Chapter 114 [part 1] (1/2)

(1)

Lucia was walking through an unknown forest. The forest was dense with towering trees, but the surrounding wasn’t dark at all. She treaded barefoot and the soft moss touching the bottom of feet was ticklish.

She walked through the forest like she was bewitched. With every step she took, the dense thicket and branches moved aside, as if making way for her. But she wasn’t amazed or fascinated by this. She just kept moving forward.

‘Ah…’

Lucia exclaimed, seeing the open space in front of her. It was a space in the shape of a small circle, like a cozy nest. Shallow vegetation that barely passed her ankles was spread out like a carpet. And in the middle of it all was a single tree, standing under the bright sunlight. It shone with a sacred radiance as if it were the only tree in the world.

Lucia approached the tree. Upon drawing nearer, she saw an unfamiliar red fruit, hanging appetizingly from the tree. She couldn’t take her eyes away from it because it was so beautiful. She wanted to pluck it and put it in her pocket but couldn’t because it looked too precious.

She circled around the tree for a moment then she stretched out her hand to the exceptionally red and beautiful smooth fruit. She took hold of it and pulled. The moment the fruit left the tree and was completely in her hands, bright light suddenly burst out from the fruit.[1]

~

Lucia’s eyes flashed open. The view around her was her familiar bedroom, with the morning light seeping in.

‘A dream…?’

It was a vivid enough dream that she felt like it was right in front of her eyes. Lucia was captivated by an inexplicably strange feeling on the morning of New Year’s Day that for a while, she just lay down on the bed with her eyes open.

* * *

“…ady. Milady.”

Lucia opened her eyes. Her maid was standing next to the bed. She willed her heavy-lidded eyes open and asked the maid for the time. It was late in the morning, with only two hours left till noon.

These days, she overslept practically every day. Today, it was three hours past her usual wake-up time. She had a lunch scheduled with the Queen today, so yesterday, she had asked her maid to wake her up if she slept in.

“Shall I bring water for you to wash your face?”

“Mm, sure.”

After the maid turned around and left, Lucia stretched while yawning widely.