Episode 36. The Mark of Another Man
“We’ve arrived, Miss Adele.”
Adele finally woke up from her terrible thoughts at Zimmer’s voice.
As the carriage stopped and Zimmer opened the door, the brightly lit southern villa came into view.
This place, called the ‘Marble Palace,’ was said to be built for the royal family to stay in. Thanks to this, it was a separate, independent place with a separate entrance while being located within the palace.
As the name suggests, the small building made of marble shone like a jewel in the moonlight. The sight was captured in the serene lake in front of it.
Adele stared at the magical, mysterious sight for a moment.
“Are you here?”
As always, Henry, dressed neatly, greeted her politely.
“Henry!”
Tanya and several familiar faces appeared behind Henry. They were all servants who worked at Adele’s mansion.
“Are you all here?”
“I received His Excellency’s message and came here in a hurry. Everyone will be packed up and come to the mansion soon.”
“Good.”
Adele had been worried about sending them out after fighting with Christine. Although it was a short time, she was very happy because she had grown attached to them.
“Please come inside first.”
Guided by Henry, Adele entered the Marble Palace.
Unlike the serene exterior, the interior of the Marble Palace had a different atmosphere.
The marble floor was covered with rose-patterned carpets, and a gorgeous crystal chandelier swayed on the ceiling.
Each of the antique arched windows was draped with soft pink curtains, and the pillars and corners were stylishly decorated with gold carvings.
The meticulous attention to detail in every corner made it splendid and luxurious.
In addition, the imperial guards were standing guard inside and outside the Marble Palace.
Chuck!
They saw Adele and put their right fists on their left chests. It was the guards’ etiquette. Zimmer
followed her as if guarding her, and Henry and the servants walked in a line.
No one would call Adele the villainess of Kalame anymore.
She was the fiancée of Count Weiss, the mistress of the Marvel Palace.
***
Thud!
As soon as she entered the bedroom, Adele collapsed on the sofa.
“Today was really the best!”
Tanya ran in with a face as if she was going crazy, quickly closing the bedroom door. Everyone was sent away, and only Tanya was left.
“That’s right. It was also the most tiring day.”
Adele had barely gotten up from her sickbed yesterday. She was proud of herself for having safely completed today’s schedule. And now she was completely exhausted.
“I’ve prepared a bath, so soak yourself in the warm water and rest.”
Tanya quickly took off her outerwear and took the accessories off her head. She continued to chatter excitedly.
“But when is the Count coming?”
“Well, he’ll be here in a couple of hours, right?”
“Yes? Then you can’t take a bath together?”
Tanya shouted in extreme disappointment,
“What are you talking about, taking a bath together?”
Adele looked back at her, who was combing her hair, with a bewildered expression.
“I thought you were going together, so I put rose petals in the bathtub. I even put candles in the bathroom. I even put jasmine-scented bath salts in it to create a romantic mood...”
In the end, Adele blushed and scolded her.
“Tanya, why are you doing this, too? It’s an engagement, not a marriage.”
But Tanya laughed sinisterly instead.
“Oh my, are you naive? Are you pretending to be naive? What does His Majesty mean by giving you a villa? He wants you two to live together. This is just an engagement in name, not a marriage.”
Adele’s heart sank at Tanya’s interpretation.
In fact, she already knew.
This engagement was no different from a wedding.
Christine must have held a grand engagement ceremony to announce to everyone in the empire that she was his woman. Even the Emperor intervened to have her expelled from the Oswald family and gave her the villa.
So Adele was the woman of Count Weiss, acknowledged by everyone.
Of course, to become a couple officially, they had to receive approval from the Vatican. However, it was just a formality.
No matter what, bathing together...
Just thinking about it made her face burn, so Adele fanned herself.
“Stop talking nonsense and go back and rest. You worked hard today.”
“What about bathing? I’ll just take care of your bath and go back.”
“What’s with the sudden bathing? That’s enough.”
Adele looked embarrassed, but Tanya jokingly opened the bathroom door attached to the bedroom and went in.
“You are now the most noble lady in Calais. Of course, you should have the maids help you bathe. I’ll massage your stiff shoulders and arms, and legs. I’ll wash your hair too.”
“I appreciate your intention, but bathing is an extremely private space that I want to protect.”
“If you think of me as someone who doesn’t exist...”
“Your presence is too big, I absolutely cannot do that.”
Adele smiled but stubbornly sent Tanya out.
“Good night, Tanya.”
“Miss...”
“I love you.”
Thump! She quickly closed the door.
‘Haa, why are you suddenly going to do something you’ve never done before?’
No matter how much Tanya was like family to her, she had never shown her body before.
That was something she absolutely could not do.
***
When Adele entered the bathroom, a large, shell-shaped bathtub was filled with red rose petals.
Candles were burning brightly around it, and the sweet scent of jasmine and roses wafted through the air. The lake could be seen through the front window of the bathtub. The lake, shimmering in the moonlight, was tranquil and neat.
“It’s luxurious even to the end.”
Smiling bitterly, Adele began to take off her clothes, layer by layer.
She took off her dress that fluttered like the wings of a goddess, and untied the corset that tightly bound her body. She also pulled down the shoulder straps of the chemise that covered her flesh one by one.
Twist, twitch...
Everything that covered her body fell to her feet, and finally, her dazzling naked body was reflected in the oval mirror.
Her pure white body revealed in the white steam was beautiful and mysterious.
Her neckline, arms, and legs were pitifully slender and delicate. However, her dizzyingly swollen buttocks and small breasts centered around her slender waist were so alluring that it was impossible to take your eyes off her.
A tempting and seductive body hidden behind her innocent, girlish face. Enough to make any man lose his mind and fall for her.
However, Adele looked at her with a fearful expression as if a terrible curse had been placed on her body.
She had to face the miserable memories she wanted to forget.
She held her flowing hair together and slowly turned away from the mirror.
‘Please, if it disappears...’
This was something she had wished for thousands, tens of thousands of times.
But even though her earnest wish was colorless, it was still vivid.
Between her shoulder blades, in the middle of my straight spine, that terrible mark. The initials of ST Stone were tattooed in black and dark ink. He always had these initials tattooed on his belongings. Handkerchiefs, jackets, writing instruments, horses, boats, even underwear... He was a person who was obsessed with marking his belongings to the point of pathology. This mark meant that Adele was also his property.
“Adele, would there be anyone who would accept you with another man’s mark? Erase it if you can. The rumors will spread uncontrollably.”
“Shut up, Stone!”
Adele screamed and threw the candle at the mirror. The white candle wax splashed on the mirror, obscuring her appearance.
“Haaah...”
She collapsed on the floor. She had tried to remove this mark left by Stone several times. However, it was impossible alone because it was in the middle of her back where her hands could not reach. However, she could never ask others for help. She could not show this beastly mark to anyone.
Adele chose to forget about it and live her life. Fortunately, it was on her back, so she could ignore it if she wanted. She thought she would never show it to anyone. However, she did not know if Christine would notice the mark right away. Judging from his hot gaze all day, it seemed as if he would come back and barge into the bedroom.
'Still, if I refuse, he won't force me to hug him.'
But how long could she refuse him? He was a man in the prime of his life. He looked cold and stoic on the outside, but she realized it clearly when she kissed him. He was breathing heavily and rushing at her like a wild beast.
'He was just like a hungry beast... '
Adele muttered with a shudder. But why did her heart race just thinking about that kiss...
'Should I tell him everything?'
She didn't know if Christine would understand. She would believe that it wasn't what he wanted. But she shook her head.
'Absolutely not!'
If Christine found out, he might rush to kill Stone right away. Even if he had the Emperor's protection, fighting Stone, who was a member of the Council, would only make matters worse. Above all, Adele didn't want him to see this horrible mark.
The thought of him having feelings for Stone every time he looked at her back was terrifying. She didn't want Stone to come between them. She had to get rid of this first.
***
After Zimmer returned to the banquet hall after taking Adele, Christine approached him as if she had been waiting.
“What about Adele?”
“I served her well. I saw her dismiss all the servants, saying she would rest.”
“Yes. I’ll go soon.”
If he had kept his place like this, Adele wouldn’t have said anything. He had endured this boring banquet hall with great patience, fearing that she would get in trouble.
“Would you like to dance with me, Count?”
At that moment, Seira approached him with a seductive gait.
The atmosphere of the banquet was ripe, and everyone was dancing happily, drunk.
Seira’s cheeks were a rosy pink, perhaps because she had been drinking. The men in the banquet hall couldn’t take their eyes off her because of how beautiful and seductive she looked.
However, Christine politely declined.
“I’ll leave that honor to others.”
“I have something important to tell you while we dance.”
“I only trust the information my sources bring me.”
“How much do your sources know about your fiancée?”
In an instant, Christine’s polite face turned cold.
“If you’re going to slander my fiancée, I warn you, Miss Seira Oswald, you’d better go back.”
Seira panicked as Christine stood firm and didn’t give her any room to open up. She covered her face with her fan to hide it and threw another bait.
“If you think the truth is slander, then there’s nothing I can do. However, I think you should know that she had a special relationship with my older brother, Stone Oswald.”
Then Christine let out a soft laugh.
“What’s so funny?”
“Are you confessing with your own mouth just how much of a bean curd family the Oswalds were?”
“...!”
Seira’s face hardened.
Adele was no longer human, but Oswald was once a stepmother and son. When rumors of their relationship began to spread, the family turned Adele into a terrible villainess.
A villainess who poisoned her husband and tried to seduce her son.
Stone was just a naive noble who almost fell for the villainess's trick.
If Seira mentioned the two of them again, she would be tarnishing her family's reputation with her own hands.
"Then, my fiancée will wait."
The moment Christine passed by, Seira involuntarily flinched back.
She felt a murderous intent that seemed to draw her sword and swing it.
And her heart tightened with an emotion that was either fear or jealousy.
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