“Young miss, are you awake now?”

The chef in front of my room spoke. Outside, where it had been raining heavily, was quiet and dark.

As I lowered my head, the longsword I had been grasping earlier was still clenched in my hand. Perhaps I didn’t let go of the longsword even while dreaming, as my hand was covered in sweat.

“I’ll go to the kitchen now.”

“Ah, alright. Thank you.”

The chef stepped aside.

After spacing out for a while, I returned the weapons I had taken out to their original places.

Stepping into the corridor, I could hear the maids chattering in the distance. The maids complained about their hard work as usual. Selfishly, I felt reassured by their voices.

‘That woman must have left already?’

Fortunately, it seemed like nothing had happened in the mansion. The problem would be at dawn or tomorrow morning…

She might come to the mansion again, aiming for the time when everyone is asleep. I should probably keep holding the longsword.

As I was about to retrieve the longsword again, there was a commotion outside.

“We’re here, Lize!”

“Lize! Are you asleep?”

My brothers’ voices echoed from the entrance hall. The family, whom I thought would return by lunchtime tomorrow, had arrived at the mansion early.

“Felicia!”

“What, you’re not sleeping.”

Felicia said, hastily taking off her hat. With those words, my shoulders, which had been tensed up, relaxed. It really was the Marsen siblings.

The twins looked tired, as if they had slept in the carriage. On the other hand, Felicia and Bernard looked fine, but their bodies seemed exhausted.

In the hands of the four were boxes wrapped in fancy wrapping paper and large dolls. Grandfather must have prepared plenty of gifts upon hearing that his granddaughters and grandsons were coming.

“You weren’t asleep yet?”

Isabel, who entered the entrance hall later than the siblings, noticed me and asked. Looking at the time, it was well past 11 PM.

Of course, not only me but also the twins should have gone to bed early. Now, surprise rather than joy took precedence.

“…I couldn’t sleep. But you came back early?”

Why did they have to pull the carriage to the mansion at this late hour?

Usually, they would stay at least one night at Grandfather’s mansion before returning. Grandfather, who rarely saw his grandchildren once a year, always wished for this.

“Something came up. You weren’t up to any mischief, were you, Lize?”

“I didn’t do anything!”

“…Father asked me to give this to you.”

Isabel had an attendant behind her hand me a gift. It was a box and a doll that looked the same as the ones held by the other siblings.

Grandfather, who had gone out of his way to prepare my gift for me. Staring at the gift with gratitude, I couldn’t hide my happy mood and smiled slightly.

Then I felt Isabel’s gaze on me. Feeling embarrassed, I tried to hide my smile, and at that moment, the mansion door opened once more.

“Damn it, it’s bloody cold because it’s evening! Why did you insist on returning to the mansion this evening?”

Even Father, who was outside, entered the mansion.

“Father, you’re back…”

“Wife, please take care of things for me. I’m drunk and need to go to bed now.”

Without greeting me, he threw off his gloves and hat and went to his room. Judging by his staggering figure, he seemed to have drunk quite a lot. As soon as the door slammed shut, a brief silence lingered in the entrance hall.

He said someone insisted? Who? I was about to turn my head to Isabel to ask about the truth, but the maid was faster.

“Excuse me, Madam. There’s something I need to tell you…”

The maid glanced at the siblings still in the entrance hall and quietly spoke to Isabel. It was such a small voice that I couldn’t hear, but I realized that the maid was talking about what had happened at the mansion today.

A slight frown appeared on Isabel’s forehead.

“What should we do? If she came to threaten us…”

“It’s fine, don’t worry about it. Since she didn’t cause any trouble and left, it must have been a coincidental visit. I need to rest now, so please take care of putting the children to bed.”

“Yes, Madam.”

Isabel handled the remaining mansion matters without much reaction. Not only the siblings but also I, who had just gotten out of bed, had to be led to our rooms by the maids.

Felicia and Bernard, who were still wide awake, told me to open the boxes together.

I also decided to forget about the woman. The siblings were here, and the mansion was warm again. No matter what happens, Father will handle it, not me. The master of this mansion was now Father.

I looked at my hand, which was tightly holding a doll instead of a knife. There was nothing to be afraid of.

* * *

After playing with dolls in Felicia’s room for a long time, I returned to my room. It was almost midnight.

‘Huh?’

As I walked down the corridor, I heard the sound of rain. Looking out the window, the rain was pouring down even harder than before, making the ground invisible.

“The rain stopped and started again. But fortunately, if we had been a little later, the master would have been caught in the rain.”

“Bitty, nothing happened while I was sleeping, right?”

“Yes. I searched the entire corridor, and there wasn’t a single mouse. The chef who guarded the front of the young miss’s room said he didn’t sense any strange presence either.”

Bitty reassured me several times and led me into the room. By her hands, I washed my body and changed into comfortable sleepwear.

Even though it was dawn, I wasn’t sleepy and my eyes were wide open. I played chess alone for a few minutes, but even that didn’t hold my interest, so I sat in front of the mirror.

My red hair, wet with water, was a deeper color than usual. I had seen this color before. Where had I seen it…?

“Bitty. Red hair is quite rare, right?”

“Huh? Well. Usually, yes. But these days, it’s seen from time to time.”

“Where? I’ve never seen hair the same color as mine in the marketplace. If you say you’ve seen it…”

That woman’s hair was also red. The color of the woman’s hair, wet from the rain, was the same as the color of my hair in front of the mirror.

I stared intently at the mirror. My face overlapped with the woman’s face, which I hadn’t seen clearly. What meaning was contained in that gaze that stared at me so intensely?

Why was I so wary of that woman?

“…Young miss?”

Bitty looked at me, who hadn’t continued speaking. As my hand trembled like an aspen tree, Bitty gently held my shoulders.

“Young miss, are you alright?”

“…”

“Oh my, your body is cold! It must be because you were outside for a long time earlier. This won’t do. I’ll quickly bring you some warm tea and medicine. Please lie down on the bed!”

Bitty, who was examining my body, hurriedly left the room. Without even giving me a chance to stop her, Bitty disappeared, leaving a calm silence lingering in the room.

As I was about to get up from in front of the mirror and get into bed, lightning struck along with thunder.

With a dull sound, the room became brightly lit for a moment and then darkened again.

The candle had also gone out. In the instantly darkened room, the sound of heavy raindrops hitting the floor was clearly audible. I had to light the candle. As I picked up the candle, lightning flashed again.

Startled, I dropped the candle. I quickened my pace to catch the rolling candle toward the window. Finally, as I grabbed the candle and straightened my back, I saw a familiar figure outside the window.

“…!”

It was the woman. Unlike before, she wasn’t standing still but approaching the mansion without hesitation. Through the rainwater, the woman’s face was clearly visible.

The same red hair as mine and golden-tinged eyes. Her dirty and shabby attire contrasted with her outstanding appearance.

As if sensing my gaze, the woman’s eyes met mine. At that moment, I couldn’t move my body. The woman smiled slightly as if she knew me well. The woman’s body crossed the main gate of the mansion.

As soon as the woman’s gaze left me, I sat on the floor.

“You can’t come in!”

“Let go…! Let go…!”

“Please! Please leave!”

“I, I saw the Co, Count go, going in! The Count is in, inside!”

The voices of the maid and the woman could be heard from outside the window. The maids tried to stop the woman from entering, and the woman insisted on going in.

As the noise continued for a while, the lights in the dark corridor became bright. A maid must have found it too much to handle alone, so the remaining maids went out to stop the woman.

“What’s going on?”

Soon, Isabel’s voice was heard from downstairs. She must not have slept yet, as her voice was clear.

“Madam, that woman seems to have come back.”

“What?”

“Well… she’s asking to be let in.”

“What is she saying? Why did she come again?”

“It’s not that she can’t speak, but she stutters a lot, so it’s hard to understand. And she keeps saying she needs to meet the master…”

While the maid and Isabel were conversing, my heart was pounding wildly. Please, let Isabel drive her away. Please, please send her away!

Please!

“At this rate, we’ll wake up the sleeping children. I’ll go out and see for myself.”

“But Madam.”

“Just in case, bring a sword. If she tries anything funny, I’ll cut off her arm.”

Isabel’s voice was resolute as if she had made up her mind. As soon as she grabbed a sword, I heard the sound of Isabel going out the front door. The moment the door closed with a thud, a heavy atmosphere settled in the mansion.

I tried to get up on my feet while squeezing my eyes shut. I lifted my head and looked out the window at Isabel, who had gone outside.

As soon as the woman and Isabel met, they engaged in a serious conversation. I couldn’t hear what they were saying due to the woman’s calm voice and Isabel’s low tone.

‘That’s right. That woman must have come to extort more money. Isabel will be annoyed by such a woman and tell her to take the money and get lost right away.’

Considering the situation, it wouldn’t be strange at all if she was turned away at the door.

‘Nothing will happen.’

I tried to calm my mind and get into bed, but Isabel turned her back. Did the conversation end well? But the woman who was behind Isabel was also following her into the mansion.

I doubted my eyes. Was I seeing things?

I heard the sound of the mansion door opening. Feeling that something was off, I ran out into the corridor. Hiding behind the wall next to the stairs, I poked my head out and saw the woman, drenched from the rain.

‘Why?’

Why? Why? Why?

At that moment, Bitty, who had been in the kitchen preparing warm tea, appeared. Noticing Bitty, Isabel gestured to her.

“Bitty. Come here for a moment.”

“Madam?”

“Guide this lady to the guest room and wash her thoroughly. Give her new clothes too.”

“Pardon? But…”

Bitty looked troubled and glanced toward the stairs. The moment Bitty’s eyes met mine, I panicked and ran into the room.

I locked the door tightly so that the woman couldn’t come in. Still feeling uneasy, I hid my body under the blanket. My heart was clenching so tightly that my whole body ached.

After some time, I heard Bitty’s voice saying she had brought medicine. I pretended to be asleep. When I didn’t open the locked door, Bitty also left.

“…Why.”

I wanted to grab Isabel’s arm right now and ask. Why are you even giving her a warm bed?

Could she be my birth mother?