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~Chapter 37~
“……!”
While Shariette unknowingly held her breath, a hand reached behind her neck and fastened a small clasp.
Their eyes met. His dark gaze curved lazily.
“Congratulations. Now everyone will know who you are.”
It might have looked like a simple formality, but this meant Shariette’s once-floating existence had finally entered the clear boundaries of society and law.
And all under the official guarantee of Noxian Rubellot.
In other words, she could no longer run or hide so easily under a different name—whether crow or sparrow.
The day after they returned from the royal palace—
Shariette was ambushed by Nixia.
“Shariette, if you’re free today, will you spend some time with me?”
It was less of a suggestion and more like a pressure she couldn’t refuse.
When Shariette nodded, Nixia called her maids.
Each one entered the room holding dresses, hats, and accessories.
“First, take off that white gown and apron.”
“…What?”
Nixia muttered with a serious face.
“When I heard you went to the palace yesterday, I was so shocked. That careless Noxian probably didn’t care at all about things like this.”
Before Shariette could even ask what she meant, two maids grabbed her arms.
“Eek?!”
An hour later, scrubbed, combed, and dressed, Shariette was placed in a carriage.
Nixia, sitting across from her, smiled in satisfaction.
“You look wonderful, Shariette.”
Shariette fiddled with the ribbon tied at her chest.
“Where are we going?”
“Just for fun. You’ve only worked and suffered since you came to our house. Today, take a break and enjoy yourself.”
Not just smelling of medicine all the time—sometimes she needed a change.
Nixia felt almost a duty to take care of this overly diligent apothecary.
Shariette rolled her eyes.
‘Have fun?’
To someone who had worked nonstop every single day since she could remember, the idea felt strange.
Luckily, Nixia mistook her silence for shyness or awkwardness.
“Do you remember I said I wanted to be close to you?”
Yes, Shariette remembered.
‘Back then, I thought her head hurt a lot.’
Nixia rested her chin on her hand and smiled lightly.
“I’ve always envied girls who had sisters.”
…Was that really something to envy?
Shariette, who only knew Blanche as her half-sister, tilted her head.
“You wouldn’t know. I prayed so much for a little sister… and then got a younger brother instead.”
Nixia playfully pouted.
Of course, Shariette didn’t know that feeling. But she thought—whatever Blanche felt when she suddenly got an unwanted illegitimate sibling like her, it must have been far worse.
“So today, will you keep me company? Shopping, eating delicious food, that kind of thing.”
What a strange person.
She reminded Shariette of her dead half-sister, but instead of coldness, she gave off warmth.
Faced with that warm smile—at least 15 degrees warmer than before—Shariette couldn’t find any reason to refuse. She nodded.
Nixia smoothly changed the subject.
“By the way, did anything interesting happen at the palace yesterday? Noxian looked annoyingly cheerful.”
“Yes. Now I don’t have to worry about being sent to labor camp for years.”
“….”
Nixia gave her a strange look at the blunt answer.
“Shariette, sometimes you say the most shocking things so casually.”
She acted light, but her tone was serious.
Her next words were sharp, almost fierce.
“Labor camp? Do you think I’d just sit by and let that happen? Don’t worry—no matter what you do, you’ll never end up in prison. That’s what money and power are for.”
It sounded like an open declaration of corruption and power abuse—and yet completely believable.
‘No matter what I do?’
What did she think Shariette had done? Only then did Shariette realize she had cut out too much context.
“I passed the Medical Association exam and got my license.”
Nixia’s face softened. She clapped her hands lightly.
“Oh my, congratulations! Then today really is the perfect day. We’ll pick out a gift to celebrate.”
But fifteen minutes later, Nixia realized it was no time for gifts.
“…Wait. Shariette, is this really your first time in a place like this?”
She asked carefully.
Before they reached the shopping street, they stopped at the plaza.
Nixia had wanted to show off the famous five-tier fountain—made of gold, marble, and mana stones. But she was startled.
Shariette clung to the carriage door, frozen stiff.
“……!”
She gripped the handle tighter.
It hadn’t seemed overwhelming while passing by in the carriage—but standing here with both feet on the ground, the reality crashed over her.
Not even in Argen Castle, Rubellot Manor, or the royal palace had she felt this kind of weight.
Those places were large, yes, but they had structure—stairs, walls, corridors, doors, rooms, windows.
Orderly paths, clear destinations, assigned roles and uses.
The same in Willowhill.
A small, quiet town, limited borders, steady rhythm.
But here—
There were no boundaries.
Under the bright sunlight, in this wide, open space, so many people gathered, laughing and talking.
It was too bright, too warm, too alive. It felt like she shouldn’t exist here.
Voices, laughter, shouts, cart wheels, horse hooves, music—
All the sensory information poured in at once, uncontrolled.
No structure in sight. No order.
With her familiar order gone, even the ground under her feet felt unstable.
The vast world poured over her, crushing her sense of self.
“Shariette.”
Nixia gently stepped into her view, covering her sight, cupping her cheeks and ears with warm hands.
That warmth spread.
Shariette bit the inside of her cheek and forced herself to recall something familiar—
White paper, black letters. Fixed steps. Exact ratios. Numbers and words, the balance of scales, the ticking of a clock.
Facts and rules. Roles and functions.
With them, her sense of control slowly returned.
‘Temporary sensory overload from sudden environmental change.’
Shariette gave herself the clinical diagnosis.
“I was just shocked. I’ve only ever lived in the countryside—an isolated forest village before this.”
But Nixia was no naive girl. She had lived and played in high society long enough.
She quickly realized this wasn’t just a country girl getting overwhelmed by the city.
“Well, there do seem to be more people than usual today.”
She pretended not to notice.
“There’s a place I think you’ll like. Let’s go there first?”
Then, she took Shariette’s cold hand and led her toward a quieter street.
Shariette tried to pull away her sweaty hand, but Nixia’s grip was surprisingly firm.
The place Nixia took her was a two-story shop on a street corner.
Baraine Apothecary (est. 873) — Chaldeon Main Store
“Baraine? That Baraine?”
“Yes. Heron’s family. Our house invests in it, too.”
Nixia lightly draped an arm over her shoulder.
A Rubellot knight opened the door for them and stepped back. Looking around, Shariette noticed there was another knight too.
“Well, if it were just me, I wouldn’t need them. But bringing you along, of course we need guards.”
Shariette frowned.
“Seems like the opposite, doesn’t it?”
Nixia smiled meaningfully.
“Come to think of it, I haven’t shown you yet.”
“Shown me… what?”
Before Shariette could ask, the knights answered with proud smiles.
“Even the two of us together couldn’t defeat Lady Nixia.”
Ah. Shariette nodded in understanding.
‘No wonder Blanche hated her even more.’
Her frail half-sister had disliked all healthy people—but especially someone like this.
