The long-awaited morning of the Bailey family’s eldest daughter’s wedding day had dawned.

The capital’s morning was unprecedentedly bright, thanks to the rain clearing up after a long while.

Eloise sincerely hoped that such blessed sunlight was also shining down on Longfield’s great garden by now.

Was it punishment for lying to her sister? Coincidentally, Eloise had really fallen ill.

Yesterday, when she carefully broached the subject to Mr. Woodley, the factory manager, as her condition was clearly not normal, he shrugged and said, “Well, it’s about time.”

Apparently, it was common for newbies who were new to factory work to fall seriously ill around this time.

Mr. Woodley was particularly lenient towards unmarried female workers, especially those with slender bodies and youthful faces.

He appeared in the workplace three times a day, including the morning hours, and it was just recently that he had turned a blind eye to Eloise arriving at the factory a little late due to sending letters to her family.

Just yesterday, he not only allowed Eloise, in other words, a newcomer of less than a month, to leave work first but also granted her a day off.

Eloise was too perceptive not to realize that his granting such conveniences was quite unusual.

Normally, she would have tried to refuse somehow, worried about how the other female workers would view her.

But yesterday, she truly felt too unwell to think of anything else, and sure enough, this morning she couldn’t take a single step out of bed.

“Ugh… my whole body aches.”

Eloise groaned painfully, pulling the blanket wrapped tightly around her body up to just below her eyes.

Just then, a small rustling was heard outside the door. When there was no response from Eloise, the sound of claws scratching at the door gap could be heard.

“I’m sorry, but I really can’t open it now, Sally…”

Eloise muttered absentmindedly, hearing the cat’s meow that sounded like a protest.

“…Sally.”

The moment she unconsciously called out the familiar name again, the image of her sister’s face, smiling happily in a dazzling wedding dress, vividly appeared before her eyes.

It was beautiful enough to make her eyes snap open, even though it was just imagination. How much more beautiful would it have been to see it in person?

Her kind sister would be worrying about her younger sister’s cold without even thinking of resenting her for not attending the wedding, where excitement and nervousness coexisted.

It really feels like I’m being punished. Eloise let out a bitter smile through her teeth at that thought.

It was truly absurd and even funny that the pure white lie she had made up for her sister’s sake ended up not being a lie after all.

“I should go back not too late. I’ll give sister a big hug when I get there…”

Eloise murmured weakly, hugging the cotton blanket instead of her sister.

Though both her body and mind were exhausted, there was still one consolation. It was the fact that Sarah would have a marriage life that was second to none.

Surely, there must have been many ladies within noble society who admired that man.

Because he was noble and beautiful from birth. So much so that she couldn’t help but have her heart stolen from the moment she first met him as a small child…

“No. I should stop thinking like this.”

Of course, the man’s beauty, status, or background couldn’t overshadow his personality.

Eloise had realized his arrogant true nature not long after he proposed to her sister.

That day, the haughty attitude and voice he showed when he visited her home alone still made her toes tingle. As if she had returned to that time, that moment.

But Ansel Blaine’s true nature didn’t matter anymore.

Even if he no longer smiled at her, even if only pretending, even if he treated her carelessly and looked down on her.

She had decided not to attach any meaning to him anymore.

He just needed to devote himself to the woman who had taken his heart. There was no reason for her to be heartbroken over his indifference.

Eloise wasn’t naive enough to expect the noble young master to be kind even to his wife’s troublesome younger sister.

All that mattered to her was her sister Sarah’s happiness.

So I hope you’ll be happy too. You must be. So that you can always bring happiness to my sister.

“…Cough.”

Eloise, who coughed softly, turned over unsteadily.

As the white blanket draped over her eyes like a curtain, the image of a young couple standing under the dazzling sky was painted on it.

Ansel stood there in the most perfect form.

Having finally made the woman he had loved for so long his wife, he wore a truly splendid smile.

Ansel’s face, shining ecstatically. It wasn’t hard to imagine just by recalling his childhood.

And beside him was her beloved sister.

Her pretty face, blushing softly like the rose she held in her arms, wearing a sparkling dress, was etched clearly as if engraved on her retina.

Then, as if by magic, her mood improved a little.

Sally the cat must have gone downstairs by now, as it was quiet outside the door.

It seemed she was ready to fall asleep again. Eloise curled up tightly like a small animal.

“Marriage… yawn.”

Due to the family’s lack of fortune, the sisters had heard many stories about marriage since childhood, and naturally felt burdened by it.

Even if not as much as the eldest daughter, Eloise had also lived with that burden.

“My marriage is no longer an obligation. Now that sister has become the young madam of a great family.”

Even though she had become a 22-year-old lady who could start a family at any time, Eloise often thought she wanted to remain a naive girl forever.

At the center of that thought was always the feeling of not wanting to get married.

The reason why marriage felt like something foreign, something that would never exist in her world, was very clear.

Because she knew all too well that the only person she wanted was absolutely forbidden to her.

Moreover, now she didn’t even have someone she wanted. Suddenly, she felt empty inside at that thought.

But that didn’t mean she wanted to create a connection with someone she didn’t care for.

It was because she didn’t believe that the emptiness in her heart could only be filled by a relationship with someone.

As she gradually filled her daily life with self-achieved accomplishments and fulfillment, she might one day find herself living a fulfilled life.

Eloise was now at the starting point of that challenge.

So for now, quick recovery was the priority to continue her steady steps again tomorrow.

‘I should sleep.’

As she closed her eyes and relaxed her body to stop thinking, the drowsiness that had been blocked by heavy thoughts flowed in like a gentle current.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, she heard what sounded like Mrs. Mullitch arguing with someone at the front door downstairs.

‘She’s been doing that a lot lately. She doesn’t seem to like being involved, so it’s hard to ask…’

Eloise, who had been breathing quietly with an anxious and worried feeling, felt the noise ringing in her ears gradually fade away.

Eventually, the waves of sleep completely enveloped her.

Eloise stretched her thin arms out while lying in bed.

As she blinked her eyes a few times, still heavy with sleep, her senses gradually returned.

The sunlight that had been peeking through the curtains was gone, and a distant darkness filled the room. She had hoped to sleep soundly until morning.

Sure enough, her body still felt stiff.

‘Still, better than this morning…?’

For a moment, Eloise held her breath in the darkness. Only then did the sound of rain hitting the window become clear.

It seemed to be a drizzle, but it was just this morning that she had rejoiced thinking the weather had finally cleared… For some reason, she felt deflated.

‘I wonder if the laundry was taken in?’

Eloise struggled to her feet.

Perhaps because she had lain in bed all day without eating even a piece of bread, she felt a slight dizziness as she put her feet on the floor.

She thought about going downstairs to eat something, but she had no appetite at all.

Moreover, if she ate something now, she might find it difficult to fall asleep soon after.

Let’s not have dinner at this hour after all. Having reached that conclusion, Eloise lit a candle in the darkness.

She intended to prepare for tomorrow morning in advance and then try to sleep again.

She wanted to avoid being late the day after enjoying the privilege of a special day off.

But just then, she heard someone knocking on the front door downstairs. It was quite clear, even through the thin sound of rain.

Eloise, who had been quietly gathering her clothes, involuntarily flinched, but soon focused on packing her things, paying no mind to it.

Greeting guests was the role of Mrs. Mullitch, the landlady, and she would surely be sitting in the armchair near the entrance as always.

But for some reason, there was no sound of the door being opened.

‘What’s this? Has she already fallen asleep? Surely she hasn’t gone out at this hour?’

The old woman was known for her sleeplessness and didn’t particularly enjoy going out during the day.

‘I don’t think she had particularly sharp hearing…’

Having thought that far, Eloise picked up a shawl hanging on the wall and draped it over her shoulders.

Creak, the old room door opened.

“Madam? Mrs. Mullitch?”

She called out for the lady as she descended the stairs, but the house was very quiet and there was no sign of anyone.

The chair the lady liked to sit in was occupied by the cat. Round, amber eyes gleamed in the darkness.

It seemed certain that the lady had gone out.

“Sally, has the lady gone out? It seems we have a visitor…”

Naturally, the cat didn’t answer.

As Eloise lowered her eyebrows in apparent perplexity, she heard the knocking on the front door once again.

There’s no helping it. I’ll have to open the door, explain that the lady isn’t here, and send them away.

“…Yes.”

Eloise answered in a hoarse voice as she hurriedly ran to the entrance.

Creak, as she unlocked the door and twisted the old doorknob, the scent of rain-soaked earth seeped through the narrow gap.

The cool, moist breeze carried layers of fresh and invigorating fragrance.

It was only when she had opened the door halfway that Eloise realized the fragrance was bergamot.

She should have stopped there.

If she had, at the very least, she could have gone on without knowing that a man who shouldn’t be here this evening had come looking for her.