The Duchy became busy preparing to greet the owner of the castle returning from the capital.
Adelia could only admire the completely transformed interior of the castle.
It was quite cool to see it darkened to match the exterior of the castle which is made of cold resistant dark stone.
That evening.
The Grand Duke’s carriage entered the central garden of the castle.
The servants went out to the garden to greet the Grand Duke’s carriage.
Adelia and Emily also came down to the first floor as guests to welcome him.
click ~
The carriage door opened, and the Grand duke appeared.
“It’s noisy.” Ivan left a short comment at the servants who went out to greet him.
Liam smiled quietly and said to the Grand Duke,
“We welcome the return of the Lord, and of course we are just doing the things we need to do.”
Ivan shook his head.
“You’re back. “
“Adelia, you’ve been down there.”
Ivan felt a strange feeling when he saw Adelia as soon as he entered the castle.
‘Was her hair a little more reddish than that?’
The girl who ran away without telling her name and Adelia’s appearance overlapped for a moment.
Ivan squinted and looked Adelia in the face.
Adelia blinked at the Grand Duke’s behavior, staring at her.
“Your Highness?”
The duke, awakened by Adelia’s voice, realized that his gaze was rude, and apologized.
“Excuse me. I think you look a little like someone I know.”
“Is that so?”
“Did you have redder hair when you were young?”
“Well, I don’t think it’s any different than it is now.”
“I see,”
Adelia said no, but Ivan’s doubts did not go away.
Rather, the suspicion he felt toward Adelia grew even greater.
“You must have had a hard time waiting down here in the cold. You don’t have to come out to greet me next time.”
Adelia opened her eyes wide at the word.
What he meant was that he and Adelia should be on equal footing.
Adelia shook her head and refused Ivan’s consideration.
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“Thank you, but I cannot accept it. Now that I receive the title, I will be placed under the command of your highness. Besides, there are a lot of eyes watching.”
In a day, dozens of rumors were made in the Grand Duchy.
Just one wrong move, people might mistake her for the Mistress.
That is not a very good situation.
Such noise would certainly have a negative effect on the formation of power later.
“Well, that’s up to you, I don’t want to force you.”
Ivan shrugged his shoulders and turned around.
“Let’s eat together later.”
“I’ll be ready.”
Adelia accepted Ivan’s proposal.
Ivan walked away with a lighter gait than before.
***
Immediately, Ivan went to the office and called in Lensley.
“I see His Highness.”
“Let’s skip the formality.”
Lensley burst into laughter at the prince’s words.
“Why are you laughing?”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I remembered someone who said something similar to you, your Highness.”
Ivan frowned for a moment, and asked with a puzzled look.
“Are you talking about Adelia?”
Lensley spoke with a surprised look on his face, perhaps because his prediction was right.
“Yes, how did you know?”
“It’s a hunch,”
“Ha-ha. I see.”
Lensley burst out laughing then returned to being serious and said,
“Then tell me what you called me for.”
Ivan also spoke with a smile off his face.
“Lensley, do you remember the mercenaries who came to save us that day?”
Lensley’s expression changed sharply.
He nodded with a sharp look.
“Of course, I remember everything that happened then.”
“Well, Lensley, I have a favor to ask of you.”
Ivan began by calling Lensley’s name. He asks him to find Demarlo who came to rescue them that day.
“Are you looking for a mercenary named Demarlo?”
“Yes,”
“But he has nothing to do with the Green branch.”
Lensley was right.
The possibility of the mercenary being related to a green branch was very low.
But what Ivan wanted from the mercenary was not information about the green branch.
“No. What I’m curious about is not the information about the green branch.”
“Well, then?”
“To find out the identity of the girl who saved us that day.”
Lensley, who recognized Ivan’s intentions, grinned and said,
“Well, if you’re going to hire a first-rate mercenary, you’ll have to give your real name, so he knows the girl’s name.”
On that day, Lensley and the other children did not hear the name of the mercenary.
Only Ivan, who was relatively close to the girl, could hear his name.
But Ivan had also forgotten the name. for he had just escaped and was distracted, his memory gradually faded over time.
If he had not met Adelia, he would not have remembered the mercenary’s name.
“At last, I will be able to repay you.” said Lensley.
How long have they been searching the empire in the last decade or so?
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“Actually, there is already a woman I suspect of being the girl. I’m looking for that mercenary just to be sure.”
“What? Why do you say that now? You should have told us!” cried Lensley, surprised by his master.
“There’s no evidence yet that she was the girl at the time, so I didn’t say anything.”
Ivan explained the reason for hiding the identity of the benefactor in a nonchalant tone.
“Sigh… So, who is the girl that your Highness guessed?”
“Well, perhaps you’ve already seen her recently.”
“What? Recently?”
“Yes,”
“No, I haven’t….”
Lensley pointed at his forehead in disbelief.
Lensley had not recently left the duchy. That means “the girl” is in the duchy.
‘She is definitely not a servant in this castle.’
He assumed that the other person’s status is an aristocrat, since none of the servants has red hair.
“…wait a minute,”
Come to think of it, there was only one person.
Now staying in the Grand Duchy, with red hair.
‘And we met earlier and had a conversation,’
Ivan’s mysterious information pointed to only one person.
“Are you saying it’s Lady Adelia?”
Ivan nodded silently.
“Oh! That’s right! Now that you mention it, it seems a little similar.”
“… Do you think so too?”
“Why didn’t you tell me, Your Highness?”
Ivan gave a subtle look to Lensley’s question.
“Well, I’m trying to be cautious.”
“Hahaha! It seems to me that she grew up quite the same!”
Lensley smiled broadly and expressed his joy.
Ivan asked Lensley.
“Lensley, just in case, don’t let this conversation out to anyone else.”
“Oh, of course! Please trust this, Lensley.” cried Lensley, striking his left chest with his fist.
However, Ivan shook his head in a very suspicious look
“For now, Zen and I will have to get the information of the mercenary Demarlo. for he has always been a fast walker. He’s the best tracker.”
“I’ll leave it to you.”
“I’ll do my best to find it as soon as possible.”
Lensley’s steps out of the office were so light.
This was the reason why Ivan did not leave the matter to the shadow of the Hamilton family.
At that time, he was not the only one who owed the girl.
The other children who were kidnapped and exploited their life force also owed the girl.
Therefore, the search for their benefactor must be concluded by their hands.
But I can’t help worrying about it.
I wonder if Lensley’s mouth will shut until everything is clear.
***
“Strange.”
No matter how much she thought about it, it was strange.
Adelia turned slightly away and shivered at the smiling employer.
These days, the kindness of the servants has been excessive.
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When she fastened her shawl because it was a little cold, they ran like crazy and handed her a thick cloak.
They were so attentive to serving her.
Originally, they only prepare bath water, but now they rush to give her a massage along with the bath service.
When she told them to step back, they seemed disappointed.
The heartfelt care that began to be offered to her also extended to Emily.
One time, Emily lost her balance while playing, and when she fell, they ran as if their own child had fallen, and comforted her.
‘What the hell is going on here?’
She wondered if Liam noticed some uncomfortable gazes at her and warned the servants.
However, not all servants of the castle served her with all their heart.
Most of the servants served her just right.
There were only a few servants who looked at her enthusiastically from behind.
The problem is that the few servants were around her and Emily.
‘They’ve been following us almost all day.’
They would step down if she told them to, but it was burdensome to order them, then they would make faces as if they lost the world.
Adelia pointed her forehead at the awkwardness.
“Are you sick?”
Then, as if waiting, the maid who was guarding Adelia asked a question.
Her eyes were filled with anxiety.
“…did you say your name was Libby?”
“Ah! Yes! That’s right!”
Libby nodded quickly with an emotional expression.
Adelia said with a great deal of pressure.
“Yes, Libby, I need some time alone, so will you excuse me?”
“What…?”
Libby looked as shocked as if he had been fired.
I knew it.
Adelia smiled and gently soothed the maid.
“I’ll call you if I need you, so don’t worry.”
“Oh, yes, I understand. If you need any help, please call this Libby!”
Libby finally let Adelia go.
Adelia lay down on the bed with an exhausted face.
I don’t know what’s going on here…
“Should I tell the duke?”
But they have done nothing wrong, what should I say?
Some of the servants of the Grand Duchy are serving me and Emily too much. This might sound ridiculous, wouldn’t it?
“Sigh…”
knock, knock.
Less than 10 minutes after Libby left, someone knocked.
Adelia said nervously. “Libby, I told you that I needed a moment for myself-”
“Madam, it’s me.”
It wasn’t Libby who knocked on the door, but Liam.
Adelia sighed, saying, “Oh, Come on in. I mistook you for another child for a while.”
click~
“No problem, but you look tired.”
I’m tired, mentally though.
“…no, I’m not very tired. But what’s the matter?”
“Your highness asked me to call you.”
Adelia had a hunch.
The reason why the Grand Duke called her is because of her title.
“I’ll be right there.”
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T/N: I thought her hair was like silver or white. (Based on the novel cover)
Loll i thought her hair was white/silver too. The cover shows us that. But maybe later the hair change bcs she is a saintess?
Maybe….
I even looked it up just in case, but her hair is always white on the cover 🤔
maybe it gradually change….according to translation….when she was young…she has a dark hair….but at her age…it became lighter….that is why…ivan is not sure….but honestly speaking in reality….our hair are darker when we are younger…and it gets lighter as we get older