Chapter 23
Since I was writing about something I’d personally experienced, it didn’t take long to finish the article.
Kalima’s face turned bright red as she read my draft.
“Wow, Madam, you’re a genius! How can it be this captivating? Just from this, Serulian Luke sounds like the greatest romantic of the century! You didn’t even add a single lie, so how did it end up sounding like this?”
“Aaaah! Don’t read that in front of the person involved!”
I truly hadn’t written a single false word. The story went that the Duke not only took a commoner wife, but even gifted her the yellow sapphire the previous Duke had once said he should give to the woman he wished to marry—and that he’d even gone to pick her up personally when asked, without refusing.
‘And the Duchess of Luke left early, saying she was tired.’
I hadn’t forgotten to include that unflattering detail either. It was only a line or two, but those little details pile up, so that when something negative eventually happens, people find it believable instead of suspicious.
That’s the power of the pen.
Still, having it read aloud right in front of me was another matter.
“Just read it later in the paper, not in front of me.”
“This is a God-given talent! You deserve praise!”
As Kalima and I bickered, Serulian tapped the door lightly with his knuckles.
“Are you two done yet?”
“Just about!”
I quickly slipped the draft into an envelope.
Then I changed into a light dress, braided my hair thickly down my back, and hurried through a simple touch of makeup before stepping outside. Serulian, as always, naturally held out his hand.
“Shall we go?”
No matter how many times this happened, I never got used to his polite escorting. Blushing, I placed my hand in his palm—at which Kalima’s eyes widened.
“Wait, Commander, is it really okay for you to go on a date like this? I heard there was a Lure sighting in District 14 yesterday…”
I looked at him curiously too. Serulian replied evenly,
“His Excellency handled it yesterday.”
It sounded like nothing, but Kalima reacted as if the heavens had opened.
“His Excellency?! He hasn’t taken the field in ages! Oh, he must’ve been absolutely breathtaking! I wish I’d been there to see it!”
What was that supposed to mean? While I blinked in confusion, Kalima suddenly grabbed my hand, cheeks flushed scarlet with excitement.
“The Duke fighting a Lure is the most magnificent thing in the world! Madam, if you saw it, you’d be just as thrilled as I am!”
Too bad any Lure-related scenes were strictly off-limits for coverage—I couldn’t see them even if I wanted to.
I want to, though!
Kalima was shaking my hand so wildly that my whole head buzzed. Still, since she was in such a talkative mood, I decided to press my luck.
“So the Duke must be quite a strong Lure hunter, then? He’s getting on in years, so I thought fighting might be difficult for him. I don’t even know exactly what kind of monster a Lure is.”
Lure—something I’d heard about but never clearly understood. If it looked like a wolf, maybe it attacked with fangs or something?
Kalima puffed up proudly.
“Of course! Lures are parasites that live off humans. Only certain people can fight them—cold, heartless people with no trace of pity or mercy. Like the Commander!”
Parasites that live off humans.
I etched the phrase into my mind, waiting for her to say more—until Serulian cut in.
“That’s enough.”
He gently pulled me closer to his side, as if to shield me from hearing more.
But I was far more interested in Kalima’s words.
“Really? Only special people can fight them?” I asked.
“Of course! That’s how the Commander became the Duke’s heir!”
“Enough!”
Just as her story was getting good, Serulian’s sharp voice filled the room.
Kalima clammed up like a scolded child, and I flinched too.
Serulian gave me a slightly awkward look before speaking softly.
“…I’d prefer it if you didn’t take an interest in the Lure.”
He’d said that before—best not to even mention them.
Why do they go to such lengths to keep it secret?
Maybe just being curious about them made them come for you, like the mischievous spirits in old fairy tales.
But I have a right to know.
I had to know more about the monster that devoured my mother.
Ugh, awkward.
After talking about Lures and getting into the carriage, the air inside was unbearably heavy.
Still, I learned something.
They parasitize humans, and only certain people can fight them.
I’d always thought you just trained to become a Lure hunter.
But Kalima said Serulian became Duke because of it.
So there’s something special about it—something you’re born with.
As I sat lost in thought, my cheek prickled under Serulian’s gaze.
I startled.
“W-What?”
Had he caught me thinking about Lures again? But then he asked out of nowhere,
“Edel, do you believe in God?”
“No, I’m an atheist.”
I replied immediately. My blunt answer startled Kalima more than it did him. She began sweating nervously.
“D-Don’t you ever think there’s such a thing as destiny? Like… even if things are tangled, people who are meant to meet will always find each other. You know, like you and the Commander!”
So Kalima was a romantic, huh?
But I had firm beliefs about this.
“That’s just coincidence. Big coincidences and small coincidences.”
“Oh, Madam! You should call that fate!” Kalima groaned dramatically.
While she huffed, Serulian quietly praised me.
“You’re quite decisive.”
“Ahem. I am rather decisive. Otherwise, I couldn’t have survived alone all these years.”
I grinned smugly. Then, in a cheerful tone, I asked him,
“But why ask that all of a sudden?”
“I was wondering whether we should hold the wedding in a church.”
“I told you, I’m fine keeping it simple.”
He looked like the last person who’d bring up God, so why the sudden talk of churches?
Kalima rolled her eyes.
“Honestly. Why bring up God with that handsome face of yours? You could’ve just said, ‘We’ll hold it in a church,’ without all that!”
Apparently, she’d expected the question to lead into a romantic confession like “I felt destiny when I met you.”
Thanks to that misunderstanding, the tension in the carriage lightened considerably.
I laughed.
“So today we’re just picking out the wedding dress?”
Serulian had said there were two things on today’s agenda: deliver my article to the newspaper, then visit the tailor.
If it’s just one dress, this’ll be over quickly.
Or so I thought—until Serulian listed, in his usual dry tone:
“After choosing the dress, we must select matching jewelry, discuss guest invitations, and…”
“Ugh, that suddenly sounds exhausting.”
So many things to do.
Kalima cheered me on.
“You can do it! You only get married once!”
“…Ha-ha.”
I glanced at Serulian, silently begging him to say something, and he inclined his head slightly.
“I’ll do my best to make it the best day of your life.”
Why did he have to look that handsome saying it? Even though I knew he didn’t mean it romantically, I still felt my heart skip.
“…Now I understand Kalima’s point of view.”
Before long, the carriage arrived at the dressmaker’s. Kalima stayed outside to stand guard.
“Oh my, the Young Duke and his fiancée are here!”
Serulian got straight to the point.
“His Excellency has ordered the wedding to be prepared as quickly as possible.”
“Of course! For the Duke’s family, we’ll work day and night if needed. Let’s start with the design!”
Neither the fact that we hadn’t chosen a design nor the rush order seemed strange to anyone here.
Soon my eyes were spinning as we went through sketches. Choosing a design took ages; deciding on materials and colors took even longer.
At last, we settled on a dress wrapped in lace from the neck to the wrists—elegant and vintage in style.
The madame waved the design sheet passionately.
“We’ll make the train and veil extremely long—so long it’ll be reported in the weekly papers! That’s how you make it the wedding of the century!”
Since when did my wedding become the wedding of the century?
Not long ago, we didn’t even know if the engagement papers would be approved!
Still… it’s beautiful. Stunningly so.
Even from the sketch, I could tell it would be breathtaking.
The problem was—
“…Can you even finish this in time?”
The fancier the design, the longer it takes to make!
And those sparkly marks on the hem—are those gemstones? Each of those will have to be hand-sewn!
It looked like a design that would take an army of seamstresses months to finish.
When I looked worried, the madame thumped her chest proudly.
“It’s the Duke of Luke’s wedding—of course we’ll make it happen!”
“…I’m afraid you’ll have to hold that thought.”
A new voice cut sharply into our conversation.
Startled, the madame and I turned our heads.
A woman with golden hair elegantly pinned up and wearing a graceful cream-colored dress entered the boutique.
It was none other than the Duchess of Luke.
Her smooth brow furrowed slightly in polite displeasure. The one who spoke harshly, however, was the woman standing like her shadow beside her—Baroness Sage.
“No matter how intimidating you find your mother-in-law, do you really think it’s proper to proceed with a wedding without so much as a word of notice?”
