The excited Marquis swept all the decorations off the table in one go.
This caused a brief commotion, but Grayson simply stared at his father as if he hadn’t heard a thing.
“What should we do? Yes… Grayson, you! You should go beg His Majesty! No, wait, no. The Emperor is a sinking sun. It’s better to align with the Crown Prince!”
Grayson stood up, looking weary, as the Marquis rambled incoherently.
It had been two full days of dealing pointlessly with his father like this.
Leaving the Marquis, who mumbled like a madman, behind, Grayson took a step forward.
“I’m leaving now. Please give my regards to Mother.”
The Marquis barely noticed his son leaving, too immersed in his misfortune to see him go, as he grabbed another bottle of liquor.
Without looking back, Grayson walked out of the parlor.
“Master Grayson, the mistress is in a terribly foul mood. Wouldn’t it be better to visit her for a moment before you leave?”
The old butler hurried after him with a plea that was half an appeal.
The Marquis and his wife’s rage over their lost honor had turned on the household staff.
The Marquis drank himself into a stupor daily, wreaking havoc on the mansion. Many servants who passed by him were caught up in his sudden fits of violence.
The Marchioness was no different. She vented her sensitive nerves on the servants.
Not long ago, she had thrown a fit and injured several maids after being rejected from all the tea parties she had been invited to.
With this happening almost daily, the number of resignations among the staff was growing.
In this desperate situation, the only one who could revive the family was the eldest son, Grayson.
But Grayson continued to walk away, not once looking back at the butler.
“M-Master Grayson!”
Even the desperate call didn’t change his expression.
From the beginning, he had no affection or respect for his parents. Much less for the butler or servants in this decaying mansion.
One day, he would have to succeed his father as the Marquis, but he had no sense of duty to restore the family’s prestige.
“Let’s go.”
The carriage carrying Grayson rattled as it began to move. He glanced at the mansion through the window.
And naturally, he thought of his half-sister, Julia, who had gone missing a year ago.
They weren’t particularly close, but he had assumed she was doing well, having become a Grand Duchess.
But apparently, that wasn’t the case.
Considering their parents were trash, it wouldn’t have been easy for her to live well, no matter how hard she tried.
Leaning back in his seat, Grayson chuckled. It was obvious how much their parents must have used and abused her, even as the Grand Duchess.
To Grayson, his parents were not decent people either.
His father pretended to be virtuous, but in truth, he was a lecherous and violent man. His mother took out her anger toward his father on young Grayson.
The daily tirades that Grayson had endured shifted entirely onto Julia after she appeared.
She became the perfect target for their rage.
‘Maybe she didn’t go missing. Maybe she ran away on her own.’
That was what Grayson thought about Julia. That she had run away on her own.
It was remarkable enough that she had endured for so long.
At about twelve years old, he had escaped the mansion under the guise of studying abroad.
That’s why he and Julia were practically strangers. They had only spent about two years together as children.
Grayson ran his hand through his hair, eyes closed.
The daughter they had propped up as the Grand Duchess had disappeared, and their son had grown into a scoundrel with no interest in restoring the family.
In the end, the Marquis and Marchioness were reaping exactly what they had sown.
—
These days, Julia spent about two days a week at the lord’s estate.
The lady of the manor, who had been pleased with the reception room Julia had redecorated, kept giving her new tasks to do.
It took about an hour by carriage to get from the convent to the estate.
By the time she woke from dozing off during the ride, the carriage had reached the entrance of the estate.
As Julia checked the view from the window, the coachman opened the door for her.
“Julia, welcome!”
The lady of the estate, Marianne, who happened to be in the front yard, ran over to greet her enthusiastically.
“Hello, my lady.”
“My goodness, your face is red from the cold! Come in quickly. I’ll have some warm tea prepared.”
Chattering kindly, Marianne led Julia into the mansion.
Marianne was three years older than Julia, and her two children were already five and six years old.
Having married young and moved to a remote estate, Marianne had been lonely and had taken a liking to Julia from the start.
Thanks to Marianne’s approachable nature, Julia soon felt comfortable around her as well.
They sat down in the parlor, and soon, a maid brought over some refreshments.
Marianne picked up her teacup and began to speak.
“The kids are out hunting with their father. They’ll be back late, so today it’s just you and me for some girl talk.”
“I see. There’s a hunting ground on the estate?”
“Yes, there’s a small forest out back. Sometimes small animals like rabbits, foxes, or deer come down from there. Honestly, I can’t understand why they’d want to go hunting in this freezing weather, dragging the kids along too.”
Marianne grumbled in a tone that was more like a down-to-earth countrywoman than a refined noblewoman.
It was one of the things that made Julia’s time with her feel so comfortable and enjoyable.
As they chatted about various things, Marianne suddenly glanced around, checking the maid’s whereabouts.
Then she leaned in and whispered to Julia.
“Julia, don’t get married. Or if you do, enjoy yourself as much as you can before you do. I should’ve waited longer to marry my husband. When I was younger, I thought I couldn’t live without him. Now, I want to smack him just for breathing next to me!”
Julia couldn’t help but chuckle at Marianne’s animated voice.
Despite her words, Julia knew that the lord and lady had a good relationship. From what she’d heard, they were one of the rare cases of a love marriage.
“Hmm, now that I think about it, why haven’t you gotten married yet, Julia?”
Marianne suddenly shifted the conversation toward her, causing Julia to blink in surprise before offering a slightly awkward smile.
“Well, I actually was married. We’re separated now, though…”
Whenever someone like Marianne asked why she hadn’t married, Julia was honest about it.
Since no one here knew her true identity, she didn’t feel the need to hide it.
“Oh my goodness! Really? Why did you separate? Oh, I’m sorry. That was a rude question, wasn’t it?”
Marianne, who had been asking excitedly, suddenly closed her mouth in embarrassment. Julia lowered her gaze, hesitating for a moment before quietly replying.
“We just didn’t get along. He didn’t love me.”
After speaking, Julia smiled, trying to show she was fine.
Marianne, who had been listening intently with a serious expression, nodded in understanding.
“I see. You must have had a hard time. Whoever he was, he sure missed out. What an idiot.”
Julia couldn’t help but laugh quietly at Marianne’s blunt words.
She had worked hard to no longer feel pained by thoughts of Fernan.
In the beginning, every time he crept into her mind, she had to force herself to remember the bad moments, the cold words he had spoken, or the hardships she had endured at the castle.
And gradually, her heart would calm down.
—
As Marianne continued chatting about various things, evening approached.
Despite Marianne’s insistence that Julia stay for dinner, she eventually agreed to sit down at the table with her.
In the meantime, the lord and his children returned from their hunting trip.
After putting the children down, the lord spoke to Marianne in a serious tone before quickly leaving again.
When Marianne returned to the dining room, she looked somewhat troubled.
“My lady, is something wrong?”
Julia asked, concerned. Marianne nodded and sighed.
“Some knights on border patrol went missing. There’s been no contact. It seems my husband has to go out there himself.”
“I see… I hope nothing serious happens.”
The estate was near the mountains that bordered the kingdom. Julia couldn’t help but worry that something big might be happening.
Marianne suggested that Julia stay the night since it was late, but not wanting to impose, Julia politely declined.
Outside, Julia briefly looked up at the darkening sky before climbing into the carriage.
The days had grown shorter, and the sky was now completely dark.
