CHAPTER 01……………………………………………..
“With that body, April really can’t appear in front of people, can she?”
At Duke Alexis’s words, all the eyes at the table turned toward April.
Lian and Barak, the head butler, and even the household staff who had been putting down their utensils—all of them.
The only one who didn’t look at April was Duke Alexis himself.
Even I couldn’t help but glance at April while eating.
Barak kept his mouth shut, unable to defend April under these circumstances.
He stared blankly at April’s hands on the table, clenched into small fists.
I was the one who made her return to the ducal mansion, but there was a reason Barak had insisted she stay at the villa.
In the end, she ignored orders, stormed into the mansion, and ended up in nothing but trouble.
“Since April has understood the situation…”
I forced back a wry smile that threatened to escape.
“Until April recovers, it will be Irina.”
The Duke quietly called my name.
I set down my utensils and lifted my head. Lian, April, and eyes the same gray-blue as mine turned toward me.
Then I noticed Barak’s fiery sunset-colored eyes, boiling with anger at the Duke’s decision.
“Very well. As before, you will appear in front of everyone.”
“…Yes, Father.”
I hated saying “Father,” but there was no avoiding it.
If I wanted to make April and that hound feel miserable, calling him “Father” was the perfect way.
I smiled faintly at Duke Alexis, who looked both surprised and pleased.
Yes, the higher the mood, the greater the fall.
Everyone in the mansion wore a variety of expressions.
April and Barak were angry; the Duke was trying to hide his delight; the head butler and staff were slightly bewildered.
Unlike when I first entered the mansion, Lian’s eyes, complex and full of concern, now only disgusted me.
I hid my true feelings and painted a smile on my face—the same smile the family had worn when they were happy together.
“We’ve arrived.”
The carriage door opened gently, revealing the ducal family’s fountain, where the water never seemed to dry.
Seeing the swan statue at the top of the fountain made me realize I had truly returned to the Rize Ducal Household.
Lian got out first and, like escorting any noble young lady, naturally extended his hand to me.
I took his hand and stepped down from the carriage. The staff were lined up.
Among them, a few familiar faces caught my eye.
Cliff, who had followed the carriage we rode in, and the rest of the household staff had changed little in three years.
“Have you returned, young mistress…?”
The head maid’s deep brown eyes flickered in surprise when she saw me.
Kana, the head maid, was one of the few who could distinguish April from me, who looked exactly the same.
Even if other staff didn’t notice, the head maid would have immediately realized I was not the real April of the Rize Ducal Household.
“Young mistress.”
Unlike the head maid who said it a beat late, the head butler, as if already expecting my arrival, greeted Lian with his usual impassive expression.
“Father?”
“He’s waiting in his study.”
Meaning he was waiting for both me and Lian.
“But young mistress, just who exactly…”
The head maid hesitated, clearly wanting to ask about me.
“We shall see Father first.”
“Yes.”
“Let’s go, Irina…”
The name “Irina,” which had slipped naturally from Lian’s mouth over the past week, nearly escaped carelessly.
Following Lian, the mansion felt like a transformed version of the villa we had visited—a full 180 degrees different.
The hall, filled with luxurious decorations and artworks, reflected tastes unknown to me.
It was clear it wasn’t the taste of the family or the three men of the household.
Since the Duke and his sons hated clutter, this must be her taste. After all, decorating the house was the mistress’s role.
After the late Duchess died, April had naturally taken over the decorating.
Ignoring the whispers of unfamiliar staff who had noticed me, I climbed the stairs confidently and stood before Duke Alexis’s study.
“Father, it’s me.”
Lian lightly knocked on the mahogany door, then cautiously opened it.
Without a single rusty sound, the door swung open, revealing the current head of the Rize Ducal Household, Alexis Hill Rize.
“On your nineteenth birthday, the adoption will be officially finalized.”
He was the one who had once been my father and allowed me to dream endlessly sweet dreams.
Unlike the memory of him working at his desk, he now sat in a rocking chair, resting—a rare sight, just as unusual as a nervous Lian.
Unlike the hall, the study reflected the Duke’s taste: antique, simple, and elegant.
Two swords crossed in an X on the wall, an unlit fireplace, and bookshelves lining the walls.
There wasn’t a single unnecessary ornament in the room.
“…Irina.”
The Duke’s gaze, sharp as a blade, locked onto me.
My silver-gray hair had grown slightly longer, and my gray-blue eyes retained their light.
At a glance, I seemed as cold and unchanged as ever, though my face looked slightly thinner than memory.
“It’s been a long time, Duke.”
“……”
“You summoned me.”
I pressed my emotions down and forced a smile.
I had no idea why he had sought me out in some remote countryside and brought me here.
Even in the countryside, the appearance of a high-ranking noble drew attention. Just thinking about the tedious week of neighbors prying into everything reminded me how exhausted I had been.
“It’s to treat you as a proper noblewoman again.”
Lian’s face popped vividly in my mind, expecting me to cheerfully comply.
It was absurd.
For the past eight years, I had lived not as Irina Devin but as “April Hill Rize.”
A family that had never kept a promise—why would they start now?
Yet, despite Alicia’s warnings, I had decided to return to the mansion, because I had been waiting for this day.
If I ever got a chance to strike at the heart of the Rize household, I would not miss it.
“Have you been well?”
It was obvious I hadn’t been. Why ask such a pointless question?
I realized once again how shameless the Duke was.
After letting my real father die because he didn’t keep a promise, he still had the nerve to summon me back to the mansion.
Was this common among the prominent, long-established nobles?
I almost sneered but held it back.
“I’ve managed.”
I couldn’t say I hadn’t, but saying I had would have offended my pride.
“And you, Duke, have you been well?”
I asked the same, but there was no clear answer from him.
It seemed to imply that the past time had been just as hard for him.
The long silence almost made me want to ask if he hadn’t been happy with his own daughter.
“…Yes.”
“Young master has spent the past week explaining everything to me.”
“……”
“That you were looking for me, and that you wish to compensate for my time.”
“Yes.”
The first answer came slowly; this second one came immediately, without hesitation.
“Irina.”
Being called softly and quietly by my own name felt strange.
I hadn’t truly had my own name for a long time. Hearing “Irina” felt almost like hearing someone else’s name.
“Yes, Duke.”
Following my vow never to call him “Father,” I diligently said “Duke,” and each time he wore a face reminiscent of Lian in the carriage—a look tinged with guilt.
“I have…”
The Duke moved his lips slowly, inhaled sharply, and the guilt on his face vanished as if he didn’t want to show emotion.
“A favor to ask.”
“Go ahead.”
I didn’t expect him to call me just to compensate me.
What kind of tremendous favor required so much hesitation?
“I want you to be my daughter once more.”
It felt as though someone had pressed the pause button on time.
The study was still, the person unmoving, the air in the room so silent that it was surreal.
“My daughter?”
His gray-blue eyes, fixed on me, quickly disappeared under his eyelids.
Without looking directly, he spoke.
“Just for one year, live here as April.”
No one was surprised by this statement.
“I know it’s impertinent, but…”
The Duke’s voice echoed slowly through the study, as if cold water had been poured over it.
“I beg you.”
“…If I were to accept that favor.”
The Duke, unable to look me in the eye, lifted his head.
“What will you do for me, Duke?”
For me, this was a very good opportunity.
