Chapter 4
Leah Hamilton’s funeral was scheduled to take place at the largest church in the capital of Lubec.
Leah arrived at the church two hours before the ceremony was set to begin.
She had a bit of trouble dodging Pauline outside the church. She couldn’t let anyone see her sadness.
“Don’t shake, face reality.”
Leah held hands with the person wearing black lace gloves. Could anyone else be another person and see their own funeral?
A slight vibration ran up her body from her toes as if there had been an earthquake on the ground. That was clearly the beginning of despair, facing a tremendous sight soon.
“You have to be strong. You’re still alive.”
Leah rallied herself as if reciting a never-ending spell. Soon she stopped hesitating and entered the church.
It was a scene no different from any other place of worship. The majestic and sacred cross, behind which light poured in through stained glass windows of various colors.
But all Leah could see were the coffin where her body lay.
Without stopping her steps, Lea walked straight towards the coffin. Finally facing the reality.
“Oh, God!”
Leah, who usually believed more in science than in God, found herself seeking God when she saw her own body.
The coffin was filled with white lilies. Inside, there lay herself, who had barely turned twenty.
“Could it be this miserable?”
People might have tried to make it look better, but it was so terrible that Lea couldn’t even make a sad expression. She just silently shed tears.
“I’m sorry, I killed you. Leah Hamilton.”
The price of loving a man was so cruel.
“I promise, I’ll take Allen to the gates of hell….”
Leah couldn’t continue her words as her emotions intensified. But now there was no room for despair. She didn’t even deserve the right to do so.
“I’ll gladly be Allen Macdowell’s hell.”
Humans are said to tremble with extreme fear before entering the gates of hell. Without dying or living, unable to turn back, they must endure intense pain.
“I’ll be Allen Macdowell’s hell.”
Leah wiped away tears with her hands. It was too early to break down in sobs. Her meticulously applied makeup couldn’t be ruined for the day ahead.
“When this is over, I’ll follow soon. Farewell, Leah Hamilton.”
Leah bid herself farewell in a composed tone.
Then she glanced at the body. She needed to find the necklace her father had given her. But there was no necklace to be found.
“Why isn’t it here? Was it lost?”
At that moment, an elderly priest emerged into the church. He seemed to be of bishop rank, probably the one in charge of the funeral.
“Bishop, were there any belongings with the body?”
Leah asked abruptly.
“Oh, the belongings would have been taken separately by the people from the Count of Courtoise who found the body. They need to be handed over to the family.”
“The Count of Courtoise?”
Things had gotten complicated.
It was time for the funeral to begin. Although there were already people here to perform the dirge, Leah found herself the sole mourner.
“Are there no other mourners yet?”
The bishop, perhaps puzzled, approached Leah and asked. It must have been strange to have such an empty chapel.
“I’m enough alone.”
“Pardon?”
“You may proceed with the funeral.”
“But there’s still no one… Very well.”
The bishop, who had been wandering around the chapel, seemed to finally accept that no more mourners would come.
“I know, Alan Maxwell will definitely come.”
Leah prayed with folded hands.
May Allen come…
Finally, the bishop leading the funeral prayed earnestly for the unfortunate Lea who had left this world early.
As his heartfelt prayer reached its climax, as Lea had expected, she felt a presence at the door.
Finally, he had come.
“Leah!”
Though his voice was impassioned, his footsteps were calm.
The bishop stopped his prayer and turned towards the door, but Leah was still in prayer.
Trying to remain calm rather than flustered, for she knew very well who had come.
“Who is it?”
The bishop asked politely, but his voice carried discomfort towards the stranger who disregarded etiquette.
If he was a mourner, he should have quietly taken a seat and observed the funeral.
Leah adjusted her black veil and rose from her seat to face him.
And finally, she saw him.
The man with shining blond hair and striking features.
And the irreparable sin smeared with her own wrong choices.
“Mr. Allen Maxwell?”
“Yes, I am Allen Maxwell. Who is this?”
“This is Grace Visack.”
He must be racking his brain by now.
Who could this woman be?
She’s not someone Leah knows.
Allen’s voice could be heard quickly rewinding through his memory circuits.
He was the man who meticulously remembered everything Leah liked and disliked during her lifetime, even down to the accessories and dresses she wore each day of the week.
“How do you know Leah? Are you a friend?”
“A friend… no.”
“Then who are you?”
“Given the longstanding connection between my family and the Hamiltons, I couldn’t help but come.”
“Ah, I see. Thank you.”
Only then did relief wash over Allen’s face.
Leah nodded slightly, expressing her condolences to him.
As soon as they cleared the blocked path, Allen staggered towards the coffin.
“Leah.”
Allen lifted the thin cloth covering the body.
His trembling hands betrayed his eagerness to confirm.
The final confirmation needed for the new owner of Hamilton Manor.
“How could this happen…!”
The body lying in a wedding dress was undoubtedly Leah Hamilton.
Unable to contain his grief, Allen sat down, pretending to be overwhelmed, and tears of despair streamed down his face.
“I should have listened to me. Why did you have to be so reckless…!”
Veins bulged on Allen’s hand as he gripped the coffin, shaking his shoulders with sobs, unable to bear his fiancée’s tragic end.
Leah, who had been waiting for this moment, approached Allen, comforting him by patting his shoulder.
“I’m not sure what words of comfort to offer.”
Leah was surprised at the fact that she could comfort her enemy’s demise with such dignity.
‘You are now Grace Visack.’
She repeated this to herself inwardly to avoid any mistakes.
Grace’s body was flawlessly beautiful, except for being unusually petite and slim.
Her shining golden hair, fair skin, and amethyst eyes shimmered like jewels.
“Is that all? The sound of his breathing was as warm as a mountain breeze.’’
Captivating even to the eyes of another woman.
Allen, pretending to be composed as he stifled his emotions, turned towards Leah.
“Thank you for seeing my fiancée off on her final journey.”
“Not at all. It’s truly regrettable.”
“No, you’ve done something I couldn’t. I tried every way to find out where Leah had gone, but ultimately couldn’t prevent this tragedy.”
Allen briefly explained to Leah why she had fled and what the situation was like in Hamilton Manor in their homeland.
“I tried to persuade Leah and her father until the very end, but her father insisted that anything profitable must be sold, ignoring my words.”
“Such a…!”
Leah painfully realized her own arrogance in thinking she knew everything about herself.
“I acted out of conflict with my beliefs and morality. Still, I never dreamt that Leah would abandon even me and flee like that.”
Even as he spoke, tears streamed down his face.
Leah took out a handkerchief from her purse and handed it to him. She felt the urge to strangle Allen then and there, but she bit her lip and held back.
“Save your tears.”
Unconsciously, Leah’s voice cracked. She found his false pretenses and deceit repulsive.
“I’m afraid… I wouldn’t want that. I hope the man I loved won’t be sad because of me for too long.”
“I see. Thank you for your consolation.”
“Mr. Hamilton who has passed away must understand your fiancée’s heart well enough.”
“But that day, I feel I will regret not persuading Lea more actively for the rest of my life.”
Allen wiped his tears with the handkerchief Lea handed him and continued speaking.
“Leah’s stubbornness was so strong that she wouldn’t even listen to me.”
Lea looked at Allen with pity before turning away.
Then he gently grabbed her again in a soft tone.
“Miss Bizarre, I’m sorry, but I want to know about Leah’s last moments. When will you spare me some time?”
“What?”
As Leah turned away to answer, another man’s voice echoed faintly in the chapel.
“Grace.”
Leah’s gaze followed the voice, instinctively reacting like an animal sensing a stimulus.
A man in a black uniform walked towards Leah and Allen.
Despite filling the narrow aisle, his towering figure and muscular build enveloped in black exuded a chilling aura contrasting with a fiery temperament on his icy-cold face.
His black eyes, more than anything else, intimidated anyone who met them.
Above all, the man exuded masculinity, making him appear much stronger than Allen.
“Count Cortois.”
As Leah approached him with surprise, he naturally wrapped his arm around her shoulder.
“!?”
Leah involuntarily flinched at his action.
‘Why is he doing this again? Something he never did before.’
“Finally, Miss Hamilton’s fiancé has arrived,” Leah said, lifting her head softly to him as if whispering.
Allen tried to analyze Leah and Taran as he looked at them.
He probably thinks they’re lovers.
“Her fiancé is here, thankfully. I was worried about what would happen if she were buried in a common grave,” he said, his words carrying a hint of reproach towards the belated Allen.
“You were very sad,” Leah said.
“Well, I suppose we’re done here, Grace?”
“Yes.”
That’s when Allen, who had been observing the situation, approached Leah.
“Miss Vizak, please introduce me to your companion. I’d like to express my gratitude.”
“He’s Duke Terrence Courtois.”
“Ah…? Oh, so you’re the famous Duke Terrence Courtois. I’m Allen MacDowell. Thank you for attending my fiancée’s funeral. I will definitely repay this kindness.”
Allen seemed more surprised to have met Terrence in person than to learn about his fiancée’s death from rumors.
However, Terrence, with a rather indifferent expression, glanced at him before turning to look at his fiancée.
“That’s enough,” Terrence said, wrapping his arm around Grace’s shoulder as he turned away.
But Allen didn’t easily let the two go.
“Oh, one more thing, please,” he approached and asked Leah instead of Terrence.
“What can I tell you?”
“Did Leah leave anything behind? Like a necklace…”
“A necklace?”
“Oh… no, nothing. I’ll look into it.”
Seeing Leah’s puzzled reaction, Allen quickly blocked the path he had started.
“Is it an important necklace?”
Leah was curious about how Allen Moore would respond.
“Because it’s an item passed down through generations, I wanted to cherish it above all else.”
“Such a necklace must hold the history and secrets of the generations above. But I have no knowledge of it.”
Leah said to Allen, her gaze shifting towards Terran. Someone else must have the necklace.
“I see…”
Leah turned back to Allen with a sorry expression, quietly suppressing the anger swelling in her chest.
“His fiancée will be buried here in the church cemetery.”
“Marquis Courtois, you can’t just abandon Leah in a foreign land.”
“Isn’t it better than being abandoned in our homeland?”
Taran interjected with a calm tone.
“What do you mean?”
Allen was greatly surprised, as Taran seemed to have grasped his intentions.
“I believe you already know without me having to explain.”
“But I could request the repatriation of Leah’s remains to Galdencia.”
Grace, who had been listening to their conversation, intervened.
“Don’t you wish for your beloved fiancée to rest in peace?”
If Allen didn’t insist, Leah’s deceased body would remain unharmed.
Allen kept his mouth shut.
In order to handle Leah’s remains perfectly, he wanted them processed in Galdencia.
But now that her death had been confirmed, there was no need to insist.
“The dead do not speak.”
Just then, a mournful requiem echoed through the church.
Leah’s gaze naturally shifted towards the coffin, then back to Allen.
“It’s a requiem for you. You bastard.’’
