“It’s true. The lord pushed that woman hard and made her fall into the water.”
Kaian froze in place.
“Hey. That’s ridiculous.”
“The lord wouldn’t do something like that.”
“No, I saw it with my own two eyes.”
Then the guy who had been talking got angry.
“The lord stretched out his hand like this. When he stretched out one arm, like a camellia flower snapped its neck, the red dress fell into the water. I saw it!”
“Oh really. I hate seeing those Vermonters swarming and getting their asses kicked. Why would the lord do something like that?”
“I don’t know. Hehehe.”
The guy who had been talking laughed as if his heart was relieved and brought the bottle of alcohol in his hand to his lips.
“That guy. He didn’t want to go around the lake, so he went around.”
As the people were joking, someone cautiously added a word.
“Actually, I saw it too.”
“Me too.”
Two young women who looked like docile sisters spoke in unison.
“The lord pushed her and she fell.”
“We saw it together.”
Then, the others next to them began to chime in.
“I thought I saw it wrong. As soon as he reached out, she flew away with a ‘whoosh’.”
“It was a bit far away, but the lord is so big that I could see him clearly.”
“Why are you searching when you’re so busy doing just one thing?”
The man who had already emptied his bottle continued to murmur, shaking his hand.
“Politics is so difficult. You might feel better if you hit Vermont like this.”
“That’s true. Those Vermonters, even though their daughter died so viciously, they came running to beg.”
The people who didn’t sense the presence of people continued to chatter for a long time amid the sound of the flames rising and the giggling voices.
“Yes, my lord.”
“Those guys.”
Kaian stood blocking the entrance with a large fence and said nothing, so the guards looked at him in embarrassment.
“I’m going back to the castle.”
When he turned around, the guards looked embarrassed and eventually followed Kaian.
He heard some of them threatening to leave those guys alone, but he wasn’t even angry.
‘It’s true.’
After all, he was the one who made her so miserable that she would rather die.
Kaian was extremely tired when he arrived at the castle.
Today, his body felt strangely sluggish and his mind kept getting hazy.
‘Why is this happening?’
He rubbed his forehead for a moment and sighed, and Madame Marcel approached him, muttering.
“Uh. Your Highness.”
She was wearing a high-necked, plain black dress. She looked like a woman who liked flashy things, with her hair neatly trimmed and smoothed up, and her hair tied with a simple black ribbon.
Kaian reprimanded her coldly.
“Why are you dressed like that?”
“Huh?”
“Are you planning on going to the funeral?”
“Ah...”
Madame Marcel lowered her head in embarrassment. She had been reluctant to dress up in flashy and colorful attire because her mistress had been in serious trouble, but she felt cold sweat thinking that she had offended Kaian.
Claudel was not dead.
Even though everyone doubted whether she was alive or dead, no one in the castle said anything about it.
That was because there were several times when anyone who treated her like a dead person in front of Kaian would get beaten up and kicked out of the castle.
In the castle where Claudel was away, her presence was more vivid and intense than ever.
“I’m sorry. Well, I was going to tell you that the dress was finished.”
“...The dress?”
Madame Marcel’s eyes were filled with tears.
“Yes. The madame’s formal attire is finished.”
“...Yes. I should see it now.”
“T-this way. I left it in the workshop.”
Madame Marcel’s workshop, where she had once employed several village girls as assistants to decorate it and where the sound of the sewing machine was loud, was now quiet.
“Didn’t you employ quite a few assistants?”
“I sent them out on a search party.”
“I see.”
The white dress was draped over a torso in the middle of the spacious workshop. It looked even more splendid when the oil lamps were brightly lit because it had gotten dark.
“Hey. That’s ridiculous.”
“The lord wouldn’t do something like that.”
“No, I saw it with my own two eyes.”
Then the guy who had been talking got angry.
“The lord stretched out his hand like this. When he stretched out one arm, like a camellia flower snapped its neck, the red dress fell into the water. I saw it!”
“Oh really. I hate seeing those Vermonters swarming and getting their asses kicked. Why would the lord do something like that?”
“I don’t know. Hehehe.”
The guy who had been talking laughed as if his heart was relieved and brought the bottle of alcohol in his hand to his lips.
“That guy. He didn’t want to go around the lake, so he went around.”
As the people were joking, someone cautiously added a word.
“Actually, I saw it too.”
“Me too.”
Two young women who looked like docile sisters spoke in unison.
“The lord pushed her and she fell.”
“We saw it together.”
Then, the others next to them began to chime in.
“I thought I saw it wrong. As soon as he reached out, she flew away with a ‘whoosh’.”
“It was a bit far away, but the lord is so big that I could see him clearly.”
“Why are you searching when you’re so busy doing just one thing?”
The man who had already emptied his bottle continued to murmur, shaking his hand.
“Politics is so difficult. You might feel better if you hit Vermont like this.”
“That’s true. Those Vermonters, even though their daughter died so viciously, they came running to beg.”
The people who didn’t sense the presence of people continued to chatter for a long time amid the sound of the flames rising and the giggling voices.
“Yes, my lord.”
“Those guys.”
Kaian stood blocking the entrance with a large fence and said nothing, so the guards looked at him in embarrassment.
“I’m going back to the castle.”
When he turned around, the guards looked embarrassed and eventually followed Kaian.
He heard some of them threatening to leave those guys alone, but he wasn’t even angry.
‘It’s true.’
After all, he was the one who made her so miserable that she would rather die.
Kaian was extremely tired when he arrived at the castle.
Today, his body felt strangely sluggish and his mind kept getting hazy.
‘Why is this happening?’
He rubbed his forehead for a moment and sighed, and Madame Marcel approached him, muttering.
“Uh. Your Highness.”
She was wearing a high-necked, plain black dress. She looked like a woman who liked flashy things, with her hair neatly trimmed and smoothed up, and her hair tied with a simple black ribbon.
Kaian reprimanded her coldly.
“Why are you dressed like that?”
“Huh?”
“Are you planning on going to the funeral?”
“Ah...”
Madame Marcel lowered her head in embarrassment. She had been reluctant to dress up in flashy and colorful attire because her mistress had been in serious trouble, but she felt cold sweat thinking that she had offended Kaian.
Claudel was not dead.
Even though everyone doubted whether she was alive or dead, no one in the castle said anything about it.
That was because there were several times when anyone who treated her like a dead person in front of Kaian would get beaten up and kicked out of the castle.
In the castle where Claudel was away, her presence was more vivid and intense than ever.
“I’m sorry. Well, I was going to tell you that the dress was finished.”
“...The dress?”
Madame Marcel’s eyes were filled with tears.
“Yes. The madame’s formal attire is finished.”
“...Yes. I should see it now.”
“T-this way. I left it in the workshop.”
Madame Marcel’s workshop, where she had once employed several village girls as assistants to decorate it and where the sound of the sewing machine was loud, was now quiet.
“Didn’t you employ quite a few assistants?”
“I sent them out on a search party.”
“I see.”
The white dress was draped over a torso in the middle of the spacious workshop. It looked even more splendid when the oil lamps were brightly lit because it had gotten dark.
The bodice, designed to reveal Claudel's slender figure, was densely decorated with jewels that Madame Marcel had inlaid with joy at Kaian’s generous investment.
If Claudel had worn it, she might have looked like she was wearing mermaid scales.
Both arms were long, puffed mesh sleeves. The design was so sleek that it would have been elegant and pretty if it had wrapped her pale, slender arms.
However, there was no one to wear it.
When Kaian looked at it for a moment, Madame Marcel cautiously told him,
“I’m thinking of returning to the capital.”
“To the capital?”
“Madame Cronach is leaving soon. I’ll go with her. And my compensation is..."
She hesitated and placed two purses the size of her fist on the empty workbench.
“I’m going to return the gold coins you gave me...”
“Are you quitting the castle’s tailor?”
Kaian’s voice grew cold, startling her.
“Who will make Claudel’s clothes when she returns?”
“...Your Highness.”
“She liked the clothes you made. They looked good on her. Keep them as long as possible.”
“...”
Madame Marcel, with tears welling up in her eyes, hesitated and then collected the purses of gold in a halfhearted manner.
“Then, Madame... When she comes back, I will come back.”
“Yes. Let’s do that.”
In fact, Claudel might not have liked Madame Marcel’s clothes very much.
It was true that they suited her well. But at some point, she seemed not so happy about it.
“I once said that I wanted to change the tailor of the castle.”
However, since she was secretly busy making a dress to wear as a wedding dress, she was able to persuade him and made it into nothing.
She might not like it, but Kaian didn’t want to change anything about Claudel. If she really wanted to cut Madame Marcel, she could come back and do it herself.
So even if she went back to the capital, Madame Marcel was the tailor of Rowen Castle. He planned to leave it that way until she came back.
“Your Highness.”
If Claudel had worn it, she might have looked like she was wearing mermaid scales.
Both arms were long, puffed mesh sleeves. The design was so sleek that it would have been elegant and pretty if it had wrapped her pale, slender arms.
However, there was no one to wear it.
When Kaian looked at it for a moment, Madame Marcel cautiously told him,
“I’m thinking of returning to the capital.”
“To the capital?”
“Madame Cronach is leaving soon. I’ll go with her. And my compensation is..."
She hesitated and placed two purses the size of her fist on the empty workbench.
“I’m going to return the gold coins you gave me...”
“Are you quitting the castle’s tailor?”
Kaian’s voice grew cold, startling her.
“Who will make Claudel’s clothes when she returns?”
“...Your Highness.”
“She liked the clothes you made. They looked good on her. Keep them as long as possible.”
“...”
Madame Marcel, with tears welling up in her eyes, hesitated and then collected the purses of gold in a halfhearted manner.
“Then, Madame... When she comes back, I will come back.”
“Yes. Let’s do that.”
In fact, Claudel might not have liked Madame Marcel’s clothes very much.
It was true that they suited her well. But at some point, she seemed not so happy about it.
“I once said that I wanted to change the tailor of the castle.”
However, since she was secretly busy making a dress to wear as a wedding dress, she was able to persuade him and made it into nothing.
She might not like it, but Kaian didn’t want to change anything about Claudel. If she really wanted to cut Madame Marcel, she could come back and do it herself.
So even if she went back to the capital, Madame Marcel was the tailor of Rowen Castle. He planned to leave it that way until she came back.
“Your Highness.”
Madam Marcel rocked his thoughts.
“Actually, there was a strange rumor going around the castle.”
“What rumor? You mean, that ridiculous rumor that I pushed Claudel to death?”
“No! That kind of thing.”
From Madame Marcel’s shocked attitude, he thought that she had heard it too.
“I’m sorry to tell you. There’s a rumor that I have this and that relationship with the Duke.”
“What?”
“The Duke is busy. I think that rumor spread because I went to the office late at night to discuss Madame’s business.”
Several times, right before the dress was finished, Madame Marcel had come to the office late at night with a sample of jewel embroidery, subtly hoping that the budget for the jewel decorations would be increased.
“You take care of the estate during the day, so you came late at night.”
“And such a rumor?”
“Like I’m the Duke’s secret lover.”
“Has that rumor been around for a day or two?”
...The moment he absentmindedly blurted it out, he felt like he’d been hit in the head with something.
‘Claudel was paying attention to this?’
When Kaian frowned, Madame Marcel noticed, stepped back, and bowed politely.
“Thank you for the favors you’ve shown me.”
“Go away.”
Kaian pulled up a chair and sat down, looking at the dress lying in the empty workshop.
It was exactly as he had imagined. The dress that Kaian had wanted her to wear, which he had repeatedly had Madame Marcel alter, was flawless, like a white flower blooming with the breath of God.
“Claudel might have heard that.”
Of course, who would dare to talk about the lord’s affair with a tailor in front of the lord’s wife?
However, the more he thought about what Claudel had said, the more he doubted whether she had listened to such a story.
Kaian was generally insensitive to rumors.
Rumors were not certain and often exaggerated the truth of the unknown.
And the young lord of Temnes was at the center of all sorts of plots and false rumors. No matter what others said, the fact that he had achieved the most powerful Temnes in history in just twenty-six years was the only thing that mattered.
However, when he heard that and thought that Claudel might have misunderstood, he became very anxious.
'Could it be that she didn't want to have my child because of the rumors?'
It didn't seem so. Even at the last moment, Claudel said that she wanted to have it because it was his child.
It stung.
It felt like a thick iron skewer was piercing through his chest and stabbing him in a circle.
"Ugh."
Kaian held his breath, hoping the pain would go away, and climbed the stairs to this floor.
When he opened Claudel's door, her faint scent still greeted him. Only then did the pain that had made him feel like he was going to die begin to subside.
He wiped the cold sweat off with his sleeve and went to bed. He was in a bad mood today.
He was suffering because he felt easily irritated or angry. When he vented his emotions on his subordinates, even if it wasn’t something he did wrong, the feelings of the people on the receiving end would be hurt.
Kaian tried not to do such things, but strangely, he felt like he was going off track all day today.
“Whew.”
He let out a long sigh and let go of the strength in his tired body.
However, he couldn’t sleep.
Insomnia was truly a pain.
He just lay there all night, unable to rest, his head spinning as he chewed on memories.
‘I’ve suffered like this for nearly ten years.’
“Actually, there was a strange rumor going around the castle.”
“What rumor? You mean, that ridiculous rumor that I pushed Claudel to death?”
“No! That kind of thing.”
From Madame Marcel’s shocked attitude, he thought that she had heard it too.
“I’m sorry to tell you. There’s a rumor that I have this and that relationship with the Duke.”
“What?”
“The Duke is busy. I think that rumor spread because I went to the office late at night to discuss Madame’s business.”
Several times, right before the dress was finished, Madame Marcel had come to the office late at night with a sample of jewel embroidery, subtly hoping that the budget for the jewel decorations would be increased.
“You take care of the estate during the day, so you came late at night.”
“And such a rumor?”
“Like I’m the Duke’s secret lover.”
“Has that rumor been around for a day or two?”
...The moment he absentmindedly blurted it out, he felt like he’d been hit in the head with something.
‘Claudel was paying attention to this?’
When Kaian frowned, Madame Marcel noticed, stepped back, and bowed politely.
“Thank you for the favors you’ve shown me.”
“Go away.”
Kaian pulled up a chair and sat down, looking at the dress lying in the empty workshop.
It was exactly as he had imagined. The dress that Kaian had wanted her to wear, which he had repeatedly had Madame Marcel alter, was flawless, like a white flower blooming with the breath of God.
“Claudel might have heard that.”
Of course, who would dare to talk about the lord’s affair with a tailor in front of the lord’s wife?
However, the more he thought about what Claudel had said, the more he doubted whether she had listened to such a story.
Kaian was generally insensitive to rumors.
Rumors were not certain and often exaggerated the truth of the unknown.
And the young lord of Temnes was at the center of all sorts of plots and false rumors. No matter what others said, the fact that he had achieved the most powerful Temnes in history in just twenty-six years was the only thing that mattered.
However, when he heard that and thought that Claudel might have misunderstood, he became very anxious.
'Could it be that she didn't want to have my child because of the rumors?'
It didn't seem so. Even at the last moment, Claudel said that she wanted to have it because it was his child.
It stung.
It felt like a thick iron skewer was piercing through his chest and stabbing him in a circle.
"Ugh."
Kaian held his breath, hoping the pain would go away, and climbed the stairs to this floor.
When he opened Claudel's door, her faint scent still greeted him. Only then did the pain that had made him feel like he was going to die begin to subside.
He wiped the cold sweat off with his sleeve and went to bed. He was in a bad mood today.
He was suffering because he felt easily irritated or angry. When he vented his emotions on his subordinates, even if it wasn’t something he did wrong, the feelings of the people on the receiving end would be hurt.
Kaian tried not to do such things, but strangely, he felt like he was going off track all day today.
“Whew.”
He let out a long sigh and let go of the strength in his tired body.
However, he couldn’t sleep.
Insomnia was truly a pain.
He just lay there all night, unable to rest, his head spinning as he chewed on memories.
‘I’ve suffered like this for nearly ten years.’
She reached out to him, her enemy, to ask him to help her sleep?
He once thought Claudel was just trying to seduce him, but she was suffering from the pain of insomnia.
‘I don’t think I can fall asleep unless Claudel comes back.’
His whole body remembered her.
The warmth that touched his body, the soft touch, the fragrant scent of her body.
Every night, Kaian felt Claudel's absence more and more keenly until dawn.
Then, just when he felt he had dozed off, he heard a small laugh in his ear.
'Kaian. Wake up.'
‘I don’t think I can fall asleep unless Claudel comes back.’
His whole body remembered her.
The warmth that touched his body, the soft touch, the fragrant scent of her body.
Every night, Kaian felt Claudel's absence more and more keenly until dawn.
Then, just when he felt he had dozed off, he heard a small laugh in his ear.
'Kaian. Wake up.'
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