The Winds of Kalmor
“It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness. I shall serve you with all my heart from now on.”
Thalia scrutinized the girl with a dubious expression, her pointed gaze dissecting the maid who looked clumsy at first glance. It seemed they had sent a novice to test her. She snapped in a chilly tone.
“I will have my nanny attend to all my needs. So call her for me.”
“If you mean the nanny, are you referring to that dwarf-blooded woman?”
The woman who introduced herself as Areta frowned.
“I beg your pardon, but Your Highness is to become the lady of this eastern land. You must have attendants befitting your station.”
Thalia, having detected the contempt in her voice, raised an eyebrow sharply.
“My nanny has even served the Empress. Surely you don’t think the Duchess outranks the Empress?”
The woman’s face hardened.
Thalia pressed sharply.
“Did you not hear me? Bring my nanny at once.”
The woman, who had been holding her ground with her lips pressed tight, soon bowed her head.
“Understood. I shall leave the preparations to the attendants you brought. Once you are ready, please summon us. We will show you around the castle.”
“I have no need for a tour.”
At the curt refusal, the woman’s face visibly stiffened.
Thalia continued coldly, unconcerned.
“Have you forgotten that I traveled a long way? I intend to rest in my room for a few days, so do not disturb me.”
The head maid, as if about to say something, twitched her lips before turning sharply and leaving with the young maid. Though the insolent attitude made her blood boil inwardly, she did not want to earn a reputation for treating the servants harshly from the very first day.
Thalia flopped onto the bed.
A moment later, the nanny entered the room yawning, her hair disheveled and even eye crust in her eyes. The undignified sight irritated her. No wonder she was openly disrespected when she went around like that.
Thalia cried out in a sharp voice.
“What is that face? Go wash up immediately.”
“Oh dear, why are you in such a temper so early in the morning?”
The nanny pouted her lips and poured water into the basin by the window to wash her face. Then, with her plump hands, she roughly combed her hair and began to light a fire in the fireplace.
In the meantime, two sturdy laborers brought in a large tub filled with water. After they set the tub behind the screen and left, Thalia locked the door firmly and stepped into the tub. The nanny immediately brought soft towels and soap and washed her thoroughly.
Though the rough hands, as if hurrying through a bothersome task, made her skin flush red, Thalia endured it. It was a hundred times better to be handled roughly than to show her scars to strangers. She tried not to dwell too much on the nanny’s noticeably colder attitude toward her since her body had been ruined.
“None of the clothes fit. It seems you’ve lost too much weight.”
The nanny, who was dressing her in a luxurious silk dress, let out sigh after sigh.
Thalia finally couldn’t hold back and spat out.
“Stop sighing. I don’t like hearing it.”
“Can’t I even sigh as I please?”
“I said don’t sigh while looking at me! It’s because you find my appearance disgusting, isn’t it?”
The nanny gave no reply. Thalia, who had hoped she would deny it inwardly, glared at her with a sorrowful look. The nanny was the one who had played the role of mother in place of Senebier. Hadn’t she cared for her since she was a newborn who couldn’t even speak? The fact that even the nanny found her appearance hideous tore at her heart.
Thalia swallowed the sorrow rising in her throat and pushed her toward the door.
“That’s enough. Get out.”
“Very well. I’ll go, so stop pushing.”
The nanny roughly shook off her hand and left without lingering.
Once alone, the boiling anger quickly turned into anxiety. In this foreign land, the only person she could trust and rely on was the nanny. If even she turned her back, she would be completely isolated. She regretted lashing out so suddenly. She should have endured a little more…
“Your Highness, I have come at the young lord’s command. May I enter for a moment?”
As she anxiously bit her lip, an unfamiliar voice came from outside the door.
Thalia hesitated for a moment before speaking.
“Come in.”
As soon as the answer fell, a young woman with deep wheat-colored skin opened the door and entered.
“It is an honor to meet you, Your Highness. My name is Tiuran. I have been sent by the young lord to closely monitor Your Highness’s health.”
Thalia examined her with a wary gaze. She was a pretty woman with long, strong-looking limbs, taut skin that seemed around thirty years old, and intelligent dark brown eyes.
“Are you the healer of the ducal family?”
“That is correct.”
The woman replied calmly.
Thalia wore a skeptical expression. She was too young a woman to be the healer of the most powerful family in the east.
As if reading her distrust, the woman’s smile faded slightly.
The healer asked cautiously.
“I heard you suffer from chronic pain due to a severe leg injury. May I examine the injured area for a moment?”
Thalia instinctively took a step back. She had no intention whatsoever of showing her scars to someone she was meeting for the first time.
“I already have my own dedicated healer. So attend to your other duties.”
“But the young lord…”
“I will speak to Barcas myself, so withdraw.”
The woman, biting her lower lip as if pondering something, carefully opened her mouth.
“If showing your leg makes you uncomfortable, would you extend your hand for a moment?”
“Why my hand?”
“I will send mana through your hand to examine your body. After confirming Your Highness’s condition, I will prepare medicine suited to your constitution.”
Thalia furrowed her brow. She had never heard of such a strange examination method.
“Can you really do that?”
“I have been training to become the clan’s healer since I was seven years old. If you give me just one chance, I will do my best to help Your Highness.”
The woman seemed sincere. After closely observing her face, Thalia decided to give her the benefit of the doubt and extended her hand.
The woman grasped her palm with her calloused, sturdy hand. Startled by the rough, bark-like texture for a moment, she soon felt a warm energy spreading like a current through her palm. Shivering at the strange sensation, Thalia felt the lukewarm heat spread to her stomach and abruptly pulled her hand away.
The woman, as if thinking of something, wrinkled her brow and stared intently at her face.
“Before rehabilitating your leg, it seems you need to recover your strength first. Your body is in a very weakened state.”
“…What should I do?”
“First, you must eat well and sleep well. I will prepare some helpful medicine, so please take it diligently every day.”
Thalia, who had hoped for some novel treatment method, wore a disappointed expression.
“I didn’t give you time just to hear such useless talk.”
“……”
“That’s enough. Leave now. As you said, I’m in a weakened state, so I need to rest.”
As she lay down on the bed as is, the woman left the room as if she had no choice.
Thalia pulled the blanket over her shoulders and tried to catch up on the sleep she had missed. But before long, the pain that had been quiet began to creep up through her bones.
Tossing and turning, Thalia, unable to bear it, rang the bell. Soon after, the young maid she had been introduced to earlier rushed in. She couldn’t remember her name. Thalia nodded haughtily toward her.
“Immediately, summon the healer I brought from the imperial palace.”
A chilly wind swept roughly across the vast plains.
Holding the reins, Barcas, passing through the pasturelands, turned his head to survey his homeland carefully. The last time he had set foot on this land was ten years ago, when he heard the news of the death of Lucas and Laina’s mother, Tessalin. Back then, this land had been entirely tinged with gray.
Since he had not visited Kalmor since then, the homeland in his memories had always remained achromatic.