❅❅❅
THE next morning, I left Stanley’s house early and made my way to the chivalric order’s staffroom, which I’d used before. There, I fixed my appearance. Since my old apron was on the shelf, I put it on. After tying the string behind my back, I pulled my long hair into a bun.
Once I finished getting ready, I examined myself in the mirror. I fixed my bangs and looked again. No problems. After gazing at my reflection, I tried donning a cheerful smile. Again, no problems.
I took a deep breath to calm my racing heart and left the room. Starting today, I would be a handmaid for the chivalric order.
“Well, if it isn’t Mary!”
“Welcome back. We’ve been dying to see you again.”
“When Nicky left after you, this place lost all its beauty. We were so lonely!”
Each time I ran into one of the knights, they called out to me cheerfully.
“I’m looking forward to working with all of you again,” I responded to each of them.
“I was surprised to see you at the coronation,” one of the knights said. “You looked lovely.”
“Thank you,” I replied. “I appreciated all your hard work during the event.”
“Right? Being forced to stare at all that food was grueling.”
Before long, a group of towering men surrounded me. All the knights were tall and well-built; it made me feel like a child.
“Hopefully, the high commander will stop moping now!” one of them called out.
“Hey, quit flapping your gums,” his colleague chided him.
The mention of Albert caused a sudden shift in the atmosphere.
“The high commander’s been depressed ever since you left, Lady Mary,” the first knight continued. “But he’s perked up a bit lately.”
“Someone shut the guy up!” another knight shouted.
I watched in a daze as a group of men surrounded the chatty knight and tried to cover his mouth. Despite all this, I couldn’t picture Albert being depressed over my absence. As I recalled the past few days, my cheeks burned.
“What’s this?” one of the men asked.
All the knights stopped and stared in my direction. Panicked, I covered my face with my hands in a vain attempt to hide from their scrutiny.
“Don’t tell me…” one of the men trailed off.
“The high commander actually told her?!” another finished.
“Atta boy!” a third knight whooped. “We’ve gotta celebrate!”
Amid my confusion, everyone started making a commotion. While I tried to puzzle out the situation, Sir Eva appeared behind me.
“If you lot don’t get back to work right now, it’s going to impact your assessments,” he warned.
In response to these calm yet somehow terrifying words, the knights quieted. After saluting Sir Eva, everyone raced back to their posts. As my cheeks continued burning, Sir Eva watched his subordinates flee the scene, then looked down at me with his usual charming, affable smile. How much did he know about my situation, exactly? The mere thought terrified me.
“I look forward to working with you, Lady Edigma,” he said.
“Ah, yes…” I replied. “I look forward to working with you as well.”
“This should have been one of the high commander’s days off, but for some reason, he still came into work. If you wouldn’t mind, please go greet him. The details of your job are the same as before. There are a few other handmaids here as well, so please introduce yourself to them during lunch break.”
Sir Eva spoke smoothly while leading me to the high commander’s office. It seemed as though everything was going according to his plan. At last, I felt as though I understood what Reynaldo had told me during dinner.
Sir Eva seemed to be a capable man, though his areas of expertise differed from Reynaldo’s. That aside, he knocked on the high commander’s office door, pulling me from my thoughts.
“Enter,” a voice called from inside.
That voice belonged to the man who’d professed his love for me last night. As my heart hammered in my chest, I calmly did as instructed, opening the door. Inside, Albert stood alone near the windowsill. He turned his gaze toward me. Though he usually appeared surly, he now smiled faintly.
“Good morning,” he greeted me. “I look forward to working with you.”
I bowed my head to Albert since he was acting like a proper boss. “As do I…”
Though we repeated the words we’d spoken last night, the location couldn’t have been more different. Albert approached me and held out his right hand. Puzzled, I held out my hand as well and gripped his.
At first, I interpreted this handshake as professional, but a moment later, he pressed his lips against my palm ever so lightly. “Please allow me to express my love for you even at work,” he said, the corners of his eyes wrinkling as he smiled at me. The radiance of his expression blinded me.
“Try not to abuse your authority too much, boss,” Sir Eva cut in. “It’ll cause all kinds of problems in the workplace.”
While Albert continued holding my hand, I stiffened, having completely forgotten about Sir Eva’s presence.