〈008〉
Lord Winchester raised his head and looked at me in silence. Despite the suddenness of my call, there was no surprise or curiosity on his face.
His expression was like that of a mannequin—blank. Even his good looks were almost inhuman.
“Would it be possible to see Miss Daniel before I go?”
“…Why are you asking for Daniel?”
My request must have been quite unexpected, because for the first time, Lord Winchester hesitated. He even stared at me, as if trying to size me up. His gaze was the same as that night—sharp, as though he could see right through me.
“I wanted to say hello in advance. One day, out of the blue, her father gets married and a woman who’s not her mother suddenly claims to be—of course the child would be confused.”
“That is possible. Then, I will leave it to you.”
Lord Winchester nodded slightly, granting his permission.
“Is Miss Daniel in her room on the second floor?”
“Probably.”
“Thank you.”
This time, I finally left Lord Winchester’s study.
“Daniel?”
When I knocked on the door, the sounds from inside abruptly stopped. Unsure if the silence was an invitation to enter or not, I waited for a moment—then the door swung open.
“Who are you?”
Is it true that employees resemble their employers? It wasn’t Daniel at the door, but a maid with a sharp voice and suspicious eyes that scanned me up and down. A strange thought crossed my mind: maybe when I become the mistress of this house, everyone’s presence will fade away, and that’s why Camellia Manor is rumored to be a ghost mansion.
“I came to see Daniel. She’s not in?”
“And who are you to be looking for the young lady?”
So many questions, and yet no one was answering mine. I hadn’t visited many homes since arriving here, but I’d at least seen the maids in my own home and at Sister Sophia’s. Compared to them, this one was incredibly rude.
“I’m Naeri of House Pomots, here to see Daniel.”
“…The young lady is not in her room right now.”
Once I revealed my identity, the thorns in the maid’s voice softened—slightly. Not that they disappeared completely. It was like going from the prick of a rose to the irritating snag of a burdock burr.
“Then where is she?”
“She goes to the garden while I clean.”
“Isn’t that backwards? It’s not that the young lady leaves so you can clean—it’s that you clean when she’s out.”
“Same difference, isn’t it?”
She scoffed as if I were spouting nonsense. I bit my tongue, though I wanted to say, “I may look ordinary, but I’m still the daughter of a baron, while you—despite serving a noble house—are just a maid.” I held that back too.
“What’s your name?”
I simply asked for her name instead.
“Why?”
“What is your name?”
“Why are you asking for it?”
Apparently, this maid was only good at asking questions, not answering them. This wasn’t a game of table tennis—we weren’t here to rally questions endlessly. I’d rather find Daniel than waste time in this nonsense exchange.
“Forget it.”
I shook my head, ending the conversation. A smug glint crossed the maid’s face, as if she had just won against a noble lady.
Fine. Let’s see if you still look at me that way next month.
I committed her face to memory and turned away.
The Camellia Manor’s garden was large, but finding Daniel wasn’t hard.
“Ack! So bright! She’s glowing over there!”
Under the apple tree, a bright little bundle of light dazzled me, making me instinctively squint. I took a deep breath. Whew! Inhale… exhale. I had to calm myself—if I breathed too heavily in front of Daniel, I’d look like some kind of creep. One more slow breath… whooo~ haaah~
“Hi, Daniel?”
“Ah…! Hello!”
Daniel, who had been sitting under the tree, head bowed and fidgeting with something, immediately stood up when she heard my voice. When she saw my face, she jumped to her feet and gave me a polite bow, showing off the cutest little back of her head.
So. Incredibly. Cute.
“What were you doing?”
“I saw a flower ring in a book and tried to make one… but it’s not working well.”
Looking down, I saw several clovers in front of her. Some were already crushed, others had their blossoms snapped off.
Just imagining her trying to fumble with those tiny flowers using those tiny hands made my heart thud with overwhelming cuteness.
“Want me to help?”
I sat beside her, and she quickly settled next to me. Distracted by her radiant cuteness, I hadn’t noticed until now that she was wearing that same shabby old dress as before.
“Let’s see~”
I picked out the two prettiest and fullest flowers from the bunch. Then, with my thumbnail, I pressed gently just below one blossom. Carefully, I opened a small slit in the stem.
“…Wow!”
Daniel leaned in, eyes wide with wonder at the small hole I made so easily. Adorable.
“It’s not that hard. You just press in the middle with your nail…”
I stopped mid-explanation when I saw her fingernails. Or rather, the lack of them.
Daniel’s nails were frayed and chewed down, not even a trace of the white edge remained. They looked so damaged it hurt just to look at them.
There was no way she could press into clover stems with nails like that.
“Ah…”
Noticing my gaze, Daniel quickly balled her little hands into fists and glanced up at me nervously.
Tears began to well up in her eyes, perhaps thinking I would scold her.
I hadn’t meant to make her cry…
“Can I see your hand?”
Turning away, I took another clover and threaded it through the hole I had made.
“Daniel, do you know what clovers mean in flower language?”
I quickly changed the subject to stop her from crying. Sometimes a distraction could dry tears faster than comfort.
“What do they mean?”
Her voice trembled slightly. But she was curious.
“Each flower has its own meaning. That’s called the ‘flower language.’”
Daniel looked at me with wide, curious eyes, as if this was the first she’d ever heard of such a thing.
I smiled at her, then looked down at her little hand. Her fingers were too short for a ring to stay in place, so instead—
“Clovers mean happiness.”
I gently tied the clovers around her chubby little wrist, adjusting the pressure until I’d made a beautiful flower bracelet.
“All done! Now this bracelet will bring you happiness.”
“Waaah!”
Her smile finally returned, bright and full of joy, replacing the tears that had threatened to spill.
“How did you do that?”
“I’ll teach you next time. When your nails grow back nice and pretty.”
At that, Daniel quickly curled her hands again. Even that little gesture was adorable.
“I’m sorry. They said chewing nails is something ill-mannered people do…”
“Well… It’s not very hygienic. There are lots of bad germs under your nails. If those go into your mouth, it could make your tummy hurt. Or your head. And that would be sad.”
“Who would be sad?”
“Hm?”
“If I get sick, who would be sad?”
“…”
“There’s no one who would be.”
She asked so innocently, as if genuinely curious.
“I would be.”
I reached out and gently plucked a leaf from her hair.
“Because I’m going to be your mother.”
“Mother…?”
Daniel repeated the word slowly, as if it were completely foreign to her.
“Yeah. But if that feels awkward, you can call me whatever you like.”
Though the leaf was long gone, I found myself still stroking her soft, shining hair.
“Let’s take good care of each other, Daniel.”
To my future daughter, I smiled brightly..
