Chapter 5
“Actually… I’ve misplaced something. I’ve searched everywhere I can think of, but I still can’t find it, so I was just asking the maids if they’d seen it.”
Apparently, he’d been rushing around because of that when he’d suddenly been summoned to deal with Serge.
“Oh dear. What did you lose?”
“A keychain. The key itself is still with me, so I think the ring must have come loose and fallen off.”
If he still had the key, losing only the keychain hardly seemed like something that would make most people so anxious.
“Was the keychain something important? A gift from someone, perhaps…?”
“Yes. Something like that.”
“Would you like me to help you look for it?”
“That’s quite all right. I couldn’t possibly trouble you over something so trivial, Young Madam.”
“I don’t mind at all… but if I happen to see anything that looks like a keychain, I’ll let you know.”
“Thank you.”
After giving her a polite bow, Yuan hurried away.
He had called it a trivial matter, but judging from the urgency in his steps, it clearly meant a great deal to him.
If it were accidentally swept away with the rubbish before he found it, retrieving it would become impossible.
…Hmm.
After thinking for a moment, Rayleigh stepped out onto the terrace and entered the garden.
Now that spring was giving way to summer, countless flowers bloomed in every color imaginable.
The scenery was breathtaking.
But Rayleigh hadn’t come outside simply to admire the gardens.
There was something she had been wanting to test, and since Yuan had lost something, it seemed like the perfect opportunity.
After making sure no one else was nearby, she crouched quietly in a secluded corner of the garden.
“…Are you all here?”
Her voice was barely above a whisper.
Yet the moment the words left her lips, something extraordinary happened.
Tiny human-shaped beings no larger than the palm of her hand suddenly appeared before her.
Each possessed delicate, butterfly-like wings.
They looked exactly like the fairies people imagined in storybooks.
“I knew you were here.”
As Rayleigh smiled, the fairies immediately fluttered toward her, scattering their thoughts in every direction.
[Hello! Hello!]
[Let’s play! Let’s play! Let’s play!]
Rayleigh quietly watched the tiny fairies circling around her.
Just as I thought…
I can still see them perfectly.
When she was little, she’d tried several times to tell her family about the fairies.
But no one except Rayleigh could see them.
Instead, she’d been scolded harshly for lying.
They had dismissed them as nothing more than the imaginary friends children often invented.
Yet even now, after recovering the memories of her previous life and gaining the mind of an adult…
The fairies still appeared before her as clearly as ever.
Why am I the only one who can see them?
The original novel never mentioned fairies at all.
Once, Rayleigh had wondered whether she possessed some extraordinary gift.
But that hope had quickly been crushed.
Every noble underwent routine evaluations by both the Magic Tower and the Temple.
According to both institutions…
Rayleigh possessed neither magical power nor divine power.
She was, by every measurable standard, nothing more than an ordinary person.
Nor could she accomplish anything remarkable through the fairies.
She couldn’t even communicate with them properly.
Whenever she called them, they would appear like this.
But they rarely answered her questions.
Instead, they simply flooded her with fragments of emotion, one-sided thoughts that washed over her like waves.
Even so…
Rayleigh treasured them.
To her, they were like lucky charms.
Or friends.
For someone who had spent her entire life alone…
Having beings who always welcomed her so warmly was precious.
“I’m glad you’re still here. You know… I suddenly learned about a terrible future, and I’ve been feeling anxious…”
[Let’s play! Let’s play!]
[Happy! Happy! Happy!]
As always, they didn’t really answer her.
Even so, that familiar response made her smile.
“Someday I’ll have to leave this place… but until then, I hope I can get along well with His Grace and Young Master Serge.”
As she spoke, a feeling of helplessness crept into her heart.
If she were one of those reincarnated protagonists from countless novels…
Someone blessed with overwhelming abilities…
She might have been able to completely overturn the original story.
“What could someone as useless as you possibly accomplish?!”
“You’re hopeless! So slow you can’t understand a single thing!”
Her parents’ constant insults echoed through her memory.
Painfully enough…
They had been right.
Even knowing the future, the only things Rayleigh could do were prepare to run away someday…
And, out of the tiny remnants of her conscience, leave behind whatever little information she could to help House Elestain avoid destruction.
[Do your best! Do your best!]
[Let’s play! Let’s play! Let’s play!]
As though sensing her sadness, all the fairies sent encouraging thoughts at once.
Rayleigh looked up and smiled.
“Thank you. For now, I’ll just focus on settling into the ducal estate. I wonder what kinds of things His Grace likes…”
She hadn’t meant anything by it.
She’d only been absentmindedly wondering how she could make a good impression on the Duke, who was now both the head of the household and her father-in-law.
Unexpectedly…
The fairies answered.
[Lima! Lima!]
[The Duke… likes Lima!]
Rayleigh blinked in surprise.
“Lima… You mean the late Duchess?”
She had already guessed as much from the fact that Walter had never remarried after his wife’s death.
Apparently…
His love for her had been every bit as profound as she’d imagined.
[Lima loves the Duke too!]
[They loved each other!]
So it hadn’t been one-sided.
They had loved each other deeply.
Losing someone he’d cherished so much must have left an unhealable wound in Walter’s heart.
I’d better never bring up the Duchess carelessly in front of His Grace.
Carefully committing that information to memory, Rayleigh moved on to what she had actually wanted to ask.
“By the way… about Yuan, His Grace’s aide.”
[Let’s play! Let’s play!]
“He said he lost a keychain. Do any of you know where he dropped it?”
She didn’t really expect an answer.
Although the fairies seemed capable of perceiving things ordinary people couldn’tāas if they could see through the entire worldā
Their communication was completely unpredictable.
Most of the time, no matter what she asked, they simply scattered random thoughts before disappearing.
But today, luck seemed to be on her side.
One of the fairies suddenly fluttered excitedly through the air.
[Keychain! Follow me! Follow me!]
“Really? Thank you!”
Rayleigh hurried after the fairy.
It led her to a corridor inside one of the estate’s annexes.
Landing gracefully on the floor, the fairy proudly announced,
[Here! It’s here!]
Seeing where the keychain had fallen, Rayleigh sighed.
“No wonder he couldn’t find it.”
Decorative tables displaying antique relics had been placed throughout the hallway.
The keychain had slipped underneath one of them, hidden completely in the blind spot beneath it.
It had probably fallen from Yuan’s pocket while he was hurrying somewhere and slid underneath before anyone noticed.
“But this…”
“…It’s completely different from Yuan’s image.”
She had imagined Yuan using something plain and practical.
Instead…
The keychain was charming.
Tiny colorful gemstones had been carefully set into the shape of flowers and butterflies, giving it an elegant, delicate appearance.
Of course, judging by what Yuan had said earlier…
It must have been a gift.
He probably hadn’t chosen it himself.
[Did I do well? Did I do well?]
“Mm. You did. Thank you.”
When Rayleigh smiled brightly, the fairy spun happily through the air in a tiny dance before vanishing.
To someone who had been treated coldly even by her own family…
The fairies had always been a source of comfort.
Feeling grateful for them once again, Rayleigh went to find Yuan.
***
“I found something that looks like a keychain. Is this yours, by any chance?”
Rayleigh already knew it belonged to Yuan.
The fairies had never lied to her.
Still, she asked as though she weren’t certain.
The instant Yuan saw what she was holding, his eyes widened.
“Ah…! Yes! That’s it!”
“I’m glad. I was worried it might belong to someone else. It’s a very beautiful keychain.”
“I suppose it seemed rather unlike something I’d carry.”
“I-I didn’t mean it like that…!”
“No, it’s quite all right.”
A faint smile appeared on his face.
“My younger sister made it for me as a gift.”
At that moment…
Something clicked inside Rayleigh’s mind.
She suddenly realized why the name Yuan had sounded so strangely familiar the moment she’d heard it.
In the original novel… I’m certain…
