Chapter 119

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Translator: Harry Potta
Chapter: 119
Chapter Title: Old Love (1)
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Ms. Rotis fiddled with the handle of her cane.

“It could become troublesome if we run into them while wandering alone. Let’s use a hired carriage as much as possible and avoid going out by ourselves. Most importantly, we mustn't let them find out where we're staying. If they wait for us right outside, we'll be helpless.”

Miss Hyde and Laura nodded.

That night, Laura, dressed in her nightgown, sat in bed reading the original text she was to translate. Suddenly, a knock echoed from her door, followed by Ms. Rotis’s voice.

“Are you asleep, Miss Pendleton?”

Laura got out of bed and answered.

“No. Please come in.”

Ms. Rotis, wearing a black gown and leaning on her cane, slowly entered the room.

“I'm glad you're still awake.”

“Yes. I can never seem to fall asleep early... But what brings you here?”

Ms. Rotis looked at Laura steadily, her hands in her gown pockets. Her face was full of concern.

“I have a feeling that the gaze from the Pump Room was directed at you, Miss Pendleton.”

“Why do you say that?”

“Men generally don't take a liking to me. It's as if they instinctively know they'll get a thrashing from my cane if they approach. Jane isn't the type of young lady who attracts men either. She's a charming girl, but... she's too tall and distinctive. But you, Miss Pendleton, are different.”

“You are both just as charming as I am. And from what I've observed in my life, gentlemen have varied tastes.”

“I'm speaking of probabilities. You have a delicate and gentle beauty, Miss Pendleton. Men desire a woman like you.”

Laura was at a loss for words and fell silent.

She often made Laura feel this way. It was due to her unabashedly honest and unadorned, direct personality.

For Laura, who was accustomed to expressing emotions with refinement and conveying her true feelings indirectly, Ms. Rotis was a rather bewildering person. Though it was also undeniable that this very quality of Ms. Rotis’s was part of her charm.

“Of course, I didn't seek you out in the middle of the night just to compliment your appearance. You must have heard such things to no end in society, and I have peculiar tastes, so I prefer women like Jane over you. I came to ask something of you.”

“Ask something of me?”

“If the owner of that gaze appears and shows any sign of wanting to harm you, tell me and no one else.”

“Not even a constable?”

“That's right. Constables won't believe a woman's word until something happens. And even after it does, they'll blame the woman. But I am entirely on your side.”

“...I can't make that promise. If something were to happen to me, I don't know what you would do, Ms. Rotis.”

At that, Ms. Rotis fell silent for a moment before pulling a hand from her pocket. To Laura’s astonishment, she was holding a palm-sized pistol.
Laura covered her mouth with both hands.

“If you knew how to shoot, I would have given this to you. But you're the type who's likely never even fired a wooden slingshot. So I'll do it for you.”

Laura had known that Ms. Rotis always carried firearms during her travels, but she never imagined she would possess one on the safe soil of England.

In the gun held in Ms. Rotis’s hand, Laura read her distrust of the world. She was a person who could not entrust her life to the vague belief that the world would be safe. That was Ms. Rotis.

Laura shook her head.

“Ms. Rotis, there are laws in England. Private revenge is never tolerated by society.”

“England is a nation built by warriors with swords and spears. Until my father's generation, duels of honor were a common custom among young men. I can't stand to see my people get hurt. Especially not a lady.”

Ms. Rotis put the pistol back in her pocket.

“My hope is that you will stay safely in Bath without me ever having to use this gun. Now, sleep well, Miss Pendleton.”

She turned and headed for the door. Laura stared at her slightly limping left leg. In that instant, her intuition sparked a thought.

“Ms. Rotis.”

Ms. Rotis turned her head.

“By any chance, your leg... was it a man who did that to you?”

Ms. Rotis’s expression seemed to harden for a moment, but then she smiled faintly. It was a smile that held a hundred years of joys and sorrows.

“When I was seventeen, there was a gentleman who persistently begged me to marry him. He knew I was the likely heir to my great-aunt's fortune. I refused him several times. During my boarding school days, I had learned that I could not be happy if I married a man. As soon as he found out I was going to Africa with my inheritance, he chased me down and shot me. If he hadn't been completely drunk, the scoundrel would have put a bullet right in my eye, which he used to praise so lavishly.”

“...”

“My left knee has never worked properly since. But that's no problem for me. Good night, Miss Pendleton.”

Ms. Rotis left the room.

***

The autumn in Bath passed peacefully.

Laura was often left alone at the hotel. Ms. Rotis had a packed schedule for her book promotion and was always accompanied by Miss Hyde.

Laura focused entirely on her translation work.

At first, she worked in a state of considerable tension. Reading and writing in a foreign language was familiar to her, but this was her first formal translation job.

However, the work she had chosen had simple sentences and a plain vocabulary. After translating a few pages, Laura gained confidence and soon let go of her burden, immersing herself in the pleasure the work provided.

Then one day, Laura suddenly felt a sense of confinement. And she realized she hadn't stepped outside the hotel for a whole week.

Laura put down her pen. She put on her hat and coat and went outside.

A week had already passed since the incident at the Pump Room.

Laura didn't take it as seriously as Ms. Rotis. It was common for gentlemen to stare at ladies in society, and Bath was always crowded with people. Laura believed that as long as she didn't venture into secluded areas, she would not encounter any trouble.

Laura left the hotel and began to walk slowly through the city center of Bath.

The route in her head was as follows: have a glass of mineral water at the Pump Room, stop by a bookstore to browse, and then go to a dessert shop to buy a box of chocolates.

Laura felt refreshed and joyful to be out for a walk after so long. She walked toward the Pump Room with a light step.

However, about halfway between the hotel and the Pump Room, she began to feel a sense of unease.

She felt a strange presence behind her.

Laura looked back. There was no one behind her. Assuming it was her imagination, Laura quickened her pace. But after another hundred meters or so, she felt it again. She turned around. But there was no one there.

This happened about five times.

*Could it be the person who was watching us at the Pump Room?*

Laura looked around for a hired carriage to return to the hotel. But the carriages, which were usually plentiful, were nowhere to be seen today.

*I should have just stayed in the hotel room. No, that thought is useless now. Okay, let's head to the Pump Room first. There are always hired carriages waiting there... Ah, but what if that person follows me in a carriage? They'll find out where I'm staying.*

Laura felt helpless.

*If they find out where I'm staying, not only me but Miss Hyde and Ms. Rotis will be in danger. What if I'm not the one they're targeting? I have to shake them off on my own.*

Laura walked on, pretending to be oblivious. Soon, a fork in the road appeared before her. The left path led to the Pump Room.

Laura turned left with determined steps, as if she were heading to the Pump Room. And the moment she rounded the corner, she slipped into a bakery she could see right away. It was a regular stop of hers whenever she passed the Pump Room.

Laura quickly explained the situation to the owner at the counter. The owner guided Laura to the back door.

Laura burst through the back door and began to run through an alley of sparsely populated shops.

Laura could feel it distinctly. The presence that had been following her quietly was now running after her. The sound of the thudding footsteps was clearly that of a man.

It was too much for a woman's strength to shake him off. Her shoes were too uncomfortable, and the skirt of her dress was not wide enough, restricting her stride.

Looking around for a place to hide, Laura spotted a narrow alley. Beyond the alley was the central fountain square of Bath, an area always congested with traffic due to the opera house and museum. For that reason, there were always constables on duty directing traffic.

Laura ducked into the alley and started running toward the central fountain. The footsteps behind her followed into the alley.

Just as Laura emerged from the alley, she collided head-on with a man.

“Ah!”

Laura bumped her face into the man's chest.

“Miss, are you all right?”

A gentleman's flustered voice reached her. Laura, covering her face, nodded. But she was not all right at all. Her nose stung as if sprinkled with hot spices, and she was on the verge of tears.

Her ears turned red, half from pain and half from embarrassment.

“I'm sorry. I rushed out so suddenly...”

Laura muttered in an embarrassed voice and looked up at the gentleman's face.

In that instant, Laura froze. Her tongue, her body, her mind, and her very soul.

“Laura?”

The man who had exited her life 12 years ago.

John Ashton stood before her.

***

The two stared at each other in silence.

The red hair that fell below his gentleman's hat, the deep tan of his skin, his strong features, his violet eyes, his broad shoulders and chest.

At the sight of John's face, which seemed untouched by the years, still young and handsome, Laura felt the blurred image of her first love sharpen into focus.

*My goodness, he hasn't changed at all.*

“Laura... What in the world... How are you here? No, first, are you hurt?”

He placed a hand on Laura's shoulder. She shook her head.

“I'm fine. I'm not hurt at all...”

Laura gently pushed his hand from her shoulder. He readily withdrew it.

“Anyway, why did you come flying out of a secluded alley like that?”

Only then did Laura come to her senses. Right. She was being chased. Laura turned her head and looked back at the alley. There was no sign of the man who had been following her.

Laura explained everything. The stare she had felt at the Pump Room ten days ago, and being followed while walking alone. Even the heavy sound of footsteps she had heard while fleeing.

John's face hardened as he listened to her story.

“...So I ran this way. Because there are always constables on the road.”

“You did well. But they wouldn't have been able to do much besides comfort you.”

He stared intently toward the alley.

“Should I beat that scoundrel and run him out of Bath?”

Laura shook her head.

“Using physical force to solve problems is unbecoming of a man of law.”

“So you knew I became a barrister?”

“I couldn't help but know, even without trying. Your competence is renowned throughout England.”

He smirked and offered Laura his arm.

“Let's walk for now. As we walk, we can think about how to lose the man who was following you.”

Laura compliantly took his arm, and they began to walk together.

She couldn't believe this situation, walking side by side with him. It was absurd and very awkward.

For 12 years, Laura had tried to forgive him. His betrayal had been understandable. He had sick parents and eight younger siblings. Choosing a woman who could guarantee his success over a seventeen-year-old girl with no dowry was, in a way, the natural choice.

Even if he had toyed with her. Even if she was the only one who had envisioned a future for them.