It had already been a week since Anastasia locked herself away in her basement room.
Even though it was a basement, a faint light filtered in through a ventilation hole, allowing Anastasia to see the state of her room.
The only furniture in the room was a dilapidated wooden bed and a chest of drawers with holes in it—the kind of thing one wouldn't even put in a maid's quarters. There was nothing else.
If she had been allowed to store her belongings here as before, the maids might have come and gone, but since there was no other luggage piled up in her room, Anastasia hadn't even seen a person properly for a week. She could hear the footsteps of the young maid who brought her dry bread once a day, but she didn't receive it directly; the maid would leave it in front of the door, and only then would Anastasia open the door slightly to quickly snatch it inside.
That, too, had only lasted until yesterday. Today was the day the guest was arriving. From the morning, she could hear the busy footsteps and voices of the servants. It seemed they were bustling about to welcome the visitor.
Anastasia looked at the empty bread basket. By now, the maid should have already left the bread. But even after waiting for a long time since morning, there was no sign of the maid.
'Is she late because she's busy?'
If so, she would come very late. Or perhaps she wasn't coming at all today.
Anastasia, who had been curled up, bit her lip at the sharp pain she felt in the sole of her foot.
"It hurts..."
The wound she had sustained while fleeing through the forest a week ago still hadn't healed. Trying to endure it, Anastasia eventually moved toward the light to examine her foot. The area that had been torn a week ago was festering and swollen hard. It was clearly becoming infected.
'I could just go to the forest.'
With the arrival of spring, the herbs that could be used as medicine had begun to grow again. She had been helped by them to treat her wounds several times before, so finding them wouldn't be difficult. Besides, edible mushrooms were starting to sprout, so she could soothe her hunger as well.
Anastasia leaned her body against the door, hugged her knees, and buried her face in them. She could endure the hunger. But she was terrified of the wound on her foot. When she was young, she had seen a villager who had left a similar wound untreated until it festered and rotted, eventually leading to the amputation of their foot.
'Will I end up like that, too?'
Anastasia imagined herself without a foot. She wouldn't be able to walk and would have to crawl. Just like a snake. Anastasia recalled the story of the snake from the Bible.
In the beginning, God created Paradise, where countless beasts and the first humans lived. However, there was a beast that could not live in that Paradise, and that was the snake. Born as a wicked creature, the snake could not find a place in Paradise. Thus, the snake always hid in the forest, crawling through the sleeping Paradise at night, envying their place.
Recalling the opening passages of the Bible, Anastasia buried her face deeper into her knees. She had thought about it for a long time, but the snake in the Bible felt just like her own story. A being that shouldn't be in Paradise, living in the shadows of people's eyes.
Besides, didn't her father and the Countess always look at her and call her snake-like?
Feeling a lump in her throat from an endless sense of melancholy, Anastasia hurriedly turned her thoughts elsewhere. Beautiful things. Pretty things. Bright and radiant...
"...That person."
Suddenly, the image of the man she had seen in the forest a week ago surfaced in Anastasia's mind. She was startled by her own thought. Whenever her mind was consumed by darkness, she usually thought of the Edenhurst manor under the sunlight she saw from the forest. It was the most brilliant and beautiful thing she had ever seen in her life—so much so that she had ended up crying when she first saw it. But why was she thinking of a stranger today?
"But... I can't see him again."
The Edenhurst manor was something she could see at any time, something that would be here forever. But that man was just a stranger who had lost his way for a moment, someone she would never see again. Forgetting the fact that she had been startled and run away, Anastasia felt a sense of regret.
I should have looked at him more closely back then. Then I could have seen him at least once more in my dreams.
While Anastasia tried to recall him, the sunlight coming through the ventilation hole gradually changed color. Just then, she heard footsteps outside the door. Anastasia hurriedly strained her ears. It wasn't the footsteps of the young maid she had been waiting for, but anyone would do.
Were they having a pleasant conversation? She heard bright, high-pitched voices.
"Did you see the guest, too? I was so surprised."
"I did. I was peeking through the window and almost screamed. They said he was a commoner like us, so I thought he'd look like the men in the village, but... isn't he better looking than any of the nobles who have visited so far?"
"That's true. I felt sorry for Miss Elizabeth when I heard about the marriage, but if he's that handsome, wouldn't she be satisfied?"
"Eh, still, he's a commoner."
"What does it matter? He's going to be Count Lauderdale anyway once they marry. Besides, I heard that guest is the richest man in the Novgod Empire. They say the entire Sokolov port, which is said to be more magnificent than the capital, belongs to him!"
Anastasia listened even more intently to this new information. But the maids, having found what they were looking for, soon walked away.
'Elizabeth is getting married.'
Then, she would be the Countess from now on. That meant it would be Elizabeth's role to manage who stayed and who was cast out of Edenhurst, just as the current Countess did.
'Elizabeth will kick me out immediately.'
Unlike the Countess, who kept Anastasia in the basement at least for the sake of her son, there was not a single reason for Elizabeth to keep her. Therefore, it was certain she would be kicked out the moment Elizabeth became the Countess. If there was anyone who could stop such an Elizabeth... it would only be the guest who was about to become the new Count Lauderdale.
Anastasia straightened her posture, clasped her hands together, and closed her eyes. From childhood until now, the only one she could rely on was God, who watched over everything from high above.
"Oh God, please grant him mercy. I dare not beg him to... pity me... but please, let him not know of my existence. So that I may continue... just continue to live here, I pray."
Feverish from the heat rising from her wound, Anastasia offered a desperate prayer that didn't even follow proper form. While she had her eyes closed, the single ray of light vanished, and the room was swallowed by darkness.
Night had fallen, the time when the snake could move.
Boredom.
That was the emotion Mikhail had felt ever since arriving at Edenhurst. Everything about this estate was tedious.
‘How can it be so predictable?’
When he was greeted not by the Countess, but by the butler, he had heard the muffled snickers of Igor and Yuri standing behind him. They were bewildered. It was absurd that the Countess, who couldn't even afford a single potato next month without his financial aid, still looked down on him as if she were a noble of high standing.
‘She must think she’s in a very advantageous position.’
She likely believed he was desperate to obtain a title. Furthermore, she probably assumed the Lauderdale title was a glorious honor he wouldn't dare to covet.
Mikhail let out a sigh.
It was true that he needed a title. However, he had chosen the House of Lauderdale simply because he wanted to acquire one quickly; if he were willing to take his time, he could have gotten his hands on any number of other families. The Countess seemed to think he was drooling over the Lauderdale name, unaware that he was merely rushing to move before the Empress Dowager could hatch another scheme.
Mikhail chewed on a piece of steak placed before him. The ingredients didn't seem bad, but the preparation was a disaster. Yuri had said they couldn't afford a chef from the capital, so they had brought in someone from a nearby village, but compared to the food he ate at the Sokolov estate or in the capital, the quality was abysmal. If he had known, he would have told Yuri to have the chef replaced as well.
‘If a host serves food like this, they should at least be embarrassed, yet she doesn't even offer a polite apology.’
Was it because she was ashamed of using such a cook, or did she think this was a decent enough meal for a commoner like him?
Given the attitude the Countess had shown since his arrival, it felt like the latter. Even the head maid, who poured the tea he was served, had been incredibly clumsy. Yet, the Countess had claimed she was someone who had served tea for a long time. After that, she had even subtly scrutinized Mikhail’s demeanor.
‘She’s trying to judge every single step I take.’
He weighed the cost of taking over this estate against the patience he would need to endure the Countess, who would undoubtedly continue to be a nuisance even after the marriage. No matter how he looked at it, it felt like a loss.
‘Should I just walk away?’
Even if it took more time, it wasn't impossible for him to pressure the Empress Dowager. By the time he had finished his calculations, dinner had come to an end.
In truth, etiquette dictated that after a meal, they should move to the drawing room to enjoy music and conversation.
"Elizabeth plays the piano quite well. I’m sure you’ll enjoy it, Mr. Mikhail."
In Sokolov, he was accustomed to listening to performances by the Royal Symphony Orchestra. He even had a private music hall in his own mansion. To think that he would be satisfied with this—it was so insulting that he could only sigh at how little she thought of him.
Mikhail had no desire to enter the drawing room. Instead, he looked toward the garden and said,
"The garden is truly beautiful."
It was a garden so dark he couldn't even see it. Perhaps sensing his lack of interest, the Countess spoke hurriedly.
"Would you like to take a stroll through the garden while we prepare the drawing room? The garden is the pride of our Edenhurst. Elizabeth, why don't you guide our guest?"
"Yes, Mother."
Elizabeth approached Mikhail’s side. Mikhail noticed a faint, excited flush on her cheeks. He was a man whom the famous socialites of the capital sought out first. He recognized that she was interested in him, but Mikhail was indifferent to that fact. To him, it was far too natural and, above all, familiar.
"This way."
As the two descended into the garden, two maids carrying lamps followed them. Mikhail observed Elizabeth, who walked with a light, graceful step.
‘She’s not bad.’
Elizabeth possessed a beauty sufficient to make the Countess act so brazenly, and her manners were quite aristocratic. Although her dress was slightly out of fashion, that was a problem that could be solved once he took her to the capital and spent some money. After marriage, she would be a woman sufficient to stand by his side as the kind of aristocratic wife others admired, one who would keep other nobles from wagging their tongues carelessly.
‘However…’
It was still boring. The gentle demeanor, the soft voice, and the dull topics of conversation. Mikhail found Catherine, who was peeking at him with sparkling eyes from beside her sister, to be far more interesting. At least she seemed more honest about her desires than her sister. Of course, she was merely interesting; he had no intention of marrying Catherine.
Wondering how he would endure the boredom of the garden when the conversation was already so dull, Mikhail followed Elizabeth. His calculations were leaning more and more toward abandoning the House of Lauderdale.
Just as he was about to tell Elizabeth—who was busy naming flowers he had no interest in—that he intended to return tomorrow.
*Rustle.*
In the darkness, beyond the low shrubs, something moved.
0 Comments