Inside the carriage bound for Lake Niphla, Eleanor could not hide her troubled thoughts.
No matter how carefully she searched her memory, she could not recall ever doing anything that would justify such hostility.
Why was Vanessa acting that way?
There was no reason for one extra to show irrational animosity toward another from the very beginning.
It happened occasionally with heroines, perhaps—but only rarely.
Even Lydia, beloved by the world itself, had people who disliked her. Most of them were villainous women who either loved one of the male leads or envied Lydia herself.
In the original story, one of the heroine’s greatest hardships had been fighting against women like that.
But I’m not the heroine, Eleanor thought bitterly. I’m only the heroine’s extra older sister.
By the time she let out a quiet sigh, the carriage had arrived at Lake Niphla.
Taking Lisa’s hand, Eleanor stepped down from the carriage. The knight who had accompanied them from Bayern stood guard close behind.
Under a cloudless blue sky, the surface of the lake glittered brilliantly.
Whenever Eleanor came down to Oklahoma, she always visited Lake Niphla. She loved its peaceful, tranquil atmosphere.
Bayern had large lakes too, but they were always crowded and noisy.
The thick trees surrounding the water and the distant mountain ridges made the scenery even more beautiful.
A soft breeze brushed past her. Beneath the belt cinched around her waist, the layered ruffles of her dress fluttered lightly.
Looking for a good patch of shade to settle down, Eleanor glanced around the lakeside. Here and there, noble ladies from nearby estates had come out to picnic just like her.
Soon she spotted a place where long tree branches drooped low overhead.
“Let’s sit here, Lisa.”
“Yes, my lady. One moment.”
Lisa reached into the picnic basket to retrieve the mat. But as she fumbled around inside, her face gradually turned pale.
No matter how much she searched, her fingertips touched only food containers.
No mat.
“M-My lady…”
“What is it?”
“I think… I left the mat behind.”
After opening the basket fully and checking inside, Lisa spoke in a despairing voice. Her shoulders drooped miserably over the rare mistake.
Seeing her crestfallen expression, Eleanor gently patted her shoulder.
“It’s alright. We can just eat on a bench.”
“But that’ll be uncomfortable for you…! I’ll go buy one right now!”
The benches nearby were narrow. With the basket taking up space, there would barely be room to sit.
Remembering the general store they had passed earlier, Lisa suddenly brightened.
“A mat?”
“Yes! There’s a shop nearby. I’ll be back quickly!”
Setting the basket on the bench, Lisa hurriedly instructed the knight to protect Eleanor well before running toward the outer road near the lake. Eleanor barely had time to stop her.
Watching her maid dash away, Eleanor felt a little guilty.
Really, eating on a bench would have been perfectly fine.
But Lisa was already gone, and all Eleanor could do now was wait for her return.
As Eleanor moved to sit beside the picnic basket, the knight silently spread a handkerchief over the bench first.
“Thank you, Gale.”
The knight bowed his head and took position behind her.
Oklahoma was peaceful enough that bodyguards were not truly necessary like they were in Bayern, but Eleanor was still the daughter of a count’s family. A knight followed her wherever she went.
She did not bother telling Gale to sit and rest. Like Lisa, he would never listen anyway.
Seated quietly on the bench, Eleanor gazed out over the lake.
A mother duck paddled by with her ducklings following in a neat line behind her, and Eleanor smiled faintly at the adorable sight.
Looking at Lake Niphla, even her worries about Vanessa seemed to drift away.
Feeling the warm sunlight against her skin and the ticklish breeze brushing by, Eleanor slowly closed her eyes.
Then suddenly—
Something landed squarely on her lap.
Startled by the unfamiliar weight, Eleanor opened her eyes.
And immediately found herself staring into two large, round black eyes, like those of a stuffed teddy bear.
“…?”
“……”
It was a little girl, perhaps five or six years old.
Black hair. Black eyes. Brown skin.
Features rarely seen among the people of the Tritan Empire.
The original novel had never once described a character like this, leaving Eleanor momentarily flustered.
Who is this child?
The girl rested both hands on Eleanor’s lap and stared at her intently.
Unlike Vanessa, whom Eleanor had at least seen around Oklahoma, this child was someone she had never encountered before. In fact, this was the first time anyone had approached her so directly at Lake Niphla.
“Um…”
“Step away from my lady. You may not touch her without permission.”
Unsure how to react, Eleanor hesitated—only for Gale to step forward protectively.
Whether young or old, it was his duty to prevent anyone from approaching his mistress without consent.
He did not lay a hand on the child, but his imposing figure alone was intimidating enough.
The little girl tilted her head far back to look up at the massive knight looming over her, and her expression immediately crumpled.
Her lips trembled.
Tears welled in her huge eyes.
She looked moments away from crying—
“WAAAAAH!”
The child burst into terrified sobs so loud they echoed across the lakeside.
Gale froze in alarm.
True, he had not approached gently—but he certainly had not meant to make her cry.
As he awkwardly reached out to calm her down, the girl screamed even louder.
“WAAAAAAH!”
Cold sweat formed on Gale’s face as he stood there like a statue. His mind went completely blank. He had clearly never comforted a crying child before.
The girl’s wailing only grew louder.
Unable to watch any longer, Eleanor pulled Gale back and extended a hand toward the child instead.
“I’m sorry. Don’t cry. This gentleman wasn’t trying to scare you.”
Her soft voice gradually soothed the girl, who finally slowed her sobbing.
As tears streamed down her cheeks, she lifted watery eyes toward Eleanor.
Her eyes were so clear that Eleanor could see her own reflection in them.
After confirming it was no longer the frightening knight before her, the girl burst into tears again and threw herself into Eleanor’s arms.
Caught off guard, Eleanor lifted the child into her lap.
“Were you very scared? I’ll apologize in his place. So don’t cry anymore.”
She gently patted the girl’s small back.
Bit by bit, the sobbing subsided.
While wiping her eyes with her sleeve, the child mumbled quietly.
“…No.”
“Hm? What did you say?”
“Hic… not scared…”
Seeing the child rubbing her eyes raw with the rough fabric, Eleanor quickly pulled out a handkerchief.
She carefully stopped the little hands and dabbed gently at her face instead. The child obediently stayed still.
“So you weren’t scared. Then why were you crying?”
“Because… you weren’t my brother…”
“Your brother?”
“Yeees… Fairy lady, where’s my brother?”
Eleanor smiled awkwardly while carefully wiping the child’s cheeks.
Fairy…? Brother…?
Unsure how to respond, she simply focused on drying the tears.
“Fairy lady, where’s my brother…?”
The child clutched tightly at Eleanor’s sleeve. Her bean-like black eyes looked desperately up at her.
She must have lost him.
Nodding slowly, Eleanor answered reassuringly. She had no idea where the brother was, but surely if he was searching for his sister, they would find each other eventually.
“Alright. I’ll help you find him.”
“Really?!”
“Yes. So don’t worry too much.”
The girl’s face instantly brightened.
As Eleanor smoothed down the child’s curly black hair, she asked gently,
“What’s your name?”
“Yasmin.”
“Yasmin? Did you come from another country, perhaps?”
At the exotic name, Eleanor asked curiously, and the child nodded.
“My brother and I came from Haytar together.”
Haytar.
Eleanor’s hand froze mid-motion.
Yasmin looked up at her with utterly innocent eyes, completely unaware of the weight carried by the words she had just spoken.
“Yasmin, you came from Haytar—”
“My lady!”
Lisa’s sharp cry cut Eleanor off before she could finish.
What Eleanor saw and heard next was chaos.
A massive beast-like man charging toward her.
Gale drawing his sword to intercept him.
Lisa screaming her name.
Yasmin tumbling from Eleanor’s arms as someone yanked Eleanor roughly to her feet—
“Brother!”
The little girl cried out desperately.
In front of Lake Niphla—the symbol of peace and harmony in Oklahoma—four adults and one child became hopelessly tangled together.
Eleanor quickly assessed the situation.
The enormous man, who had looked like a savage beast from afar, was gripping her forearm tightly.
Gale held a sword to the man’s throat.
Lisa, pale as death, desperately tried to pry the man’s hand away.
Meanwhile Yasmin had scrambled up from the ground and was pounding tiny fists against the man’s leg.
What a complete disaster.
Eleanor calmly studied the stranger.
The same hair color. The same eyes. The same skin tone as Yasmin.
So this was probably the brother the girl had asked her to find.
“What are you doing? Seriously?!”
Yasmin clung to her brother’s leg and scolded him angrily.
Without taking his eyes off the others, the man swiftly grabbed the back of his sister’s neck and pulled her behind him protectively.
His sharp gaze resembled that of a wild beast.
Lisa and Gale both stiffened.
“Release my lady. Do you have any idea who you’re treating so disrespectfully?”
Gale deliberately lowered his voice in threat.
Oddly enough, Eleanor found herself embarrassed instead.
Yes, this was her aunt’s territory, and she was a count’s daughter, but—
Do you know who she is?
That sounded absurdly overdramatic.
Whether Eleanor was embarrassed or not, the tension between Gale and the man only intensified.
The blade bit into the man’s skin, drawing blood down his neck.
Even then, the man’s grip on Eleanor’s arm never loosened.
Her arm was starting to hurt.
Neither side looked remotely capable of resolving things peacefully, so Eleanor let out a deep sigh.
At the sound, everyone’s attention snapped toward her.
“Both of you, stop this. Gale, lower your sword. And you—let go of my arm.”
“……”
“……”
“Lower the sword. Release my arm.”
Eleanor’s voice sharpened with authority. Her blue eyes swept coldly over both men.
If they still refused to listen, she fully intended to have Lisa summon the guards.
After a tense silence, the two finally relented simultaneously.
One withdrew the sword.
The other released her arm.
Eleanor’s forearm and the man’s neck were finally freed. Lisa tearfully cradled Eleanor’s reddened arm.
“Yasmin, is this really your brother?”
Eleanor already knew the answer, but she asked anyway for confirmation.
Peeking timidly from behind the man, Yasmin nodded weakly.
“Yes… that’s him…”
“I see. Then I’m glad you found him.”
Eleanor smiled warmly.
Yasmin immediately tried to run toward her, only for her brother to grab the back of her neck again and effortlessly lift her up like a puppy.
Holding his sister securely in one arm, the man remained silent.
“You seem to have misunderstood something,” Eleanor said calmly. “Yasmin came to me for help because she lost her brother. Nothing dangerous happened, so you can relax.”
“……”
“If you doubt me, ask your sister yourself. And once you confirm she wasn’t harmed in the slightest, then apologize to me afterward.”
The man stared down at her with unreadable eyes.
He was enormous.
Eleanor herself was fairly tall for a woman, and she had known many tall men—but never anyone this massive.
He had to be well over six feet three.
Setting Yasmin carefully on the ground, the man immediately checked her for injuries.
Eleanor had told him to, yes, but watching him genuinely inspect the child still irritated her a little.
She stared at him coolly.
“Brother, you idiot! You disappeared all of a sudden, so Yasmin got lost all alone and asked the fairy lady for help! Why were you trying to hit the fairy lady?!”
Yasmin puffed up her cheeks angrily and scolded him.
Fairy lady…
Even in this serious situation, Eleanor felt mortified.
Why does everyone keep calling me strange things today?
Heat crept into her face.
The man listened quietly to his sister before turning his gaze back toward Eleanor.
He said nothing.
But somehow, merely being stared at like that made Eleanor feel oddly pressured.
She cleared her throat awkwardly.
“I didn’t call myself a fairy or anything. Yasmin is just kind-hearted and speaking nicely. Don’t misunderstand.”
“……”
The man remained silent.
Clearly convinced he did not believe her, Eleanor hurriedly changed the subject.
“So? After checking her over, is she alright?”
“……”
The man picked Yasmin up again and slowly rose to his feet.
His sheer size cast a shadow over Eleanor.
“Why haven’t you said a word this whole time?”
Before the man could respond, Yasmin answered brightly.
“Oh, my brother can’t speak.”
Gale, who had been about to criticize the man’s silence, immediately shut his mouth.
Honestly, Eleanor herself had nearly said the same thing moments earlier.
Now everything made more sense.
No wonder he had not shouted first or questioned Yasmin before acting. Instead, he had simply thrown himself forward physically.
Demanding an apology suddenly felt complicated.
She was still angry about the man grabbing her—but she did not particularly want to force a mute man into apologizing either.
Just as she was about to say it was fine and they could leave, the man suddenly set Yasmin down and bowed deeply.
“…?”
“Big brother says he’s sorry, Fairy Lady.”
Yasmin translated cheerfully for the bewildered Eleanor.
Looking down at the man’s bowed black head and broad back, Eleanor slowly nodded.
“Alright. I accept your apology, so please stand up.”
The man straightened quietly and lifted Yasmin back into one arm.
Only then did Eleanor notice the blood still trailing down his neck.
She frowned.
“Yasmin, what’s your brother’s name?”
“Yahin.”
“I see. Yahin. Since you attacked me first, I won’t apologize.”
But Gale had still injured him.
As his mistress, Eleanor could not simply ignore that.
Taking out her handkerchief, she gently wiped the blood from Yahin’s neck.
The moment her fingers brushed him, his body stiffened sharply.
After checking the wound’s depth, Eleanor pressed the handkerchief into his hand.
“If it keeps bleeding on your way home, use this. Thankfully it’s not deep. Still, you should visit a physician.”
Then she held out five silver coins.
Unfortunately, that was all the money she had brought with her for the outing.
Yahin blinked and immediately shook his head.
He refused.
Yasmin leaned nervously against him, watching carefully.
“I’m not giving this to you out of pity or guilt,” Eleanor said evenly. “My knight injured you, so I’m taking responsibility as his mistress.”
She knew well enough that in a class-based society, commoners did not always welcome money from nobles.
Sometimes it wounded their pride.
So she drew the line clearly.
This was neither guilt nor shallow sympathy.
It was responsibility.
“Then I’ll give you only two silver coins instead. Take them. They’re truly for treatment.”
Even then Yahin hesitated before finally extending his hand.
Before he could change his mind, Eleanor quickly dropped two silver coins into his enormous palm.
His hand was rough.
Scarred. Hardened with calluses.
The hand of a laborer.
And suddenly Yasmin’s earlier words returned to Eleanor’s mind.
We came from Haytar.
“One last thing,” Eleanor said quietly.
“……”
“Teach Yasmin never to reveal where she’s from.”
Yahin’s fist tightened instantly.
His eyes wavered.
Did he realize how casually his little sister had announced they were from Haytar?
“Oklahoma may not have security as strict as the major cities,” Eleanor continued, “but people still live here. Nothing good will come from that information spreading.”
Yahin clenched his jaw.
Clearly, he needed to watch over his little sister more carefully.
Starting with not losing her in the middle of a massive lakeside.
“We should be going now,” Eleanor said at last. “Yasmin, get home safely with your brother.”
“Yes, Fairy Lady! Let’s meet again next time!”
“Y-Yes… take care.”
Eleanor laughed awkwardly at the embarrassingly persistent nickname.
A twenty-one-year-old fairy.
If other people heard that, how much would they laugh?
Still, she could hardly scold a child waving so brightly at her.
Children called anyone with long hair a princess anyway.
Yasmin and Yahin remained standing there until Eleanor disappeared toward the lake entrance.
She even waved for them to leave first, but they stubbornly refused.
Eventually giving up, Eleanor boarded the carriage with Lisa and Gale.
The sandwiches, muffins, and orange juice they had planned to enjoy by the lake sat forgotten and cold inside the abandoned picnic basket.
Naturally so.
Their picnic had been ruined from the start.
Closing her eyes, Eleanor leaned her head against the carriage wall.
When Lisa anxiously asked what on earth had happened, Eleanor merely said she would explain later.
The sun had not even set yet, but somehow the day already felt exhausting.
