Please Let Go Of Me Now

Chapter 13

***

As Camilla groaned and frightened, the Count began to contemplate and rubbed his face roughly.

“D*mn gypsy bitch, go to hell!”

The baby was his daughter. She was of noble blood, descended from Paulman’s blood. Only that fact mattered to the Count at the time. The prophecy of the d*mn gypsy came unannounced and ridiculed him once more. It was exactly one month after Lily was born.

(*Lily’s mother is Camilla)

Camilla’s mother, Countess Eleanor, was in an accident while coming to visit her granddaughter Lily. Her wagon was overturned because of horses running wild for no reason. What was found inside the overturned wagon was an old woman with a broken neck. Upon the death of her mother, Camilla lost not only her mother, but also her reason.

“I, I have given birth to the devil!”

She threw all the furniture in the room and poured her curse on the baby lying in the cradle. The Count dragged his maddening wife forcibly and put her on a chair.

“It’s just a superstition.”

“Superstition? That’s what killed my mother!”

“It was an accident…”

“You’ve seen it. Since it was born, the water smells bloody and the livestock die for no reason, but is it still a superstition? Is it an accident? Look at that disgusting hair!”

“Camilla!”

“That’s what that b*tch did. That child will kill you….Burn it, honey. Let’s burn it…”

Camilla’s crazy eyes seemed to be possessed by something. The child in the cradle quietly sucked her finger without crying in spite of the commotion. The Count picked up a cocoon-like baby, hid it in his arms, and did not give it away. Camilla’s hand grabbed the child and made a whistling sound.

“Because I can have another child, so… I beg you. Give me… Give me, give me, please!!”

Unable to bear his wife’s bizarre seizures any longer, the Count sprinted out the door. It was said that it was a child who would grow up eating the flesh of her parents. She was the child who would bring disaster. However…. Even if…. Even so…..

“She’s innocent,” the Count looked down at his daughter in the woman’s screams from behind him. The baby clung to the hem of her father’s robe with her silvery fingers and babbled. The flawlessly clear glassy eyes were as clear and blue as the buds of a spring day. Yes, the fortune teller was wrong. There was no way this angelic child was a curse. If the world doesn’t see it, there will be no problem.

*****

“I have nowhere to go anyway.”

As she listened to Lily’s past, Shasha took a silver comb and combed Lily’s hair. She and Lily both lost their connections.

“So, don’t be stubborn and stay here with me, okay? I’ll help you.”

“I’m going to the southern port. They say you can go anywhere you want by boat from there.”

“Lie, there’s no such thing.”

“Really. My grandmother told me.”

“Really? Can you go anywhere? Anywhere?”

“Yes, anywhere.”

Lily nodded her head, wiping the crumbs off her lips. Shasha bit her lips with a confident nod.

“In that case, where are you going? What are you going to do with your life?”

“Um, if I get out of here…”

Lily wanted to find a quiet lakeside and build a hut. Neither too big nor too small, a hut just the size of the old woman’s hut she lived in. In the morning, she would wake up to the sound of wild birds, she would walk along the shore of a misty lake. And in the daytime, she would cultivate a small vegetable garden, and at night, she would dance with the fireflies with the sounds of grass bugs.

“Hey, you’re making the sound of a chrysalis waltz dance. That means you have nowhere to go!”

Shasha, who was listening intently, slapped Lily’s forearm.

“I asked if you had any grand plans, and you’re dreaming of a dog, hey! Just listen to me. Let’s get acquainted with Leo first. It doesn’t affect your daily life.”

“No, I don’t want to.”

“Don’t just say no. Look.”

Sasha stretched out her maple-leaf hands and folded her fingers one by one.

“He’s handsome, he’s tall, he’s got a good body, and he has a good voice. He sings very well. How well he dances!”

“I hate his personality.”

“Well, he has a dog-like temperament. He’s rude, he’s unlucky… But you know, he’s surprisingly…”

“Do I look like a dog?”

A thick voice broke the colic. Astonished, the two turned their heads to find Leo leaning against the door, wondering when he had been there. He slowly unfolded his arms and walked in.

“It’s nice to hear that I sound like a dog.”

He came in with a smirk and lay flat on his back on the bed. Lily’s face hardened as soon as she saw the smirk. She reflexively got up and stuck to the window. She was about to run towards the door.

“Are you going to break the window and jump? It’s quite high.”

“…”

“Is there anything else you’d like to hear more?”

Leo asked with a tone of hope.

“What do you want to know?”

‘No. no. I’m not curious at all.’

Lily didn’t need to know and didn’t want to know, so she walked towards the door. Leo’s gaze moved naturally along with Lily’s movement. Bed adorned with lace frills, uniformly ridged arched windows, the silent first snow of this winter, and Lily beyond.

“Wait,” Leo got up from bed and stepped on Lily’s shadow.

“I have something to give you.”

“What is it? What are you going to give her?”

Sasha quickly followed up, hoping to get something.

“You don’t have anything in your hands? What are you going to give her?”

“Gift.”

With the word gift alone, Shasha made a fuss. Lily, on the other hand, was shocked.

It was because the three heads that were rolling around were stuck in her brain. Lily took in as many breaths as she could to swallow her wrath. But it wasn’t enough to calm her anger.

“I promise. You’ll definitely like it this time.”

For a brief moment that passed, Leo smiled like a boy. It was an innocent smile with no malice.

****

With the first snow falling, the rose garden became a snowy scene. All the way to the garden, Lily held her breath. She couldn’t hide her anxiety. As she exhaled once more, her breath that leaked out through her gaping lips added a touch of warmth to the pure white snow.

The gift Leo had prepared was sitting on the bench at the entrance and waiting for Lily. The moment the narrowed eyes narrowed to focus,

“Master Allen?”

A name that could only be called only in a dream.

Allen Smith, who was a former fiancé and will now become a savior. Lily rubbed her eyes at the unbelievable sight. As the blurry figure became clear, her eyes reddened as well.

How long has it been since she saw a familiar face?

Unlike the watery green eyes, the dark brown eyes looking back were as calm as the scenery.

‘It’s been a long wait, don’t worry now.’

Lily whispered in hallucinations. She smiled brightly at the man who came to rescue her, wiping her eyes with her sleeve.

“Young Master..”

“Lily, it’s been a while.”

Allen smiled towards the flower that can’t be taken now.

“I’m sorry about your father. But at least it’s a success.”

Lily’s lips, mimicking that light smile, hardened little by little.

“Success?”

“If I hadn’t told His Majesty personally, you’d still be hiding like a rat.”

“What are you talking about…”

“Despite the reckless request, His Majesty gladly accepted. Thanks to it, you are enjoying such luxury.”

Allen added, removing the sagging hair on Lily’s stiff shoulders. A small amount of regret and envy hung on the tip of his tongue.

“Anyway, something like you is receiving such grace that you can’t repay even if you devote your whole life.”

“That, what is that… “

There will be no face-to-face in the future, but …Who knows? Will the day come when you will be an empress and hold a coronation ceremony?”

Allen smirked at the sound he thought was meaningless. Then he kissed the back of Lily’s hand dryly and turned around. Lily chased hurriedly to catch him as he walked away with broad strides.

” Wait! Young Master, wait!”

Different footprints left a bustling trace on the white snowy field.

‘Was he the one who made that offer to my father or the emperor? No. he wouldn’t.’

Although it was only their first meeting, it was clear that he wanted Lily. She remembered the song she heard from the window every night. The courtship song that whispered sweetly.

Lily, Lily, the sweet voice calling her name.

“But why…”

The words Lily couldn’t even spit fell between her lips. Chasing after him breathlessly, Lily called out to Allen.

“Master Allen!”

The man’s back became hazy. After Allen paused for a moment, Lily threw herself at his chest. The person she believed was her last hope had no choice but to cling to him even knowing that he was actually the culprit who drove her to hell. If he leaves, she will never get a chance to get out of this place. So Lily grabbed him.

“Master, don’t go….”

“Lily. Thinking of my old feelings, I will treat the Baron’s debt as being liquidated.”

Allen pushed Lily’s hands away, saying that this was the last consideration given by him. The knuckles of the hands that were clenched were loosely unraveled. The two feet, which had burned as white as snow, could no longer pursue him and stayed in place. Only the silence of midwinter was piling up on the soles of the feet.

“What are you going to do now?”

The big woman, who stood by the window and looked down at the garden, turned to Leo and asked.

“What do you mean, I should give you a reward.”

It was a boring reply. At that moment, Shasha, who had been sitting in the corner for a while with a thoughtful expression, clapped her hands and got up.

“I remembered! Allen Smith! No wonder he looked familiar. Isn’t he the idiot who came to see us a few months ago to ask for the Duke’s rank?”

Leo patted Shasha on the top of her head without sincerity and passed by. The big woman, who was watching, took a deep breath of her pipe and shifted her gaze out to the window. Shasha also stuck her head out.

Lily was left alone in the achromatic garden. Shasha stuttered her words.

“I wonder if it was Lily who made the dedication?”

“Really? Did he sell his fiancée? Is that because of the title?”

“What kind of crazy guy is that? Then, what guts did he suddenly come to Lily?”

She didn’t measure back and forth, but suddenly felt a sense of incongruity as she got angry. Why is that? Why is it now? A person who had been indifferent until now suddenly came without notice. Shasha, who had been silent for a while, raised her hands. Her plump fingers were aimed at none other than gray smoke.