Like a Dry Branch in the Wind

Rachel felt a human presence. She inadvertently turned her attention to the garden between the East Annex and the main building. Then, she mumbled.

“How strange. His Lordship is here.”

“What?”

All the women’s attention turned toward the annex garden’s entrance. Entering through it were Killian and Leonard, who seemed to be heading to the annex building through the garden. Helen let out a sigh and looked at Anna.

“Good for you, Anna. His Lordship is coming.”

Anna wiped her hands on her skirt and was urgently tidying up her hair, she looked at Helen.

“Helen! How do I look?”

Helen rubbed the leftover milk stains on Anna’s lips and told her.

“You look pretty. Hurry and go, Before the red fox beats you to it.”

“Ah! Irene!”

Anna sprung to her feet and shouted. A beautiful red-haired woman was approaching Killian. Anna rushed toward Killian while holding her skirt.

She’s Irene?

Rietta had also seen her before. The woman with red hair and green eyes who was told to pack up and go back by Killian last week.

Seeing Irene approaching, Killian slightly frowned.

“You’re still here.”

Irene smiled brightly.

“Where would I go without you, Your Grace?”

Even though Irene had a pretty face that would make everyone look twice at her, Killian was apathetic. As if she was used to it, Irene just smiled regardless of Killian’s reaction.

“I made you uncomfortable that day… Please pity this lacking woman who could not control her overflowing emotions. I’d like to give you something as an apology. Would you like to have anything?”

Killian ignored Irene and indifferently turned to where the women had gathered. There were a lot of women in the garden enjoying refreshments. There was also Rietta among them, but he felt troubled as he was caught by Irene as soon as he entered. He did not have any business with Rietta right away, so he thought that things had become troublesome for no reason.

Irene was not of Axias but was actually a noble lady from the County of Spelman, located halfway between the Empire capital Rhodeminue and Axias. She forced herself into the East Annex, after asking for protection, saying that she was abandoned by her father and chased by pursuers for a certain reason. All of that was a lie to catch Killian’s attention.

Her lie was quickly discovered because she did not hide anything and soon revealed her true feelings. But, as she had not done anything bad, and as she had paid a lot of money for the accommodation fees, it was difficult to forcibly pull out the grown-up noble lady from the annex. He did not expect her to bother him for more than two years, however.

“Irene is crazy for His Lordship. She came in about two years ago. She thought His Lordship loved the women in the East Annex.”

“…Is that not the case?”

When Rietta asked with a puzzled look, the women looked at her and burst into laughter.

“The East Annex is known as the ‘Harem of the Archduke of Axias’, right?”

“There are women who came because of that, but there are more than half of the women who came in because of other reasons.”

“In the past, when His Lordships visited the annex like this, there were times when he would call a woman that gave a good impression to come at night. But how many years ago was it?”

“I’m scared he would get old and die alone at this rate.”

Giselle shook her head and responded with a quite worried face.

“But His Lordship comes to Giselle a lot.”

“Don’t be silly. I can’t even go near his bed. He always comes to me for other business.”

Beth put her hand behind her and smiled with her eyes.

“But no one knows. Maybe you only said that for the sake of it.”

It was a tone of teasing rather than being sincere.

“Oh, so is this the level of trust between us? I guess I was not virtuous enough. Think whatever you like.”

Giselle smiled brightly and took the teacup to her mouth. Rachel lowered her voice and said playfully.

“Helen, you’re wrong. Giselle is not into His Lordship nowadays, but someone else.”

Giselle spat out her tea and wiped her mouth with a handkerchief. Then, she looked angrily at Rachel.

“Rachel, please.”

Rachel glanced at Leonard. Giselle shouted at her.

“It’s not!”

“We’ll see if it’s true or not.”

Rachel sipped her tea, flashing a coy grin. Rietta was listening to their conversation with excitement.

She was amused at the free atmosphere of the East Annex and the pleasant people who could even tell that they were interested in a man other than the Archduke.

“Anyway.”

Giselle cleared her throat to change the subject and looked at Rietta. 

“As you can see, the women who were madly in love with His Lordship have all gone out, and shall I say, Irene and Anna are the only ones left…”

Celine rubbed her forehead with a serious face.

“Should we even include Anna?”

“Yeah. You should include me instead.”

Karen, who did not even bother to look back when the Archduke of Axias was around her, shamelessly pushed herself.

“I don’t think you should be included either.”

“You’re wrong. I’m actually ready to be caught if he throws me some bait. I just act like this because he never throws any.”

Another woman smiled casually and shrugged.

“Yeah. Then, you will become like me. I don’t even have a burning passion for him in the first place, but I have already gotten bored of him.”

Karen shook her shoulders as she got goosebumps.

“Urgh. That’s so convincing… Don’t say that.”

Giselle shrugged at the women’s whining and smiled at Rietta.

“We’re like a family now.”

“Yeah. We don’t have a feeling like that for our family.”

Seira made idle remarks and smiled. 

Another woman put her elbows on her lap while cupping her face. Then, dusting off her skirt, she said.

“Oh, at least he’s not giving us false hope.”

“What do you mean not giving… He’s not doing that out of consideration, it’s because he really is indifferent to us.”

Elise turned away from the ongoing lamentation and laughed as she ate the last cookie.

“It’s already hopeless for us, but we don’t want someone who is like family to us to grow old and die alone. Don’t mind us and do your best.”

Elise’s last words were directed at Rietta. Rietta looked at her with a puzzled face. Giselle, who was next to her, lowered her voice and whispered.

“I heard you slept in the castle last week.”

After noticing their misunderstanding, Rietta opened her eyes in surprise and looked at her. She indeed slept in the castle, but it was in a different room. Giselle winked at Rietta.

“Don’t let Irene find out about it.”

Rietta thought that it would not matter if she told these women the truth. Then again, she was told not to tell anyone else about the matter, so she just smiled awkwardly.

“Giselle.”

The women who remained on the mats turned their heads in surprise at the sound of the Archduke of Axias who already approached them. The Archduke frowned and pointed at Anna, who climbed and was now hanging from his leg.

“Hang this thing.”

Giselle asked with a puzzled face.

“Pardon?”

Killian glanced down at Anna and coldly said.

“The fringe tree on the road to the East Annex. It’s your doing, right?”

Anna changed her expression in surprise and dropped from the Archduke’s leg. Rietta’s face turned pale as she was startled by his cold words. 

The incident back then?

“You totally uprooted the tree, huh? I already told you I won’t just let you go if I catch you climbing the tree once again.”

Anna trembled as she backed away.

“M, m, my apologies! I won’t do it again!”

Rietta sprung to her feet before she knew it. 

Hang her? No way. That little girl?

Anna quickly turned around and started to run away. And in two steps, she was caught in the hands of the Archduke of Axias.

“Argh!”

The Archduke frowned and grabbed Anna’s wrist.

“This won’t do.”

Anna looked like a rabbit that was caught by the ear. The Archduke said coldly.

“Give her the death sentence.”

Rietta’s face was white as a sheet.

“H, hold on!”

Rietta shouted. People’s attention turned to Rietta. Her mind went blank.

“I also saw the fallen tree! But the tree fell not because someone climbed it, but because it rained and its roots were exposed…! So, I mean, Anna did not do that much wrong at all! W, what do you mean sentence her to death?”

A strange silence fell. Killian stared at Rietta and flatly said to the women.

“Prepare the punishment.”

“Yes, sir.”

After standing up from their seats, the women put their fingers up like a cat and surrounded Anna with a solemn look. Anna screamed and began to writhe. While Rietta was standing with a blank expression, Killian’s sentence was dropped.

“Execute.”

“Aarrgghhhh!”

The women ran and startled tickling Anna, who was struggling.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

“Sob… His Lordship is so mean. He did not even play with me and just left after punishing me…”

Anna became exhausted and lay down on Helen’s leg while whining. Seira laughed as she messed up Anna’s hair. Rietta also swelled down her feelings and smiled. Giselle tapped her thigh and teased her.

“I mean, Rietta, did you really think he would execute a death sentence? How are you going to live in this tough world when you’re this naive?”

Rietta became embarrassed, she bowed her head and fiddled with her fingertips. Celine smiled. She put her hands on Rietta’s shoulder and leaned slightly against her body.

“But still, I was a little touched. Her face turned white and she said it while shivering. Just imagine if someone really steps forward like that during a real execution.”

“Hahahaha!”

Seira tilted her head and burst into laughter. Rietta’s face turned red.

“Don’t make fun of me…”

After a while, the side door of the annex opened. Elise appeared, holding a tray and exuding a powerful aura.

“Ta-da! I bring fruit punch!”

“Oh!”

Seira sprung up to her feet with a groaning sound. Then, she went to lift the tray that looked heavy even at a glance.

“Elise, I love you… Will you marry me?”

With an elegant smile, Elise held the tray high beyond Seira’s reach.

“No. Your love is too cheap.”

“Wow, I got dumped with such a cruel comment.”

The women burst into laughter.

“The spoons are here!”

While laughing and chatting, the woman took the spoon, sat close, and began to eat the fruit punch that Elise had prepared. Rietta also received a spoon. Suddenly, Irene came into her eyes. She stood tall as if chasing Killian’s shadow who had already disappeared, her lonely back disappearing into the East Annex.

“Wow! How can there be grapes already?”

“From the greenhouse of the Grand Temple of Havitus! Expensive fruit that grew up with divine power!”

“Gosh. The grace of the goddess is extremely sweet. Although it is also extremely expensive…”

Having been hesitant all the time, Rietta carefully opened her mouth when the tea time was over.

∘₊✧──────✧₊∘

Before returning home, Rietta once again entered the annex with permission from women in the East Annex. Then, she went to Irene’s room, which was located on the fourth floor, a bit far from the other women’s rooms. It bothered her that Irene was the only one who did not get any blessings.

Compared to the hallways on the second and third floors, where flowerpots and display cabinets were placed on each window, the fourth floor was empty. As she did not receive any money, Rietta only planned to cast a simple blessing in front of the door. She stood in front of the room and gently placed her hand on the door.

Then, the door suddenly opened. Rietta took her hand in surprise and stepped back.

“What are you?”

The voice asked with a cold tone. She glared at Rietta with her green eyes, not being able to hide it being swollen and red.

“I, I’m a blessing caster. I’m commissioned to…”

Rietta was flustered and bowed her head to the floor as she used to do to the nobles. Then, suddenly she raised her head again as she remembered about the courtesy in Axias. Irene looked up and down at Rietta’s clothes, frowning annoyedly. Soon, a cold voice came out.

“I don’t need that. Get out.”

She told Rietta to get out when she did not even step into her room. Irene spoke as if even the hallway was her mansion. Irene was the only one staying on the fourth floor but Rietta had no excuse to give as she was not going to ask her to let her in or ask her to give her work.

Irene smiled coldly and sarcastically with an only sensitive face, instead of a miserable one.

“I guess now even a blessing caster is touting for customers, huh? If your business is not doing well, why don’t you go to a place with a lot of men instead of a place like this?”

Rietta just bowed her head quietly. She came to Irene’s private room, wandered around without permission, and ended up disturbing the noble lady’s feelings. She thought that she could not do anything even if Irene was angry.

“Don’t mind me. Just at the door… I will go back after casting a simple blessing. I came here to do just that from the beginning.”

Irene silently stared at Rietta and strode into her room. She picked up a gold coin and threw it out of the door. The gold coin rolled before stopping after colliding with Rietta’s foot.

“Take that and get out of my face.”

In the end, Rietta’s face returned red.

“I, I don’t need any mo…”

The door was slammed in front of Rietta’s face. She stood silently in front of the door for a moment. Even though Irene was a noble, she felt insulted. But at the same time, she pitied Irene.

Even though she only saw Irene’s room through a small gap for a moment, she could see that it was dark and messy.

There was no maid in the East Annex. Everyone had to do everything themselves there. It was not a suitable place for a noble lady, who had maids to serve her all her life since she was born.

A noble lady who had thrown everything away. No matter how she decorated herself, the one she desperately tried to grab did not even give her a glance. There was no one to take care of her. She forced herself to stay but time went by with his heart still closed.

Even Rietta knew what it meant for a noble lady over the age of 20, getting older in a place like this without a fiancé. Her romantic feelings would burn her heart and gnaw at it without cooling down. Her pride would have hurt too.

Irene could not even afford to joke around with the Archduke’s women who called him family. Other than being sharp and spitting out mean words, she would not have known how to protect her pride.

With her eyes closed, Rietta slowly swept the door with a faintly shining touch. Just like what she did to other ladies. With a sad wish that she would not get sick.

After a while, Rietta left the door, leaving nothing but a shiny gold coin.