Alice could not eat her first ever gift. If she just put it in her mouth, it would melt and disappear without a trace. Even when the children around her were busy eating the caramel, Alice didn’t touch hers. When she was slightly off guard on the way home in the carriage, she almost lost her caramel to Cedric. Fortunately, she held onto it firmly.
When she arrived in her room, she put the wrapper in the treasure chest that she had hidden under her old bed so that no one else could see it. Moreover, she had only eaten one piece to taste.
“Delicious……”
It was as ecstatically delicious as the feast served for lunch in kindergarten. Just as her hand subconsciously tried to take another piece of caramel, Alice stopped herself.
‘It’s a gift, so you should eat sparingly.’
And now, Alice, who received the caramel and dress as gifts from Emir, thought it was a dream. Oh, to be precise, she was borrowing the dress for a while, so it was not a gift.
A white dress with lots of frills. These pretty and expensive high-end clothes were something she would never have been able to afford. The only wealth she was given was a bulky old dress which was not made of soft silk. Alice sat on the bed, hugged her knees, and quietly brushed the hem of the skirt, thinking to herself.
‘It’s only natural because I’m the stain of this family. But… I envy you, Sister Claire. You can wear pretty clothes like this every day.’
The Duke of Rose had two daughters. Claire Rose, the first, and Alice Rose, the second. But only the second child, Alice, was treated like an eyesore. She was called ‘the stain of the Duchy of Rose’ just because she looked different from the other members of the Rose family and didn’t seem to have the qualities of a fairy summoner, an ability handed down from generation to generation. The Duchess and the Duke neglected Alice, saying that such an ugly thing couldn’t be their daughter. Therefore, despite Alice’s status as a princess, she was not treated like one at all.
She had no basic etiquette training, nor did she eat at the same table with her family. She had to eat every meal alone in her room. Until she was five years old, she had someone to lean on一her nanny and maid who pitied her and took care of her, but the Duke drove out those who even took pity on her. Because of this, since about a year ago, Alice always had to go to the kitchen to prepare her meals by herself, and even if she needed clothes or necessary items, she could not easily ask for them, so she always had a difficult time.
She was only engaged to the Duchy of Bedmond because it was arranged before her birth, and the Roses could not voluntarily break the promises already made between the two families. To Alice, the engagement was a fortune among misfortunes.
Because of her engagement to Cedric, they went to kindergarten together.
‘And while I was there, I met Lady Emir. I’m really happy.’
In fact, Alice wasn’t happy when she first heard that she was going to kindergarten.
‘Is it okay if I go there? What if there are only people who hate me like the people in the mansion…’
She was afraid. She was afraid that strangers would hate her like the people in the Duke’s mansion. Even when she arrived at kindergarten, she could not easily talk to other children and instead sat quietly like a dead mouse by herself.
‘Hey, Alice?’
‘……What? What? Me, me… you mean?’
Someone had spoken to Alice like that for the first time. At that time, Alice was greatly embarrassed. She thought no one would look for her. The Lady who gave gifts to others was even talking to her. But Alice did not dare to imagine that she would receive a gift.
‘Yes. I also prepared a present for Lady Alice. Here, look. This pretty silver ribbon resembles the color of Lady’s eyes.’
‘Pretty……’
Hearing these words, Alice was proven wrong. And it’s probably around since then that Alice enjoys waking up every morning. It was her first time playing with children her age. In the past, all she did everyday was play with dirt, or chat with small animals such as squirrels who got lost in the corner of the garden. However, her time with Emir was always full of excitement. Playing with stones alone was boring, predictable, and uninteresting; but when they played together, they named the game ‘gonggi’, and she became much more motivated. Furthermore, it was thanks to Emir that she was able to muster the courage to talk to the other children, at least a little.
‘Really, I probably wouldn’t have been able to do it if Lady Emir didn’t approach me first.’
Alice, who was looking back on her memories, bit her lip, feeling overwhelmed and emotional.
‘I also want to help Lady Emir. Or, I want to give her a present. Is there anything I can do…’
Alice was in a dilemma.
But no matter how much she thought about it, she had nothing of her own. All she had in this little room was a creaking bed, an old wooden hanger that was about to break, and two sets of clothes hanging from it. The unpainted table was littered with all sorts of rubbish, which wouldn’t be suitable to give as a gift.
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