The Maid Dreams Of The Sunset - Chapter 39

The forest after the rain marked the season with its uniquely fresh green scent. Isaac strained his slow-flickering eyes and looked ahead.

Hanging around for a long time in front of the window of Dahlia’s room on the first floor of the servants’ dormitory, Isaac crouched under the bush and carefully approached the window after confirming that the light was turned off.

The dim light from the upper floor barely lit the room.

Beyond the half-drawn curtain, a small silhouette curled up in the bed stood out. The white feet sticking out of the blanket wiggled a couple of times and then hid in the blanket. The silhouette, which had been stretched out, curled up like a cocoon, and the body, which had been tossing and turning several times, soon calmed down.

Isaac slowly moved his gaze and scanned her.

“Sleeping already.”

Her beautifully closed face looked particularly peaceful. As soon as he captured Dahlia’s sleeping face in his eyes, Isaac felt his accumulated fatigue dissipate and raised the corners of his mouth.

Dahlia had never gotten drunk or been in a relationship, even though she was an adult. She just worked hard. Maybe it was because of that, but she got used to sleeping and waking up early, so she usually yawned as if she were tired early in the night, even at 8 o’clock.

Even now, the lights were clearly on in the other servants’ rooms, while only Dahlia’s room lights were turned off. He felt she was lovely, again.

“Not even a baby. Anyway… It’s cute.”

He looked at her round forehead, dark lashes, cute nose, and slightly open lips one after another. He looked at her pretty face as if possessed, and his gaze changed suddenly.

A slender neck that glanced through brown hair, a small collarbone that was barely visible… It was hard to see underneath because she was wrapped in a blanket.

The gaze, slowly moving away, suddenly stopped at the small protruding hand.

There was a long scratch on the back of the hand that was holding the blanket tightly. Two years ago, she fell and hurt herself while cleaning.

Of all things, when Isaac left with the Duke, he couldn’t take proper action because it was an accident. When he returned to the mansion and noticed the wound, Isaac finally felt his helplessness.

‘If only I had more power.’

‘I wouldn’t have had to make Dahlia do such dirty work.’

“Would that scar never disappear?”

A sullen voice that did not match his previous mood slipped out. Isaac’s focus fell from the window in a gloomy mood, even though he arrived with energy.

‘If only I had more power…’

“…No. No.”

Power didn’t matter. The heart to protect was important.

He could tell by looking at Gehern. He was a loser; he had so much power, yet he couldn’t protect the woman he loved. He was just a delusional, sick man who was narcissistically infatuated by himself in love, didn’t know where to use his power, and missed the right time by looking after his wife instead of the mistress he loved.

He still believed Renee was alive somewhere. In the meantime, he was desperately looking for traces of the woman he loved from their child.

When Isaac thought of his father’s miserable appearance, he couldn’t tolerate it.

“I’m not like him.”

What’s the point in living a life, full of regrets, after losing your loved one, and wandering around without knowing what was really important to you?

How stupid can you be that you can’t realize what’s important to you?

That is what stupid people do, like Gehern.

Isaac knew what was really important for him in his life.

He was ready to burn everything he had in his hand to protect his loved one – her.

Isaac glanced at the scar carved on the back of Dahlia’s sleeping hand, then slowly stepped back and hid in the bushes again.

Until all the lights in the dormitory went out and everyone left for their dreamworld… he decided to be the gatekeeper by the window.

“Please have a good dream, Dahlia.”

‘I hope you can pick flowers with clean hands, without painful scars.’

‘May the world in your dreams be kinder than reality.’

***

It was almost midnight when Isaac arrived at the annex.

He didn’t expect that he would have sat so long by the dormitory. He thought it might be ten o’clock at the latest, but was surprised to hear from the guard guarding the garden that it was midnight.

No wonder his legs were numb.

He crossed the forest road with a sad smile.

The soft light of the outbuilding greeted him. Even after he moved to the left wing, he instructed the staff not to neglect the management of the annex, and the head maid seemed to fulfill his orders faithfully. Isaac opened the door with a pleased heart.

And stopped on the spot.

“Wherever have you been wandering around like that, to just be crawling in now? Do you know how long I waited?”

A man, who was lying on the bed, slowly rose up and approached Isaac. Isaac stared at his opponent with an expressionless face, then opened his mouth heavily.

“…Max, what brings you here?”

“What happened? I came because I have something to say to my handsome lord. I went to the Left Wing, and they said you went to the annex, so I was waiting for you here.”

The way Max was smiling and talking to Isaac, with his hands on his waist, was very uncomfortable.

Only half a day ago, Max stormed out of the conference room with a face that looked like he was going to tear down anything that bothered him. When he was this angry, it was normal for him to misbehave for at least three or four days.

…Max, in front of Isaac, now seemed too relaxed and pleasant.

“It’s just the two of us, so tell me honestly. What the hell were you doing?”

Max looked up at Isaac with an arrogant look on his face.

A glimpse of displeasure passed over his insensitive face. Isaac responded to the gaze with his head cocked, not hiding his displeasure.

“What is it you’re asking about me?”

“You were going to live quietly in an annex, but why do you suddenly come forward and ruin the atmosphere of the house? What do you mean, assistant? What do you think you’ve become after a few of your suggestions were adopted in the meeting? No one would listen to your opinion if it weren’t for my father.”

“Thanks to you, I was able to become an assistant. I am grateful to His Grace.”

Max’s eyes flashed with a more fierce light. Their breaths intertwined, and Isaac, narrowing his brow, approached the window and opened it without hesitation.

He wanted to put an end to the useless fighting. Keeping up pretenses in front of his vassals all day had pushed his spirit to the limit. He calmed himself down by looking at the sleeping Dahlia, but when he faced Max’s face, he was rapidly fatigued.

“But you are still an assistant. Just an assistant. No matter how hard you try, nothing will threaten me. The Little Duke is me.”

“Is it because you don’t know that? I’ve never felt like a threat to you.”

Max reached out his hands to Isaac’s side, arguing in a hissing voice. Touching the wall, he approached a little closer and continued to threaten as if whispering.

“I don’t need an assistant like you. What kind of fantasy do you feel when you see half-brothers running the territory amicably? You are an illegitimate child, and will always remain one. I have never had a bloodline as dirty as you by my side, so you are only chasing fantasies.”

“…Am I dirty?”

“Do you not know that?”

Isaac smiled instead of being angry. He had been familiar with how Max was being averse to him with his whole body, but when he confirmed it with words, Isaac felt relieved rather than bad.

Max gritted his teeth with a grimace. It was because he felt Isaac’s smile was mocking him.

“You’ll be an adult soon, too. When you become an adult, my family won’t even have to take responsibility for you. I’ll take care of it, so leave the mansion as soon as you become an adult. Stop talking nonsense, whether you are an assistant or a proxy. Get out of my sight.”

“You wouldn’t be able to say that if I knew how much I wanted.”

There was contempt in Isaac’s blue eyes.

“…Shameless b**t**d. Is that my business now? If you needed money so much, why didn’t you sell your body like your mother?

Isaac chuckled, turning his head away. The way he kept his relaxed attitude after being told to be angry continued to annoy Max.

Max lifted his hand from the wall and clenched his fist, punching the wall with a loud bang. Nevertheless, Isaac nodded his head with a calm face, as if to continue. In the end, Max, impatient, grabbed Isaac by the collar while swearing.

“What a piece of sh!t. Is it funny what I’m saying?”

“Of course, it’s funny. What qualifications do you have to tell me to get out? You must think you’re the real owner of the mansion because you’re treated as the Little Duke.”

“…What?”

“You’re so smart, Max. Since I keep doing my work in front of the vassals, you might think I’m just a servant, but do you know what it means to be a lord’s assistant?”

Max thought a rude joke would come flying, but the word ‘lord’s assistant’ passed his ears.

His eyes fluttered rapidly. Isaac laughed to himself, realizing that those eyes didn’t understand the situation at all.

“Helman is now declared to be under martial law. In the absence of a ruler, all military, judicial, and executive powers have been transferred to me. The land we’re stepping on now, the capital city of Helman… Who do you think owns this place now?”

“What nonsense are you talking about again…?”

After freeing the collar, Isaac shoved Max with his shoulder.

Gently brushing the crumpled hem of his shirt, Isaac lowered his head and whispered in Max’s ear.

“You may be the owner of the mansion, but I am the owner of the land. Simply put, the person who will be turned off is you, not me.”

A low-pitched voice lingered in Max’s ears and then gently dissipated. It was a graceful and calm voice that could not be considered a threat.

This tone. This languid voice.

However, that elegant tone that did not match the content contained in the words shattered Max’s patience that had been pressed to its limit.

Max looked down at his wildly rising and falling chest, then raised his head with a cold face. He vowed not to negotiate anymore and opened his mouth in a ferocious tone.

“If you want to pretend to be the owner of the land, do as you please. However, you will have to be prepared for that as well.”

“Would you really say this because you want to kick me out? Max, you brought it up first, so did I…”

“Even if the land is yours, the mansion’s servants are different. The employer of the servants is always Eufgenschult.”

Isaac tilted his head with a blunt face as if Max were talking about something ridiculous.

Praying that there would be a ripple on that expressionless face, Max continued with a voice mixed with ridicule.

“So, Dahlia Beroch’s owner is me.”

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