HIGANBANA

Adrian took the paper and read it once more. He kept his eyes on this riddle that made no sense to him. While he was focused on what was written, he was trying carefully to listen carefully to Scarlet explain in such an excited state how he found the riddle. He looked up at the talking girl. Indeed, insomnia made her a very different person.

"Scarlet" was his deeply calming voice that kept Scarlet silenced and tidy up by realizing what she was doing. Scarlet bowed her head in the embarrassment of breaking into his room without permission and wondered how she made such a mistake.

"Sorry, sir. I entered your room without permission and spoke disrespectfully. Forgive me." She bowed before him and tried to ignore the miserable state she had just realized.

"No, you misunderstood. You were talking very quickly, without breathing, and if you look at yourself, you are about to faint from fatigue. I was going to offer to sit down. " The quiet words caused Scarlet to lift her head in confusion. Adrian had a mischievous smile on his face. The young woman turned her head and headed for the seats without saying a word.

When Adrian sat in front of her, he put the paper, which was about to be torn, on the small table in the middle.

"It is thanks to you that we have come this far in such a short time. It is admirable that I succeeded, even though I know that we have a more tough time ahead of us. " He paused for a moment and studied Scarlet. When he realized she was not going to say anything, he continued to speak. "You say this puzzle will take my dad to whatever he's looking for, but these words don't make any sense to me. Do you know what happened? " his curious voice and gaze turned to her.

Scarlet made a mournful sound and shook her head hopelessly.

"I have no idea what he wants to tell either, but it is an indisputable fact that these lines have something to do with the books I bought from your father's secret library." She looked into Adrian's eyes. "Also the map was marked Solaris and on the night of the full moon. Even though they are all unrelated and complex, the important thing is to put the pieces in the right place in the puzzle, then the answer we want will come up. You can trust me on this. " Her confident voice was quite stable.

"What a doubt too" Adrian muttered and stood up.

"Now I want to get dressed if you let me." Scarlet stood up for a moment and took the paper. She looked away and her face felt warmth as if she was just realizing that Adrian was naked.

"Sure, sir," she said quickly and headed for the door. As she escaped, Adrian could not hold back a smile.

Both were quiet at breakfast. Scarlet was enjoying the relief and happiness of having dinner with someone again. She always thought she loved loneliness, but she realized that she was actually forced to love. Of course, things had changed with Adrian and she searched for his presence even while eating. As she sipped her herbal tea, her evasive gaze found Adrian and hid the smile on her face behind the cup.

"What do you intend to do today, my dear" entered the role of a fiancé that she had not been in for a long time and her laughing eyes found Adrian. Adrian was stunned by the soft voice he heard. Though it was evident to be a role, hearing Scarlet's soft warm voice caused his brief defeat. He gave a flirtatious smile.

"I will be inspecting the surrounding towns and then I discuss the infrastructure problems of the campuses. A long day is waiting for me, you understand. What will you do today?" A maid appeared next to them to fill the empty glasses at that moment, and soon took care of her work and withdrew.

"I will read a book, and then I plan to take a short walk in the garden. The flowers from the window are eye-catching and will make me happy to walk among them. " She smiled. A dazzlingly beautiful creature could laugh so lovingly she was fake. He wondered how he would laugh if he had real feelings. Without stopping, he reached out and took the white cold cheek in his palm. His fingertips fell into the velvety softness of the skin as he caressed under her eyes.

"Before that, darling, you should sleep a little longer. You look so tired. It saddens me to see signs of tiredness in this beautiful skin. "

Scarlet was startled and stood suddenly by the harsh warmth she felt on her cheek. She felt like this warmth as her cheeks flushed rapidly. She grabbed the calloused hand that covered the whole of her cheek with both hands and lowered it into her lap. Her white hand made a nice contrast to his tan skin.

"Do not worry about me. You have to take care of yourself. " She smiled sincerely and stroked the top of his hand. She didn't need to do this, but she caressed his warm skin with the need for touch that she couldn't prevent.

The light touches on his rough skin stimulated his nerves. He slowly pulled his hand, which was smudged against the white, and stood up to leave at once.

"Pay attention, darling." While he was about to turn around, he leaned over without hindering himself, kissed Scarlet's hair, and quickly turned away.

Scarlet looked behind him, flushed to her ears. Normally, she knew it was played, so she was calm, but she could not hide her absurd excitement, unable to prevent the cramps and blood flowing in her.

The castle had a very large garden. There was a camellia just where the roses were, and drinking tea among the rose scents must have been one of the most enjoyable things. She noted in her mind that she would do this. The tall trees with thick trunks stretched all their green, solid branches to the sky, providing the relief of shade to someone sitting underneath. The gardeners must have been doing their job quite well that the plants were firm and vibrant. As she walked towards the back of the garden, she saw that the gardener she had met before was working. Abraham had quit his job after seeing the lady approaching near them and took off his hat and saluted.

"As far as I can see you are doing your job well. The liveliness and scent of roses enchanted me. " Abraham leaned back before her, looking relieved.

"Thank you, my lady." Scarlet smiled at the old gardener and approached him.

"Can you show me around the garden now?" Her voice was calm but commanding.

Abraham bent down and walked ahead to lead Scarlet. They started moving a little further to the back of the garden. Trees were getting tighter and less sunlight passing through the branches. Scarlet looked around in admiration. She reminded her of the getaways she had with Isabel at the mansion and made a sincere smile on her face.

Her gaze was on Abraham, and she would tell him to go - to spend time alone here - but before the words could get out of her mouth, the glow through the green and gloomy leaves caught her attention. She started going that direction without saying anything. The closer her instincts were, the more sensitive she was and the excitement of what she would see.

When she came into the clearing, crimson flowers of the same kind greeted her. The sun shone on them, creating an explosion of color above each. The sweetness of the resulting vanilla scent tickled her nose. The sight and scent of the enormous flowers made Scarlet feel like jumping on the flowers and rolling in them.

"Did you sew these?" Her admiring gaze and impressing voice did not leave the flowers for a moment.

"I sewed it at the request of the late Duke, sir." When Scarlet heard about the duke, she turned to him with interest.

"Did he tell you why he wanted it sewn?" her curious voice and gaze were watching the old man intently.

"No sir he gave me about a year ago to plant the seeds. He would come and check it privately and said he liked spending time here. " Abraham's voice came out with the sensuality of the memories he remembered, and his old eyes drifted briefly. Scarlet realized that Abraham was still loyal to the former duke.

She turned her head back to plants. They were still supernaturally alive, but now her gaze was looking more for clues, and she was trying to understand why the former duke valued this place so much.

"So what kind of plant is this?" She asked the question without a whim of her curiosity.

"They call it the Red Spider Lily, sir. It is also known as the hell flower among the people. " She turned her head to Abraham so quickly that the muscles in her neck were suddenly squeezed in pain for a short time.

"No matter how bright and vivid they look now, they symbolize rebirth after death. Legend has it that two people who love each other appear when they are separated forever. It is the flower of the farewell. Especially when young people die, this flower is left in their graves. For them to live a long life their next life. It is believed that the flower imprisons death so that death will not take it early in its new life. " Scarlet's astonishment grew even more at what she heard. This time she looked at the flowers with respect.

Did the Duke have it because he knew it? Her mind was further clouded, and she turned around and started walking towards the castle. She carved the name and image of the flower in her mind. When she went to his room, her first job would be to search for this plant from the herb book she bought from the secret library. She decided to come here once more with Adrian.