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Chapter : 9
They said there was nothing you couldn’t find in the shops along Plade Street, and it turned out to be true.
True to Bailey’s practical nature, they took care of what needed to be done first. Their first stop was to have Adele’s school uniform tailored. After that, they visited a secondhand bookstore and bought several textbooks.
In the market district, where street vendors lined the roads every day, they purchased pretty lace, a wide-brimmed sunhat, and a bonnet that Adele could wear comfortably.
“How can a place like this even exist? It’s so amazing!”
“I’m glad you like it.”
Bailey answered in her usual somewhat curt manner.
She had never been fond of crowded, bustling places like this. If it hadn’t been for Adele, she never would have ventured out on such a hot summer day.
Seeing that Adele still showed no signs of tiring, Bailey led her toward a teahouse.
After weaving through so many people, she felt they should sit down and rest for a while.
She bought Adele a cool serving of ice cream, while she herself ordered a cup of hot black tea with milk and finally let out a quiet sigh of relief.
Still unable to contain her excitement, Adele bombarded Bailey with question after question.
Bailey answered everything she knew.
Though it hardly seemed enough to satisfy Adele’s endless curiosity.
“How did you find the tram? Do you think you’ll be able to get off near your school without any trouble?”
“Yes. I’ve memorized it carefully. I won’t forget to ring the bell, either.”
“Whatever you do, never hang onto the front or rear steps of the tram. Only uncultured people behave that way.”
Deep down, Adele had secretly wanted to try hanging onto the pole on the tram steps just like she’d seen other people do.
Suppressing the urge, she answered,
“Yes. I won’t.”
“Good. You’re a member of Heightsrind now, Miss Adele. You must never do anything that would tarnish the honor of the House of Clausen.”
A member of Heightsrind.
The words filled Adele with quiet happiness, and a soft smile spread across her face.
After resting enough, they headed to their final destination—a painter’s supply shop.
Back on Baden Street, Adele had taken private art lessons.
She loved painting and possessed considerable talent, so her parents had always encouraged her artistic education.
As she browsed through the art supplies, she realized that the paints, brushes, canvases, and other materials she had always used were actually quite expensive.
She still had five gold coins tucked inside her apron pocket, but she couldn’t spend all of them on painting supplies alone.
After much careful consideration, she selected her purchases one by one.
For the first time in her life, she paid for something herself and even received change.
Adele decided that the very first portrait she painted would be of Bailey, as a gift.
With that in mind, she carefully chose colors that would match Bailey’s silvery-gray hair, along with paints suitable for depicting the deep navy dresses Bailey so often wore.
Bailey knew absolutely nothing about art supplies.
As Adele carefully compared different shades of yellow and brown paint, Bailey simply stared at them as though she were looking at buttercups and celandines.
To her eyes, one shade looked no different from another.
“Have you bought everything? Then let’s head back. Make sure you keep the remaining gold and your change somewhere safe.”
Holding Bailey’s hand tightly, Adele boarded the tram.
The ride home was even more crowded than the trip there.
The sun was slowly sinking toward the western horizon.
Although it was still warm because the summer days were long, the crimson glow spilling across the tram tracks was breathtaking.
The sun and clouds in the western sky blended together into rich shades of orange and pink.
Feeling the cool summer breeze brushing against her face, Adele smiled brightly.
Watching Adele smile so freely, as though she had nothing left to wish for, Bailey couldn’t help letting out a small smile herself.
It was one of those evenings when summer quietly deepened.
Adele spent almost the entire summer in the forest behind the manor.
After unexpectedly running into Karl in the Duchess’s private garden, she stopped going anywhere near the gardens altogether.
Partly because she feared meeting the Duchess—the mistress of that beautiful green garden—and partly because she preferred the wild, untamed forest over carefully manicured scenery.
According to Bailey, the golden lion statue that had stood before the Green Garden had developed a crack in one of its legs a few days before Karl returned, so it had been sent away for repairs.
She had even worried that perhaps Adele had wandered near the garden without realizing it.
Adele merely smiled and shook her head.
Her first meeting with Karl hadn’t exactly been pleasant, but nothing truly terrible had happened.
Since running into him in the library, she had hardly seen him at all.
Karl himself had been extremely busy preparing for university, and throughout the summer there had been an endless stream of social gatherings and parties.
Most of the time he accepted invitations to noble estates.
Occasionally, whenever the Duchess happened to be in a particularly good mood, small parties or social gatherings would also be held at Heightsrind.
When there were no such events, Karl usually spent his time hunting in the forest surrounding the estate or disappearing on short trips.
Every now and then, whenever Adele spotted him from a distance, her heart would beat just a little faster.
His impeccably handsome face and noble appearance reminded her of the princes from the fairy tales she loved so much.
Adele dearly loved her father.
Even so, when she looked at the tiny portrait inside her pendant, she had to admit that he had never looked quite as princely as Karl did.
At any rate, Karl was undoubtedly the most handsome person she had ever known.
Sometimes she secretly sketched his face in her notebook.
She also crossed paths with the Duchess from time to time.
Every single time, the Duchess completely ignored her.
Even when Adele bowed politely or timidly whispered, “Hello,” the Duchess acted as though she had neither seen nor heard her and simply walked past.
At first, it had hurt.
But whenever Adele remembered her first day at the estate, she realized that indifference and silence were far preferable to open hostility.
Following Bailey’s advice to stay out of the Duchess’s sight whenever possible, Adele usually remained in her room, helped out in the kitchen, or played alone in the forest behind the manor.
Those were places the Duchess would never visit.
“Going to the forest again today?”
Bailey asked as she looked up from the lace she had been crocheting in Adele’s room.
Karl was scheduled to leave for the university in Regenshen in just a few days, so the entire Heightsrind estate was bustling with preparations.
After helping with various chores, Bailey had come to Adele’s room to rest while working on her lace.
Adele’s room was located on the western side of the manor.
Although it became rather cold during winter, it was pleasantly cool on summer mornings.
“Yes. I found a wildflower I’d never seen before yesterday. I only had time to sketch it, so today I’m bringing my paints to color it.”
“I see. The weather has cooled down quite a bit. August will soon be halfway over. Once school starts you’ll be busy every day, so enjoy your free time while you still can.”
Smiling softly, Adele replied,
“Yes.”
As always, Bailey’s gentle concern warmed her heart.
Not long ago, Adele had secretly finished Bailey’s portrait and presented it to her as a gift.
Bailey had been absolutely overjoyed.
It wasn’t surprising.
Adele truly was talented, and she had spent days carefully revising and perfecting the painting.
The small canvas, about the size of a book, captured Bailey exactly as she usually appeared sitting in Adele’s room.
Of course, Adele had intentionally omitted a few wrinkles.
“Oh, that’s right. Young Master Karl is hunting in the forest today. He’ll be riding deep into the woods on horseback, so you probably won’t run into him, but still, be careful. If you hear gunshots, don’t go anywhere near them. And today, try not to venture too far into the forest.”
“Yes. I understand.”
Adele packed her art supplies as she answered.
Throughout the summer there had been several days when Adele visited the forest while Karl was hunting.
Even so, their paths had never crossed.
Adele stayed near the forest’s edge, where the manor remained in sight, while Karl rode much deeper into the woods after his prey.
Gathering her things, Adele stepped outside.
Just as Bailey had said, the weather had become wonderfully cool.
The sunlight still felt warm whenever it shone directly overhead, but beneath the trees the shade was refreshingly cool.
Adele absentmindedly touched her hair.
The uneven haircut she’d received before arriving at Heightsrind had begun growing out.
It had become a little longer.
I hope it grows quickly.
It was just beginning to brush against her shoulders, but compared to how long it used to be, it still had a long way to go.
At the very least, she hoped she’d be able to braid it neatly by the time school started.
Thinking about such things, Adele arrived at the place where she had found the wildflowers the day before.
A small stream flowed through the clearing, and countless unfamiliar flowers bloomed along its banks.
After walking for a while, she’d worked up a slight sweat.
She knelt and drank directly from the stream.
The water carried the faint scent of earth.
Its cool freshness was wonderfully refreshing.
She soaked her handkerchief, wrung it out tightly, and draped it around the back of her neck.
The lingering warmth vanished instantly, leaving goosebumps from the pleasant chill.
After filling her water bottle, Adele quickly returned to the landscape she’d been unable to finish last time.
She painted in the colors carefully.
Watching the flowers bloom across the pages of her sketchbook in brilliant shades filled her with quiet satisfaction.
White birch trees and dark green pine trees surrounded the stream.
Adele spent a long time mixing colors, gradually filling the pages with her own unique palette.
She was wondering how best to paint a patch of unknown wild grass tinged with delicate lavender when—
Rustle.
She heard someone stepping through the grass.
A horse snorted.
Adele immediately turned toward the sound.
Karl approached the stream, leading his horse.
He wore a crimson tailored riding jacket, black riding breeches, and polished leather boots.
“Hello.”
The previous two times they had met, she had done nothing but embarrass herself.
Determined not to repeat that, Adele greeted him first the moment she recognized his silhouette from afar.
Karl silently nodded.
Leading his horse to the water, he let it drink before removing his own canteen from the saddle, filling it from the stream, and taking a drink himself.
Adele’s gaze drifted toward the animal strapped across the horse.
A slender doe hung limply over its back.
Afraid Karl might notice her staring, she quickly turned away and grimaced.
A shiver ran through her body.
She had never actually seen the results of a hunt before.
“Drawing?”
Karl asked as he noticed the sketchbook lying open while the paint dried.
Adele’s cheeks immediately turned red.
“Yes. I like painting.”
“So you enjoy reading books, and you like painting too.”
He leaned casually against his horse and shrugged.
“Refined hobbies.”
Taking another drink from his canteen, Karl looked at her lazily.
Adele narrowed her eyes and glared at him.
