While You're In Love

Perhaps due to the bad weather last night, Lyla had a restless sleep for the first time in a while. The sound of rain tapping on the window disturbed her, and her dreams were turbulent.

‘Why did I have to dream about that, It’s unsettling.’

Lyla sighed deeply. In her dream last night, Aslan had appeared. Unlike previous dreams, his face was vividly clear this time.

Seeing him in her dream, calling her name with a wistful expression and a longing in his voice, made Lyla’s heart ache even in her sleep. It seemed that she couldn’t let go of him, that her feelings for him remained strong.

Lyla swallowed another sigh.

She wasn’t even halfway through the year yet.

It had been long and tiring to hold him in her heart, and it would take a similar amount of time to forget him.

‘Now, there’s no need to be anxious. Let’s just take it easy.’

She had finally moved away from the shadows of the original work that had been haunting her like a ghost. Leaving the Tordell Mansion, where the original story was taking place, she could now focus on creating a new life behind the scenes.

Lyla decided to take her time and forget about him gradually.

After finishing her morning routine, the uneasiness that had kept her awake all night slowly subsided. She greeted her family members who had been awake since dawn, engaged in morning conversations, and opened the door when she felt a presence outside.

Opening the door, she found Hans, the mailman, who had come to deliver the newspaper.

“Good morning.”

Hans’s face turned bright red as soon as he saw Lyla.

“G-G-Good morning. H-Here’s the newspaper.”

“Thank you.”

Hans stammered, his face redder than an apple, and his voice trembling as if he had a severe fever.

‘This isn’t like him at all.’

Lyla was surprised. She had noticed that Hans acted completely differently in front of her compared to how he interacted with others.

When she had asked her family about it, they had jokingly said that Hans had fallen head over heels in love with her at first sight. However, Lyla didn’t believe that explanation.

She knew it couldn’t be that simple. Her long history of experiences had bred a deep sense of distrust within her.

When she was at Count Larestine’s house, Lyla was in a situation where she received only mistreatment.

Countess Larestine used to say she was pretty, but Lyla thought it was because the countess thought of her as her dead daughter Helena.

Moreover, due to the strange attire she had to wear, which was reminiscent of the clothes Helena wore when she was around ten years old, Lyla became a somewhat unwelcome presence.

Naturally, she never received compliments about her appearance.

Ever since she had escaped from the Larestine Mansion, she had received quite a few compliments on her appearance.

First Aslan, then the manor’s workers, such as Dalton and Jenna, who declared her beautiful when they saw her dressed up, and then the nobles she met while socializing.

However, Lyla was always skeptical. She regarded all these compliments as mere polite words.

‘They only say that because I’m the Duchess of Tordell.’

It was a good thing that she didn’t think that they were mocking her.

In truth, she had initially thought that way…

[You are beautiful, my lady, be confident].

There was no reason for Aslan to mock her, so Lyla dismissed the negative thought.

However, she didn’t entirely accept Aslan’s compliments either.

‘He’s a kind person, so he probably says such compliments to anyone without thinking much about it.‘

In any case, for these reasons, Lyla was never able to objectively grasp how she looked.

But in reality, with flawless fair skin, delicate features, and an elegant and innocent appearance, she was a beauty who could catch anyone’s eye. Even in Central high society, she was considered a prominent beauty who could captivate people’s attention while only walking.

So, Lyla simply brushed off her family’s words that Hans was smitten by her. Thinking of it as her parents’ way of boosting their daughter’s confidence.

“Please be careful.”

Lyla accepted the newspaper with a polite smile.

“Yes, ye-yes!”

Lyla walked into the house, unaware that Hans hadn’t been able to leave quickly and was staring blankly at the place where Lyla had been standing earlier.

“Here, the newspaper.”

“Oh, thank you, Lyla.”

Luke diligently read the newspaper delivered every day.

‘I don’t remember him doing this before.’

While he wasn’t illiterate, he didn’t enjoy seeking new knowledge by reading newspapers or books. He even disliked it, claiming it gave him a headache.

“Dad, since when did you start reading newspapers?”

“Newspapers, you say?”

Luke briefly glanced away from the newspaper article and answered.

“It’s been quite a while, about seven years. In the past, I used to buy all sorts of newspapers besides this one. I never skipped the gossip section.”

Lyla didn’t inquire about the reason.

She didn’t ask why, because she could guess right away.

‘He must have been looking for me.’

The gossip section was filled with all kinds of rumors, often offensive and even trashy. Perhaps he hoped to find traces of his daughter amidst all that. That was likely why he subscribed to it.

Lyla, sensing this, fell silent.

Seeing her darkened face, Luke smiled wryly.

“But then I read too much and got bored, and now I don’t read as much as I used to. I’ve subscribed to only this one in particular for over two years now.”

Lyla, who noticed Luke’s attempt to lighten the mood, smiled and responded with a forced smile.

“…I see. Is there a specific reason you keep reading only this one?”

“It’s the local newspaper. It mainly covers news from Eres, but sometimes it also includes stories from our town.”

Rustle, rustle.

Luke flipped through the paper to show Lyla, his hand stopping at the words that caught his eye.

“What a terrible thing!” he exclaimed.

“Is there any bad news?”

“Yes. There’s been an accident near Eres Station.”

“What accident?”

Lyla asked in surprise, so Luke showed her the paper he was reading.

The front page of the local newspaper told of an accident that had occurred last night.

It reported that a carriage driven by an unidentified person had hit a pedestrian, causing them to be seriously injured.

“How in the world could a horse-drawn carriage have caused such an accident?” Lyla’s mother asked.

“Exactly. He shouldn’t have been seriously injured.”

The good-hearted couple continued their conversation, concerned for the unidentified victim.

“You shouldn’t go out for a while, either. There are a lot of crazy people in the world, and you never know when something like this will happen again. What if you get caught up in it?”

“Ah… I was planning to go to the parish today.”

“To the parish?”

“Yes, it’s been over a week already.”

Luke replied with a somewhat uneasy expression.

“Just rest at home.”

“But I get bored just staying at home. There are still many books I haven’t read, and teaching the children is enjoyable.”

Sophia and Luke couldn’t argue further.

Although they were constantly worried about their daughter since she was still young and fragile in their eyes. However, they couldn’t keep her by their side forever.

They knew that…

“Still, could you take a break today and go tomorrow? Eres Station isn’t that far from Ellwood, so the culprit might have come here too. This area could be dangerous.”

In truth, Eres Station was a long way from Ellwood, so Luke’s fears weren’t entirely realistic.

However, Lyla didn’t argue and simply replied.

“I’ll do that.”

Luke’s face, which had been filled with worry, brightened up.

Lyla also smiled along with him.

“I’ve worried you for so long; I don’t want to do that again.”

With her duty to go outside gone, Lyla spent the day alone in the now quiet house after everyone had left.

“How should I spend this day?”

Her daily routine, which was overly peaceful and sometimes even boring, was repeating itself once again.

Lyla stretched and tried to think of ways to make her day a little happier.

---

City of Eres, Eastgate Hotel.

“How, how could something like this happen…… !”

Dalton, with a gloomy face, broke the silence and muttered.