Chapter 85

On one side of the garden was a table and chair made of wisteria under an arch of purple flowers. It gave off a simple look that did not go well with the place that was covered with gold or jewels. Freya, who had limped a little, went there and sat down, feeling tired.

“Oh, my God! I’ve got a lot of muscles.”

She spoke a little louder but quickly covered her mouth. Baroness Francesca said that such expressions hurt the dignity of the aristocracy. Her nagging seemed to be stuck in her ear. It was so painful, but it was inevitable. “Yes, it all depends on how you think.”

She decided to think of her life as an imaginary play that she sometimes played while she was in an orphanage. When Freya worked imagining that she was in a ragged dress and attending a ball, it was a time.

It would have been hard to bear that life if it hadn’t been for imagination.

Flakes and tooth-infested blankets, clothing, and porridge with little solid ingredients.

Whether it was raining or snowing, Freya could vividly remember when she was begging.

But there was something else that was hard.

Hunger and cold were tolerable. But she couldn’t get used to the feeling of not being loved by anyone. There was a family on the street where they went begging, except for Freya.

I feel like a beggar when I’m alone.

Suddenly, feeling a chill, she wrapped her arms around her.

“Good morning,”

“……!”

Something came through the vines behind her, and Freya almost fell out of her chair.

“What?”

She thought it was an animal, but there was a suspicious man in a cloak holding a basket. He was so cynical that he tried to leave. Then a faint voice stopped Freya from coming.

“Forgive me if I frighten you. I didn’t know there would be people.”

“No, sir,”

Freya couldn’t feel any danger from the very polite and careful voice. Moreover, it did not look like a noble lord or royal family. Perhaps he had noticed Freya’s suspicious expression, but the opponent quickly greeted her.

“My name is Michael. I run the errands in the palace.”

Working in a palace gave me a strange feeling of homogeneity. She’s also an actress hired by the Crown Prince. The tension disappeared, and she greeted him.

“Good morning. My name is Freya.”

“I haven’t had lunch yet.”

The timid man caught a basket of cloth on the table. It was full of well-opened raspberries and blueberries. The sight reminded me of a pomegranate tree planted in the orphanage’s sponsorship. When Sophia went out, she went out to the laundry and cut the ripe pomegranate in half, and the red juice flowed through her hands.

“It looks so delicious.”

Her mouth seemed to be drooling, exhausted from the lesson. Michael spoke to her carefully.

“If you don’t mind, would you like to join me?”

She wanted to eat it, but she hesitated, unlike before. But when she saw Michael’s hand shaking as he grabbed the basket, she changed her mind. Now she’s not Miss de Bua nor Miss Freya at the orphanage. Eating alone is very lonely. Besides, it’s not easy to recommend it.

“It’s impossible to refuse favors.”

Freya smiled quite aristocratically. The man’s silver hair in the cloak, who was watching him pick up the fruit, seemed to shake gently outside, and his lips slightly went up spiky.

***

It’s been a month since Freya came to the palace.

She was learning something all day, and she lost track of time. After a long time of free time, Freya wandered around the palace.

“Where are they, anyway?”

She hasn’t seen Gemini and Archer since she got here.

“What! The Stern family man was so loud about keeping his word.”

She had been teaching with Gemini for a long time, and her insignificant dagger skills were on the verge of extinction. However, she could not find the Knights’ place because she was not familiar with the palace.

“Well, it’s a huge and complicated place.”

The splendid walls, the floor, and the ceiling had been glazed at first, but now they were calm.

I’m amazed at your adaptability. She congratulated herself.

The bed in the bedroom has not been used yet, but her room feels a little less unfamiliar. Moreover, as she saw the maid who helped her dress up every day, she kept wanting to talk to her. Freya, looking down at her sharp shoe nose, murmured bitterly.

“I’ll be leaving soon..”

Freya knew very well that this was not her home.

Freya, who had been looking around for a long time, came across Hero by chance. His face was paler than usual, and he pressed down his cloak deeply.

“Freya, are you skipping today?”

“What do you mean? How hard it was to get a break.”

Horseback riding is her break, and for this time, she had five hours of classes a day with Francesca. Seeing that cold face for a long time made her feel like she was her blood. At the thought of Francesca, Freya shuddered. Then he asked with a friendly look.

“By the way, what were you doing?”

“Well, I was looking for Archer.”

Hero looked at her worn shoes and gladly said he would help her.

“I’ve been here once or twice, so it’s hard to learn the right way.”

The Knights Building was separately located outside the castle, but getting there was quite complicated. Freya, who was looking around, spoke.

“Hero, I’m not disturbing you for no reason, am I?”

“No, I have to see the Knightsman, too.”

Looking at his smiling face, she secretly moved her lips. Freya’s palace life would have been lonely without him for the past month.