Chapter 10
“Come in.”
At Luviana’s permission, the door creaked open.
Peeking through the small crack, a little head appeared.
“Sis?”
“Justin, it’s you. Come in.”
She felt embarrassed to show her swollen face to her younger brother, but she couldn’t possibly turn him away after he had come all this way.
The boy ran toward her, almost bouncing with each step.
Luviana raised her palm to half-cover her puffy eyes as she greeted him.
“My eyes are really swollen but… oh my, Justin? What’s wrong?”
“Sis, I’m sorry!”
Startled, Luviana forgot all about her embarrassment as she watched tears drip like chicken droppings from Justin’s eyes.
She then noticed the newspaper in his hand.
“What happened? Why are you crying?”
“All the things I talked about with my friends over comms last night ended up in the paper! I’m so sorry!”
Waaah—! His trickle of tears turned into a waterfall.
What on earth is this?!
Flustered, Luviana snatched the newspaper Justin brought.
It was less like a newspaper and more like a gossip tabloid.
And splashed across the front page was a giant headline that made her eyes widen.
<Grand Duke Klitzman Saves Lady Payson from Danger! Sparks of Romance in a Life-Threatening Situation!>
Wow… news really does spread fast!
Something that happened just yesterday afternoon was already in the gossip rags.
Even in a world without cars, smartphones, or computers, quick-footed journalists apparently existed.
True to tabloid style, the article went into detail speculating about a possible romance between Luviana and Elion.
‘Sure, he saved me, but romance? Seriously?! Guys, I’m the heroine! There’s a perfect, dashing male lead—Chad Preston! Why are you sticking me with the villainous Grand Duke?’
Frustration bubbled up inside her.
She felt like storming into the newspaper office and grabbing the reporter who wrote this nonsense by the collar.
But what would that solve?
‘The article’s already out, people have already read it, and those who want to believe it already do.’
Of course, some wouldn’t believe it, but how many would those be?
Haaah—she couldn’t help sighing.
Her twisted expression only made Justin cry harder.
“Hhh… I-I’m sorry, Sis! When I heard that the great war hero, Grand Duke Klitzman, saved you, I got so excited that… hhh… I just bragged a little—just a little—to my friends… Please forgive me! Waaah!”
Startled, Luviana rushed to calm him down.
“Oh, no, no. I’m not angry at you, Justin.”
The innocent boy thought it was his words that got into the gossip rags.
That must be why he came running to apologize the moment he saw the article.
Casting the paper aside, Luviana pulled Justin into her arms.
She gently patted his back and soothed him with a soft voice.
“This article didn’t come out because of you, Justin. I’m sure of it.”
At her firm reassurance, Justin looked up at her.
His young eyes were filled with guilt and affection.
She couldn’t help but envy the real Luviana, who had grown up in such unconditional love from her family.
Carefully wiping away the tears hanging on his lashes, she continued.
“Too many people saw it yesterday. People saw the Grand Duke saving me, saw me riding with him to his estate, and later saw me coming home in his carriage. At least a hundred people, I’d say.”
“…”
“If each of those hundred people told three or four friends or family, that’s already over three hundred. Out of those, one was probably a journalist—or someone connected to one.”
“…You think so?”
“Of course. The chance that what you told your friends over comms reached a journalist is, at best, one in three hundred. Practically zero. So this isn’t because of you, Justin. You don’t need to feel sorry at all.”
“…Okay.”
Finally, Justin’s face brightened.
But when he looked at Luviana’s swollen face, his eyes went wide.
“But Sis, what happened to your face?”
“I cried a lot last night, that’s all.”
When Justin snickered, his shoulders shaking, Luviana’s gaze sharpened.
Oh, really? After I just comforted you for crying, now you laugh at me?
Time for some spicy payback.
“Justin, did you know something?”
“What?”
“If you cry and then laugh right after, you’ll turn hairy.”
“…Like Uncle Max?”
Max was the estate’s gardener.
He had a thick head of hair, a bushy beard covering half his face, and arms full of bristly hair.
Keeping a perfectly straight face, Luviana replied just as seriously.
“Oh, Uncle Max is nothing. You’d probably grow twice as much hair.”
“…So much that you couldn’t even see my face?”
“Exactly. So you’d better be careful, Justin.”
“Ah…”
Once again, his big round eyes started glistening with tears.
As expected, the swelling didn’t go down completely, no matter how much she iced her face.
She could open her eyes about two-thirds of the way now, but anyone could still tell they were puffy.
“This is the best I can do. I’m hungry anyway, and I need to get ready to go out.”
“Shall I bring you a meal, miss?”
“Yes, please.”
“Right away.”
Dinner was always eaten together as a family, but breakfast and lunch were left to each person’s convenience.
Everyone had their own busy schedules.
Her father, a Treasury official, commuted daily to the palace.
Her elder sister, a spirit master in the Imperial Knights, was also busy with knightly duties.
Her mother attended social gatherings almost every day.
And her brother was always tied up with lessons.
“Now that I think about it… I’m the only one who’s not busy.”
Her mood plummeted.
She had been so excited, thinking she was the heroine, but here she was—basically unemployed.
Chad, the male lead, was probably busy with knightly work.
Florencia, the villainess, and her clique were surely scheming as always.
‘And I’m just stuck here. I’m the only one doing nothing. I’m the only one… who’s nothing…!’
Her chest throbbed.
Her stomach burned, twisting uncomfortably.
Heat stung her eyes.
“No! This is the time to focus!”
She quickly shook her head and forced strength into her eyes.
‘First priority is getting a steady supply of mana from the Grand Duke. Everything else can wait until I’m fully recovered. Then it won’t be too late.’
Because eventually, she would recover.
Eventually, she would become a spirit master.
Eventually, she would become the heroine.
At that moment, Sophie entered, pushing a cart of food.
‘First, I’ll eat. I can think about everything else after.’
“Sophie, wait here in the carriage.”
Luviana spoke to Sophie, who sat across from her.
Sophie, who had just started to rise to accompany her, sat back down, puzzled.
“I thought I’d watch the music box being repaired. It might help clear my mind.”
“Pardon?”
Sophie tilted her head, still not quite understanding.
“Watching the craftsman’s skilled hands will probably calm me somehow.”
“Oh… I suppose that makes sense.”
Now understanding, Sophie nodded.
“Then maybe I could also—”
“No. I want to watch quietly, by myself.”
“…”
Sophie had been about to say, ‘I won’t say a word, I’ll just watch,’ but chose to stay silent.
She understood why Luviana wanted to be alone.
She knew the unease her mistress must feel after her sudden health troubles.
She had even witnessed last night’s crying episode firsthand.
So Sophie just smiled softly, her eyes curving.
“All right. I’ll stay here and knit while I wait. Take your time, miss.”
“See you soon, Sophie.”
Stepping out of the carriage, Luviana carried the music box she had deliberately broken the night before and headed toward the toy repair shop.
She didn’t forget to pull the hood of her robe low over her head.
In her fine dress, she would stand out too easily in the back alleys.
At the alley one block before the repair shop, Elion was waiting.
Beside him stood his physician, Hayley.
“Good day, Your Grace. Lady Hayley.”
“Welcome, Lady.”
“Hello, Lady Luviana.”
Both of them blinked in surprise at the sight of her face.
It was probably because of her swollen eyes.
Flustered, Luviana blurted out an excuse no one had asked for.
“My eyes are swollen. I ate too much bread last night before bed, and this is what happened.”
Ha, ha ha… she forced a laugh, turning her face slightly away.
Elion’s curt voice cut through.
“Let’s go.”
“…Yes.”
The three of them headed straight to the toy repair shop.
