Maylily - Chapter 16

Maylily sent Michele back alone and stepped out of the building through the back door.

She had filled more champagne glasses than anyone else that evening, so a brief rest would be acceptable.

Turning the corner of the corridor lined with round lamps, Maylily sat on the stairs leading down to the back garden. Pale moonlight poured over her neatly gathered knees.

“Ah, it hurts…”

Although she had pretended to be fine and told Michele not to worry, a dull pain had been spreading across her entire palm for some time. Frowning slightly in pain, Maylily stared blankly at the handkerchief Michele had tied around her hand. A red stain had already bloomed from the blood seeping out of the side of her hand.

The moment she tripped on Vanessa’s foot and overturned the trolley, Maylily had neither seen nor heard anything, as though her eyes and ears had gone blind.

Adding to that the thought that the Count of Everscourt might be among those elegantly dressed people looking down at her, she felt even more faint. She hadn’t even realized her hand was being cut open by glass shards.

At that moment, the one who reached out like a savior, somewhat unexpectedly, was Michele.

“Are you all right?”

Why is Michele here?

Her confusion was brief. Maylily decided, just for a moment, to rely on the kindness of the man who wrapped her injured hand. Michele had shielded her from the stares that belittled her and carefully tended to her painful wound.

“You must have been quite startled. Go take a rest somewhere quiet. You seemed to have been working non-stop from earlier.”

More than anything, his kindness in recognizing her effort buried under a wretched mistake was a great comfort.

Perhaps Michele was simply a person overflowing with kindness more than others.

She reflected on whether she had misunderstood Michele until now by interpreting that kindness however she pleased. Looking back, he had always been a devoted teacher in class, and he had never once acted rudely or caused her harm. That was why she had suddenly offered an apology to him.

“Can’t those things be considered acts of kindness between people?”

“That, too, can happen when learning a language.”

Those cold words had all been correct after all.

“Haa…”

Propping her elbows on her knees, Maylily let out a deep sigh and buried her face in her hands. In her vision, swallowed by momentary darkness, the face of the Count of Everscourt surfaced.

He must have seen that foolish display, right?

No matter what had transpired, the Count was now her patron, and she had only wished to show him a respectable image.

“So… embarrassing.”

With a heavier sigh than before, Maylily lifted her head. The moon in the night sky shone dazzlingly bright, yet her heart felt as though it were clouded over.

***

Michele Baratti, who had gone out with Maylily, returned alone. Then, where had the woman gone?

Hugh pondered Maylily’s whereabouts for a moment before quietly stepping outside the building. He intended to avoid the eyes of others and search for her through the back entrance.

He needed to meet her, to confront the lingering discomfort that still remained like sediment in his heart.

Just as his unhurried steps carried him down the stairs and onto the stone pavement, one of the men gathered in the garden’s smoking area noticed Hugh and raised his hand high.

“Hugh, shall we share a cigar?”

It was Patrick Cheshire, a fellow student from Cromford University and the eldest son of the Marquess of Cheshire. Overflowing with confidence and sociability, he especially enjoyed flaunting his connection with Hugh at official gatherings.

But Hugh had no intention of associating with him, notorious as he was since university as a libertine, and thus always kept him at a distance.

“I have someone to meet. Excuse me.”

Tonight was no exception. With a dry smile, Hugh gave Patrick no opening and turned away.

“If you go that way, there won’t be anyone. Ah, is that why you’re going?”

The dirty imaginings provoked by Patrick’s silly words made the others laugh. Finding no worth in replying, Hugh ignored them completely and walked along the deserted path, turning the corner of the building.

On the path leading behind the building, faint lighting and the sounds of crickets descended. Among them, carried on the breeze that softly brushed his cheek, came a faint singing voice.

Of the season that once shone brightly

the final flower falls.

As he followed the strangely familiar voice and turned another corner, his vision suddenly opened up to reveal the rear garden of the Roden Opera House. Though there was some distance to the woman sitting on the stairs leading up to the colonnade, Hugh recognized her at once.

It was Maylily.

Stepping off the path and hiding himself in the darkness covering the lawn, Hugh stopped when the song became clear enough.

Even if the petals scatter and vanish,

the fragrance of love remains.

Keeping time with the sound of crickets, the song resonating through the spring night carried the fragrance of blossoms. Maylily’s voice gradually soared into the higher register while maintaining a steady volume, amplifying its innate purity and elegance to the fullest. Each note she created painted the spring night’s scenery with vivid and distinct colors.

Under the soft light, beyond the scattering pink petals drifting down like heavy snow, Hugh gazed silently at the woman sitting demurely. Her face glowed with a vitality he had never before seen in her, as radiant as a star descending from the night sky to the earth.

Her porcelain-doll-like fair and delicate face, fine golden hair, and graceful curves were not all that defined her.

“I want to rise to the top by my own strength.”

Only now did Hugh finally understand why, on the day they first met, Maylily had been able to speak her innocent ambition with such a confident gaze.

Indeed, she truly possessed talent, so great and brilliant that even Hugh, who had no interest in music, could recognize it.

…our season will be eternal.

When Maylily’s song finally ended and silence descended, Hugh stepped back onto the path. The sound of his polished shoes striking the flagstones echoed through the rear garden like applause.

“……”

At the sudden sound that broke the stillness, Maylily froze and turned her head toward where the noise had come from. From the boundary of shadow and light cast by a large cherry tree in full double-petaled bloom, a pair of black shoes stepped forward.

Following that, her eyes traced up long legs, impeccably cut trousers, and a broad, sturdy chest fitted perfectly in a tailcoat. When her gaze finally reached the man’s face, Maylily gasped.

The Count of Everscourt… since when had he been here?

Had he come to find me? Did he hear my song?

As Maylily was swept up in confusion and bewilderment, the Count drew closer, step by step. Clad in a black evening coat, his figure was dazzling enough to overwhelm the surrounding scene.

Was black always such a splendid color?

Lost in a daze without realizing, Maylily suddenly noticed the Count had already reached the step before her and quickly jumped to her feet in surprise.

“Ah, um… I-I apologize, Count.”

She blurted out anything and hurriedly tried to leave, but of course the Count would not simply let her go.

“Stop there, Maylily.”

At the command that softly resonated through the night air, Maylily was forced to halt before she could climb all the stairs. Biting and releasing her lips, she slowly turned her body as the Count ascended the steps at an unhurried pace and came to stand on the step just below hers.

The distance between them, close enough that their breaths touched, felt uncomfortable. As Maylily tried to step up another stair, the Count firmly grasped her upper arm. Then, gazing down into her eyes, which were level with his nose, he gave a faint smile.

“How did it feel to see me tonight?”

“…Thank you for coming.”

“Not a greeting. Your thoughts.”

On top of his sudden appearance, the unfamiliar atmosphere he gave off made her stomach churn as though seasick. Lowering her trembling lashes and drawing a deep breath, Maylily replied faintly.

“…I am glad you came.”

Despite her words, her expression was like that of a woman who had run into a dangerous stranger on a dark street. In stark contrast to those who had been desperate to approach her tonight, Hugh chuckled at the absurdity of her reaction.

“Then, were you trying to run away?”

“Ah, it wasn’t running away… I only thought perhaps I might disturb you, since it seemed you had come out seeking quiet.”

“Your singing was pleasant to hear.”

“Ah…”

At his simple remark, Maylily’s eyes widened, and her cheeks instantly flushed a peachy hue, visible even under the crimson light.

“Thank you, Count.”

Her gentle gaze curved slightly, so subtly one might miss it without careful notice. The first smile Maylily showed Hugh was small and shy, like a flower bud just beginning to bloom.

So, she is weak to compliments.

Looking at her face as transparent as clear water, Hugh lifted the corner of his mouth. With the hand holding her upper arm, he slowly ran his palm down the length of her slender arm. Though he felt her tender body stiffen under his touch, he didn’t stop.