A chilling silence filled the Grand Duke’s office. Despite Milena’s words, Calion gave no response. He simply held onto the documents and stared at her.
His cold, silver-gray eyes betrayed no emotion.
His gaze seemed to challenge her to speak further, and without hesitation, Milena opened her mouth.
“Please act as if this never happened, Your Grace.”
People said that just a single look from the Grand Duke could make them forget to breathe, but at this moment, Milena’s survival instincts overpowered any fear she might have felt.
“My sister’s death hasn’t even been officially reported. On paper, the Grand Duchess is still very much alive, yet her younger sister is being made to take her place? That would disgrace the Grand Duchy.”
“……”
Milena had always been a woman who wore her emotions on her sleeve. But now, instead of clinging to him and pleading, she stood at a measured distance and spoke calmly.
As Calion focused on her voice, a certain remark grated on his ears.
“And I’ll be leaving the castle soon, so please arrange for a separate nanny for Ashdel. I ask that you provide the Grand Duke’s son with a proper caregiver.”
Our Ashdel.
She was asking him to ensure Ashdel was treated with the respect befitting his status, yet Calion’s reaction was entirely different.
“You’re leaving?”
His ice-cold face twitched slightly. Suddenly, he rose from his seat.
It was the most intense reaction he had shown in years, and Milena instinctively took a step back.
“Did you say you’re leaving?”
“Of course. Haven’t I been here long enough?”
It had already been five years since she’d lived here without her sister. That was plenty of time.
But why was this man reacting like this?
Before she could process it, Calion was already in front of her.
Milena swallowed dryly as she faced his towering physique. He exuded an overwhelming presence, and his gaze pressed down on her, as if trying to crush her with sheer intensity.
“Elie cherished you.”
The moment he spoke, Milena’s face contorted in disbelief.
“…What?”
Who cherished whom?
He had just used Larriete’s pet name to spout utter nonsense.
Milena and Larriete had never been close sisters.
If Larriete had truly cared for her, she wouldn’t have dragged Milena into a fraudulent scheme where she faked her own death. She wouldn’t have cast a spell on her and manipulated her.
But Calion’s absurdities continued.
“Elie entrusted Ashdel to you. Do you not understand what that means?”
“No, I don’t.”
“It means she wanted me to take care of you as well.”
He spoke as if it was the most obvious thing in the world.
“You have no other marriage prospects left, and at your age, you should be looking for a second husband. She would have wanted me to take you in. At this point, even the monasteries wouldn’t accept you. Where exactly do you think you’re going?”
As if considering her a mess, Calion spoke with an indifferent expression, effortlessly rubbing salt in her wounds.
“……”
Milena’s lips trembled.
Yes, 28 was considered an old maid. Yes, even second-wife positions were closed to her.
But what about it?
And whose fault was it that she had remained unmarried until now?!
She clenched her fists, forcing herself to stay calm. If she lost her temper now, she would only be dismissed. He would just treat her like a foolish, desperate woman.
But who could she blame?
She was the one who had foolishly clung to someone who clearly didn’t want her. Even if it was under a spell, she had still done it.
No matter how much she rationalized it, it didn’t change the fact that she had wasted years of her life.
Her anger, directionless and unresolved, refused to subside.
Her burning green eyes met his cold silver-gray ones.
“If that’s what you want, then I’ll file both the marriage registration and Elie’s death certificate together.”
Milena, who had remained silent to avoid unnecessary arguments, gasped in shock.
He was insane.
The deranged Grand Duke was planning to declare her very-much-alive sister dead.
“So don’t even think about leaving.”
His deep voice clung to her skin like a creeping shadow.
Calion took another step closer and lowered his head toward her.
As their bodies neared, a wave of nausea surged within her.
An unfamiliar sense of revulsion welled up.
“Don’t forget—your signature is already on the marriage contract.”
Maintaining an unbearably close distance, he whispered into her ear.
“Smile, Milena Lastia. This is the marriage you so desperately wanted, isn’t it?”
“……”
To some, his voice might have been mesmerizing, but to her, it was as chilling as the voice of death itself.
If this was his revenge for the woman who had tormented him for years, then Calion had succeeded.
To Milena, who had finally come to terms with her circumstances, this was not a reward—it was a punishment.
Her face turned pale at the horrifying realization.
Her name was already inscribed on the marriage contract.
That meant she was shackled.
The temple had created special documents to prevent people from treating marriage lightly. If someone signed, they were legally required to marry within three months. Additionally, the marriage had to last at least a year, or they would be cursed for disregarding the sacred vow.
A ridiculous law, but one that existed nonetheless.
Of course, the contract could be nullified.
If one had enough money.
But she had nothing.
“…It can be annulled, right?”
Desperation seeped into her voice. If anyone could easily break the contract, it was the Grand Duke.
But his response was ruthless.
“Why would I do that?”
“You don’t even like me! You hate the idea of registering my sister’s death, and you loathe the thought of marrying me!”
“Who knows? Maybe not anymore.”
He muttered something ambiguous.
Milena felt her mind go blank.
His gaze deepened with an emotion she couldn’t decipher.
She had never seen this side of him before.
“It seems our discussion is over.”
Calion coldly flicked his fingers. A knight who had been waiting outside entered the office.
“This will be your personal guard. Stay put until the wedding.”
“……”
“I look forward to serving you. My name is Hubert.”
The knight bowed, his shaggy gray hair partially obscuring his face.
But Milena saw and heard none of it.
By the time she came to her senses and tried to protest, she had already been dismissed.
Milena walked with a cold, composed expression, as if nothing had happened in the Grand Duke’s office.
“Hubert.”
“……”
The man standing outside the office watched her retreating figure for a long time.
“Hubert!”
Someone nudged him, pulling him from his daze.
Underneath his shaggy gray hair, his sharp eyes briefly flashed before relaxing.
“…Ah.”
That’s right.
Right now, he was ‘Hubert.’
“Yes.”
His response was slightly delayed, causing the Grand Duke’s aide to frown.
“What are you standing around for? Follow Lady Milena. You know your role, don’t you?”
“……”
When he didn’t reply, the aide sighed in exasperation.
“Keep a close watch on her. Make sure she doesn’t do anything reckless.”
“By ‘reckless,’ you mean?”
“She’s always pulling insane stunts. We should consider ourselves lucky if she doesn’t barge into His Grace’s bedroom half-naked.”
…Half-naked?
The image didn’t match her furious, indignant face from earlier.
If anything, she looked more like she would stab the Grand Duke than seduce him.
That might actually be amusing.
A small chuckle escaped him.
“Something funny?”
“Has she really done that before?”
“No, I was speaking figuratively.”
The aide looked embarrassed at his own assumption.
“Just stick to her and make sure she doesn’t cause any trouble.”
Hubert—or rather, the man disguised as him—gave a short Northern-style salute before turning away.
Once the aide disappeared, he hummed lightly as he walked down the corridor.
“So she’s a villainess, but not the kind I expected.”
Not once had she addressed the Grand Duke by name.
Always ‘Your Grace’—distant and formal.
A far cry from the rumors.
And those eyes…
“She doesn’t look like a woman in love to me.”
A slow smirk curled across his lips.
This was perfect.
Now he could observe her up close.
Was she an obstacle to be eliminated? Or an asset?
If she became a problem, he would get rid of her.
If not…
“…I’ll seduce her.”
With hidden intentions, the man who had infiltrated the Grand Duke’s castle under the name ‘Hubert’ made his way toward Milena’s room.
