Chapter 54
The Letter
“It would be better if you kept your distance, Lady Lorencia.”
Magus narrowed his eyes at the two standing before him.
“But Lord Magus,” Lorencia replied, “the Marquis of Spencer told me that being by his side is the safest place in the world and that I must never leave it.”
“That’s right, Lady Lorencia. You’re safest beside me.”
Magus sighed deeply. He could understand Lorencia’s naivety—she had been sheltered her whole life—but he never imagined Teishar would act this way.
He looked ready to give up his liver and gallbladder for her.
“Then, Lady Lorencia, could you tell me about the future you saw?”
“Prince Luance is preparing for a rebellion. I saw a future where he becomes emperor and starts a war.”
“A dreadful future indeed.”
“I intend to twist that future, Lord Magus. It’s my turn now to tell you a long story.”
Lorencia sat up in bed, her hair tousled from sleep. She reached out to the small bell beside her bed and gave it a shake.
“Lady Lorencia, you’re awake! I’ve brought you some hot cocoa.”
The door opened, and Amelin entered, pushing a trolley with a steaming cup of cocoa on top. Lorencia smiled softly and reached for the cup. The sweet warmth spread through her body, filling her morning with gentle comfort.
“Good morning, Amelin.”
After revealing to Magus the truth she had learned and the future she knew, Lorencia finally felt clear about what she must do next. She had cried a great deal during that talk—perhaps that was why the tightness in her chest had vanished. Her head and heart both felt light.
“The master was very upset this morning,” Amelin said, “because he couldn’t see you today. He seemed truly miserable.”
“That can’t be helped.”
Amelin took out a violet-colored envelope from her pocket and handed it to Lorencia. As soon as Lorencia caught the faint fragrance on the paper, a smile spread across her face.
“It’s a letter from the master, written for you, my lady. He asked that you please send a reply.”
“Of course. I’ve learned to write now, so I can answer him myself.”
The letter was simple. He wrote that the weather was so beautiful today he wished he could take a walk with her, and that while writing, he nearly cried from missing her so much.
“What should I write back?” Lorencia murmured, reading it again.
“Amelin.”
“Yes, my lady?”
“If I write that I miss him too, do you think he’d like that?”
“He won’t just like it—he’ll love it.”
Amelin smiled as she watched Lorencia’s bright expression.
Then she recalled how, before dawn, Teishar had summoned both her and Evan, fretting endlessly.
“I can’t be by Lady Lorencia’s side today. How will she get through her morning without me?”
“If you finish your schedule quickly, you can go to her later, my lord.”
“We’ll take good care of her in your place, master,” Amelin assured.
“But I want to be the one serving her. Sometimes I wish I were Amelin.”
“Then we’ll do twice the work, for both you and ourselves.”
Teishar had looked truly distraught—tormented by the simple fact that he couldn’t stay by Lorencia’s side. It was exhausting to listen to, but as loyal attendants, they endured. No matter how many times he repeated himself, they responded earnestly and soothed his unease.
“Why do I get so anxious and irritable just from being apart from her? I feel like I’m losing my mind.”
Teishar always began and ended every sentence with Lorencia’s name.
Evan and Amelin both understood what he was feeling.
He was in the stage of denial—the “this can’t be love” phase.
“Then why not write her a letter, my lord?” Evan suggested.
“A letter?”
“Yes. I’ll deliver it myself—and bring her reply back right away.”
Evan knew that feeling all too well. He’d once poured his own heart into letters for Amelin, and they had worked wonders. So he recommended Teishar do the same. Teishar agreed eagerly and began to write.
“Was writing always this hard?” he groaned, tearing up page after page.
“Just write what’s in your heart for Lady Lorencia,” Evan advised.
“I can’t just write ‘I miss you’ and end it there!”
“Then start with something simple—like the weather today.”
Taking Evan’s advice, Teishar wrote a short letter that began and ended with “I miss you,” filling the page with the same sentiment over and over.
That letter, full of longing, now rested in Lorencia’s hands. She couldn’t hide the smile that spread across her face as she finished reading.
“If I send my reply right away, he’ll be happy, right, Evan?”
“Very happy, my lady.”
Lorencia sat at her desk. On it lay a quill, an ink bottle, and blank white stationery.
“The moment I woke up, Lady Lorencia’s face came to mind.”
She recalled that line from his letter and began to write calmly.
“When I saw the cocoa, I thought of the Marquis of Spencer.”
Just then, another letter arrived—from Teishar again.
“Another one? But I haven’t even sent my reply yet.”
Lorencia opened it, and laughter instantly brightened her face.
His second letter was far shorter than the first.
“I’m not all right right now.”
Lorencia burst out laughing. Her laughter filled the room, and she looked down at the letter she had been writing, then tore it up.
His first letter said I miss you again and again. His second said I’m not all right. It was as if he were confessing that being unable to see her made him not all right at all.
“I can’t take it. This is too much,” she said, still smiling.
Amelin watched in quiet amusement. She didn’t know what the letter said, but seeing Lorencia so openly emotional and joyful was heartwarming. Evan, too, smiled to himself.
“I laughed too much. I should hurry and write him back…”
Remembering the words Teishar often said when comforting her, Lorencia quickly finished her reply.
“All done.”
“Already?” Amelin blinked.
Lorencia’s reply had come far faster than expected.
“A single line is enough,” she said. “Evan, could you deliver this to the Marquis of Spencer?”
“Right away, Lady Lorencia.”
When Evan handed over Lorencia’s reply, Teishar read it, lowered his head, and began laughing uncontrollably. Just receiving her response filled him with joy—but the words themselves made his heart race madly.
“Thinking of meeting you, my lord, makes me feel all right again.”
Seeing his master smile from ear to ear, Evan couldn’t help but grin too. The two of them were simply too adorable.
“What kind of letter makes you that happy, Marquis Teishar?” Adrian asked.
The man he remembered had never smiled like this—always stoic, unreadable, with eyes as cold as stone. Now, one letter had turned him into a man who couldn’t stop grinning.
“Who wrote that letter…?”
“I’m sorry, Your Highness Adrian,” Teishar said, straightening his back. “Lady Lorencia replied to my letter. I’m just… too happy about it. I’ll restrain myself.”
Though he had sent her a letter, not being able to see her all day had driven him mad with frustration. Writing to her had calmed him briefly, but the agitation soon returned—until her reply arrived, and all that irritation melted away, replaced by the pleasant flutter of his heart.
“What did her letter say, exactly?” Adrian pressed.
Teishar couldn’t hold back.
“Your Highness, please look at this handwriting—it’s so round and cute, isn’t it? Lady Lorencia only recently learned to write, yet she wrote this letter all by herself! Isn’t she amazing? She’s so clever, so remarkable. Ah… Do you think she’ll reply again if I send her another letter?”
As Teishar’s words tumbled out in an uncharacteristic rush, Adrian squinted at him in disbelief.
Teishar had always been curt, a man of few words who never spoke more than necessary. The only time he smiled or became talkative now was when it came to Lorencia. In all other matters, he remained as stoic as ever.
In fact, he had never been like this before.
