Kapitel 110: [Chapter 110] Childhood Dreams
Upon returning to her room, Neris immediately called Ellen. While waiting for Ellen to arrive, she pondered over the words she had heard.
"At that time, I didn't know I wouldn't be able to see my mother again. I just thought I needed a special way to communicate from a distant place. So, I buried the toys my mother had given me in front of the greenhouse. Since my mother was buried in the ground, I thought if I buried the toys in the ground, they would reach her."
When Neris asked about the toys, Cledwyn answered calmly until the end.
Smart.
A knock on the door was heard. Ellen opened the door at Neris's call.
"I'm sorry for calling you when you're busy."
"There's nothing busier than Miss's call."
"Ellen."
As soon as Ellen sat down, Neris asked cautiously.
"May I ask why the former Grand Duchess's room is locked?"
The greenhouse wasn't locked, nor was the drawing-room.
But why was only the bedroom locked?
Ellen seemed to know that Neris would eventually ask this question. She whispered her answer.
"To protect it."
"What? To protect the items inside?"
"To protect the former Grand Duke's last patience."
Neris had never seen the former Grand Duke, Cledwyn's father, even in a portrait. But she vaguely knew what kind of man he was through the whispers of the people working in the castle.
Being manipulated by the elders and eventually dying at a young age under suspicious circumstances.
The description matched the attitude Cledwyn had subtly revealed about his father today. While he called his mother 'mother,' he referred to his father as the former Grand Duke.
"May I ask what that means?"
A deep sadness appeared on Ellen's face."
"That's not something I dare speak of lightly, Miss. Even though it's a long time ago. Losing both of them was a great sorrow in the North."
The expression 'the North.' Neris narrowed her eyes and looked at Ellen.
Most of the figures from the era of the former Grand Duke are now deceased. Like a relic that has been empty for a long time, the people working now would either have only known Cledwyn or have a career very similar to his.
There are few who know what young Cledwyn went through.
"I'm not asking out of curiosity about someone else's painful past. I just... met the former Grand Duchess in the greenhouse earlier. That's why I'm asking."
Was she too intrusive?
Neris somewhat regretted bringing up the topic. It wasn't because she didn't want to know.
It's just that people have their own spaces they don't want others to intrude upon. This applied not only to individuals but also to households. Such things...
'What am I doing.'
Ellen covered Neris's face with her hand.
"I'm sorry, Miss. It's not something you should know... It's just not something I should be talking about. I wonder how upset our former Grand Duchess would be to see you like this."
"I doubt it."
Upset. It was an absurd idea. When Neris shook her head, Ellen's eyes held a very warm light.
"The former Grand Duchess was a good person. Warm yet strong. Our former Grand Duchess resembled her a lot."
A warm and strong person. That was the most accurate description Neris had heard so far to depict Cledwyn.
"Ellen knows the former Grand Duchess well?"
"I was a maid specially chosen to accompany the former Grand Duchess when she came here."
'Specially chosen.' It was a nice phrase to hear, but Neris thought Ellen wouldn't use such words if she had been a familiar figure to the former Grand Duchess since her childhood.
Ellen was meticulous. The probability of her using such an expression without meaning was low. However, what was she trying to convey?
Why did Tiffian, the Marquis, send a strange maid to his daughter, and why did he not even look at his grandson?
Could it have been because he opposed the marriage?
"I know that the former Grand Duke and Grand Duchess were considered a strategic marriage."
"Yes, that's right, Miss. It started as a strategic marriage, but the Grand Duke also came to love her. That's how everyone in the North felt."
Ellen spoke with a longing expression.
"The former Grand Duke cherished the Grand Duchess very, very much... So after the Grand Duchess passed away, he became like a different person, as if his soul had left. Cold and cruel... That's what people said. He was young, so there were talks of remarriage, but those who brought up such topics all died..."
Taking a deep breath, Neris finally fully understood the meaning of the iron chain hanging on the door of the Grand Duchess's bedroom.
It wasn't to lock something inside the room. It was the protection of a man who was trying to guard the empty room from outside intrusion.
Pointing out the futile effort would have been meaningless.
It was incomprehensible. Neris knew how sordid love between a man and a woman could be.
One person always loves the other more than they are loved in return, and then the other person takes advantage of that. Betrayal and schemes under the guise of passion.
Ellen smiled softly as she looked at Neris's face.
"Compared to feeling like the former Grand Duchess had her soul completely taken away, the former Grand Duke didn't seem to care much about the Lord. When the former Grand Duchess passed away, perhaps the former Grand Duke's soul also passed away with her... I felt that way."
"But."
Neris was so shocked she didn't even realize she was speaking.
"But there was a child. A young child, how could he... so irresponsibly..."
Cledwyn had said that not tidying up the Eastern Palace garden was just a habit. But if the former Grand Duchess's death really didn't affect him much, if it was just a long-forgotten past from his very young years.
'He wouldn't have said it like that.'
It left a bad taste. Ellen looked gently at Neris, who couldn't continue speaking.
"People who love like that exist. They put all their meaning into just one thing, ignoring all reason and logic as if nothing else mattered. It might be the temperament of the people in the North. In the long winter, when there's nothing but snow, one emotion quietly, irreversibly... deepens more than death. Living over twenty years in the North, Miss, I think I understand that feeling a little."
And not long after young Cledwyn entered the academy, the former Grand Duke passed away.
"The Lord will be pleased to know how much you care. He will surely talk to you about it someday. What you're curious about."
Ellen stood up with a smile.
"Now, it's time to sleep, Miss. I hope you have only good dreams without being haunted by the ghosts of the North."
❖ ❖ ❖
Three days passed as if nothing had happened.
It was the day of the night market. Cledwyn had sent someone to suggest going out together that evening. Neris finished her work quickly and went to change her clothes at the Eastern Palace.
If she was going to inspect the Lower Town in person, she planned to wear inconspicuous clothes and even wear a veil.
However, when she returned to her room, she was greeted by a multitude of dresses.
"Welcome, Miss. Try this on first."
"Your jewelry is also prepared here."
Dora and Ellen showed Neris dresses and jewelry with excited faces. Neris was stunned.
"What's going on? What are you doing here, Ellen?"
"The Lord is going to the night market today, so you need to wear an outing dress."
Ellen explained with a wide smile as if it were obvious.
Dora held a lace-frilled dress, while Ellen held a huge petticoat adorned with many flowers. By any standard, it was not suitable attire for an inspection.
"Oh dear, we're short on time, Miss. Hurry up."
At Ellen's firm words, Neris moved without thinking.
"Black suits you very well, but it's not the best color for a festival day."
"Yellow suits you well too. You look like a spring flower in it. But it's a bit too bright, which is a bit disappointing."
"This skirt was thought to be perfect for you, but the width is too wide for today. Dora, bring a narrower one for her."
Ellen's endless recommendation of new dresses somehow overlapped with Diane.
Neris chose the method that had been confirmed through years of training as the quickest way to escape such a situation. That is, she bit her lip and quickly changed as instructed.
Finally, when Ellen and Dora were satisfied, Neris was wearing an elegant dress in shades of walnut and night, with pearl earrings given to her by Cledwyn.
Unlike the neat and tidy bun or the twisted updo she usually wore while working, her golden curls were left loose like a village maiden, cascading in soft waves. The diamonds and pearls among her hair added enough sparkle to enhance her appearance.
"You look absolutely stunning, Miss!"
"You look beautiful."
Dora and Ellen were beaming with excitement.
Smart. A knock on the door was heard. And then, Mom peeked in.
Seeing Neris's lovely appearance, Mom smiled broadly.
"Oh, Liz! Our daughter is so beautiful."
"Isn't she, madam?"
Ellen agreed with a pleased expression. Neris looked down at the sleeves of her dress and asked.
"But where did these clothes come from? I don't remember getting them fitted."
She had gotten clothes fitted after coming to Maindland. Neris didn't have clothes suitable for enduring the winter here, and she needed many neat clothes for work.
However, she hadn't ordered such dresses. Yet, all the dresses fit her perfectly.
Mom approached Neris with a smile. And while tidying her daughter's neckline, she said affectionately.
"I'm giving you a gift."
"Where did you get the money, Mom?"
"Why wouldn't I have money? Your daughter has been sending it diligently every month. I saved it without spending it."
"I sent it for you to use. It wasn't much."
"Regardless, how could I waste the money your young daughter sent? When you come, if you see good fabric for clothes, you buy it. I saw some good fabric when you were getting fitted, so I had some made, and I'm glad it fits well."
That's why so many dresses suddenly appeared to fit her body so well. Moreover, they had a design reminiscent of the maidens of Rohez Village.
'Mom must have sewn them.'
It wasn't sophisticated needlework of high society, but for some reason, she felt attached to the clothes. Even though the chosen fabric wasn't very thick, just wearing it made her feel incredibly warm.
Mom hugged Neris once and kissed her forehead.
"Have fun."
It was a phrase that Mom used to say when she went out to play with friends in her childhood. Neris felt a twinge in her nose for no reason. She hugged Mom back and gave a faint smile.
"I'll be back."
Neris bid farewell to Dora and Ellen and went down to the Eastern Palace alone. She had intended to meet Cledwyn in his office in the main palace, but to her surprise, he was already waiting for her outside.
Cledwyn was dressed casually like any other young man in the town, but because of his appearance, he seemed to stand out as if he had popped out of a painting. Despite being light, it wasn't made of fancy silk, but of high-quality linen, making it a very stylish outfit.
Neris felt like she was dreaming. A dream she vaguely sketched out while reading books when she was very young.
A warm home where she graduated from school and lived with her mother. Feeling fulfilled by today's work and looking forward to tomorrow while welcoming the evening.
Wearing her most cherished jewelry and a dress made by her mother, she enjoyed the simple pleasure of attending the festival.
And someone waiting for her as if it were natural, dressed comfortably.
'It feels unreal.'
Would it hurt if she pinched her cheek now?
Her heart fluttered again. Slightly painful.
Cledwyn, meeting Neris's gaze, smiled brightly.
"You look beautiful."
Neris's face turned red. She couldn't even look directly at Cledwyn.
'Like a fool.'
What was she so happy about?
Thinking that smile was dazzling, what was she trying to do.
Wöchentlicher Energiestatus
-- Power-
Rangliste 
-- Power-
Stein