TRG 1

chapter #1

‘The Duchess is truly kind. It would have been even better if she were healthy.’

Saying that, Stella held Elizabeth’s hand with a bright, excited expression. She seemed somewhat thrilled at the thought of living in the ducal estate, famed for its beauty.

Elizabeth thought that was simply her mother’s way of enduring grief. She considered it fortunate that her mother hadn’t gone mad after suddenly losing her husband.

So, although she was afraid of leaving behind the mansion filled with her father’s memories and going to the unfamiliar Agapel Castle, she didn’t show it.

All she wanted was for her mother to keep living—even if it meant this.

With such unease, she arrived at Agapel Castle. It was even more beautiful than she had imagined, and the Duchess who greeted them possessed an elegance far surpassing it.

“So, you are Stella’s daughter.”

“My name is Elizabeth Rua, my lady.”

“I, too, have a son about your age. I’m sure the two of you will become good friends, just like Stella and I. He’s a bit reserved, but I would be grateful if you could keep him company.”

The Duchess was a woman with a pure and gentle soul. Even after taking in a humble mother and daughter like them, she never once made a show of it, revealing her warm and generous nature.

To Elizabeth, the Duchess—who had saved them from being cast out into the streets—seemed like a benevolent goddess.

And her son, Kiern, was the most beautiful man Elizabeth had ever seen.

“Mother.”

“Oh, you’ve come at just the right time. Kiern, come here and greet Elizabeth. She will be staying in our estate from now on.”

The Duchess introduced Kiern, who had just entered.

“Wow…”

The exclamation slipped out of Elizabeth the moment she saw him.

His black hair, characteristic of the Agapel family, was as dark as if ground from obsidian—resembling a deep, bluish night. And his blue eyes, like stars embedded in that darkness, were enough to capture anyone’s gaze at once.

Kiern looked at Elizabeth with a calm, gentle gaze. Then he gave a short, polite greeting. He seemed so much like a perfect gentleman that Elizabeth’s palms grew sweaty, and she kept wiping them on her dress.

“I’ve heard much about you from my mother. I am Kiern Agapel.”

“I’m Elizabeth Rua. Young master, you don’t have to speak so formally to me.”

Since she had come as the daughter of a maid, she was no different from one herself.

From what she could infer from the Duchess’s words, she would likely stay by the young duke’s side as a companion. It would have been natural for him to treat her casually, even dismissively.

But Kiern didn’t.

He lifted the corners of his lips in a soft smile and said,

“My mother told me to treat you as a friend. It wouldn’t be right otherwise. If we are to speak casually, then we should both do so.”

“Ah.”

“Shall we, then… Lady Rua?”

For the first time in her life, Elizabeth felt like she was being treated as a true noble lady.

Never before had she seen a great noble treat the daughter of a minor baron’s family with such kindness.

Even though they both held noble titles, a baron’s family barely counted among the nobility.

As the heir to a ducal house, Kiern was someone far beyond her reach.

And yet, the way he treated her so courteously as a noble lady felt unfamiliar—and made her heart race.

“If that is what you wish, young master…”

“Please call me Kiern.”

“Ah…”

“You can call me Kiern—or just ‘Kiern,’ if you like.”

There was a playful glint in his crescent-shaped eyes. The casual tone he slipped into felt almost shocking against his otherwise refined demeanor.

For a fleeting moment, she wondered if perhaps he, too, felt a small flutter in his heart—just like she did.

Embarrassed by that thought, Elizabeth’s face turned red. She stumbled over her words.

“Then… Kiern, you can call me Ellie. Ellie, I mean…”

She awkwardly added formality at the end, unused to speaking casually. Kiern let out a small laugh.

“Alright, I will. Ellie, let’s both speak comfortably with each other.”

Elizabeth could only nod, unable to meet his eyes, fanning her face repeatedly.

The Duchess watched them with a gentle smile, while Stella looked on with satisfaction.

That was their first meeting.

And the day Elizabeth fell in love with Kiern at first sight.

But sadly, her feelings never truly reached him.

It would be more accurate to say they were shattered before they ever could.

Her heart, once calm like gentle ripples, had been torn apart and left in pieces—yet she had no right to protest.

The only thing she could do was confine herself like a crippled bird that could never leave its cage, atoning on her own.

For her mother’s sins—and for her own, for not knowing, and for realizing too late—Elizabeth believed she had to bear it willingly.

Because she loved Kiern—

And because she could never abandon her beautiful yet broken master, no matter how deeply he was scarred.

Here’s the continuation and full English translation of your chapter:

 News of the Engagement

“Ellie, what are you thinking about?”

“I was just… remembering the day I first met you.”

“Ah, that day.”

As if it were nothing, Kiern set down the morning newspaper and placed a cigar between his lips. The sharp scent of it lingered at the tip of Elizabeth’s nose.

After the Duchess died, he had started smoking.

It was said to be a cigar the Duchess used to smoke when she was healthy. He found it among her belongings, tried it out of curiosity, and soon ended up smoking only that kind.

He had always carried a faint earthy scent, like standing in the middle of a cypress forest.

Elizabeth used to love that refreshing fragrance, but now it was mixed with the heavy, coarse smell of cigars, making him feel somehow unfamiliar.

It felt as though the boy she had once known had disappeared.

And just as that feeling suggested, twenty-year-old Kiern had changed.

Now a fully grown man, the coldness in his features stood out more than before. The subtle cracks left by the Duchess’s absence were gradually spreading.

No—“rotting away” was the more fitting description.

“That day, you blushed when you saw me. I don’t think you could even meet my eyes.”

“Stop teasing me. You were acting so much like a gentleman that it just surprised me.”

“Then are you saying I’m not a gentleman now?”

Kiern asked softly, his eyes curving as he tilted his head to meet her gaze. His blue eyes seemed to shimmer.

Elizabeth stared at them blankly, only to blush again. She could never get used to that gaze.

To her, he seemed somehow broken—pitiful, sorrowful, and fragile.

“Stop it. This isn’t gentlemanly at all.”

“My apologies, Miss Elizabeth.”

Kiern replied in a playful tone and stepped back. The scent of his cigar followed him.

He was always like this—suddenly stepping close, only to pull away as if nothing had happened. That was what made him so frustrating.

Feeling an inexplicable heaviness, Elizabeth quietly looked at him before changing the subject.

“When is the Duke coming back?”

“This weekend, I think. He said he’d return before the anniversary.”

The weekend marked the Duchess’s death anniversary. Though the Duke had not been a particularly affectionate husband, he never failed to observe the day.

Because of that, people praised him as a devoted husband. They all said he left the Duchess’s position vacant because he couldn’t forget his late wife.

Elizabeth thought there was some truth to that. Perhaps it was his way of expressing love after realizing her importance only after losing her.

Of course, Kiern didn’t agree.

“Still, he always comes back for the anniversary. He must miss her.”

“You tend to see the world too straightforwardly. Father only acts that way because he cares about appearances. There’s no other reason.”

“Kiern.”

Elizabeth frowned at his mocking tone. Whenever the Duke was mentioned, Kiern became sharp like this.

The way he bristled like someone under attack was almost pitiful.

It was as if he believed his own ruin was his father’s fault.

Elizabeth couldn’t understand why he hated the Duke so much. As she looked at him with a stiff expression, Kiern let out a dry chuckle.

“What? Was that not very gentlemanly either?”

“Kiern… did something happen between you and the Duke?”

At her concerned question, Kiern stared at her intently. After a moment, he let out a hollow laugh.

“Ellie, being kind because you don’t know any better… is actually a bad thing.”

“What do you mean?”

“Exactly what I said.”

Kiern crushed his cigar into the ashtray and stood up. As Elizabeth rose with him, he spoke.

“Don’t follow me. I’m going to see Abigail.”

At the mention of Abigail, Elizabeth flinched. Gathering her courage, she grabbed his sleeve and asked,

“Kiern… are you really planning to get engaged to Lady Frery?”