"Did Margaret find the torn ribbon and replace it with another?"
Navia thought nothing of it and finished tying her hair.
Even though she had worn the same clothes for three days in a row, Navia didn't mind.
At the Agnes Ducal residence, she had rotated through only five dresses.
"I'm hungry."
Navia, having woken up early and promptly finished preparing to go out, felt hunger.
'Should I prepare breakfast in advance?'
It was still before dawn.
She had woken up early, but apparently too early.
Navia thought it would be nice to kill time doing something until everyone else woke up.
'Alright, let's make breakfast.'
It wasn't anything grand, but she could manage to make a sandwich by stuffing ingredients between bread slices.
Thud, thud, thud -
Navia walked to the stairs, almost running in excitement.
Her desire to do something made her act that way.
Of course, she had to pause at the top of the stairs and carefully descend to avoid injuring herself.
Upon reaching the kitchen, Navia pulled out the step stool that had become a natural part of her routine.
With this essential step in place, Navia gathered various ingredients needed for cooking.
She looked at the ingredients laid out on the counter and thought about what to do first.
"I should make the dressing first."
Sandwiches, generously drizzled with dressing, were delicious.
'Today, I must taste the seasoning properly.'
Navia tasted the sauce in a small bowl.
The dressing was perfectly seasoned, bringing a bright smile to her face. It seemed like anyone would find it delicious.
Next, she took out the well-wrapped bread, sliced it to the right thickness, and buttered it.
Adding cheese, tomatoes, and lettuce, and then drizzling the dressing, she made a decent sandwich.
As Navia prepared the drinks, she hummed a tune without realizing it and then suddenly stopped, startled.
'Cooking is this much fun.'
Navia hadn't realized how enjoyable cutting hair for Suleiman and Lark had been either.
It was the same now.
In the past, she did things to look good or to not be criticized for not repaying kindness, seen as an evil woman.
This was the first time she cooked simply because she wanted to.
Navia placed sandwiches on each plate and covered them.
Dawn had broken, and morning was bright.
Navia stared at the extra sandwich she had unintentionally made.
What should she do with it?
"…I should take my share to my room and eat first."
Navia muttered to herself, carrying two sandwiches and plenty of drinks up to the third floor.
Arriving at her bedroom, she hesitated, looking at the room across from hers.
'Did Lady Margaret really enjoy the food?'
Would it be okay to offer him this sandwich too?
"Um…"
Unable to enter her room or knock on Lark's door, Navia lingered.
'Is he still sleeping?'
Is it too early?
'Yes, it's too early. Let's go back.'
Just as Navia decided to leave, forgetting that Lark had barged into her room before dawn the other day,
Bang!
Lark opened his bedroom door and looked right down at her.
He had recognized her light, consistent presence as Navia.
"What now?"
Startled, Navia shrugged her shoulders and stuttered impulsively.
"Breakfast! …Would you like to have it together?"
No!
'I was only planning to share the Duke's portion!'
But her mouth spilled out something completely different in her fluster.
"There are two sandwiches... And I brought a lot of drinks."
After blurting out everything, Navia felt a sense of dread.
'What did I just say?'
She couldn't believe the foolish words she had uttered.
Lark looked alternately at Navia's visibly flustered face and the tray in her hands, then said with a tone of amusement.
"You really don't listen, do you?"
Navia, always a dutiful daughter and student, had never been told she didn't listen.
Anyway, she was again carried away by her excitement. Navia wasn’t surprised by her own silliness.
"I'm sorry for bothering you this early. I didn't realize my footsteps were so loud."
"No, it's not that."
Lark didn't continue speaking and fell into thought.
‘If I keep spending time with this kid, it's going to be a problem.’
He hoped his heart wouldn't soften due to external influences.
Especially because of this mysterious little one.
But there were more troubling things than that.
‘The cracks have become more frequent lately.’
If, while with the child, any part not covered by clothes—like his face—were to split in half...
Lark bit his lip.
He couldn't risk revealing such a horrific sight.
‘I'm already a monster, even without such a grotesque appearance.’
Yes, let's admit it.
He feared Navia would see him as a hideous and disgusting being.
Even his own servants felt fear seeing Lark's body disintegrate.
‘But in this round of regression, I haven’t told anyone about the cracks.’
The disintegration of his body was a deeply personal matter. It was enough that he alone knew about it.
In fact, even if discovered, it wouldn't matter to his servants.
But Navia was different.
What if she fainted upon seeing his horrific state?
‘But that little thing has been cooking my share of the meals, so I can’t just let her go.’
Lark sighed deeply and looked around his room.
Pills, broken pens, and scraps of paper lay scattered in a mess.
Snap!
With a flick of his fingers, the curtains drew back, and the room was tidied instantly.
Suddenly, a table and two chairs appeared in the middle of the room.
A golden candlestick with a burning candle was placed on the table.
"I'll go then."
Navia was about to return to her room with drooping shoulders when Lark quickly snatched the tray from her.
As Navia looked up in surprise, Lark gestured towards the inside with his chin.
"Come in."
'It should be fine for a short while.'
What could happen in the short time it takes to eat a sandwich?
He opened the door wide and strode in first, placing the food on the table.
Then he said to Navia, still standing hesitantly at the door.
"What are you doing?"
"Ah, okay."
Navia, reacting instinctively to his words, approached the chair opposite Lark.
But the black velvet chair summoned by Lark was too high for her.
If no one was around, she would have jumped and sat down, but now she was in the presence of Lark.
‘The Duke probably wouldn’t care…….’
In fact, her own feelings mattered more than that.
Navia, believing such actions were wrong, found it difficult to ignore the many rules she had learned.
“You are a great noble.”
Navia, knowing he disliked such behavior, looked down immediately upon his sarcasm.
"I'm really a fool."
Just as she was about to smile self-deprecatingly, with her hair falling on both sides of her mouth...
"…!"
Suddenly, from beneath Navia's feet, light gathered, forming stairs like those made of millions of diamonds.
The sparkling radiance scattered light beautifully.
"Isn't that grand enough for a noble lady to step on?"
Lark, leaning on the armrest and holding his chin with his hand, spoke in a slanted posture.
Navia still found his rough manner of speaking hard to get used to, but now she could believe what Margaret had said.
He was just someone who spoke unpleasantly.
Softly.
Navia cautiously stepped on the glittering stairs, and smoke sparkled and spread on both sides like white steam from ice.
Lark watched silently as Navia carefully ascended, holding her skirt and widening her eyes.
"Do you like it, or not?"
He had ambitiously created the staircase of light, hoping the child would like it, but Navia kept her lips tightly shut like a clam.
When Navia finally sat gently on the velvet chair, the staircase of light vanished like a mirage.
Navia looked at where the stairs had been and murmured.
"It was beautiful. What a shame."
Lark's eyebrows twitched.
"No, I thought you didn't like it and removed it."
After Navia expressed her brief impression and looked up, Lark could finally read her expression.
Her red eyes sparkled more than ever, and her cheeks were faintly flushed.
He chuckled.
"If you liked it, that's enough."
Such a staircase could be made so high that she wouldn't be able to walk the next day.
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