C39
Bianca, who toured the mansion guided by Vincent, stopped at the meat storage, the bakery, the brewery, and the farm instead of the garden during her usual walks from that moment on.
There was nothing in particular to do when she stopped, nothing to ask or interfere with the work. She simply watched the servants work.
For Bianca, it was just a matter of extending her walking route a bit, but it felt as if the world had changed with just that.
The air brushing against her skin, the landscape unfolding before her eyes, and the voices of the people. The smell of life, accompanied by noise, penetrated her skin and shook her head.
She was barely accustomed to the noisy commotion, but she could feel how much she had lived isolated from the world until now.
When she wandered through the kingdom after being expelled from the castle before her return, she couldn't afford to look around as she does now.
The wounds of her lover Fernand's betrayal blinded her vision. She knew nothing, and she couldn't even give her heart because everyone in the world seemed like swindlers. Everyone around her was harsh and cold. That was when she first learned that ignorance could hold her head up. Recalling that moment, Bianca's lips twisted with anxiety.
The servants did not like the lady's visit. It was already difficult with just the stern gaze of the butler, but who knows what flaws the lady wants to find? She does not blame them directly, but it must be because she simply does not want to speak to the servants. She will return to her luxuriously decorated room and discuss them with the butler. The servants continued to watch Bianca, and as such, things did not progress very well.
Bianca, who does not worry too much about others, or Gaspard, who seems calm even if lightning suddenly strikes from the sky, were not concerned. But Yvonne quickly noticed their discomfort.
However, there was nothing Yvonne could do about it.
The unknown is always painful. It may not be familiar to them that Bianca is touring the estate, but they will get used to it after a while. Yvonne believed so.
However, it was unfortunate that Bianca received unwanted glances from others, regardless of their beliefs.
Yvonne's heart sank every time she took a step onto the dirt-covered land and puddles of water, and not on a well-maintained path covered in soft soil.
Mud splashed on the hem of her clothes, but Bianca didn't show a single sign of disgust.
Perhaps it's because she's not the one who fixes the clothes? Or is it because she'll buy new clothes?
The servants were even more embarrassed when she didn't show disgust. Would it have been better if she were a bit more unpleasant?
Yvonne shook her head. Just as a bird cannot understand the words of a rabbit, the servants and Bianca couldn't understand each other. She couldn't even imagine Bianca, a noble by birth, working with mud on her face.
Contrary to Yvonne's ironic thought, Bianca not only had her face covered in mud but also dressed in rags and walked barefoot on a gravel path.
To get a handful of water, she licked rainwater from cracks in the rocks and devoured moldy bread. That was her situation before her return, but the memory of that time was still vividly engraved in Bianca's mind.
Birth may be noble, but there's no guarantee it will remain so until the end.
Who would have thought that Zachary, who had been granted the rank of Baron, would become a Count and a strong shield for the next king, and who would have thought he would collapse in vain on the battlefield just before wielding such power?
With him, Bianca's fate was shaken like a candle in the wind, and the life of noble Bianca plummeted to the bottom.
The past Bianca didn't know that a person's life is only known in the end. She only discovered it after experiencing it.
And she also discovered that the future is something that must be worked hard for.
Before her return, Bianca didn't even think of looking around, and after her return, Bianca couldn't afford to look around.
Yvonne's admiration for the uncompromising and indifferent gaze of young Bianca was solely because her thoughts were elsewhere.
"How can I get pregnant with Zachary's child as soon as possible? How can I prevent being cast out of the Arno family? What could be the justification for that?"
Such desperation made her float unable to blend with her surroundings, but Bianca didn't mind. It was because she thought there was no need to blend. Having Yvonne and Gaspard by her side has changed a lot.
It was a change that others would laugh at, but it was a rather significant change for her.
As she looked around the castle, Bianca arrived at an unfamiliar place. There was a pile of straw in front of the building lined with wooden planks. A rough rumbling sound came from inside. Bianca asked, looking at the unfamiliar building.
"I think I've never seen this place before."
"Madam, this is the stable. It's dangerous, so please go back."
Yvonne quickly blocked Bianca's path. Bianca tilted her head as if she didn't understand Yvonne's concerns.
"Dangerous? There are only horses."
"Because those horses are dangerous. Oh, madam!"
Despite Yvonne's worrying disapproval, Bianca approached the stable. She thought it would be good to take an interest in the horses.
Before her return, Bianca had no interest in horses. She didn't have a lively personality that enjoyed leaving the room and being active, and if she traveled a long distance, she could ride in a carriage.
There were some noble ladies who rode horses, but it wasn't a mandatory education. So she didn't really pay attention to it.
But much would have changed if she had known how to ride a horse when she limped and had to walk long distances. There would have been less time to waste, less time to be beaten, and less suffering from not having a place that accepted her.
It would be good to learn how to ride a horse in this life. It wouldn't be reasonable to ride in the capital this spring, but it might be possible next spring.
She would desperately try her own way not to be expelled from the Arno family, but she still had to prepare for an unexpected situation.
"It would be good to see the horses first."
Just as Bianca was about to enter the stable with that thought in mind, Gaspard stopped her.
Gaspard looked at Bianca with his usual severe expression and decisively shook his head. Bianca furrowed her brow.
It's just a stable. It's also within their territory. There's nothing dangerous.
"Step aside, Sir Gaspard."
"... It's dangerous. You'll die."
"I have been in places with high fire, gleaming knives, and splatters of blood. Why are horses so dangerous?"
The kitchen and the slaughterhouse were more dangerous than the stable. Everyone rides horses anyway, so what's the danger? Besides, she had even seen horses from afar.
Bianca complained unsatisfied.
"Moreover, didn't I go to the farm before?"
"At the farm, you saw them from afar. The stable is too close."
"You tend to overprotect me-"
"Oh, isn't that Gaspard?"
At that moment, behind Gaspard, a bright and cheerful voice was heard from inside the stable. In the light tone that seemed to be swinging, the unique accent of the commoners could be felt.
The commoner who could call Gaspard by his first name was Sauveur, one of Zachary's commanders.
While he was working inside the stable, he heard a lot of noise, but when he came out, he found Gaspard blocking the entrance to the stable.
It was frustrating to be trapped in that narrow and unkempt building, but when a close friend appeared, Sauveur responded warmly.
"What are you doing here? I thought you'd be escorting the lady... Oh, there she is."
Sauveur, who belatedly noticed Bianca hiding behind Gaspard, added with an awkward smile.
Sauveur quickly shook his head, trying to remember if he had made any slip of the tongue.
Tags:
TWB (Novel)