Chapter 41

If nothing had happened, what would he have done if he hadn’t caught feelings? He picked her up, so he would have given her some help, but he would have sent her out right away anyway.

Assuming so, it was not his responsibility since he found and brought Dana from the mountains.

“Let go?”

Leon looked at his empty palm and made a smirking wind sound.

“No way.”

Even if she wanted to let him go, he would have held her by his side by all means.

The problem was justification. That’s probably what Daniel pointed out.

He mentioned mistress, but it did not fit the current situation.

Leon was single for now, and no matter how much he loved the mistress or his lover, the nobleman of the Haschel Empire did not let a woman, who was not his official wife, live together at his home.

This was a kind of common law to prevent order disturbance and succession disputes within noble families.

No matter how sexually free a noble society was, it was strongly criticized for violating it and was expelled from society depending on the degree.

However, those things were bound to hamper Leon’s thoughts.

Leon, who was pressing his temple with his eyes closed, jumped up. All that needed to be done was to go back and think. Right now, he had to solve his questions.

When Leon suddenly opened the door and came out, the knight guarding the door was surprised and corrected his posture.

“You go to the Palace right away. Go and look into what Sarah is doing and report to me.”

“Yes, Your Highness.”

The knight didn’t know exactly who ‘Sarah’ was, but when the Grand Duke asked him to find out, he left right away without saying anything.

Leon smacked his lips when he saw the Knight leaving.

He should have put a person before he left. There were maids to take care of her, but she did not yet have an exclusive maid. As Daniel had said, her position was ambiguous.

* * *

“Well, eat this first.”

Lisa brought the leftover bread and soup from the kitchen. For Dana, that was all thanks to her now.

“Thank you.”

First, she greeted Lisa politely and picked up a piece of bread. She thought her teeth would go out if she just chewed the hard bread. Dana sliced the bread as much as possible and put it in the soup.

Lisa sat in front of Dana silently and stared at what she was doing. It was interesting not to be completely formal (there was nothing to have), but not to rush to eat for hunger.

“You’re from a rich family”.

Dana, who was trying to scoop up the soup and put it into her mouth, opened her eyes wide and looked at Lisa.

“What?”

“No, just because. It looks like that. Where were you originally? Are you a noble?”

Dana thought she was a nobleman at her question. She didn’t know what her previous status was, but it wasn’t the case at the moment.

“No, I was in the Grand Duchy.”

She gently swallowed the warmed-up watery soup down her throat, wetting her mouth.

Upon hearing the answer that she was in the Grand Duchy, Lisa thought for a moment.

Is she a maid?

Looking at her white fine hands and face, she was not a maid, and the first expectation she could have been was a maid.

Most nobles could not do it, but by the wife of the Grand Duke, they could have maids, not just any maids. The maids were mainly from poor low-ranking aristocrats of the land, and they had both knowledge and culture.

“Are you going back in?”

Dana stared out the window. In the late-night, when the darkness was thick, torches were dimly burning in the not-too-distant Grand Duchy.

“…I should go… Because that’s the only place I can go back to.”

She felt hesitation in her sparse words.

“But it’s hard right now. I think we’ll have to wait a little while for him to come.”

It was sad that she could not freely enter and exit the place even though she said it was a place to go back to. And she felt pathetic that she didn’t think about it in advance.

I’ll have to tell you that next time I see you.

While vowing inside, she bravely emptied the soup bowl.

“Anyway, if you can’t get in right away, you can stay here for a while. Lodging and accommodation are also provided, and this is a merchant group, so there is always a shortage of workers.”

“Still… will that work? But you won’t be able to stay long.”

When Dana asked with sparkling eyes, Lisa replied with an easy smile.

“It’s okay, many people are working short-term here. I’ll tell the guy I manage.”

“Thank you for taking so much care of me.”

Lisa got up and organized the tableware.

“It’s done. Don’t forget me when you enter the Palace. The left end of the second floor is my room, so let’s sleep there together today.”

She spoke to Dana with a blunt tone. As she climbed the stairs pointed out by Lisa, Dana tilted her head at the strange familiarity.

“Have I ever been here?”

As she climbed up, the railing of wooden stairs was familiar with the palm of her hand.

She was so tired now.

Dana entered Lisa’s room. It wasn’t a spacious room, but a bed made of soft straws was enough for the two to lie down.

Dana opened the small window. From here, she could see the Grand Duchy at a glance.

Leon… You’ll find me as soon as you get back. No, should I find him?

Somehow, she was less and less confident. The connection with him was really poor and precarious.

If she ended up not being able to go back, by Lisa’s side, she would be able to help with the store work and live to the point where her stomach was full. Is that it?