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Chapter – 11
Encounter with the Past
After Lee Sanna left, Jessica told Anna the name of the baron’s household. She instructed Anna not to go immediately, but to visit either on her way back or during a leave of absence. Sensing the gravity of the matter from her words, Anna nodded with a serious expression.
“I always knew you would entrust me with something important someday, Miss!”
“No, Anna…”
Jessica, who wanted to say it wasn’t something to get so excited about, closed her mouth upon seeing Anna’s determined, sparkling eyes.
‘She’ll have to continue receiving my orders from now on.’
Seeing no need to dampen Anna’s overflowing enthusiasm, Jessica let Anna take care of her face.
“Your face has been glowing lately, Miss.”
Her face was originally beautiful. But in her past life, a dark shadow always loomed over it. Her mother’s illness and her father’s absence made her crave affection from others. The fragile girl who looked at others with imploring eyes had disappeared somewhere, leaving only a noble lady fortified with pride. No wonder her face was now radiant.
“Is that so?”
“Yes, yes.”
Seemingly surprised that Jessica even responded, Anna’s cheeks flushed pink as she nodded. It was the first time Jessica had engaged in a personal conversation rather than just giving orders, and Anna was delighted.
“Anna. The hair accessory is too flashy.”
“You don’t like it? The Marchioness gave it to me, saying it was pretty…”
At Anna’s words, the light in Jessica’s eyes dimmed.
“I’m sorry, I spoke out of turn.”
“It’s fine.”
Jessica looked at her face in the mirror. The hair accessory pinned in her hair was a silver ornament crafted in the shape of a freesia flower, which her mother had loved. The accessory, which hung long from just behind her ears, featured freesia flowers at the top, with delicate silver threads swaying beneath as the main point. The accessory shone brilliantly against her golden hair.
“It’s pretty.”
The silver threads dangling by her ears gave a unique feel. After uttering the compliment, Jessica said she wanted to be alone to read a book and sent Anna away.
Left alone in the room after Anna left, Jessica felt the need to sort out her thoughts. She replayed the events from before her return, filling her mind one by one. The thoughts continued incessantly, and the book pages in front of Jessica remained unturned until Anna came to call her for lunch.
That afternoon, Jessica granted Anna leave. Since Anna’s family actually lived in a region quite far from the marquis’s estate, and it would take considerable time to get there, Jessica gave her a month’s time, telling her to rest well. To Anna, who said it was fine, Jessica spoke.
“When you get home, move first.”
“Move?”
“It’s a small house, isn’t it? Move to a bigger one.”
Jessica handed Anna a prepared money pouch and asked her escort knight, Alter, to see her off. Although such things shouldn’t happen in the safe capital, it was just in case she might get robbed.
“Miss…”
To Anna, who looked at her with tearful eyes, Jessica advised.
“Make sure to deposit it at the Imperial Bank and use that money to buy a house and move.”
“Thank you so much!”
Anna, who had been worried about what would happen to the young lady without her, practically skipped as she left the marquis’s estate, as if worried someone might grab her from behind.
Only after confirming Anna had left the mansion and the maid replacing her empty spot entered, did Jessica turn away from the window she had been looking out of.
‘Ah, right. You were here.’
Jessica looked at the maid bowing before her with cold eyes, then spoke in a soft voice.
“Lift your head.”
“My name is Daisy, and I will be serving you from today, Miss.”
The butler who brought Daisy introduced her to Jessica. Jessica gave a slight nod. She was a girl Jessica knew well.
The maid who clung to the new marchioness when she entered this marquis’s residence, telling her all about the marquis’s household. The one who took the lead in tormenting Jessica and contributed to Anna’s death.
Daisy.
After the regression, while managing the marquis’s household, Jessica found it strange she hadn’t seen her, but she never thought they’d meet like this.
“We hired her hastily as Anna’s replacement.”
“What about the existing maids?”
“They must, of course, prepare for the young lady’s debutante ball!”
‘So that’s how it was.’
In the past, Anna had also been briefly absent from Jessica’s side. Anna had urgently gone to her hometown because a great fire had broken out at her home. It turned out the fire was set by a noble who disliked the slums to eliminate the commoners’ neighborhood, and as always, it was swept under the rug. Jessica, remembering that fact, had advised Anna to move.
“I told you not to go to such lengths, Butler.”
“Absolutely not! We are operating within the budget, so please don’t worry!”
With those words, the butler left, saying he was busy. In reality, it was no different from him running away, afraid Jessica might cut the budget further.
“You said your name is Daisy?”
“Yes, Miss.”
“I look forward to working with you.”
At her words, Daisy bowed deeply once more, unable to see Jessica’s icy pupils.
‘How dare you betray the marquis’s household.’
She must have entered this place with that intention from the very beginning. Jessica’s cold eyes became as warm as spring sunlight the moment Daisy raised her head. Thankfully, there was nothing special planned for today. There was no reason to leave the marquis’s estate.
‘I guess I won’t have to wander around alone with that child.’
Just the thought was unpleasant. Having to go around with someone attached to her side, reporting her every move to someone.
“Let’s go.”
Jessica rose from her seat. The freesia-shaped accessories clinked together as they swayed, making a clear, bell-like sound. That sound, heard throughout the walk down the corridor, seemed to announce her existence in this place. It made her feel alive.
It was only after hearing this sound that a memory surfaced in Jessica’s mind. When she was young, she often wore this hair accessory. The clear, swaying sound made her happy whenever she wore it. The reason she stopped wearing this accessory was because of Darten. At the sudden thought of his face, Jessica’s gaze sank.
“Are you going to wear that childish hair accessory forever?”
At his single remark, Jessica tucked the cherished accessory deep into a drawer. When she later looked for it, it had already disappeared somewhere. Someone had laid hands on her jewelry box, and she left the marquis’s household without finding the culprit.
“Jessica!”
At the sudden voice from behind, Jessica stopped walking. Why was this voice heard here?
‘Ah, that’s right.’
She remembered the reason she had fallen for Darten. He was one of the people who stayed by her side in place of Marquis Viterne, who had gone to the border, and the bedridden marchioness. It was something she could have realized with a little thought. That there was not a single trace of genuine affection in his eyes.
“Have you arrived, Your Highness.”
As Jessica bowed in the courtesy reserved for royalty, Darten reached out his hand as if to help her up. Sensing his hand, she slightly pulled her body back and straightened her bowed posture. Darten, unable to take his eyes off Jessica’s face as she raised her head, soon cleared his throat and smiled at her.
“I’m sorry I couldn’t come to the Marchioness’s funeral. His Majesty summoned me.”
“That’s alright.”
Darten had never once revealed his feelings for Jessica in an official setting. This time was no different. Even though her mother had died, Darten, who frequently visited, did not stop by the marquis’s household during that period.
Given that almost no one knew he frequented this place, Jessica could wear the hair accessory she cherished.
Responding to his apologetic expression in a monotonous voice, Jessica looked around her. Today, there were extremely few people at the marquis’s estate.
Marquis Viterne had led the knights outside the capital to inspect his territory, and Alter, who guarded her back, had not yet returned. Surely, Darten had come to the marquis’s residence knowing this fact.
“What brings Your Highness here today?”
“What do you mean? As always, I came to see you.”
At Darten’s natural remark, Jessica struggled to compose her expression. The corners of her mouth, which she forced upward to avoid showing a stiff face, seemed to tremble.
To make matters worse, the fan she carried daily was broken, so she had nothing to hide her face with. Darten, noticing her strange expression, hesitated and whispered.
“Are you… perhaps angry? That I didn’t come to see you?”
“Of course not. It’s just… it hasn’t been long since Mother passed, so my heart still aches.”
Jessica forced a smile and lowered her eyes. Sunlight streamed between the two people conversing by the window in the long corridor. The golden light that gently landed on her eyelashes moved softly, like a fluttering butterfly. Her delicate appearance stirred Darten’s heart.
He had seen Jessica many times, but this was the first time he felt this way.
He had thought she had a beautiful face. After all, Jessica possessed one of the most beautiful faces in the empire. But he thought that was all. Because the gloomy aura she carried never disappeared. Being near Jessica made even him feel depressed, so Darten always kept his distance from her.
But the Jessica he saw today was quite different from before. While her subdued aura was similar, her sorrowful face with its sparkling eyes held something that captivated a man’s heart. Seeing Darten’s wavering eyes, Jessica finally smiled inwardly.
“Hmm, is it that difficult? Even though I’m here with you?”
“Your Highness.”
“Calling me that feels so distant… Won’t you call me like you used to?”
“……”
At his request for a nickname, Jessica almost frowned for a moment. But soon, she let a magnificent, flower-like smile bloom on her face as she gently rolled her tongue.
“I can no longer call Your Highness by a nickname.”
