I Start with a Bad Hand!

“I didn’t invite him. He came on his own,” I lied calmly. Agnes narrowed her eyes skeptically.

“Then you should’ve told him not to come.”

“How could I tell him not to come when I didn’t even know he was coming? Regardless of who he is, he’s still the young lord of the Usher viscounty. I don’t have the authority to tell him not to come.”

I turned my gaze away from Logan, who was glancing over at us hesitantly. I signaled to the shop owner to purchase the statue Agnes was holding. The shop owner, sensing the situation, quickly took the statue from Agnes and headed to the counter. As the shop owner began wrapping the statue, Agnes lightly grumbled.

“It’s my vacation away from the academy folks, and now I have to see him here.”

“But at least the ratio is diluted. Instead of a crowd, it’s just Logan. Don’t mind him and enjoy your stay.”

Despite my words, Agnes’ face remained sullen.

I didn’t particularly want to see Logan out here either. But as the person who invited these two, I needed to cheer Agnes up. Luckily, her displeasure soon faded when the shop owner handed her a small gift box. Her previously narrow eyes widened in surprise.

“What’s this? Is it for me?”

“You kept fiddling with it, so consider it a souvenir from Heylem.”

“If I had known, I would’ve touched the jewels instead.”

Despite her words, Agnes seemed pleased, twisting the ribbon on the gift wrapping.

“You have a good eye, young lady. That statue was reserved for our lord,” the shop owner complimented, making Agnes soften even more. She tried to keep her composure, but her pleased expression was evident.

Leaning slightly against the stall, Agnes asked the shop owner,

“Have you lived in Heylem long?”

“Of course, I’ve been here since before the lady arrived.”

At that moment, a sense of unease crept in. Agnes seemed to be planning something.

“Then may I ask you a question?”

“Certainly. Ask anything.”

Oh no…

“In Heylem, do you call pillbugs ‘zombies’?”

“Zombies?”

Startled by the question, I looked at Agnes. She met my gaze with a mischievous smile, the same one I had once shown her. She remembered the “zombie” prank from eight months ago.

‘Wow, she held onto that for eight months?’

I had almost forgotten about it myself. Desperately, I signaled to the shopkeeper, hoping my silent plea was understood: ‘Please, just go along with it.’

“They don’t use that term here.”

However, the shopkeeper failed to catch on. Agnes’ expression became triumphant, and as I looked despairingly at the shopkeeper, they finally realized the situation. The shopkeeper, with an exaggerated laugh, drew Agnes’ attention back.

“Well, you see, I am considered part of the younger generation here. Haha~. Such terms are mostly used by, um, the older folks like our lord.”

“Really?”

“Absolutely.”

Thank goodness for the quick thinking of the locals. Still looking somewhat suspicious, Agnes nodded. This wouldn’t do. I hurriedly pulled Agnes out of the shop, sending a thumbs-up to the shopkeeper behind me. The shopkeeper responded with the tinkling sound of a bell as a farewell.

‘This is bad. She might go around asking other questions.’

What other lies have I told? I’ve lied so much that I can’t even remember. But if my lies are exposed, it threatens the trust and authority of the scripts. I can no longer brush off annoying questions with “That’s just how Heylem is.”

I redirected Agnes to a different path. The usual route led through potato fields where villagers would be milling about, curious to see the baron’s daughter after her long absence.

‘I have so much to handle: welcoming guests, dealing with Logan, and now managing my lies.’

But dealing with just Logan isn’t so bad. It’s Logan, after all. I sighed secretly, pushing my bangs back as I led Agnes away.

However, Agnes was right. Logan wasn’t the only person we had to deal with.

***

The snow Agnes had been eagerly anticipating began falling that evening. And before it could even accumulate, the person Agnes had been waiting for, along with his sibling, arrived.

“Wow, how many carriages do they have?”

Agnes murmured in awe, her forehead pressed against the window as she looked down.

“Yeah. I wonder if we have enough space for all those carriages.”

I, too, murmured with my forehead against the window. Straightening my clothes, I stepped away from the window. Agnes, noticing this, soon turned away from the window and sprawled on my bed.

“I don’t have to go outside, right?”

“No, stay inside where it’s warm. I’m just going out to greet them with my parents.”

Though I had informed the servants beforehand, the sight of several carriages bearing the marquis’ insignia made the few servants at the baron’s castle visibly tense.

‘It looks like the people they brought outnumber the staff at Heylem Castle.’

Two heavily bundled individuals got out of the carriages. Klaus, skillfully escorting Irene, gave me a light nod of greeting. He looked better than when I last saw him at the academy.

“Thank you for your hospitality. I am Irene Horatius.”

“I am Klaus Horatius.”

Though they looked slightly tired from the long journey, Irene greeted the Baron and Baroness Degoph with a gentle smile before approaching me directly.

We exchanged a brief smile and shared a short hug, feeling Irene’s warmth under Heylem’s cold. Klaus, who had been exchanging polite words with Baron and Baroness Degoph, glanced over at me, his face relaxing from the cold stiffness.

The people in the castle were watching Klaus’s expression with particular interest. The most interested, as always, was Sarah, who had a keen interest in matters of courtship and marriage. With snow falling and Irene’s arrival, the head cook, who was helping me prepare bread for tomorrow’s hike, initiated a conversation with a hint of curiosity.

“My lady, it seems you’ve grown a bit.”

“Excuse me?”

“The dress that used to reach your ankles now shows them, and the sleeves seem shorter too.”

I paused from sprinkling sugar and looked at my dress sleeves. What used to cover my wrists now barely reached the wrist bones. Growing in someone else’s body without realizing it felt strange. Sarah, not sensing my odd feelings, started inspecting me excitedly.

“…It’s true. I didn’t notice.”

“We should tell the baroness to have your dress altered tomorrow. I remember when you were just a little girl, and now you’ve grown so much…”

As she trailed off, Sarah’s cheeks lifted with an unmistakable look of anticipation. When I looked at her questioningly, she feigned innocence and continued.

“Oh, it’s nothing. I thought you wouldn’t like what I was going to say.”

“What is it?”

Unable to suppress my curiosity, I urged her to continue. Sarah, now smiling slyly, asked,

“This time… is it true?”

“…What?”

“The young gentleman from the Horatius marquisate… is it true?”

Sarah’s intuition that I wouldn’t like the question was spot on. She didn’t finish her sentence, but I had a bad feeling. It seemed I was about to get tangled up in another speculative love affair.

“I know what you’re thinking, but no.”

I calmly sprinkled more sugar on the dough. Sarah leaned in closer and asked conspiratorially,

“A young lord from a marquisate, staying in this remote territory in the middle of winter with nothing to see—you’re saying there’s no reason at all?”

“He’s here because his sister and I are close friends. He just came along.”

“Young men at that age don’t follow their sisters wherever they go.”

“He… Klaus might. He’s a kind person.”

“Oh my…”

Whatever impression Klaus had left, Sarah seemed quite taken with it.

“Being from a marquisate, he must be so polite, well-mannered, and gentle in his speech.”

“Well, yes, being from a marquisate…”

“Well, you know better than anyone that status doesn’t always come with manners.”

Hmm… that’s true. Thinking of the crazy nobles and royalty I’d encountered, I had to agree with that statement.

But I didn’t want to drag this conversation out. I didn’t want Klaus to be subjected to tiresome rumors and subtle glances after coming all this way to relax.

“Klaus is the heir to the marquisate.”

Implying that someone of his standing wouldn’t be tied to the heir of a baron living in a remote territory. With that, I started rolling up the dough I had spread out. The anticipation in Sarah’s expression quickly deflated. She couldn’t argue but didn’t want to concede either, looking somewhat disappointed.

“But…”

“Miss, are you in the kitchen?”

At that moment, someone called from outside. With a quick knock, the butler, August, entered looking for me.

“Yes, what is it?”

Wiping flour off my hands, I welcomed him as he entered the kitchen, his stern expression softening slightly.

“I couldn’t find you in your room and wondered where you might be. We have some unexpected guests, and I brought a coat since you might be dressed comfortably.”

He helped me into a long robe while explaining, “You’ll need to pass through the hall where they are when you leave the kitchen.” August’s body was still cold from having been outside.

“Guests at this hour?”

“Yes, their carriage broke down in the snow, and they came for help tonight.”

They’ll probably stay the night because of the late hour. Hearing this, Sarah quickly moved to prepare tea, searching for the kettle.

‘Guests,’ he said. So there are more than one.

I put on the coat and asked as I left the kitchen,

“Do Father and Mother know?”

“Yes, I informed them before coming to get you. They are currently welcoming the guests in the hall.”

I frowned at this. Who would come at this late hour, and who would receive such a warm welcome from the baron and baroness?

“Who has come?”

I could feel August tense up at the question. But he didn’t need to answer. Following his somewhat troubled gaze, I saw two silver heads that matched the winter but shouldn’t have been here.