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52. Bustling footsteps echoed from outside. ‌‌It seemed Alicia had done her work well. Rebecca recalled ‌‌‌the sound ‌‌‌‌of Zeppelin's anguished wails reverberating through the Mansion. It was rather amusing—I wasn't even dead. The current situation was much the same. Despite receiving the staggering news of my infertility, no one had bothered to give me ‌‌‌‌a proper explanation. When I'd stopped a passing Maid to ask, she'd only offered an awkward ‌‌‌expression and vague reassurances that I'd understand everything in time. 'This is rather lonely.' ‌‌‌Today, I found myself missing Kanna. From what I'd gathered, Kanna had earned considerable trust from Grace. As a result, instead of scrubbing laundry until her hands bled, she'd been assigned to oversee the laundry maids. 'A blessing in ‌‌‌disguise, at least.' As Rebecca busied herself imagining ‌‌what was happening outside ‌‌the Mansion, a knock sounded at the door. She recognized the careful knock's owner immediately and sprang from her seat. "Kanna!" "Lady ‌‌Rebecca!" Kanna rushed toward Rebecca, heedless of the pile of laundry she'd been carrying spilling across the floor. She embraced Rebecca fiercely, as though unwilling to let her go. Rebecca let out a delighted cry as she spoke. "Goodness, I can't breathe, Kanna." "Oh! I'm so sorry." Kanna startled and pulled away from Rebecca, her face flushed with joy. Rebecca took Kanna's hand and asked gently. "How did you get here?" "With the chaos in the Mansion right now, no one was paying attention to me. And... Alicia let me in." "Alicia did?" Rebecca's eyes widened in surprise. Was it some form of repayment? How rather ‌‌‌endearing of her. "How dare you!" At that moment, a loud shout erupted from beyond the door. Rebecca turned her gaze toward the door, then looked away. It seemed Fabiola had arrived at the Mansion. From Zeppelin's anguished cry and Fabiola's sobbing voice, the entire situation became clear. Rebecca offered Kanna a faint smile. "It worked out, didn't ‌‌it?" Kanna nodded. The two fell silent for a moment. Though no words ‌‌passed between them, Rebecca sensed that Kanna was thinking the same thoughts she was. Hope that they could escape soon, and ‌‌revulsion at their current circumstances. Rather than give voice to her anguish, Rebecca decided to veil it beneath a serene smile. Kanna gazed intently at Rebecca's precarious smile, and gripped the hand ‌‌that had come into hers even more tightly, as though afraid it might slip away. Feeling ‌‌‌the strength of Kanna's grip, Rebecca spoke. "Kanna, that's enough. You'll wear out my hands. And all that ‌‌effort you put into washing the laundry will be for nothing." "Dirty things can simply be washed again, Rebecca." I'd heard that sentiment before, somewhere. Rebecca chuckled softly ‌and stroked Kanna's hair. "Thank you for holding on so well. There's truly not much time left now." "I will follow you to the very end." "Ah, that's right. Have you heard from Margaret?" At Rebecca's question, Kanna broke into a wide smile. The small beauty mark on the bridge of her nose twitched upward with the motion. She ‌‌‌seemed genuinely delighted to have good news to share ‌‌‌in such circumstances. "Margaret said she ‌‌‌would join us. She's also taking charge of educating the people of ‌‌‌Liberta, and everything is proceeding smoothly." "That's truly wonderful ‌‌news." The Salon business required employees I could trust. In that regard, the ‌people from the Orphanage were ‌‌‌perfect. I had asked Julian to construct not only the Salon building but also living quarters for the ‌‌staff. The plan was to relocate ‌‌‌everyone there as soon as construction was complete. The only concern was the deportment of the Orphanage residents. Since the business catered to nobility, the staff needed to master the etiquette of aristocratic society. I had been quietly planning to hire an etiquette instructor, but Margaret had volunteered for ‌‌the role. Once Margaret took up the sword, I knew everything would proceed without a hitch, and I felt reassured. "Madam, I've come to change your bedsheets." ‌‌‌We hadn't even had much time to talk when the Maid knocked on the door. Kanna glared at the door with a look of resentment. I gently patted her hand. "Kanna, you should go now. If anyone gives you trouble, tell ‌‌‌me." "The work isn't difficult. Keeping watch isn't hard at all." "You truly excel at everything you do. I'm impressed." At my admiring praise, Kanna shyly lowered her head. Satisfied now, she began gathering the scattered pile of laundry and putting it back in its proper place. "Then I'll take my leave. Stay well until we meet again." "Yes. And ‌‌when we meet again, we shall never part after that." I furrowed my brow slightly ‌‌as I endured the pain of the pustules, yet my lips held a genuine smile. Kanna seemed overwhelmed merely imagining that eternal day with me, and fell silent for a moment. Soon after, her flushed face disappeared as she left the room. * * * "I think I'd like to take a walk." I spoke ‌‌abruptly to the Maid, who was quietly tidying the room. "But your health is still not fully recovered...." "I already know roughly what happened to me today. So I need to take a walk and calm ‌‌my mind. You understand, don't you?" The Maid hesitated briefly at ‌‌‌‌my composed expression. Though she moved like a machine, she was undeniably a person with feelings. The Maid fell ‌‌into contemplation. There had been orders not to let her act freely, but there was no way Rebecca could escape in her current state. And wasn't it pitiable? From an acclaimed Countess to losing everything in a single day. The Maids often whispered to one another that had it been them, they would have taken their own lives long ‌‌ago. Her sentiments were no different. Watching Rebecca reach toward the window as if the breeze flowing through it were her only solace, my heart ached with a sharp pang. The Maid opened the wardrobe and retrieved a shawl, draping it gently across Rebecca's shoulders. Her shoulders, already thin from her inability to properly swallow food, had become even more skeletal. Rebecca smiled as she felt the soft warmth of the shawl enveloping her. "You're ‌‌a kind child." The Maid's eyes wavered for a moment before growing distant. She led Rebecca toward the Garden. "Where would you like to go?" ‌‌"To the Lilac Garden." The lilacs had already withered in the heat, leaving only lush ‌‌green foliage in their place. Since Zeppelin paid it no attention, there were no other flowers in the Lilac Garden. Garden maintenance consisted merely of ‌‌keeping it presentable to the eye. The Maid followed at a distance behind Rebecca. It seemed to be her way of not disturbing her thoughts. At ‌‌the Maid's consideration, Rebecca suddenly felt a twinge of shame at having once regarded her as merely one of the Mansion's fixtures. Fortunately, the night breeze was cold. The chill wind washed away some of her embarrassment. ‌As Rebecca removed her shawl, her collarbone became exposed. She cooled the burning blisters against the wind. How long had they walked? An unexpected ‌‌‌visitor appeared before Rebecca's eyes. He too seemed to have come out for a night stroll. A faint smile bloomed at the corners of Rebecca's lips. "Leo." A black cat walked toward her with unhurried grace. Zeppelin despised all animals. The only creature he favored was a horse. So Leo must be the ‌‌‌only cat capable of slipping through such strict security ‌and moving about freely. As Rebecca settled onto the marble bench, Leo leaped onto her lap as if he had been waiting. Rebecca stroked Leo while retrieving a letter from the small container hanging around his neck. 【Stay strong.】 Rebecca let out a soft chuckle, though she'd been slightly anxious about what the letter might contain. Then, imagining Julian struggling ‌‌and groaning to write ‌‌‌‌these few precious words, she laughed a bit more loudly. Come to think of it, he always made her laugh. "I wonder how much paper your companion wasted writing this." Leo rose briefly, then pressed his paw against Rebecca's thigh about ten times. "Ten times...?" Meow. Leo let out a loud cry of affirmation, then rubbed ‌his head against ‌‌‌Rebecca's hand once more. "So you don't mind the scent ‌‌‌of my body, then." Rebecca's ‌‌‌‌‌hand, which had been stroking Leo ‌‌for some time, came to a stop. "What expression would Julian make if he saw my face as it is now...?" Leo purred softly. "He's surely a good man, so he wouldn't say outright that he dislikes it. Still, he's a man too—he must find a disfigured woman's face repulsive. That's how it would be." Rebecca recalled Zeppelin's expression ‌‌‌‌‌of disgust. Thinking that Julian would wear a similar face made her feel a little sad. "Sometimes when I remember that expression, I wonder if he might distance himself from me. Is it too much of a selfish wish to hope he wouldn't?" As Rebecca finished speaking and reached out to ‌‌‌stroke Leo again, he dodged her ‌hand. "Leo?" His golden eyes gazed at her without answer. It seemed somehow as though he were reproaching her, but unable to discern his exact meaning, Rebecca fell silent. "Rebecca?" At the voice that suddenly reached her ears, Leo's eyes narrowed to slits. Leo hissed and bared his fangs at Zeppelin as he approached Rebecca. Leo stared at him with eyes that seemed to pierce through to the very last fragment of his soul. Meeting the cat's piercing gaze, Zeppelin suddenly remembered someone and became inexplicably displeased. "A cat daring to enter ‌‌‌‌this place? I'll have the guards—" "It seems to have lost its way. I'll see it out past the fence, so please don't concern yourself." Rebecca hurriedly drove Leo away, fearing Zeppelin might harm him. Leo's expression darkened before he ‌disappeared into the grass. Once Zeppelin confirmed the cat had vanished from sight, he finally relaxed his expression and spoke. "Rebecca. Your health isn't good—why are you out here at this hour?" "My mobility isn't impaired, so it's fine." Achoo! Zeppelin wrapped his itching nose with a handkerchief. He couldn't fathom why he'd been sneezing so frequently lately. Rebecca gazed at his fine handkerchief before speaking. "You despise this place so thoroughly—what brings you to visit?" Rebecca's eyes curved pleasantly. Zeppelin suddenly felt as though her face had regained its original radiance, and he blinked his eyes briefly. But it was only a fleeting illusion. Rebecca before my eyes had returned to her grotesque visage—pustules ‌‌‌weeping with pus blooming across her skin once more. Zeppelin exhaled a long, measured breath, his face settling into cold composure as he took a seat beside Rebecca. "I ‌‌‌‌only came to see it since I heard the lilacs had all withered away." "Ah..." Silence stretched between them for a moment. The crisp night air of early summer briefly masked the stench that hung between them. The Countess Who Fled Has Returned E-book Publication January 12, 2022 Author Ginbamhaneul Publisher Desert Fox Published by Woongjin ThinkBig Co., Ltd. Submission Contact naver.me/54VzzLSn Blog blog.naver.com/wj_fennecfox Twitter @wjt_fennecfox

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