Maylily - Chapter 132

Who could it be at this hour?

Tilting her head as she set the tray with the teaware on the table, Maylily softened her footsteps and approached the entrance.

“Who is it?”

“Maylily.”

The voice that answered her cautious question rang softly through the night air. Recognizing the owner of that voice at once, Maylily quickened her steps. As she opened the front door, a bright smile of surprise and delight spread across her face.

“Count! You said you’d come tomorrow, how are you already here?”

“I wanted to see you before your birthday passed. I adjusted my schedule.”

Hugh spoke as if it were nothing as he stepped inside, but it couldn’t have been easy. Moved by his thoughtfulness, Maylily found him especially striking in that moment. Dressed in a black bow tie and black tuxedo, he looked so refined that she felt as if she should take his hand and go out on a date with him.

Her heart suddenly began to race, and she found herself at a loss for words. Hugh’s long eyes curved gently as he looked down at her.

“I wanted to come sooner, but I was worried I might disturb your time with your family.”

She couldn’t bring herself to say that wasn’t the case. To her aunt’s family, Hugh, with his high status, was still someone they could hardly even meet eyes with. Still, Maylily firmly believed that the distance between them, which felt so vast now, would gradually narrow over time.

And she felt endless gratitude and affection toward Hugh, who created today’s opportunity that allowed her to hold onto that belief. Maylily wanted to hug him tightly.

“It wouldn’t do to break our promise already.”

However, remembering that she also needed to keep pace with Hugh’s effort to maintain proper boundaries between them, she suppressed that impulse.

“Thanks to you, I had the best birthday of my life. Thank you so much.”

“I can’t let someone else take your best birthday. I’ll have to try harder from now on.”

“I’m counting on you from now on too.”

Perhaps taking Hugh’s possessive remark as a joke, Maylily smiled innocently. Soon, sitting side by side with Hugh on the sofa in the sitting room, she spoke gently about how grateful her family felt for his kindness and how much they adored Dylan.

A faint sheen of moisture gathered in her blue eyes, glinting under the soft light. It was a clear sign of joy. That glimmer was so movingly beautiful that Hugh unconsciously straightened Maylily’s bangs and gently caressed her cheek. Startled by the touch, Maylily rose awkwardly from her seat.

“Oh! Look at me, I’ve lost my head. Could you wait just a moment? I’ll prepare some tea.”

“It’s alright. I’ll be leaving soon. You should rest early too if you have work tomorrow.”

Hugh took Maylily’s hand and gently pulled her toward him. She followed without resistance and sat down right beside him, closer than before. Even that small contact brought a flush to her cheeks, making her unbearably endearing.

“Actually, there’s something I wanted to give you before your birthday passed.”

Hugh took out a purple velvet case from inside his coat. Receiving it, Maylily blinked slowly, as if recognizing the familiar object, and opened the lid.

Inside was the necklace Hugh had given her long ago. The one she sold to a jeweler in Melden to gather money to run away. After such a long time, the sapphire, now back in her hands, shone brilliantly. Maylily’s eyes widened in surprise, reflecting that light.

“How did you….”

“There can’t be another owner for a necklace made for you.”

When he commissioned the necklace, Hugh deliberately chose a sapphire that resembled the color of his own eyes. He gave in to the desire to engrave a mark that she belonged to him.

Perhaps, even then, he’d already fallen for Maylily. No, he definitely had. Because of himself, who only realized those feelings too late, the necklace had once lost its owner. He wanted to return it to Maylily.

“When the time comes, put it around your neck yourself.”

“Yes, I will.”

The necklace, which once served as a mark that Maylily belonged to Hugh, now became a token of the feelings he offered to her. Maylily gently stroked the deep blue sapphire, still shining as beautifully as ever, then lifted her head and met Hugh’s gaze.

“Just for one minute….”

She swallowed dryly, then tightly closed and opened her eyes before continuing with a resolute expression.

“Let’s stop being friends and be lovers.”

At the rather provocative proposal, the corner of Hugh’s lips slowly curled upward. He answered by wrapping an arm around Maylily’s waist and pressing his lips to hers. As they filled the long-suppressed yearning and sank deeply into each other, the breath spilling between their lips heated the air in an instant.

Soft moonlight streaming through the open window illuminated the sides of their faces, and the scent of flowers carried on the breeze drifted gently through the room. It was the most beautiful night of that spring.

***

Under the clear crescent moon, cherry blossoms in full bloom scattered in the wind. Beneath the glow of the lamps brightly lighting the area around the Roden Opera House, a procession of carriages continued.

On the wall of the theater building visible beyond, splendid posters were neatly lined up in a row. The large, bold letters printed on them caught the eye even from afar.

The greatest prima donna of this century, Maylily Aile! Her long-awaited return after 9 years with the moving performance of 

It was the performance that had stirred up the entire Aberque district that evening.

Nine years earlier, in the fall, Maylily Aile had gone on stage as a substitute in <Agnes> at the Roden Opera House, leaving a deep impression on the audience before suddenly disappearing. After that, she moved her stage to Cereno in Cartia.

As the homeland of opera, Cartia was a market with strong pride in its own opera culture and singers. There, Maylily overcame the disadvantage of being a foreigner and, in just two years, established herself as a prima donna, astonishing everyone. The news soon reached Riverton as well.

Martin Fritz, director of the Roden Opera Company, continuously offered her scouting proposals, as she had once been part of his company. He even visited Cereno several times to recruit her.

However, Maylily continued her activities as a member of the Royal Opera Company of Cartia, which had consistently shown her trust and support, building both popularity and reputation. Her clear and graceful singing, called a ‘heavenly voice,’ moved audiences deeply, and her beauty, perfectly suited to it, made her an object of admiration wherever she went.

Five years after beginning her career in Cereno, Maylily had become the most beloved singer not only in Cartia but across the entire continent, transcending nationality. Around that time, she announced her plan to leave the Cereno stage and embark on a touring performance.

Maylily traveled across the continent, going up and down countless stages both large and small. During that time, she even set the remarkable record of every performance being completely sold out. The press praised the success she achieved and unanimously speculated that she must have earned an astronomical income.

With so much attention surrounding it, the final city of the two-year tour was Roden in Riverton. With today’s performance, Maylily was set to enter a period of rest for the time being. Because of that, more intense attention than ever was focused on her and her performance.

“It looks like everyone in Aberque gathered here tonight.”

Deborah clicked her tongue as she looked out the carriage window while waiting for it to reach the theater entrance. The area in front of the theater before the performance was crowded with a long line of carriages and people gathered like clouds. It was a scene that almost resembled a battlefield.

“It’s a performance worth that much.”

Hugh, seated beside her, replied as if it were only natural. Looking at him, he really is quite a fool. Deborah, who glanced at him with narrowed eyes, gave a small shake of her head and let out a quiet laugh.

“Mrs. Keaton will bring Dylan around the time the performance ends.”

“Thank you, Aunt.”

Deborah learned of Dylan’s existence four years ago. As public attention focused on Maylily after she became a prima donna, her private life gradually became exposed, and Dylan’s existence was first revealed through the media. Around that time, rumors about the child spread beyond Hugh’s ability to control.

Although Dylan’s photograph was not included in the articles, those who saw the child’s black hair and deep blue eyes didn’t doubt that his father was Hugh Skaard. Since Hugh and Maylily’s relationship continued to be suspected while Hugh remained in Cartia even after the opening of the Cereno branch of the Skaard Hotel, that certainty only grew stronger.

With Maylily’s agreement, Hugh acknowledged that Dylan was his son. The news spread into Riverton’s high society and caused a major stir. Once it became known that there was a child between Hugh and Maylily, the long-hidden identity of Hugh’s fiancée was once again questioned, with the bold yet plausible suspicion that it might be Maylily. Among all of them, the one most shocked was none other than Deborah.