The Count’s Secret Maid - Chapter 22

21. 21. Tea time with the Count (3)

She was shorter than most girls her age and had a shorter frame. Her hair, which reached her chest, was frizzy, and her skin was sun-tanned. Her hair was a dead chestnut colour. Her eyes were large, with chestnut pupils the same as her hair, but they were slit upward, and her little, freckled nose, tipped upwards as if soaring into the sky. Her lips were small and rough and often bled.

Ugly dwarf.

Boys my age once called me that.

Contrary to Paula, Alicia had been a beauty since childhood. She was about the same height as Paula, but her body was moderately full and her breasts were big. Her light brown hair, which reached her waist, was shiny thanks to her constant care. She didn’t go out when the sun was shining, so her skin was fair, her eyes were big, her nose was long and sharp, and her lips were plump, so even a slight smile was alluring enough to bewitch her opponent.

As far as Paula can see, Alicia was very pretty. She was so pretty that rumours spread even outside the village. The village Lord’s son fell in love with Alicia and proposed to her. No, all men had an unrequited love for Alicia. Thanks to her, even her mean personality was evaluated as attractive.

At the same time, the topic of Paula came up while discussing Alicia. Pretty Alicia’s older sister was the subject of curiosity. Her younger sister was like that, how much prettier was the older sister? So there were many times when people saw Paula when they came to visit Alicia. However, the gaze that had been sparkling with anticipation was immediately tinged with disappointment when they saw her face. There were people who openly frowned or cursed. It was a familiar question whenever they asked if she was Alicia’s real sister.

Paula was silent for a while. She seemed to imagine the maid who dared to be arrogant with herself.

‘Would you despise me too if you saw me? You may be reluctant to keep me around because I’m ugly. Just like other people did to me. Maybe I am lucky now that you can’t see me. Because you don’t have to look at this ugly face.’

‘If, like a miracle, you could see me, I don’t want to show you my face.’

She didn’t want to get hurt. She was only a voice from the beginning, and the lie now came out of nowhere, but it wasn’t bad for him to be mistaken like this. She would be really happy if there was just one person in her life who would remember her as a pretty person.

“You must be beautiful. I can’t imagine.”

“I hear that often.”

And then she laughed bitterly.

“I heard you say you looked normal before.”

“I said it out of courtesy.”

“Good for you.”

Paula shook her head and let go of the tip of the hair he was touching. The mystery seemed to have been resolved. It was fortunate that he did not see the trembling of her fingertips holding the book.

“Master is also handsome.”

“I know.”

“Oh, this is a bit of a drag.”

As he let out his candid heart, he slightly raised the corners of his mouth. There was joy in those slightly curved emerald eyes.

‘You are smiling…’

“You should be easy to find.”

‘Well, is it really so? I’m different from the woman in your head right now.’

“Is that so?”

“Yes. I can tell them to bring the smallest person here.”

His reasoning was unexpected. The smallest person…

“I’m not that small.”

“You are small.”

“Master is on the bigger side.”

“You are too small, so I’d like to use you as a staff.”

“I’m not small.”

When Paula said it awkwardly, he laughed again. Pleasure flashed across his relaxed face. She often saw a hardened or terrified expression, so it must have been a really good feeling to see him smiling like that. At the same time, her mood improved. She was laughing along with him.

“You are really mean.”

“Only to you.”

‘I think we’re going to have a showdown to see who’s worse.’

“It’s windier now.”

“Don’t change the subject.”

“Ah, I see. Think whatever you want.”

After declaring surrender, Paula just wiggled her feet. The wind blew hard. A ticklish laugh rang through the wind.

“The wind is still chilly, so tell me if it’s cold.”

“This is fine.”

He sipped his tea and turned his head away. Paula put her eyes on the book again. She was thinking of continuing to read the part where she stopped.

“It makes me want to walk.”

It was a random word. Paula looked up at him again. Vincent was still looking to the side. The wind ruffled his hair. Today, she couldn’t concentrate on reading. It was not just because of the wind noise. That was because of him, too.

“Then would you like to take a walk?”

“What?”

Paula put the book down on the table and got up. And grabbed his arm in bewilderment.

“Let’s go for a walk.”

The forest was silent. As expected, no one was there. It was located at the back of the outbuilding, so it was not very deep, but it was unmaintained and pristine. Fortunately, there was a path, so it was nice to take a light walk. It seemed like an adventure to be walking amidst the sounds of nature, birds chirping and leaves rustling.

“The weather is really nice.”

“Right.”

He was holding her hand and following one step behind her. It was embarrassing to walk hand in hand with a grown man, but it felt like she was out for a walk with her little brother.

“If you are having trouble, tell me. I’ll carry you on my back.”

“As I said before, I didn’t hurt my leg.”

“Nevertheless.”

Due to being stuck in the room for a long time, he was in a state where his stamina was very low. So she took his hand and walked slowly. The last thing he really made improvements in his movement was when he was with Ethan, when he started to get out of bed. Of course, he was still confined to his room, but it was a nice change from when he was in bed.

Shoot, the wind blew. He tilted his head in a pleasant sensation. The wind blew through his hair, and a cold aura brushed his skin. Even Vincent’s golden hair swayed in the wind. The sound of stepping on the crunchy forest echoed pleasantly.

“I think it would be nice to come out like this sometimes.”

“Never mind.”

“Why?”

“Because when I meet someone, it becomes a headache.”

But… she couldn’t feel the presence of people, but she looked around with her nerves on edge just in case.

“There’s no one there, but I’ll let you know as soon as someone comes.”

“There will be no one.”

“Really?”

“This is a place I used to come to often when I was young. With Ethan and Violet.”

“I… I’ve been curious ever since. Who is Violet?”

Alongside Ethan and the letter, Paula was curious because it didn’t seem like a simple relationship. He seemed to be in a good mood right now, so she asked because she thought this was an opportunity.

“My fiancée.”

“A fiancée?!”

Paula was a bit surprised, but considering his age, it was more strange if he was without one. She heard that nobles choose their betrothed from an early age. It reminded her of Alicia, who snorted at the Lord’s son, who insisted that he would abandon his fiancée and choose her. Alicia hated the Lord’s son because he was ugly, but she rejected him with the excuse of him having a fiancée.

‘Yes, you love each other. That’s why she sent the letter out of concern for him.’

Then the letters that came with care made sense.

“She seems to love master very much.”

“It’s not like that.”

Paula was touched, but the other person firmly cut off that emotion. She glanced at Vincent.

“No?”

“No. So if she comes to the mansion, send her back.”

“Why? You said she is your fiancée.”

“She doesn’t know I’m blind.”

Ah… She had been told that he was hiding it, but Paula didn’t know that he was hiding it even from his fiancée.

“If she found out that her fiancé had become blind, she would ask to break it off.”

“No way.”

“I don’t know what she’s thinking, but she and I weren’t engaged because we loved each other. It was an engagement between the families for the sake of profit. So, if one side has become useless, it is only natural that the engagement is broken.”

“…”

“I can’t hide it forever, but it’s better to delay it as much as possible.”

Last time, Ethan and now Violet, everyone was trying to put their purpose in their relationship with him. Paula thought that the lives of the nobles were not simple either.

“I will keep that in mind.”

She nodded and replied. She was curious though.

Violet was her master’s fiancée. What did she look like?

For some reason, Paula imagined a face as beautiful as a flower.

“And you don’t have to do this.”

“What are you talking about?”

“It’s because of what you said last time. It means you don’t need to comfort me.”

“…No.”

Her reply was delayed because he pointed it out. She tried talking, but it didn’t work for him.

In fact, the atmosphere between Vincent and Paula calmed down a bit after that shocking confession. For some reason, she looked into his eyes, and he became even more silent. Originally, it wasn’t like they were having casual conversations, but the flowing atmosphere was damp.

So she wanted to ease his mood, but he easily saw through her inner thoughts.

“You don’t have to lie.”

“I’m really not.”

“I’ll believe you do.”

‘I’ll just pretend I don’t know.’

Paula pretended not to hear and focused on the walk. He didn’t say anything more either. Birds chirped in the quiet forest. The sound made her heart calm.

Then, in an instant, a strong wind blew. The tablecloth in her hand fluttered away in the wind.

“Uh! Wait a minute, master!”

She put down the basket she had hung on her wrist and let go of his hand. She could feel his movements behind her back, bewildered. She yelled for a moment and then followed the flying tablecloth. She thought it would be easy to catch it, but if she tried to catch it, it would fly further away. If she ran, it would fly away. As a result, the cloth went deeper into the bush.

The tablecloth, which was flying around, stopped only after it hit a tree. At this point, Paula hurriedly ran to grab the tablecloth.

That was the moment. Before her hand could reach it, a large hand came out of nowhere and picked up the tablecloth.

There was someone in the woods.

Paula didn’t feel any presence at all, but a strange man was standing in front of her. She stopped at the sudden appearance of a stranger. His brown hair was blowing in the wind. The man had his back turned so she couldn’t see his face.

Who was it? Was he a user here? But it was the first time she was seeing someone here.

Of course, many people were employed here, and the servants she saw were few and far between. Even so, the man in front of her somehow didn’t look like a servant. It was a nobleman’s attire and the atmosphere it gave off was elegant.

Paula wondered and looked at his back, but soon after, the man also turned to her. The man’s face that appeared before her eyes was young.

And he was, as expected, a first-timer.

***