Chapter 9

* * *

As they had agreed, Deborah brought Sienna out a few moments after the girl had revealed herself and pretended she had found her.

“Where...?”

“She was in the closet, Your Grace.”

The grand duke’s eyes narrowed. So she was right under my nose and I didn’t notice?

“Since she is hurt, I think it most pertinent that we treat her first, Your Grace.”

Indeed, treating the girl’s injuries had to come first. Without realizing it, the grand duke had quickly forgotten about the strange feeling he’d had before.

“Give me the child.” The grand duke reached out to take Sienna from Deborah, but the girl flinched and clung to the head maid’s sleeve tightly. It was clear to everyone that the child was terrified of the grand duke.

Deborah tactfully skirted the matter before the situation became any more awkward. “No need to worry, Your Grace. I shall walk with the utmost care while the child is in my arms.”

“Very well.”

They made their way to the closest sitting room. Sienna was put down in an armchair near the fire and covered with multiple blankets. Before long, the doctor arrived just as the grand duke had ordered. He treated her carefully as if he were mending a fragile crystal.

She had thought that living in the castle as an unwanted guest was uncomfortable enough, but she realized that being treated with such immense care and respect—unlike what she had ever experienced before—was incredibly uncomfortable in its own way.

“Goodness, you must have had quite the fall, miss,” the doctor commented.

After she had neglected her knee overnight, her injury had become far worse than she had expected. She couldn’t focus on anything but the pain when the doctor poured disinfectant over her wound.

“You did well, miss. Would you like a sweet?” After the doctor bandaged her knee, he withdrew a piece of candy to offer her.

Sienna hadn’t anticipated such kindness and merely stared at the treat for a moment in surprise.

“No.” A giggle slipped out as she shook her head to emphasize her refusal. I’m not actually a child anymore...

She was somewhat unhappy to see her memories swell up in such a way after she had worked so hard to suppress them.

In the past, no one would have sent for a doctor if Sienna got hurt. In fact, the maids would begrudgingly give her medicine to treat her own wounds only when Lorena took notice of them. Yet at the moment, she was receiving such exceptional and dedicated care, and even being offered sweets.

Did I come to a different world instead of just going back to the past? She just couldn’t wrap her head around what was happening.

The doctor awkwardly took back the sweet he had offered after hearing the child’s unexpected rejection, then left quietly.

The grand duke watched their interaction meticulously before finally asking, “Why did you go sleep in that tiny room?”

“I woke up in the middle of the night and saw that the room I was in was far too nice. I thought such a room couldn’t possibly be for me,” she answered honestly, feeling like she hadn’t really done anything wrong.

It was a succinct answer that still left room for the imagination. Those who were also in the room took the young girl’s answer to mean that she got hurt while trying to purposefully find a shabbier room in the middle of the night in fear that she might get scolded for being in the “wrong” place.

The grand duke did not say a word.

“Poor thing...”

“Good heavens. That poor girl...” the maids muttered amongst themselves.

Sienna saw the grand duke’s face as he watched her amidst all the others’ sighs and bemoaning.

Again? He’s making that same expression that he made at the orphanage yesterday.

It was the sort of look that appeared as if he was trying to endure a dull, yet throbbing pain. It was the sort of look that seemed to have a reason of some sort behind it. Seeing it made Sienna want to know why he had her placed in such a nice room this time unlike before, but...

Meh, I’m not that curious.

She no longer wished to get mixed up with the people of the Underworld emotionally. Thus, she folded her minor curiosity neatly away.

What difference would it make anyway? Even if the grand duke told her the reason why he was treating her so well, there was nothing for her to do. After all, everything would disappear into thin air and the illusion would shatter as soon as Lorena arrived. Sienna knew all too well how her story would end. There was a rift between her and Lorena that no amount of inherent talent could bridge. She simply craved a quiet life in the Underworld castle until she turned fifteen and could enroll at the military academy. Carrying such a useless question in her heart would only lead to useless hopes.

I never, ever want that.

After deciding to put a clean end to things, she continued, “I apologize, Your Grace. I will not make such trouble for you ever again.”

“Why are you...?” he began to ask. No, no... The duke shook his head as he sighed.

The head maid had made the mistake of not assigning someone to watch over the girl throughout the night, but a mistake made by one of his servants was ultimately his own mistake. It wasn’t something Sienna should be persecuted for, nor was it something she should apologize for.

“There is no need to apologize. You are in no way at fault for this. From now on, just know that the room you were placed in is your room. As long as you understand that, the matter is settled.”

Sienna simply stared up at the grand duke in silence.

“Is there... something you wish to say?”

She hesitated for a moment. Should I repeat that the room is too much for me or not? The Cradle of the Moon was Lorena’s space, not hers. If I stay there, it will just be a bother when I have to return it to her. Should I bring it up or not?

But then she realized that even doing that would prove bothersome. Sienna internally shook her mind free of her contemplation. She knew that if Lorena arrived and asked for that room, Sienna would naturally move to a different one either way. It won’t actually be that much of a bother for me in that situation anyway. She even considered that perhaps by showing Lorena how nicely she could hand the room over to her, it might at least make it clear that Sienna had no intention of challenging her. That actually isn’t so bad.

Then she remembered that there was one space in the rooms that was familiar to her—the maid’s room. Upon realizing that, she accepted that she could just stay there without making a peep. After reaching her decision, she shook her head in silence.

The grand duke watched as she did so with a dissatisfied look on his own face. When he had first noticed her at the orphanage, she had seemed rather childlike, but after bringing her into his home, she no longer appeared that way.

I’m sure she just... needs more time to adjust.

He wasn’t happy, but there was nothing else he could do.

* * *

Deborah later escorted Sienna back to the Cradle of the Moon.

The room was decorated in bright sky-blue and white shades and looked most beautiful when sunlight streamed in through the tall floor-to-ceiling windows. The child had been shocked by the room in the dark of night, so the head maid wondered if she would not feel even more shocked upon seeing it in proper daylight.

As Deborah’s curiosity grew, she glanced at Sienna in an attempt to understand the child. But Sienna merely sighed. She sighed as though she was beholding a space that was in total disarray. It was a sigh that said she had been burdened with having to use such a bothersome room.

What an odd child, Deborah thought to herself. To an outside observer, the head maid was very respectful. In truth, she bore no ill will toward the child, nor did she have any reason to get on her bad side when she was clearly under the direct care of Nacht’s pinnacle of power—the grand duke.

“Now then, miss, if you would stay here and rest for a moment, I shall bring your breakfast.”

On top of that, the maid imagined the child’s fear of receiving quality things could only last for so long. Nothing in their world grew faster than materialistic desires, so the girl would likely also forget her time as an orphan and eventually enjoy being a child of the Underworld.

At least, that was Deborah’s expectation.

Unfortunately, not even ten minutes had passed before she found herself thinking that she may have made up her mind too hastily.

“Um... Miss?”

Deborah returned back to the room with another maid who was pushing the breakfast cart. In the short span of time that she was away, Sienna had disappeared into thin air yet again.

Don’t tell me she went back to that third-floor room...

Just as the head maid was about to frown, the small door near the back of the bedchamber opened with a click.

“Back already?”

“Is that where you’ve been, miss?”

“Yes.”

“But that room is for maids...”

“Is it?” Sienna blinked innocently as though she knew no such thing. “I had no idea. I felt much calmer after going in there, so I—”

“It isn’t a suitable room for you, miss. Now... If you’d please come over here, we shall serve your breakfast.”

Sienna walked out of the room without protest. She wasn’t stubborn enough to insist that she would eat in the smaller room.

No need to be overly stubborn. She had already made up her mind to live in that room for as long as she could. Her plan was quite simple. She would just say she felt more comfortable staying in there whenever the grand duke or Deborah would say anything on the matter. It wasn’t as though they would get rid of an entire room simply because a mere orphan claimed to feel more comfortable in it.

If I’m just stubborn enough, they might eventually give up and move me to another room.

Sienna was resolute in maintaining her minimal comfort in the Underworld in that way.

Not having to try so hard is rather comfortable.

It was a new realization that she believed would help move her future in a more positive direction.

“Please have a seat here, miss.”

Perhaps the goal was to provide additional comfort to a nervous child, but the meal appeared as though quite a bit of care had gone into preparing it. The maid then plated the smooth cream pot-au-feu and an omelet onto child-sized dishes for her with the utmost care. Hmm... It looked warm and delicious, but she didn’t have much of an appetite. Rather, Sienna found herself yawning from exhaustion. She was surprisingly quite drowsy.

“I’m sure you must be sleepy since you weren’t able to sleep well last night, miss.” Deborah spoke matter-of-factly to Sienna as she urged the girl to take her cutlery. “But please just have a few bites of your meal. I shall have your bed prepared so you can sleep once you’ve finished.”

“All right...” It was just a waste of energy to argue with an adult when she was in a child’s body.

Sienna quietly said grace before gently cutting a piece of the omelet to place in her mouth. All the while, Deborah’s eyes sparkled.

For a child who would have never learned proper etiquette, her movements are so neat.