Episode 3
“Let’s go, then.”
The Count climbed into the carriage first, and Rayana headed for the baggage cart used by the servants.
But then the Count called out to her.
“Ride with me today. If we go separately, the Duke might find it strange.”
Rayana nodded and stepped into the Count’s carriage.
It was her first time in the Count’s carriage. It was far more comfortable and cushioned than the baggage cart.
As she looked around inside the carriage, she caught the Count’s glare and quickly lowered her head.
As the carriage rattled its way toward the temple, it began to shake more violently. The rugged mountain road was to blame.
‘This doesn’t look like the temple we usually go to.’
Rayana peeked out the window. The scenery was quite different from the usual weekend visits to the temple.
Thick trees blocked out the sunlight, and the mountain road was rough and deserted.
She silently watched the Count’s pendant sway from side to side in front of her seat.
“We’re going to the Vedant Temple.”
The Count had noticed Rayana’s curiosity and added an explanation.
“The Duke wanted the engagement ceremony to be held there.”
Wasn’t Vedant Temple too secluded for an engagement ceremony?
It was a historically significant temple where the first emperor had once performed rites, but it hadn’t been in use for a long time and was only being maintained.
To hold an engagement in a place where it was a wonder the building still stood…
Rayana was puzzled by the Duke’s intentions, but the answer came surprisingly easily.
‘So it’s just a formality.’
An engagement ceremony was essentially a preliminary procedure before marriage—an essential ritual among nobles.
The fact that such an important custom was being rushed through implied that, for whatever reason, the Duke needed this superficial engagement badly.
Rayana responded with a quiet nod in place of an answer.
The carriage fell silent again.
Then, the Count’s gaze casually dropped to Rayana’s feet.
Her worn-out leather shoes, hidden under the dress until now, unfortunately caught his eye.
His expression instantly twisted in rage.
“You—if you don’t have shoes, then say so! What’s the meaning of showing up in something like that? Are you rebelling because you don’t like the engagement? What do you think the Duke will think of me if he sees you in those? That I’m some trash who mistreats his adopted daughter?”
“I’m sorry, Count. I didn’t have any suitable shoes to wear. I thought it would be fine since the dress would cover them. I was short-sighted.”
The Count’s fury slowly subsided at Rayana’s humble posture.
“Hmph, as if the Duke would bother looking at your feet.”
His mocking words cut into Rayana’s heart.
She fidgeted with her fingers and glanced at the Count, but he didn’t seem to notice.
He was clearly on edge, nervous about meeting the Duke.
Rayana tensed up too, shoulders stiff, and her throat grew increasingly dry.
Upon entering the Vedant Temple, it wasn’t the towering statue of the god that caught the eye first—it was the man standing with a child in his arms.
The Duke.
Only then did Rayana understand why the Count had been so nervous.
The man, with his deep-set eyes and sharp features, looked stern and cold, but his red eyes seemed hollow and worn.
Rumor had it that his physical abilities exceeded the limits of a human being, but to Rayana, he looked like someone simply exhausted by life.
She entered the temple with her hand held tightly by the Count.
Then the ceremony began.
A priest officiated, giving a short blessing and having them exchange vows.
That was it.
As the surprisingly short ceremony drew to a close, Rayana kept stealing glances at the Duke and the child in his arms.
‘Isabelle was right—it’s just a tiny baby.’
The infant, cradled in the Duke’s arm, breathed softly and didn’t stir once throughout the ceremony.
Maybe it was the contrast with the Duke’s large frame, but the baby looked especially small—fragile and delicate.
Rayana couldn’t take her eyes off the child.
Suddenly, the baby slowly opened its eyes.
Long lashes lifted, revealing blue irises beneath.
But they weren’t just any blue—they sparkled as if stars had been embedded in them, like gemstones.
‘My goodness… So beautiful.’
Rayana stared, entranced.
“…Ana… Ray… Rayana!”
The Count’s angry voice finally snapped her out of her trance.
“Where is your mind wandering during the ceremony!”
The Count fidgeted nervously, worried that she had offended the Duke.
Rayana instinctively followed his gaze and looked up at the Duke.
The Duke, meeting her eyes, said flatly:
“Theodore.”
Was that his name?
As Rayana froze in surprise, the Duke added nonchalantly,
“That’s the name of my child.”
He pulled the baby a little closer into his arms.
The gesture was careful and gentle, radiating affection. Rayana blinked in surprise.
“I am Rayana Chester. Pleased to meet you.”
“Is that enough formalities?”
The Duke looked to the priest. When the priest nodded, the Duke immediately turned away.
“That’s enough of a ceremony. I’ve got work to attend to.”
It had ended as quickly as it began.
She hadn’t expected much, but her first engagement ceremony felt terribly bleak—rushed through with no guests in attendance.
Still, Rayana’s heart was pounding.
‘Are all babies that beautiful? I wish I could see him again.’
On the way back to the mansion, Rayana couldn’t stop thinking about the baby with the gem-like blue eyes and soft, pale cheeks.
Seven Years Later
Rayana considered herself lucky.
She had been destined to go to war in Isabel’s place once she became an adult—but the war ended just before that.
Thanks to the Duke’s participation, the tide of battle had shifted quickly.
Thanks to that, Rayana was now comfortably working as a knight in the capital.
After washing up for the morning and returning to her room, she found a familiar box on her bed.
She blinked at it.
“It must be my birthday soon.”
She murmured to herself.
Though she often forgot her own birthday, the Duke of Valencia had never once missed it in the past seven years.
Even when he was at war, he still managed to send her a birthday gift.
When she opened the box, she found a pair of elegant shoes.
‘Shoes again.’
A faint flush crept over Rayana’s ears.
It had started on that day, seven years ago.
Ever since their engagement, each year on her birthday, the Duke had sent her a pair of shoes.
How did he even notice?
Surely her shoes were hidden beneath the dress.
Could someone with extraordinary physical abilities see even what wasn’t visible?
Remembering the ragged leather shoes she had worn back then, Rayana scratched her cheek awkwardly.
She glanced at the decorative row of shoes along the wall. Somehow, despite her yearly growth, each pair always fit perfectly.
Including today’s gift, that made seven pairs in total. She never wore them—they simply accumulated.
Whatever the reason for the gifts, it felt like the Duke was soothing the hurt she had felt when scolded for wearing those old shoes.
Her own family had never cared for her that way, but this man—who wasn’t even related to her—did.
As she brushed dust off one of the shoes with her fingertips, Rayana fell deep into thought.
‘I wonder if that child’s grown well.’
Though she had wished to see him often, she hadn’t seen Theodore once in all that time.
Sometimes it felt like she had dreamed the whole thing—being engaged to a baby.
But every year, when she received one of these beautifully wrapped gifts, she was reminded that it was real.
Theodore Valencia. The Duke’s son, and her young fiancé.
It was laughable to call someone she hadn’t seen in seven years her fiancé, but still—
‘He must be running and jumping around now, right? If he’s like the Duke, he’s probably good with a sword. And if he’s grown up just like that, he must be handsome too.’
Every year on her birthday, when she received another pair of shoes, she couldn’t help but think of that baby with jewel-like blue eyes.
He must’ve grown so much by now that she wouldn’t recognize him if they passed on the street.
Still, she felt certain—if she saw those eyes again, she would know it was him.
‘I really wonder how he’s grown up.’
Rayana placed the new shoes on the windowsill and left her room.
Thinking about the Duke had made time fly—it was already time to report to the knights.
