Chapter 48
After closely observing Christina for several days—
“Teena.”
“Yes, Father!”
Duke Raymond was now utterly convinced, without a shred of doubt, that Christina was hiding something from him.
Even now, just as he entered, Christina, who had been standing in the first-floor lobby, quickly tried to conceal whatever she was holding behind her back as soon as she saw him.
As usual, Duke Raymond had rushed down to the first floor the moment he awoke and flung open the front door himself.
It was his long-standing habit to open the door every morning and receive the day’s newspaper directly from a servant at that very spot.
This was all because of a prophecy he had once heard long ago from a wandering astrologer.
The astrologer had said that deep darkness loomed over the duke’s fate, and that the only way to repel it was to actively embrace the morning sun that pierced through the darkness.
It was something spoken by a man too unreliable to believe in the first place, but the duke had thought there was no harm in being cautious.
“I’ve been very disappointed in you lately, my daughter.”
“Disappointed? In me?”
“Yes.”
“Did I… do something wrong to you, Father?”
That prophecy had also become a reason why he felt it had been good to have a daughter. Her golden hair, glowing in the morning sunlight streaming in through the open door, was radiant in itself.
And the way her eyes immediately welled up with tears at a single word from him—
She was a daughter born out of necessity, and if she failed to serve that purpose, he would have discarded her without hesitation. But moments like this, at least, were closer to light than to darkness.
If only this light could completely drive away the darkness that was Noah, he would have cherished her forever.
“What are you hiding behind your back?”
That such a daughter was keeping secrets from him—that was utterly intolerable.
Though the duke’s voice remained calm, the servants passing through the lobby slowed their steps and quickly disappeared to their assigned places.
They knew well how cruel their master could become while wearing a smile.
“Father…”
But Christina trembled for another reason.
Her indifferent mother and brothers—she feared most of all that the only one who showed her affection, her father, might withdraw it from her.
“I asked you what it is. Are you still trying to hide it?”
“Well…”
Tears brimmed in both her eyes as Christina reluctantly extended her hands toward the duke.
“And what is this?”
“It’s leftover meat from last night’s dinner.”
So it was nothing grand—just pieces of roast pork wrapped in several layers of paper.
“I’m sorry. I know you dislike cats… but there’s one that comes all the way to my room, so I…”
Her excuse was so trivial that Duke Raymond grew even angrier. It was as though she had made him waste thought and energy on something utterly unworthy of his attention.
“Is that cat in your room right now?”
“…Yes.”
“Then it must be caught and killed.”
“Father!”
His fury now turned squarely upon the cat she had been tending.
Cats! Always yowling noisily at night, digging up the carefully tended garden and defiling it.
How that mad emperor could dote on such creatures was beyond comprehension.
Grabbing not the newspaper but a long decorative sword from the lobby, the duke started up the stairs. Christina screamed and chased after him.
“Father! I was wrong! I’ll never do it again! Please, Father!”
Her desperate voice was as if she herself were the one about to be killed, not the cat.
Though he aimed to vent his anger on the wretched creature, the truth was Duke Raymond was enraged for another reason.
Melissa would not have spoken without cause, yet he could not find even the faintest clue connected to her words.
And now, seeing Christina wail so piteously over a single cat, while knowing she was deceiving him so perfectly—that was what truly unsettled his composure.
“Father!”
“It’s dangerous. Stand aside.”
“Father, please! It was my fault! Forgive me, yes?”
No matter how many times Christina clung to him sobbing, Duke Raymond threw her off and at last reached her room.
But when he opened the door, it was not an unknown cat that awaited inside—
“It is remarkably noisy in this household from the early morning.”
It was Count Caliphon—uninvited, unannounced.
Until the annex palace was fully restored, Roze decided she would continue staying in Noah’s chamber.
Still, it seemed a waste to leave this lovely rear garden unused.
—Once the workers leave, I’ll play here with Christina.
Though Noah had seemed displeased when she said she wanted to share the space with Christina, he still gave his permission.
The workers assigned to the annex would come after Noah returned from lunch, so for several days, the three of them had been enjoying the newly arranged garden together.
But today—
“The young lady sent word she cannot come due to some matter.”
Out of nowhere, word arrived that Christina would not be coming.
‘But things were going so well… why?’
Lately, even without her prompting, conversations between Noah and Christina had grown more natural, and they had seemed closer. Roze had been relieved.
‘Could this be connected to the main storyline…?’
It worried her.
Oliver had told her yesterday that Aria had quit her job and left. That only added to her unease.
Perhaps it would have been better to keep her where Roze could monitor her.
Another event had occurred that wasn’t in the original story. Knowing the original plot was no longer a guarantee of safety.
“What’s going on…? Well, all right.”
Seated in the small marble gazebo tucked into the forest path’s end of the garden, Roze gave this reply to Jonathan, then turned back to the book resting on the table.
Her plan had been to talk with Christina about beastmen—or at least pretend to—while secretly asking her to read the difficult text aloud.
Roze could recognize the letters, but many words and complex sentences baffled her.
As Jonathan had said, she knew absolutely nothing about beastmen. With unexpected changes arising, she wanted at least to learn more about her own identity.
‘Guess I’ll have to learn the language properly.’
The thought struck her. It wasn’t just about understanding this one book.
If she was to survive outside on her own someday, not knowing how to read properly would be a serious obstacle.
“Well then, I’ll take my leave.”
At that moment, Jonathan came into view. Top of his class at the Imperial Academy, first upon both entrance and graduation. Not the warmest personality—but could she find a better resource?
She could have asked Noah, but the idea of revealing her poor literacy to him was embarrassing.
“Jonathan, are you busy?”
Determined to learn from him, Roze widened her eyes as prettily and innocently as she could.
“Please stop looking at me like that. If you have something to say, say it.”
The tactic didn’t work at all; his curt reply came immediately.
Jonathan was a man without a single crack in his armor.
Still, even knowing her wide, pretty eyes had no effect on him, Roze kept them open that way—determined not to give him any easy excuse to refuse.
“I want you to teach me how to read.”
“Read?”
“I mean, I recognize the letters, but when I try to read a book, it’s hard and there’s so much I don’t understand.”
But then, as she explained—
“So you do recognize them, somewhat.”
His words stung in a way that made Roze want to abandon the whole thing on the spot.
‘Is that a compliment or an insult? If you’re going to insult me, do it properly so I can bite your head off!’
Biting back her irritation, she forced her lips into a smile again.
Looking more carefully, she realized Jonathan hadn’t spoken out of malice. It seemed he was simply surprised.
Even this expressionless man did show slight changes—his eyes widening just a fraction was, for him, an emotional shift.
‘Well, he’s the type who would bluntly state if something was bad—he’s not one to beat around the bush with sarcasm.’
Relieved by that, she pressed on.
“Noah… ah, I mean, His Majesty, likes books, so I picked up a bit from watching him!”
“Is that even possible?”
His sharpness was still irritating, but—
“Anyway! You’ll teach me, right?”
Leaning forward, resting both elbows on the table and cupping her cheeks, Roze gave her most playful smile.
“Teaching you would require quite a lot of time. Why not ask His Majesty instead?”
If it had been Noah, his eyes would have flickered wildly, and he would have covered it with a cough, trying to seem dignified. But Jonathan, as expected, didn’t so much as flinch.
Answering in the same flat voice, he simply fell silent, waiting for Roze’s next words.
‘What kind of block of wood is this guy!’
Internally screaming, Roze recalled the original novel.
‘Well… maybe I don’t have a choice, do I?’
