Maylily - Chapter 3

“Even if that turns out to be the case, I believe this is the best decision for me right now. So please withdraw your offer, Count. I ask this of you.”

As soon as Maylily finished speaking, the man removed the cigar from his red lips and set it down in the ashtray.

“I suppose that concludes our conversation for today. You may go.”

Had her desperate plea worked? The count, who had been gently pressing her up until now, unexpectedly let her go without resistance.

Fearing he might change his mind, Maylily quickly left the director’s room. She bowed slightly to the director and the count’s secretary who were waiting in the hallway, then returned to the rehearsal hall.

The rehearsal progressed smoothly and ended by dusk. Feeling more tired than usual from a day spent in tension, Maylily headed back to the dressing room. Just as she was getting ready to leave, she was summoned by the director once more.

“Starting tomorrow, you don’t need to come to rehearsal, Maylily Aile.”

The moment she stepped into the director’s office, Maylily turned pale at the thunderous blow.

“W-what… do you mean, Director? The new season is just around the corner…”

“You must be so dull that you didn’t even realize what you’ve caused. As of this moment, you are no longer a member of the Roden Opera Company. Pack your things and leave the theater immediately.”

Just like that, the tower Maylily had painstakingly built since last summer crumbled in an instant, as if it had all been a lie.

***

It was only after the violet twilight had completely devoured the sky that Maylily Aile appeared from the performers’ entrance at the east rear of the theater building.

“Miss Maylily Aile has just left, Count.”

Seated in a carriage stationed beneath a massive elm tree across the road from the theater, David reported respectfully. Inside, Hugh, who had been reading documents, slowly turned his gaze toward the window.

On the now-empty street where the opera members had already gone home, a woman stood wearing a thick scarf over a worn coat. Her blonde hair, tinged by the streetlamp’s glow, appeared gently flushed.

Holding a bag stuffed with belongings to her chest, she took one slow step after another, then suddenly stopped. As she looked back at the path she had walked, a deep sense of regret clung to her silhouette.

Hugh turned to David and asked, “Did Director Fritz say the position would be left open?”

“Yes. He said Miss Aile’s role wasn’t significant, so replacing her would be no issue. In fact, if it meant securing your patronage, he seemed ready to invent a new role just to accommodate it.”

“Those who obey money are easy to handle.”

With a slight curl of his lips, Hugh turned his gaze back out the window. Following his lead, David now saw Maylily set her bag down and wipe away tears with a handkerchief.

Delicate and well-defined features framed by a smooth facial contour, spotless white skin, a slender figure revealed even beneath her plain clothes…

Even in the dim light, the beauty praised by all the informants shone through.

Victor Heywood is searching for his daughter. The last asset to be sold to an old noble.

When the rumor that began in the backstreets of Buhin reached Hugh, David had to submit a report revealing the woman’s identity in less than a week. It was an absurd task that had him pouring money like water, clicking his tongue at the madness.

But this afternoon, when he saw the woman in front of the director’s office, David immediately changed his mind. She was worth it. Even if he wasn’t the one spending the money—it was Hugh’s.

Since they had found the woman ahead of Victor Heywood, they had expected the plan to unfold smoothly. But that changed when she rejected Hugh’s patronage. An unexpected variable.

In the opera world, where countless interests and desires intertwined like a web, the logic of capital ran deep. Singers were no exception. Receiving patronage in exchange for good roles and stable careers was an accepted norm.

Even if she was a newcomer, Maylily Aile couldn’t have been unaware of that.

Especially since, at present, she had to work part-time as a restaurant waitress due to her meager singing income. Her aunt’s household, too, was said to be struggling financially.

That’s what made sponsorship all the more crucial.

Yet the woman had rejected the hand of one of the wealthiest men on the continent. As a result of defying someone she never should have, she now stood before what used to be her workplace, frozen by regret and sobbing quietly.

Even from a distance, the woman’s trembling shoulders were clearly visible. Just as a sense of pity threatened to rise, David turned his gaze back inside the carriage and adjusted his glasses. It was better to nip such shallow, hypocritical compassion in the bud.

Only after the woman had stopped crying and resumed walking did Hugh finally pull his eyes away from the window. His gray-blue eyes, soaked in the evening light, gleamed darker than usual.

“Will you be visiting the restaurant tomorrow?”

“No, let’s watch for a few days. I’d like to give Miss Aile plenty of time to reflect deeply on today’s lesson.”

With a chilly smile, Hugh ended the conversation and knocked a few times on the carriage wall. Leaving the woman, who had yet to depart the theater grounds, behind, the carriage rolled into the deepening darkness of the street.

***

As the spring social season approached, Roden grew more crowded by the day. In the Cryer district, home to commoners and laborers, the social season was a world apart. However, being directly across the Fez River from Aberc, the capital’s social center, it too grew lively in response.

As a result, the restaurant located in the heart of Cryer was especially packed today. In between the surge of customers, Maylily, wearing a white apron tied at her waist, darted about busily. It was a welcome rush that let her momentarily shake off the gloom that had been weighing on her mind lately.

It had been nearly six months since she started working as a waitress because the pay from being a chorus member couldn’t cover city living expenses.

She had hoped to establish herself in the opera company and focus solely on singing as soon as possible. But contrary to that hope, she had been pushed off the stage and ended up taking on waitressing full-time.

“Go and apologize to Count Everscourt as soon as tomorrow and accept his patronage. That’s your only way back.”

The day she was dismissed, the director had urged Maylily to comply with Count Everscourt’s wishes.

But Maylily wanted to avoid any personal entanglements with nobles at all costs. She had no desire to follow in the footsteps of her mother, who had left her branded as an illegitimate child for life. That had always been her principle, and it was also the wish of the aunt who had raised her.

In the end, Maylily decided to audition for another opera company this coming summer. Accepting the reality of stepping back from the threshold of her goal wasn’t easy. But she consoled herself with the thought that sometimes one had to take a detour to go farther.

She would prepare diligently for the audition while continuing her lessons.

That meant she had to earn not only her living expenses but also her lesson fees. So the day after her dismissal, she asked Mr. Hosier, the restaurant owner, if she could increase her workdays and hours.

“If you’re willing to do that, I’d be thrilled!”

Mr. Hosier, who happened to be short-staffed and hiring, gladly welcomed her offer. It wasn’t easy finding someone as diligent and courteous as Maylily. With her schedule extended, she now worked at the restaurant every single day.

“Lily, window-side table in the back. Some guy who looks like a prince asked for you specifically. Doesn’t seem like he’s from around here—maybe your reputation’s reached uptown.”

Nora whispered teasingly as she tapped Maylily’s arm after she had just delivered food to a central table in the hall.

“Oh, come on. Reputation? I’ll head over. Thanks, Nora.”

Since a few regulars often asked for her whenever they visited, Maylily answered casually. But just as she took out her notepad and pencil from her apron pocket and began walking, she halted.

It was when she spotted the profile of the “prince-like man” sitting at the window table.

The man, who had been gazing out the window, slowly turned his head, sensing her stare. The moment their eyes met in midair, Maylily felt as though all the noise inside the restaurant vanished in an instant. Her heart thudded wildly, like a blaring alarm.

Why is Count Everscourt here…?

Slicked-back, glossy hair, a gaze undisturbed by the surrounding clamor, a sharply tailored black coat, an upright and elegant posture, leather gloves on large hands, spotless polished shoes—

He didn’t match anything about this humble restaurant. Other customers seemed to feel the same; they glanced at him with awe and curiosity.

Why on earth had he come here?

With countless questions flashing through her mind, Maylily slowly approached him.