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Chapter 35
Maybe it was because she had let her guard down—words slipped out before she could stop them.
Joo-hee, who had been walking, slowly blinked and took the book off her head before approaching.
“You saw it.”
“W-well, I mean….”
Lilia trembled like a leaf.
Joo-hee felt troubled.
At this rate, it seemed inevitable that this would reach Raviolle’s ears.
Lu, who had been lying quietly, got up, and Lilia was startled out of her wits.
It really must have been dark magic earlier.
“Are you going to tell someone?”
“T-tell… who?”
“Her Majesty the Empress Dowager.”
Joo-hee’s expression was so frightening that Lilia shook her head vigorously.
“N-no! I’ll keep it to myself.”
“…Really?”
“Of course!”
Lilia forced a gentle smile and nodded repeatedly.
But Joo-hee didn’t believe her.
“Teacher, do you know something?”
“W-what is it…?”
“What you saw… is always around.”
Lilia darted her eyes around, but she couldn’t see anything.
That made it even more terrifying.
“It’s always watching… so I hope you keep your promise.”
“…Yes.”
Lilia swallowed hard and slowly nodded.
She abandoned her plan of going straight to the Empress Dowager’s palace the moment she left.
It felt safer to go straight back to her residence.
“Th-that’s all for today, my lady. See you next time.”
There was still plenty of time left, but Lilia hastily ended the lesson and rushed out of the room.
Joo-hee peeked her head out the door, watched Lilia’s retreating figure, then stepped out and leaned against the railing.
It was a spot where she could observe Lilia leaving.
As Lilia hurried along, she seemed to feel Joo-hee’s gaze, turned her head slightly, spotted her, flinched, and quickly climbed into her carriage.
The carriage departed immediately, heading straight out of the imperial palace without changing direction.
I’ll have to be more careful from now on.
She had only summoned Undine early because it was still far from Lilia’s usual lesson time—she hadn’t expected to be seen.
Although she had used a rather frightening method to ensure silence, Joo-hee didn’t feel entirely at ease about having threatened someone.
Still, it was far better than Raviolle finding out.
After watching for a few days, it seemed Lilia had kept her mouth shut—Raviolle never stormed into Joo-hee’s room.
Instead, a few days after that incident, Lilia quit Joo-hee’s lessons.
The main reason was her rapidly deteriorating health.
When Raviolle heard the news, she flew into a rage and sent a letter asking to meet, but Lilia refused, saying she was ill and would be staying in her estate for the time being.
Raviolle was beside herself.
“There’s no doubt she used some kind of trick. Otherwise, how could a perfectly fine person suddenly fall ill?!”
Raviolle wanted to storm over to Joo-hee and demand the truth immediately, but she was barred from entering.
In the end, she could only swallow her anger without getting any answers
More than a month had passed since Joo-hee came to the imperial palace.
In the meantime, someone else took over the lessons in place of Lilia, who had not returned.
“Nice to meet you, my lady. My name is Elizabeth Roschent. Please feel free to call me Elizabeth.”
“Nice to meet you, Elizabeth. I’m Joo-hee. I look forward to working with you.”
Elizabeth smiled brightly.
She had come here at Rowen’s request.
“I’ve heard a lot about you from His Majesty. Since it’s the first day, shall we just chat lightly?”
She was very curious about Joo-hee.
She wanted to ask what her relationship with Rowen was and where she came from, but she held back, knowing it might raise Joo-hee’s guard.
So she decided to start by becoming friendly.
She had never been told she lacked social skills, so she thought it would be easy—but Joo-hee was not easy at all.
“Your name sounds quite exotic. Are you from another country?”
“No.”
“I see. Oh, and black hair is quite rare in the empire too. It’s fascinating.”
“I’m not sure it’s that rare.”
Elizabeth gave an awkward smile at Joo-hee’s short replies.
Since there were no questions directed back at her, she couldn’t keep the conversation going.
She examined Joo-hee’s expression carefully, wondering if she was displeased, but her face remained completely blank.
In the end, Elizabeth left without getting any closer to her.
“She’s really difficult….”
Muttering regretfully, Elizabeth smoothed out her slightly wrinkled dress.
She resolved to definitely get closer next time before leaving the palace.
After Elizabeth left, Joo-hee flopped onto the bed.
She felt tired from all the talking.
She assumed it was just Elizabeth’s personality, so she only answered the questions without telling her to stop.
If it happened again next time, she planned to draw a line.
Just then, someone knocked on the door.
“Who is it?”
“It’s me, Joo-hee.”
At Rowen’s voice, Joo-hee got up and opened the door.
“What is it?”
“The greenhouse construction just finished. Would you like to come see it with me?”
“A greenhouse?”
“Yes. I had it newly arranged. I’d like you to take a look and tell me how it turned out. Bring Lu too.”
Joo-hee glanced at Lu.
Lu was wagging his tail enthusiastically, clearly excited about going somewhere new.
So she nodded.
“Okay, let’s go.”
There was nothing to prepare, so she took Lu and followed Rowen.
She hadn’t paid attention before, but now she noticed a glass greenhouse next to the imperial residence.
“Is this it?”
“Yes.”
The greenhouse was shaped like a dome.
She had rarely been to botanical gardens even back in Korea, except for school trips, so it felt fascinating.
“Shall we go in?”
Rowen smiled and opened the door.
The moment she stepped inside, it felt like another world.
“Wow….”
After looking around once, a genuine exclamation escaped Joo-hee’s lips.
Even she, who lacked aesthetic sense, found the scenery breathtaking.
Before she could go further in, Lu dashed ahead and entered first.
Seeing that, Rowen chuckled.
“Looks like Lu likes it.”
“Yeah. It’s… really beautiful. It’s my first time in a greenhouse—it’s amazing.”
“I’m glad you like it.”
Joo-hee looked around, turning her head this way and that.
At the center of the greenhouse was a small table and two chairs.
There were refreshments already placed on the table.
Her gaze lingered there.
“Oh, I thought it would be nice to have tea, so I had them prepare it in advance.”
She nodded slightly and looked away.
At that moment, Lu opened his mouth wide and tried to swallow the most beautifully blooming red flower in one bite.
Startled, Joo-hee rushed over.
“Lu, don’t eat that!”
Lu flinched and slowly closed his mouth.
Rowen laughed softly at the cute scene and approached.
“There are no poisonous flowers, so it wouldn’t harm him.”
“Still, flowers aren’t for eating.”
Joo-hee gently stroked Lu’s fur.
Worried he might try again, she kept him close as she continued touring the greenhouse with Rowen.
From the outside it didn’t seem that big, but inside it was quite spacious.
“Shall we go have tea now?”
“Yes.”
They returned to the table.
As she sat down, Lu curled up beside her.
“Today it’s spearmint tea.”
Rowen smiled and poured the tea.
She thought it would be cold, but steam rose from it, making her eyes widen.
Noticing her reaction, he tilted his head.
“What’s wrong? Don’t you like the tea?”
“No, I just thought it would be cold.”
“Oh, this teapot has a heat-preserving spell. It lasts up to five hours.”
“That’s… amazing.”
She held the teacup.
Spirits, magic—everything was endlessly fascinating.
After taking a sip, Rowen glanced at her.
“How’s the new teacher? Is she okay?”
“Hmm… she seems like a good person.”
“If anything feels uncomfortable, don’t hesitate to tell me. I’ll replace her if you don’t like her.”
“No, that’s not necessary.”
She shook her head.
He studied her expression but, as always, couldn’t read anything.
He could read others easily—why was she so hard to figure out?
Suppressing a sigh, he smiled.
“If you change your mind later, let me know.”
“Okay. Thank you for looking out for me.”
She looked away as she sipped her tea.
His gaze felt burdensome, but she didn’t say anything.
* * *
Evelyn frowned after hearing the maid’s report.
“What did you say?”
“Lady Artel has fallen ill and returned to her estate.”
“Suddenly? She looked perfectly fine at the party a few days ago.”
Evelyn tilted her head.
Something felt off.
“Did she say anything else?”
“No. She’s refusing all requests to meet.”
“Hmm… Did that woman do something strange?”
The maid bowed her head deeply without answering.
It was highly suspicious that someone perfectly fine had suddenly fallen ill and left.
“Is there any maid in the imperial palace you know?”
“…There is one.”
“Then bring her to me tomorrow.”
