CHAPTER 2
Let me strip you.
The Templar did not come nearer to her, but stood a little apart, and called her by name.
called her name Ebony wondered if the beast she’d seen earlier would jump out of nowhere.
She looked everywhere but sensed no sign of it.
A demon within the Empire. No matter how hard he tried to think of another beast with yellow eyes
I tried to think of another yellow-eyed beast, but nothing came to mind. Was it a demon at all?
And if so, why did it reappear? Ebony decided that if she saw Duke Leonard.
he would warn him.
In the meantime, he had been forced into a position where he was merely a grain handler.
and depressed that she felt like a pawn in an arranged marriage.
to do for her fiefdom, she somehow felt better about her role as duchess.
better.
When she arrived at the duke’s estate and dismounted from the carriage, the duke’s servants who came out to greet her
The servants who came out to greet her when she stepped off the carriage were all open-mouthed.
Her pure white dress was stained all over. The journey
I thought it might be due to the length of her travels, but I couldn’t understand why the dirt
was inexplicable.
The bride couldn’t have gotten out of the carriage, so what had happened?
As she climbed the steps, one of the knights standing at the entrance to the castle came up to her.
She crossed her arms over her chest and bent down to greet him. The knight was unexpectedly a woman with long black
long black hair in a tight bun.
“Greetings, my name is Hayley, and I have the honor of serving your wife. I hope you had no trouble getting here.
to get here?
“A little hard, but I was able to get some air at the end, so it was okay.
Ebony, her face covered by a veil, said in a cheerful voice. Long distance, no doubt
I thought he’d be tired from the long trip, but he was more energetic than I expected, causing a puzzled look to cross Hayley’s face.
A momentary glimmer of surprise flashed across Hayley’s face, but it quickly faded.
“His Highness Julien has told me that he will be going to see the Archduchess this evening,” he said;
The formal wedding is in three days, but the Duke will be in her chambers today to receive his bride.
to receive his bride.
He said she was too ill to leave the castle, so it would be better for him to go to her.
But it was the law that the groom should visit the bride.
He was supposed to come to the north to fetch her, but circumstances forced her to come alone.
made her come alone.
She vaguely assumed he had lost a leg or arm. No one with a disability
dared not enter the imperial palace. To die in battle or to be martyred
was considered great, but disability was considered a curse from the gods.
because of the curse. A cursed man dared not enter the emperor’s residence.
the emperor’s residence.
Once in the room with Rachel, led by Hayley, Ebony was momentarily overcome with the urge to remove the veil.
but only the groom could remove the veil.
To be honest, when she’d stood on the ridge earlier, she’d lifted it slightly to survey the grounds.
up to see the grounds. But that’s okay because all I saw was that yellow-eyed beast.
I thought.
As I sat on the plush couch thinking about this, Rachel brought me water to wash my hands.
to wash my hands.
“Have a glass of water, too,” she said;
Ebony took the drink Rachel offered and dried her burning throat under the veil.
***]
After falling asleep briefly on the couch, Ebon was startled awake by something.
She must have dreamed, but she couldn’t remember.
But when she opened her eyes, she was even more startled by the black figure in front of her.
and sat up. Night had fallen, and it was dark everywhere.
Where the hearth light cast shadows, she could see at a glance that the figure was quite broad-shouldered.
A huge man sat cross-legged with impossibly long legs.
“Have you rested?”
It was a pleasant bass voice, though the shadows made it hard to see his face, and even in the darkness
yellow eyes glinted in the darkness.
Ebon had never seen yellow pupils on a human before, and he froze.
frozen, staring into those eyes.
He locked eyes with her for a long moment without speaking, then slowly rose to his feet.
and said.
“You’ve taken the trouble to get here, Julienne Leonard.”
He bowed politely, and Ebony jumped to her feet.
She hurriedly picked up her dress and curtsied, bending slightly at the knees.
“Greetings to you, Duke Leonard.”
“I should have been there to greet him, but I wasn’t,”
Julienne said softly, looking down at her as she straightened her back, and Ebony
straightened her back and smiled up at him.
“If the groom can’t come, the bride can.”
His eyes sparkled again at her words. The sound of burning wood echoed in the silent room.
echoed in the silent room. As her eyes adjusted to the darkness, Ebonne could see him more and more clearly.
clearer and clearer.
He was very handsome, with jet-black hair and uncharacteristically fair skin.
No, not just handsome, but a face with a sharp nose and full mouth.
human. His golden eyes, which I wondered if they were human, seemed to suit him well.
seemed to fit him. His limbs, which I’d assumed would be crippled.
were intact, and quite long and strong.
Where had he been hurt? Was there a scar on his body?
“The wedding will be in three days,” he said, “and after that, I’ll be away for a while.
away for a while. Do you mind if I leave you alone?”
“Where are you going?”
“I’m going to live in an outbuilding for a while to heal.”
I assumed he must have heard the rumors, but he didn’t explain where or why.
or why. Ebon didn’t think it was polite to ask about something so personal just yet.
thought, and asked another question.
“For how long?”
“About a month?”
“A full month of treatment every month?”
Ebonne asked calmly, noticing that she sounded unsurprised,
Julienne’s sweet eyes gently arced.
“Yes.”
Being in the cottage for four days a month, she only has time with her husband for three days a month.
Though I liked his gentle, polite first impression more than I’d imagined,
I hadn’t quite gotten over the strangeness and awkwardness, but the idea of only having to be with him for three days a month
I felt sorry for him, but I was also somewhat relieved to hear that he would only need to be with me for four days a month
I was relieved.
“Why do you look so relieved?”
He said with a sneer as if he could see right through her,
Ebon nodded absentmindedly, even though she knew she should say no.
nodded. Then Julienne spoke again, coldly.
“Youngae is…….”
“I’m Ebony Hilliard. Please call me Ebony”
Ebon mustered up the courage to speak, and his eyes arced again.
“I’m ……. Ebony.”
I could feel a hint of laughter at the end of his words. A crisp smile with a hint of white teeth.
white teeth.
“Ebony seems to be different from the others.”
“Like what?”
“You’re not afraid of strange situations and strange people.”
“Strange, yes, but not frightening.”
“Is that so?”
The questioning voice sounded as innocent as a boy’s. This is how I talk to my husband, whom I’ve never met before.
she hadn’t expected to be able to talk to him so easily.
lightened her heart.
“To be honest, I did visit the South once when I was younger, with my father.”
“Did you come to the palace?”
“Yes.”
“You must have attended a ball.”
Young noblemen who had come of age would attend balls at the palace to greet the emperor and the
the emperor and the nobles.
“Yes. I wasn’t a very good dancer and caused trouble for my partner.”
“What kind of trouble did you cause?”
“I stepped on his foot.”
I said with a chuckle, and Ebon joined in. The hearth was warm.
The atmosphere was warm. It wasn’t the nap they’d taken that had relieved the fatigue of their long journey.
It wasn’t a nap after a long day of traveling, it was the atmosphere. But…….
“Ah!”
Ebon suddenly wrapped her hands around her head. No veil. The groom was in front of her.
The groom was in front of her, but there was no veil. She looked over at the couch and saw the veil that Rachel had worked so hard to make.
that Rachel had worked so hard to create.
“Moo, forgive my rudeness!”
Ebon exclaimed, quickly bowing down. It had been a lucid dream.
she hadn’t even realized she was removing her veil. She was a bride.
not. And the honor of House Hilliard.
He sat up suddenly, slowly. Ebon didn’t know what to say, or if he would
if he was going to say anything, if he was going to tarnish her family name.
But then he turned abruptly and stood with his back to her. Then a gentle
voice said.
“Put on your veil. I’ll take it off for you.”
“Oh…….”
I’ve been talking to you all this time without a veil, and now you want me to put one on?
Blinking, wondering what he was talking about, Ebonne realized it was his consideration and hurriedly put on her veil.
the veil.
Through the embroidery on the veil, she could see his great body turning toward her again.
Through the embroidery on her veil, she saw his large body turn back toward her.
As his face came within inches of hers, she held her breath. The lines
that defined the bridge of his nose and jawline gave him a masculine look, while his narrow, long eyes and long lashes gave him a feminine look.
of femininity.
Was this what the Gentiles looked like? The Emperor’s direct descendants should look like him.
The emperor was blond and blue-eyed. Not these yellow eyes.
Julienne flexed her long fingers and took hold of her veil, slowly pulling it up.
Ebony could sense he was careful not to dishevel her hair. On the couch.
and her hair would already be a mess.
Once the veil was lifted, she bent down to her knees again, as was customary, and bowed to her husband.
He placed the veil on the floor and took her hand in both of his, kissing the back of it.
and said softly
“Welcome to my castle. Ebony Hilliard.”
Her golden eyes shone even more beautifully in the moonlight streaming in through the window, making them look like they
were. Upon arriving at the manor, Ebon debated whether or not to tell him about the beast she had seen in the forest.
of the beast she had seen in the forest.
The man’s haggard face, wounded from driving the beast away, told her that it had returned to the manor.
that the beast had reappeared on the estate.
Little did she know that this hesitation would prove costly later.
