Did Sheyla not hear what those maids were saying?
As Elysia followed behind her, she couldn't help wondering.
More importantly, how did Sheyla know where Joshua was?
Following the small figure deeper into parts of the mansion she hadn't explored yet, Elysia climbed a staircase and walked toward the end of a corridor.
Sheyla stopped in front of a door and gestured toward it.
She seemed to be saying Joshua was inside.
When Sheyla opened the door first, Elysia's mouth fell open.
It was a library.
A library as large as a public one.
Bookshelves packed tightly with countless books stretched all the way to the high ceiling, and the room was divided into two floors.
Elysia stood there in amazement, looking around.
Sheyla tugged on her clothes.
“Oh, sorry. It's just so incredible... Ah, this way?”
Keeping a blank expression, Sheyla grabbed the edge of Elysia's skirt and led her forward.
They walked between the towering bookshelves until they reached a secluded corner.
There, Joshua was fast asleep on the floor, surrounded by books spread all around him.
Relief washed over Elysia.
“So this is where you were. Joshu—Huh?"
Just as she was about to wake him, Sheyla sharply tugged her clothes again.
As if telling her not to wake him, Sheyla shook her head vigorously.
“Are you telling me not to wake him?”
When Elysia asked, Sheyla nodded quietly.
Only then did she release Elysia's skirt and silently walk over to Joshua.
For some reason, Elysia couldn't move.
It was only the back of a young child.
Yet there was something about her presence that felt strangely overwhelming.
Among the scattered books, Sheyla picked up a pen and wrote something on a piece of paper.
Then she stared directly at Elysia.
Slowly approaching, Elysia politely knelt down.
The message Sheyla held out was firm.
[He just fell asleep. Don't wake him.
After reading it, Elysia looked back and forth between the two children.
Joshua was sleeping deeply, mumbling something in his dreams.
Meanwhile, Sheyla watched him quietly.
Handing the note back, Elysia asked,
“...But won't he get cold sleeping on the floor? He might catch a cold.”
Apparently Sheyla hadn't thought that far ahead.
Her shoulders twitched.
She immediately looked around frantically for something.
At that moment, she looked exactly like a child.
Spotting a blanket buried beneath a pile of books, Sheyla struggled to pull it free.
Without a word, Elysia moved the books out of the way.
Sheyla spread the blanket and carefully covered Joshua with it.
Then she turned around as if asking, Is this good enough?
There was clear satisfaction in her eyes.
Elysia smiled and nodded.
Did he fall asleep because he ate so much?
She was watching Joshua's peaceful sleeping face when Sheyla suddenly thrust another piece of paper toward her.
Elysia blinked and read it.
[Why did you let what those girls said slide?]
“Those girls...”
She meant the maids who had been gossiping around the corner earlier.
Elysia hesitated.
Seeing this, Sheyla quickly wrote another line.
[They said something really unpleasant. Didn't it bother you?
“If you mean the thing about money... Ah! But I really didn't pay anyone to get this position.”
Elysia hurriedly waved both hands.
However, Sheyla's expression changed slightly.
As though dissatisfied, she quickly scribbled another word.
Then she held up the paper.
[Backing.]
“Backing...”
That was the word the maids had laughed about earlier.
The one they had called shameless.
Elysia looked troubled and shook her head.
“I... don't really know the slang nobles use. Ah, by slang, I mean...”
Would Sheyla even know what that meant?
Just as Elysia was about to explain, Sheyla didn't give her a chance.
She immediately wrote another sentence.
[It means your butt.]
“...What?”
For a moment, Elysia thought she must have read it wrong.
Sheyla let out a short sigh and tapped the paper with her pen.
Then the meaning of what the maids had been implying finally sank in.
It was far worse than merely unpleasant.
It was the kind of thing people didn't say openly.
Elysia's expression stiffened.
The fact that those maids could casually make such comments behind someone's back was shocking enough.
But even more shocking was that Sheyla knew exactly what it meant.
“How do you... know something like that?”
Sheyla stared at her.
Her expression looked thoughtful.
Or perhaps testing.
Suddenly worried she had made a mistake, Elysia hurriedly added,
“Of course, you're a young lady, so maybe you know things like that, but... it doesn't seem like a very nice expression. So, um...”
“......”
“If that was rude of me to ask, I'm sorry.”
Elysia lowered her head immediately.
Even if Sheyla was a child, she was still the Grand Duke's sister.
Elysia shouldn't treat her like an ordinary child.
Will I get scolded?
She had heard that servants could be beaten for mistakes.
Without realizing it, she tensed her legs.
Meanwhile, Sheyla slowly moved her hand and began writing.
Then she held out the paper.
The moment Elysia read it, her eyes widened.
She looked from the paper to Sheyla several times, as if unable to believe it.
Written in tiny, hurried letters was:
[I've heard it before too.]
The handwriting was so small that it almost looked like she was trying to make herself doubt what she'd written.
“W-Where did you hear something like that...?”
Elysia started to ask.
But she couldn't finish.
The moment she saw Sheyla's face, she lost the courage to continue.
Standing with sunlight behind her, her face hidden in shadow, Sheyla looked empty.
Not smiling.
Not crying.
Just empty.
As if every emotion inside her had been torn apart and discarded.
What if Joshua ever made that expression?
The thought alone made Elysia's chest ache.
She bit her lip hard.
Then she grabbed the paper.
Crumpling it in both hands, she tossed it aside.
Sheyla blinked in surprise.
The next moment, Elysia pulled her into a hug.
Even sitting down, the child fit entirely within her arms.
She was so small.
Where could a child this young have heard something like that?
Startled by the sudden embrace, Sheyla stiffened like a frightened cat.
But Elysia gently patted her back.
“...It's okay.”
It's okay.
It's okay.
She repeated those words again and again.
Gradually, she felt the tension leave Sheyla's body.
That night, after the lights had been extinguished in the servants' quarters,
Elysia tucked a blanket around the already sleeping Joshua and sat down at the desk.
“...What a chaotic day.”
On her very first day, she had already clashed with the other workers.
Joshua had disappeared, forcing her to search all over the estate.
And...
Elysia wrinkled her nose as Sheyla's face came to mind.
Suddenly she remembered the metal device she had brought with her.
The laptop.
After confirming once more that Joshua was sleeping soundly, she pulled it from her bag.
The first time she had seen it, it had displayed information about emotions.
Maybe it could tell her something about Sheyla's feelings.
Elysia opened the laptop and looked at the screen.
“Huh?”
A message appeared.
『Activating Counseling Log No. 01!』
The number had changed.
As though it had known she would check it today.
Then more words appeared.
『 Today, you felt "sadness" and tried to show "empathy" when you embraced a friend.
What about your friend made you feel sad? 』
『 Friend in need of a story: None
Condition of the listening friend: Sadness, shock, fear
Recommended action: If you'd like to understand your friend better, why not record the emotions that came to mind while observing them? 』
