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Chapter: 01
#Prologue
I had a feeling it was far too easy to get away.
Chloe Liden, feeling light-hearted at having finally escaped the duke’s mansion, turned around—only to have her legs freeze the moment her eyes landed on a man.
Standing squarely in the middle of the alleyway, staring right through her, was none other than the owner of the mansion she thought she had escaped from safely: Duke Hughley Ulpaz.
As Chloe saw him standing there like a gatekeeper, daring her to pass, a gut instinct hit her.
He had been waiting for her.
To be precise, he had come to capture her.
“Duke…”
A tiny, feeble sound like that of a mosquito starved for days escaped her throat.
“Klein Liden.”
The duke called her name. Of course, he used the name “Klein,” the male identity he believed her to have.
Even though it was just her name he called out, Chloe felt as though she had heard the words, “Come to me right now.”
Did a cow feel this way when it was being led to the slaughterhouse?
She took one reluctant step after another toward the duke.
“Duke, what brings you here…?”
“Well, why would I come?”
The duke’s voice cut her off mid-sentence, icy and piercing.
Her upper and lower lips felt frozen together from the coldness, making it hard for Chloe to speak.
She hadn’t been caught doing anything yet.
So why did it feel like everything had been discovered?
“If it’s because of the woman you’re looking for…”
“Woman? No, no. That’s not it.”
“….”
At Chloe’s barely-formed reply, the duke said “No” three times in a row.
“I need to find out about a man, not a woman.”
“A man…?”
Her head was spinning.
Had he found out?
She had thought nothing would happen if she just returned home, but it seemed she was already too late.
A few days ago, when the duke had said, “I have a woman I must find,” she should have run immediately.
That very day, a few days ago.
#1. The Woman I Must Find
“I have a woman I must find.”
Thud.
At Duke Hughley Ulpaz’s words, Chloe Liden felt as if her heart had actually dropped to the floor.
A woman.
The duke had said “woman.” And he had said he needed to find her?
“Ahh…”
A sigh slipped out of Chloe’s mouth.
Not only the duke, but also Sir Joyce, who had been listening to his orders, frowned as they looked at her.
“Ahem! Sorry… it’s just… you said woman, and I was a bit surprised…”
Chloe tried to compose herself and offer an excuse, but she couldn’t hide the trembling in her voice, and her words faltered.
Fortunately, the duke nodded slightly, as if he understood.
He knew, himself, how shocking it was to hear the word “woman” come from his own mouth.
If there was one word least likely to come out of Duke Hughley Ulpaz’s mouth, it was “woman.”
“What kind of woman is she?”
Sir Joyce asked.
Chloe kept her eyes on the duke, swallowing discreetly.
She had to remain calm.
It wouldn’t concern her anyway.
“She stayed last night at Arne’s Inn.”
Haah…
It felt like her throat was being strangled.
Please, not the name “Night of the Dog and Cat.”
Unconsciously, Chloe clasped her hands together and began praying.
“The inn’s name is ‘Night of the Dog and Cat.’”
The duke added the inn’s name as if mocking her prayer.
Of course, it was that name.
Such a peculiar name that once heard, it could never be forgotten.
“Night of the Dog and Cat,” she thought. She had stayed there for the third time just yesterday.
In all three stays, she had never seen a dog or a cat even once.
And why on earth the inn had that name in the first place was beyond her.
“She is a woman with long blonde hair and blue eyes.”
While Chloe’s heart raced wildly, the duke continued his explanation calmly.
Her blue eyes, which sat behind thick glasses covering half her face, trembled uncontrollably. She had no contact lenses on.
At least her long blonde hair was fortunately well-hidden under a short brown wig.
“She is about this tall, around my shoulder height…”
The duke paused mid-sentence.
Chloe, head bowed low, felt a sudden hot prick on her left cheek. She looked up slightly, swallowed, and flinched.
The duke was staring right at her.
“Duke…?”
Her voice quivered.
“Klein, how tall are you?”
“Huh?”
She almost hiccupped.
Could it be that he had realized she was the woman from last night?
Cold sweat ran down her spine in an instant.
“About your height… I said, how tall are you?”
Haah!
A mix of relief at not being discovered and fear of being caught at any moment made her heart race like it would burst.
Yes, it had to be her.
The duke’s eyes were remarkably precise.
“168 cm.”
Chloe wanted to bite her tongue but chose to answer instead.
“Why are you looking for this woman?”
Sir Joyce asked.
‘Because she’s the woman I slept with.’
“She’s the woman I slept with.”
Chloe’s inner response and the duke’s words came out simultaneously.
Her face felt like it was about to burst into flames.
Of course, Sir Joyce and the duke both still believed she was a man, and had no idea she was the woman he spent the night with.
“Ah! My goodness!”
Sir Joyce suddenly exclaimed upon hearing the duke’s words.
Why was he acting like this?
“How could this happen! Ahhh!”
Sir Joyce nearly sobbed, his fists trembling.
His normally dark complexion now looked almost black-red, as if he were trying to suppress tears.
Watching Sir Joyce react like this made Chloe feel as though she had stolen the pure innocence of the duke himself.
“How could this happen… How could it…!”
Finally, Sir Joyce began to sob.
Seeing him cry, Chloe’s already crushed mood from last night plummeted even further.
Yet, Sir Joyce’s absurd words and actions were far less shocking than the duke’s next statement.
“Don’t fuss, Joyce. It has already happened. This is my fate.”
The floor beneath Chloe seemed to flip to the ceiling and back down again; her world spun.
Fate?
It was just a one-night mistake.
At least she knew the man was the duke.
The duke, meanwhile, had no idea who the woman was, despite being right in front of her. Truly a mistake.
He could not have imagined that a cross-dressing servant would be the woman he slept with. But still—
It was a meaningless night for both of them.
Driven purely by desire.
Yet why…
Why would he decide to find her, and then talk about fate on top of that?
“Is she… a commoner? A human?”
Sir Joyce asked, his eyes blazing red.
The anger in his eyes was unmistakable.
Who exactly was his anger directed at?
And a commoner, a human? Then are commoners animals?
Chloe bristled inwardly.
“Most likely.”
The duke’s voice carried a hint of resignation.
The duke, of course, and Sir Joyce were nobles.
To those with blue blood, the feelings of a lowly servant like her clearly meant nothing.
Oh, what a crime I’ve committed.
Daring to cause a scandal with a duke, as a mere commoner.
Chloe bowed her head further, trying to hide her discomfort.
She hadn’t asked the duke to take responsibility, so why did it feel like the sky itself was falling?
A commoner woman dislikes this situation too.
So don’t even bother looking for a commoner human!
Though she muttered this only in her mind.
“One more thing: there was a scar on her shoulder.”
The duke continued, calmly giving another piece of information, apparently unconcerned with Sir Joyce’s despair.
“It was a somewhat dented circular scar. Looks like she might have been bitten by a beast. I didn’t see it with my own eyes, so it’s not exact, but…”
Madness!
Not exact!?
It was already the most precise description possible.
Her shoulder wound could only have come from a wild animal.
“I understand.”
Sir Joyce managed to choke down his frustration and answered.
The more one looked, the more ridiculous it was.
“We must find her as soon as possible.”
“Yes, we will depart immediately.”
Chloe frowned involuntarily as she watched Sir Joyce leave, his expression solemn.
Once alone, the duke pressed his elbows on the desk and buried his face in his hands.
Perhaps a headache, he groaned faintly, frowning.
“Duke, then I will take my leave as well.”
After last night with the duke, she felt beaten all over her body.
She barely had the strength to stand.
“Hmm…”
The duke’s vague reply, head still lowered, seemed ambiguous, but Chloe took it as permission and turned to leave quickly.
“Klein!”
The duke called, almost snapping at the back of her neck.
Ah, why!
“Yes?”
Despite her thoughts, Chloe answered politely, looking at the duke.
“But… what is this smell?”
“Huh?”
“I think I’ve been smelling it since a while ago.”
A smell?
“Now that Joyce has left, I can tell for sure. This smell seems to be coming from you.”
“That can’t be…”
“Come closer.”
“No, I—”
I don’t smell anything.
Normally, he hates closeness, but why today, of all days, must he insist on proximity?
“I said come closer.”
No choice. She approached the duke, barely half a step.
“Closer.”
She stepped half a step more.
“Right in front of my nose.”
I don’t want to.
