Chapter 44

***

The servants who had been here before were unable to speak properly, and only the newly arrived servants had much to say. The master’s strict order to fire anyone if they said something about Evely or made her uncomfortable.

[Princess, it’s me, Evely.]

Evely took a pen out of a drawer and began to write in clumsy handwriting. It was a reply that would neither be accepted nor sent.

[I am grateful for the candies that the princess gave me. It was very sweet. The princess once told me that only when you know the bitterness of tea can you understand the sweetness of cake. However, if I don’t want to know the bitterness forever, would it be too childish?

I hope that the princess will not taste the bitterness any more, and will spend her days as happy as a dessert with lots of sweetness on it. She is as bright and strong as the sun, so I’m sure she will be.

I sometimes look at the sun and think of the Princess.

I hope you will always be healthy.

Evely.]

There were times when Evely hated and was jealous of the Princess, but she was always kind to her. She was as bright and fair as the sun. She was like an older sister to her. And she would tell her stories if she was sad.

“She was locked up in a cold, unlit room until she was 23 years old?”

It felt like the puzzle of what the princess had said to her was being put together. It wasn’t that she dared to feel sorry for her. Evely just wanted to hear the story and hoped that the Princess would be a little happier.

Evely, who had been writing such a letter, turned her head at the sound of a knock at the door.

“Miss, Master calls for you.”

Evely roughly put the letter in the drawer, and followed the maid. And when they reached the office, she could see him sitting not at his desk, but at a table set up in a corner. He gestured to Evely to sit across from him.There were several piles of parchment on the table.

“…What are all these?”

“A record of my wealth and the official documents of my estate.”

“These are the things you’ll have to manage once you become the hostess. These are my possessions.”

Evely looked increasingly puzzled. However, she spoke nonchalantly.

“I never said I would marry you.”

Hostess. She felt as if she had received a gift that didn’t fit her place.

But on the other hand, she felt like, “Why does this person just keep pushing through like this?”

It was an immeasurable and countless fortune, but his attitude first caught her eyes.

“Then it wouldn’t hurt to see this and change your mind.”

Alec replied in an unflattering voice.

It was only recently that he had called Brianna. He asked Brianna what Evely liked.

Brianna hesitated and answered. “She likes her salary.”

And that she lived for the pleasure of saving her wages was an added bonus.

Evely said she didn’t want property, but…It’s not the same when you see it in person. Thus Alec called Evely to show her his wealth.

“Don’t you like your salary?”

“I like my salary very much.”

Evely held her breath still.

‘Master is even better. He stands out more than money.’

But she didn’t say that, instead she said something else.

“I don’t decide to marry someone based on their wealth.”

“That’s too bad…”

Alec replied shortly.

Despite his efforts to regain Evely’s status, Evely was not too pleased. She didn’t like marriage, and she didn’t like property. However, he wanted to get married. But wasn’t that what marriage to her was all about after all?

‘Is the heart of a woman this hard to understand?’

He reflected on Brianna’s words. She said Evely also liked the market. She and Evely used to look at the accessories together when they had time.

‘Would it have been better to talk about the market first?’

Perhaps, he thought, then he opened his mouth again.

“Do you know about that? There’s a very large market about to open soon.”

“The market?”

Suddenly, Evely asked in an excited voice.

“I don’t think it’s a bad idea to go sightseeing together.” Alec said.

***

It was now the day that they promised to visit the market together.

As Alec said, the market was much larger than normal. Shops lined both sides of the main street with goods, and merchants touted their goods impatiently in front of people. Every corner of the street was crowded with people.

At the end of the street, in a large clearing, a group of wandering musicians had been sitting and singing since the morning. People sitting around would throw a coin or two while watching.

As if she had seen another world, Evely looked around with her eyes wide open.

“Wow, the market is really big this time.”

“They open such a big market every few years.”

“I see.”

Unlike the markets that sold everyday items, Evely saw some rare items that she had never seen before. Starting from spices with peculiar smells that came from somewhere across the sea, there were also expensive vases with a sense of luxury and paintings with peculiar styles. There were also quite a few treats that were not easily accessible. Children who followed their parents would have one or two sweet things in their hands.

Evely, who at first seemed a little awkward to get out with him and was looking all over the place, started looking around the items carefully at some point.

“It’s really beautiful.”

Evely stopped with admiration in front of a shop lined with small cups.

All of the tableware used in the castle was made by artisans, and all were impeccably elegant and beautiful masterpieces. However, the ones sold here were somewhat crude, but they were cute and unique.

“Is this to your liking?”

“It’s cute. I like cute things. But if it’s so weak, it will break soon, won’t it?”

“I guess so.”

Evely nodded her head as if in agreement, then started looking again.

This time she stopped in front of a store that sold jewelry. It was the biggest and most fancy jewelry store in the capital, and Evely, who didn’t know that, just thought it was well decorated.

There were cute little jewels on the shelves in front of the store.

Many of them were new to her and she was looking at them curiously, then Alec called her.

“Come in and take a look. There’s a lot more inside.”

While the outside was just small jewels, the inside was mostly precious and expensive looking jewels. She was slowly admiring the jewels as if she was looking at a masterpiece, and then she turned to look at Alec, who was standing next to her.

“Shall we go somewhere else?”

Although Alec was the one who said let’s go together, he didn’t seem to have come to look around.

“You don’t really look around much the whole time.”

“I know you like it.”

He continued in a soft voice.

“That’s enough.”

Evely, who was looking at things, paused for a moment. Feeling embarrassed, Evely pointed to one of the jewelry that was placed on the table.

“These are beautiful!”

It was a set of rings and necklaces with pink gems in them. She looked at it in a strange way as it was her first time seeing it, and before she knew it, the store owner approached her and began to explain.

“Oh my! You have good eyes. Unlike ordinary products, this diamond is very lovely and special. It has a very rare and vivid pink color. That’s why it’s called Fairy Dew. The Crown Prince of Dember gave it to his girlfriend as a gift and it became even more famous.”

There was even a hint of pride on the store owner’s face.

“Actually, my store had the good fortune to buy it, but I’m planning to auction it off again soon. This gemstone has made our store famous, but since it’s too expensive, our situation is not good.”

“I’ll take that one.”

Evely was startled by Alec’s sudden words and stopped him.

“I’m not asking you to buy it. I didn’t mean it that way!”

“It’s just something I want to buy for you, regardless of your intentions.”

“I have a necklace and a ring, would you like a set?”

“No, just the necklace.”

The owner’s eyes glanced between the two when he heard the answer. Usually, items with this romantic story were purchased as a set or preferred rings over necklaces. It was to propose. But buying only necklaces…

The owner tried to erase the thoughts that came to mind and smiled broadly.

“Well that’s a really, really wise choice. Thank you for your purchase! If you give me your address, I’ll send it to your house without any dust on it.”

“I’d like you to pick out a few other things that look good.”

“Of course. I’ll show you something that might suit the Lady.”

“I don’t know much about jewelry….”

The owner smiled at Evely.

“Still, I’ll show you some more, you might find something you like.”

Evely pretended to look at the accessories. She could sense in the owner’s voice that he wanted to know what kind of relationship she had with Alec, from the way he said he would make recommendations and asked this and that. That was just as well, because Alec didn’t buy the ring when the store owner showed it to him.

Of course, the necklace he bought me was very expensive and beautiful, but for some reason her heart felt a little heavy when she thought about the meaning the ring would give. Even as they left the store, Evely’s face was still in shadow.

“….. Shall we go home now?”

“Yes.”

“Oh, thank you so much for today. I didn’t have any intention of asking you to buy anything.”

Evely spoke in a somewhat troubled tone. She unexpectedly received an expensive piece of jewelry. In fact, she felt more burdened and apologetic. She didn’t go out hoping for this.

“I was going to buy it for you from the beginning. You’ve always been so simple.”

The dresses he bought for her were all gorgeous. Something too flashy didn’t seem to suit her and Evely chose to wear relatively few of them, but she didn’t think that could be described as plain.

Evely had no answer to the words that fell so crisply. Alec quickly opened his mouth again, staring at Evely.

“You must be  tired from all the walking today. Let’s get some rest.”

They left the market and got into the carriage.

The atmosphere was a bit better today. It was much better than when he asked if she didn’t want to be held by him or when he showed her his property list. It was fun to go to the market with him.

“If you like it, it’s enough.”

The thought of those words seemed to rattle her mind somehow along the carriage. Evely relaxed and leaned back.

The noisy scene outside the window clouded over, and before she knew it, she could see the quiet road in the distance.

“Do you know what it means when a man gives you a ring as a gift?”

However, as he waded through the peacefulness, Alec suddenly spoke up. Even with the characteristic bluntness of his words, Evely was surprised by his question.

No matter how ignorant she was about love, she at least knew that a ring meant a proposal.

But Alec didn’t buy the ring. It was something she had been trying to forget, but she felt down when she remembered that moment.

‘If he had intended to propose to me, he would have bought that ring.’

Propose. Evely dropped the fan she was holding as she shook her head, remembering the word.

She felt as if her heart fell out of her chest. And just as Evely was about to pick up the fan, Alec’s large hand came into her view first. He picked up the fan that had fallen to the ground and placed it in Evely’s hand. And at the same time, he wrapped her small hand in his.

‘You’re such a clumsy person when I think you’re sincere and meticulous….sometimes even defenseless.’

Strangely enough, the moment he was drawn to Evely was when she said nonsense while being panicked, or when she said she wasn’t afraid of him, or when she talked about the stars and the sky.

But there were times when she said words that stayed with him like when she talked about her family. These were the moments when she gradually revealed her true self, not as a maid.

Each time, he fell in love with Evely even more. He wanted to close the gap that she showed him. No, maybe she didn’t show him the gap, he found it himself.

While thinking, Alec burst into laughter.

“Ugh, my hand…”

Evely’s voice had a hint of confusion and embarrassment in it. Because his gentle rubbing increased the heat in her hand.

Then, just as Evely was about to pull her hand away from him, Alec flipped her hand over. For a moment, Evely looked puzzled. Suddenly, she wondered why he turned her hand upside down, and Alec put a ring on her palm. It was a beautiful diamond ring.

Then, as if he could read her heavy heart, he opened his mouth quietly to Evely.

“I intended to give you this ring from the beginning. It’s been passed down through the generations in my family. My mother carried it, and my mother’s mother…”

It was the ring his mother wore.

The meaning of it felt heavy.

“…I will have to go to war again soon.”

The words were as unexpected as the gift.

“I must be more loyal to His Majesty. He is too kind and patient with me.”

“I see.”

The answer came later than he expected.

“It won’t take long.”

“What I’d you get hurt?”

“I’m not weak, so don’t worry.”

“One can get injured even if one is not weak. No matter how strong you are, you will get hurt. Whether it’s your mind or your body………”

Alec smiled as he leaned his head back, the words sounding as if they were words of concern for him.

He stared at Evely’s hand as he spoke.

“When I return from the battlefield, if you wear the ring I gave you, I understand you want to marry me.”

He took Evely’s hand to his lips. It was a light kiss with only a small sound that didn’t seem to reach me. His lips touched her hand, but his eyes looked at Evely without an ounce of deviation.The persistent look made her heart throb.

“If you’re not wearing it…….”

“I’m going to force it into your finger then.”

A smile spread across Evely’s lips at the slightly mischievous words.

“When are you leaving?”

“In a few days.”

“Don’t get hurt…”

“Of course.”

Alec chuckled confidently.