Tightly! Praylee suddenly clenched her fist as if she were afraid my hand would fall off. I, who wasn’t fond of enjoying such things, neither hated nor liked it; it was truly ambiguous.

Although I’m not the type to enjoy this kind of playful act, I didn’t want to be so crude as to refuse because I wasn’t vulgar enough to shout ‘let go’ or do something that would tarnish the honor of the aristocracy. I silently wished for this moment to pass quickly.

Squeak! However, unexpectedly, Praylee, who had released her hand, suddenly punched me hard and, as if she were her own sister, stuck close to me, humming a tune. I didn’t dislike it, but it wasn’t pleasant either; it was truly ambiguous.

I’m not the type to enjoy this kind of teasing, and I wasn’t crude enough to shout ‘let go,’ either. I didn’t want to do anything that would tarnish the honor of the aristocracy. I silently wished for this moment to pass quickly.

Twist! However, I didn’t know that this wish would come true in such a twisted way. Out of the blue, Praylee, who was walking well while looking ahead, suddenly stumbled, swayed, and hesitated before sitting down on the ground.
I was worried that people might misunderstand, thinking I pushed or tripped over something, but there was no one around who seemed to think so, and everyone rushed towards Praylee, calling her name.

“Praylee!”

And the first one to rush was, of course, Sasha.

“Ouch…”

She had to be cautious because she might have twisted her ankle or suddenly lost strength in her legs, causing her to sit down hesitantly. Instead of immediately offering support, I decided to check if she was in a condition to stand by first holding out my hand.

“Are you okay?”

Regardless of how it happened, I extended my hand with a nuance of ‘grab it and get up.’ However, Praylee was acting strange from this moment.

Considering her personality and actions so far, she would either grab my hand with a big smile and stand up energetically, or if the injury was severe, she would be unable to hold someone’s hand and get up, apologizing with a pained expression. However, contrary to the two expected responses, she didn’t do either. Instead, she looked at the hand I offered, tears welling up, and not only bowed deeply, but also clenched her fist, putting strength into the hand that touched the ground.

She behaved like someone frustrated, embarrassed, and ashamed.

“Hey, are you going to keep doing this?”

I couldn’t ask her if she wanted to dig a hole and hide because it was absurd, so I pretended not to know and casually spoke. Honestly, I couldn’t keep extending my hand until she held it. My arm was starting to itch.

“I’ll hold your hand, so get up quickly.”

Even a sunflower-like girl might have a strong underlying pride. After muttering slightly sarcastically, I looked at Praylee, who had regained her senses, and sighed internally.

“I’ve been so rude.”

Praylee, who had been awkwardly smiling with a forced eye smile, finally took my offered hand with a hint of embarrassment.

“I apologize, Your Excellency.”

Finally, behind Praylee, who apologized for causing trouble, Sasha, who had been waiting nervously and fretting about what to do, shouted frantically. He seemed like someone going mad just before a very expensive sculpture was about to break.

“Let’s go back quickly! I’ll carry you, so don’t strain yourself.”

“No, there’s no need for that.”

Unlike the anxious Sasha, who seemed like he might suffocate at any moment, Praylee, who seemed to have pain in her ankles, intermittently put strength into her temples, enduring it while calmly speaking.

“Since Your Excellency personally escorted us, we are sorry, but we should hurry.”

But Sasha was stubborn, and, in contrast to Praylee, who seemed to be on the verge of passing out at any moment, he calmly and methodically said everything he wanted to say, enduring the pain in his ankles.

“Your Excellency, we apologize for your personal escort, but we should hurry.”

However, Sasha remained stubborn, and while Praylee had endured the pain in her ankles, he conveyed that they would walk slowly to the carriage with Praylee supported by him. Since there was no reason to refuse, and I thought it was a good idea, I quickly agreed.

“Sure, let’s go.”

Waving my hand, as I bid them farewell, Sasha and Praylee gave a formal greeting once more and turned away.
Sasha and Praylee stuck close together, whispering continuously. Curious about the lowered voices and the content of their conversation, I stood in place, perking up my ears as much as possible.

“You should rest at the mansion for a while.”

“Are you telling me to lie down like a corpse again? I’d rather vanish.”

However, the voices were not clear, and I could only catch bits and pieces of words, making it impossible to grasp the flow of the conversation. From the snippets like “rest” and “corpse,” it seemed to be related to the recent fall, possibly discussing treatment.

“Don’t force yourself. I don’t want to lose you again.”

Anyway, just as with the farewell to Flora, even if I didn’t bid farewell, I had to watch them leave, as it was a matter of etiquette. I kept an eye on Sasha and Praylee’s backs, with Pobby by my side.

“I’ve always waited for you every time your soul shattered and scattered into the world. Waiting for you is so familiar to me that I can do it as much as I want, so it’s okay.”

Soul? What a philosophical term. Suppressing a yawn, I observed the maid from the Vladimir family opening the door of the just arrived carriage.

“But now your soul is unstable, and if you don’t rest well, it will break soon.”

“Really, like literal annihilation, Pray.”

“Are you thinking of giving up revenge like this?”

“No, that’s not the case. Revenge has always been my long-standing desire.”

As the distance gradually increased, it became difficult to understand what they were talking about, even with my ears perked up. However, there were faintly heard two words at the end that didn’t seem to fit Praylee’s current situation, raising questions.

“Revenge? Desire?”