Translator: Nox

Chapter 9

~Chapter 09~

Dong—. Dong—.

The bell tolling from the tower awakened the convent’s morning, still shrouded in darkness.

Dawn was approaching, but it was so dark without a lantern that she couldn’t even tell front from back on her clothes. Harriet dragged her heavy body out of bed.

“Ugh, my whole body aches.”

When she stretched, her bones and joints, pressed by the hard bed, let out a series of cracks and pops. She wanted to sleep more, but she knew that if she lazed around, she’d miss breakfast and draw glares from the others.

Harriet quickly washed her face with the water she had prepared the night before, then wiped her face once more with the rose water she had received from the convent.

‘Ah, it smells so good.’

She gently patted her face with her fingertips and took a deep breath. The lavender scent mixed into the rose water always calmed her mind. The herb garden attached to the convent produced not only rose water but also potpourri, medicinal herbs, and oils. At first, Harriet had thought these products wouldn’t be as good as what she used before, but surprisingly, they suited her skin perfectly. She had even shamelessly asked for more oil and potpourri.

‘They give them out for free to people staying at the convent, so it feels like I’ve struck gold!’

She even thought that when she eventually left this place, she might miss convent life because of these products.

Harriet slipped her habit over her chemise, tied the waistband loosely, brushed her hair, and tied it into a simple ponytail.

‘It’s so convenient not having to worry about makeup or fancy clothes. It’ll be hard to adjust when I go back for a while.’

It took her less than five minutes to finish preparing and step out of her room. Of course, the other noble ladies staying at the convent were different. They didn’t wear habits, did light makeup every morning, stayed in much larger and nicer rooms than Harriet’s, and some even brought maids.

At first, Harriet had thought it unfair, but as time passed, she found her current situation more comfortable and kept quiet.

‘I’ll be staying here longer than any of them anyway.’

The other noble ladies would stay at most a few weeks, or three or four months at the longest before leaving. They were treated as guests, but Harriet, who had to stay for a year, was treated almost like a nun.

‘At least they don’t treat me like a full nun. I even get more free time than the others.’

Harriet wiped down a few pieces of furniture and the windowsill with a cloth dampened in the remaining wash water. After tidying up the basin and cloth, she headed to the dining hall.

Before entering the dining hall, she offered a short prayer to the crucifix hanging above the door. The monks lined up at the serving counter nodded and greeted her.

Today’s breakfast was dry bread, cheese, olives, a glass of milk, and half an apple. At first, Harriet had thought it too much to eat before dawn, but now she polished off every last olive.

If she didn’t eat heartily, she wouldn’t make it through the morning’s work.

After finishing her meal, it was time to head to her workstation. Harriet had been assigned to the Soap Workshop.

“Sister Harriet! You don’t have to come this early.”

Sister Sophia, who was in charge of soap making, welcomed her warmly with a wave. Sophia, in her early forties, had a gentle face and was very kind. Thanks to her, much of Harriet’s fear of convent life had eased.

“I didn’t have much else to do. What should I do today?”

Harriet asked as she helped Sophia take out the tools.

“Hmm… How about starting today with you making soap yourself?”

“Really?”

Until now, Harriet had only done odd jobs, so being recognized as a full member of the soap-making team made her feel a bit overwhelmed. But Sophia gave her a slightly worried, apologetic smile.

“Honestly, it might be a bit tough for someone from a noble family. If it’s too hard, you have to tell me, okay?”

“I’ll do my best.”

When Harriet answered confidently, Sophia looked at her with curious eyes.

“Sister…”

“Yes? Did I do something wrong?”

“Oh, no. It’s just… you seem a bit different from what I expected.”

Harriet froze for a moment. She could guess what Sophia might have thought upon hearing the rumors of the noble lady exiled to the convent for a year due to a social scandal. She probably imagined her as arrogant and self-centered.

But unlike the other workshop leaders who had hesitated to accept Harriet, Sister Sophia had welcomed her.

“Our workshop is actually one of the easier ones. I’ll adjust the work so it’s not too hard, so give it your all.”

Harriet suppressed her excitement and smiled lightly.

Soap making was hard work and sometimes even dangerous, but to Harriet, who was experiencing everything for the first time, it was just fascinating.

Soon, a skilled monk whom Sophia had asked arrived and began explaining the day’s task with a stern demeanor.

“We’ll put olive oil, water, and soda into this cauldron and boil them. You have to keep stirring, but be careful. If you look away for a second, you’ll get burned.”

“It’s so amazing that you can make soap from oil. I still can’t get over it no matter how many times I see it.”

“Refining the purest, top-grade olive oil and solidifying it turns it into a treasure more valuable than anything else.”

The monk held up a pure white, milky bar of soap—the same kind Harriet was using.

“This soap is really good, by the way.”

The monk’s face brightened.

“You recognize the value of this soap!”

Delighted, he grabbed Harriet’s hand, then suddenly lowered his voice to a whisper.

“I recommended this soap to the other ‘guests’ too, but none of them liked it at all.”

“Really? Did it not suit their skin?”

“If they’d even tried it and judged for themselves, I wouldn’t feel so slighted. But they all said they use much better soap, so they don’t need this.”

It was truly a shame for those ladies.

Harriet had been suffering from unexplained rashes and acne, but just one use of this soap had worked miracles on her skin.

“I can vouch for it. This is the best soap I’ve ever used. No irritation, great cleansing power, and my skin doesn’t feel tight after washing.”

“Exactly!”

“And it works on acne too.”

Harriet had been mocked several times for the pimples dotting her face. But since starting to use this plain white soap and the refreshing herbal rose water, her skin had improved noticeably. The red marks were fading, and her complexion was clearing up.

“Haha! I’m so happy you like our soap this much. Let’s make some fantastic soap today with that enthusiasm!”

“Yes! I’ll work hard.”

Harriet rolled up her sleeves with a bright smile. Knowing someone liked her made her happy, and today the work didn’t seem so bad.

---

But that evening, Harriet collapsed onto her bed.

“Ah… I’m so exhausted…”

She had pretended to be fine at the Soap Workshop, but stirring the cauldron all day while standing was backbreaking labor. Her shoulders, arms, wrists, waist, legs—nothing didn’t ache.

“How many more days do I have to do this…?”

She felt like she might faint.

The grueling process made her realize why the soap was so high quality.

“This method has been passed down for over 200 years. Modern factories use chemicals to churn out soap quickly, but I still believe our way is the best.”

Sister Sophia and the monks at the workshop coughed from the steam at times, but they took tremendous pride in the soap they made.

In this rapidly changing world, people might dismiss their methods as outdated.

But to Harriet, the results were real.

‘If the people of Genoa knew about this, it would be so popular.’

Harriet shook her head soon after.

‘But nobles wouldn’t like soap without bright colors, scents, or a fancy brand.’

Modern noble brands were all obsessed with promoting themselves as “the finest product used by celebrities.”

Nobles had no reason to open their wallets for soap from a poor convent known only as an exile destination. And its low price would only make them look down on it more.

It was a pity, but there was nothing to be done.

More importantly, Harriet was realizing that convent life wasn’t as bad as she had expected.

‘Actually, this life feels more enjoyable now. The bed is still uncomfortable, but the food is okay… Hmm? Come to think of it, I haven’t had any stomachaches since coming here.’

The sudden realization made Harriet’s eyes widen in surprise.