Chapter 30

With Alec’s order, less household chores were assigned, but Evely was always busy moving. As if the attention and leeway given to her wasn’t enough, she sometimes looked for other tasks to do when she was not serving her master.

Today, as she was wiping the dust from the window sill while Alec was out of the room, she heard a voice calling her.

“Evely! Are you busy?”

Briana stood, looking brighter than usual.

“I’m not busy.”

“You’re not?”

Briana smiled and whispered quietly as she clapped her hands together.

“Then can I talk to you for a second? I have something to say.”

Evely looked around surreptitiously to see if there was anyone around, then nodded. It wasn’t something she had to finish in a hurry, so she figured it would be okay to resume the dusting later.

“Isn’t the garden beautiful?”

They went out to the garden. Briana looked at the flowers that bloomed in places with wistful eyes, as if this garden belonged to her.

Indeed, the garden of this castle was beautiful. It was the garden that made the majestic but rather dull-looking castle seem so much prettier. The gorgeous blooming flowers and neatly landscaped garden wrapped up the atmosphere of the castle elegantly and gracefully, just like her blunt master.

“I keep thinking every time I see this garden.”

“What do you think about?”

Briana chuckled and continued.

“About marriage.”

“Why are you talking about marriage all of a sudden?”

“I’m getting married. To Aaron.”

As Briana stopped walking, Aaron was seen just a few feet away.

“Briana, you’re here.”

Briana ran over and hugged Aaron. Evely looked at them alternately with surprise and covered her mouth with both hands.

“Oh my God, you’re getting married?”

Evely knew Briana had a crush on Aaron, but she had no idea that they would actually marry.

Looking at the two of them side by side, Evely thought they looked good together. Briana was smiling like a child before going on a picnic, and Aaron was looking at Briana with serious eyes.

“I wanted to be the first to tell you.”

“Why are you telling me this now? It’s such good news!”

“Why? Because I’d be embarrassed if it didn’t work out.”

Briana scratched her neck in embarrassment. Then, as she remembered just now, she changed the subject.

“Oh, I’m sorry, I forgot to introduce you. Aaron, this is my friend, Evely. You know her, don’t you?”

“Of course.”

“I’m Evely Siranen.”

There were many personnel working in the castle. But almost all of them knew about Evely. The rumor that she was a servant who slept with her master had spread secretly.

“I’ve heard a lot about you from Briana. I’m Aaron Herace.”

Usually, slaves don’t have last names. Their presence in the castle meant that they were originally commoners, like Evely. It seemed that Aaron had a story too.

“And the Master? Has he given his consent?”

“Now I’m going to ask. I’m sure he will let me. For it has always been so.”

The marriages of servants and maidens depend on the permission of their masters. Alec was the one who would allow them to marry, and everyone praised Alec for being so generous, but for Evely, he was just indifferent.

“If he says no….can you speak to Master? I beg you.”

Not that there were no maidservants who often asked Evely for favors. They wanted to get something through Evely instead of asking the master themselves, but Evely refused all of those requests.

It wasn’t because she didn’t want to help what those people were asking. It was also because such requests were usually of the kind that tried to “make” something “impossible” possible, and most importantly, because she was not that kind of person.

She was just a servant who slept with her master a few times, so he was a bit generous with her, that was all. Human beings are susceptible to pleasure, so it was only natural that he was generous in bed.

“Yes. I’ll try.”

But Briana’s request was not wrong, and it would be nice to help someone who was worthy.

“Really? Thank you, Evely! You’re all I’ve got! Thank you so much!”

The moment she saw Briana jumping with joy, Evely felt strange.

Actually, all she could do was to bring up the subject once to Alec, but Briana was so happy that Evely felt as if she was someone who had a great deal of influence over him. She felt flattered as if she was a very special person. It was only for a short time, but it was still useful to someone. It was a pleasant feeling.

“By the way, what do you like most about Briana?”

Evely asked Aaron with a mischievous look in her eyes, wondering how they managed to get married it was a one sided love for Briana.

“I’ve never seen anyone more beautiful than the flowers I’ve been growing.”

For a moment, Evely’s eyes widened as if she had heard something impossible, but she quickly smiled. It was a little awkward, but she thought it sounded romantic.

“When do you plan to have the wedding?”

“As soon as Master agrees.”

Aaron replied on behalf of Briana, who was embarrassed. The servants’ marriages were not complicated anyway, as they were so simple that they just needed to promise each other a future.

“Good for you, Briana. Congratulations. Sincerely.”

Briana looked more beautiful than ever as she looked at Aaron with red cheeks and shining eyes.

‘I’m so jealous. Marriage.’

But then someone’s face flashed through her mind. Evely, flustered by the unexpected, said her greetings.

“I’ll be going now.”

While following Evely’s footsteps, Briana waved her hand until Aaron was invisible. Then Evely asked,

“Are you really happy?”

“Yes, of course I’m happy. How about you?”

“He seems like a nice guy.”

“No, I’m not talking about Aaron! Is there anyone you like?”

“No.”

“Really?”

Briana asked, narrowing her eyes as if she didn’t believe it. Hesitating, biting the back of her lip, Evely finally confided her true feelings.

“No, I like… Master. I think I like him, a little.”

Briana couldn’t help but screamed.Then she looked around knowing her voice was too loud.

“You can’t sleep with him because you think you like him! You shouldn’t like him. You can’t give your heart away. You don’t know when he’ll get tired of you, and you will be thrown away like a broken fork.”

“I have no choice.”

Things that were no longer of use could easily be thrown away. It was up to the owner at that point. Evely knew that better than anyone.

“It’s okay.”

“You can’t fall in love with master. It’s very lonely. Besides, he has a wife….”

“I know, I know. I’m thinking of switching as soon as I find someone better.”

Evely deliberately replied lightly, feeling that the mood was getting too heavy. She said it as a prank, but Briana pounced on it with a twinkle in her eyes as if it was just the right idea.

“It’s good to change! Oh, right. How’s Daniel? Daniel Howard! Did you know he’s been asking about you?”

“About me?”

“Yeah. He has a crush on you.”

Daniel was a merchant. Evely remembered seeing him a few times. The store he ran was doing quite well and he was a handsome man. So on the days he brought his wares, a few servants would dress up to get his attention.

“Aaron heard him talk about you before. He complimented you on how beautiful you are. He said he wished he had a wife like you.”

“Really?”

“Let’s ask Aaron to introduce you to Daniel later. They know each other well. Is that okay?”

“Yeah, let’s do that.”

Evely couldn’t help but smile and nod as Briana was chatting happily.

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