Chapter 4
Since no answer came from Baylin, Eivan, who had been leaning his head back slightly with his eyes closed, opened them.
Because of that, she suddenly found herself face-to-face with his crimson eyes.
The intensity of his gaze pulled her out of her thoughts.
“I just remembered it without forgetting.”
Even with such a vague answer, Eivan did not press her any further.
Perhaps it was because, although only for a brief moment, he had caught a glimpse of deep sadness in her eyes.
Baylin came out of the bathroom first and prepared his sleeping arrangements. In the meantime, Eivan changed into the clothes that had been prepared for him and came out.
“You may leave now.”
“If you need anything, please call for me.”
After leaving the room where Eivan was staying, Baylin headed not to her own room, despite her clothes being slightly damp, but to Haren’s study.
“Duke, this is Baylin.”
“Come in.”
At the permission coming from inside, she entered and found Haren still working despite the late hour.
Baylin approached him and asked with concern.
“There didn’t seem to be any particular problem. Why are you still working this late?”
Haren casually turned through the documents and began explaining the situation of the Seireld territory.
“The harvest season is approaching, so there are many things I need to pay attention to. And there are also two construction sites underway.”
“In a situation like this, an unexpected guest has arrived as well.”
At Baylin’s words, Haren looked at her as if he had a suspicion, and she quietly nodded.
At that sight, Haren silently placed the document he was holding down.
“Then His Highness also…”
“Yes. I was just discovered by him on my way here.”
“As expected, deceiving that person is not easy.”
“I made a mistake. I should have been more careful.”
Haren did not seem overly surprised, as though he had somewhat expected this situation. Instead, he looked at her with concern.
He wondered if meeting Eivan might be causing her pain.
“Did His Highness see you there as well?”
“Yes. Fortunately, he has no memory of me at all.”
“I’ll have to be careful from now on too. He is not an ordinary person. Other than that, did anything else happen?”
For a moment, something came to Baylin’s mind, but she could not bring herself to say it.
Especially because she knew why Haren had left the capital, she did not want to burden him with unnecessary worries.
‘There’s no need to make him worry for nothing.’
After thinking for a while, she shook her head.
“No. Nothing else happened. I came because I thought I should inform you that I’ll be attending to His Highness while he remains here.”
“Alright, I understand. Until he leaves, I’ll ask this of you. Until then, that matter can be put aside for a while…”
“Yes, I also think that would be best. Please don’t worry.”
After reassuring Haren, Baylin left his study.
‘It’s fine. He doesn’t know anything about me.’
“So there’s no reason to be afraid.”
Remembering the reason she had come here, she walked through the dark hallway.
The sunlight slipping through the gap in the curtains slowly awakened Eivan.
Seeing the unfamiliar ceiling, he remembered that he had come to visit Haren yesterday.
He got up from the bed and stepped out onto the terrace, where the refreshing outside air surrounded him.
“I haven’t slept this well in a long time.”
Perhaps because he finally felt at ease, he had truly enjoyed a deep sleep for the first time in a long while.
He even felt as though his body had become much lighter.
He pulled the cord used to call the servants, and not long after, a knock was heard.
“This is Baylin. May I come in?”
“Come in.”
With Eivan’s permission, Baylin entered his room.
“Has Duke Haren already left?”
“Yes. He had matters to attend to in the territory, so he left early. I’ll prepare your breakfast.”
“Alright.”
Baylin placed the clothes he would wear in the room and left.
Unlike Eivan, she had barely slept.
‘It will probably continue like this until His Highness leaves.’
And there was one more thing exhausting her.
“So, what kind of person is he when you see him up close?”
“Who exactly is he that he can speak so casually with the duke?”
In the morning, as Baylin was preparing to attend to Eivan and then go about her own work, her fellow servants surrounded her.
“I don’t know that much either. The butler only told me to attend to the guest while he stays here. He didn’t tell me anything else.”
Her coworkers let out disappointed sighs at her answer.
Currently, the biggest topic of interest in the duke’s castle was the mysterious guest known as Eivan.
Naturally, the person they could pour all their curiosity onto was Baylin, who was taking care of him.
“What kind of person could he be for him to visit the duke at such a late hour?”
“From what I saw, the duke seemed happy to see him too.”
“The duke once warned people who came bringing gifts. He told them never to come again with things like that. After that, people really stopped visiting the duke’s castle.”
That was exactly as En had said.
Even after Haren had abandoned everything in the capital and returned to his territory, many nobles still came to see him.
After all, Haren had once been the emperor’s close friend and the knight who protected him, a position that made everyone admire him.
Of course, that was still true now.
That was why nobles tried any way they could to establish a connection with him, but Haren never paid them any attention.
Since the servants had personally witnessed him becoming furious, it was only natural that they were curious about Eivan’s identity.
“I happened to see him while passing by, and he was incredibly handsome. It’s like he gives off light from his entire body.”
At one maid’s words, everyone shouted in agreement.
Seeing their reaction, Baylin shook her head as if she could not believe them and picked up her own laundry basket.
“If the butler finds out you’re standing here gossiping instead of working, he’ll be angry.”
“Ah, right. Let’s hurry up and move. See you later, Baylin.”
After parting ways with her coworkers, Baylin began hanging the freshly washed white bed sheets in one corner of the garden.
The weather was good today, so they would probably dry quickly.
As Baylin busily moved her hands, someone noticed her and approached.
However, perhaps because she was focused on her work, she did not notice at all.
Not even when that person was watching her from much closer than expected.
The person found it strange and, just as she was about to move to hang another piece of laundry, placed a hand on her left shoulder.
Baylin turned her head in surprise at the unexpected touch on her shoulder without any warning.
“Huh?”
After seeing the unexpected person, she instinctively stepped backward, only to lose her footing.
‘I’m going to fall.’
With that thought, she tightly closed her eyes.
But even after some time passed, she felt no pain.
Instead, she only felt an arm firmly wrapped around her waist.
Slowly opening her eyes, she saw someone’s chest directly in front of her.
‘What is this?’
When Baylin slowly raised her head, she met a pair of crimson eyes from a distance much closer than before.
She stared blankly for a moment, then immediately realized who was holding her and hurriedly pulled away.
Looking at Eivan, she spoke in a trembling voice.
“You appeared so suddenly. You startled me.”
“I’ve been standing beside you for a while. I think you were simply too distracted to notice.”
“Ah… that’s because I was focused on my work.”
Baylin answered casually while returning to hanging the laundry.
Eivan looked at her, seemingly puzzled, and asked.
“Do you do other work besides attending to me?”
“Yes. I have my own duties as well.”
“If you told the duke, you wouldn’t have to work during this time.”
Of course, both Haren and her coworkers had told Baylin that she did not need to push herself.
But she did not want that.
“Then my work would become their work instead. This much is fine. And if you need anything, you can ask someone else besides me. As you know, everyone is very curious about Your Highness.”
Eivan had already felt that himself.
Every person he encountered here looked at him with curiosity in their eyes.
Baylin suddenly wondered about something he had said yesterday, that he did not mind her attending to him.
“But wouldn’t it be better for someone who does not know that you are His Highness to serve you?”
“Why do you think that?”
“Because you can be free from people’s attention, even if only for a short while. Have you ever thought about it, Your Highness? Wanting to leave somewhere where no one knows your name, your status, or your past.”
As if she had struck a nerve, Eivan’s eyes trembled slightly.
But his gaze remained fixed on Baylin, who continued to busy herself with the laundry.
‘Wait… what did I just say?’
Only after realizing that the person in front of her was the Crown Prince did she hurriedly tried to cover her words.
“I was only talking about my own personal thoughts. Ah, more importantly, did you sleep comfortably last night? The sudden change in your sleeping arrangements must have been inconvenient.”
When Baylin changed the subject in embarrassment, he knowingly went along with it.
“I slept well for the first time in a long while.”
‘Does that mean he normally cannot sleep well?’
That was the first thought that came to Baylin’s mind, but she did not say it aloud.
Even if they stayed together here and spoke casually, the fact that he was the Crown Prince would not change.
He was someone who would return soon and someone she would never meet again afterward.
Eivan had no intention of disturbing her while she was busy, so he left the spot.
Baylin watched his back for a moment before returning her focus to her work.
To her, dealing with the pile of tasks in front of her was more important than Eivan’s presence.
