Chapter 4
The Duke’s eyes narrowed slightly.
“And fifth, this is not a love match for either of us. The ducal estate needs the techniques, and the Saint-Clair family needs money. Once we have both gotten what we want, we go our separate ways. Who knows, Your Grace might even be the one to fall in love first and come begging me for a divorce.”
Duke Karsiten stared at Adelaïde, visibly caught off guard. This young countess had seized control of the contract negotiations through sheer audacity.
“…Very well. Have the contract rewritten. Exactly as you wish.”
Yes!
Adelaïde celebrated inwardly. By any measure, this was a complete victory for Yoo Eun-jae.
Inside the carriage back to the capital, the Duke sat in silence and stared out the window. The scenery passed in a blur, but his thoughts stayed fixed on the young countess.
“Whatever you discussed in there, it has left you looking rather grim.”
Marcus, the Duke’s administrator and acting Knight Commander, asked with an easy smile.
“Adelaïde Saint-Clair.”
“What about the young lady?”
“She is nothing like the rumours. I expected a simple noblewoman. She was full of surprises.”
“Was her appearance not what you expected?”
“That is not what I mean.”
“A difficult personality, then?”
“She is sharp.”
“Is that not a good thing? She will have to manage the ducal household. Better sharp than foolish.”
“Sharp, yes. But too sharp.”
“How do you mean?”
“There is something about her eyes.”
“Her eyes? What about them? Do not tell me they were like yours, Your Grace.”
“What?”
“Well, Lumengria only needs one person who can kill with a glare, and that is you. If there were two of you, phew.”
“Close your mouth.”
Silence settled briefly.
“She told me to invest.”
“I beg your pardon?”
“She said she would make the money grow.”
“Good heavens. Is she a swindler, this young lady?”
“And furthermore…”
The Duke’s gaze darkened. Marcus tensed and swallowed quietly.
“…She wants a divorce.”
“I beg your pardon?”
Marcus looked as though his eyes might leave his head entirely.
“You are not even married yet.”
The Duke did not answer, already lost in another thought.
She is certainly nothing like the rumours. They said she was a frail noblewoman, incapable of rebuilding her family. What part of her is frail.
“That young lady. She never once looked away from me. Far from afraid, her eyes were full of confidence.”
“What did you say?”
Marcus was genuinely stunned.
“To think someone like that exists in Lumengria! Your Grace, you had better hold on to her. It is a match made in heaven.”
“Be quiet and drive.”
A man with silver-grey hair stood at a window, framed by the red light of the setting sun. Kain Rosenfield, Royal Advisor and head of the Rosenfield Trading Company, listened to a servant’s report with his back to the room.
“And?”
His voice was low and unhurried.
“Continue.”
“It has been two weeks since she collapsed.”
“Is she still breathing?”
“I am quite certain I ordered her killed.”
“Yes, that is correct.”
Kain set down the jewel he had been holding up to the light.
“I, I am sorry. I was certain it would be instant…”
The servant’s voice trembled. He stood behind Kain, not daring to lift his head. The air in the room had turned suffocating.
“Come here.”
Kain beckoned. A serene smile still rested on his lips.
“Do you know why I am so fond of jewels?”
He lifted a wine glass from the desk. The red liquid caught the light from the window. The servant shook his head slowly.
“When a perfectly angled facet meets the light…”
The glass rotated at Kain’s fingertips.
“The beauty of that moment is incomparable.”
Kain’s hand moved above the servant’s head. The glass came down and shattered, spattering red across the servant’s face.
“I believe I told you I do not tolerate mistakes.”
Every trace of warmth had left his voice. His amber eyes gleamed like a predator’s.
“You have wasted my time.”
He wiped his hands on a handkerchief, his movements unhurried and precise even now.
“If you fail again…”
His gaze shifted to the broken shards on the floor. The servant went pale.
“P-please, one more chance…”
“Get out.”
The servant scrambled away, nearly on his hands and knees. Kain turned back to the window. He picked up the jewel and tossed it outside.
“Fools.”
It fell into the fountain below with a soft splash and disappeared beneath the surface. He continued to gaze out at the window, still stained red by the dying sun.
“Stop the contract.”
“Yes, sir!”
A figure bowed from within the shadows and vanished.
Before the ink on the contract had even dried, the Duke paid off the Saint-Clair family’s debt in full. A few days later, he sent an additional and enormous sum as the first investment toward rebuilding the family.
“Do not tell me he sent an entire year’s worth at once?”
Her voice wavered at the figure in front of her.
“No, my lady. His Grace said this amount will be sent every month going forward. Is it not sufficient?”
“…Of course it is.”
The butler had mentioned this was enough to cover the whole of Solaris’s annual budget. Adelaïde concluded the Duke was more than ordinarily wealthy.
“Well, at least he keeps his word.”
Her eyes curved with quiet satisfaction as she looked over the numbers. The expression did not last long.
“My lady, His Grace requests that you come to the capital residence first.”
“But we have not even had the engagement ceremony yet,” Adelaïde replied.
“He said you would understand if I mentioned it concerns the crystal.”
Only then did Adelaïde understand what the Duke wanted.
I did boast that I would restore it and find the culprit. I have no choice.
“I understand. When would be a suitable time to depart?”
“His Grace said the sooner the better.”
“He is remarkably impatient.”
The capital. I was relieved to be in a remote territory, and now I have to go to the capital without knowing a thing about it.
Contrary to her composed expression, Adelaïde’s mind was running in circles.
“If it suits you, my lady, we can depart in two days.”
“Two days?”
“Yes. I am to escort you personally.”
“This is far too sudden. You have come a long way, so please rest first. Edward!”
“Yes, my lady.”
“Please show him to a room and see that he is fed.”
“Understood.”
Adelaïde spoke with deliberate authority. The Duke’s envoy could not argue, and followed the butler out while visibly sweating. Through this and similar manoeuvres, Adelaïde managed to push the departure back by a full week. Now, at last, she had run out of excuses.
“My lady, are you certain you will be all right?”
“Do not worry, Mabel.”
A large carriage unlike anything she had seen before stood in front of the residence, a dark grey coach bearing the Karsiten ducal crest. Its size was imposing, and faint silver patterns along its body gave it a quietly intimidating air.
“Still, His Grace is being unreasonable. Asking you to come alone, before the engagement ceremony. The nobles will gossip.”
“Let them gossip. What others think is not my concern. Thanks to the Duke, you, Edward, and everyone else can stay here together. I am genuinely grateful for that.”
And he sent a great deal of money besides.
Mabel wiped her eyes and straightened Adelaïde’s travelling coat.
“I do not know when our lady became so brave. Having to settle into a strange place all by yourself, and I cannot even go with you.”
“There will be plenty of people at the ducal estate. Besides, he is calling me early because of the contract, so I should return soon. I will be back before you know it, and then we will prepare for the engagement ceremony together.”
“Yes, my lady. To think the day has come when I send my lady off to be married, this Mabel is truly…”
“Stop crying, Mabel.”
Edward approached, his lips pressed into a firm line.
“My lady, the capital is a complicated place. Above all else, do not stray from the Duke’s protection.”
“I will not. I am counting on you to look after the estate, Edward.”
A tightness rose in Adelaïde’s throat.
This had been the home of the real Adelaïde, the body’s original owner, but it was Eun-jae’s home now too.
Clatter.
The carriage began to move. She waved out the window. As the residence shrank behind her, Adelaïde pressed her hands together in her lap and steadied herself.
“It is all right. I can do this.”
After a full day of travel, the carriage gradually slowed. The scenery outside had transformed entirely. Dirt roads had given way to smooth cobblestones, and in place of mountains and open fields, grand buildings now spread out in every direction.
“Wow.”
A soft gasp escaped Adelaïde.
“So this is the capital.”
The carriage passed through a bustling square and turned onto Starbridge, a wide street lined with high-end shops. Young noblewomen in brilliant dresses drifted along the pavements.
“Ha. Ha. Hah.”
“Solaris was the absolute countryside.”
A faint, hollow laugh left her lips.
Adelaïde’s eyes moved ceaselessly, taking in everything. It was a world entirely unlike Korea, unfamiliar and yet thrilling.
Seoul felt overwhelming and frightening at first, too. This is not so different.
The carriage turned into Crystalcourt, the heart of the noble district. Grand residences bearing silver crests lined both sides of the avenue, each with its own colours and heraldry.
“These houses… they are all castles.”
Eun-jae, who had grown up surrounded by Seoul’s towers of apartment blocks, felt genuinely small standing before the vast mansion and immaculate gardens ahead. At last, the Karsiten Ducal Estate came into view, positioned just below the royal palace.
“Why is the main gate so enormous?”
The carriage passed through and drew to a stop before the entrance.
“My lady, we have arrived.”
Adelaïde smoothed her dress and descended slowly from the carriage.
This is supposed to be a house.
Before her stood what looked, by any reasonable measure, like a small castle.
