Chapter 64
Chapter 64
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Translator: penny
Chapter: 64
Chapter Title: Moon Festival
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***
The carriage arrived at its destination a few hours later.
Juliet decided to get out and walk to the address written on the letter envelope.
A picture-perfect landscape unfolded before her eyes.
Along the white sandy beach where waves crashed, model-like houses stood neatly separated only by fences.
Among the neat and quaint little homes stood a modest house with a blue roof on a gentle cliff at the end of the coastline.
"That's the house!"
Roy tilted his head at the house Juliet excitedly pointed out.
'The person Juliet likes?'
While Roy followed a few steps behind, Juliet had already reached the front door and knocked.
The white door creaked open, revealing a young woman holding a newborn baby.
"Oh, Lady!"
"Hello, Agnes!"
Juliet beamed.
*
"I didn't expect you so soon!"
Agnes welcomed them warmly inside. The house was as cute and cozy as it had looked from outside.
Roy whispered softly at the entrance.
"So the person Juliet likes is that lady."
"Agnes is my best friend."
Agnes had gone with her to the North when Juliet left with Duke Carlisle.
Until Agnes got married and moved away, she had been a great comfort to Juliet in the North where she knew no one.
Especially for Juliet, who struggled to make friends, Agnes had been like a sister.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"I just thought she was merely a friend you liked."
Before Juliet could ask what he meant, Roy grinned and strode ahead.
In the meantime, Agnes brought over the baby, who was only a few days old, and introduced him.
"Would you like to hold him?"
"......Is that okay?"
Juliet awkwardly took the swaddled baby, tense as could be.
Agnes's month-old baby was smaller than expected but surprisingly heavy.
"It's so warm."
Agnes chuckled as Juliet, eyes wide at the feel of a baby for the first time, whispered in awe.
"Babies are always like that. They have high body temperatures."
Juliet found it amazing and adorable how the baby stared at her with bright eyes without crying, even in a stranger's arms. But scared she might drop him, she quickly handed him back to Agnes.
She watched with fascination as Agnes soothed the baby.
Juliet suddenly smiled, recalling something from not long ago.
Silphium and mistletoe. Did Agnes have any idea about the things she'd done to help her, which had led to misunderstandings with Carlisle?
"Where's Mr. Morris?"
"Oh, he's so busy I hardly see him. But he'll be back late tonight!"
Agnes's husband was a merchant who sailed around the continent. Fortunately, this time he hadn't gone far and was due back soon.
Around lunchtime, Juliet asked Roy to bring down the basket she'd brought. It was supposed to contain special sandwiches packed with plenty of mashed eggs.
But what poked its head out from inside was not a sandwich, but a baby dragon.
"Oh my!"
"Pwaak!"
The startled Agnes asked,
"What kind of animal is this, Lady?"
"You."
The baby dragon quickly glanced around and hid behind the basket.
This scrappy little dragon had devoured everything in the basket except for two bottles of cold milk.
***
Agnes served them a hearty Eastern-style lunch.
The one-month-old baby and the three-day-old baby dragon seemed to have similar levels of mental maturity. When Agnes treated the dragon like a baby, it behaved docilely.
After lunch, Agnes left the baby with the wet nurse and took Juliet upstairs.
Then, as if showing off long-unused skills, she went all out.
"I'll make you the most eye-catching person in the village today! Don't worry!
That's my specialty!"
Agnes was handy and had a knack for making Juliet's thin, thick, tangle-prone hair look like silk threads.
"Oh dear, hold still."
Agnes repeatedly braided and unbraided Juliet's hair.
"What happened to your hair?"
"Sorry......"
As she worked, Agnes shared various stories—how life had been after marriage, what had happened since settling here.
Yet she didn't pry about Juliet's sudden visit.
Why she'd left the duke's household, why she was dressed like this, or who the unfamiliar man accompanying her was.
Juliet was grateful and didn't bring it up either.
Once the styling was done, Agnes pulled a flowing dress from the wardrobe.
"The hair's good enough...... Try this on. Hurry!"
The garment, called a dirndl, was the most common traditional attire in the East.
It consisted of a soft, flowing blouse worn underneath, topped with a dark-colored bodice like a modified corset and a full skirt.
But the one Agnes brought was somewhat different from the traditional style Juliet knew.
She liked the short skirt, the blouse that emphasized the neckline, the frilly puffed sleeves covering the wrists, and the red skirt. However, the dark-toned red skirt, which should have been a full skirt, was shortened to reveal her ankles.
"It's the fashion!"
Juliet hadn't even commented on the dress yet, but Agnes insisted repeatedly.
Though a bit suspicious, Juliet obediently put it on as Agnes directed.
In the capital, no one but children wore skirts this length.
Feeling uneasy in the unfamiliar outfit, Juliet fidgeted with her stockinged ankles, earning a glare from Agnes.
"Aren't you coming, Agnes?"
"No. I can't play with you today."
As she spoke, Agnes gave Roy a meaningful glance.
"Ahem! You two go on ahead! This village's moon festival is quite famous."
The East still followed the tradition of using the lunar calendar instead of the solar one. So the real New Year here began with this festival.
"By the local reckoning, today is New Year."
The festival of the first moon.
Grand name, but simple.
It was a village festival starting from the first full moon after the New Year began.
Like most small-town festivals, it wasn't about anything special—just eating, drinking, and enjoying.
"Have fun!"
Pushed out by Agnes, Juliet and Roy found themselves heading to the village where the festival was in full swing just before dusk.
"Shall we go?"
Roy grinned and offered his arm.
The two wandered through the crowds drunk on the lively atmosphere, savoring the rare excitement of a festival.
By then, the sun had fully set, and darkness enveloped everything.
True to its name, the moon festival featured a moon in the pitch-black sky that looked three times its usual size.
"Shall we head that way?"
"No."
Juliet tugged Roy's arm.
"Over there, there's a lake. It's better for viewing the moon."
Roy gazed at her steadily before speaking.
"You've been here before, haven't you?"
"Yes."
Juliet answered curtly and smiled awkwardly. She hoped he wouldn't press further.
"Alright. Let's go there."
It was then.
"Lord Roy!"
An unexpected voice stopped them. The owner was a face Juliet recognized too.
'His name was Nathan, right?'
Nathan rushed over and grabbed Roy, ignoring Juliet entirely. But more than that, Juliet felt uneasy that Elza, who was always with him, was nowhere in sight.
"The Lord......"
"......Kitan -."
Juliet stepped back and watched their conversation.
She couldn't make out the details, but the mood was terribly off. Roy, who had been listening silently, grew increasingly serious.
Finally, after finishing, he turned to Juliet.
"Juliet, I -"
"Go!"
Seeing the urgency, Juliet quickly urged him. Roy hesitated a moment, then nodded.
"I'll be right back."
"It's fine. I can go alone."
"......Really, I'll hurry."
"Yes."
And with that, the two men left.
***