Chapter 55
Below the invitation, the date and time of the ball were written, but there was no request to RSVP. Hermia dropped the card from her hand. This kind of invitation, as far as she knew, was essentially a command to attend without question.
Why did the queen invite her? Was it because Eliszabeth had whispered something to her mother?
‘No, Hermia, think calmly.’
Since it was a ball, the invitation wasn’t just for her; many people would be there, and usually, they would bring partners.
Maybe it’s just a normal ball. The timing is a bit odd, though.
Would the Duke have received an invitation as well? It’s common for both parties in an engagement to be invited.
“Are you going? No, right? We decided to run away.”
Mel tugged on Hermia’s sleeve more insistently than before. This nightgown would soon be unwearable.
“It means ‘come or else’ when someone as high-ranking as the queen invites you like this.”
“So, you’re going? Why? Do you want to dance before we escape?”
“Wait a minute. Mel, calm down. Can you just get me a glass of water?”
“Yes… I mean, no. Why are you still treating me like a maid?”
“That’s not what I meant…”
Hermia had said that because she wanted some time alone, but Mel reacted more strongly than expected.
She does more work than I do, preparing meals, washing dishes, and doing laundry. It seems like I’m the maid, but she decided not to show her feelings.
“I just meant… it’s because of the curse, so don’t take it personally..”
Hermia put on a cardigan over her worn-out nightgown. When she put her arms through the sleeves, she noticed they were shorter than before.
It seemed Mel had washed it in hot water.
“Did you wash this in hot water?”
“Yes, that’s how it gets clean.”
“Okay.”
She decided not to say anything. It was comforting to think that she now had more clothes to donate to the orphanage.
As she left the room, thinking about the royal invitation made her feel a bit dizzy.
“If I go to the palace like this, nothing good will come of it. How can I greet the king and queen?”
When she met the princess, she managed to gloss over it, but imagining the mistakes she might make in front of the king made her shiver.
I shouldn’t go. I should ignore the invitation.
Hermia made up her mind and habitually looked up at the ceiling, searching for Walter. Her eyes widened slightly before becoming sad.
She remembered now. Who was the person appearing in her embarrassing dreams for days?
The word “ball” on the invitation made her briefly think, Maybe I should see his face one last time before I leave
She instantly felt pathetic.
Forget it. Give up. Her sigh trailed off as she walked.
Mel followed her, watching as she headed to the kitchen.
‘She’s still acting strange.’
* * *
The torn ball invitation was thrown into the trash, and while Mel was clipping articles from the newspaper that might help with their immigration, Hermia pulled out a piece of stationery.
She needed to convince Walter to give up on marrying her and choose the gold instead.
‘Since it’s impossible to talk to him in person, I’ll do it in writing.’
With a firm resolve, she picked up her pen, but she wasn’t sure how to start. She should have practiced writing letters.
[Your Grace, please forget me and find happiness with someone else. Consider the gold as a divorce settlement. Thank you for everything.]
It seemed well-written, but it was too sentimental. Moreover, she couldn’t use someone else’s gold to show off.
Hermia crumpled the first piece of paper and, after a long deliberation, began writing again.
As she wrote line by line, her heart felt squeezed and hurt. She pressed her thighs to hold back tears.
The letter was filled to the edge of the paper. When she finished, Mel approached and peeked.
“Are you done? Can I see it?”
“No!”
“Why not?”
“It’s… my handwriting is a mess, and it’s embarrassing.”
Hermia avoided eye contact, unlike her usual self. Mel felt uneasy, wondering if the curse was revealing Hermia’s true feelings.
Later that night, someone quietly opened the bedroom door and stepped out into the hallway.
“I wrote asking him to give us up in exchange for the gold. If I leave it here, the Duke will come and see it.”
Hermia had been gloomy all afternoon, and those were her parting words before heading upstairs.
Mel thought about her father’s gold and wiped away tears as she walked down the dark corridor. She carried a candle and moved cautiously, worried about making a loud noise, as she headed towards the wine cellar.
When Mel was with Hermia during the day, nothing seemed scary, but the space she entered alone was filled with an eerie atmosphere.
Mel’s arms were covered in goosebumps as she knelt down and picked up a letter from the floor.
The flickering candlelight revealed the uneven handwriting that read “To the Duke.”
Her heart began to pound as she pulled out the letter from the envelope. It was true that the handwriting was a mess.
“I don’t distrust the miss, but I’m curious about how she wrote this…”
Her hands trembled pitifully as she unfolded the letter.
[To Walter,
I once wanted to call you by your name like Mel does, but since I was cursed, it wasn’t my intention. This time, I’ll say it freely.
So, Walter, please understand. I’m taking a huge risk by writing this letter. I don’t know how to write elegantly or refinedly; someone else always did it for me before. Please forgive me for this too.
I know you like me, and it’s not just an act.
You’ve done so much for me, but I couldn’t write it all down. If it weren’t for you, I would still be wearing those small shoes and would have married Frederick. I would have been arrested at the tea party and sent to prison.
My parents wouldn’t have even tried to get me out.
Thank you, you bad person.
Walter, I don’t know how much inheritance you’ll receive, but I’m sure it’s much more than I imagine.
If I were you, I’d chase me to the ends of the earth and marry me to secure the wealth. But please don’t do that if you still like me.
If you can’t give up, dig under the wine boxes. You’ll find an enormous amount of gold.
If you’re satisfied with that, please don’t look for me and Mel. We plan to leave and live quietly, and maybe we’ll be happy. I sincerely hope you’ll be happy with the gold too.
Walter, I don’t know if this will comfort you, but I never completely hated your curse. So don’t blame yourself. It was beyond your control.
I’m grateful that my first kiss was with you. I’ll treasure that forever. If you marry another woman, please just forget about me so you don’t hurt her.
I hope you find a good connection with the gold (I hope it’s not with Princess Elisabeth). I’ll pray for your long health from afar.
Goodbye…
—Hermia]
“What is this…?”
Even to Mel’s untrained eyes, the letter was a mess. The words were wrong, the handwriting was terrible, and the lines got smaller as it went on!
But what really stood out was the content, which was overflowing with longing.
Mel read the letter twice and was convinced: Hermia liked Walter.
She had warned her! Over and over again!
The letter, which was essentially a love confession, was crumpled in her hand.
Mel clenched her fist tightly, feeling a mix of injustice and anger. The refined lady she admired had turned out to be foolishly sentimental.
Mel stormed out of the basement and into the study, her footsteps angry. She quickly grabbed a new piece of paper and scribbled:
[Take the gold and get lost, you disgusting, creepy pervert!]
If she left this instead, he’d think Hermia wrote it and give up. Or maybe he’d get so angry he’d send his men after her.
Mel smiled cynically. In her current mood, she felt like she could take on anyone.
“How dare he mess with our innocent lady…”
“But didn’t you want her to marry the Duke?”
“Well, now I know better! And she was going to abandon me anyway…‘
‘Uh, no… that’s not it.’
As she was about to fold and put the fake letter in an envelope, her hand stopped. She remembered Hermia rushing in with a newspaper.
Mel’s inner voice whispered:
‘Why do I have to go this far? The miss doesn’t trust me and was planning to leave me behind.’
She crumpled the fake letter as well.
‘If she loves him so much, then let her marry him and see how that goes. If she ends up miserable, that’s her problem, not mine. Hah…’
Tears welled up again as she thought about it. The trustworthy Walter turned out to be the grandson of her parents’ enemy, and Isaac left without a word. The only family she had left was trying to abandon her, but only pretended to take her in when they were caught.
It felt like every misfortune in the world had lined up and knocked on her door at once. Mel collapsed in front of a large desk, overcome with sorrow and anger, and began to cry bitterly.
