Chapter 43
On the day the royal hunting forest was opened, the sky was clear and the weather mild. Since Damian had been discovered by Countess Rachel last time, and she had suggested they go together, Rowena came out for a walk with her. The vast, verdant forest was filled with commoners and nobles.
With one maid each in attendance behind them, the two walked side by side.
“The snow has all melted in just a few days. I hope lots of flowers bloom soon.”
“I know. I hope it gets warmer.”
Rowena agreed and looked at Damian and Joanne, who were following at a distance. In Damian’s hand was the leash of the puppy they had recently begun raising.
It was only for a moment, but the countess noticed Rowena’s gaze and asked casually,
“The young lord must be very shy?”
“Ah… yes. He has a rather delicate temperament…”
“I see. In any case.”
The countess quickly lost interest, lowered her voice, and linked arms with her. As Rowena was awkwardly pulled along, the countess whispered in her ear.
“You’re smarter than I thought, Miss Philone.”
“Pardon? What do you mean?”
At the sudden remark, Rowena tilted her head. The countess chuckled and gave her a reproachful glance that was not unkind.
“As if you don’t know.”
“I’m asking because I truly don’t.”
“The rumor has already spread everywhere. That His Highness held Miss Philone’s hand at the department store.”
“Ah.”
“He seems like the last person who would do such a thing, but I suppose men really do change when they fall head over heels for a woman. I was so surprised. Do you know everyone’s been making a fuss over it?”
At the countess’s excitement, Rowena’s face turned bright red. Words without feet traveled fastest, but she had not expected something that happened only yesterday to have already spread so widely. While Rowena hesitated, embarrassed and unsure how to respond, the countess laughed softly and released her arm.
“Well done. Just keep doing that from now on.”
Understanding what she meant, Rowena smiled faintly instead of answering.
“Even a young lady from a marquis’s family has no power if she does not receive affection from the man who will become her husband. It’s nothing but an empty title. Miss Philone, you have stayed by His Highness’s side the longest, and you’re such a beauty, so you actually have the advantage. There’s no need for you to worry about rank or dignity either.”
“Why are you telling me this?”
At the sincere advice that followed, Rowena came to a halt and asked honestly. The countess stared at Rowena for a moment before speaking frankly.
“To tell you the truth, five years ago I thought you were a fool who only pretended to be clever on the outside. No matter how many expensive earrings and necklaces and dresses you wore, you looked as though you had no real authority at all, and your expression was so often gloomy. You didn’t look happy, even though you didn’t seem to have any intention of escaping.”
It was a sharp observation. Rowena was flustered for a moment, then slowly closed and opened her eyes before readily admitting it.
“You’re right. You… observed me closely. Then why are you spending time with me now?”
“Because you’ve changed a great deal since you returned. Watching you elegantly crush Viscountess Estelle without even blushing overturned everything I had thought until then. At the same time, I became curious about why you had changed.”
Rowena recalled the word “illegitimate child” that the viscountess had uttered. The reason she, who had endured so many insults, had finally lunged forward was none other than her son. Because of the child who, even now, was following far behind while watching the mood. A child who had not been born proudly. Every time she remembered that fact, her chest throbbed and a stinging pain surged through her.
The countess stepped closer, narrowed her eyes, and playfully pressed her.
“Won’t you tell me?”
Silence flowed for a moment. Rowena quietly looked at the woman before her. For some reason, she had thought the countess was someone she could lean on and trust, and now she felt she knew why. Her eyes resembled Jeremy’s. Honest, wise eyes. Eyes that did not wound others.
“No. I won’t tell you. It’s a secret.”
She seemed like a good person, but even so, Rowena could not speak of Damian. It would be the same no matter who it was.
At the brisk refusal, the countess shrugged and gave up easily.
“I thought as much. Come. I told a servant to spread out a mat in a sunny spot, so let’s have lunch there.”
“That sounds like a perfect lunch.”
The two women, now considerably closer than before, were about to start walking again.
“Bobo!”
“Young Master!”
At the familiar voices, Rowena whirled around. Joanne, her face ashen, was running hastily somewhere. Ahead of her, Damian could be seen running between the densely packed trees. The place Damian was heading was not the outer area open to the public, but the dark and damp interior. Bobo’s unleashed tail flashed into view, then disappeared into the darkness.
“Damian!”
Sensing that something was wrong, Rowena chased after her son without time to think. Leaving the startled countess behind, she ran in a panic. Just then, she collided with someone walking from the opposite direction.
“I’m sorry!”
She had no time to see the other person’s face. Rowena was about to apologize hurriedly and pass by, but her arm was seized.
“You should apologize properly.”
It was a sharp, irritable voice. When she turned, she saw a young lady who looked no older than nineteen. With a line of manservants and maids behind her, her presence seemed quite imposing. Every moment counted. Rowena squeezed her eyes shut and opened them, then apologized again and tried to chase after Damian, but the woman standing beside the young lady glared fiercely.
“My, isn’t this Miss Philone?”
At the voice full of hostility, Rowena turned her head. The woman was none other than Viscountess Estelle, whom she had thoroughly humiliated not long ago.
“Out for a walk, are you? I thought women like you slept during the day. Since you’re awake at night.”
Her attitude gave no hint that there had ever been a time when her face had turned bright red and she could not say a word. As though backed by some impressive support, the viscountess straightened her shoulders proudly and sneered.
“But where are you running off to in such a hurry? How undignified.”
It was similar to what the countess had said a moment ago, but the meaning was distinctly different. Not only had Rowena been stopped when she was in a hurry, but the person stopping her was someone she was not pleased to see. Rowena clenched and unclenched her fists. Irritation flared within her.
“That is my personal business, so please don’t concern yourself. Then, if you’ll excuse me.”
“Are you running away now, Miss Philone?”
“Wait. Miss Philone, you said?”
Just as the thoroughly angered Rowena was about to shake off the viscountess’s hand, the young lady, who had been quietly watching the two quarrel, cut in.
“Yes. She’s the woman I told you about, Lady Taldon.”
Taldon. At the name that pierced her ears, Rowena also flinched. The daughter of Marquis Taldon’s family, whom the queen had supposedly kept in mind as the next duchess.
“Ah. I see.”
Opening her fan to cover her nose and mouth, Lady Taldon looked Rowena up and down.
“I didn’t expect to see you like this.”
“My, why would you ever have reason to see her? Women like this would normally never even be able to come face to face with a lady such as you, Lady Taldon.”
Their gazes were like those of people observing some strange beast in a circus. At the eyes she had not felt in a long while since returning to the capital, Rowena took a deep breath inwardly. She had expected that she would somehow cross paths with Marquis Taldon’s daughter, but at the very least, not in a situation like this.
“It is a pleasure to meet you, Lady Taldon. Circumstances are not favorable for further conversation at the moment. Then, if you’ll excuse me.”
Lady Taldon was openly looking down on her, but Rowena had not the slightest intention of falling for the provocation.
“How rude!”
As Rowena nodded slightly and tried to leave, Lady Taldon stopped her once more.
“Apologize properly. Otherwise, I will not let you go.”
At the deliberately loud voice, many eyes turned toward them. As soon as someone recognized them, spectators began to gather little by little. The more people gathered to watch the thrilling commotion, the drier Rowena’s mouth felt. She had heard that there were only herbivores such as rabbits, foxes, and deer in the forest, but Damian was a child, and he might fall in the dark woods and be badly hurt. If Joanne failed to catch up and lost sight of him, he might be somewhere in the maze-like forest, crying his eyes out.
Impatient, Rowena set aside her pride and lowered her head.
“I’m sorry, Lady Taldon. I failed to look ahead and bumped into you.”
Though it angered her that Lady Taldon had seized on the pretext as if she had been waiting for it and immediately cornered her, it was true that Rowena had been at fault for running blindly without looking around.
At her unexpected surrender, Lady Taldon and the viscountess bit their lips with flustered expressions. Rowena added the decisive words.
“If you would be generous enough to forgive me, I will be sure to tell His Highness.”
“Are you saying you intend to tattle on me?”
Rowena had meant that she would put in a good word to Killian, but Lady Taldon, who understood it in the exact opposite way, let the anger flare back into her eyes just as it had been easing.
“How dare you threaten me without knowing your place?”
“This is not something we can simply overlook, Lady Taldon. We should tell a constable…”
As the viscountess, having found her hold, excitedly added fuel to the fire, the murmurs around them grew louder and louder. Just as Rowena, unable to endure it any longer, was about to say something, the countess pushed through the crowd and called out to her.
“Miss Philone!”
“Countess.”
“I’ve been waiting. The tea will get cold. Hurry, let’s go.”
“Wait a moment! What do you think you’re doing?”
Startled, the viscountess hesitated for a moment, then blocked their way.