TTSR 04

Chapter 4

Selakia spent her first wedding night wide awake and alone. By the time she snapped out of her daze at the sound of a knock, the morning sun was already blazing in the sky.

A maid entered the room cautiously and delivered the message.

“The Duke left for the academy early this morning.”

“…I see. I didn’t get to see him off.”

Still wearing her wedding dress from the night before, Selakia simply nodded.

They’re already addressing him as Duke here, she thought vaguely, letting out a small sigh of relief.

The heavy, oppressive gaze that had tormented her throughout the wedding ceremony was now gone—thankfully.

Selakia comfortably occupied the spacious and ornate duchess’s bedroom. The Duke’s staff respectfully referred to her as the “Duchess,” but they did not bother to hide their exclusionary stares.

It was only natural that a scarecrow duchess who hadn’t even shared her wedding night would be treated that way. But Selakia didn’t mind. Compared to the Viscounty of Renshe, where her very existence had to be erased, this was freedom. She didn’t have to be locked in a room anymore.

As she wandered the Duke’s estate, Selakia came to a few realizations.

The grand ducal residence was eerily quiet, with a strangely small number of servants.

Tenus Seydan was openly referred to as the Duke and exercised considerable influence. Even in his absence, his position was secure, and the acting Duke, Aldritch Logue, had a surprisingly weak presence. The political tension she had feared between them seemed completely unfounded.

Though she still didn’t understand why Tenus had chosen her as his bride, Selakia believed that coming to the Seydan Duchy had been the right decision.

But then she woke up on a hard, cold wooden cot in a shabby cabin.

Selakia couldn’t help but scoff at her earlier naivety.

“Miss, miss. Are you awake?”

“…Ah.”

“Thank goodness. You’re alive! You’ve been unconscious for three whole days—you have no idea how worried we were.”

“I thought we’d have to dispose of a corpse.”

“Hey! How can you say that in front of a patient who just woke up?”

Two elderly strangers’ faces spun in her blurry vision. Her head throbbed, and her whole body ached.

With a sunken voice, Selakia managed to ask,

“Where… am I? Why am I…?”

The elderly couple slowly explained what had happened. It was simple.

Three days ago, in the late evening, the old fisherman and his wife had gone out early in the morning to retrieve their fishing nets. There, they found Selakia washed ashore, soaking wet and unconscious.

“It’s a miracle you’re even alive. How on earth did you fall into the sea? Do you remember anything?”

“No… nothing at all…”

Everything was confusing.

Her last memory was of writing a letter in the Duchess’s study at the Seydan estate. It was probably addressed to Chester.

The date she had written at the bottom of that letter flashed through her mind.

“What day is it today?”

“Let’s see… it’s…”

The old man counted on his fingers and told her the date.

Even accounting for the time she’d been unconscious, more than a full week had passed since the day Selakia remembered.

A whole week had been erased from her memory.

The old couple’s hut was located in a remote corner of the Seydan Duchy. Whenever they returned from the city after selling fish, Selakia would quietly observe them.

“You’re probably sick of fish by now, huh? I bought some meat for you, Lia.”

“Old man, it’s obvious you bought it for yourself. Don’t pretend otherwise—both I and Yvette know it.”

“Why do you say things like that? I bought it for both of us, obviously.”

Since Selakia claimed she had lost her memory, the couple hadn’t asked for her real name and just called her whatever came to mind. They bickered like usual, seemingly unaware of her true identity. That was proof enough that no one was looking for her from the Duke’s household.

The fact that the Duchy remained peaceful even though the Duchess had vanished spoke volumes. Selakia quickly realized: she had been abandoned.

The terror of nearly dying and the bitterness of being discarded tore through her inside. She spent days pondering why she had been dumped into the sea.

But her memories were perfectly erased. Her suspicion of Aldritch Logue was purely speculation.

But why?

There was no reason for him to bother with a lowly viscount’s daughter without political power or backing.

Selakia had done nothing in the Duke’s house—she kept to herself and acted as if she didn’t exist. Aldritch had never shown interest in her.

When they passed by each other occasionally, he struck her as frail and ordinary. He didn’t seem capable of violence, which made it even more baffling.

“Even if I knew the reason, nothing would change.”

Everything that happened around Selakia was always beyond her control. Her parents’ sudden deaths, the abrupt change in her life that followed.

This was just another of those instances. And once again, there was nothing she could do.

Thinking this, the storm inside her gradually calmed.

The danger had passed. She had left the Duke’s house—whatever threats existed there were now in the past. It was wiser to focus on her future than cling to unresolved grudges.

Selakia shook off her gloom and stood up. She even felt somewhat free.

“Grandma, I did the laundry perfectly today! Look! What do you think? Didn’t I do well?”

“Perfect? Hmph. Look at the water still dripping. We feed you all that food, and you still have no arm strength.”

“Grandpa praised me and said he’d teach me how to mend fishing lines soon.”

“Why are you smiling about learning hard work?”

Though she clicked her tongue, the old woman wrung the water out of the laundry for Selakia.

Watching the droplets fall, Selakia laughed sheepishly.

Living in a small, shabby hut wasn’t easy. She was repaying their kindness by doing chores for the first time in her life.

Her hands became raw, and she got scolded for not doing things right. But compared to her life in the Viscount’s or Duke’s households—where her body was cared for but her soul was imprisoned—this was happiness.

Talking face-to-face, feeling like a contributing member of a family—it was deeply fulfilling.

She couldn’t help but regret not leaving her old “non-home” sooner.

Now full of confidence, Selakia planned to recover fully and start a new life with a new identity, far from the Seydan Duchy. She couldn’t impose on the elderly couple forever.

But ironically, the very next day—

“So this is where you’ve been hiding.”

Tenus found her.

“Selakia Renshe.”

And he looked thinner than he had on the day of their wedding.

* * *

“Haa…”

Selakia let out a long sigh as her recollection ended.

Pretending to have lost her memory and telling Tenus she wanted to leave the Duke’s household had been a rash decision, but she didn’t regret it.

She had experienced a home where she could rest in peace—and now she no longer wanted to struggle to belong somewhere that clearly wasn’t her place.

“While all this happened to you, what the hell was the Young Duke of Seydan doing? Damn it. Does he even know?”

Chester, unaware of her plan, was still furious.

“No—of course you wouldn’t have told him anything. You probably kept your mouth shut. Fine. I’ll tell him myself, and I’ll report this to the Imperial Court—!”

“Calm down, Chester. The Duke doesn’t know anything. I don’t have any proof. It’s all just suspicion.”

“But still!”

“Even if Sir Aldritch Logue really did it, and even if the truth came out—what are the chances he’d be punished?”

Selakia turned to the window, watching the thinning rain with a skeptical look.

“I haven’t even been officially recognized by the Imperial Court as married. I’m just a viscount’s daughter. He’s the acting Duke of Seydan. Even a crab walking backward would know which side the Empire would choose.”

In the Pangaea Empire, noble marriages required official validation, usually taking about a month to process.

Around the time Selakia was due to receive her validation, she disappeared. When the certificate finally arrived, Tenus explained during their carriage ride that the marriage had been annulled because the Duchess hadn’t been present. Both spouses had to receive the certificate together, after all.

So, to request a new one, it would take another month.

Selakia had to stay at the estate for at least one more month.

“Still, the Imperial Court is fair—”

Chester bit his lip before finishing his sentence.

The Seydan Duchy’s power was unshaken despite the early deaths of the previous Duke and Duchess. The Emperor had even granted Aldritch a noble title just so he could serve as acting Duke.

The Imperial Court would never punish him easily.

Chester, knowing this, ruffled his hair in frustration.

“Fine. Who needs the court? I’ll get your revenge myself.”

He stood up with determination, but Selakia quickly grabbed his hand.

“Where are you going?”

“To that bastard’s office.”

“Chester. Sit down.”

“You won’t report him. You won’t ask for punishment. Then what? Are you planning to keep living under the same roof as the man who tried to kill you?”

Chester trembled with rage. Selakia firmly sat him back down and gently patted his hand.

“Of course not. Don’t worry. I’m leaving.”

She calmly explained her plan to Chester.

“Once Tenus is officially recognized and inherits the title, I’ll leave. He thinks I lost my memory, so it’ll be easier that way.”

“What? Wait—why are you the one leaving? It should be the acting Duke!”

“What would I stay for? This isn’t my place anymore. To Aldritch, I’ll always be a thorn in his side. And to Tenus, who was forced into this marriage, I’m just a burden. The servants will follow their master’s lead.”

Chester’s face darkened. Selakia smiled gently, locking eyes with him.

“Why that face? I’m just leaving the Duke’s estate, not jumping off a cliff.”

“Don’t smile, Sela. I don’t have the strength to smile back right now. You… haaa.”

Chester sighed deeply. If wrinkles ever appeared on his handsome face, she’d surely be responsible for half of them.

Feeling a little guilty, Selakia tried to cheer him up.

“But what can I do when this place feels like a cramped seashell? I don’t want to be confined anymore. The world might be my oyster, you know?”

She had long forgotten her mother’s words from childhood—how she could do anything and should explore the vast world.

In that sense, being abandoned at sea wasn’t entirely a bad thing. Without that misfortune, she might’ve stayed quietly where she didn’t belong.

Selakia smiled brightly, pleased with the future she had chosen for herself. Knowing how stubborn that smile was, Chester could only sigh again.

“So. Have you thought about where to go? If you don’t have a place in mind, I strongly recommend our county. The scenery is stunning.”

“I’ll admit Count Piregen’s territory is just as beautiful as the Viscounty of Renshe. But the mountains are boring.”

“Boring? Have you ever watched how the mountains change each season, Sela?”

“Please. Who has time to wait a whole season? The sea changes every day, Chester.”

Though they cherished each other dearly, Selakia and Chester could never agree when it came to the mountains and the sea.

“Don’t tell me—you’re planning to go out to sea?”

Chester couldn’t hide his worry. Selakia blinked her sapphire eyes innocently.

“I think it’s finally time to chase my dream.”

“Absolutely not. Stay at the estate instead. We just need to get rid of Aldritch, then you can live here in peace—”

At that moment, the sitting room door burst open without warning.