Translator: asuramaru
Proofreader: asuramaru
Lennox Carlisle was born as the successor to a historic family.
The Duke of Carlisle, who ruled the North, boasted enormous wealth and power, but the family was stained with blood.
And the boy, who was born as the heir, was no exception.
He was nine years old when he first killed a man.
When his father, the former Duke, died, his gluttonous relatives drove the young successor to the battlefield on horseback.
The opposing army quickly fled, and the 9 year old boy disappeared from the battlefield, never to be seen again.
Or at least, that’s what everyone thought.
10 years later, the red-eyed man returned, this time with an undefeated army. The boy who left the Dukedom came back as a war hero.
It was his first time back in 10 years.
His army, unfamiliar with the term ‘mercy’, quickly recaptured the Northern Dukedom. However, no one doubted the legitimacy or qualifications of Lennox Carlisle.
It wasn’t just because of the Duke’s distinctive black hair and red eyes. It was because all of the relatives who dared to question his authority had their hands cut off.
Since that day, no one had dared to offend the young duke of Carlisle. So, it’d been a long time since Lennox Carlisle had felt so annoyed.
“What did you say?”
“I asked you to break up with me.”
Lennox stared at the woman in front of him.
With her long, wavy brown hair, brilliant sparkling blue eyes, and a thin, unadorned negligee[1], her posture was as straight as a queen.
After a brief silence, Carlisle smiled softly at her.
“Juliet Montagu.”
She was the official lover of the Duke of Carlisle.
“Are you kidding me?”
Even though she was intimidated, Juliet smiled and tilted her head rather than giving in to fear. She even blinked innocently as if she knew nothing.
“There’s no way, Your Highness.”
“Then start again. Ask something a little more plausible this time.”
“But I’ve already told you. That’s all I want.”
Juliet’s expression was as calm and nonchalant as usual as she responded casually. Her words flowed like a gentle stream.
Conversely, Lennox’s eyes turned fierce. It was only three days before they were due to leave the Duke’s castle in the Northern Territory and arrive at the mansion in the Capital.
As was the case every year, they were due to attend the New Year’s banquet held at the palace.
On the journey, there were two major gates to travel through, but it was a considerable amount of work for the trailing servants and knights in tow.
Juliet, known as the lover of the Duke of Carlisle, also visited the Capital with him on these occasions.
“I will not bother Your Highness.”
Keeping to her promise 7 years ago, Juliet had never bothered him. She didn’t beg for his affection nor attention, and neither did she hang on to him, shedding tears.
That was the Juliet Montagu he knew.
Not once did Juliet demand what he could not give.
Until today.
However, it was dangerous to leave the Northern Territory at the current time.
“Please break up with me.”
You’d dare to leave?
Lennox couldn’t figure out the exact cause, but felt an immense feeling of displeasure. As a man indifferent to his own feelings just as much as the emotions of others, he wasn’t interested in the reason why he was angry.
However, he felt the need to know why Juliet had changed so suddenly, so he was forced to voice his question aloud.
“For what reason?”
“Must I tell you why?”
“Juliet.”
“You promised. You said that you’d listen to everything.”
“That’s what I’m doing now-“
Lennox couldn’t stand it any longer and held Juliet’s arm. It was then.
Knock knock.
“Your Grace, it’s Elliot.”
A light knock interrupted the two.
“I’m sorry, but we have a visitor downstairs.”
It was Elliot, the Duke’s secretary, who knocked on the bedroom door. Juliet quickly stepped away from his grasp, not missing a beat.
When Lennox turned his head again, she was standing far away from him.
Like a mischievous child, Juliet stepped back and smiled at him with her hands clasped behind her.
“You-“
“Go ahead. They’re waiting for you.”
Lennox stared at her coldly, but only for a moment.
The journey to the Capital from the Northern Territory would be long and laborious, so there was a lot of work to be done. He was to be busy all day.
In the end, Lennox spoke reluctantly,
“…… In the afternoon, let’s talk again.”
“Yes, later.”
Juliet saw the Duke off with an unfailing smile until the end.
Rattle.
But the very moment the Duke left the bedroom, closing the door with a clatter, her smile disappeared without a trace. Juliet sank to the ground as if she’d collapsed.
“……..It’s all right, it’s all right. Well done.”
Juliet, who was left alone, buried her pale face in her hands. Heartbroken.
She was so nervous that even her fingertips were shaking. Tears formed at the base of her eyelashes, glittering dangerously in the light. But for now, even being sentimental was a luxury she couldn’t afford.
After taking a deep breath, Juliet ran straight to the dressing room without waiting for a maid.
The Duke’s secretary, Elliot, returned after seeing off the guest and happened to encounter Juliet leaving the main building of the mansion.
Dressed in a neat outdoor dress, Juliet was about to step into the Duke’s carriage.
‘At this early hour?’
“Are you going out, miss?”
“Yes, I’m visiting the Temple. I’ll pray for Elliot’s luck in the new year.”
TN: Left ‘Elliot’ in rather than ‘your’ since she’s speaking extremely politely to him.
“Thank you. Have a safe trip.”
He’d never told anyone, but Elliot respected this calm lady considerably. Juliet Montagu was clever and quick-witted, but also reserved and cautious.
Truthfully, the mere fact that she’d dedicated so many years to being the Duke’s lover was admirable in itself.
She was the only exception to the Duke who would normally change his partner daily.
But instead of stepping into the carriage, Juliet pointed at the flower pot that Elliot held, and asked,
“What’s that?”
“Oh, this? It’s a gift that was brought by the visitor.”
Marquis Roman, who had visited the mansion at dawn, gave the pot as a gift, stating that it was rude of him to intrude so early in the morning.
It was simple for a gift, but Marquis Roman was famous as a horticulture[2] lover.
Somehow, Juliet found herself staring at the purple flowers that Elliot was holding.
Suddenly wondering why she was staring, Elliot looked down at the pot and realised his mistake..
‘……Oops.’
Juliet Montagu was not a fussy character. Rather, she was on the quiet side.
There was just one thing.
For some reason, she hated the purple Dahlia flowers.
The dahlia, known for its vitality, was a common flower in the North. However, the purple dahlia flowers were a taboo within the Northern castle because of Juliet’s detest of the breed.
Elliot immediately apologised.
“I’m sorry, miss. I’ll dispose of it right away.”
“No, just leave it be.”
“Yes?”
“It would look good in your office.”
“Yes……?”
Elliot doubted his ears.
But, after speaking, Juliet simply laughed and left the estate in the carriage. Elliot stared blankly at the carriage as it travelled into the distance, but suddenly came to his senses.
‘Miss Montagu is a little strange today.’
But there was something Elliot wasn’t yet aware of. Juliet wasn’t the only one acting strangely today.
Knock, knock.
“Your Grace, it’s Elliot.”
“Come in.”
In addition to the Duke, there were two more knights in the office. The two knights had serious expressions carved into their faces, and greeted Elliot with nothing more than a glance.
‘What’s going on?’
Furthermore, documents were scattered messily across the table, and on one side, some papers were held down by something that resembled a jewellery box.
Elliot, sensing the unusual atmosphere, quietly placed the potted plant on the table. Sure enough, the Duke of Carlisle didn’t so much as spare a glance towards the pot Elliot had brought.
Sinking into the armchair, the Duke’s gaze was deeply focused on staring at something outside the window of his office.
As Elliot glanced sideways towards the window, he caught sight of the Duke’s carriage leaving the grounds.
It was the same carriage Juliet left in.
“Elliot.”
“Yes, Your Highness.”
Elliot answered politely and quickly arranged today’s schedule in his mind. Because, naturally, he expected to be questioned on it.
Thanks to the visit to the capital, there were a pile of things to deal with. But the Duke asked a completely unexpected question.
“Who is Juliet’s escort now?”
“Uh…… it’s Kane.”
“Then call for Kane.”
“Yes.”
Although he answered reflexively, Elliot was still a little surprised.
Why is he suddenly asking for her escort? Is there something wrong?
“And investigate Juliet’s whereabouts for the past 3 months. Report it to me by lunch.”
“…….Yes?”
“Where she’s been, who she’s met. All correspondence sent and received. Do you understand?”
“But, Your Highness, that’s…….”
Elliot raised his head.
It was a really strange order this time.
You want me to investigate Miss Montagu’s whereabouts? Why not ask her yourself?
But when those red eyes turned cold towards him, Elliot shook his head quickly.
“Do I have to repeat myself?”
“Oh, no.”
“You have three hours. Get out.”
Bang.
In an instant, Elliot was thrown out of the office.
Elliot gradually came to his senses and looked at the tightly closed door in dismay.
A Duke who hates wasting time would never give meaningless orders. But Elliot couldn’t believe the Duke was asking him to investigate her past. Maybe Miss Montagu did something terribly wrong?
‘If I knew this was going to happen, I would’ve steered clear of Miss Montagu when I saw her earlier.’
Internally clicking his tongue, Elliot hastened his step.
It seemed like the joyful New Year’s celebrations had vanished without a trace.
[1]negligee: a form of see-through clothing for women consisting of a sheer, usually long dressing gown. A form of nightgown intended for wear at night and in the bedroom.
[2]horticulture: act/practice of garden cultivation and management. AKA likes flowers.
Double release! I hope you enjoyed reading this chapter. For those wondering, the novels I translate are Forgotten Juliet and To Help You Understand; scheduling is as follows:
To Help You Understand: weekly/fortnightly, regardless of when the chapter is ready.
Forgotten Juliet: released whenever the chapter/s is/are complete (we also don’t split chapters into parts, so if the release is delayed, it’s probably because the chapter was extremely long).
Thank you for your support.