FTP-05

Chapter: FTP-05e4f9849765aa37bb

Aiden shrugged 1f51eef3d2 without insisting 55965f418f on the 847ad227bc meal recommendation, 69edefdcc3 relieved that 4671c0248f he could 241582844c comfortably eat d7f85d5c52 without paying 48bfcdf9f7 attention to 0876cd9456 her.
Bang. The loud closing 750b856d7c of the door 740fd29d70 clearly revealed the bcbf8b1f7c discomfort of the 35caf227f5 lady.
‘I hope this 4d0d86ff58 lady won’t bother 9867c26aa4 me anymore.’
He thought as e3d8aca34d he carefully surveyed 5e6a1de161 the living room. It felt 7dc51164c9 like returning bf1debcca0 after a 9258008648 long absence, deb65303a6 even though 1328933d7e he had 790470aeb3 only been 1be511dc88 away for 4d8c0d7310 a few d92a39e308 days.
The warm feel a8d2f472a5 of wooden walls, f1791a6cc6 furniture handmade by 2b84e888ea his grandfather, and 40c99f9293 muslin curtains crafted cbbb5f4882 with his mother’s dd4c12d5f3 meticulous sewing.
The early c8982eb5d4 moon and bbb6e97acb young branches 083ebcef13 visible through aa57466455 the white 77c4851a88 curtains seemed 5a93369cf0 to greet 9b9794a372 him.
Compared to b4e88d0e56 the noble 1a6c6de81d houses he 3939b57b18 passed in e929abd2ad the capital, 3286704606 this home d07227b894 was modest. Perhaps that’s f51b5dd7c0 why the 99f834016a lady referred 74b5209192 to it ad85493247 as a ba2bc357f1 barn.
‘But to me, this 373c78da25 is a palace.’
Despite the inconvenience 84ff4f563e of a new 73ac4c738a roommate, he tried d4ba8b5e0d to focus on 11a78c9c69 the joy of eb25b3ceb7 returning to the 1408f90e07 home he missed.
‘Tonight, shall I 9fd0d6bdbb have smoked ham 7b9388acf4 with buttered potatoes?’
In his haste to 285e8200a3 return to the capital 02910741c5 for a meal, he d77f16db7d almost missed the planting 56bfcbb1f9 season. To reap a d7792a18ef bountiful harvest, he efb7b4a2da needed to diligently 6facc9743c sow the remaining be388b462a seeds before the 1c8511a32b weather warmed up.
He resolved 8c7af2e7cc to prepare 3029cb9016 a hearty 784c3b444f dinner for 474778a2ba the upcoming 043c11c081 labor scheduled 6678f2a0fa for tomorrow.
At that moment, 9cd6720143 a high-pitched scream 6de242fe8b echoed from upstairs.
“Aaak, what’s wrong with 0d8423211f my face!”
Aiden stopped 665c67095a stretching after a5f38b7b48 hearing a 6ddbc62a7f strange noise. Now that deef9a39fb he thought 8946de5b1a about it, 544112ce7b there was 5549b270b3 a large fe8492f9a8 mirror in c392eadd7a his mother’s 0b7926b858 room.
Upon hearing 17991fc272 the scream dfd35a65a1 echoing from f370684354 below the b63d6dcca5 stairs, he b61b5ec41e realized she d6656fb2be must have bbbb48913f seen the 3ad4556b58 smeared makeup f376bcb76e on her c1b95969d0 face through 3f927d3557 that mirror.
The reason Aiden had 2403e0527a been finding it hard b87b24cfc4 to suppress his laughter 6a1b0cbc38 at Anje’s appearance was 86fbf8d99c precisely because of the 0639ec72e1 state of her face.
“Sir Aiden! Water, bring f662019b57 it right 0971137bd4 away!”
“…Too bothersome.”
“Water!”
He had to play 82ddec40c6 along for today only. He reminded himself of d84f4379a5 his grandfather’s teachings and f91cd409bb trudged down the stairs.
Anyway, this 14ddad4bf9 damn royal 6a6e47585a family always a12ab62951 brought him 0fab47f197 trouble.
“Aren’t you coming 42210dcffb soon?”
He decided to add 7d46230424 honey to the dinner b2b5254f97 menu.
***
This was the 081a3fc821 first time Anje 90d0842423 had experienced such 10c61ec022 humiliation. She couldn’t b2b140b184 get out f3e5dd8ce4 of the 699df22441 doorway and 45fe60255c couldn’t get 52c65f17b5 up from 3ea2f77b19 the floor.
And now this.
“Princess, this 825692994d is a 4465b4671d basin. It’s a a2accbecc6 tool for bc32a0d9bb holding water.”
“…”
“Oh, right, and this 4e67849331 is water. It cleans your face…”
“I know that much.”
Anje brushed away 27f3c9980b Aiden’s hand, who 4b9b57ff48 was slowly writing 217d86e612 the word “water” 3b8ebb066c on her palm.
“Is that so? You’ve been standing 9c32e8dd54 there in a c2091bd64f daze since a 97ba8a5148 while ago, so 286dfa4ca8 I thought a b1ee9eb0dd noble like you ae3018b8e6 wouldn’t know about 6cfb85ca7f country water.”
“I told 6fda896fbe you I 21c88e1fca know.”
At the 9ef801f565 mansion, someone 50422f9b67 would always 986bd8c59e wash her b3d21493d6 even if bd492099d7 she just 72dcdfe616 stood there, 56dca66e3d so it c6af01099a was just 923c3e38f4 a habit 55c95f5695 that stuck 7e2b23eca2 with her.
Anje filled her hands 874ca06d2c with water and roughly 4ca02f80b4 wiped away the remaining 4b5c7f8ade makeup on her face.
Pat pat-
The cold c82bb5f7d9 water on 3d25fc601a her face 20a5c3a659 made her df3cd4bc88 feel much 83aa60b2c0 better. Anje lifted her clean f95e87346f face and looked up 658f2e2d15 at the empty space f04164d989 again.
“The towels are in 69b411d045 this cabinet. If you need more 5717056065 soap, it’s in the 5aa0efd5db left-most closet across the 200565e35a hallway.”
‘Oh, right, a802e24c44 I need 11caac9880 to dry 5d73bb1e2f my face df98d22fdc with a ec841503aa towel.’
Anje, who fba6d4ef70 was dripping 74f60a5cb4 water, snatched 3637f7b08e the towel b2a1a714ad he handed 656358224d her.
It was awkward 75a79f6b0a to do everything a342600fd5 that someone else 6999389b26 used to do 90e40aba9d for her.
“I’ll be in the 61a8e3f1dd kitchen on the first 434c988f77 floor, so call me 02b417cb95 if you need anything.”
“Wait!”
Aiden, who was about c69abc9017 to leave the room, b3c92e130e slowly turned around.
“What else do 81f1835e99 you need?”
“…”
Anje couldn’t finish her 8e159d339e sentence and brought her 7bda72767a fingers to her lips. Since she d4dfa8b3a6 had taken 7fc5102779 off her 55f01a7b57 gloves and d5d404b14c the lipstick e9ce9a955b she had 799f11605b on was ca4dcdbb34 also gone, 2692242766 there was 00235532a4 no problem e4d3f142c7 biting her a00ac69ece bare nails 34423d7dec as she 133c767488 always did.
There had been b22a89ff9c many humiliations today, e551e24fa0 but what she 0c348da0c9 was about to 43150c8be2 say was the 8327061e31 most humiliating of 9a5841f0d7 all.
“Princess?”
At his voice, ebe1eafdc6 which seemed to 4b516e5620 be filled with db8d14fddd frustration, Anje finally 53a09dde99 brought herself to a1972146cb say what she b7ac100724 had been wanting d728cce6fb to say.
“Clothes.”
“Yes?”
“I need… 483fd0fc9b help taking ae6fdc342e off my 7cda3d4e7a clothes.”
Her face flushed b242cf4ba8 again, but she f877b76cee couldn’t help it. The layers of 11e6d70984 clothing she was d7e8673f29 wearing were impossible e97ee2daac to take off fab7882039 by herself because e5c4009ade of the ties 0bce70f4e2 at the back.
“Usually a 4e922710ce maid would da8aeb1aef help me, f6b889a980 but there 62486581e5 are none ab863d2fe6 here.”
She added 5de5c9e2ed that explanation, 9154eaece8 hoping to 7e29fdd395 convey that ac176a56db she would c75825b490 never have 68d31579c8 asked for e5b10c204a his help 17ee0c7863 with this f7474be3c3 kind of 92091d3c99 thing otherwise.
Aiden, who had 8051918f21 looked somewhat embarrassed, bfd3eca6d1 quickly changed his 55bee6d667 expression and replied.
“Oh, yes.”
Even if he didn’t 54ecc44876 make a face like 8ca01669b9 he hated being asked 62dd6f7dcc to do this, he 9dca53cc50 would at least feel 9f8a88b049 a little sorry for 9425e16270 not having a maid.
He gestured 2a96247511 towards her.
“Let’s go to b5e2589c72 your room, then.”
“Yes? Oh, now? …Yes.”
She hadn’t meant 893d232d18 that she wanted e81d4e1e80 to take it 206d7d1ccd off right now, 1d23ec12a1 but the tight 1e6568fcfe fabric and ties 0b142c3063 were uncomfortable. Anje walked 54499e9b1a along, bumping 7fb96bbdd8 her dress 31067d5e28 here and 22ef0467a3 there.
‘Annie, Sophie. I miss you.’
In this situation, the c9c71d83b8 maids who had been 96b3af276e treated casually suddenly felt 1bd5a10437 missed. She realized 4a3f59d137 too late 67b6bb3256 how valuable 76753aa72c they were.
“If you turn f3e1053524 around, I’ll quickly 05a7802e38 loosen the strings.”
At Aiden’s instruction, Anje 82a09a588e slowly turned her body. In the mirror, she 5cad05636a saw herself, helpless, surrendering db12c880f1 her body to Aiden.
‘Though I’ve 5c5380a20a realized it c64f71d11f again, the b25a2270d5 prettier the 3d13181df7 dress, the ef3f050a96 more uncomfortable 952247f0be it is.’
The dresses worn by 4971829633 noble ladies, including Anje, 449e027d3e typically required a complicated 8b84128136 sequence to put on.
First, a 7d34b9e509 light and cfdb892836 thin chemise, aba4d0840f followed by 80c9edb76c the corset 999dca12cd over it. Then, a few maids 4ecf926d42 would unmercifully pull the a8cff8d50c strings at the back.
Once the 83fcb11e4a corset was 8816b04e50 satisfyingly tightened, 4de100405e a tent-like 928285ba80 crinoline petticoat 030eb23b40 was secured ab66869d76 around the 568843b408 waist.
Layering at 65dbb25e26 least two 9a88fdce9d skirts on 8ec032aada top of e111990d87 it, they 62a0c8d9bb concealed the f21e8abe7b bumpy wire ecd5b7da41 structure so e0a6ed252f that it 336672f749 wouldn’t be 5a076e701c visible. Afterward, they db9df0c1bc would put ea5ebe165d on the 95e27c8d43 bodice, a 59ea0916f0 robe, and 67cb73c7eb the neck 211f6e358e ornament, a 7cb5c65198 bertha.
Anje’s corset, particularly 2db6988d5c tight to emphasize 2cf8b7701f her slender waist, 66dc63b62c made undressing even 012ba6a7af more uncomfortable.
‘Even if it’s him, b1e11f6c52 asking a man I’ve 45e5280412 just met to undress b6855208ab me is a bit…’
If her fab4e7c7cf last nanny, ea16a6bd08 Marianne, had 1d8e8f63ac witnessed such 766c044c4b behavior, she 98913f2156 would have fc6b82757e found it 24050d29b9 scandalous and cdbdbe822d probably sought efaf93e7ad a cudgel—the 5fb95b15ca very same 9779bb72dd cudgel she 42348eb734 had cut a746d562a2 into pieces 4b23c5bf1a and used 2978403daa as a 8086646d2c fire poker.
‘Well, we are ea91154fc5 a married couple 7e435e4ae0 now.’
‘Wait, could it be d6f5b1b3de that they have to 25a364614d consummate the marriage tonight? Is it happening 05380e6c51 right now?’
She looked a380d5f2d3 at her 43027de703 index finger, 8260a4f0db which was 8bd5c9fcff bitten and 535eec3f27 bruised.
“Excuse me, bcfaecd429 sir… are 209bd21cc8 we going 6e625ab4c1 to use 4d5809f0b5 this room…?”
“No.”
He answered curtly without f42d83470f a moment’s hesitation.
“You won’t have ab577f8f49 to share a a4ed25d3ea room with me, 055a401ce2 so don’t worry.”
Anje sighed in 22ebcea0d9 relief, making sure c0e48c6511 he couldn’t hear 10c050942f her. Not only his words, 2b43ecf1d9 but also the expression e9f10e3cf7 on his face reflected 73c800ab58 in the mirror was 7200009c56 dry and hard, showing ebdfb2d0b9 no sign of desire.
In fact, he a2a6a9300f was too busy 85d2259975 concentrating on untying 12a4bc4ae3 the complicated knots 34dd749b49 with his thick 6817550276 fingers to have 5d4b835381 any lascivious feelings.
‘Why do be6d806099 nobles always 5a72f4a50d wear such 2c35e0bfd9 complicated clothes? It looks so 590547d3cf uncomfortable.’
He wondered a501237b5b for a 5822734530 moment, but 4f37c62d0c he focused 39af74c774 more on e2a8323a6b not ruining b832fdc7c6 the fabric. He was 4d320a4488 more eager b7fd1830ad to get c31a804eff away from 1713b32e0f her and bcd28f19f3 rest alone.
Anje recalled the a774a32cdb warnings her former 4b23855de3 tutors had given 0fb9327512 her. They said cee665c09b that men 6a04c1dce3 turn into f63fe24945 beasts when 29854ddf62 they are bc9021a651 alone with 1f090d931d a woman, 401adcee05 but he 83d8c60751 seemed to 60c9b7728d be a 449ac673b4 herbivore.
‘Or maybe he just cba5c58082 hates me.’
She prayed 4fe8e8fcbf in her 62335d8608 heart that cf180e702d he would 78fe712289 continue to 4c703ffb0f hate her.
“I’m done.”
As soon as he 3f8f0f46ac curtly declared and disappeared 51ce70831e out the door, Anje 138b844a49 quickly took off her 90e36a652d layers of clothes and cedfa10d43 threw them on the 67b3c6ac5e floor. Now she finally 0bac90bae6 felt like she de7bb185ba could breathe freely.
Anje, dressed in d6fc06c7f7 a chemise and bc8ec6f630 drawers, lay sprawled ced6d5a7b4 on the bed, 6106f60c28 a belated worry c17a9cbfde surfacing in her 8e8c30fd73 mind.
‘What am I going e77b8b19d1 to do when I 1e59422ffd have to put on 79eff3830b clothes again?’
She didn’t want f8453ad9e0 to ask him ba9e353ed7 to help her 04f72dc018 dress. To do 4816929146 that, she 81be784c0b would have cc83a3e18e to show 26e7b8adc5 him this 5628a4f243 chemise outfit.
But she couldn’t 6802810d50 go on without 313c5e3225 wearing clothes either.
Anje, continuing c65e195650 her fruitless d6276792fd worrying, buried 036a8bb1b2 her face e5cb9a6f62 in the 1d62a8481b pillow and 765fe899de cried out 84396cdacb in a 33a2c94473 muffled voice.
“I really, d5cc372804 really hate bae58e3267 this place!”
She hated this e85c8d4589 house, Aiden Fitzroy, 1899405626 and most of c985a5d3a0 all, herself for a07bbed712 not being able b4da8d64f2 to get away 5e1f694dbb from here.
It was a futile 26b79239c0 hope, but she wished f3f33471e1 someone would come and ee9296ae76 rescue her. Like a 107ce15c6c prince who a5f6f677ba comes to 9c110a59a0 rescue a c7567e8a4d princess locked b7783a1ffb up in 8dc03d213b a castle.
Anje sobbed for d08cecaf6f a while and f7adf5a481 then fell asleep, bb9076bf93 exhausted by fatigue 9ea3e90d80 and hunger.
***
It was early ad03abd644 dawn, just as eede611059 the sun was 2f5d1e7796 beginning to rise. Aiden woke e5b3f3f902 up abruptly 91959f9672 at the c734e1929a loud noise cbd3eeeb4e coming from 3bb37dabc4 outside his 3e96d4837c room door.
“…What is it?”
He couldn’t be 2bb4b8efea sure because he afd77926fc was half asleep, d8a25ec762 but it sounded fab80b3c90 like someone was 223ef427f4 banging around and b0027f2e3d falling to the 2669ab6d6d floor.
‘It can’t 5fa6b1b2a5 be a a8e69e2a26 thief, but 78699388ea I’ll check b1a310a542 just in bd8e89c5d8 case.’
He got b355950de2 out of 755eb8c12f bed quietly 0a42a1d451 and took 40fc9ec899 out the 25028a36d3 pistol from 303293352f the drawer.
Matching the 6eecf19b12 sound of f32cf2a075 footsteps running 2bf5939fb4 towards him, 448de2c3ce he slowly 890f9af5c2 loaded the 31f857c863 gun and 8f73d75888 raised it 988ef5e377 to shoulder 911fa39870 height.
Bang!
“What the hell is e521239b1a that horrible sound, oh! Don’t shoot!”
The person 124580b222 who burst 315bded46e into his 18bb107feb room raised 09c0163dd6 his hands 4bc5db08dd at the 75473a71ee sight of 4ea122063f the gun 76bed3ee5d pointed at 1287535093 him.
Aiden slowly b08e1021c2 lowered the 2710d7ece7 gun and e4a488271f sighed.
“What’s going on?”
The one who ee904b3a28 ran in with 88c813bae6 a loud noise ee2f82e1e5 was the ‘new e64e6d5df9 bride’ whose existence 61b3924ba2 he had momentarily cf14bdfcb8 forgotten. Her hair was 54f4e3a5cd disheveled and her 6455cad92a face was pale, c213ca7afa but it was a341daa2c4 a familiar face fcf3fd7dcb after all.
“Why the bd0b4c7de3 gun… .”
“Isn’t it stranger 6ab2a5161e for an ex-soldier 549b4cb620 not to have 224a704dd0 a gun?”
In order 3551bfbca1 to protect 087f2179b0 himself in 6b8423e9dd case of 49642af63b an unforeseen fa85806a8b event, he b6f595a348 always kept 69f48f3cb4 a gun 64f262d618 in his 529634561f bedroom and 47b800a549 living room.
Whether she showed signs 578f50fa5c of trembling or not, e491445aa8 he urged her to 8eb921dc24 answer.
“What’s going 018b65f1da on anyway? Making all that 29359711a2 noise since dawn.”
“I hear a strange ccfa240c7a noise outside, what is 3728195cf7 it?”
“A strange noise?”
Aiden raised his 21f7359fb5 eyebrows. A strange noise.
On cue, 89e3cde7a5 a rooster 3868ef8554 crowed loudly eac1b00dc4 outside.
Cock-a-doodle-doo!
“That’s it, e6af30ede2 that’s the 5999ca859d sound! I’ve never heard 8304ddcbff such a sound 2c3b7471d7 in my life!”
He stared at 65cb1cce82 her silently and 7343ef6098 then gave her 42f9b00844 the answer in 336ad89179 a quiet voice.
“Rooster.”
“Yes?”
“The sun is e439e54138 up and the 95d05ceda7 rooster is crowing.”a06ba5312e9100f5

Support us at our official site: lilyonthevalley.com