***
***
The Grand Duke looked ferociously at his knight.
Marion’s emotions were strangely complex.
It was gratitude and interest one moment, then it was attachment, and now it was a boiling thirst.
Possessive desire tangled with human affection too easily.
The Grand Duke spoke in a languid voice.
“…I have to end this once for all. Tomorrow I will go to the Welch House. Do not let her know.”
“All right.”
“And get the knights ready.”
A vein stiffly popped out of the back of his hand.
“I will have to leave the Capital soon.”
***
Rumors about her spread like wildfire.
Even though she was confined to the mansion, she could tell.
Even the maids seemed to know everything that happened yesterday.
From what she had heard, the Morte estate didn’t have much contact with the outside world, but since she openly talked about the duel at dinner, rumors spread.
Unexpectedly, the maids looked excited.
“Madame, did you really defeat a Welch Knight?”
“Uh-huh! Tell us!”
Sumona gave them a brief warning, but Amarion just nodded.
“Yes.”
“Ugh, how rude Lady Welch is. When she used to visit, she didn’t treat us very kindly…”
“Not in front of her highness!”
At Sumona’s angry rebuke, the maids quickly shut their mouths.
Amarion’s heart grew even heavier.
As expected, rumors were spreading.
After all, since Nanael was his fiancée, and her family was part of the alliance, she must have visited the mansion often.
She finished grooming herself with a gloomy face.
Still, she was happy to be able to let her hair loose and wear indoor clothes. She was excited to be able to eat snacks to her heart’s content without encountering vicious people.
‘I should go to the kitchen later and ask them to make a lot of cookies with raspberry jam. I’ll give them to the gardener, the gatekeeper, and the maids cleaning the windows.’
‘Is Sir Carlz still in the mansion? If he is, I should ask him to drink tea with me.’
Sumona slowly approached Amarion, who was swinging her legs like a child.
“Madame.”
Seeing her serious face, Amarion quickly straightened her posture. After receiving strict etiquette education, it had become a habit for her to straighten up whenever she saw the old maid.
But, to her surprise, Sumona did not point out her rude behavior.
Instead, she bowed her head deeply.
“I’m really sorry.”
Amarion panicked.
“Wh-why?”
“If I had known that Lady Welch made you uncomfortable, I would have made sure you could avoid meeting her. How surprised I was to hear that Madame had a duel…”
The old maid’s shoulders began to tremble.
Amarion shook her head in surprise, “No, I had to go. I’m fine.”
“No, my Lady. It’s not okay at all.”
Sumona spoke in a firm tone and took her hand.
The old maid’s hands were smaller and more wrinkled than her own. But they were warm.
“If you don’t like banquets, you don’t have to go… I’m so sorry I didn’t notice and made you suffer.”
“It’s the duty of the Grand Duchess…”
“The most important thing is you, Amarion Morte.”
Amarion looked up at her in utter shock.
With her hair neatly pinned up and wearing a clean uniform, Sumona suddenly looked like a widow from her hometown.
She looked like the healer from Amari who washed wounds with strong liquor and crushed herbs tirelessly. Amarion also remembered the swordsman who always stood by her side, wielding the sword of her dead husband. Sumona’s and Diederick’s faces began to merge with the healer’s and the swordsman’s.
“Rituals and duties are important, but the most important thing is that the Lady is happy. Anyone who cherishes Amarion will think so.”
“Sumona…”
“Respect yourself. Amarion Morte is talented and warm-hearted. Everyone in this mansion is wholeheartedly wishing for your happiness.”
Amarion looked up at Sumona. Something warm, different from the heat Victor made her feel, encompassed her chest. Suddenly, her eyes became hot.
The whole week, she had never wanted to cry, even though it had been so hard. But now, she could barely swallow her tears. She responded in a muffled voice.
“…Yes, Thank you.”
The old maid smiled kindly.
She sniffled a few times with her head bowed.
***
She lounged around her room all afternoon, eating snacks.
Soft custard cream puffs, sweet walnut pie, and savory southern-style deep-fried sweets were served one after another.
Unfortunately, Sir Carlz was absent and couldn’t be invited.
He and Victor seemed to be busy with something.
‘Could it be because of what I did?’
An ominous thought invaded her mind, but thanks to her maids, who had picked her some pretty flowers and chatted endlessly, her worries were quickly forgotten.
She put the flowers in a vase, ate a lot of sweets, and took a bubble bath. After that, Sumona came in with a mountain of invitations.
Astonished, she read the names on the letters.
Most were from families she had never heard of.
Sumona explained.
“Most of them are invitations from ladies of knightly families, madame.”
“Knightly families? Why…?”
“Her highness defeated Sir Jeffrey! Now that they know about Madame’s amazing skills, they must be curious!”
She was embarrassed by the endless praise of the maids.
‘Is Sir Jeffrey of Sutherland a famous knight? He didn’t seem that strong…’
With the help of Sumona, she opened most of the invitations.
She had to read them in order to write a reply of refusal.
She was in the middle of reading a letter when the door opened.
“Marion.”
Like a gentle afternoon breeze, Victor walked into the room.
A friendly smile, as always, graced his lips.
He approached her and gently touched her cheek. His hands smelled like iron.
‘Was he holding a sword today?’
She was puzzled for a moment, but quickly convinced herself that he must have attended a hunt with his friends.
“Have you read all the letters?”
“Almost.”
“Can I help you?”
Victor picked up a single envelope. It was a letter bearing the crest of the Duchy of Welch.
‘From Welch to me?’
Surprised, she nodded, and Victor tore open the envelope, skimming its contents.
“What does it say?”
“They want to apologize for disrespecting our family.”
He snorted as he tore the letter in half. She looked at Victor in surprise.
‘The Duchess must be the mother of Nanael… did she write this?’
She asked carefully.
“Can I not go?”
“Marion, you are the Grand Duchess. You are the highest ranked woman in the Empire after the Empress. You don’t have to go anywhere you don’t want to.”
She stared at Victor silently.
Today’s Victor was rougher than usual… and more irritable.
The guilt that she had barely suppressed rose up and consumed her again.
She closed her eyes and apologized.
“I’m sorry.”
Victor looked at her in amazement.
“Why are you apologizing?”
“Because of me, the honor of his highness-”
“Hey, don’t think like that.”
He carefully wrapped his hands around her cheeks, as if he was handling a glass doll that could break easily.
Victor’s voice was as sweet as the snacks she had eaten all day.
“I told you, you can do anything. You will never dishonor me.”
There was a spark of heat in his amber eyes.
Embarrassed and happy, she quickly nodded her head.
She liked that he told her that all the time, even if it was a lie.
Victor smiled once more, then suddenly spoke in a serious tone.
“Actually, I think we should go to the estate soon.”
“You mean the Morte estate?”
“Yes. I haven’t been able to go because I’ve been sick… out of fear of spreading rumors.”
His eyes darkened.
“You kept hearing so many terrible things. I’m sorry you had to go through all of that during social season… If you don’t want to go-”
She shook her head wildly.
She was sick and tired of banquets.
She thought that if she could be granted one wish, it would be for him to take her out of the Capital right away.
Moreover, Victor couldn’t have spoken more pitifully.
She smiled and took his hand.
“No, I want to go too.”
A dazzling smile appeared on Victor’s face.
“If you want, we can leave right now. Or tomorrow.”
She glanced at the pile of invitations.
Was it an illusion that his eyes suddenly became cold?
“There are so many people who are unnecessarily interested…”
“…”
“How could we possibly leave tomorrow?”
He furrowed his brow.
She wanted to visit a few people, and then they could go. Last week was really hard, but there were a few ladies who treated her genuinely.
She asked carefully.
“Still, I want to go to one or two banquets, …can I?”
In an instant, his perfect smile was distorted.
‘Ah! Is his work very important? Is he tired?’
As she looked around, she saw Sir Carlz, who had entered the room behind Victor, clicking his tongue.
‘Why is Sir Carlz behaving like that again?’
Victor’s hand gently turned her head back towards him.
And he nodded with a smile that was flawless enough for her to think that what she had seen earlier really was an illusion.
“Of course. But this time, take me too. We have never been to a banquet together.”
She had been thinking of attending a small banquet only for women, but she couldn’t refuse Victor further.
After she nodded her head, he laughed jovially.
“I can finally dance with you.”
Watching Victor kissing the back of her hand, Sir Carlz shook his head.
She quickly lowered her head, her cheeks dyed scarlet.