Two hundred years ago, the ancestors of the Sentoren family were famous pirates.
The love story of a pirate and a witch, who were said to have founded the Sentoren family, fell into the hands of the Duchess of Sentoren.
And so, the story began.
***
The Duke and Duchess of Sentoren left the Royal Capital and settled in their Southern duchy. They concentrated on their simple life, raising their children.
The Duchess was not extravagant, but she spared no expense on their children’s education. She collected a lot of books to build a library for the children.
The Duchy’s butler, Karl, went to the bookstore once a week to collect books.
One sunny afternoon, Karl brought some books to the Duchess.
“Madame, I’m back.”
“Good work, Karl.”
As the dazzling sun shone above the lush gardens of the Duke’s mansion, it was time for the Ducal couple’s lively children to take a nap. It was the only peaceful time of the day, so Riv would often have tea during this time.
Before drinking her tea, she looked through the books Karl had brought.
“I bought a few children’s books, but I don’t know if the Young Lady and Young Master will like them.”
Riv let out a sigh.
“They’re kids, but they’re so picky.”
“They have good taste.”
As Karl said those words, he smiled as he remembered the cute Young Lady and Young Master of the Duke’s family.
The Duchy’s children could read well, and loved books. Of course, as they were young, they liked books with illustrations.
“Hmm.”
Riv sighed as she flipped through the books that Karl had brought.
“The pictures are pretty, but I don’t think the kids will like them.”
“Is that so? My apologies.”
Karl sighed.
As she examined the books, she found an old book at the bottom of the stack. The book’s pages were almost completely torn out, and it did not have a cover. Fortunately, there were no bugs or mold.
“Is this parchment paper? It seems like the pages are falling out.”
“Ah, that’s an old book. I got this because I thought it was a necessary book for the Sentoren family.
“A book we need?”
As Riv looked through the book, Karl smiled and replied.
“It seems to be a story about the ancestors of the Sentoren family, two hundred years ago.”
“Isn’t that when the Sentoren family didn’t have a name yet?”
“Even back then, they used a surname. Sentoren is a name established after being granted the title of Duke. But at that time, they were famous pirates who made a name for themselves here.”
Pirates.
She had heard that before, but Riv shook her head. Her husband, Lionel, and a pirate were incongruent.
Karl added.
“They said that this book is the story of a pirate and a witch who were infamous in this area.”
“Pirates and witches?”
The predecessor of the current Duke of Sentoren was a landowner who once guarded the Mont Del region, and way before that, an infamous pirate who roamed the waters of the Southern region.
Even so, it was a story of the pirate who was Lionel’s ancestor and his lover, who was a witch?
“They said it’s a romantic love story that everyone here has heard at least once.”
“Really?”
Riv skimmed the book quickly.
Perhaps because it was written two hundred years ago, but the letters were slightly different from what was used now, and seemed to be difficult to read. However, what caught her attention was an illustration of a handsome man and what was presumably a pirate ship.
“It looks fun.”
Somehow, the outline of the man resembled Lionel.
“Will the kids like this story?”
But at that moment, Karl vigorously shook his head.
“Th-This is for adults. It’s a love story.”
He cleared his throat.
The servants of Mont Del also broke into a cold sweat. Only Riv, who was not a local, did not know.
Anna, who had become familiar with the tales of the Sentino Village and the Mont Del region, whispered to Riv.
“It is a naughty story, Madame.”
“Ah.”
In an instant, Riv’s face turned beet red. She struggled to maintain her composure, pretending to be calm.
She set the book aside.
“I will look at this book later.”
“Please do.”
The old butler smiled and walked away. Her handmaiden, Anna, chuckled as she glanced at the book that portrayed the Sentoren’s ancestors as pirates.
“So there is a book. I only heard it in oral form.”
“Really?”
Riv drank her hot tea and glanced down at the book. The antique book smelled musky, but its condition was good.
“Where is the setting of the book?”
Anna couldn’t answer easily.
“There is no beach in Sentino, but maybe there’s one nearby?”
“Why do you think so?”
“Two hundred years ago, Sentino Village was said to be a village of wizards. If your ancestors needed a witch, they would likely visit Sentino Village.”
“Sentino…”
There was a castle built in Sentino by the ancestors of the Sentoren family. Of course, it was destroyed due to an attack.
“It would be nice to go to Sentino Village.”
Riv was sad.
Lionel, the Duke of Sentoren, left to deal with the pirates that haunted the Southern borders. Riv’s plans to visit Sentino Village with him and their children were, of course, delayed.
They wanted their children to be safe. Lionel had a lot of enemies.
“Madame, the Young Master and Young Lady do not seem like they will be coming down anytime soon.”
“If they take a nap for too long, they won’t be able to sleep tonight. Tell the nanny not to let them sleep for too long.”
“All right.”
Riv drank more tea and skimmed through the book about Sentino’s ancestors.
All of a sudden, her vision blurred. She became extremely dizzy.
***
‘What?’
Until a second ago, Riv was sitting in her drawing room.
But now, in front of her was a vast wilderness. Beside it was a gray castle that stood at the top of a hill.
‘Where am I?’
Searching her memories, she realized that this scenery was familiar.
It was Sentino Village.
Specifically, it was where the Duke’s villa on top of the hill was located. But what was this little gray castle?
It was the castle of the House of Sentino that she knew had collapsed. It was not large, but it was in good shape.
‘Why am I here?’
Riv looked down at her hands.
She remembered that she was reading the old book that Karl had given her. She thought that she should examine it.
‘Is this an illusion created by the book?’
The castle and the scenery were both familiar and unfamiliar. Furthermore, the old book was nowhere to be seen.
‘What happened?’
In an instant, her vision shook, and the scenery changed again.
‘What?’
The vast wilderness and gray castle disappeared. Instead, she appeared in a room, small enough to feel suffocated.
‘What else is here?’
The ceiling wasn’t that high, so Riv had to hunch over with her head bowed.
Her body began to sway irregularly. There was a strong fishy smell wafting through the air.
‘Is this the sea? Am I on a boat?’
Although it was tiny for a cabin, it was small enough to fit inside a boat. Besides, Riv was as tall as an adult man.
If she didn’t bend over, her head would hit the ceiling, so she slumped to the floor. She desperately tried to organize her thoughts.
‘What in the world?’
Riv had been on small boats when they rode across the lake. But she had never been on a ship this big.
There were many ports in the Mont Del region, but she had never thought of going somewhere on a ship.
‘So why?’
Her thoughts didn’t go any further.
The door to the small cabin swung open. The tall man who opened the door saw Riv and froze.
-“What? Who, who?!”
Seeing the face of the man whispering softly, Riv froze.
-“No way, a witch?”
-“A witch?”
Riv was rather puzzled.
Besides, the man’s face…
-“Lionel?”
The man made a sour expression.
-“Who are you talking about? It’s close, but that’s not my name.”
Riv stared carefully at the man in front of her.
The man was wearing a shabby old shirt and pants. Even his boots were worn out. His posture was poor, and it seemed that he had never been taught etiquette.
His face, height, and body shape all resembled Lionel, but he wasn’t Lionel.
This man had much longer, almost platinum white hair. He also had a long scar over his eyebrows, however, unlike Lionel, it didn’t cover half of his face.
He was a beautiful and absolutely perfect man. Besides, he was much younger than her own husband.
She and Lionel first met when he was in his late twenties. Lionel was now in his 30s.
And this man with poor posture appeared to be in his early twenties at best. His face was taut with no wrinkles. The expression on his face was overflowing with rudeness.
‘Besides, there are no scars on his face, except above the eyebrow.’
This was a place in the book.
Furthermore.
He looked like a young Lionel, with no scar on his cheek.
It was both strange and unfamiliar. She realized that Lionel’s young face was much more handsome than she thought.
Riv jumped up and nearly hit her head against the ceiling.
-“Hey, hey, the ceilings are low here.”
In the small cabin, the strange man’s body was also bent over.
-“How did you get here?”
The man’s voice was carefree, similar to Lionel’s tone.
He casually closed the door to the cabin and sat down on the bed in the corner. He calmly told Riv.
-“Sit there. Although there’s only one place to sit.”
There were no chairs in the cabin. To avoid sitting on the floor, the only place to sit on was a plank, which was likely a bed. She, too, sat down on top of it and hunched over.
-“By the way, why are you dressed in a strange way? Do women go around wearing underwear these days?”
-“Underwear?”
Riv was wearing a trendy chemise dress. The white dress likely looked like underwear to him.
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The young Lionel suddenly spoke up.
-“Witch, are you trying to seduce me?”