Miss Koran invited me into her humble abode. Miss Koran seemed to be living close to the station. I fell quite in love with her home seeing as how it was covered in pink roses and had a light pink brick design on the outside.
The home consisted of a high ceiling where the bed was on the second floor and the stairs to the bed led to the kitchen and the rest of the house. The kitchen, living room, and dining room were all connected on the first floor and had lots of light throughout the house.
"It is not much, but this is my home," Miss Koran said.
"It is lovely!" I said as I happily marveled at the simplistic but cozy atmosphere with all of the fur textured blankets and calm neutral tones inside.
Miss Koran chuckled softly at my reaction.
Miss Koran took off her coat and hung it before she loosened her hair and let it drop down to her waist.
I felt a bit embarrassed in myself for always showing a terrible side in front of Miss Koran.
Something about her presence makes me feel extremely comfortable, so much that I want to reveal everything in front of her...
"Lady Lilian, would you like some rose tea?" Miss Koran asked.
"Yes, please," I said as I sat down at her dining table.
Miss Koran soon began professionally making tea and preparing snacks.
"Please enjoy," Miss Koran said as she handed me a cup of tea.
My heart seemed to leap out of my eyes when she did that.
Was this the charm of an adult woman?
"Miss Koran, may I ask how old you are if it does not bother you?" I asked.
"It does not bother me at all. I am turning twenty-one this year," Miss Koran said with a smile.
She is so young! She is already this mature. I wonder how cool she will be when she gets older.
"You are not that much older than me but are already so mature," I said.
"Would you like to know anything else, Lady Lilian?" Miss Koran asked as she lifted my chin with her finger.
My heart skipped a beat when I looked into her charismatic blue eyes. I pulled back my chin after I snapped out of my daze and drank delicious my tea.
Miss Koran is quite the dangerous beauty if she is able to capture women's hearts just as much as men's hearts...
"Miss Koran, you seem skilled in a variety of things...What made you want to become a Knight?" I asked her.
Miss Koran sat down across from me and drank her tea.
"I come from a Noble family myself. My family would always take me with them to the Castle and I would end up playing with the Duke and His Majesty. We all grew up playing with swords, so I came to like it in the end," Miss Koran said.
"Could I ask how the Duke was when he was younger?" I asked curiously.
Miss Koran chuckled softly.
"I would say that he was much like you...a bit quiet but always filled with curiosity and joy," Miss Koran said with a melancholic expression. "We did things like stealing food from the kitchen, climbing trees, and argued about who would be King. As we got older, our trio slowly faded away."
"...I see," I said.
"I saw a bit of him return to those days when he was with you, Lady Lilian," Miss Koran said with a smile.
"I cannot return to those days either," I said quietly.
"Lady Lilian, do you mind if I ask why you are not willing to return to the Duke?" Miss Koran asked.
"The Duke has someone else in his heart...On the day I introduced them, I had some hope that he would not have a change of heart when he met her, but lo and behold, he had an expression I had never seen before," I said as I drank my tea.
"Are you referring to Lady Kruger?" Miss Koran asked.
"It was mutual for her as well. How lucky the two are..." I said indifferently.
"May I ask the nature of your relationship with Lady Kruger? It does not seem like you two are very close," Miss Koran inferred.
No matter how far I look into the original owner of my body's memories, I could not give one example of Elze being close to the original owner of my body other than when they first met and examples of children playing together.
Even though we exchanged letters every week since Elze left to study abroad, she never once asked me about how I was or tried to get to know me as I grew up without her.
"...I believe that we are close," I said as if I was half doubting myself.
"I had a chance to speak to her myself today...She was a bit odd," Miss Koran said.
"Odd? How?" I asked her.
"It not probably not my place to say but I find her a bit different from a simple girl...I will just leave it at that. For her, you are willing to give up your love with the Duke?" Miss Koran asked.
"...The Duke has already expressed his feelings towards her. I confirmed them myself earlier," I said with a wry smile.
"No matter how much you force your way into someone's heart, there are times that your feelings will never get through that person," Miss Koran said.
It seemed as if Miss Koran had her own troubles, so I did not want to ask too much.
"Would you believe me if I knew that things would end this way?" I asked Miss Koran.
"You knew...as in you held suspicions for a long time?" Miss Koran inquired.
Even to Miss Koran, I could not reveal that I had read about the passionate love and trust between Sheze and Elze in the novel. The two were absolutely perfect for each other.
"There are just some things that you cannot achieve through just hard work. I knew the odds stacked against me and hoped that he would not change. I can only say that I was naive...I expected too much from an unsteady relationship," I said.
"What will you do now?" Miss Koran asked.
"Elze has asked that I support her relationship with Sheze," I said.
"Does she know of the bond you two shared before?" Miss Koran asked.
"It is better that she does not know," I said as I turned my gaze towards my cup.
"...Will you support them?" Miss Koran asked.
"I will travel outside for a bit once the case with Count Bernard Furst blows over. It will do me good to see the world before I re-enter Society to find a husband. There is no meaning in keeping my chastity to myself forever after all," I said coldly.
Miss Koran reached over and held my hands. An overwhelming coldness had spread throughout my body, but only my hands remained warm.