Summary
“Go lie down in bed.” Louise endured hardships, such as a younger brother to be responsible for and debts left by her parents, yet she lived assiduously without losing her warmth. One day, her troublemaking brother—who was no better than a vagrant—announced on his own that he wanted to marry her. He claimed that he would use the bride’s first night ticket to make up the money he lost at a gaming establishment that should have been paid as marriage tax. To keep her boyfriend safe, he pushed Louise to replace him. “The lord is an extremely severe individual.” The threat was too great for Louise to ignore, so she eventually made her way to the castle. But the cold-blooded nature of the lord, who had served on the battlefield for years, was dreaded by everybody like a sword. He frowned and nodded when Louise said in a tiny voice how old she was. He sighed briefly and, without turning to face her, gestured with his chin toward the bed as if he were about to say something more. The resonant, low bass seemed heavy, oppressive, and intolerable.