| Chapter 10: A Common Object

“I do not know him.”

“How could I, a noble, associate with a slave…?”

“I am a stranger to him.”

“No… no, this isn’t right…”

“Whatever you want… I will… promise.”

“You promised me. You promised… ugh.”

Between flickering consciousness, the same scenes replayed endlessly. Blue eyes, cold and distant as though looking at a filthy insect, bore down on him. Alexei flailed, reaching out toward them.

“Don’t go, don’t go… don’t look at me like that.”

Then—

“Alexei! Get a hold of yourself, Alexei!”

Someone was shaking him, gripping his body firmly.

‘…Who?’

The familiar sweet aroma of healing salve filled the air. The touch on his wounds was gentle, almost reverent.

His vision, blurred by dried blood crusted near his eyes, didn’t reveal much, but Alexei’s awareness sharpened in an instant.

‘I won’t let them escape this time!’

Without hesitation, he grabbed the hand tending his injuries.

“Don’t leave me. I’ve been waiting for you.”

He had known they would come. Even if they had coldly turned away before, he believed they would eventually return to treat him, just like that day when tears fell as they gently cared for him.

‘I knew it. You didn’t truly hate or despise me. I was right.’

The crusted blood around his eyes softened as tears welled up.

“Alexei! You really waited for me? I won’t leave! I’ll stay right here with you!”

A voice burst out, loud and overly emotional, as someone threw themselves into his arms.

“What the—!”

Alexei shoved the figure away forcefully.

“Ow! That hurts, Alexei! I rushed here because I was worried about you, and this is how you treat me? You begged me not to leave just a moment ago!”

Rita pouted and glared at him, her eyes glistening as if ready to cry.

“It was just a bad dream… I must have been talking in my sleep.”

Alexei muttered, looking embarrassed.

A dream.

Of course, it was a dream. The princess would never come back for him.

She never would.

Alexei sighed quietly, a wistful look crossing his face.

‘But that scent… What was it? It felt so real, as if it lingered in the air…’

Was he so far gone that he was now imagining even scents?

Perhaps he really was losing his mind.

“Was it a dream, Alexei? Well, it’s no wonder, considering the beating you took. No one would blame you for having nightmares. But what kind of dream was it? Was it about me? Were you dreaming of me leaving? You’re such a worrier…”

Rita’s endless chatter grated on him, and Alexei waved her off irritably as she clung to him once again. But then, something caught his eye.

“Give me that.”

Frowning, Alexei snatched the salve container from Rita’s hand.

“Hey! That’s mine! I was given that as a gift! I only brought it because I was worried about you…”

Rita puffed her cheeks in protest.

“Yours… you say?”

Alexei hesitated, glancing again at the salve in his hand. It was identical to the one that had been placed beside his pillow—though this one was newer, with its contents still full.
But for even a laundry maid to have the same salve?

‘It must be a more common item than I thought.’

With a calm expression, Alexei handed the salve back to Rita.

“It’s mine, but I brought it for you. Let me apply it for you, okay?”

“No need. Just go.”

“Don’t be like that. Your body is in terrible shape right now. Don’t be embarrassed; let me—”

“I don’t need it, so leave!”

“You’re so cruel, really!”

Rita threw the salve on the ground and stormed out, tears spilling down her face.

* * *
A few days later.

The gardens of Ivanov Castle were unusually lively as sunlight poured down on them. It was the first time in years that Sophia, the second princess of the duchy, had ventured outside her sickbed for a stroll.

Sophia sat in a wheelchair, her pale face framed by layers of blankets and shawls. Despite all the coverings, her attendants and physician each carried extra blankets, unable to rest easy.

Natasha, ignoring the maids’ insistence, was personally pushing the wheelchair. Her face carried a mix of concern and pride as she walked slowly behind her sister.

“Wow, so this is the Edelweiss flower! It’s so beautiful.”

When the wheelchair stopped gently before a rocky crevice, Sophia leaned forward, her face lighting up as she gazed at the flower.

“Isn’t it? Smell it, too. The scent is light but sweet, and it’s wonderful,” Natasha said warmly.

“I can’t really smell it from here. Can you pick one for me?”

“If I pick it, it’ll wither quickly, and we won’t be able to enjoy it anymore. Instead, let’s come out every day to see it. Let’s make that our routine.”

“Alright, sister.”
Sophia said, nodding from her wheelchair. Natasha smiled warmly at her.

“Close your eyes and focus on the scent. Can’t you feel the sweet fragrance wafting through the air?”

Sophia shut her eyes and inhaled softly. Natasha fanned the air gently toward her, as if to deliver every bit of the Edelweiss’s fragrance.

“Mmm, I can smell it! It’s so lovely.”

Sophia said, her smile spreading wide. Natasha’s heart melted, and a tender smile bloomed on her face as well.

‘So, she can smile like that too.’

Hidden among the tall grass, Alexei stared blankly at the beautiful scene before him.

The princess, always so composed and distant as if encased in ice, looked different now.

‘No, when she looks at me, she’s even colder… and the last time, there was even contempt in her eyes.’

Alexei’s gaze darkened, lost in thought.

‘If only she could smile at me like that, just once…’

A foolish hope stirred deep within his heart, even though he knew it was impossible.

‘A precious flower,’ she had called it.

Did she know it was he who had planted it?

He had traveled to the treacherous northern mountains, far beyond the duchy’s borders, to find the Edelweiss. He had brought it back, carefully preserving it, even though the journey had left him bedridden with altitude sickness for days. But seeing her smile now, it felt worth every hardship.

Even if that smile wasn’t meant for him.

Even if she never knew he was the one who had planted the flower for her.

As Alexei stole another glance at Natasha with a heavy heart, her words echoed in his memory.

“There is no such thing as a lowly person in this world.”

Had she meant those words for him?

For someone like him—a Knulu tribesman who had been spat on and degraded as “lower than dirt”—those words had struck like lightning.

“All people deserve to be treated with respect.”

Could it be that someone as lowly and wretched as himself could stand as her equal?

This thought, as revolutionary as it was, filled him with both hope and torment.

Slap!

The memory of Natasha being struck by Sergei came rushing back to him. The sight of the noble princess enduring such humiliation was more painful than the wounds on his own body.

How dare that vile, disgusting Sergei lay a hand on her! On that delicate, noble face, too precious to even gaze upon for too long!

Alexei had wanted to leap up, to grab Sergei by the throat, but his battered body had betrayed him, leaving him powerless to do anything but writhe in frustration.

“I do not know him.”

Her words of denial had been fitting, considering who he was.

Still, Alexei hadn’t missed the slight tremor in Natasha’s hand as she linked arms with Sergei—the man who had left a vivid red handprint on her cheek.

‘What must she have felt, clasping the arm of the man who struck her?’

‘And what must she think of me, lying there unable to help her?’
He couldn’t bring himself to blame her.

“You have my promise…”

Even if she had broken that promise she had once held so dear, Alexei could not—would not—resent her.

There, under the sunlight, Natasha’s radiant smile pierced through him. Clenching his fists tightly, Alexei forced down the surging emotions threatening to overwhelm him.