Episode 6
‘What kind of absurdity is this?’
Ashlyn thought to correct the nonsense right away, but stopped herself when she saw the duke’s eyes.
Anger, betrayal, disappointment, sadness…
All kinds of emotions were intertwined in them. But it was pain, out of all of them, that greatly overshadowed any other and stood out the most.
“Come here.”
He led Ashlyn to his quarters.
When she came to her senses, she was in the Duke’s living room.
The warm air inside melted off the frostiness of her skin. The door shut behind her.
The duke made Ashlyn sit in the warmest seat in this room, close to the fireplace.
Ashlyn, who’d for some reason, become absent-minded, finally brought herself to look at the duke.
“My lord-”
“Tell me, is what I heard true?” asked the duke. All the curtains inside were closed, so it was as dark as night even though it was daytime. Ashlyn calmed down her voice.
“…If you mean the rumours about Jason Barron, then no. They’re not true.”
“So I’m right about the letter of recommendation.”
“It’s…”
It was difficult for her to form her words. Silence was nothing short of affirmation, so for a moment nothing came out of the duke.
He took a step closer, and a long shadow hung over Ashlyn’s seated body.
It was that moment.
“My lord.”
Ashlyn was startled and jerked back. It was because the Duke of Laperion was on his knees before her.
“Don’t do this. How can the Duke of the Empire….”
“Have you forgotten even the oath I made to you?”
He placed his hand carefully on Ashlyn’s lap. The skirt under his big hand became slightly crumpled. The duke looked up at Ashlyn. He was staring at her.
“I said that before you, I am not Duke Laperion.”
“…….”
It was becoming difficult for Ashlyn to look at his desperate eyes anymore. Surprisingly, he was the one who bowed his head and broke their gaze first.
“Don’t ever think about leaving.”
“My lord.”
“You can never escape. So, give it up. Otherwise, I’ll…….”
He couldn’t even seem to bring himself to continue his sentence. The strength of the hand holding Ashlyn’s knee became a little stronger. The bluish veins on the back of his hand stood out even more.
Ashlyn sighed deeply.
“My lord, I have no memory of you at all.”
Then the duke slowly raised his head and made eye contact with Ashlyn again. His dark red pupils shook.
“The person in your memory…she and I are like completely different people.”
“…….”
Ashlyn said in a calm tone. The duke’s expression turned subtly. It was hard to read what was going on in his mind.
“I don’t care. Your memory will come back anyway.”
His voice was firm as if he had no doubt it would come back. Afterwards, the duke remained silent for a short time as if thinking of something. There was a crack of firewood in the fireplace. The sudden noise startled Ashlyn.
The duke patted her knees gently as if to calm her down. He opened his mouth again.
“I’ll call a wizard from the capital.”
He said out of the blue.
“A magician?”
“Yes. I’ve heard rumors that those with memory loss have been healed after being treated by a wizard.”
“…….”
Ashlyn frowned.
What did he mean to do by bringing a wizard?
In the first place, she’d lost no memories of her own.
If she met the wizard in this state, what would happen? Would the memories of the person originally in this body come back to her? or….
If they didn’t…
‘Will I be caught for possessing her?’
In spite of herself, she couldn’t help but swallow a dry swallow.
When he finds out the woman he loves has been possessed by the princess he killed with his own hands…
What would the duke’s face look like?
Ashlyn was horrified.
“Ashie, didn’t I tell you? You can’t leave me on the pretext of memory.”
The duke murmured, burying his forehead on the back of his hand on her lap. That languid voice paralyzed Ashlyn as if he’d casted a spell on her.
“I told the head maid to forget about the letter of recommendation.”
“My lord!”
Ashlyn’s body shook. She wanted to get up and argue with him, but it wasn’t easy for her to do so when big hands were on her knees, holding her down.
The duke shook his head slightly, and made eye contact with her. A faint smile came to his smooth lips.
“If it feels burdensome to you because you have no memories, I won’t show up in front of you.”
He said so and slowly raised his hands from Ashlyn’s lap. The firm hands seemed to have lost their strength and lowered themselves.
“I will assign the bedroom cleaning to someone else.”
“…….”
“Until your memory returns, I’ll never bother you.”
Their eyes met in the air. The red eyes somehow looked different than before.
“Ah.”
Ashlyn realized something.
That the duke had taken a step back.
To keep Ashlyn in the duchy, until she regained her memory, he won’t come any closer.
‘One year… no, six months.’
Ashlyn measured her deadline.
Going out a month later was wasteful anyway. If so, the answer was to wait until at least the funds were collected, and then secretly exit the mansion.
‘Let’s go south and cross the sea by boat. I’ll be leaving for another continent.’
They say that even foreigners without a letter of recommendation can find decent work there. Even if the initial funds were a little short, if she worked, she’d probably be able to settle down there quickly.
‘In six months, it’ll be early summer.’
It was the perfect season to go on the waters.
“…Don’t call a wizard.”
A small voice came out. The duke’s drooping shoulders stiffened.
“I’ll try to regain my memory somehow.”
The duke moved the corners of his mouth at that. It was probably an attempt to smile, but all that came out of him was a bitter one.
He looked so sad that it pricked the lying Ashlyn’s heart a little.
“Promise me one thing, until I remember.”
“I’ll promise you anything.”
“Please only treat me as your maid.”
The duke’s face hardened for a moment. But Ashlyn did not release her determined expression. In the end, he added a smile and nodded slightly.
“I see.”
“…and please stop using that tone and nickname.”
“…….”
This time the duke could not easily answer.
Ashlyn stood up from her seat, trying to ignore his appearance. The duke let her go so she could comfortably stand.
“If you do so, I will continue to support you while staying in the duke’s residence.”
Her voice was monotonous. Ashlyn held her hands politely in front of her apron. She did not shy away from the man’s eyes when he raised his head and looked up at her.
“…….”
The duke slowly rose. In an instant, the eye-level between them changed, and now he was the one looking down on her.
“Then I’ll get going now. I’ll go clean up the bedroom as scheduled. Shall I bring the refreshments cart to your room when I’m done?”
It was a very businesslike tone.
“…that’s all right.”
The duke replied, the words coming out firmly.
Ashlyn turned her back and walked out of the drawing-room. The voice of the man who didn’t use honorifics with her sounded somewhat awkward now.
It was a strange thing.
* * *
Time flew by.
The bitter cold in the north was still raging. Ashlyn was having an early lunch with Sophia at the workers’ cafeteria.
“Why are you not eating?”
“I just don’t have an appetite.”
She pointlessly stirred her soup with her spoon.
After she’d possessed a maid, there were a lot of things she quickly adopted to, but the meals were not one of them. Being an Imperial Princess, she’d been spoiled with all sorts of delicious foods since birth.
She was neither some great gourmet snob, nor the gluttonous type, but the cold bread and watery soup was something she could never get used to.
“I heard that you changed your job again, Ashlyn? You’re assisting the dining room now, right?” Sophia said. Before Ashlyn knew it, she had emptied her bowl and was sipping juice.
“Yes. That’s what happened.”
“Is it really that hard to take care of the bedroom? To the point where even you couldn’t do it?”
“No, it’s not like that, but…….”
“Phew, you’re right. It was probably just a management decision. Unless the Lord is very strict.”
Sophia shook her short hair. She seemed to have assumed an answer by herself, but Ashlyn didn’t bother to add any more words on this topic.
“Oh, I’m hungry.”
Workers started spilling into the cafeteria. It was only now that the time for a proper lunch break began.
“Sophia, you’re eating early today.”
“Yes, Lena. I caught an additional job recently, so I’ll hurry up and go.”
“I see.” Lena muttered and put down the tray next to Ashlyn.
“Oh, Ashlyn, were you here?”
A voice came out of nowhere. It belonged to Anne, who put down her tray on the table after Lena.
“Yeah, why?”
“No, it’s just, I think Jason has been looking for you for some time now.”
“Jason?”
“Ashlyn, Jason’s here.”
Sophia tapped her on the shoulder. Ashlyn reflexively turned her head toward the entrance of the cafeteria.
“…What the hell is that hideous thing?”
Ashlyn muttered subconsciously. It was because the scene between her eyes was ridiculous. All of the workers’ attention quickly latched onto it.
He looked like a big peacock.
“Oh, my God. He must be crazy.”
Someone murmured so.
Jason Barron was wearing something resembling a frilly tailcoat.
The tightly held feathers spread wide behind his collar, flapping violently every time he walked.
What? Did people pay for clothes like that?
Ashlyn became seriously curious.
“Ashlyn Rosebell.”
The peacock stopped before Ashlyn. He held out a square box that he held dearly with both his hands.
“I brought you the diamond you wanted.”
What? Diamond? Oh my!
Surprised exclamations erupted around her.
The diamond she wanted? What the hell was he talking about?
Ashlyn frowned. It was then that she remembered.
‘If you want to court me, bring me a southern diamond.’
She did say that.
Ashlyn put down her half-eaten bread. It seemed that this was the end of today’s meal.
“Will you marry me now?”
Ashlyn looked up at Jason. She thought his confident expression was a sight to look at.
“…….”
She reached out to open the box.
Indeed, it contained a shiny white diamond necklace.
“Wow. Is it a real diamond?”
“It’s my first time seeing it. Oh, my God! What kind of money does Jason have?”
“What’s going on?”
The surrounding chatter reached its peak. Sophia, Anne, and Lena who could not find what to say, just stared blankly at Ashlyn and Jason alternately.
“Well, what do you think? Isn’t it cool?”
Jason said, puffing up his chest. Ashlyn said nothing, but fixed her eyes on the necklace.
“Why aren’t you saying anything? Do you like it so much that you’re speechless?”
Jason licked his lips. Only then did Ashlyn slowly rise up.
She took a look around. Before she knew it, all the workers, who were supposed to be eating, had gathered around.
She took out the necklace that was lying beautifully in the box. At that moment, she couldn’t hold back her laughter. At the sight of Ashlyn chuckling, struggling to cover her mouth, everyone paused and stared at her.
“What? Why are you laughing?”
Jason, whose ears became ripe red, grumbled. Ashlyn fiddled with the necklace, wiping away tears from her eyes.
“Transparency, reflection, hardness, weight…it’s a mess through and through in all aspects.”
After that small murmur, Ashlyn put the necklace down on the table. Her deep blue eyes were set on the it as she wrapped a napkin around it.
She then raised the stone without hesitation with a beautiful smile on her face.
“Good job on acquiring a fake diamond.”
Bam!
The sound of something breaking into pieces filled the cafeteria.
