This was infuriating.
Though he had no choice but to come to Monferrato due to the servants’ persuasion that he would end up sleeping on the streets if he headed straight to the capital at sunset, seeing the grand ducal residence’s majestic appearance immediately made his blood boil.
As soon as they arrived at the grand ducal residence, he ordered a thorough search through all of Dahlia’s belongings, but to no avail. This only heightened the Duke’s anxiety further.
‘If someone in the imperial palace were to discover its true nature…’
His fingertips trembled at the mere thought. This was no time to dawdle. He needed to return to the capital right now, even if alone.
Just as he had made up his mind, there came a light knock at the door.
The Duke turned around irritably and froze at the unexpected visitor.
Seeing him holding his head stiffly high when he should have been showing proper courtesy, Sienna raised an eyebrow slightly.
“You seem quite surprised?”
Only then did the Duke’s pale lips twitch as if in spasm.
“Your Highness…”
His face looked as if he had seen a ghost.
Though he still held his head high, Sienna ignored his rudeness and casually stepped into the room.
“Duke Lowell.”
At her low-pitched voice, the Duke involuntarily flinched. Sienna walked forward with uninhibited strides and only stopped when she reached him.
The Duke’s Adam’s apple bobbed noticeably.
Her face was so calm it was impossible to read, like the ghost of Melophe. Within it, eyes that looked exactly like Carlos’s were staring directly at him.
“Shall we have a brief chat?”
The Duke, who had been staring at her with a drained expression, finally came to his senses. He hastily stepped back and quickly averted his gaze.
“What business would Your Highness have with me?”
“It won’t take long.”
Despite his cold response, Sienna wasn’t deterred.
“I have some questions about my mother.”
The Duke’s eyes began to tremble as if shaken.
“I heard you were close with my mother since childhood. What kind of person was she?”
At her carefully broached question, the Duke unconsciously clenched his fist.
When no answer came, Sienna gave a slightly awkward smile.
“I know. My question might be quite uncomfortable for you. I understand that you might be reluctant to speak of someone who was executed dishonorably.”
She had already roughly figured out Duke Lowell’s character. There were things Declan had told her beforehand, and above all, his baseless angry outburst toward Declan had left quite an impression on her memory.
So for now, she planned to try extracting information peacefully. She didn’t want to create unnecessary trouble.
“But there’s no need to feel too burdened. I’m only curious about what mother was like when she lived in Ricata, long before she became empress. That shouldn’t be too difficult to discuss, right?”
“I have nothing else to say to Your Highness.”
Despite Sienna’s considerate approach, the Duke’s response remained stiff. Sienna, who had been staring at him intently, withdrew her gaze without hesitation.
“Then let me change the question.”
Now that the Duke had set foot in Monferrato, Sienna had no intention of letting him off easily.
Regardless of what anyone said, Duke Lowell was the one who held the most information about her parents. Whether he was a notary or not, that much was certain.
“What kind of person was my father?”
“Why are you asking me these things……”
“Duke Lowell.”
Her quiet voice cut him off.
“Do you think I’m asking these things just to make meaningless small talk with you?”
The Duke’s face stiffened at her cold tone.
“Why should the reason matter? You just need to answer my questions.”
Truly, Sienna had no time to engage in idle arguments with him now. The time given to her wasn’t long, and in the midst of this, Duke Lowell rolling into Monferrato of his own accord was too good an opportunity to miss.
She needed to extract some kind of clue from him. This moment would surely determine her future fate.
“Let me ask you directly. I want to know under what circumstances my mother was charged with treason. I think you would have answers that would satisfy me.”
The Duke’s jaw trembled at her domineering attitude.
There could be no situation more humiliating for him. Even the Emperor treated him with utmost respect out of fear of his power, yet here was this mere girl, much younger than him, looking him straight in the eye with such a commanding attitude – it couldn’t help but wound the Duke’s pride.
While the Duke trembled all over as if he might fall backward foaming at the mouth at any moment, Sienna’s expression remained perfectly calm as she watched him.
However, as the silence lengthened, irritation began to seep into her gaze.
After moistening his parched lips with his tongue, the Duke finally spoke in a cracked voice.
“When the two had tea time, Mel always brewed the tea herself.”
He referred to the dead empress quite familiarly. Though it could have been considered impudent, Sienna didn’t find it particularly unpleasant. It felt rather strange to hear her mother called this way, when she was usually referred to as traitor, villain, or witch.
She nodded for him to continue.
Though the current situation was entirely unpleasant, the Duke, wanting to escape it as quickly as possible, vaguely summarized the events of that time.
“And poison was detected in the tea that Melophe personally poured and handed to the former emperor. So there was no room for doubt.”
“The tea? I see.”
Poison was detected in the tea. Sienna lowered her gaze and mulled over the Duke’s words to herself. Just as the Duke’s face began to contort at her incomprehensible behavior, her blue eyes turned to him again.
“Are you certain the toxin came from the tea leaves?”
“…Pardon?”
The Duke’s face, blank with confusion, showed unprecedented consternation. The color drained from his face.
Unlike Duke Lowell, who was turning bluish, Sienna’s face remained serene.
Though she had been only six or seven years old, the scene in the inner chamber that day remained as clear as if it had happened yesterday.
The inner chamber, filled with all sorts of precious items, had been completely ransacked. The woven carpet was mercilessly trampled under the soldiers’ boots, with pieces of porcelain scattered chaotically across it.
Everything that could have served as evidence had already been destroyed.
Reflecting on the past, Sienna asked as if in passing.
“The House of Lowell used to be in the porcelain business, didn’t they?”
“What is this… Are you now trying to frame this old man as a murderer?”
The Duke shouted, as if unable to contain himself any longer.
“That’s quite a leap. I was just trying to confirm some facts.”
Sienna opened her eyes wide, to an almost shameless degree.
“Even if it wasn’t poison in the tea leaves but rather poison coating the teapot, there’s no way to verify that now.”
“Your Highness!”
“I heard you were close with my parents since childhood. So you must have known better than anyone how deeply my father loved my mother.”
Though Sienna herself wasn’t particularly interested in their story, their marriage had reportedly caused such a sensation that it shook the entire continent of Kralto.
Speaking of Melophe, even before being an outstanding beauty renowned throughout the continent, she was the most noble woman in the empire after the royal family. As such, she had been considered the most likely candidate to become Crown Prince Teril’s bride.
It was for this reason that Carlos, who was then the empire’s second prince, gave up his first love and married a daughter from an ordinary noble family. The two childhood friends had enjoyed a puppy love during their adolescence, but when it came time to finding betrothed partners, they parted without regret.
Having been born and raised in high society, they knew well what marriage meant among nobles. They knew it was nothing more than a transaction to elevate family status and solidify one’s honor through careful calculation of gains and losses. If not Carlos, at least Melophe clearly understood this reality.
Crown Prince Teril and Melophe had made quite a matching pair. Teril, befitting his position as heir to the throne, had an inherently bold nature and even shared Melophe’s progressive tendencies.
Though there was no love, they would surely have made good partners. If only Teril hadn’t died so pointlessly from an epidemic.
“Wasn’t my father the one who abandoned his wife and children to obtain the woman who was supposed to become his brother’s wife? So I simply cannot understand how he could drive to death, without proper investigation, the woman he so cherished.”
Sienna bluntly exposed her father’s shameful past that everyone had tried to keep quiet. Despite her unrestrained attitude, the Duke remained silent for a moment.
“Let me make one thing clear. Your Highness’s mother did not deny the charges brought against her.”
The Duke’s lips, which had been pressed into a straight line throughout, curved up slightly.
“I wonder why?”
Instead of answering, Sienna simply stared at him quietly. The Duke’s mood twisted further at her blue eyes, which remained dignified without any sign of intimidation.
“You asked what kind of person your mother was.”
“……”
“If she could see Your Highness now, she would have been very proud.”
His voice dripped with contempt. Before Sienna could say anything more, the Duke left without even a farewell, brushing past her.
