As the three walked and chatted, by the time Jenny finished speaking, they had reached the corridor of the Mountain Retreat.
As Jenny's voice trailed off, the three of them heard faint laughter and soft voices coming from nearby.
"Oh! There's someone at the Mountain Retreat today. I wonder who it is?" Tina frowned, looking somewhat disappointed.
The Mountain Retreat was one of the nicer spots in Moore Manor. Though small, it boasted enchanting scenery. It was filled with rare and exotic flowers, plants, birds, and animals—a place that truly opened one's eyes. Tina had always wanted to visit but never had the chance. Now that she finally made it, someone else had beaten her to it. The Mountain Retreat wasn't large, but that didn't mean latecomers couldn't enjoy the scenery just because others were already there. However, most visitors to the Mountain Retreat were the manor's masters, and which servant would dare linger in their presence?
"I heard that today the leader was taken out by Lord Solar and the young master, so it must be some of the others here," Jenny speculated.
"In that case, let's not disturb them. Why don't we go somewhere else?" Mia suggested.
Mia said this partly because she was wary of meeting strangers, and partly because these people were likely other masters of Moore Manor. Given her current awkward status, she wouldn't know how to conduct herself around them. And thirdly, she was afraid of encountering the former Miss Anna Ivan, now the young master's wife. In Anna's presence, Mia always felt an overwhelming sense of inferiority and fear, likely a lingering effect from her years as a servant in the Ivan household.
"Fine," Tina thought glumly. "If we can't enjoy this place, we might as well find somewhere else to have fun."
"Alright," Jenny nodded in agreement.
"Let's go then." Mia turned to head back the way they came, but a sudden exclamation stopped her in her tracks: "Mia!"
The familiar call, unheard for so long, made Mia freeze. Slowly, she turned around.
As expected, she saw the person she least wanted to face—Miss Anna Ivan, formerly of the Ivan family, now the young master's wife of the Moore family, accompanied by her personal maid, Jim. It was Jim who had called out to her, someone Mia considered a friend from her time at the Ivan household.
Anna Ivan lived up to her reputation as the South's most renowned beauty. Whenever she appeared, the surrounding scenery seemed to fade in comparison. Her radiant countenance was enough to make anyone fall for her. Coupled with the innate elegance of a wealthy heiress, her beauty was like a blooming flower—vivid, dazzling, and precious, making one want to hide her away in a room where no one else could see her.
Still, Mia couldn't help but think to herself that Anna's beauty didn't quite measure up to Arthur's.
It was a childish, defiant thought, but no matter who compared the two, everyone would agree that Arthur was far more captivating than Anna Ivan. His allure was almost otherworldly.
Lost in her thoughts, Mia was startled back to reality as the person she feared most—Anna Ivan, once Miss Ivan and now the young master's wife—approached her with Jim by her side.
Tina tugged at Mia's sleeve, pulling her out of her daze.
"Mia, you still haven't gotten over that habit of daydreaming!" Jim teased with a laugh. As Anna's most favored personal maid, she wasn't reprimanded for speaking out of turn without her mistress's permission.
"I…" Mia didn't know how to respond. Glancing at Anna Ivan's expressionless face, she instinctively lowered her head, about to curtsy, but Jenny quickly pulled her back.
Before Mia could process what was happening, Jenny, still holding her arm, and Tina both gave Anna Ivan a curtsey. Then, Jenny coldly snapped at Jim, "As a maid, you dare address Miss Mia by her name? Do you want to be sent to the punishment room?"
Her words stunned everyone except Tina, including Mia.
Before the three could recover from the shock, a clear, crisp voice rang out.
"What's going on? What happened? Oh, isn't that Tina and Jenny? What are you two doing here? Weren't you…" The lively voice cut off abruptly, as if something unexpected had happened.
At that moment, an elegant figure in pale yellow swept into their view like a breeze, stopping in front of Mia. "Sister Mia, is it really you? My goodness! I've been dying to meet you, but the leader wouldn't allow it. He said you were shy and still unfamiliar with this place, so we were never allowed to visit you. I can't believe you're here at the Mountain Retreat today! It's such a pity that my second brother and younger brother are out with Mother for prayers, or they might've gotten to meet you too…!"
Mia, still reeling from the earlier confusion, found herself plunged into another wave of bewilderment.
She stared, puzzled, at the excited, chattering girl in front of her.
As if sensing Mia's confusion, Jenny whispered in her ear, "Miss Mia, this is Miss Sophie."
"Oh!" Mia suddenly understood. When she looked at Miss Sophie again, she realized there was something truly special about her.
Sophie was lively and cheerful, without the arrogance or haughtiness typical of noble children. Unconsciously, Mia found herself genuinely liking this girl.
The six of them ended up together in the Flower-Viewing Pavilion at the Mountain Retreat. Tina and Jenny stood behind Mia, while Jim stood behind Anna Ivan. Miss Sophie, meeting Mia for the first time, sat closely beside her, her face beaming with a radiant smile. Sophie talked incessantly, mostly about how she and her parents and brothers had wanted to meet Mia but never had the chance. Her face glowed with joy, as if Mia were a long-lost friend. It was as though she felt compelled to pour out years' worth of thoughts in just fifteen minutes, or else she'd be terribly rude.
Mia listened to Sophie's endless chatter, occasionally sneaking glances at Anna. She noticed Anna's initial look of slight surprise morph into clear sarcasm. When their eyes accidentally met, the contempt in Anna's gaze struck Mia's heart like a dagger, filling her with tension and fear. Her hands, hidden beneath the table, were clasped so tightly that her nails dug deep into her palms, nearly breaking the skin and drawing blood.
Miss Sophie, clearly perceptive, noticed Mia's slightly pale complexion. "Sister Mia, what's wrong? Are you feeling unwell?" she asked. Knowing Mia was two years older, she called her "sister."
"No…" Mia forced a smile to reassure her, but it was so strained it only made Sophie more concerned.
"You must be sick!" Sophie declared. "Jenny, go fetch a doctor to check on Sister Mia."
Just as Jenny was about to follow the order, Anna, who had been silent until now, spoke up. "No need for a doctor. She's not sick—she's just too ashamed to face anyone. And why shouldn't she be? She was nothing but a lowly servant in the Ivan household, and now, here at Moore Manor, she dares to sit as an equal with me? It's unthinkable. In the South, it's not uncommon for noble lords to take a talented courtesan as a mistress, but I've never heard of anyone taking a lowly servant girl who came as part of a dowry and making her a mistress. Unless the lord is old and half-blind, or has some peculiar taste, how else could he choose such an insignificant, base servant to favor? Tsk tsk! Going from a lowly wretch to a mistress—she has no shame, but I, her former mistress, feel too humiliated to even hold my head up!"