Betrothed to My Sister's Ex

“Lady Marie. This is sudden, but—I’ve decided to resign as your maid.”

“—What!!”

The confession was so abrupt that I let out a loud shout that made the window tremble.

It might have been the first time in my life I’d ever yelled so loudly. I felt the window frame shake, but more than that, I panicked and grabbed Mio’s hands, holding on tightly.

“No, no way! Why on earth would you quit, Mio?”

Shaken by my trembling, Mio’s deep blue eyes floated as if lost in the air.

“Um—p-please calm down, Lady Marie...”

“Wait, is this because of Lady Ryuu-Ryuu? Because you’re worried about her and want to stay by her side!?”

When I said that, Mio’s expression vanished, and she fell silent.

Ah... so that’s it after all...

Since the other day, when the Duke Granado—Lord Cyrus’s father—passed away, Lady Ryuu-Ryuu seemed deeply saddened.

To Mio, Lady Ryuu-Ryuu was the benefactor who rescued and raised her as an orphan, someone she admired more than blood relatives. Under her command, Mio became the maid of her only son, Lord Cyrus. My serving as her maid was actually on Lord Cyrus’s instruction. In fact, I wasn’t officially employed as Mio’s maid.

A wave of exhaustion drained from my whole body.

…Yes, I understood that all along.

I swallowed a sigh, slowly releasing myself from her grip.

“…I see. I was worried about Lady Ryuu-Ryuu too... but no, I can’t deny your choice. I won’t stop you...”

I obediently sat back down on the bed. Though my words were compliant, I couldn’t bring a smile to my face.

“I’m sorry, it’s just sudden and shocking. It’s not that I don’t accept it; I’ll calm down soon.”

“Lady Marie.”

“It’s okay. I’ve become stronger now. I guess I was relying a little too much on you, Mio. Please stay well. And come visit sometimes.”

Just as I tried to see her off with at least a smile—

Mio quietly raised her hand.

“What is it, Mio?”

“It was a lie.”

“…A lie?”

“Yes. Just a joke.”

Mio blinked her deep eyes and said so.

A lie… a lie? No way!?

I was stunned, and she looked apologetic.

“I didn’t expect you to believe me so easily.”

“Of course I would be fooled! You said that all of a sudden—Eh, what? Really? Unbelievable, you’re lying, right? Really? What’s going on? Which is it!?”

“Please calm down, Lady Marie. It truly was a lie, just a joke. I’ll always be by your side.”

Mio smiled brightly and gave my shoulder a gentle tap.

“Lady Marie… Have you heard of Frühling-Schwatz?”

“Spring (Frühling) joke (Schwatz)...?”

“Yes. It’s a game in spring where everyone tells lies to fool others for fun.”

Mio explained calmly, expressionless as usual.

Frühling-Schwatz—on this day, no matter what lie you tell, you won’t be scolded. The rule is to deceive someone in the morning and then correct it in the afternoon.

There are several theories about its origins.

One theory is that during witch hunts, people lied “I’m not a witch” to avoid execution, starting the practice. Another says that when the new year was shifted to the first day of winter, people rebelled by celebrating “Happy New Year!” on the traditional day. Other theories exist, but none are confirmed.

“Regardless of its true origin, it’s an interesting event. Since we’re in mourning and can’t go out much, I thought it would be nice to incorporate a little seasonal fun. I meant well, but I never imagined you’d believe me so completely...”

After saying that, Mio bowed deeply.

“By the way, Lady Marie, you didn’t grow up participating in events like this, did you? I forgot about that. My apologies.”

“Event…”

I muttered weakly, my thoughts swirling.

As Mio said, I’m ignorant of popular events in the royal capital. Since childhood, I was busy helping with housework and business, leaving no time to enjoy festivals. Especially in spring, farmers are busy, so there’s no time for non-harvest celebration events.

“I see… then maybe there are other things I’ve been completely fooled by without realizing.”