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chapter 37
Sofien opened her eyes, clutching her head as if it were about to split.
“Ugh…”
What on earth had happened?
Looking around, she realized she was in an unfamiliar place. A strange sense of déjà vu gripped her.
“Where… am I?”
Sofien immediately tried to get up and open the door, but it seemed to be locked from the outside.
Bang! Bang! Bang!
“Hey! Is anyone here?!”
Sofien pounded on the door and shouted like a madwoman.
But it remained silent, as if no one were there.
“Hello?!”
After shouting several times, exhausted, she collapsed and decided to calm herself and think clearly.
“…I was going out to buy books for the young master and some things I needed.”
Her memory faded after that. She vaguely recalled feeling as if someone had struck her from behind.
And now, the place where she opened her eyes throbbed in pain.
“Why?”
Sofien began to suspect that someone had locked her in here.
But she had no idea who it could be—or why.
Frustrated, she muttered to herself.
Click.
The sound of a lock being undone came from outside, and the door opened.
Sofien looked up sharply.
“Who… are you?!”
She shouted at the person entering and moved toward them.
“…Grace? How…?”
Frozen in confusion, she could barely comprehend the situation, and Grace spoke calmly.
“Hello.”
“Hello? Do I look like I’m in the mood for hellos?”
“Hmm. You don’t look too bad… I guess it’s not enough.”
“What is this? You locked me in here? Why?!”
Sofien screamed in rage.
“Oh, don’t you know?”
Grace remained completely calm, which only made Sofien more furious.
Unable to restrain herself, Sofien charged—but no one could overpower Grace.
Smack!
Before she could even react, Grace grabbed her forehead, leaving her completely immobilized.
“Hey! Let go of me!”
“You charged at me first, you know.”
Crack!
Sofien screamed in pain as she realized just how strong Grace’s grip was.
“Ahhh! Let go! I said let go!”
The refined, polite persona she usually maintained was gone, replaced with a pitifully fierce scream.
“Why are you doing this to me?!”
Grace hesitated whether to explain.
But it seemed worse to let Sofien suffer in ignorance, so she remained silent.
No, it was also aggravating that Sofien didn’t know.
“I’ll come back later.”
“What? Hey, hey!”
Sofien reached out desperately, begging her not to leave, but Grace mercilessly shut the door and left.
Click.
“Ahhh!”
Sofien slumped to the floor, screaming, but the sound of the locked door echoed emptily.
Sofien had disappeared.
Even though it was past the time she was supposed to return, the servants beneath her remained indifferent and continued their usual routines.
Grace took action in earnest.
“Our young master wishes to speak with you.”
“With us?”
“Yes.”
Although they wondered why she suddenly wanted to speak after ignoring them all this time, they obediently followed Grace, realizing it was unwise to oppose someone of higher status.
“Hello.”
The moment they saw Livanu, the maids bowed.
There were six maids managing the villa—not a large number.
“Ugh.”
But as soon as they entered the room, the strange smell made them pinch their noses.
Perhaps they couldn’t imagine that the odor came from Livanu, cloaked in robes, and looked around openly.
Livanu, without any courtesy, asked:
“Do you know something?”
“Uh…? Know what?”
“Do you know which family Reto, whom you so harassed and abused, belongs to?”
“…What?”
The maids’ faces turned pale.
“Foret. You know it, right?”
“I—I don’t understand what the young master means!”
One maid stammered in panic, but Livanu simply asked again, “Really? You don’t know?”
“We don’t, really!”
“Hmm. Sofien already told me everything about your crimes.”
“This is insane!”
The maids protested, claiming it was unfair.
“The one who abused was actually Sofien! We just followed her orders!”
In truth, Sofien hadn’t actually told anything—but the maids eagerly recounted all her misdeeds, including abuse.
It became clear that they had knowingly pretended not to know.
“Did Sofien really do that?”
“Yes! She’s probably gone off on a shopping spree now. I always wondered where she got all that money…”
Their expressions were full of doubt about whether Sofien’s backing really was the Foret family.
“B—but is the young master also from the Foret family?”
Feeling cornered, they said anything to find protection, calculating which side was safest.
“Well, to be exact, I’m Livanu Foret, the eldest here recuperating from illness. And since it’s my first time meeting Reto, he must be a distant branch.”
While it was more likely he was an illegitimate child, there was no need to say that outright.
In any case, he subtly established his closer connection to the Foret family.
“Ah.”
The maids’ eyes rolled.
“Above all, I called you here to punish you for abusing Reto.”
“No! That wicked Sofien is framing us!”
The maids shouted even louder, seemingly satisfied with their calculations.
It wasn’t hard to sway the maids.
Afterward, Grace visited Reto whenever possible, as if it were her own home.
Since no one stopped her, Reto scolded the maids for staying still, but they remained unmoved.
Sigh…
With the maids turning a blind eye and Sofien nowhere to be found, Reto felt uncomfortable.
“Are you here again?”
“Yes. Here again. Reading your book today? Is it fun?”
“….”
“Ah, I hoped I could chat properly since you spoke first today, but still no response.”
Why are they treating me like this?
It amazed Reto how one could be ignored yet still smile.
Esi visited as well, much like Grace, speaking her mind and promising to come again.
Thus, Reto’s otherwise dull life began to change slightly with their alternating visits.
Though he pretended to be annoyed, he found himself unconsciously looking forward to their arrivals.
“Hmm, still no intention to talk today? Shall I chatter by myself?”
It had been the same question for days.
Reto was nearing his limit.
He needed to ask—why was this happening?
Sofien had strictly ordered no contact, and even the maids ignored her, so perhaps speaking a word was permissible.
Reto glanced at Grace surreptitiously.
Grace remained composed.
She knew time was on her side.
“Hello again, young master.”
“…”
“Shall we go for a walk together?”
“…”
Reto seemed increasingly neurotic.
He muttered incomprehensible words and startled at nothing.
Esi grew more worried as the symptoms worsened.
“Are you feeling unwell, young master?”
“…No. Go away. Go away.”
Reto shook his head, rejecting Grace’s approach, muttering all the while:
“Something’s wrong.”
“Excuse me? What is?”
“Sofien has never been absent this long… It’s strange…”
“Shall we go look for her?”
Reto didn’t respond. It seemed he didn’t want to.
Listening carefully, Grace seemed to understand Reto’s feelings.
During the experimental days, it was nice when no experiments were conducted, but she had worried they might all hit at once.
“Are you anxious because Sofien is gone? Or because you fear she might come?”
“…What?”
Only then did Reto lift his head.
“Were you actually afraid of Sofien?”
“I… I don’t know… But I’m a complete fool who can’t do anything without Sofien… She’s not here… It’s strange…”
Strange, strange.
Reto reacted as if suffocating.
“What do you want to do right now, young master?”
“I don’t know… that kind of thing…”
Having been fed, clothed, and ordered around by Sofien since age seven, it was natural that nothing came to mind.
Grace clicked her tongue, thinking he had completely been spoiled.
But she understood the task ahead: make Reto want to do something on his own.
That was the mission for now.
