Side Story Chapter 6
Click.
The back door of the kitchen closed with a small sound.
Lilian held her breath for a moment, listening carefully to the surroundings.
“…….”
It was already late at night, and even the youngest maid had already returned to her room.
Confirming that no other sounds could be heard, she let out a sigh of relief and opened the door to the hallway.
As she tiptoed past the parlor,
“You’re late.”
“Eeeek!”
Startled by the sudden voice, Lilian jumped.
Turning her head, she saw her father sitting on the parlor sofa, arms crossed, looking at her with a mix of disbelief and exasperation.
“Where have you been?”
“Ah, in the forest…”
“Even at this late hour with the moon already high?”
“Well, there were a lot of things that needed attention in the forest today…”
“Is our territory so poor that the lord’s daughter has to manage it herself at this hour?”
Under her father’s sharp, glaring eyes, Lilian turned her head and tried to act casual.
“Well, I also thought I should organize the storage….”
The season had changed, and she noticed that the horses seemed restless, there were rat holes in the grain storage, and the castle’s fields looked dry—things she needed to alert the steward about.
Her father sighed at her endless excuses.
“Do you enjoy wandering around the forest like this?”
“Yes.”
Lilian answered without hesitation, making Lord Solem click his tongue.
“I’m tired of scolding you like this every time. It’s pathetic to be reprimanding a daughter who has long been an adult.”
“…….”
Lilian kept silent. He wasn’t wrong.
Then Lord Solem spoke again.
“If you promise me one thing, I won’t nag you about going to the forest anytime you want.”
“Eh? What is it?”
Lilian’s eyes sparkled. Solem’s expression grew serious.
“Get married.”
“Eh? Just like that?”
“It’s not just like that, girl!”
Slam! Lord Solem hit the table with his hand, raising his voice.
“I just met another lord today, and guess what he said! He said they’ve just had their seventh grandchild!”
“Wow, that’s going to be messy when it comes to inheritance.”
“It’s better than having no heirs at all! At least now there are plenty to choose from!”
Covering her ears with a bored expression, Lilian listened as her father shouted.
No wonder she hadn’t heard him mention marriage lately—he had been saving it up to rant all at once.
“I want to have that kind of problem too!”
Banging the table again, her father exclaimed, and Lilian shrugged and replied,
“Well, I guess it can’t be helped. Father, for the sake of an heir, you’ll have to remarry.”
“Lilian!”
Her answer made Lord Solem pat his chest.
Where else in the world would there be a daughter who responds like that?
Perhaps he had spoiled her too much, as everyone said.
But Lord Solem couldn’t be harsh with his daughter.
She was the only child left by his beloved wife.
Who could be cruel to a daughter who had lost her mother at such a young age?
‘And she resembles her mother so much.’
Red hair and green eyes, just like his late wife. But it wasn’t just her appearance.
He could never forget the first time he saw her mother in the forest.
She had been lying comfortably on a low bush, as if it were her own bed.
And when she noticed his presence and opened her eyes, she said:
“What are you looking at?”
Remembering that first encounter, Lord Solem swallowed his tears.
His daughter had inherited not only her mother’s appearance but also her temper.
“I told you my heart went with your mother to the grave. So if the Solem estate is to remain in our hands, you must work at it.”
“You can say such romantic things, but subtly forcing me to marry won’t work. And I have high standards.”
“What kind of man are you looking for? I’ll find one for you if I have to. But if I do, you must promise to marry him.”
“If you bring him, I will.”
“Alright, tell me your conditions.”
“I want…,” Lilian took a deep breath and began.
“First, he has to be handsome. That’s basic. If I marry an ugly man, I’d be annoyed every time I looked at him. Even if we fight, a handsome face might soften me a little; an ugly one would make me even more irritated. Second, he must be wealthy. Not everything can be solved with money, but it can make impossible things possible. But I don’t like arrogant men who flaunt their wealth. Actually, arrogance is fine, as long as he’s obedient to me. Oh, and in terms of looks—blonde hair, deep blue eyes, tall, not overly muscular but moderately fit…”
“Stop! Stop!”
Seeing that her daughter could talk like this until morning, Lord Solem waved his hand frantically.
“Enough! I’d rather look into adoption!”
He sighed heavily and stood up.
“Unnecessarily specific. Where did you even see such a man? Anyway, enough. Go and do your own thing.”
Fearing he might have to listen to more nonsense from his daughter, he hurried up to his room on the second floor.
“Good night!”
Lilian waved at her departing father.
Once his grumbling faded away, she let out a wry smile and removed her cloak.
By now, he might even think of remarrying in anger—but he had never allowed another wife besides her mother.
Lilian carried her outerwear into her room.
Inside, water had been prepared for a simple bath.
Her maid Sabina must have quickly set it up and quietly left.
“Ah, I feel better.”
After washing herself in the refreshing water, her eyes grew heavy.
“This morning was so busy…”
Lying on the bed, Lilian recalled the morning’s events.
The previous night, Sabina had asked her to point out the best spots for summer berries, as jam-making would begin within a few days.
In summer, making jam in Solem’s kitchen took a full day and was a festival in itself.
Led by Lilian, people of all ages in the estate would carry baskets, fill them with berries, wash and trim them, then cook them with sugar in large pots.
Each helper could take two jars home, choosing their preferred flavors.
Half of the rest would be sent to the city for sale, and the other half stored in the castle to be shared throughout the winter.
Thus, plenty of berries were needed for everyone.
Even if wolves didn’t come while she was present, moving in groups could lead to someone falling behind.
To prevent accidents, it was best to pick berries quickly where they were abundant and return.
So she headed straight to the forest.
If she asked the trees, they would show her where the berries were most plentiful this summer.
But as soon as she entered the forest, Lilian heard the rustling of the trees.
“Did strangers set traps?”
She ran to the location the trees indicated.
This was a forest belonging to the Solem estate, denser than others and home to many wolves.
Yet, people rarely ventured here, largely because of Lilian.
‘Who did this? I won’t let it slide!’
Any unauthorized intruder would be met with her ferocity, fiercer than a wild boar.
Last autumn, some people who tried to pick truffles from the Solem estate had only left after being scolded by her.
‘Traps? Who would be crazy enough to set them here just as the berry-picking season begins?’
It didn’t matter who it was. What mattered was how she would punish them.
She dismantled all the traps at the spot the trees had shown.
Marks indicated they were from a neighboring estate.
‘You’re dead.’
The trap-setter would likely come back to check if any animals had been caught.
‘I need to catch them first.’
And yet, the person turned out to be from a noble family in the capital.
Lilian recalled the man who had stared at her with wide eyes.
She also remembered her father’s voice clicking its tongue at her overly specific desires for an ideal partner.
Earlier, when she had answered her father about her preferences, she had spoken freely, realizing now that she had been thinking of that man’s appearance.
‘He was handsome.’
Women in the Solem castle had been envious all day about handsome visitors from the capital staying at the neighboring estate.
Even she had laughed, saying everyone would be disappointed when they saw him in person.
‘He really is handsome.’
Lilian had never seen a man like him before.
But…
Pfft.
Recalling the expression on the man’s face when he had grabbed her collar made her laugh.
‘He must have been raised very delicately.’
No wonder he froze up, not knowing what to do.
In any case, he had returned with a dazed look.
By now, he might be furious, thinking a country girl had insulted him.
‘But he won’t come back again.’
Satisfied with that thought, Lilian closed her eyes.
The next day.
“It seems we meet again.”
The man she thought she would never see again was greeting her.
