Council Room — Midnight

“I told you I was fine, and yet you insisted on bringing it.”

At that remark, Duke Sorpel clicked his tongue as if mildly annoyed.

But everyone present could see the faint upward curve at the corners of his mouth.

“I envy you, Your Grace.”

“This must be why people say a man should have a daughter. Ha ha, I only have sons, so I’ll never know such pleasure.”

“In my household, even though I have a daughter, she’s never once brought me so much as a cup of tea, let alone a dessert.”

“Same with mine.”

“Not every daughter is like Lady Camilla.”

As one after another made such comments, Duke Sorpel slowly lifted a spoonful of the sherbet to his lips.

As always, the taste was excellent.

“Truly astonishing. You used to cause trouble wherever you went, and now, have you finally come to your senses?”

Freeze!

A young retainer blurted the words out, unable to tear his gaze away from the wine sherbet, as though he really found it remarkable.

It was the youngest among the retainers — Viscount Ersha.

“......”

The duke’s gaze shifted to him.

“To think she can prepare something like this and serve it to Your Grace — I suppose she must still feel very sorry for the incident at the party.”

The duke’s face was growing steadily colder. Those around Ersha gave him urgent looks, silently begging him to close his mouth, but he failed to notice.

“You there.”

“Yes?”

“Did you not once say you cannot drink wine?”

“Me?”

“Then a dessert made with wine would not suit your taste either.”

“No, I actually really like w—”

“You most certainly do not like wine.”

The duke cut off Ersha’s protest flatly, without letting him finish. Then he gave a command to the butler.

“I cannot disregard my daughter’s sincerity. I will take that myself. Bring it here.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

“A—ah...”

Ersha could not hide his dismay as the sherbet before him was taken away.

In that instant, Duke Sorpel’s eyes met his.

“Th... then please enjoy it.”

What did I do wrong?

It was only upon seeing the duke’s eyes — cold as ice — that he realized he had just committed a grave mistake.

When he sought help from those around him, asking with his eyes for some explanation, they all looked away and shook their heads.

****

Corridor — Later That Night

“What shall I make tomorrow?”

[I have a special sauce I developed. I was thinking of making canapés with just a touch of it.]

Shaking off Chef Jellard’s desperate grip — the man all but clung to her, begging to be taught the recipes — Camilla left the kitchen.

Hm?

She halted. She had been chatting with Ferrol, the ghostly chef, about tomorrow’s dish when she noticed a familiar figure standing in the corridor.

“What are you doing there?”

It was Ravi. She wanted to pass by without a word, but their eyes met.

What was he doing alone in the hall at this hour?

“......”

He stared blankly for a moment, then strode toward her. Had he been waiting for her?

“What are you up to?”

“What do you mean?”

That’s what I should be asking you. Blocking my way and tossing out a random question — what exactly are you doing?

“What are you doing every night? Why start something so out of character all of a sudden?”

His eyes flicked toward the kitchen. At that, Camilla understood what he was getting at.

“You mean the cooking? ❖ Nоvеl𝚒ght ❖ (Exclusive on Nоvеl𝚒ght) What about it?”

At her answer, Ravi’s brow furrowed slightly.

“What’s your scheme?”

“Scheme?”

“Why suddenly do this?”

Camilla clicked her tongue at his repeated questions.

“Mind your own business.”

Such pointless interference.

She moved to walk past him, but his next words stopped her in her tracks.

“Do you think Father will accept you as family because of this?”

His voice was unusually harsh, thick with emotion — not his usual cold, mocking tone.

Had he been drinking? No — there was no smell of alcohol.

“Do you think you’ll win his approval with such trifles?”

Ravi looked both angry and contemptuous. Camilla tilted her head at him.

What’s with him?

Whether she cooked for the duke or brought him flowers, what did that matter to him?

Weren’t we supposed to live our own lives, separately?

This was nothing but useless meddling.

“They will never accept us.”

“......”

Us?

Us...

Camilla stayed silent for a moment.

Ah. He’s speaking about himself.

He must have seen his own reflection in her recent actions, her efforts to curry favor with Duke Sorpel. 𝑓𝘳𝑒𝑒𝓌𝘦𝘣𝘯ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝘤𝑜𝑚

Ravi, who strained desperately for his father’s acknowledgment, was projecting himself.

“Don’t waste your energy. It’s all for nothing.”

“I know.”

“...You know?”

“Yes. I know.”

Her answer was short and matter-of-fact, almost embarrassing to the one who had spoken so heatedly.

“I have no intention of becoming part of their family.”

“What?”

Family? That was never the point.

There was only one reason she was doing this.

“I don’t want to die.”

“What do you mean?”

“I want to live.”

“What are you talking about?”

“That’s all there is.”

“Hey!”

With that, Camilla walked past him.

She could feel Ravi’s eyes on her — confused, unsettled — but she ignored him.

Yes, that’s all.

Family?

I don’t need it.

Chapter — Give Back What Was Taken

“The weather is lovely today.”

[...] [...]

“A cup of coffee would be perfect.”

[...] [...]

“Maybe I should go for a walk?”

[...] [...]

“......”

All right, all right.

“What is it? What’s wrong? You’ve been staring at me like that for ages. If you’ve got something to say, then say it.”

Camilla, lounging in a chair by the window and enjoying a rare moment of leisure, finally met the unblinking stares of the two ghosts, Ferrol and Derrin.

[What did you mean by that yesterday?]

“Yesterday?”

Feigning ignorance, she asked back.

[Last night, you told your brother you wanted to live.]

[Lady Camilla, what did you mean by that?]

Derrin, who seemed to have heard everything from Ferrol, had lost his usual gentle smile. His voice was careful now.

[Are you ill?]

[To say you want to live... what did you mean?]

They were speaking about her conversation with Ravi. How was she supposed to explain that?

“Isn’t it natural for anyone to want to live? That’s all I meant.”

After a moment’s thought, Camilla replied lightly, as though it were nothing.

She couldn’t possibly tell them everything.

If she said, I know the future, and I’m struggling desperately to stay alive...

They might both decide they want nothing to do with a madwoman.

Still under their questioning gaze, Camilla turned her eyes back to the window.

The flowers were in full bloom outside. Then a thought came to her.

“I have something to ask you too.”

[...? Please, go ahead.]

“Do you know anything about the ‘flowerbed incident’?”

If anyone who roamed the ducal estate would know, it would be them.

[The flowerbed? What flower—ah...!]

****

Rose Garden

“It’s vast.”

Camilla stared at the endless expanse of roses and felt once again the grandeur of the House of Sorpel.

What kind of garden is this enormous?

“Here?”

[Yes, here.]

At Derrin’s answer, Camilla lowered her gaze to her feet.

There had been a small — no, an infuriating — incident before she had fully inhabited Camilla Sorpel’s body.

Months ago, Duke Sorpel had received a report: Lady Camilla was tearing apart the rose garden.

With a sigh, he assumed she had once again lost her temper and laid waste to her surroundings. Still, perhaps curious, he summoned her and asked for her reason.

As always, Camilla had clamped her mouth shut, unable even to meet his eyes.

Hopeless fool!

It was an event that had recurred in every loop of her life, and the outcome was always the same.

Every time I watched it, I nearly went mad with frustration.

The truth of the matter was this:

A handful of maids and pages who hated Camilla had stolen one of her most treasured belongings.

Not just any trinket — her late mother’s keepsake.

It was a ring set with a red ruby.

The maids, having stolen and hidden it, treated it like a game, taunting her with their words.

“We hid it in the rose garden. Go find it.”

“Oh? You’ll hit us again?”

“Did you forget what His Grace said? If you cause another disturbance, you’ll be confined to your room.”

“Who do you think he’ll believe — you, or us?”

“We’ve gotten really good at crying on cue, haven’t we?”

“And if we just say we’ve never even seen such a ring, that’s the end of it.”

“No, better yet — we’ll say you wore it out and lost it, then blamed us in a tantrum.”

And so Camilla had been forced to search the rose garden alone, trying to recover her mother’s ring.

She forgot the pain of the rose thorns cutting into her hands as she searched and searched, but found nothing.

In the end, the garden was left in ruin, and she was summoned before the duke to be scolded. That was how the incident had always ended.

But this time, thanks to Derrin, who had witnessed the maids hiding the ring, she knew exactly where to dig.

Thunk!

Camilla drove the small spade into the earth.

Before long, in the very spot Derrin had indicated, she uncovered the ring.

“......”

She held the dirt-stained ring tightly in her palm and stared at her hand.

The faint scars from before were still visible — the ones left when the thorns had pierced and scratched her as she searched this place in vain.

“It’s you.”

This was your doing.

Her eyes flashed as she tucked the ring safely away.