in the third-floor parlor and said that they would be arriving soon, so I came to tell you to prepare in advance.”
“Got it.”
After confirming my slight nod, Ronald greeted in the same manner as when he entered and left the parlor.
People were sent from the royal palace.
I mulled over the message Ronald delivered and tapped my lips with my index finger.
Contrary to our concerns, the Emperor had not interfered with the Obelton family’s affairs for the past year. Because of this, I had been letting my guard down recently.
But now that the Obelton family is restored, they start to move. What in the world are they planning?
While I was trying to figure out the Emperor’s hidden motives, which I couldn’t fathom at all, family members and a woman I saw for the first time entered the drawing room.
My mother seemed especially gloomy today, but I assumed it was for a reason similar to mine.
Ian broke the ice after confirming that everyone in the drawing room had taken their seats.
“So, what message did His Majesty wish to convey to us?”
Perhaps because of spending a year as the head of the family, each of his syllables exuded a gentle but firm sense of pressure.
However, the woman, unshaken by Ian’s commanding presence, spoke in a level tone.
“I am Lilia Harvest, the aide to His Majesty.”
The Harvest family was considered the leader among the neutral factions.
The Emperor’s aides were usually from the Emperor’s faction or the neutral faction. So, it wasn’t surprising that Lilia, a neutral, was the Emperor’s aide.
Ian gestured for her to continue, and Lilia took a golden letter from her bosom.
“What is this?”
As my sister received the letter from her and asked, Lilia explained calmly.
“It’s a marriage proposal from His Majesty.”
“…”What?”
A heavy silence fell in the living room at the unexpected revelation of the letter’s contents.
After a moment of ice-thin silence, mother broke it by asking,
“Then who is the sender of this marriage proposal?”
Upon mother’s question, Lilia’s gaze shifted from me to my sister.
After looking at my sister for a while, Lilia quietly answered, “His Majesty has sent a marriage proposal to Miss Serbia Obelton.”
“!”
I couldn’t hide my astonishment at hearing my sister’s name coming from Lilia’s lips.
As I mentioned before, the Obelton family had little to no contact with the royal palace over the past year, even less so with the Emperor himself. This meant that there was no apparent reason for the Emperor to propose to my sister.
Yet, he has proposed to my sister, a complete stranger.
I was trying to calm my confused feelings when Ian, who had been sitting quietly, slowly started to speak.
“If that is His Majesty’s wish, the Obelton family shall duly follow.”
“Ian!”
As soon as Ian finished speaking, my sister sharply exclaimed.
However, as if he hadn’t yet broached the main subject, Ian ignored my sister’s reaction and continued speaking.
“But the marriage of our eldest sister is also of great importance to the Obelton family.”
“Yes. I understand.”
“Therefore, I hope you will excuse me for asking for some time to consider His Majesty’s proposal.”
I immediately realized the choice Ian had made.
No matter how successful the reconstruction was, there was a limit to the power that could be gained because there had been a hiatus.
Therefore, considering the current situation of the Obelton family, this was the best opportunity that would not come again.
But no matter how good the opportunity was for the family, if the person in question, my sister, disliked it, the proposal had to be rejected.
That’s why Ian must have bought time.
To change my sister’s mind, who seemed to not welcome the Emperor’s proposal.
