The Secret Circumstances of the Fake Ducal Couple

The House of Somnium was more like a castle than a house.

There was a main house in the center, flanked on either side by two outbuildings that stood like guard over the central building.

In addition to a sprawling garden in front of the main house, there was also a conservatory and a glasshouse.

Despite its size, the house was called “house” to distinguish it from the castle where the queen resided.

Jane stared through the slightly opened window at the iron gates, which were firmly closed.

‘I can’t believe I’m here again…….’

Jane gazed at Somnium House with a sinking feeling.

The gates, which had seemed impregnable to her seven years ago, swung open to the left and right, revealing a straight path to Somnium House.

The path was flanked by manicured gardens: a fountain centered on a sculpture of a goddess symbolizing fertility on the left, and paths for strolling on the right.

As the gardeners worked diligently, the figures of young Jane

and Cain were superimposed over them.

“It’s dangerous, Master, you can’t climb the tree.”

They were about seven years old.

Jane complained that she’s bored, so Cain showed her around the garden, showing her all the different things she can’t do.

Like climbing a tree, for example.

But his attempts were only successful about two times out of ten.

That’s because Hastings’ users were diligent.

They chased after Jane and Cain, working hard to avoid putting themselves in any potentially dangerous situations.

“Jane, let’s run!”

Cain grabbed Jane’s wrist and ran through the garden. It was hide-and-seek with the nannies.

“Hide here. There’s a statue of Luke, you’ll never be seen.”
Cain hid Jane behind the statue and himself behind the lion statue opposite to it.

‘Where the hell have you gone, Master, miss! Ah! Master, there you are, come out quickly, but where’s Miss Jane?

Thanks to the goddess’s protection, Jane was able to hide for a while longer after Cain’s capture.

She remembered Cain’s giggling smile as he put his finger to his mouth to hide from the nanny’s eyes.

It was such an innocent smile. Would I ever see it again?

“Do you still have the statue of the lion and the goddess Luke?”

Jane asked, her voice more relaxed than it had been in years.

Cain, who had been poring over papers in front of her, looked up.
The coldness in his eyes made Jane roll her shoulders. Cain’s face grew cold.

“You’re interested. That’s not a good attitude, Jane. Let me explain. I got rid of the stuff that didn’t belong in my house a long time ago. I donated it to the Veritas Art Museum. All of it, including the Auguste paintings and the first edition of Beerstadt.”

The smile on Jane’s face slowly faded.

Auguste’s paintings and Bearstadt’s first edition novels were

among her favorite things to look at at Somnium House.

Cain and Jane would look at Auguste’s paintings and imitate the people in them, sometimes even drawing each other as Auguste.

They quoted Bierstadt’s novels and whispered their love languages.

All of that disappeared in the Somnium. He said they didn’t belong in the Somnium House.

Jane wasn’t foolish enough to know what he meant.

‘It’s not the things, it’s me. It’s me that they’ve stripped me of my past. Jane pressed her hands together on her thighs.’

“……good job.”

Her voice trembled badly, as if she needed to say something.

Cain glanced at her nonchalantly and pulled back the curtains on the window.

As if he found it distasteful that she was even looking at Somnium House and reminiscing about the past. As if to warn her never to think of the past again. Jane drew in a slow breath.

The air in the carriage grew heavy. It was stuffy, but she didn’t pull the curtains or open the window.

Just when she thought she would suffocate to death, the carriage stopped and the door opened.

“Welcome, Your Excellency.”

Norbert, a white-haired butler, greeted them.

“The guest is…….”

Norbert glanced at the carriage behind him to see if Cain had told him.

Jane and Norbert’s gazes met as they disembarked just in time.

A smile spread across Jane’s face like ink on water.

“Norbert!”

Jane exclaimed happily.

Norbert, who turned 60 this year, was the butler in charge of Somnium House, and he knew Jane well.

“It’s been a long time, miss.”

Norbert smiled broadly and stepped forward to greet Jane.

Cain watched the figure stiffly, then stepped inside, a cold breeze blowing with every step he took.

The servants rushed in after him, leaving Norbert and Jane alone in the foyer.

“You’ve grown up beautifully.”

Norbert took the suitcase from Jane’s hand. Her smile deepened the wrinkles around his eyes.

“You’re still as handsome as ever, Norbert.”

“And you still speak beautifully.”

“I only tell the truth.”

Jane smiled wryly, and the corners of Norbert’s eyes moistened.
When she’d just gotten out of the carriage, it had seemed like a different person, but now that she was smiling so brightly, it was Jane.

“I’m sorry, miss. It’s good to see you looking so well…….”

“That’s so good, Norbert.”

Jane said, oblivious to Norbert’s tears.

“Where can I stay?”

For a moment, Norbert’s face clouded over.

* * *

“Wow, you’ve spent a lot of money today, I see you’ve been to the slums again.”

Nathan stuck his tongue out as he finished organizing his ledger, set it aside, and looked out the window.

When he saw Jane and Norbert talking, he turned back to Cain.

“Do you mind?”

Cain flipped through the papers with a calmness that belied the man who had just been out.

His great accomplishments came from a steadfast sense of integrity and responsibility.

He would do his work, even when he was running a fever, even

the day after his parents died.

It was the duty of a man who bore the honor of Hastings.

“I hope you don’t mind.”

“I hope you’re asking the right question.”

Nathan, Cain’s aide, closed the window. Fatigue filled his face.

“I heard you had a pretty intense relationship with this woman, Jane.”

“Deeply…….”

Cain ripped the pen from the paper, muttering as he stared off into thin air.

“I guess we were.”

He said nonchalantly, rolling the pen around in his hand.

“Yeah? What’s the point of answering that, like it’s anybody else’s business.”

“It was, and I’m not me, so what’s the big deal?”

Nathan stepped up to Cain’s desk.

“You’re my boss, you told me to keep my emotions out of my work.”

“You’re worried that I won’t be able to do it?”

Nathan almost said he already was, but he held back. Instead, he glared at Cain.

It hadn’t been that long since he’d served him. But Nathan prided himself on knowing him better than anyone.

He couldn’t guess Cain’s future plans, but he could guess his immediate next steps.

But where Jane was concerned, things were far less predictable.

I hadn’t expected that he would find her when he was advised that he should take a wife as soon as possible.

There had been a mountain of gossip.

And to bring her right away?

He even used a black hawk to do a background check on her, and suddenly canceled a debt that she had been trying to pay

off. It was an impulsive act.

“I know, but…….”

“Nathan, if you have something to say, say it fast.”

Cain was annoyed, but he fit in well with Nathan’s conversation.

“I see you’re still here.”

Cain seemed unfriendly at first, but he was surprisingly friendly to everyone. It was often misinterpreted as inconsistent kindness.

But that’s what drew Nathan to him. Nathan took a moment to reminisce about their relationship.

Six years ago, Nathan and Cain first met. Nathan had met him while working as a pickpocket and a gambling hall player.

“If you use your hands like that, you’ll get them cut off. The same goes for your neck. Do you want to come with me? I’ll protect your hands.”

Cain saw Nathan’s dexterity and hair and reached out his hand.

In the year that followed, Nathan was trained.

An education so intense that he begged to be sent back to the back alleys, to die.

He became Cain’s aide.

From then on, Nathan’s life was built on a foundation. Like a sail in a gentle breeze, he just kept moving forward.

Nathan believed Cain was a god, and he would do anything for him, even die for him.

‘There’s this only one thing I can’t do. I can’t give up the woman I love.’

The secretly romantic Nathan muttered to himself.

Still, he hoped Cain would accomplish what he set out to do, so that the shadow he sometimes cast would be lifted.

Cain was a man of light, a light without a shadow.

“I wish you would explain. Why you’re marrying so suddenly, and why her. Have you forgotten everything?”

“What if I’ve already forgotten? I’m not sure I can trust you with the job. Why don’t you take a leave of absence for a while?”

He didn’t want me to take a vacation, he wanted me to resign.

He must have gotten uncomfortable with the long-windedness, but Nathan couldn’t resist asking questions.

“I realize you need a mother for that child, but why her?”

Cain tapped his foot on the table. He didn’t know whether to speak or not, so he crossed his legs and said.

“The old raccoon says I’m to marry. She asked me to marry Princess Cleo.”

“What? When?”

Nathan frowned.

“A month ago.”

There was a gasp, and Nathan stopped breathing. Then he shook his head.

“You’re not going to do it, are you?”

“That’s not why I brought her here.”

Cain’s long finger pointed out the window.

“Why does the old raccoon…….”

Old Raccoon was the nickname Cain and Nathan had given to Helena Royal Strain, The Queen of the Emblem Kingdom.

She had one daughter, Cleo, who was very cunning, a little less than everyone else, but she had a lot, and she disguised it as innocence.

Helena wanted to ensure that the kingdom of Embleon would be strong after her death, so she wanted Cleo to have a son-in-law who would empower her properly.

“Why wouldn’t she bring in some foreign prince? She is a raccoon whose greed knows no bounds.”

“She is not a raccoon for nothing.”

“But it doesn’t have to be Lady Jane.”

Cain’s explanation was woefully inadequate. If he was simply trying to avoid marrying the princess, there were plenty of alternatives.

Even a scarecrow could fill the square with women who would stand by his side.

With his wide, almond-shaped eyes, his imposing, prominent nose, his chilling aura, his imposing physique, and his imposing stature, he was a handsome man to behold.

And he was a duke, and rich!

A newfound respect for Cain welled up in Nathan’s heart.

So it didn’t have to be Jane. It was her status that mattered.

Seven years earlier, Cain’s plea to the queen had resulted in her punishment but retention of her nobility. However, her title was not hereditary, and she could not exercise any power as a noble.

Her title was literally a shame. She wouldn’t even feel like a noble.

If Nathan, a commoner, thought this, how could anyone else think?

“Are you sure there’s no other reason?”

“I made a deal with the queen.”

“What deal?”