“U-Um... Lady Aileen, is there anything you need?”
“Young Master Cedric is still at the training grounds. Shall I go fetch him?”
“Would you like me to bring you those snacks you had last time?”
“You idiot. Do you really think someone as noble as her would eat the things you like?”
As always, the knights grew nervous whenever Aileen appeared.
Even if she simply stood quietly in a corner of the training grounds, watching without a word, they still felt strangely pressured and uncomfortable.
Sometimes the atmosphere became so awkward that they would insist the area was dangerous—even when it clearly wasn't—and try to escort her away.
And no matter how much Aileen tried to keep her distance, they continued treating her like a noble of even higher standing than Cedric himself.
“It's alright. I don't want to interrupt everyone's training.”
Someone nearby spoke loudly enough for Aileen to hear. She couldn't tell whether it was admiration or simple amazement.
“She really is so elegant and graceful... No matter where she goes, she's the most beautiful and noble young lady.”
Mary approached with a proud smile and whispered,
“You heard that, didn't you? Doesn't it make you happy? It's alright to feel a little proud once in a while, my lady.”
Aileen merely answered with a faint smile.
A moment later, however, she noticed Mary quietly staring at her.
“What are you thinking about?”
“Everyone thinks you're a cold, distant noble lady... but you're the kindest and gentlest person I've ever known.”
“I'm not, Mary.”
“If you weren't, you wouldn't have forgiven me when I tried to steal your bracelet. You certainly wouldn't have given me a place as your maid.”
At first, Mary had been terrified.
The pale hand that stopped her theft... those calm emerald eyes...
They had frightened her more than any guard ever could.
But Aileen hadn't called the guards.
She hadn't shouted.
She hadn't humiliated her.
Instead, after looking quietly at the ragged girl before her, she had asked only a single question.
"Would you like to come with me?"
Mary knew she would never forget that moment.
Even afterward, Aileen never brought up the incident again.
Eventually, Mary herself had gathered the courage to ask.
"Why didn't you hand me over to the guards? Why weren't you angry?"
"I saw you standing in front of the bakery, holding your little sister's hand."
Aileen never asked where Mary had come from.
She never questioned her past.
She never forced her to speak about her circumstances or made her feel ashamed.
She simply made sure Mary's salary was enough to support both her and her younger sister.
Little by little, Mary's loyalty toward Aileen continued to grow.
“Sometimes... I wish you were selfish, my lady. Just like everyone believes you are—cold and indifferent.”
Mary knew people whispered behind Aileen's back.
They called her heartless because she hadn't openly wept after the deaths of her parents and grandmother.
But Mary knew the truth.
She had seen Aileen crying beneath her blanket.
She had cried so desperately.
Even if Aileen believed no one had noticed...
Mary had.
“I am selfish. I'm using Cedric for my own situation.”
“You're probably the only person in the world who would call that 'using' someone.”
Mary sincerely hoped Aileen and Cedric would grow closer.
Aileen needed someone she could lean on.
Far more than she herself realized—or was willing to admit.
“It's alright to rely on him. Really.”
"...You think so?"
Resting her chin in her hand, Aileen gazed into the distance with lonely eyes.
“Let's go back.”
“Ah... Yes!”
Before Mary could think of something that might lift her spirits, Aileen brushed off her dress and stood first.
Winter was a quiet season.
Even high society fell silent.
The banquet hosted by the ducal household at the beginning of the season had been a rare exception.
Once autumn passed, most nobles either traveled south to escape the cold or remained at home with their families.
It was a season of rest, waiting for the busy social calendar to begin again in spring.
It's nice...
It's quiet. No one asks questions.
Because of that, Aileen was able to remain peacefully in the ducal estate without drawing suspicion.
No one would wonder why she had suddenly disappeared from public view.
But once spring arrives... people will definitely start talking about why I left House Cassier.
Though they'll probably lose interest soon enough.
She had definitely picked up a little of Cedric's way of thinking.
Normally, she would already be making careful plans for spring.
But now...
She didn't particularly want to.
She simply wanted to let things unfold naturally.
“Aileen.”
The very person she'd been thinking about appeared.
And, as usual, the moment he saw her, he frowned.
“Why are you dressed so lightly in weather this cold?”
“Says the man who isn't even wearing his shirt properly.”
He had walked in with his shirt barely hanging on his shoulders, yet somehow he was the one scolding her.
“I'm healthy.”
“You're going to catch a cold. Don't underestimate winter in the capital.”
As always, Cedric refused to lose an argument.
“You and I are different. If I stay indoors too long, I start feeling sick instead. It feels suffocating.”
He was the type of person who couldn't go half a day without holding a sword.
Now that she thought about it, ever since they had started living together in the ducal estate, he had gone outside to train every single morning.
“See? Your hands are colder than mine.”
As if determined to prove he was healthier, Cedric suddenly took her hand.
To her surprise...
His hand really was warmer than hers.
"...Are you secretly carrying around a hand warmer?”
“No. I've always had a naturally high body temperature.”
“You're perfectly suited to the North.”
“And you? You'd never survive there.”
Oddly enough, his words felt convincing.
The subtle difference in their body temperatures made it seem true.
But before the mood could sink any further, Cedric's usual ridiculousness lightened the atmosphere again.
“If I dropped you right in the middle of the North, you'd probably spend the whole time sick.”
“Good thing I'm never going there.”
Aileen tried to pull her hand away.
Cedric didn't let go.
“You never know.”
Their eyes met.
For several quiet moments, neither of them looked away.
“You just said I don't belong in the North.”
"...It's fine. You can just sit beside the fireplace so you don't catch a cold.”
“What is that supposed to mean?”
This time, Aileen let out a quiet laugh.
Cedric smiled as well.
It felt like they were sharing one of those rare, precious moments that only came once in a while.
He found himself wishing it would last just a little longer.
“You should smile like that more often.”
“If I smile too much, people won't take me seriously.”
But the moment her smile disappeared, that familiar cool, distant air returned.
“I don't take you lightly.”
Cedric still didn't fully understand what he was feeling toward Aileen.
But one thing was certain.
He respected her deeply.
She was elegant, dignified, and admirable.
How could he not?
“I'm glad to hear that.”
“Hey...”
Without warning, Cedric imagined Aileen walking through the quiet corridors of his castle in the snow-covered North.
If he called her name...
Would she turn around and look at him?
...Why am I thinking about something like that?
Yet once the thought entered his mind, the idea of bringing Aileen to the North no longer seemed so impossible.
He didn't want to leave her behind.
Of course, she could remain at the estate.
But what if someone from House Cassier came while he was away and caused trouble?
And so...
Cedric reached a simple conclusion.
Just like the day he had found her alone in the Cassier estate...
He couldn't bring himself to leave her behind again.
Perhaps that was why he had imagined her living in the Northern territory.
“Hey... Aileen.”
“What is it?”
She blinked slowly and looked at him in silence.
And because she looked at him that way...
He couldn't bring himself to ask,
"Will you come to the North with me?"
Normally, Cedric always spoke whatever came to mind.
But this time was different.
“...Never mind. It's nothing.”
If he only wanted to bring her because he felt responsible for her...
Then there were other ways to help.
And he wasn't even sure Aileen truly wanted to go to the North.
So he swallowed the words.
At least...
Not yet.
