Mrs. R rushed backstage when he saw the painting she was going to give to her friend's family was already on the stage. Panic began to take over her mind and heart. She blamed herself for not confirming that they got the right painting or not.

Fortunately, Lilith and Esther are fast to respond and have already resolved the issue, even replacing it with one of the Sixon owned paintings.

Even so, Mrs. R's heart remained unsettled for some unclear reason.

“I apologize to Mrs. R. I should've double-checked it first.” Esther held Mrs. R's cold hands with a guilty expression on her face, especially at the girl in the painting.

“It's fine. I also didn't think about that.” Mrs. R calmed Esther down, more so herself. She was aware that Silvernas and Greenes would attend today's events. She didn't know what to say when they questioned her about the painting later.

When Mrs. R thought of some reasons that she might need to explain, a Sixon family employee approached Lilith and whispered something to her.

Lilith's face lit up instantly, then turned around to greet someone who was approaching them.

“Lord Lyonnel…” She waved her hand.

Esther releases Mrs. R’s hands and moves closer to Lilith. “Lord Lyonnel, what can we do for you?”

“Greetings to you princess... and Lady Lilith.” Lyonnel greets them with a slight bow. “Regarding the painting you brought back. Can you take me to see the painter?”

Hearing that, Esther and Lilith immediately stared at Mrs. R, who was still motionless and didn't dare to raise her head to look at Lyonnel.

Lyonnel approached Mrs. R. quickly after understanding the meaning of their stares. “Could you please answer some of my questions?” He pleaded politely.

Mrs. R nodded, but kept her head bowed.

“Why did you decide to paint my sister?” He inquired bluntly.

“Y-your sister?” Mrs. R eventually looked up. A look of astonishment appeared on her face, as did Lilith and Esther, who were standing nearby.

“You did not know?” Lyonnel paused for a moment before changing his question. “You haven't met her before, have you? So, how did you manage to paint her so vividly?”

Mrs. R's eyes widened in disbelief. “Ammely had a second child? A daughter?”

The expression on Lyonnel's face changed when he heard his mother's name called out by the middle-aged woman in front of him. “Do you know my mother?”

“... Of course. Your mother taught me to paint.” Mrs. R said it quickly. “Regarding the painting. I had a dream about your mother, so I painted her and planned to give the painting to Lady Ruth. But then something unexpected happened... Sorry to make you guys uncomfortable with all this.” She abruptly lowered her head, full of regret.

“But madam... you did not paint my mother, but my sister. Although they are similar, Hera has a birthmark under her eye just like in the painting.”

Mrs. R was silenced by Lyonnel's remarks. That birthmark had been bothering her for a while, and she wasn't sure how to react now that she knew who the birthmark belonged to.

“How could you dream about my sister if you'd never met her?” Lyonnel inquired once more when he saw Mrs. R could only freeze in silence, staring at him with widened eyes.

Mrs. R was contemplating the same question that Lyonnel had just asked. She had just dreamed about a girl she mistook for a childhood friend. Why is that?

After a long silence, Mrs. R could only shake her head, confused. “I didn’t even know that Ammely had a daughter. I just got news about her death from Lady Ruth. At the time, she was too grieved to say what caused her death. I don't know why I dream about her daughter, my lord.”

Lyonnel ruffled his neatly arranged hair in frustration. He didn't get the answer he expected. He didn't know how Luca would react to Mrs. R's explanation. Would his father believe him if he said that Mrs. R dreamed about Hera?

“Can we talk about that painting tomorrow?”

Mrs. R quickly nodded her head. “I was already planning on going to Greene's mansion to give away the painting tomorrow.” She cracked a stiff smile from behind her mask.

“Then I'll send someone to pick you up, Mrs. R.” Lyonnel then turned around and gave a farewell to Lilith and Esther, who were listening to all their conversation, before walking away.

Leaving those who didn't know what to say. Lilith could only grumble at being ignored by the very difficult to find man, while Esther resumed chatting with Mrs. R about what they should do next.

In the now empty dining room that was being cleaned by the servants, Ezel leaned his back against one of the pillars. He didn't need to check someone's memory to figure out how the Sixons got their information; he only needed some alone time to think about everything.

A complicated emotion clearly visible on his face, Ezel obtained the small fact about the extra memory that suddenly came to his mind about a month ago when he saw the girl from that memory in person.

He only needed to wait for them to keep their promise before telling his master about everything, which he would do sooner or later.

 

---

 

The next morning, Hera, who was still yawning, stood stiffly in Ymsay's embrace in front of the mansion entrance.

Ruth had given Hera a gray scarf with stars embroidered on it, which she wore over her shoulders now. She was still in a semi-conscious state and yawning constantly when Ysmay came into her room and urged her to get up for their farewell.

“We'll still meet next year, in the spring, Ymay.” Hera laughed softly as she patted Ysmay on the back.

“Are you really fine after witnessing all of that?” Ysmay had heard from her grandmother that her cousin might never have seen the outside world. How could she have witnessed such a heinous sight at her very first event?

“Since Lyonnel had pulled me away, I couldn't see anything.” It is a lie. Even if it were true, Hera has witnessed far more tragedies than anybody else. What happened yesterday was nothing compared to all of what she must witness all her life.

“Really?” Ysmay released her embrace. She grabbed Hera's shoulders with her gloved hands. “You really didn't see it, right? You are too young to see it, aih…”

Hera gave a nod. She had no idea how many times she had to do this to ensure Ysmay that she was okay.

“We really need to get going, Ysmay.”

Kyle had just finished loading their final luggage onto the carriage when he interrupted Ysmay and Hera's farewell.

Their luggage doubled after Ruth gave them meal sets and snacks for the trip, as well as some thick and warm clothes for the winter on board.

“The ship would set sail in an hour. Our father was already waiting on the ship.” Kyle muttered before looking at Hera, who was raising an eyebrow. “Our father would love to meet you, but unfortunately, he has to keep an eye on the ship and its cargo. Maybe they'll be able to meet you next spring.”

Kyle didn't feel close to his cousin, perhaps because during these few days he had spent more time with Lyonnel and the knights on the training grounds rather than with his new cousin. But he could see how much Ysmay adored Hera, so he flashed a gentle smile at the girl, which she returned with a small smile.

Hera returned to her room after the Greene siblings had left, unsure of what to do next. Besides, the weather was getting colder outside. There's already been snow on the ground since last night.

Waiting wasn't all that exciting, but she knew the family wasn't so easy to find.

Hera swaddled herself in a heavy blanket. She recalled spending the winter alone in her room, suffering from the cold beneath the thin blanket, which was completely different from what she was going through right now.

Freya had just recently replaced her blanket and bed sheet in preparation for winter. Hera could smell the scent of lavender when she curled herself inside the thick blanket.

She wanted to enjoy all of this before thinking about what she would do next.

“Don't even think about anything right now. Make the most of your remaining time with Ruth.”

 

---

 

Ruth was surprised when Lyonnel brought someone she hadn't seen in a long time, but what caught her attention was what they had brought for her that morning.

“Grena... did you do this?” Ruth's hand shook as she touched the painting's edge. Even though she knew it was Hera, her eyes began to redden. Her resemblance to Ammely made the feeling of longing in her chest return.

“Lady Ruth... I-I’m…” Grena looked agitated. She repeatedly picked at her nails.

“I really like this painting. How do you manage to paint Hera so well?” Ruth took Grena's hand before she injured her own nails, then covered her fingers with a handkerchief. “You're always like this when you're nervous. What is wrong? Ah... where did you meet each other?” Ruth turned her attention to Lyonnel.

Lyonnel and Grena looked at each other. It wasn't long before Grena answered first. “We met at a Sixon family event. I am one of the painters whose works are on display and at auction.”

“Is that so? Ammely would be so proud of you.” Ruth said sincerely, then returned her gaze to the painting in front of her. “How did you two meet? Lyonnel couldn't possibly walk around the exhibition... ah... did you also meet Hera?”

Ruth's question made both of them silent again.

Ruth's smile faded away gradually. She didn't like the silence that seemed to alert her that she was about to hear something bad.

Before Lyonnel let Ruth's mind wander, he started to explain what happened at the auction. Lyonnel's explanations are short, straightforward, and to the point.

Ruth's brows knitted. She let Mrs. Oz put down the tray of their refreshments and told her to leave before speaking again. “Does Hera know about this painting? No... how can you paint Hera if you have never met her?” The wrinkles in her eyes became more visible as she cast a sharp glare at Grena.

Grena didn't know how to explain it. Maybe Lyonnel can accept her explanation of the dream. But Ruth was skeptical that her friend's mother would accept her explanation.

But who would have thought that Ruth would easily accept Grena's explanation of her dream?

There was a suppressed smile on Ruth's face. “Maybe it was Aria who sent the dream to you.” She chuckles.

“Aria? mother's guardian?” Lyonnel asked on the spur of the moment. He was aware of Aria's existence but was unaware of her abilities. This was the first time he'd heard about Aria's power.

Ruth sipped her milk tea while leaning against the back of the sofa. “Aria used to give you wonderful dreams when you were a kid.”

“But Aria isn't in this world anymore, is she?”

“Who told you that?”

“Grandma... You are aware that after the master dies, the guardian completes their master's final wish and disappears, right?”

“Of course, I know. But Aria's last assignment, I believe, isn't finished yet.” Ruth placed the empty cup on the table and secretly smiled at Lyonnel, who was staring at her in confusion. “Can you leave me and Grena alone, Lyonnel? We have something to talk about after a long time not seeing each other.”

Lyonnel was forced to leave with plenty of questions on his mind. Ruth knew about her daughter's last wish. Is that why his father cast her away? But what kind of final wish enrages the father and detains the guardian in this world? And where is Aria now? Lyonnel was desperate to know the real reason why his family was falling apart years ago.

He walked down the silent hallway, lost in his thoughts, until his steps came to a halt in front of the library. According to some of the servants and Shie's report, Hera liked to shut herself up in the library until Ruth came and got her for their afternoon tea.

Lyonnel carefully opened the door without a sound. Then he let his feet guide him through the narrow gap between the towering bookshelves until a bird flew in front of his face.

“Shie?”

“Shh... Don't bother her.”

Shie, who had turned into a human, led Lyonnel to the table in front of the wide open window and hid behind one of the bookshelves.

Hera sat there quietly flipping through the map.

“Did you know Lady Hera was fluent in foreign language?”

“... Foreign language?”

“I'm not sure. It was something I'd never heard of before.” Shie sighed and shrugged his shoulders. “Oh, did you know she was intending to go back? I'm not sure where she wants to get back to, but it's definitely not the Silverna mansion.”

Lyonnel didn't have time to ask anything before Hera had already turned her head towards them.