Anyway, as we chatted about various topics, our walk (?) around the Duke’s residence came to an end before I knew it.
As we reached the grand staircase leading to the first floor, Derrek greeted us as if he had been waiting.
“Ah, here you are! This way, please.”
“Yes. Thank you for the escort, Your Highness.”
“My pleasure. Have a good night’s rest.”
Ludger concluded the evening greeting with a light kiss on the back of my hand. It was a gesture I was still getting used to.
It seemed like he still had things to do, so he headed toward his office, while I followed butler Derrek in the opposite direction.
“Are we not heading to the annex tonight?”
“Well, now that you are going to become the next madam, we should accomodate you to the main building.”
“I… I see.”
Next Madam, I hesitated at the title I never expected to hear in my lifetime. For a moment, I froze. But I suppose I should get used to it. After all…. it’s part of the contract….
After passing through a dazzling hallway and an elegant reception room, I was guided to the bedroom.
Unlike the guest room in the annex where I had previously stayed, this room felt more like a residential suite, complete with all sorts of facilities.
However, despite the grand and luxurious decorations, it gave off a very practical and simple impression.
Of course, everything from the furniture to the decorations was high-quality… but it was the kind of decor that exuded a refined and restrained style.
The butler handed me over to a maid who had served me before, and she, along with the other maids, assisted me with a bath.
I still couldn’t get accustomed to it, but since this would likely become more common in the future, I decided to just accept it. After all, it’s a service that many could only dream of.
After receiving a massage that left me blissfully relaxed, I donned a thin slip and a gown before heading to the bedroom.
“Then, have a peaceful night.”
“Yes. Thank you for your hard work.”
The maids stepped back, and I dove into the bed. The softness that greeted me was incomparable to the old, worn, and stiff bed in my own rented room.
‘…… Huh?’
But somehow… a familiar scent lingered in the blankets. The fresh fragrance of the forest. It was the same scent I would smell whenever I get close to Ludger.
‘Is this a perfume commonly used in the main building?’
I was puzzled, as I hadn’t noticed this scent in the guest room of the annex where I stayed last time.
I had heard that some wealthy individuals like to use a consistent scent throughout their entire house, creating a natural, consistence fragrance. How extravagant, especially for the Duke of Kassen.
I began to feel sleepy, quickly drifting off, but was suddenly jolted awake by the sound of the door.
The door, which I had closed earlier, suddenly creaked open.
‘Huh?’
The chances of someone entering my room in the Duke’s residence, wasn’t it absurd?
I peeked from under the blanket, freezing in place.
Standing in front of the door, just like me, was another person, rigid and motionless.
It was the owner of the house… Ludger Kassen.
“Why is the Young Duke here…?”
“Why is the Captain in my bedroom…?”
Ludger sighed, rubbing his forehead in exhaustion.
“…… This must be Derrek’s doing.”
“Wait a minute. Wasn’t this the guest room?”
“If this is a guest room, why would I come in without permission….?”
“……”
I suppressed the urge to groan.
“I apologize. It seems Derrek was being mischievous about our relationship…”
“That… Yes… I understand the situation.…”
In the Empire, it was customary for engaged couples to share a mansion, so there was nothing inherently wrong with it.
There are even cases where, when one family is declining, the wealthier family partially adopts them, allowing the children to grow up together from a young age….
Moreover, in our case, as we have already declared to be in love with each other, it wasn’t hard to understand why they would make arrangements for us to sleep together.
‘I thought this appears only in a romance fantasy novel… wait, this is a romance fantasy novel….’
The suddenness of the situation left me flustered.
“I, I didn’t know. I’m sorry; I’ll leave right away…”
“…… First, calm down. Don’t get out of bed.”
“Huh? Oh……”
It was only then that I realized I was wearing nothing but a thin slip. Feeling my face turn bright red, I quickly pulled the blankets back up to my neck.
“I’ll sleep on the sofa outside, so don’t worry and get some rest.”
“Oh, I can just get dressed and go to the guest room…”
“…… Don’t you think that would appear a bit strange, given our ‘love story’?”
“Ah.”
Right, the setup was that the two of us were so in love that we even had an engagement despite being from different social classes.
But then, to deliberately ask to move to the guest room? If we run into the servants, it’s bound to be misunderstood as if we had a fight, no matter how you look at it.
“Yeah… I’ll just sleep here…”
“Haa.”
Ludger let out a small sigh before adding,
“I’ll make sure this incident doesn’t happen again. Just bear with it for tonight.”
“No, um… shouldn’t you be the one feeling uncomfortable….”
“It was a mistake on my part, so don’t worry about it, Captain. Just get some rest.”
The light in the bedroom was off, and with only the light streaming in from outside, Ludger’s face appeared blurry, silhouetted against the backlight.
‘But… his face looks a little flushed?’
He had responded so calmly that I thought maybe I was the only one feeling flustered, but it seemed like he was a bit embarrassed too.
It wasn’t until the door was completely closed and the darkness returned that I was able to let out a sigh. My heart was still racing.
‘It’s fortunate this won’t happen again in the future, but…’
The problem is, even if ‘this incident’ doesn’t happen again…. there’s still the premise that we’re together… Wouldn’t it alter many things? people’s perceptions, the distance between us….
Contemplating this left me feeling strange. On top of that, the scent of Ludger lingered in the blankets I was wrapped in, which made it even worse.
It’s the Duke’s residence, so the bedding must be well taken care of, but still, thinking that this is the blanket Ludger sleeps under every day…..!
‘Calm down. The blankets you sleep under at inns also belong to someone else… from dirty old men to children whose faces you don’t even know….’
Thinking that way, my mind settled a little. I shouldn’t feel so self-conscious.
After all, Ludger, the person involved, probably wouldn’t even care.
Yet, despite that assurance, I found it difficult to sleep for quite a while in this unfamiliar environment.
* * *
In the early hours of the morning, Ludger, who had been reading a document, turned his head toward the bedroom.
The silence was so profound that even the sound of a pin dropping could be heard.
It was the time when everyone should have been asleep, but there was not a trace of sleepiness in his pale green eyes.
Just the knowledge of another person in what was usually his solitary space was enough to keep him alert.
“I’m not some adolescent child… .”
He set down the papers and covered his face with both hands in self-deprecation.
As expected, he doubted he would get any sleep that night.
* * *
When I woke up the next morning, Ludger had already left the residence.
He had left a note saying that he was leaving first due to work, telling me to relax and stay as long as I needed. He also mentioned he would contact me again in a few days regarding the contract.
Considering the…. embarrassing situation we had found ourselves in, I felt somewhat relieved that we wouldn’t have to meet face to face just yet.
Afterward, I decided to call for the headmaid and have her attend as before so I could head out to work early.
However, wearing the extravagant clothes provided by the Duke’s residence straight to work… felt a bit too conspicuous in many ways. So, I planned to stop by my place first and change into my usual shabby work clothes.
It really feels like… I just had one strange dream. The sense of reality was too absent.
I disembarked from the carriage, climbed the stairs, and opened the door to my room.
The musty, dusty smell and cramped, shabby interior brought a wave of comfort.
As soon as I entered, my tension eased; this was my reality.
I plopped down on the bed and took out a small box from my pocket. With a soft click, the box opened, revealing the ruby ring Ludger had given me yesterday, sparkling brightly.
Before I took my bath yesterday, I had carefully removed the ring and stored it, not putting it back on afterward.
In this space filled with reality, the ring felt like the only thing that was unreal.
‘Really… I’m really getting engaged to Ludger….’
Even when Ludger first proposed the engagement, and when I seriously considered it and decided to accept, the sense of reality never truly sank in.
But once his warmth enveloped my hand, and the firm feel of the ring settled perfectly on my ring finger, I finally began to realize it.
This was real.
‘That can’t be…. I shouldn’t think of it as reality.’
I must never let myself be mistaken. This engagement was, after all, merely a contract with an approaching end.
“Don’t be foolish, Clara Weyburn. You need to come to your senses if you want to survive.”
Before the lawsuit, I couldn’t predict what crazy antics that bastard Gustav or my older brother might engage in. The original story, which was still at risk, was not over yet.
The pain and crises in my life were still present, and they wouldn’t disappear easily. They would persist into the future.
I rose from my seat, gently caressed the ring, and closed the box without placing it back on my finger.
