TMIAP Chapter 23

That was when it happened.

"Miss Monica!"

Both of them started and turned their heads. It was Martinael. The boy came running breathlessly from across the garden, calling for Monica.

"The fireworks have started—what are you doing over here?"

Monica understood immediately why Martinael had come here when he'd been showing off to the young girls near the fountain.

Liella was watching from the distance with an anxious expression. Martinael soon noticed the man sitting awkwardly in front of Monica.

"Lord Solivén, good evening..."

The boy mumbled his greeting and stepped back a pace. He seemed thoroughly uncomfortable with the man who was in marriage negotiations with his sister. Yet his eyes gleamed with curiosity about the peculiar situation between the two of them.

Monica quickly collected herself and stood. She didn't forget to straighten her dress.

"I stumbled, and Lord Solivén helped me up."

"Ah, how kind of you, Lord Solivén."

A man with his cravat and shirt loosened, and a woman with her skirts hiked up—it strained credibility that anyone had merely stumbled.

But the boy nodded despite his doubtful expression. He didn't seem to imagine that this esteemed gentleman and his own good-hearted nurse could be lying to him.

"What about Miss Violet?"

Monica quickly smiled and changed the subject. Martinael jumped.

"For crying out loud!"

Even as he said it, he kept glancing at his sister—clearly worried that Liella might tease him about it. But thanks to that, Monica succeeded in diverting Martinael's attention completely.

And in the meantime, Enrique Solivén stood and returned to being a perfect gentleman. Liella, who had been standing at a distance, met Enrique's eyes as he rose and flinched. She seemed to feel guilty about returning here after Enrique Solivén had told her to leave.

"It seems you two have already met!"

Could that even be called a meeting? Monica looked toward Enrique, and the man surprisingly gave a slight smile.

"Yes. It happened somewhat unexpectedly. But she didn't tell me much about herself, so I was just about to ask."

"Ah, Miss—I mean, Miss Monica."

Martinael cleared his throat and introduced Monica.

With all the enthusiasm of a child showing off a new toy, Martinael explained that Monica was his nurse and governess, and that she had previously been a nurse on the battlefield. A glint of interest appeared in the man's eyes.

"A battlefield nurse. If I may ask, where did you serve?"

"...I was at the hospital in Arvidd."

Strangely, Monica found herself reluctant to say it. The man's eyes were gleaming with suspicious intensity.

Being at Arvidd was sometimes a point of pride—why did it feel so uncomfortable now?

Just then another firework exploded. Bang. It was louder than before, and blue flowers bloomed across the entire sky.

Even Martinael gasped involuntarily. But Monica's gaze returned to the man. His beautiful face had turned pale.

"Miss Monica! Let's go back quickly. We can't see properly from here."

Martinael grabbed her hand and tugged. It wasn't so much that they couldn't see well—he was clearly eager to get back to Miss Violet near the fountain.

Monica forced a smile, but she couldn't take her eyes off the man's finely trembling fingertips. But the instant Enrique Solivén realized Monica had noticed, he quickly straightened his shoulders. Then he said coldly:

"Let's return."

Martinael immediately led Monica away. They hadn't walked more than a few steps before they encountered Liella, and Monica could see that Liella's complexion was also pale.

On the way back to the ballroom, Enrique Solivén naturally mingled with people who recognized him at the entrance and spoke to him, disappearing as if he'd never exchanged a word with them.

She had resolved that very night to quit, but Monica found herself unable to say the words.

The first reason was the weekly wage she received the day after the party. Madame Mollette truly was generous to her servants.

All the household staff received a bonus for their hard work in managing the difficult party. Monica was included. Fifty sing was added to her promised salary of 500 sing.

Shameless as Monica could be, she couldn't quit on the same day she received a bonus. Monica returned to her room sighing for two evenings straight.

There was a second reason as well.

'So what is that man's identity, exactly?'

If she'd never known, it would be one thing, but Monica had discovered that the man had brazenly played three different people right in front of her.

Luis Berfeil, Garcia, and Enrique Solivén.

'Is Enrique Solivén even his real name to begin with?'

Lying in bed thinking it over, Monica even reached the conclusion that perhaps the man was a con artist impersonating the son of that distinguished Solivén family.

Wouldn't that make sense? The Solivéns were a northern family, so people who knew their son's face would be in the north.

And having thought that far, Monica also realized how incredibly stupid she was being. Because La Spezia was the exception.

While the kingdom was at war, nearly all the kingdom's nobility had fled to La Spezia. And most of the aristocrats were still remaining in La Spezia.

So if he were a fraud, surely at least one person who knew his face would have been there. Hadn't even the king himself been in La Spezia at one point?

Monica found it difficult to shake off her curiosity about the man's identity.

More than anything, she found it hard to believe that Luis, who had been so kind to her, the barbaric Garcia, and that arrogant man were all the same person. Even having seen it once didn't change that.

And third, there was Liella, watching her with gleaming eyes.

Since that day, Liella had become outwardly very kind to Monica.

Liella invited Monica to most of her activities. When she woke in the morning to cut the first-bloomed roses from the rose garden for flower arrangements, or when she took lunch, for instance.

Attendants for Liella were present at all these events. Naturally, Liella only said things like, "Miss Monica, what do you think of this arrangement? Does it form a perfect triangle?" or "How does the tea taste? I prepared this one today because I thought you'd like it, Miss Monica." She never once spoke aloud anything like, 'Did you tell anyone what the Lord Solivén and I discussed that day?'

But Monica could tell. Liella wanted to keep Monica under her supervision at all times except when she was caring for Martinael.

It made sense. Apart from the fact that Liella was adopted, Monica had learned another of Liella's secrets.

That Liella had been begging the man in her marriage negotiations to please take her away!

If she said she was quitting at a time like this? Liella would do whatever it took to prevent Monica from leaving.

Watching Liella's cold eyes as she kindly urged her to taste the tea and sweets, Monica sometimes found herself wondering whether this young lady could really be the same Lizzie Orphen who had wept and begged her.

Still, she couldn't spend the entire day thinking only about that.

And so Monica generally found herself sitting in front of Liella in her spare time, vacantly observing her.

Madame Mollette was delighted that the two young ladies had become such good friends. She gave Monica a gift of a silver tea strainer, saying, "I found the most adorable thing at the shop!"

Ah, the innocence of the wealthy. A tea strainer made of silver. For the same price, cash would have been better.

Monica sneered inwardly, but at the same time felt a renewed sense of inferiority. As she spent more time with Liella, Monica found herself noticing all the fine things Liella wore, and it was killing her.

About a week after the party ended, Liella summoned Monica again.

Except this time it was tea time, and Monica was in the middle of playing with Martinael.

Martinael grumbled, but said he'd wrestle with the puzzle problem Monica had given him and told her to go.

The place Liella summoned Monica wasn't the drawing room or tea room, but the backyard. They'd already cut the roses in the morning, so what would they do in the backyard? Monica walked over leisurely and was taken aback.

In the deserted backyard were Liella and one man.

Enrique Solivén.

He didn't look like a gentleman paying a courteous visit to someone else's home.

Though he wore a proper hat and shoes, the finely dressed man's gaze was sharp, rude, and keen—as if he intended to take apart whomever he was looking at.

"Miss Monica, this is Lord Solivén, whom you met that evening."

Liella's tone was haughty.

"I trust you're not unaware of the Solivén family."

The form was that of a society lady introducing someone to Monica, but the content was perfunctory. She surely wasn't trying to complete introductions they'd failed to manage that night.

Monica drew in a breath. The man removed his hat and bowed politely to Liella.

"Thank you. I'll repay the favor soon."

"My lord. As I said before, if you intend to repay me for anything, that would mean you'd—"

Liella spoke as if Monica didn't even exist.

Monica was somewhat shocked. A lady proposing to a man in front of someone else!

And that attitude of not caring that she was listening made Monica feel a surge of something unpleasant. But the man cut off Monica's bewilderment—no, Liella's words—sharply.

"We'll discuss that later."

Though reluctant, Liella left. Now only the two of them remained in the backyard.