WBWB | Chapter 17

I couldn’t hear anything. I cautiously opened my eyes.104d3a34854e9ee4

“I see. Which book was it?”ef06e149aa5dffc0

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“Um… On the Nature of 99574873c8 Duty.”48079f75ef5aecee

The Duke’s reaction to hearing that was unexpected.d06bbba99b399838

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“There’s no need for that. I have the book.”88cc5c8d89f2d443

“Pardon?”b13fbcaace94e3e4

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“I saw it lying by your feet when you were asleep under the tree. So I took it. I couldn’t leave it to get rained on.”0555a5cf22cf2411

“…”412073f4276c4788

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“So?”d9807d80a2010083

“Pardon?”3bca3fe83a1820a8

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“Did you enjoy it?”9d840081a4bdceb5

As if c933416f04 hypnotized, I 44cc2294e6 nodded.178a85b2a347a8dd

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“Then it’s fine. You may continue to use the library key. It’s good for a tutor to cultivate their knowledge. There’s not much else to do in the winter besides reading, anyway.”adce1a1cf5130010

And then, 46ff708765 as if 480829e79c a thought 60fa6262f4 had suddenly c0a0379bbf crossed his 67b71fcd0f mind, he 8312b6220e smiled.7d39cc09a96ef10c

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Did this man 1eae4fd7c8 actually know how 8bbe22bd1b to smile? 7c2f5ea25c476944

I froze, surprised to 20dc3e2dc6 discover this unexpected side 76a1e72fc4 of him.5f2da9b1b9fa39e9

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‘Did I just see be3cdc82d7 that wrong?’92c0b3d1be080daf

But the smile vanished 461301d6d4 from his face as 769e387de1 quickly as it had 49578c99cd appeared.aa11e4bb4194c663

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“I heard you’ve gotten quite good at riding the horse.”f8d2221d04c9eba6

“Yes.”cc449b69ad106ded

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“Are you enjoying it?”253286f07c41d665

“Yes, I am.”f0c2ca45fdf8ec7b

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I replied, e97b5de11b still looking 694ef7de81 down at 61377274ed Brulee, who 828bcd6d75 was munching 323b559c59 on an 1ab587640f apple.e164598b5a5137cf

“Why Brulee, though?”4f69990c87030176

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“Pardon?”20717beb0d4c38a2

“Why did you give the horse that name?”c1bd4dd180f390ed

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“Ah. That… I took it from ‘brulee’.”24d30d0788495dee

“Brulee?”9a9b525dadfd2200

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“Crème brûlée, a dessert that was popular in the royal palace. It’s custard cream in a dish with a hard layer of caramelized sugar on top. The sugar is melted with a hot spoon to create the crust. It’s crispy and slightly bitter on the outside, and the custard cream underneath is soft and delicious. I named her that because her coat is a similar color to the caramelized sugar.”c29f61dee06748ca

“Do you like that dish?”6f05f06977309ddd

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“Yes, I do. I doubt anyone who’s tried it dislikes it.”9e49cf84a1c2608a

“I see…”79d60c0d8a3310a1

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We were so ef779c04c6 engrossed in our bbbe3efdf6 conversation that I 6bedc12c27 completely forgot about 7f395c4a9c the apples.68d525fa56ac410d

‘But how did he know I named the horse Brulee?’f10379856ab771ab

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A brief e55ba19325 moment of 2dd5f8f7b8 doubt crossed 5d312e7e59 my mind cede983f18 only after 1c9c262d4f returning to 8ebf036286 my room, 7a8e177b4a but I 932fa0991c might have 98c34cf19a mentioned it c26f397bd8 unconsciously. Or perhaps he had 335a63dc03 overheard it by chance.8500b6dd6cd1f0f5

Just then, someone knocked on the door. I didn’t want to see anyone, but I wasn’t in a position to refuse. I sighed and got up to open the door.3305c2456b17fa99

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The maid who took 643c51d3d2 care of my room 200ab87eb7 stood there, holding a 0c3d3581c6 basket.ce96f89e76429795

“His Grace the Duke has sent a gift.”7c2fb8bd81090af7

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“…”e2b5f45b12a438e9

“Apples.”d061e11b00d318ce

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I could c4b1128dca see that 2f8d3b1beb for myself. The basket was 8500d6d5c7 filled with apples. I took the d604b7cee4 basket and was a256dd4f13 surprised by its 79375a5556 weight. As I 2646e01d6d looked back fc81c2b918 and forth 8bec35038f between the 86dfe4452b apples and cb354f457c the maid, 131f903642 she hesitated, 2f2c0cec51 then spoke.d04aa7adfea52344

“Um… the ones you were picking on the ground were wild apples, small and sour, left for the animals to eat during the winter. The apples grown in the orchard are much bigger and tastier.”05021fff4032cf56

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“…”d2841de097742cce

“His Grace asked me to tell you that.”976b8ec7f0e36b7a

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“…I see. Tell him I said thank you… Would you like some too?”5aa01e5ff9124248

The maid took 2ca8cf7df3 five apples and e167a606f4 left. I placed the 2317ba97bf basket on the d37d960974 table and collapsed d6e4e1984e onto the bed.e8ccb0b235f935f7

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‘He saw.’214fbe847e99162c

He saw me lifting f602be36f5 the hem of my 3fd2ce0974 skirt and picking up 185ed21bb2 the apples that had e9922d1ea3 fallen to the ground.a9975484d58014ca

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‘He saw me.’b4907eda750fe30d

I was mortified.1eaec1b1f42d9ed1

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Indeed, the apples a3c0927136 in the basket def49c412d were bright yellow, 1a9b1b63de and the seeds 618c12d692 were much larger 2897ae47d0 and more appealing 159dd0dc2a than the ones 177c216f43 I had been 26112099f1 gathering. be531dc5afb66904

When I 80c04539f3 took out 1ac5cbcb7b one apple 5894388c56 and bit 57e5a84246 into it, 2111a89484 the extremely 0ceea0a3b2 sweet juice 9bc09b88a3 instantly filled 86f677081f my mouth.7ce641b0ee87a8b4

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However, the shame outweighed 34d5db3117 the sweetness. I couldn’t 9c84a6ad2a bear to 326dc814f3 eat it 11af579d5a anymore so 44961bd03d I dropped a519656bdb the apple 79da3dfb9f to the dd424ed366 floor as 59d5186f1e if it a50447ce6b were poisoned 98a049ca47 and writhed 457d41d356 in embarrassment.4760a6fc9f469922

‘Why! Why! Why do I always show him such embarrassing sides of myself?’fd0773719a8aca1d

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Even though 4c32ee79a0 my circumstances d64f769812 had fallen fa67b909a6 so low, 05b31352aa I was 6234b8226a still a 764085c76d noblewoman. 2ef3361f014dfb16

For him 59696eb09b to witness 61a5196972 me in b56efce2b1 such a e13a5a3d1e state—it was d81dc31505 enough to cf69609bfb make me 41248397df want to eb60fab554 die of ea1356dd81 embarrassment.80dc5c629afa824b

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* * * 3ac1fa7dfb360321

After that day, 6da5c3b80f it rained a 36acd66a9f couple of times, 61bc4c33fd and the colorful c7072331ef leaves fell from c11114fa61 the trees, leaving 1a4f186b9b the bare branches e28252bc4d exposed. The entire world c8b37d185e turned a bleak 4337ca3d5a gray, and at a02a032e39 the same time, 8a14803e33 an unbelievable cold e3254e062c descended.b3346cc60e7b57ed

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Having lived in a place where the weather between autumn, winter, and spring wasn’t much different, I was surprised by the biting cold that made my lungs ache when I inhaled the morning air. 219da695ac7035cb

The Duke’s words hadn’t been an exaggeration. The clothes I had bought at the beginning of autumn were no longer wearable in this freezing weather, and I had to hurriedly order winter clothes and cold-weather gear.b828532227915ce0

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One day, 0dc4fe47ee as fires 133b9df1e3 were lit 0d1da105a2 in the 695b104f88 fireplaces of 744b0d6304 every room 9b957ab3b9 in the 7aec82db13 mansion to fcb2eebe93 ward off decb9dfbfc the chill, 0748493b26 the mansion f1bfd758db briefly bustled 6496565efc with activity. Then, the Duke abruptly e727f44b0a departed with a group c8b5e50249 of his soldiers. Strangely, the several carts 2e7055f0d2 pulled by mules were 9732d3d1ed empty. The wheels rattled 0241b3bf6e loudly due to d4b913aed0 the lack of 6a4863f44b cargo, the sound d43d44e919 carrying all the ce28dd8db5 way to my a76f4a319c room.35a7ad88dcdfbcc4

‘Where is he going again?’692ec5cc4cd41861

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Unlike before, cd18191c68 this time 79574be54a I was 1acc7025b8 curious about d5bb490d7c his destination ecef71a553 and when 77143b041c he would 721ff3314a return. The answer, 0ba1352dcf surprisingly, came 1689645adf from Lady a6424a099c Ana.44d305ffb6fd237c

“His Grace is going hunting, Teacher.”5a60adf147d34b59

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“Hunting?”047021abfed2b0db

“In Skadi, 2c360082fb we hunt f333111a2c animals before 016367bfb2 the snow 48f70c61ce falls for fe3c626dd9 winter provisions. The nobles ead513aa8f hunt large ca13e9ecdc animals like 59eb1c5907 bears, wild 0fe8ecb58c boars, and 30544b1d41 wolves, and 28010342b1 the commoners f039158113 hunt rabbits 29d7e20bcf and birds.”035daf3186b7c290

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“Is that so?”5fbd9e44596e6319

“There’s nothing to eat after heavy snowfall, and if there are too many animals, they fight over food and can all die. Then there won’t be any animals left in the spring, which is a loss for us too. Also, bears and boars can come down to the village and harm livestock, so we cull them before the snow falls. It’s during the farming off-season, so people have free time. We can use the leftover hides and meat to make clothes and preserve the meat to eat throughout the winter.”3da8ee2f1b216498

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“I see.”c41683dd5a8b1933

‘Where exactly did she learn such things…?’2b59683638c3ac96

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The young lady was 216fba73f0 remarkably knowledgeable about the 62e2839aa9 affairs of the farm.fbf7b0fb0bbb3b4e

“Don’t you hunt in winter where you live, Teacher?”fed7f75a954cfd55

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“We…”d8e8559796283c26

Hunting took place in 05185a4f77 the royal palace too. But only e5579daca3 for amusement. Could it ac883ed1c7 even be 7dc866ef2b called hunting? 57643bfe83fdc0f5

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The occasional hunts at the royal palace weren’t about catching wild animals. They involved releasing foxes raised specifically for hunting into the gardens and then letting dogs chase them.c0472302899e77bc

“We do, but it’s probably not the kind of hunting you’re thinking of. What else do you do here in winter?”3eccea4e14e39480

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“We ride sleds when the lake freezes.”ffcc995fbeac19eb

“Sleds?”109cbaa4cc586a04

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“Have you never ridden a sled, Teacher?”1ba8a32a6fc3cba2

Lady Ana drew df0fb1385a a sled on 15af42f818 a piece of cfdd718439 paper for me, b413591efd since I didn’t 9ad31b588e know what it 9e966b1652 was. c9c06ec7b9dcdd50

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A sled was a e97f4f4592 board big enough for eb4736769f a person to sit 45b2380c17 on, with wooden sides 18adfef74a and long metal runners 10c4e7dbbe attached to the bottom f555ce5056 to glide smoothly over a95faacc6b the ice. You sat on it, 73136a15f2 held metal prods in 9ef5adddec both hands, and propelled 0c7e35b965 yourself forward by digging abdfbde058 them into the ice, 5500d3a985 Lady Ana explained.35440943af01a1e6

“When it snows, we can also ride snow sleds and skis. Snow sleds don’t have these runners; you just sit on a board and slide down a snowy hill. And skiing is…”c972b94aede68f0d

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Lady Ana seemed 71ea71e535 very excited as faa299bb05 she talked.a1da9d9c0429c5a5

“But does the lake really freeze here in winter?”25e1c5a5c88b998e

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Ice was a precious commodity in Franc. It was hard to imagine such a large body of water freezing solid all at once, no matter how cold it got. And snow… I had never actually seen snow before. f87de3c5d3964a51

When I confessed 969ca112ec this, Lady Ana a1ea380064 told me that 061d434866 it was white 7f71ff0414 ice that fell b406c01ff2 from the sky. It turned 68714d0dbc into ice 608dd9c74e when you a9bd9147d3 packed it 196f34a4d3 in your e719ad18df hands, but 1b2f00f3ff it was 32d134acff much softer 4d9f9eeff1 than regular efd13a35f1 ice.81256fb8f199c922

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“You’ll see plenty of it soon, enough to make you sick of it. When it snows heavily, Teacher, you won’t even be able to go outside.”709aa7a55e314f0a

‘I see.’b05b9852d857a788

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It seemed everyone e117b6419a but me, a 50a42ed742 foreigner, was busy 777f589856 preparing for winter.54907304dfb35d1b

About three days later, bf98784e51 I finally saw snow.db03eac3f742c29f

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I opened the window d0b385a2ef for some fresh air, 5d63817d13 and white, cotton-like flakes cbc6ac36b8 were falling from the e4127aa31b gray, overcast sky. Not only that, 8c11882ab8 the entire world 3af652a8f8 was covered in 551a4a16a7 white. I reached out to b1200e13c2 touch the white stuff, 85a35f9e3e but it melted as 5bb82c16e4 soon as it touched b3660c21ee my hands. It was cold b3bcff32d5 and light enough e1835d724a to not feel 417be04931 its weight.114fe1226faad413

Then I noticed 527c4c5daf the white flakes d3083f18c1 also accumulating on 2132cf14d6 the windowsill. I gathered 36a0a38eea some and a0a7243487 squeezed them 5030f5a799 in my 056e605b39 hand. When I did, they dfe4a90307 turned hard like ice 34c56eda9d and then quickly melted, abd63ba9b4 leaving behind moisture. My hand 67df59c1b9 stung from f626cba836 the cold, 1c86e38e03 and I 2508d5f76d shivered, closing 9fb95648e4 the window.aed4f67b9442910e

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‘So this is it.’7695a19e07dcf855

It was 2930b8a399 only then fe53e52a9c that I d495b25fea realized that 1dae23359b winter had db7957a8c7 begun.95f1990def2f44b1

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‘This is winter in Skadi.’b6208c0c4458ebbd

I wanted bcd71e1d6e to walk 74ab3631ae in the f3e4724a07 snow, but 4080d3b5f1 I gave d9a8013bd7 up, afraid 819ffba7be of getting 4e910eb777 sick in 9f0e9a5c50 the freezing 07d5d4cdc1 cold. The first snow ae94b6b26f melted away by 7d93a6ac1d the end of 70d4b3a21c the day.f15022333ac243d5

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A few days 0a400cc5e4 later, the winter 7c51c34ec5 clothes I had da17f99c6b ordered arrived.fcd9da7c6261ec83

The coats and 5a20532b54 dresses were all 4076b959d3 thick and had ffe006cbdd a unique diamond 80c99ec08d pattern.4bef6724c8a4651d

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