After handing the lamp to Grete, Mayana briskly ascended the dark stairs. Grete, left in the storeroom with a worried face, quickly looked at the creepylooking floor door and hurried back to her room.

(This is a time separator.)

Contrary to the maids’ whispers that she would run out in less than a day, Ariante quietly spent her time in bed even the next day.

“Princess, shall I read you a book?”

A chilling silence returned. Mayana spoke again.

“Would you like to go for a walk? It’ll be fine if I carry you.”

While all the servants were enjoying the quiet peace of the Duke’s residence, only Mayana was restless and loitering by Ariante’s side.

But no matter how tempting her offers were, Ariante just gloomily shook her head, and her usually lively appearance was nowhere to be found.

‘She must have been shocked by the scolding.’

Eventually, Mayana sat beside Ariante and sewed a simple shawl while repeatedly glancing at the child. She read a few pages of a book, fiddled with a doll, and quickly got bored, looking out of the window, her heart aching.

“Princess, look at this.”

At Mayana’s words, Ariante reluctantly turned her head. Then her eyes widened in surprise.

“What is that?”

“It’s a shawl for a doll. Isn’t it cute?”

Ariante stretched out her tiny hand. As Mayana handed over the shawl, Ariante looked at it curiously and inspected it from all sides, looking very adorable.

“How can you make something like this?”

“I used to make a living with these in my previous life……. stacking fabric and sewing all day,” Mayana answered with a smile.

“The dolls’ clothes in your room were also made by someone.”

Ariante blinked her eyes and looked at the shelf full of dolls with a new perspective. To Mayana, this reaction was not strange at all.

Children often don’t think that even their daily food is grown by someone watering and fertilizing it……. let alone toys. There was no need to mention it.

“What is it made of?”

“I made it from some scrap fabric in the sewing box. If you like it, I’ll make you a prettier one next time. I just need to go to the market and buy some fabric.”

As Mayana reached out, Ariante handed over the shawl as if wondering what she was going to do. Mayana took a doll from the shelf and put the shawl over its exposed shoulders.

“How about it? Cute, right?”

“Can’t it be put on a different doll?”

“Of course, it can. Which one would you like to dress? Shall we put it on that blonde princess doll?”
But Ariante shook her head gently and tried to get down from the bed where she had secured her sleepwear. Mayana ran up and stopped Ariante.

“No, Your Highness. The bed is high, and it’s dangerous. Tell me where it is, and I’ll get it for you.”

Ariante hesitated for a moment, then spoke as her pupils moved wildly.

“Under the bed…….”

Mayana looked at Ariante with a puzzled face.

“What?”

“It’s under the bed. In a small box.”

Why had she placed the doll there? Though a strange thought crossed her mind, Mayana quickly lay down on the floor and reached under the bed.

It must have been quite far in, for she had to push her upper body almost all the way under the bed until she finally felt a solid touch at her fingertips.

Mayana grabbed the corners of the box with both hands and pulled it out. Despite being so deeply lodged, it wasn’t covered in a lot of dust, as though it had been taken out rather frequently.

“Is this what you mean?”

“Yes, that’s right. Give it here.”

Mayana handed the box to Ariante’s arms. With her little finger, she pulled the lock, and Ariante gestured for her to look inside.

“This is…….”

“It’s what my mother left me.”

Ariante’s words dyed Mayana’s face with suspicion.

“This is…… what the Duchess left you?”

“Yes, my father said so. So, I have to take good care of it…….”

Ariante caressed the doll inside the box. It didn’t seem to be a lie, as her touch was much more careful than when she played with other dolls or toys. But Mayana found it hard to believe the child’s words.

‘Where on earth would the Duchess have such a thing?’

The doll inside the box was neither jewel nor pottery but a rag doll made of old fabric. From the beginning, it was cheap and old, a doll made by patching together pieces of wornout cloth……. Although the sewing skill wasn’t bad, it wasn’t as neatly finished as the shawl Mayana had just made.

“Can you dress it in this?”

Ariante asked, looking at the shawl in Mayana’s hand. Mayana quickly erased her bewildered expression and smiled.

“Of course, here you go. I’ll make some more clothes for that doll too.”

Really? Ariante’s eyes sparkled as if in disbelief. Mayana lightly stroked the child’s head looking up at her.

“But you have to have lunch first. Then, while Your Highness is reading a book or taking a nap, I’ll make the clothes for you. Understand?”

“Yes, I will.”

Ariante nodded like a good child. Mayana, with a proud expression, gently touched her chubby cheek and left the room.

Her steps halted as she was about to descend the nearest stairs to the kitchen in the hallway. The handrail was unusually shiny. Not just the handrail but the stairs as well….

Mayana looked down, her eyebrows tightening. Bainti, who had been painting the stairs and handrail, looked up at Mayana and smiled maliciously.

“What are you staring at? You have to clean, so turn around and go down.”