The three days of celebration had passed.
The Valemont mansion, which had been overflowing with music, laughter, guests, and servants, was slowly returning to its usual quiet.
The Ashford family was leaving that morning.
Carriages waited outside the mansion, their dark bodies shining beneath the pale morning sun.
Servants moved back and forth, carrying luggage and preparing everything for the journey back to Ashen.
Sylvan stood near the carriage.
His expression was as unreadable as ever.
Yet his eyes were not.
They moved across the mansion grounds.
The entrance.
The long corridors visible through the open doors.
The garden.
The library windows.
Nothing.
He had looked for her several times since waking.
Rosylin was nowhere to be seen.
He hadn’t expected her to come and say goodbye.
In fact, he knew she would probably avoid him if she saw him.
Still, his eyes searched.
Once.
Then again.
Nothing.
Only her absence remained.
Sylvan’s gaze settled on the garden.
For a brief moment, the memory of the previous night returned.
Her frightened eyes.
The cat in her arms.
The way she had lowered her head before promising him that she would tell him who she really was the next time he visited the castle.
He had almost asked her identity again.
Almost.
But she had run before he could say anything more.
Sylvan’s eyes narrowed slightly.
He could simply ask the Valemont family.
It would be easy.
Someone in this mansion had to know who she was.
Perhaps one of the servants.
Perhaps a member of the family.
He could walk inside, ask a simple question, and have his answer before leaving.
His gaze moved toward the mansion.
Then he remembered her face.
*When you visit the castle again, I’ll tell you who I really am.*
Sylvan remained silent.
He had no reason to trust her promise.
But he had given her the chance to make it.
And for some reason, he didn’t want to break it by asking someone else.
So he said nothing.
No one in the Valemont family would hear a question about her from him.
Not today.
Perhaps not until she had the chance to keep her word.
“Brother.”
Rizel’s voice pulled him from his thoughts.
Sylvan turned.
The young girl was standing several steps away.
“Are you ready?” she asked.
“Yes.”
Rizel nodded and turned toward the carriage.
But before she reached it, something caught her attention.
She stopped.
A small cat was sitting near the edge of the garden.
Alone.
Rizel looked around.
“Where did you come from?”
The cat stared back at her.
It seemed unusually calm.
Rizel slowly approached and crouched beside it.
The animal didn’t run.
Instead, it moved closer.
Rizel smiled.
“You’re alone too?”
She gently picked it up.
The cat settled into her arms.
Rizel looked toward the mansion.
No one appeared to be searching for it.
She glanced at Sylvan.
“Brother, can I keep her?”
Sylvan looked at the animal.
“Where did you find it?”
“In the garden.”
He looked toward the garden for a moment.
Then back at Rizel.
“If you want to take care of it, take it.”
Rizel smiled brightly.
“I will.”
She held the cat closer.
Neither of them noticed the figure standing far away.
Rosylin.
She had remained hidden behind the distant side of the mansion, watching the Ashford family prepare to leave.
She had wanted to see him one last time.
Just once.
From far away.
She watched Sylvan speak to Rizel.
Then she saw Rizel carrying something in her arms.
Rosylin couldn’t see clearly enough to recognize the cat.
The carriage doors were closed.
One by one, the Ashfords climbed inside.
Sylvan was the last to enter.
Before he did, he looked toward the mansion.
Rosylin’s heart suddenly tightened.
She quickly stepped farther behind the wall.
She didn’t know whether he had seen her.
She didn’t dare look again.
The carriage began to move.
Rosylin slowly lifted her eyes.
From a distance, she watched the Ashford family leave.
The carriage rolled farther down the road.
Smaller.
Smaller.
Until it finally disappeared beyond the trees.
Rosylin remained there for a long time.
Then she quietly turned away.
She had no idea that the cat she had secretly cared for was no longer in the garden.
She wouldn’t discover it until midnight.
The mansion was silent again.
Midnight had arrived.
Rosylin slipped outside.
She carried a small piece of food beneath her shawl.
The garden was dark and peaceful beneath the moon.
She walked toward the place where she always found the cat.
A faint smile appeared on her lips.
“You must be hungry.”
She looked around.
Nothing.
Rosylin frowned.
She took another step.
“Where are you?”
Silence.
She searched beneath the bushes.
Nothing.
She looked beneath the bench.
Nothing.
She walked farther into the garden.
“Come here.”
Her voice became softer.
“I brought you food.”
Still nothing.
The smile disappeared from her face.
She began searching faster.
Behind the trees.
Near the flowers.
Along the stone path.
Everywhere she could think of.
Nothing.
The cat was gone.
“No…”
Rosylin shook her head.
“It can’t be.”
She searched again.
And again.
Her breathing became uneven.
She crouched near the ground, looking beneath the bushes with trembling hands.
“Where are you?”
Her voice cracked.
“You can’t be gone.”
She stood and hurried toward another corner of the garden.
“Please…”
Her eyes began filling with tears.
“Where are you?”
She searched until there was nowhere left to look.
The food she had brought remained untouched in her hands.
Finally, her knees gave way.
She sank onto the cold ground.
The first tear rolled down her cheek.
Then another.
She covered her mouth, trying desperately not to make a sound.
But the tears wouldn’t stop.
The garden was empty.
The little creature she had secretly cared for—the one small living thing she could call her own—was gone.
Rosylin lowered her head and began to cry.
Quietly at first.
Then harder.
She pressed her hands against her face as her shoulders trembled.
She didn’t know where the cat had gone.
She didn’t know who had taken her.
And she had no one to ask.
The moon continued to shine over the garden.
But for Rosylin, everything suddenly felt unbearably dark.