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Chapter 2
Lauren stood before the estate. Leaving her trunk beside her, the coachman hastily mounted his carriage and sped off as if escaping for his life. The sound of clattering hooves and rolling wheels gradually faded into the distance. Only after the noise died away completely did she tightly close her eyes and draw a deep breath.
Though it was not her first time seeing it, the mansion was still astonishingly colossal. The modest Sears baronage estate where she had spent her entire life felt small enough to fit inside it several times over. The white bricks adorning the outer walls caught the afternoon light, staining the structure in a golden hue. The grand, aged manor was breathtakingly beautiful, yet somehow gave off a dark and unsettling aura.
She pressed down firmly on the doorbell mounted to one side of the wrought-iron gate. Despite preparing herself, she still flinched at the sharp ring. As she unconsciously took a step back, a middle-aged man with black hair opened the front door and stepped outside. It was Calvin Steward, the head butler.
“Welcome, My Lady. Had you informed us in advance, I would have arranged for a carriage to meet you.”
At Calvin’s polite greeting, Lauren merely shook her head with a rigid smile. A servant following behind him picked up her trunk. Recalling how excessively light her luggage was, Lauren bit her lip in silence. Still, it was not as if she could carry it inside herself. Suppressing a subtle sigh, she followed the servant and Calvin into the mansion. Behind her, the heavy door shut with a solid thud.
It was dark inside. Although there had appeared to be many windows from the outside, the interior felt all the gloomier, perhaps because every curtain was drawn tight, or perhaps because the sprawling vines clinging to the glass were left untrimmed. Or perhaps it simply felt that way because it was so bright outside. While not pitch-black, her eyes needed time to adjust to the dimness.
“I will first escort you to your room, My Lady.”
Ascending the grand staircase and proceeding down the hallway, Calvin came to a halt in front of a door. Upon opening it, a spacious sitting room revealed itself. The servant gently set the trunk down in a corner of the room, offered a polite bow, and withdrew. Calvin then opened an adjoining door connected to the sitting room.
“The bedroom is through here. The dressing room and bath are to that side. These two will be attending to Your Ladyship.”
Two maids dressed in long uniforms bowed toward Lauren. When she asked for their names, the one with long straw-blonde hair tied into twin braids introduced herself as Anna, while the one with reddish-brown bobbed hair introduced herself as Lise.
“His Grace requested the pleasure of your company for dinner.”
Lauren pulled out her pocket watch to check the time and nodded. Fortunately, she had time to rest before dinner. Calvin announced he would return at seven o’clock to escort her, then took his leave. With a quiet sigh, Lauren took off her hat. A thick plait of jet-black hair fell loosely over her shoulder.
“I’d like to rest for a moment…”
“Then we shall return when it is time for you to prepare.”
Having arranged a tea set in front of her, Anna and Lise curtsied by spreading their skirts, and both maids slipped out of the room. At last, she was alone. Lauren let out a faint sigh. Her shoulders ached, likely from the lingering tension. Collapsing onto the long sofa, she unbuttoned her jacket.
I need to unpack the trunk… Yet she was so thoroughly exhausted that she couldn’t even bring herself to figure out what to do next. She hardly had the strength left to lift a teacup. The journey from the quiet countryside baronage to the bustling capital—and into this vast ducal manor bestowed by a previous Emperor generations ago—had been overwhelming.
Barely six months had passed since her parents perished in a carriage accident. She hadn’t even been granted time to mourn. Her uncle had stripped her father’s baronial title away from her. Not just the title, but the modest fief, the estate, and everything else that rightfully belonged to her were stolen. The cherished only daughter of the Sears family had lost every single thing she possessed.
The lovely room her mother had decorated and her fine dresses were claimed by her cousin, while Lauren was cast into a cramped attic that had once belonged to a trainee servant. Out of mere formality, they had thrown a few garments her way, but every piece was utterly worn out. It was true for the dress she wore when she first came to meet the Duke, and it was true for her current attire. It must look quite pathetic to those living in the capital, yet she was deeply grateful to the butler and maids for never letting it show on their faces.
Though the absolute worst was yet to come.
Her uncle had not been satisfied with merely seizing the baronial title. Lauren had been on the verge of being sold off as a second wife to a wealthy old rural man. Was it to be his third wife, or perhaps his fourth? Desperate for a male heir, the old man kept taking wives, but every one of them had died in childbirth, leaving him with nothing but daughters.
Recalling that story made Lauren hunch her shoulders and sigh. With the money received from handing her over, her uncle intended to prepare a dowry to marry her female cousin into a higher family, and bribe her male cousin’s way into a knightly order.
Lying on the sofa, Lauren reached her hand straight up toward the ceiling. The slender platinum ring on her ring finger caught the light, sparkling softly. That day, this thin thread of a ring was what she had received in lieu of an engagement ring. That the Duke had accepted her proposal was unexpected even to Lauren herself.
Before Anna and Lise returned, Lauren changed into the one formal outfit from her trunk that looked halfway presentable, reflecting on the day she first arrived at the ducal manor. Before parting ways that day, the Duke had offered his hand with a faint smile—a confident smirk with one corner of his mouth pulled slightly higher. The hand she had clasped was large and warm, a solid hand far better suited for a sword than a pen.
“Oh dear, my apologies, My Lady. It seems we are late.”
Her subconscious mind must have answered the knock. Eyes wide with surprise, Anna and Lise hurried over to assist with her preparations.
“Not at all. I simply started a bit early.”
In truth, she had begun dressing early because she didn’t want them to see her meager belongings, but Lauren simply offered a gentle smile. Anna seated her and began brushing her hair from behind, while Lise carefully patted her jacket to smooth out the creases.
“You have such exquisite hair, My Lady,” Anna admired as she gently brushed down the jet-black tresses reaching past her waist.
“Thank you,” Lauren replied with a warm smile toward the mirror, though she secretly winced at the ticklish title of My Lady.
Her pitch-black hair had been her mother’s pride. Most people in the Empire possessed light-colored hair. Hers, however, was as dark as her father’s, and her mother, who found it so lovely, had always brushed her hair personally.
Even on that fateful day of the carriage accident.
Tears that had never fallen before suddenly spilled down her cheeks. Startled, Lauren quickly wiped her face. Anna and Lise were good servants; though they surely saw the tears rolling down her cheeks, neither said a word. Six whole months had passed, yet here she was, crying now. It was likely because the tension had finally broken—because she had successfully escaped the baronage, and because the touch of Anna’s hand brushing her hair felt so much like her mother’s.
She had to pull herself together. She was set to meet the Duke shortly. Lauren took a deep, steadying breath. Sensing something offered from the side, she turned to find Lise holding out a towel soaked in cold water, though she hadn’t noticed when it had been prepared.
“Please hold this over your eyes,” Lise whispered softly.
Lauren gave a slight nod and took the cloth. She was profoundly grateful that they asked no questions. Leaning back in her chair, she pressed the cold towel over her eyes. For some reason, tears kept falling, until the chilled cloth began to feel warm against her skin.
While Lauren wept softly, the two maids silently carried on with their duties. Once she finally calmed down a good while later, Lise applied a light touch of powder around her reddened eyes. Thanks to the maid’s skillful hand, her face looked entirely pristine, as though she hadn’t been crying at all. When Lauren murmured a quiet thank-you, Lise waved her hand dismissively, reassuring her it was nothing.
A knock sounded at the door. It appeared time had come. Taking a deep breath, Lauren stood up. Anna opened the door to reveal the butler, Calvin, waiting outside.
“Have a lovely evening, My Lady. We will have your bath prepared upon your return.”
“Thank you.”
Expressing her gratitude to the two maids once more, Lauren followed Calvin out into the hallway. Though the lamps were lit, the corridor felt strangely shrouded in gloom, as though a permanent darkness had been etched into the walls. It was not yet late enough for it to be this dim. Lauren’s gaze drifted toward the heavy curtains draped over the windows. If one were to pull them wide open, the bright sunlight outside would surely pour through. Whose preference were these curtains, she wondered? She would have thought that a man who shone as brightly as the sun belonged in a place lighter than anyone else.
After walking for a short while, Calvin stopped before a door. Knocking on what appeared to be an ordinary door no different from any other in the corridor, a low voice called out from within. The person awaiting her inside was undoubtedly the Duke of Liliwood.
Meeting him for the first time since that day made her unexpectedly nervous. Lauren cleared her throat softly and straightened her posture. Sensing Calvin’s gaze upon her, she offered him a slight nod. Beyond the door stood a modest-sized table, topped with a meager spread that could barely be considered a dinner. Calvin pulled out the chair opposite the Duke, and Lauren sat down carefully.
After pouring red wine into both of their glasses, Calvin bowed low and withdrew. Now, they were left completely alone. There was no escape even if she wanted to. Lauren silently observed the man sitting across from her. His gaze, fixed on the food atop the table, was frigid. It was impossible, of course, yet he stared at the meal as though it were laced with poison.
“Let us eat,” he finally spoke after staring down at the dish for a long while.
Offering a subtle bow, Lauren took a bite of the food. Though simple in appearance, the dish was exceptionally flavorful, featuring high-quality meat and vegetables seasoned generously with spices she had never even seen back at the baronage.
Yet it seemed the Duke of Liliwood felt differently. He merely glared at his plate, without so much as lifting a finger.
