06.
I turned my creaking body to look back.
The Duke stood just a step away, his gaze fixed upon a framed portrait hanging on the wall.
“You rushed out so urgently earlier,” he remarked coolly. “Was it merely to come here and stare at this?”
“Ah, no… that is…”
When I failed to find an answer, the Duke let out a faint sigh and turned to ascend the stairs.
“I must give orders to have it removed tomorrow.”
“What? Why? Isn’t that person… someone precious?”
The Duke’s footsteps came to an abrupt halt. He didn’t turn fully, but the sideways glance he threw over his shoulder was chilling.
“Who told you that?”
“Oh, no… no one told me, exactly. It’s just…”
“Just? Do not presume to make judgments as you please.”
Leaving those icy words behind, the Duke continued up the stairs.
Lily, who had tucked herself deep into my pocket the moment the Duke appeared, showed no intention of coming out. Feeling a faint trembling against my side, I gave the pocket a gentle tap. A tiny head peeked out tentatively.
‘Is he gone?’
“I think so.”
‘He is a terrifying person…’
“Certainly.”
To be honest, I had been a little intimidated just now. But more than that, I was baffled.
‘He’s the one who adopted me—and it’s not like he did it because he actually likes me, right?’
Why did he have to be so cold to the child who was supposed to become his daughter?
Muttering under my breath, I made my way down the stairs. Fortunately, Mary was nowhere to be seen as I headed toward the kitchen.
The kitchen itself, however, presented a problem. I could hear signs of life behind the thick wooden doors. Why hadn’t it occurred to me that people would be working in the kitchen?
Just as I was hovering indecisively in front of the door, a kind voice called out from my right.
“Is something the matter, My Lady?”
“Pail!”
I couldn’t help but be thrilled to see Pail, the only person who treated me with genuine kindness. It’s human nature to be drawn to those who are nice to you, after all. The tension drained out of me instantly, my face softening into a look of relief.
Pail met my gaze with a small, gentle smile.
“Was your meal insufficient?”
“No, it’s not that. It’s just…”
“Squeak!”
As I struggled to explain, Lily suddenly popped out of my pocket.
“My Lady, what is…?”
“Why are you coming out now of all times!”
“Squeak, squeak!”
I tried to stuff Lily back into my pocket, but the tiny creature scrambled up my arm with all her might. Perching on my shoulder, she began to chirp loudly at Pail.
I stole a glance at Pail’s reaction; thankfully, he didn’t look displeased.
“Well, I opened the window earlier, and she must have come in from outside.”
“She is quite adorable. Judging by her size, she appears to be a kit.”
“Is it… not allowed to keep animals?”
“No, that should be fine. In fact, something much larger would be acceptable. A lion, for instance…”
“I have no intention of raising a lion.”
“I meant it only as a figure of speech.”
Pail knelt on one knee to meet my eyes. Sensing that Pail wasn’t a threat, Lily relaxed and chirped contentedly. Pail lightly scratched the top of Lily’s head with his fingertip before standing back up.
“So, what brings you here? Is it because of this little one?”
“Ah, yes! She seems hungry, so I wanted to give her something. Is there anything a ferret can eat?”
“I shall go inside and see what I can find.”
With that, Pail opened the kitchen door. The kitchen staff immediately bowed their heads in greeting the moment they saw him. A murmur of conversation followed, though I couldn’t catch the details.
‘He is a good person.’
“Right? I think Pail is the best person here.”
Aside from his stiff behavior in the dining room earlier, Pail was an angel compared to Mary, who manhandled me into clothes, or Duke Hyperion, who treated me like a prize pig.
Before long, Pail emerged from the kitchen carrying a small basket.
“This is all I have for now, but if you require more, you may come here anytime. Alternatively, you may speak to the Head Maid.”
I took the basket with both hands. Inside were small pieces of jerky and various nuts. Honestly, I could have eaten these as snacks myself.
Sensing my eyes on the basket, Lily let out another squeak.
“Alright, alright. I’m giving it to you.”
Lily was already inside the basket, a piece of jerky clamped firmly in her mouth.
“It seems she approves. Well then, I wish you a peaceful night.”
“Yes, thank you!”
“The next time we meet, please, use lower forms of speech. Especially in the presence of His Grace, you must do so.”
His task finished, Pail turned and walked away. Since I had no further reason to linger, I hurried back to my room with the basket in hand.
The air in the room was biting. Duke Hyperion’s bedroom lacked even a hint of warmth; it was hardly a place one would associate with sleep.
In the center of a chamber vast enough to hold dozens of people, Hyperion sat alone on a sofa. Moonlight filtered through the drawn curtains, bathing the room in a pale, blue glow.
Knock, knock.
A hand rapped against the heavy, massive door. Hyperion set the documents he was holding onto the table.
“Enter.”
The moment he gave permission, the great door creaked open. The light from the hallway spilled into the sapphire-hued room. Pail bowed deeply to Hyperion before stepping inside.
“You are late.”
It was Pail’s routine to report to Hyperion’s bedroom at the same time every night. Today, he was just a fraction behind schedule. While it wasn’t a grave error, it was a lapse Pail would never normally permit himself.
“I encountered the Young Lady on my way.”
“…She left earlier without so much as a word of greeting. Her etiquette training must be intensive. It would be a disaster if she behaved that way before other nobles.”
“She appeared… uncomfortable.”
“But she is now a Lady of this house and will be my successor.”
Hyperion spoke dismissively as he picked his documents back up. The papers in his hand detailed the process of Maya’s adoption and her formal induction into the family.
“At such a young age, she may feel the weight of the burden.”
“It is a weight any heir of Fedway must endure.”
Behind the papers regarding Maya, a single sheet of high-quality parchment caught his eye. Hyperion’s grip tightened, causing the edges of the paper to crinkle.
It was a letter from the Imperial Palace—a series of provocations dressed in elegant prose, nothing more than a thinly veiled threat designed to bring the House of Fedway under imperial control.
It was this very letter that had solidified his resolve to raise an heir.
A Swordmaster whose life was a living epic. A War Mage who had stood at the center of the battlefield, crushing the allied forces of smaller nations that had invaded to halt the Empire’s greed.
Hyperion Eden Fedway was the man who held all those titles.
The Imperial Palace feared him, waiting like vultures for his strength to wane. It was no exaggeration to say that the current peace of the Empire was a result of Hyperion’s labor, revolving entirely around him.
Through public sentiment alone, the House of Fedway possessed power rivaling the throne itself—which was exactly why the Imperial family was so wary.
Hyperion knew he was mortal; his strength would fade eventually. Though that day was not imminent, he needed someone to take his place for the sake of the future. That was why he had adopted Maya.
“See that the portrait on the stairs is removed. I cannot have those tattered cloths hanging there forever.”
“That… that is the only portrait of Lady Rosaria. Are you truly ordering it to be removed?”
The documents in Hyperion’s hand finally crumpled into a mess.
But Pail did not back down. In fact, he took a step closer to Hyperion.
“I beg you to reconsider, Your Grace. It is the last item through which we may see Lady Rosaria. I heard that even the Count’s estate, her childhood home, disposed of all her belongings.”
“The hand of the Imperial Palace reached there as well, no doubt.”
“Yes. This is the last portrait remaining, kept here in the House of Fedway where the Imperial family cannot interfere. Please, withdraw your order.”
Pail’s brown eyes grew misty as they searched his master’s face.
Rosaria Fedway. The only woman Hyperion had ever loved, the one he kept locked in his heart—a pitiful lady who had departed this world long ago.
The reason Hyperion prioritized the Empire’s peace today was because Rosaria had loved peace. Yet, the Imperial Palace had played a hand even in her death.
Hyperion could never forgive the Imperial family for taking Rosaria from him. He vowed never to let them have their way, sharpening the blade of his vengeance in secret. Raising an heir was his way of flouting the Empire’s warnings. If Maya grew into a fine successor, she would be the perfect weapon for his revenge.
If all power fell into the hands of the Imperial family, the peace she loved would surely vanish. Rosaria had sacrificed her life to protect that peace until the very end, and Hyperion intended to carry on her will.
Pail had served Hyperion his entire life, but he had also protected Rosaria with equal devotion. To Pail, she was more than just a mistress; she was precious.
To be told to remove her portrait…
For the first time, he dared to protest Hyperion’s command.
“You are not acting like yourself.”
“I would say the same to you, Your Grace.”
Neither man backed down, the silence between them as cold as the air in the room. Finally, Hyperion tossed the crumpled documents onto the table.
“Do as you wish.”
It was Hyperion who yielded. Only then did Pail’s expression brighten.
Indeed, the decision to remove Lady Rosaria could not have been sincere. Hyperion loved her still, and he always would.
