“Then again, why is Lady Finihiya’s hair so beautiful?” Fiora furrowed her brow in thought.
“That smooth, healthy, lustrous blonde—her hair even looks better than Lady Darlian’s. I’ve lived this long and this is the first time I’ve seen hair so pretty.”
“It’s due to her constitution.”
“Why do humans have such beautiful hair? Most of the humans I’ve seen have hair that’s…”
Before Fiora could finish her sentence, Monisha cut in with a calm tone.
“Lady Finihiya is a half-elf.”
After a moment of stunned confusion, Fiora let out a short, surprised exclamation.
“You didn’t know?”
“How would I know!” Fiora’s voice rose a few degrees. “She doesn’t show any elf traits on the outside at all.”
“Half-elf…”
Monisha had intended to explain further, but upon reflecting on all the half-elves she had encountered, she realized Lady Finihiya was the first she’d seen who completely lacked elf features.
So, she gave up on explaining.
“Half-elf, huh! No wonder her hair is so good.” As if she finally understood, Fiora nodded, then glanced at Monisha’s hair. “And it’s much better than yours too.”
“The last sentence was unnecessary.”
With that, Lady Finihiya gently took the honey-colored hair Fiora had given her and walked back to the rather spacious bathroom.
The mansion’s bathroom was large, almost like a public bathhouse.
For a single person, such a bathroom was truly extravagant.
The decor was distinctly Rococo Style, vividly expressing refinement and luxury.
Tall, pristine white stone pillars adorned with wreaths and draped fabric reliefs stood proudly, while the walls were carved with various intricate and unusual murals.
Standing where she had before, Lady Finihiya took a small portion of the hair from her palm and soaked it in water, placing the rest nearby for comparison.
Rubbing the black, murky Original Solution onto the dry hair, she pressed her palms together and kneaded repeatedly.
Tiny bubbles began to form in her hands.
***
After a while, she rinsed the hair in clean water scooped from the bathtub.
Only once the sticky feeling in her palms disappeared did she open her hands and examine the hair washed with the Original Solution.
After looking closely for a moment, a near-defeated feeling began to rise within her.
The Original Solution she made wasn’t useless.
The dryness and dull sheen of the hair had indeed improved.
But the level of improvement was far below what she had expected.
That made sense. If it had been that simple, this kind of product wouldn’t have taken so long to develop.
Just as Lady Finihiya was lost in thought, the bathroom door was suddenly knocked on.
“Lady Finihiya, are you bathing now?”
The voice of Danila came from outside.
Seeing this, Lady Finihiya moved toward the door and opened one of the large double doors.
Looking at Danila’s tortoiseshell-framed glasses, Lady Finihiya lifted a faint smile and asked, “No, I’m not. Is there something you need?”
“The servants have already prepared dinner. They hope Lady Finihiya will enjoy it while it’s hot.”
“Thank you. I’ll head to the dining room shortly.”
After exchanging a few brief words with Danila, she returned to collect the items laid out on the stone table.
It wasn’t exactly early.
She planned to think carefully about making a simple shampoo over the next few days.
Although the Original Solution she made now was a bit of a failure, it wasn’t enough to leave her at a complete loss.
***
Outside, a soft drizzle fell.
The gentle patter of rain softly enveloped the interior of the library.
Within the peaceful atmosphere of the room, the heavy pendulum of the grandfather clock swung with steady, rhythmic ticks.
Due to the steady rain outside, Lady Finihiya mostly stayed quietly curled up inside the library reading.
How long she had been reading like this, she didn’t know.
Only when the clock struck eleven with a clear “dong dong” sound did the lifeless doll-like Lady Finihiya unconsciously lift her lowered gaze.
Her pale blue eyes were astonishingly beautiful, like a lake that had existed since time immemorial.
The hands on the old clock, heavy with the weight of the ages, slowly pointed toward eleven o’clock.
Lady Finihiya quietly stared for a moment, then gently closed the book she’d been reading and stood up, pushing open the library door.
A breeze from deep within the corridor softly caressed her golden, gorgeous hair.
Following the semi-spiral stairs made of bluestone down to the first-floor hall, Lady Finihiya walked slowly toward the kitchen.
Since the day of their agreement, Darlian had appeared on time every day in the mansion to share lunch with her.
“Hmm…”
As she took quick steps toward the kitchen, Lady Finihiya bit her lip lightly, her delicate cheeks showing a serious expression as she pondered what to make for lunch today.
After thinking for a bit without deciding, she planned to look at the ingredients in the kitchen before making a decision.
Hmm?
As she neared the kitchen entrance, she gradually sensed something unusual.
Today’s kitchen was noticeably livelier and noisier than usual.
With curiosity in her heart, Lady Finihiya stepped inside and immediately understood the source of the commotion.
A little further away at the sink counter, Darlian wore a white chef’s hat properly, a clean apron tied over her elegant dress.
Watching Darlian skillfully wield a small knife chopping, and the flustered servants bustling nervously by her side, Lady Finihiya began to realize the situation.
“Lady Finihiya!”
The servants circling Darlian, as if she were their last hope, visibly relaxed at the sight of her.
After politely nodding to them, Lady Finihiya walked calmly to Darlian’s side.
Seafood ingredients were spread out on the counter, and Darlian was currently handling the hard shell of a Lobster with her small knife.
Her cutting technique was quite skilled, drawing a slight look of surprise to Lady Finihiya’s face.
“Wait a moment, it’ll be done soon.”
Hearing Darlian’s words, Lady Finihiya lifted her gaze to look at the fair, beautiful profile.
Perhaps noticing her stare, Darlian slightly tilted her head and glanced over, then asked softly with a gentle tone, “What is it? You’ve been looking at me the whole time.”
“Nothing.” Lady Finihiya shook her head gently, her radiant blonde hair cascading over her chest. “What are you making?”
“It’s obvious, isn’t it? I’m cooking.”
“Hmm… why so suddenly?”
Darlian glanced sideways at the servants still standing nearby, then frowned slightly, waving her hand to signal them to leave as she spoke.