Chapter 12
“Your face!”
Loti’s already-swollen cheek looked even worse now. It was clear that Yudis Rohiya had punished her again.
Since Ersha Higha had said Loti should be spared, they couldn’t kill or throw her out, so they beat her instead.
She was also limping—she had probably been hit on the leg too.
“This kind of punishment feels very… Asian.”
Well, this is a novel world, so it must be a mix of different cultures.
I looked at Loti’s pitifully swollen face and had to cover my mouth with my hand.
She may be annoying, but this was just… too much.
“How can someone’s face puff up in so many directions just from being scolded?”
Once again, I was reminded that this wasn’t 21st-century Korea—it was inside a book.
If I’m not careful, this could happen to me too…
“Ah, my lady! Are you okay?”
Seeing my shocked face and wobbling steps, Loti rushed to support me.
“D-Don’t come near me!”
She sounded really desperate and panicked.
“Why? What’s wrong?”
Loti was now officially my personal maid.
After what she’d been through, she probably thought if she messed up again, she’d die for real. I could see how carefully she watched every little movement I made.
“Your face is… really scary right now!”
I turned my head away so I wouldn’t have to look at her.
They say you shouldn’t judge people by appearance, but…
At my words, Loti burst into tears.
“You’re so mean! I’m scared of my own face too, you know? And whose fault do you think this is?! Waaah…”
Even after being punished, that unfiltered mouth of hers hadn’t changed.
I looked at her crying with pity, then took her hand.
“Let’s just go back to the room. We can’t make a scene.”
Ersha Higha had warned me to keep my footsteps softer than my breathing—to live like a shadow.
“Waaaaah!”
My footsteps were quiet, but Loti’s crying sounded like thunder. So much for staying hidden.
I hurried down the hallway, looking for the door to my newly assigned room.
“Ugh, the door’s heavy.”
I turned to Loti for help—
Oops. I accidentally looked at her face again.
Big mistake. Startled, I turned my head away and said,
“C-could you open the door?”
“Waaaah! You looked at me and turned away again! Is my face really that ugly?!”
Still crying, she opened the door. I quickly pushed her inside.
The room was small but clean, with no bad smell. It was a huge improvement.
Loti’s crying only got louder.
I quickly looked around for something like a handkerchief.
There was a lace cloth on the bedside table—meant for decoration.
I was briefly moved by the fact that I now had decor in my room. I folded the green cloth in half and looked around again.
I spotted a water jug on the tea table. I picked it up and wet the cloth.
“Sit down.”
Loti, now completely crushed, sat on the bed as I motioned.
“Lean forward.”
She bent slightly, and I gently began wiping her swollen face with the damp cloth.
“Don’t cry. You know you were wrong, right?”
“My lady…”
She sniffled and said,
“I did use the magic potion, but I never meant for Master Boris to faint like that. The doctor said the potion itself was fine, but there may have been a mistake in how it was activated or used. I swear I didn’t do it on purpose. I really—mmph.”
“Okay, okay, I get it. Be quiet now. Still, you were careless and not exactly kind, right?”
I sighed as I covered her mouth with the cloth to stop her endless talking.
Loti nodded and bowed her head.
“Look at me. I’m just a small, cute little kid, okay? You were rough with me, gave me dirty looks, and treated me badly. I didn’t want you to get beaten like this, but you’re not exactly an innocent victim either.”
I flipped the cloth to the clean side and shrugged.
“If we’re comparing, I’m actually a little more pitiful.”
Loti groaned, probably because her face stung, then muttered,
“You’re not that cute, my lady. You talk like… such a brat…”
“How I talk doesn’t matter. It’s the cute face that counts.”
“Waaaah!”
Oops. My bad!
Hearing the word face again made her eyes tear up.
“I’m going to get dumped!”
“By the duke?”
“No!”
“You have another guy?”
Loti nodded.
Ooh, romance! I love romance, so I couldn’t help but ask,
“Who is it?”
“Alfred, from the stables…”
“If a guy dumps you just because your face got hurt, he’s not worth keeping anyway.”
Loti pouted.
“But Reagan really cares about looks!”
Huh?
“Bolton from the herb shop and Sebastian from the ranch like my face too. I’m definitely going to get dumped!”
Wow, she’s really got a whole dating history…
“You seriously—”
“I’ll dump them first before they dump me! But I can’t write letters… because I don’t know how to read… Boohoo. If I go looking like this to break up, they’ll probably just say, ‘Thanks for making it easy.’”
“Forget what I said earlier about feeling sorry for you. You really need another beating.”
I saved Loti because I needed someone to help me around this house.
But now I’m not so sure…
“Did I make the right choice…?”
Well, I had no other options anyway. I’ll just convince myself it was the best choice.
Loti wiped her tears.
“I’ll just disappear until my face heals.”
“Ghosting now? Wow, you really try everything.”
“That’s not me. That’s you.”
Loti tilted her head and asked curiously,
“Who are you, my lady? How did you change so much overnight?”
I thought for a second before answering,
“Me? I’m the person who’ll write your breakup letters.”
“No way! How do you even know how to write?”
I don’t know. I just… ever since I woke up.
But I swallowed the truth and said,
“You’re right. I wasn’t supposed to know how to read or write. Even the old maid who took care of me before didn’t.”
Loti gave me a puzzled look. I just shrugged.
“But somehow, I learned. So just trust me.”
Loti brought me paper and a pen. Then she said,
“I’m totally an outcast now. Madam Yudis is really mad at me. Even getting this paper and pen was hard.”
“So how did you get them?”
“From the duke’s study.”
“How did you get in?”
“There’s a secret passage. That’s how he used to call me.”
Okay, let’s not ask more…
With a serious face, I took the pen and paper.
Scratch scratch
My hand moved smoothly and quickly.
Even if she couldn’t read what I wrote, Loti could tell it was the Empire’s script. Her eyes widened with surprise.
Seeing her expression, I smiled sweetly and asked,
“Want me to teach you how to read?”
“No, thank you. I hate studying.”
She shook her head firmly.
I pouted and said,
“Too bad. I’ll teach you anyway. That’s an order.”
If she was going to be my helper, she needed to at least read.
Loti looked like she wanted to rebel, but I ignored it.
The letter was finally done. I handed it to her.
She held it carefully and smiled.
Even though she’d been annoying, with her swollen face and those cheerful freckles, she somehow looked… cute?
Smack! I slapped my own cheek.
“What? Cute? Who?”
Am I going crazy from the lack of kimchi?
“Thank you, my lady.”
“Aren’t you curious about what I wrote?”
“It doesn’t matter. None of them can read anyway.”
What kind of nonsense…?
“If they can’t read, how will they know it’s a breakup letter?”
“I’ll include a couple rings. They’ll get the message.”
“Then why ask me to write a letter at all?! You could just send the ring!”
“But a breakup letter is dramatic! It’s cooler that way!”
I was speechless at Loti’s logic.
She beamed.
“I’ll copy this letter and send it to all of them. Thanks, my lady!”
This is not what I meant…
I wanted her to be shocked that I could write, to ask where I learned it, and I had even prepared an excuse!
“Oh no. Loti… she really doesn’t think that deeply.”
But my worry didn’t last long. As she tucked the letter away, she tilted her head again.
“By the way, where did you learn to read and write?”
