“No wonder the duke’s eldest daughter can cause such a commotion just by hosting a ball.”
Slightly lifting the carriage curtain, Flora saw the empty street outside.
She had to admit that the society she lived in was exactly like the medieval world she had read about in books.
She hadn’t realized it before, purely because of her simple modern perspective, treating this magical world as if it were some DnD game, failing to adjust her mindset and forgetting why nobles were called nobles in the first place.
Just because Moria didn’t flaunt her privileges didn’t mean she had none.
If she wanted to, clearing the streets for travel was a simple matter.
Erasing someone from the world, then turning them into a woman, and ostentatiously holding a ball to display them was an ordinary small matter.
The more Flora thought about it, the more naive she realized she had been in the past, and she couldn’t help but smile.
“If it were a royal procession, the city would be lined with imperial guards on the streets. Actually, this is just a common ceremonial escort. You might even see it later in the central square.”
“Really? That’s wonderful.”
“You…”
Linko hesitated.
Having seen many grand scenes like this, she couldn’t understand Flora’s reaction at all.
To her, even people from rural mountain villages would think this was the proper grandeur for nobles.
Or, they might even think it wasn’t grand enough.
Suddenly, she had a thought.
[If you are really Mr. Fros, then could it be that the way the young lady treats you—turning you into who you are now and wanting you to become a noble—is because of how you’ve acted?]
As this thought crossed her mind, her feelings intensified instantly after days of being with Flora.
Linko’s gaze toward Flora shifted again and again.
The girl was still looking outside, seemingly wanting to take in a few more glances at the so-called noble’s display of privilege, and looking at her profile, the maid girl vaguely understood what she was feeling.
After meeting Lisette, when they sat on the bench in the square, Linko had felt an immense distance between herself and Flora.
At first, Linko had simply thought this was Flora’s transcendental purity, with a hint of coldness wary of others.
Now she saw she had been wrong.
[This is a sense of otherness.]
It was simply unlike the behavior of anyone in this country, this society, or even this world.
Is she even human?
A monster?
Or some otherworldly being?
Well, turning a man into a woman was unheard of.
If it could be done, it must have used an extremely forbidden magic.
Or it was an ability of some incredible creature, or like the legendary heroes who traversed worlds and altered laws.
[Maybe I’m overthinking it.]
Linko’s heart raced.
Whatever the case, it showed Flora’s uniqueness, and it made her imagine how mad Moria must be.
After all, Flora’s special nature could be supported by her own mysterious abilities.
“Will we be the last to arrive?”
“Ah… probably, yes.”
Flora lowered the curtain, looking at Linko who seemed a bit nervous, lost in thought.
“Aren’t you afraid something might go wrong? I thought you would be calmer. After all, you’ve attended more large noble balls than I have.”
“I’ve never attended such a grand ball.
There are many gatherings where nobles across the empire send their children, almost as grand as palace balls.”
Linko said this a bit sheepishly, averting her eyes.
Flora’s trait of affecting others’ emotions might have overwhelmed her now, making her lose composure.
Those bold speculations, she decided to keep them secret for now, not even telling her lord who gave her the task.
She would wait for conclusive evidence before deciding whether to share such information.
If it were true, it would be hard to accept.
For now, she could only simplify Moria’s actions toward Flora as the young lady disliking the strangeness brought by Flora’s distant aura and wanting to train this useful healer properly, thus carrying out this series of operations.
Perhaps there was even some emotional reason behind it.
Yes, that was the idea.
From what Linko remembered, Mr. Fros and her young lady had known each other since childhood and had occasionally been invited to visit the estate.
But she had met them so few times she didn’t have strong memories.
Their relationship was not shallow, so the young lady’s extreme controlling desire was not impossible.
But just realizing Flora might very well be Fros made Linko know that it was nearly impossible to treat the girl before her as she had in the past.
When they first met, she had even brought people to strip Flora’s clothes off, forcing her to admit she was a woman.
[I really… don’t want this to be real.]
She thought bitterly in her heart.
Flora saw Linko’s struggle clearly but didn’t think much of it, only feeling the heavy pressure borne by servants who served the powerful in this world.
Even someone as experienced as Linko was this nervous.
Remembering when Linko had forced her to take lashes and later treated her injuries, hearing about the accumulation of scars, her mood darkened a little.
It was never easy.
Flora looked at her own hands.
The white rose embroidery was so delicate, yet though it was white, she felt it radiated a crimson hue.
Moria, Moria…
Do you really want her to understand this noble cruelty and helplessness?
It was understandable, perhaps, that your time with her hadn’t eased your loneliness.
But are you truly powerless to resist the darkness of the nobility and only able to endure the suffering this status brings?
You have privileges.
If you can torment her like this, why not use that power to bring about some change, even if it’s just in your own life?
Even if it’s just honestly explaining these things to her?
Flora tried to understand Moria but could only feel helpless.
She involuntarily placed her hand over her chest, then slowly reached for the collar around her neck.
More than a restraint, it was a simple neck ornament that suppressed magic.
What was this for, Moria?
Was she afraid this healer might cause a scene at the ball?
Flora’s gaze then shifted to her ankle.
The long dress designed for her didn’t cover the bracelet on her wrist.
This deliberate display of ownership—whether it was a perverse desire or some love Flora couldn’t comprehend—only made it harder for her to breathe.
Leaning back against the chair, feeling the carriage’s slight bumps on the cobblestone road, Flora struggled to keep her emotions calm.
There wasn’t much she had to do at the ball.
If Mefi appeared, she would meet and talk with her.
If she saw the princess, she would find a way to get close.
As for Moria and the others’ preparations, she only needed to be ready to respond to whatever came, ignoring other nobles whenever possible.
She lifted the curtain slightly again, looking outside to empty streets, hoping to adjust her mood.
This time, however, she sensed something was wrong.
“Linko, you said we’d be the last to arrive at the ball, right?”
“Ah, yes. That’s how the young lady arranged it.”
“Then how… no, behind us! A carriage is rushing toward us!”
Before Flora finished speaking, Linko suddenly grabbed her tightly.
A huge impact hit, and she felt the world spin around her, hearing the horses’ anguished cries.
Her vision blurred instantly.
When she came to, all she saw was the shattered carriage, and the maid holding her tightly, her face pale but with traces of blood at her lips, radiating the scent of blood.