IMBSM 7

Chapter: 7

Ivnia walked forward and lightly brushed her fingertips over the clothes hanging in the wardrobe.

Every single piece seemed to be of the highest quality—the texture of the fabric alone felt extraordinary.

In an impressed voice, Ivnia asked,

“When did you prepare all of this?”

“Well… when I first came here, it was already almost completely filled. I heard that Lord Ram bought them one by one whenever he was reminded of you.”

“He bought them himself?”

“Yes. For his bride.”

Hannah answered with a proud expression.

It seemed she hoped Ivnia would be moved by Agram’s devotion. But to Ivnia—who was merely a temporary guest benefiting from his goodwill—the only emotion she could feel was pressure.

She quickly pulled her hand away from the wardrobe.

“Can I really wear these?”

“Pardon?”

Hannah blinked blankly for a moment, then nodded as if she finally understood.

“Oh! I’ll pick a day and ask Lord Guillermo to alter them to your size. Please bear with it just for today. Fortunately, the measurements don’t seem too different…”

“No, that’s not what I meant. I’m not really the bride. I shouldn’t use things that belong to someone else.”

Hannah tilted her head in confusion.

“Um… aren’t you Lady Ivnia?”

“That’s true, but the person who was supposed to become Lord Ram’s bride was originally my sister Emilia.”

“That was true ten years ago. After she passed away, the bride who would come here was changed to you, Lady Ivnia. I’ve always believed the person I would serve would be you.”

“You knew I was coming? But Lord Ram…”

“I knew. Lord Guillermo knew. Lord Seven and Sir Max knew. Lady Levi… maybe she knew too? Anyway, the only one who definitely didn’t know was Lord Ram. He’s been sleeping for the past ten years.”

Now that she thought about it, Guillermo had said something similar earlier.

Had he really meant it literally? Not that Ram had wasted ten years doing nothing—but that he had actually been asleep the entire time?

Ivnia stared in disbelief.

“That’s even possible?”

“Ah… it may sound pathetic, but please understand. When people are depressed, they tend to sleep more, don’t they? Lord Ram was heartbroken when he heard about your sister’s death. I’m sure he cried terribly where no one could see.”

As Hannah spoke, Ivnia found herself imagining a man sobbing uncontrollably.

It didn’t suit the image of the monstrous Ram—but for someone who had waited only for his wife’s reincarnation, perhaps it was possible.

When he learned that the wife he had longed for so desperately had died again before he could even reach her—what must he have felt?

“I don’t think it’s pathetic.”

Ivnia replied impulsively.

She would never belittle his love like that.

Remembering the warm gaze Agram had directed at his late wife, Ivnia added quietly,

“I actually… thought he seemed like a very good person.”

Hannah’s face brightened instantly.

Now more animated, she began rummaging through the dressing room to find something suitable for Ivnia to wear.

“That’s right. There are some pretty scary rumors about the master outside, but that’s only because people don’t know him. I’m a local, so I know—he’s so lazy he couldn’t even kill a mosquito. He sometimes raises his voice at Lord Guillermo, but honestly, if you look at it closely, it’s always Guillermo’s fault. Ignoring the master’s order to cancel the marriage proposal—that was his decision.”

So that was why a marriage negotiation Ivnia herself knew nothing about had proceeded. Just as she suspected, someone had manipulated things behind the scenes.

Still, remembering how respectfully Guillermo had treated her, it didn’t seem like he had acted out of malice.

“If Lord Ram had gone outside more, he wouldn’t have been deceived like that. But as you’ve seen, he doesn’t want to get out of bed at all… For a while, he even put up a barrier around his room and secluded himself. The only one who could pass through it was Lord Guillermo, so we couldn’t even tattle on him.”

“Why would Guillermo accept a bride his master didn’t even want?”

“I’m not sure. When I asked him back then if there was no longer any need to employ me, he said Lord Ram still needed a bride. That’s when I realized he was doing it intentionally.”

“Well… thanks to that, I didn’t lose my job, so it worked out for me.”

With that, Hannah pulled out several pieces of indoor wear and showed them to Ivnia, as if telling her to choose.

After hesitating, Ivnia picked the simplest chemise.

Agram probably wouldn’t demand repayment for the things she used, but she still wanted to accept as little help as possible—only what she could someday repay.

Fidgeting awkwardly with clothes that weren’t truly hers, she said,

“But marriage is something both parties have to want. Lord Ram doesn’t seem to have any intention of meeting another woman besides his former wife.”

“Well… Lord Guillermo isn’t human, so his way of thinking is rather… unique. I can’t explain exactly why he did it. He’s quite devoted to his role as a butler, so maybe he simply felt there needed to be a lady of the house.”

The speculation was disturbingly realistic.

Ivnia briefly lost her words as she remembered Guillermo’s oddly proud expression while serving food.

Hannah carefully studied her reaction before speaking again.

“But I agree that Lord Ram needs someone new. He’s been lonely… for a very long time. I’ve heard the former lady was a wonderful person, but I’m not sure if loving like that is truly a good thing.”

No matter how happy they had once been, no matter how dearly they had loved each other—that was already long over.

Perhaps it was precisely because those precious days had existed that each day without her was more painful for him.

Was clinging to a bond that had already passed truly the right choice for him?

Enduring endless pain for the sake of a brief happiness—was that closer to a reward, or a punishment?

Hannah asked such questions, and Ivnia could not answer. It wasn’t her place to decide.

After a long silence, Ivnia changed the subject.

“By the way, Hannah… are you not human either?”

“Pardon?”

“Sorry if that’s rude. You seem around my age, but you know so much about long-ago events, so I was just wondering.”

“Oh, no! I’m human. I’m twenty. I know this castle well because I’ve lived here since I was a baby. Lord Guillermo picked me up from the street—I’d been abandoned—and brought me here to be the lady’s maid.”

“…He hired a newborn as a maid? Twenty years in advance?”

“The people here have a rather different sense of time than ordinary people.”

Hannah laughed sheepishly.

Twenty.

That was exactly the same age Emilia—Ivnia’s sister—would have been.

Which meant this maid had been prepared for her sister since the day she was born.

Just like this wardrobe full of affection—prepared with the wish that the young bride, leaving her family’s embrace, would live peacefully in a foreign land without discomfort.

Ivnia suddenly recalled Agram lying gloomily beneath the covers.

And the people of House Hesen, who had wept bitterly when they heard Emilia had died in an accident.

“Oh… so this place is just like my home…”

This castle had been preparing to welcome her sister since before she was even born. And the Hesen family had been willing to make any sacrifice to protect their daughter.

Suddenly, she wondered—

What would it be like to live a life where the entire world moved for your happiness?

What would it feel like to be loved by everyone?