He had cried out his mother’s name while being comforted in the arms of the daughter of his sworn enemy, the Duke of Enchanto.
Realizing this, the tips of Ashid’s ears turned faintly red. It was the first time in his life something like this had happened.
Sleeping so soundly that he could dream that dream beside someone else, and falling asleep while embracing another person—it was all a first.
‘…Damn it!’
Ashid cursed inwardly. Of all people, why did he have to show such disgraceful behavior to Daniela? For the first time in his life, he felt embarrassed. His heart was also beating in an oddly loud and restless manner.
At the same time, a surge of inexplicable anger welled up inside him. He wanted to ask why, despite holding Adrian in her heart, she hadn’t pushed him away with all her might.
Could she be trying to bewitch him in this manner to carry out some suspicious scheme? The thought made him want to pick a fight with Daniela for no reason.
Suppressing these emotions, Ashid abruptly released the wrist he had been holding onto. Then, turning his back on her, he sprang out of bed and spoke.
“I apologize. You must have found it utterly repulsive.”
“…What?”
“This will never happen again, so don’t worry. And if you’re giving me an opening like this to try and nullify our contract, you should abandon such foolish dreams.”
“…Hah. Excuse me?”
“Don’t forget—the only way to free yourself from me is to hand over every last thing the late Duke left behind.”
Leaving those words behind, Ashid strode out of the bedroom. He could feel his face burning. An indescribable and perplexing emotion gripped him.
For the first time in his life, he wanted to run away rather than confront someone.
Daniela, dumbfounded and utterly speechless, let out a series of incredulous laughs as she shouted at his retreating figure.
“Hah! As if I didn’t already know that?”
How befitting of the villainous Grand Duke—he truly was the worst.
She could hardly believe that, even for a moment, she had felt sympathy for him.
‘I must have lost my mind! What was I thinking, comforting someone like him?’
Never again? That was exactly what Daniela wanted.
The only way out was to find and hand over what the Duke of Enchanto had left behind? Fine. She would start searching immediately. She would find it as soon as possible and throw it in Ashid’s face.
Left alone in the bedroom, Daniela furiously pounded the mattress with her fists, venting her frustration.
Upon leaving the bedroom, Ashid clicked his tongue in irritation and covered his face with one hand. He didn’t want anyone to see his foolishly flushed expression.
He quickened his pace, eager to return to his chambers as soon as possible.
“Your Highness, did you call for us?”
Unfortunately, his wish was thwarted as he ran directly into Mela and Daniela’s maids.
Suppressing his momentary fluster, Ashid adopted an even colder expression as he regarded the maids.
Mela hesitantly asked, “It’s still early. Are you already leaving? Wouldn’t it be nice to have breakfast with the Madam at least today?”
Ashid frowned at her words. Return to Daniela’s side? That was out of the question.
Contemplating how to get out of this situation, he soon responded in a blunt tone.
“I still have much to take care of. Besides, the Grand Duchess is sleeping.”
“…!”
“She barely got any rest last night, so do not wake her.”
At this, Mela blushed slightly and exchanged glances with the other maids, who also seemed to be suppressing knowing smiles.
“Yes, Your Highness. We’ll be sure to let her rest,” they replied, their voices laced with unmistakable amusement.
With that, the maids turned and left.
Ashid ran a rough hand through his hair, picking up his pace once more toward the main building. He despised making such misleading statements, but it was far preferable to facing Daniela again with his tangled emotions.
A couple of hours had passed since Ashid had left Daniela behind in the bedroom.
Having drifted off again in her frustration, her hair a tangled mess, Daniela was finally roused by the knocks of Mela and the other servants.
They looked at her with barely concealed excitement.
“Did you sleep well, Madam?”
“No. I barely got any sleep,” Daniela croaked in a hoarse voice.
After dealing with Ashid’s sleep-talking all night and ending up in his arms, she didn’t feel like she had gotten any rest at all.
Noting Daniela’s sour mood, Mela and the maids quickly exchanged glances. They seemed to assume that something had happened last night, their knowing smiles deepening.
“Oh dear, you must be exhausted. A warm bath would be the best remedy. Come now, Madam, let’s get you up!”
Urging her along, they led Daniela to the prepared bath.
As she soaked in the warm, fragrant water and felt the gentle touch of the maids washing her hair, Daniela finally began to relax, letting go of some of her fatigue and irritation.
After her bath, she dried her hair and changed into a new dress—an elegant ivory gown adorned with white and yellow daisy embroidery on the bodice, sleeves, and hem.
Once she was fully dressed, Daniela turned to Mela.
“Mela, where is my office again?”
“It’s on the upper floor, all the way to the left. The door has a lily-of-the-valley emblem—the symbol of Grand Duchess Alberic.”
“I’ll be there all morning, so bring Gray to me as soon as he arrives.”
“Yes, Madam.”
“Oh, and prepare a carriage for this afternoon.”
“…Are you planning to go out right away?”
Mela asked in surprise.
“Yes. I need to visit my family home.”
Daniela planned to thoroughly search the mansion on her own for any trace of the correspondence between the Duke of Enchanto and the Empress—the very thing Ashid was looking for.
Her expression hardened with determination.
After a simple breakfast brought to her room, Daniela headed straight for the Grand Duchess’s office.
As Mela had described, the door had a silver lily-of-the-valley emblem on the handle.
Inside, the office was both magnificent and elegant. A massive three-meter-long desk sat beneath enormous windows that flooded the room with sunlight. There were tall-backed chairs, plush sofas for guests, cabinets filled with exotic decorations, shelves lined with hundreds of books, and a wall covered in breathtaking landscape paintings.
After taking a quick glance around, Daniela sat at the desk.
As she sketched something on parchment, a brief knock sounded, and Gray entered the room.
When she gestured toward the guest sofa, Gray took a seat and said, “It’s about time you shared your business plans with me, Grand Duchess.”
A meaningful smile played on Daniela’s lips as she replied, “There are two major plans.”
“Oh? Two, you say?”
“Yes. First, I plan to create and sell accessories for noble ladies during the social season. Here, take a look at this.”
She handed Gray the parchment she had been sketching on. It featured a delicate and intricately designed butterfly-shaped hairpin, wings spread wide.
Gray let out a quiet exclamation of admiration.
“This is a beautiful hairpin. I had no idea you had such talent.”
“…Oh, it’s nothing.”
Daniela deflected the praise with embarrassment. She had merely copied an illustration from the original novel.
Gray chuckled but soon adopted a more serious expression.
“However, accessories aren’t like necessities or consumables. Once purchased, they last a long time, making it difficult to generate steady income.”
“I know. That’s why I mentioned ‘two’ ideas.”
“Ah, right. What’s the second plan?”
“I’m going to establish an opera troupe.”
“…An opera troupe?”
Gray’s face twisted in skepticism.
Expecting this reaction, Daniela grinned.
“Yes. But my opera troupe will be vastly different from the existing ones.”
“In what way?”
“Instead of religious dramas or historical plays, we’ll perform popular melodramas and adapt the poems of wandering minstrels into operas.”
Her eyes gleamed with intrigue as she revealed her plan.
