40 - 44
< — Damian — > (11)
It was afternoon and Hugo was busy working on documents in his office when the scent of tea drifted into his nose. He knew someone had come in but he was focusing on something else so he didn't pay much attention.
After a while, he looked up, glancing at the cup of tea that Jerome had placed quietly before leaving then he put his pen down on the table and leaned back in his chair. He picked up the cup of tea and walked into the balcony, deciding to take a short break.
Because of the incoming party, the garden was filled with a lot of people busying around. He looked around the garden, searching for his wife.
He found her soon enough at a corner of the garden but she was not alone. She was with a black-haired child-Damian.
'They're really friendly with each other.'
He muttered to himself, frowning slightly. Looking at it objectively, their relationship was one where they could never get too close to each other.
He was a little worried about her taking Damian to the garden party because a considerable amount of people would be suspicious about her intentions.
He considered telling her about his thoughts but shoved that idea away. She would know at least that much, she wasn't a foolish woman.
Although it was interesting that Damian was getting along with her quite well. He wasn't a very sociable boy but within a few weeks, he was made into an obedient puppy.
Even his butler Jerome was the same. 'Milady', 'Milady', was all he could say.
She seemed to have the amazing ability to turn people to her side. Even though many people liking her was definitely much better than their being her enemy, for some reason, he felt displeased inside.
'What are they doing?'
For a while now, the both of them had been crouched low and their heads were facing each other. He couldn't see what they were doing and he couldn't see their faces properly because he was too far away.
'What the heck are those two doing?'
He grumbled inwardly.
'Without me.'
The last words were what was truly in his heart but because he was so childish, he couldn't even bear to say it to himself.
***
Lucia and Damian were so engrossed in watching the amusing baby fox that they weren't paying much attention to anything else. The big-eared yellow fox had awkward steps, toddling as it walked.
Whenever it tried to escape from between the two of them, it was gently blocked with one hand. It didn't take long for it to give up on escaping, sit down and begin chasing its tail.
[He's a rare mild and gentle guy for a fox. He'll be easy to tame]
This was the common remark that the experienced breeders, which Kate sent to help, made after looking at the fox.
"Did you decide on a name, Damian?"
"Lucia, is…is it really okay for me to name it?"
"Of course. I'll be happy if you name it."
After Lucia asked him to give the fox a name a few days ago, he'd worried about it for a while and rummaged through all sorts of dictionaries while his studying took a back seat.
"Then…Asha." (Damian)
"Asha? Does it have a meaning?" (Lucia)
"Just like names… I want it to have a strong vitality and last long." (1)
"Asha. That's a good name."
Lucia lifted the fox and held it out to Damian.
"Since you've given it a name, hold it. Don't just look at it."
"Lucia, I…"
"Hurry up. I'll drop it."
As the time it was held up in the air grew longer, the baby fox began to struggle and wriggle around in her hands. Once he heard her say she'd drop it, Damian quickly reached out and carefully took the fox into his arms.
Asha lifted its long snout, looking at the boy for a moment, then it relaxed in his arms. The body temperature and the sound of fast-paced heartbeat of the small animal in his arms shocked Damian. It was a new sensation to him.
His emotions felt complicated and his body trembled. He felt like he hadn't know what it meant to be alive till this moment.
"I feel…strange."
"Why?"
"Just…It's not like I hate it but I feel weird. My chest feels a bit prickly…"
Looking at Damian who didn't know how much strength to put into his arms as he held the fox, Lucia smiled.
"Damian, that feeling means you think it's loveable."
"Love…able?"
"Yes. It's the feeling your mother must have felt when she held you after you were born. You feel something is so loveable, your heart hurts."
Damian stared silently at the fox with for a while, his expression unknown. The fox squirmed in his arms, adjusting itself to a more comfortable position then it placed its chin on the boy's arms, blinking its eyes.
Damian lifted his head to look at Lucia, smiling brightly. It was the clear smile of a child, no darkness hidden within it.
The first carefree smile of the boy who was always stiff and brusque sent a burst of emotions through Lucia, deeply touching her.
Her gaze met Damian's and she smiled at him.
A little far away, Hugo's red eyes gazing at them trembled strongly. Unable to curb his curiosity, he finally left his office.
He walked towards the corner of the garden where they stayed crouched and at some distance, he was able to see why they weren't paying attention to anything else.
'What is that?'
The sight of the little beast wriggling around and the two of them concentrating on it like a never-seen-before treasure in the world came into view.
As he drew a little closer, he was able to hear their conversation.
'Giving a beast a name? a useless act.'
The white horse he'd ridden for so many years still had no name.
'…Lucia…?'
He furrowed his brow.
When he heard the name the evening when they were taking a walk, he'd thought he heard wrong but he was still somewhat sensitive to the name and this time, he definitely heard it and clearly too.
Why would Damian call her by that name?
It wasn't Duchess, it wasn't Mother and it wasn't even her name. He stopped walking, standing still to think about it but couldn't reach a conclusion so he resumed his journey.
However in a couple of steps, his footsteps paused again.
Looking at the boy's smile that was as bright as sunshine, his heart clenched, filling his chest with biting pain.
'Hah…'
He sighed mournfully.
'It's you.'
He smiled powerlessly. The child's smile was very similar to the one his brother had given him on the day they'd met.
He just hadn't realized it but it seemed the brother that he'd been missing had always been by his side.
Translator's Corner
1) Very loose translation here. This was the only way for it to make sense in English.
*There's so much cuteness and fluff that I'm getting worried.
*Also, is Hugo developing eavesdropping tendencies? hur hur.
< — Damian — > (11)
TN: Throughout this chapter's flashback, the author barely refers to 'Hugo' as Hugo during the conversation. Author mostly just says 'he'. I'm gonna leave it that way and I don't think it's confusing but tell me if it is.
Hugo's memory returned to the first day he met Damian, the scene vividly drawn out before him.
One day, Philip brought in an awkward young child that was yet to walk smoothly. Even without being explained, the child's black hair and red eyes were traits unique to the Taran bloodline.
He left the child in Jerome's hands and when he was left alone with Philip, he question fiercely.
"What is that?"
"He is young master Hugo's son." (Philip)
At first, he was at loss for words then he became enraged. A male child? Without a relative, a boy of Taran blood could never be born.
"Don't be stupid. That dead old geezer must've planted a seed somewhere, who are you trying to fool?"
"Haven't you ever heard of young master Hugo having a lover?" (Philip)
He cursed furiously before retorting.
"What? The old fool's tricks?"
He was so angry that he felt like he was going crazy.
"No, it is not . Young master Hugo and the miss fell in love without knowing each other's identity and young master Damian is the result of their love." (Philip)
"Love?!! Bullshit!"
In that moment, he hurled curses at his dead brother.
'Fucking idiot. After acting like you know it all, you've finally done it.'
"Why didn't he know his child was born?" (Hugo)
If his brother knew he had a child, he never would have chosen to kill himself.
"Young master Hugo passed away without knowing young master Damian was conceived." (TN: He didn't know the chick was pregnant)
"Did the old geezer also not know?"
"Yes."
'Hah. Serves him right, the old fool needs some retribution in hell.'
He(Hugo) muttered to himself, chuckling insidiously.
"What of the child's name? Did you give it to him, old man?"
"I wouldn't dare. Young master Damian's mother gave him his name."
"Mother?"
He(Hugo) remarked mockingly.
"She must be my half-sister. Here I thought they were all dead but there's a half-sister. How many children did that old fool make?"
"Just as you know it, however from childhood, the miss had a weak body and was frequently ill. The deceased Duke determined that she would be unable to have a healthy child and decided to dispose of her. Hence, the deceased Duke believed the young miss to be dead."
"Disposal. Ha! That's exactly the type of thing that crazy old fool would do."
He ridiculed icily.
"So? This half-sister of mine that's supposed to be dead, how did she meet him, do this love play and give birth to a child?"
"I can only say that destiny is indeed something that cannot be predicted. I can also assure you that there was no ulterior motives or interference in their relationship."
"Destiny? What crap. Where's the child's mother?"
"She passed away after giving birth. If you want a more detailed explanation…"
"Enough."
As to whether or not they really knew each other's identities, or whether or not there was outside interference in their relationship, there was no way for him to know.
No matter how long Philip rambled on, he couldn't guarantee that it was the truth. Rather than listening to the old man's bullshit, he switched his focus to the problem at hand.
"So? what? Why did you bring him to me?" (Hugo)
No matter whether it was his brother's child, he was not his dead brother.
His brother was born the son of the loathsome former Duke and had a completely different personality like the different entity that he was.
Moreover, his brother wasn't informed that the child was born so bringing the child now made him suspicious.
"He's young master Hugo's flesh and blood. It is only right to hand him over."
"Don't blabber that rubbish in front of me, take him and leave. I don't know when I'll want to kill it if it stays around me."
However, Philip left Damian and secretly disappeared. He hid himself so well, not a trace of him could be found.
'Then I'll make sure the bastard doesn't see a hair on the child's head till the day he dies.'
Hugo gnashed his teeth in rage and invoked a ban against Philip approaching Damian.
Time went by and sometime later Philip secretly returned and tried to meet Damian but after seeing the guards placed around Damian, a report came back that Philip had once again disappeared.
Although it (the ban) was something done in a fit of anger at the time, when he thought about it, he realized it was a good thing.
Because of the war, Hugo was swamped and extremely busy so he got someone to mostly look after the child. There was almost no difference from neglecting the child.
When he returned to Roam several months later, they were all accepting Damian as his son. He'd never personally said that Damian was his son but no one thought was an issue.
This was because of how much they resembled each other. Both of them looked so much alike, leaving no room for doubts.
However, Damian's appearance caused Hugo's intention of ending the Taran family line to amount to nothing.
Hugo's feeling towards Damian were delicately complex. His brother's only mark left in this world and mass of burden.
It wasn't love and hatred, he liked the boy just as much as he disliked him.
However, when he saw that smile on the boy, the smile that was exactly like his brother's, he realized something.
Just as he'd intended, the cursed Taran blood would end with him. His twin brother was a mutation that could never be born of Taran blood.
He was supposed to be born with a blood full of cruelty and madness yet he was very unlike the Taran bloodline, he was gentle, pure and loved life.
And Damian inherited the blood of his brother.
The Taran Family, led by Damian would be reborn in a completely new way.
Damian noticed Hugo approaching and quickly stood up. The fox was still in his arms and he was flustered by the sudden appearance of Hugo.
Since he wasn't studying at this time and was busy chattering, he was afraid he would be scolded.
Hugo indifferent glanced at the fox in the boy's arms then spoke to Lucia.
"Wasn't the fox hunt just for sightseeing?"
"I meant to do that but Lady Milton told me she'd help me obtain a fox. I hasn't been long since I got it as a gift."
Hugo was unhappy with the trivial creature rolling around in Damian's arms.
'So now, she'll be going around with a beast in her arms too.'
First, frequent outings with Damian, now it's a fox. The road to keeping her by his side was so difficult. In his heart, what he really wanted to do was keep her only to himself so only he could see her.
"Damian."
"Yes? Yes!" (Damian)
It was the first time Hugo had used Damian's name directly in front of him. Before when he called Damian directly, he said
'Kid.'
And when he was conversing with other people and talking to Damian, he said.
'Boy.'
"Fox hunting is not a game for men. It's a trifling game for women. Return the fox to its master."
He commanded arrogantly.
Lucia was dumbfounded and glared at him. A trifling game for women???
Damian alternated glances between the two of them then quickly handed over the fox to Lucia.
As he handed it over, there was none of the emotions from a while ago. He didn't even show the slightest dismay or lingering attachment.
Lucia gave a hollow smile.
"Follow me." (Hugo)
"Yes."
The boy quickly replied like a soldier with military discipline.
"Where are you taking him?" (Lucia)
"We're going to have a talk. Between men." (Hugo)
Hugo began to walk ahead and again, Damian repeatedly alternated glances between the two of them then bowed his head in Lucia's direction.
After which he quickly ran after Hugo. Unlike the usually calm Damian, this one was obviously excited.
"My goodness. What? Are they excluding me?"
Lucia was speechless. She felt a sense of betrayal from Damian who never looked back. The thought that all her efforts were less than one word from his father made her feel dispirited.
As she watched the departing backs of father-and-son, her dispirited heart didn't take long to disappear. Their very alike behind view was very adorable. Damian's figure as he took exceptionally light steps was also fun to look at.
"Please, get close enough that I'll get jealous."
While chuckling to herself, Lucia turned towards the workers in the garden. There was still a lot to do for the garden party tomorrow.
Translator's Corner.
*Damian obviously has favorites! Hah.
*I got a comment about the ads for the first time ever and truthfully, I have virtually no control over the ads displayed. Maybe I can shoot WP an email?
< — Damian — > (12)
TN: Ｏ(≧▽≦)Ｏ Enjoy~
He'd ultimately asked Damian to follow him but quite frankly, he had no idea what he to do with the child.
Roughly looking over the boy, he could say the boy had grown up well but properly examining the child felt awkward.
"Do you read a lot of books?"
"Yes, I like it so I read a lot."
Hugo took Damian to his study. Before this, she'd been the only one allowed access to his study.
As soon as Damian entered the study, his eyes widened, his mouth fell open and his head swiftly turned left and right.
The huge library in his academy had a lot of books but it wasn't stylish. Owned by an individual, the magnificent scale and superb atmosphere lit up a soft light in the eyes of the fascinated boy.
"Is that place part of the study too?"
Damian asked, looking at the firmly closed door at the right of the study.
Hugo's eyes sank. The place where he was able to enter after succession. The place where only the head of the Taran Family could enter. It was a secret room that contained all the truths about the Taran family.
"Don't concern yourself with that one. It's full of garbage."
Hugo had no plans of passing down that room to Damian. He would burn and erase all traces of it sometime before Damian takes over as the master of Taran.
This was what he'd made up his mind to do for a long time. The secrets of Taran would end with him alone.
"You can look around as you please. If you want to read a book, you can come in and read at any time."
"Yes! Thank you."
The boy had been jittery for a while because he wanted to look around so as soon as permission was given, he quickly bolted away and began to look all over the place.
There was warmth in Hugo's eyes as he watched the boy frantically move from place to place, scouring the study.
Sometime later, Hugo left the study, leaving the boy alone as the boy had taken out a book from the shelves and was completely engrossed in reading.
When he was about to enter his office, the name 'Lucia' once again crossed his mind. He knit his brows and stood holding the door handle. After a while, he went inside.
***
From morning, there was a line of carriages heading towards Roam to attend the garden party hosted by the Duchess.
Because the Duchess always held small tea parties and never a ball, this garden party reached many generations.
The age group were diverse, ranging from elderly women to unmarried girls, the attendees were also diverse, composed of well-known people in the northern high society, those who were not well-known, families of vassals and those who were not families of vassals.
Everyone invited today had at least been invited once to one of the Duchess' previous tea parties.
The tea parties of the Duchess were not repetitive exchanges with a small group of people but were distinctively broad meetings with various groups of people.
The evaluation of the Duchess in the high society varied from person to person.
Those who dreamt of a grand and luxurious ball expressed their regrets while influential figures in the established high society favored the non-aggressive manner of the Duchess.
"Thank you for the invitation."
"Welcome. I'm glad you could come."
Lucia welcomed the ladies as they arrived one at a time, greeting them with a light embrace.
It was hectic constantly meeting the eyes of people and smiling at them as they entered but once there was a little gap, she called for her maid.
"Damian is running late. Go check if he's still far away and report to me."
"Yes, Milady."
There were dozens of round tables arranged in the extensive space of the garden. They were covered with white lace tablecloths and each table was decorated with a vase.
There were no designated seats, allowing people to sit freely. The attendees understood this and they made groups of twos and threes, taking up tables one at a time.
In the blink of an eyes, the garden was filled with the talk and laughter of women. It was a really good weather to schedule an outside program.
The sunlight was moderate and there was next to no wind. Even though they had already entered the cold season, it was quite cozy today.
The elevated atmosphere filled the face of the ladies with laughter.
"Lady Milton. Welcome, come on in."
"Thank you for the invitation, the weather is very good today and I know the party will be lovely."
After confirming that Kate came alone, Lucia expressed her regret.
"Madam Michelle did not come with you."
"Yes, she wanted to come but her health isn't very good these days."
Countess Corzan was weakening in energy day by day due to old age and as Countess Corzan was like a teacher to her, Lucia's heart felt uncomfortable.
"I have to go see her sometime."
"Great-aunt will be very pleased if you do."
A maid quickly went up to Lucia and informed her.
"Young Master is waiting in the first floor hall."
Kate looked on worriedly as Lucia asked to be excused and went inside. She knew ahead of time about Lucia's plan to introduce Damian at the garden party.
Kate had cautiously expressed her concerns but Lucia's thoughts on it were firm and she couldn't change her mind.
'I don't know if this will turn out okay.'
The problem of illegitimate children gaining peerage was more determined by the attitude of women than the attitude of men. No one wanted to be in a situation where an outsider comes in out of the blue, kicks away their good fortune and overtakes the child of the legal wife.
'Lucia was born a princess and then became a Duchess. She doesn't seem to know of the noble wives' mentality to an abnormal degree. Although, rather than not knowing their mentality, should I say she's detached from their desires?'
Kate had interacted with a wide range of people. If they were of like-mind, they didn't discriminate between people, regardless of their status.
So, naturally there was a lot to compare between how a person with a high status and a person with a low status differ in basic attitude.
The typical daughters that were born noble ladies, had never experienced a rough day, married that way, lived as noble ladies, and had a very narrow view.
It wasn't that they had malice but from the outset they didn't know anything else. They were arrogant, fussy, immensely prideful and selfish. Apart from a difference in degree, they were pretty much the same way.
It wasn't like Lucia did not know the attributes of such ladies. Sometimes during conversation, she was surprisingly sharp. However, understanding with one's head differed from accepting it with one's heart. To Kate, Lucia was intriguing.
It was her first time seeing someone like Lucia in such a position. Lucia wouldn't reveal herself of her own accord nor would she stand on top of anyone. She wasn't pretending to be humble, it was her nature.
There were no pretenses, no fabrications, even when saying something, she took the recipient of her words into consideration. So, Kate felt most comfortable when she was around her.
Kate's expression grew dark when she saw an elderly noble woman with her head stiffly raised high amongst the cluster of guests.
The Countess of Wales was a well-known figure in the northern high society. Even though her (Kate's) great aunt was respected by a lot of people, her great aunt's actual influence was not that significant.
This was because her great aunt did not like this woman. The Countess of Wales and her great aunt were extreme polar opposites on everything. In fact, the relationship between the two was not good at all.
The Wales family was considered one of the most prestigious and wealthy families in the North. The Countess of Wales wielded her influence to her heart's content and enjoyed people flocking towards her.
'Great-aunt said her activities have come to a lull and these days, she flaps her wings around more.'
As the Countess of Wales did not enjoy horse riding, she was never found in the horse-riding field. However, according to the rumors spreading around, when she heard that Lucia had brought Damian to the horse-riding field and introduce him to people, she'd remarked,
[She's young. She should have someone close to her, giving her wise advice.]
'I hope she doesn't stir up pointless drama today but…'
Kate knew inwardly just how smart and firm the seemingly docile Lucia was. Hence, although she was worried, she wasn't anxious.
< — Damian — > (12)
TN: ~(⁰▿⁰)~
Lucia entered the central tower and found Damian lingering around the same spot then she approached him.
"You look splendid, Damian."
Damian was dressed in a small sized adult-like tailcoat size and looked like the perfect little gentleman. Lucia wished father and son would wear tailcoats, standing side by side as she held them in each arms and entered the party venue.
The ladies wouldn't be able to take their eyes off them. Just imagining it made her smile happily.
"It's a bit…stifling." (Damian)
"You'll get used to it soon. The guests have arrived, let's go."
Damian stood still and did not move as though he'd been nailed to the ground.
"Lucia, no matter how I think about this, I…"
"Damian, from now on, you'll have to stand in front of a lot of people. Today is just the beginning. There is no need to feel pressured, if anyone misbehaves around you, just tell me. I'll teach them a lesson."
Damian stared blankly in response and Lucia put her hand on her waist.
"You don't believe me? All right. I'll tell your father instead. He's a scary person so he'll teach them a good lesson."
A little smile floated onto the boy's lips.
"Let's go."
Lucia reached out, grabbing Damian's hand and pulling at it. Damian flinched at the sudden contact. He gazed at the hand holding his and obediently followed, walking along. It was a soft and warm hand.
His gaze slowly moved from her hands to arms to her back. There was no light coming off of her but his eyes felt dazzled. He was dazed by her brightness and couldn't move his eyes away.
When the hostess of the party, the Duchess appeared, the noise gradually subsided and the venue became quiet.
Lucia glanced through the ladies of various ages sitting in gorgeous and colorful attires and announced the start of the party with a greeting.
"I would like to extend my thanks to all of you who were willing to attend today. It is my first time having so many people in one place so there might be some immaturity but I hope we all have a good time."
Amongst the ladies attending today, the ones that were older and more influential than Lucia bowed their head slightly.
"And, there is someone I would like to introduce to you all today. Damian, come on out."
Damian who was hidden from people's sight, walked up and stood beside Lucia at her call.
"You are all well aware of him. In the future, the Young Lord will be the master of Taran after the Duke. He's still young but I wanted him to give his greetings so I called for him."
Most of them could not hide their confusion at the boy's appearance. After a moment of silence, the crowd stirred. The confused ones were mainly the singles or young wives while the expressions of the older wives stiffened.
In the midst of this, one person placed down their teacup heavily, making a loud noise. It was the Countess of Wales.
Her expression was cold and she lowered her hand to her knees, her mouth tightly shut. People's gazes traveled over to the Countess.
The Countess' expression did not reveal any displeasure. She just remained silent and expressionless. As the Countess' silence grew longer and longer, the expression of people around gradually stiffened.
***
Around the time when the garden party started, Hugo was working on documents in his office. When Jerome came in with tea at his usual time, Hugo questioned him.
"Is the party going well?"
"Yes, I heard almost all the guests have arrived."
"Anyone that was invited and didn't show?"
The act of receiving an invitation and being absent without previous communication was an insult to the organizer. Unless one was without fear, they wouldn't do such a thing but because she'd said she would introduce Damian, Hugo was somewhat concerned.
"Apart from two people who informed me of their absence due to health issues and two others who sent word that they would be arriving slightly late, they are all in attendance."
Hugo nodded and shifted his eyes back to the paperwork on his desk.
Suddenly, the name 'Lucia' popped up in his head again. He would forget the name for a moment then it would pop up in his head again, the name just kept hovering around his head.
He was curious but he didn't want to ask her, it would be too embarrassing to ask her directly. After all, it had come to mind that perhaps it was just a nickname that the both of them shared between themselves.
Last night, he couldn't have his wife. Because of the garden party, she had to get up early and had him promise not to touch her at all so he really only hugged her and slept.
She slept sweetly, not caring about him who was too flared up to sleep. Without any power or energy, what bait could he throw to catch her?
"By any chance, have you heard of the name, 'Lucia'?"
Hugo was spewing these words bitterly, like a complaint, but when Jerome replied with 'Yes', Hugo quickly lifted his head.
"You've heard of it? Who is it?"
Jerome tensed up in the face of his master's unusual reaction. While thinking that there was no way his master didn't know, he had answered indifferently but his master didn't seem to know.
'Oh dear. Milady, why is Master not aware of this?'
Jerome expressed his frustration to the madam inwardly.
"…That…I heard it was Milady's childhood name."
His master gave no response to that.
Jerome broke out in cold sweat. His master really did not know. He began to get worried as to whether the two of them would have another serious fight like last time.
"Did my wife tell you directly?"
"No, I chanced upon Lady Milton calling Milady by that name so I asked Milady about it."
"Okay. You may go."
After Jerome left, the office was quiet and Hugo sat staring at a paper but none of the words on it were entering his brain.
The daughter of Baron Milton knew, Damian knew, even Jerome knew but only he didn't know.
Hugo was yet again shocked. Her heart was still firmly shut and under lock and key. Perhaps it will keep being so in the future.
[I will never love you]
[There's nothing after it ends.]
He put the pen and paper in his hands down, clasped his head with his hands and let his head drop onto the desk. His chest felt stifled, like there was a huge rock pressing down on it.
It felt like wandering in a desert and the end could not be seen. He found something he wanted for the first time since his brother's death but it was something he could never get.
Perhaps it was comparable to the desperation of a man dying from hunger as he looked at a fruit that was simply out of reach. Even though he took deep breaths, his clogged up chest did not ease up.
After the death of his brother, his world slowly became colorless. It was boring and meaningless. However, he didn't know when it began but recently, he hadn't thought of the world as tiresome.
At some point, his world was full of color and his seemingly stopped heart began beating again. If he were to lose her, his world would die again. As long as she was his wife, she could not leave him.
However, marriage could not bind the heart. No contract in the world could do that. If her heart had not yet been given to another, he could bear it.
However, what if she gave it to someone else? What if she gave her body to him while sharing her heart with another?
He closed his eyes as he hazily sank into the darkness within his mind. The sound of knocking on his door pulled him back into reality.
The one he didn't want to answer the most, Ashin, hurriedly entered his office.
"Your Grace, urgent report on the outbreak of an epidemic."
He sighed. How exhausting. He wasn't even allowed time to get sentimental. The northern land was a very large land so incidents happened without rest.
Just like riding on an old ship with water leakage, when one blocks one of the holes, the water comes in from somewhere else. He barely managed to get his heart that wanted to throw it all way under control and summoned some enthusiasm.
"What epidemic in this weather?"
"Reportedly, dozens of people in the fief complained of the same symptoms and the disease occurred in batches. Since it's a place that's only three to four hours away on horse, I didn't continue monitoring the situation and contacted you."
Hugo stood up immediately. If it was really epidemic, the consequence of it spreading to Roam would be the worst of worsts.
"I will head out immediately. Have the knights on standby and get physicians that can ride."
"Understood. Since Sir Philip is opportunely staying in Roam at the moment, shall I request for Sir Philip to get ready?"
Hugo frowned.
"Except that old g… except Philip. Find another doctor."
Ashin acquiesced and withdrew.
Hugo roughly arranged the documents on his desk and after a while, he left his office. After being informed of this news, Jerome quickly brought his master's white unnamed horse outside and waited for him.
Hugo urgently ordered one of his hurrying knights to find and bring a doctor along, then he departed first with the rest of his knights.
Translator's Corner:
*Thank you guys for commenting!! I look forward to the comments everytime I upload cuz y'all are hilarious and it keeps me going XD.
* I wonder what the old windbag will do next *chokes on laughter*
< — Damian — > (13)
TN: Couldn't find an emoji that suited my mood translating this (╯°□°）╯︵ ┻━┻
It was a place that held more than a 100 people but it was quiet to the point that even the sound of breathing could not be heard. No one opened their mouth, laughed or touched their cups.
Covered with bright makeup and colorful dresses, these women eerily spotted the same wooden expressions. This began with the Countess of Wales.
"What seems to be the problem, Countess Wales?"
"I understood today's party to be one for women. This purpose doesn't seem to fit that."
"It is just a child. Although a male child, one cannot say there has been no such precedence. Especially in the capital."
Lucia replied with special emphasis on the last word. The northern high society could not compare to the capital's high society whether it was in scale or people.
Even if one brags about being famous in the northern high society, one is simply big fish in a little pond. Lucia choose words that would hurt the Countess' pride to give her a strong warning. How about withdrawing at this point?
"If you put it that way, then I have nothing else to say."
The Countess of Wales answered, deliberately displaying a sullen expression. The sly Countess found the Duchess' provocation about the capital ridiculous.
'Just as I thought, the Duchess has been hiding her true colors.'
The gentle and docile appearance she showed at tea parties was also a lie. The Countess thought the Duchess acting as though she wasn't interested in the northern high society was a lie.
To say she had no desire to use her status as the Duchess to control the high society? That was no way she didn't have such desires. Sure enough, she was obviously in the process of passively exploring for now.
'Duchess, if you think you can seize the north high society with just your status as a Duchess, you're heavily mistaken.'
If there was world where status and rank did not have absolute reign, it was the high society. Just like the Queen could not dominate the capital's high society with just her status, the northern high society also couldn't be dominated with just status.
'Becoming a Duchess after being a princess merely appears good.'
If the Duchess thought about it a little more, she would know that much. The Countess held a lot of interest in the capital's high society so she was well-informed on the rumors in the capital and she knew what rumors were currently spreading in the capital about the Duchess.
Not all rumors were true but the Countess knew many things that the northern people did not know. For instance, she knew that the Duchess did not have a single relative and was merely one of many princesses in the castle.
There was also many suspicious points about her marriage to the Duke. According to a credible rumor source, the King and the Duke had some sort of contract.
When the Countess heard the rumor depicting the Duchess as a celestial beauty, she laughed her head off. She also deemed the rumor that the ducal couple led a happily married life to be a groundless rumor.
The Countess knew of the Taran Duke's female exploits very well. The Duke was never a man to settle for one woman.
'Duchess, if you want to hold on to that seat for long time, you have to place helpful people by your side. Not that old thing on her last legs.'
The fact that the Countess of Corzan was the first person to meet the Duchess and was requested to teach the Duchess about the high society, was pretty much the topic of discussion in the high society. Due to this, the Countess of Wales was dissatisfied.
Her influence was far superior to the Countess of Corzan yet people looked up to the Countess of Corzan and called her Godmother.
'Nothing but an old thing in a back room teaching bridal lessons at best.'
Acting aloof and admonishing while using the reason that she was much older, the very sight of Countess Corzan sickened the Countess of Wales. Not being able to see the Countess of Corzan these days made her feel completely refreshed.
So in today's garden party, the Countess of Wales intended to highlight her existence to the Duchess, no matter the means and just in the nick of time, the Duchess gave her a very good means.
The moment the young lord appeared, the countess made all her calculations in an instant then she began a silent protest. Her justification being the party's purpose.
Damian had been announced as the successor to the Duke and it wasn't something one could not formally question it. Hence, there was no one that did not know that the Countess' justification was simply just that, a justification.
Beginning with the Countess, the elderly women acted together, the young ladies chatted cluelessly at first but as time passed, they became conscious of their surroundings and followed passively.
It had almost been an hour and a half since the party was declared as started but people sat like dolls without any expression.
Not everyone was in sync. In this situation, Kate appeared very casual, deliberately making loud noises, drinking tea and eating sweets. However, she lacked the ability to overturn the situation alone.
The Countess of Wales was too strong an opponent for Kate. Kate had her great-aunt behind her so she could openly oppose it but the other young ladies could not.
Party-breaking.
It was an event of power struggle between the organizer and the attendees. (1). Or in the case where an organizer commits a mistake that should be socially or ethically criticized, the high society punishes them in the manner of party-breaking.
The method was simple. The attendees would just remain silent.
If the party-break wasn't for the purpose of punishment but for a problem that occurred during the party, until the problem was resolved, the attendees would keep their mouth shut, as if declaring their absence.
When a person began to lead a party-break, unless someone else with similar influence to the leader opposes them, it was the rule that other people would turn a blind eye and follow along.
'If great-aunt was here, it wouldn't have become like this.'
Kate was overwhelmed with regret. Party-breaking was a war for women. There were no deaths or loud cries like in a man's war but at times it was more cruel and bloody.
Also unlike a man's war, in the high society's struggle for power, status and rank were not absolute. If one approaches a situation by throwing down one's status, gradually one would be treated as an outcast in the high society.
Lucia looked over the crowd with a frosty expression. The maids were pale with fright and had crowded themselves in a corner. Contrarily, Damian's expression was the very placid.
Lucia had once witnessed the sight of a party-break occurring in her dream. A party-break was impossible in a very small tea party or in a grand ball where many people, both male and female, were in attendance. It was only plausible in a moderate meeting were only women were in attendance.
The party-break she witnessed happened just like today. From her experience in her dream, there had never been a party-break for rational or reasonable purposes.
A high society faction dispute, a confrontation between women's cliques, a revenge led by the wife to punish the adulterous organizer. These were the reasons for most of them.
Lucia knew the way to conclude a party-break. If the organizer and the attendees appeared to have a plausible reconciliation, the party could finish up safely.
Usually, it was the organizer that took a step back. This was because if one's party fails in the middle, it was a huge disgrace.
The way to resolve this situation was clear. Damian had to be sent out of the party.
Translator's Corner:
(1). I originally wanted to translate this as: 'It was a dick measuring contest between the organizer and the attendees' but I refrained. Hah.
(2). ┬──┬ ノ( ゜-゜ノ)
< — Damian — > (13)
TN: Σ(゜ロ゜;)
The way to resolve this situation was clear. Damian had to be sent out of the party.
However, Lucia had no thoughts of doing so. The Countess of Wales had the wrong idea from the beginning. Lucia held no attachment to the high society. She already had her fill of acting graceful and conversational at social activities in her dream.
Lucia turned to face the crowd and declared in a cool voice.
"Everyone, I'm afraid we cannot have an enjoyable time today. This event is now dismissed."
The ladies stirred.
"I won't see you off, you don't deserve it."
Then she gave an order to the maids.
"Please show the guests out."
The maids in the corner straightened up and answered resolutely. The confidence of their madam became the saving grace to the pride of the employees. When the maids began to move around in a bustling manner, the masks of the women broke and they started exchanging glances.
"Today, you have all deceived me, the Duchess and Lady of Taran. You will soon realize that this was not a wise move."
Lucia's cold threat did not conform to the rules of the high society. The expression of the older women in particular sank inwardly. However, no one revealed their discomfort.
Even if the Duchess had no influence over the high society, if one were to commit an act that disregarded her rank openly, one had to be fearful of the later consequences.
"Someday, your son or grandson will have my son as their master. I can see the saying of 'parents ruining the futures of their child' refers to a case like this."
Lucia thundered icily then turned around and headed straight for the central tower, abandoning the crowd. After the Duchess disappeared, the buzzing of the ladies grew louder.
"Ah? What in the world is this?"
"Tell me about it, I didn't think about the aftermath and just committed."
"The Duchess is not the usual type to get angry. It's scary when a normally gentle person gets angry. What should we do?"
The criticism was concentrated on 10 elderly women including the Countess of Wales who led the party-break. Ignoring their faults in following along, they shifted the blame to another, despite this pathetic behavior, they didn't dare to voice their criticism to the Countess of Wales.
"Keu-heum." (TN: Clearing of throat)
As the recipients of those uncomfortable gazes, the leaders were the first to leave with sour expressions.
The Countess of Wales' expression stiffened.
'It shouldn't have turned out this way, why…'
This was because the Countess had purposefully tried to calculate the probable outcomes of the party-break. Even if one is seasoned and experienced in socializing, when actually faced with a party-break, one would fall into confusion.
The Countess saw that the newly married young Duchess had little experience in the high societal socializing and thought that she would be unlikely to know what a party-break was.
The Countess thought that the Duchess would be flustered and would surely send the young lord out to fix the situation. After all, the young lord was not the Duchess' biological son.
When the Countess heard one day that the Duchess was carrying the Duke's extramarital child and going around, she thought it to be impressive.
To her, the ducal couple was a couple in appearances only.
There was no doubt that the Duchess thought of securing her place as the Duchess using the young lord, hence Duchess' comely actions to the young lord were not sincere.
After all, which sane women would do something to block the future of their unborn child?
She was deliberately trying to figure out what the Duchess' hidden intentions were, so using the fact that she was young and inexperienced, she spoke cynically. It made people think that the Duchess was unhappy with the act of bringing the illegitimate child of the Duke around with her.
It was amateurish to think that a relationship between one person and another could only be achieved through meeting face to face and having intimate conversations. A true pro is one that know the heart of another without meeting face to face.
When party break happens, the Duchess would be unable to win and would have taken a step back first. Initially, her pride would be hurt and she would fume with anger however as time goes by, she would realize that the incident was not too bad.
In the view of others, the Duchess had done her best. She was humiliated in trying to defend an extramarital child, so no matter how one looked at it, she was be a generous mother with ample tolerance.
When the Duchess' mind calmed down, the Countess would then lessen herself and secretly swoop in. After which the hurt pride of the Duchess would be restored and they would be able to cultivate a close relationship. This was all the Countess of Wales had calculated inwardly.
However, the Countess' biggest mistake was not properly understanding what kind of person Lucia was. No matter how often the two of them met, the Countess and Lucia could not fully understand each other. The thoughts and beliefs of the two were inextricably parallel.
The tycoon of the northern high society who seemed to have shot herself in the foot by taking it a few moves too far was now putting her brain to work.
(TN: Random gossip)
"What should I do? If my husband finds out about this, he'll give me a hard time."
"Look at the place to lie before stretching your legs. You know very well what kind of person the Duke of Taran is, so why did you do it?"
"It's a social thing for women. It's not the case for a man to meddle."
"Does everything always follow the same principle? Rumor has it the ducal couple's conjugal relationship is pretty good. If a woman whispers coquettishly, can any man can resist?"
"Ah, I don't know. I'll have refuse any outings and stay quiet for a while."
"Why ever did Countess Wales flare up over the Duke's heir like that?"
"Did you not know? The Count of Wales took in an extramarital daughter like that and went around with her. In the end, the extramarital daughter was married off to the Count."
"Oh my, then the Count and the daughter of the in-laws…"
"The funny thing is, the Countess of Wales squeezed out some tears from her daughter-in-law and then not long after, two extramarital grandsons were entered into the family register."
"My goodness."
Damian watched with cold red eyes, saving the actions of the noble ladies with his eyes and ears. Today, the boy graphically witnessed the figures of those he had to step on to advance in the future.
It was a completely different direction from what Lucia had hoped for but it was a great lesson anyways.
Some women unintentionally locked eyes with Damian, causing them to flinch and turn away. After clamoring in groups, the remaining women began to depart from their seats.
When the number of people in the garden decreased a lot, Damian also left the event.
Translator's Corner:
1) The Korean saying, 'look at the place to lie before stretching your legs' means do something if you're sure of it or you can perfect it, otherwise don't do it.
*I'll be travelling back to college this Saturday. Chapters for this week may/may not be delayed. If they are delayed (aka not in by Sunday) , I'll do 5 chapters next week. Also, classes start nxt week.
< — Damian — > (14)
TN: (๑ơ ₃ ơ)♥
Lucia entered the central tower and checked behind her. The Damian who said he would be following shortly was nowhere to be found.
She asked a maid to fetch him and went into the receiving room. She sat down, placed her head on the sofa and closed her eyes. Her head was hurting.
'I was too complacent. To think it would be a party-break.'
She thought too lightly of the women's stubborn pride that wouldn't break even if their neck was snapped. She let her guard down at the fact that the atmosphere here was distinctly different from the one in the capital's social circles.
She also might have been conceited about the fact that she was a Duchess without even realizing it. Even though she knew that in the high society, one's reputation and personal connection accumulated over the years was much more important that status, she had foolishly overlooked it.
'From the first time I saw that woman, I didn't really like her.'
Lucia was deeply impressed by the character of Countess Corzan, the godmother of the northern high society so she had high expectations before meeting the Countess of Wales, whose influence was much greater. However, her expectations quickly turned into disappointment.
In Lucia's eyes, the countess of Wales that was invited to her tea party a couple of times was like a snake in human skin.
It was mistake to just smile in the past because she wanted to avoid unnecessary confrontation. Because now, the countess took her to be a joke and led this kind of thing.
'Although I knew it wouldn't be easy.'
Which is why she'd asked Kate to definitely bring the Countess of Corzan if possible. She wanted to have a safety shield. There was no way the countess wouldn't know how to build up a frontal confrontation when faced with a party break. Her mistake of not being careful was painful.
'Is Countess Wales wrathful because of her extramarital issues?' It would be too shallow to just see it as a crafty high society greeting. If she particularly wanted to humiliate Lucia using the party-break, she had a lot more to lose than to gain from it.
Even if one's status was not absolute in the high society, status could never be ignored. Moreover, the Duke of Taran's absolute influence in the north was not inferior to that of the King's in the capital.
The Countess of Wales wouldn't have thought to do such a thing if she hadn't assumed what was in Lucia's mind and calculated off of that.
One villain recognizes another. No matter how much Lucia observed the behavior of groups in the high society, she did not have a mind twisted enough to grasp the psychology of the people who were capable of scheming and conspiring.
'A person's actions can't be judged with only rationality.'
It was unprecedented that an illegitimate child entered into the family was selected as a candidate. Lucia began to mull over the problem a bit more seriously.
'If the northern atmosphere is like this then the capital's must be formidable as well.'
She wondered if he had any idea on how to resolve this issue. Seeing as he didn't think bringing Damian to social party was a big deal, he may not have any ideas.
'Damian taking over the title may the beginning of a different flow in the future. That's probably why people are resistant.'
She was too hasty. She didn't want to miss this chance since Damian might soon be going back to the Academy. She introduced Damian at the horse riding field and took it lightly because the garden party could not be Damian's formal social debut.
She opened her eyes and checked around but Damian was still nowhere to be found.
'Hasn't it been a while since I asked the maid to get him?'
The headache was making her irritated. She called for another maid.
"Why is it taking so long to fetch the young lord?"
The maid immediately left in haste then returned after a while.
"Milady, the young master did not answer when asked to come in. The one who receive Milady's order first is by the young master's side not knowing what to do."
"What is Damian doing outside?"
"Nothing…just looking at people."
"…Alright."
What could the child be thinking as he watched those people? She had to ask him when he came in.
Lucia closed her eyes again.
"Lucia."
At some point, Kate had entered and was sitting next to Lucia, holding her hand. Lucia opened her eyes and seeing Kate, she gave her a smile.
"Thank you for today, Kate."
"No, I was of no help at all. Don't be too upset. By all means, just think of it as a rite of passage."
Kate was worried that Lucia would be overcome with shame because of her broken pride. However, Lucia did not care about things like an organizer's pride. Even though it was in her dream, she had worked as a nursing maid for a noblewoman. This type of thing wasn't enough for her pride to feel humiliated.
"It's okay. And I'm sorry Kate but do you mind going back for today? I have a lot to think about."
Kate replied that she understood, spoke a few more words of warmth and comfort then left.
Lucia called Jerome who was continuously lingering around.
"Is he in the office?"
"No. An urgent message arrived and master had to head out. There was no definitive reply as to whether master would return today."
Lucia felt both slightly sad and relieved at the same time.
"I will inform him of today's matter so don't tell him directly."
"Yes, Milady"
"Also, will you call Anna for me?"
The headache was getting worse so she thought to have some medicine. After Jerome went out, Lucia sent all the maids away.
She looked at Damian who had come in some moments ago and beckoned him over.
"Damian, come here."
Damian approached and went on his knees before Lucia. Lucia sprang up in surprise.
"I'm sorry. Because of me…" (Damian)
The boy did not care how others looked at him. No matter how intense the unfriendly gazes were, they did not cause any direct harm. However, he didn't want them to send such gazes to Lucia.
Damian didn't know the high society very well, neither did he know what a party-break was but he knew the earlier situation had humiliated Lucia.
Anger. He felt anger at his weakness. The situation would have turned out completely different if his father was there.
"No, Damian. Why do you have to apologize?"
Lucia felt tears threaten to break out and reach out to lift Damian, taking him into her embrace. Damian said he didn't like it from the beginning, she was the one that persuaded him and eventually the result was such.
'I should have gone about it a different way. It would have been okay to introduce him just about when the party was finishing but I was too greedy.'
"I'm sorry, Damian. I didn't think of you. I didn't think that you could be hurt and only thought of myself."
As he liked the nice fragrance and soft feeling of the embrace, Damian was holding his breath and doing his best to stay still. He thought if he moved even a little bit, Lucia would be surprised and move away.
"I'm sorry. I'm sorry." (Lucia)
"I…It's all right."
Damian was really fine. He had completely forgotten about the meaningless gazes of those women that didn't know anything the moment Lucia said, 'my son,' earlier. The words were still replaying in the boy's head and touched his heart.
"It's not your fault, Damian. What people do is not your fault. Adults are not all wise."
Lucia's voice grew shaky at the end. At the sound of small sobbing, Damian stiffened.
'Don't cry because of me,' the words in head were stuck in his throat, refusing to come out. Little by little, he carefully inched forward, placing his forehead on Lucia's shoulders.
It was the first time someone cried for the sake of the boy. His throat felt as though it was hot and constricted, and his eyes felt flushed.
It was just a little. But the boy's eyes were wet.
Translator's Corner
*extramarital= out-of-wedlock. Think concubine's child except not a concubine. Most of you guys know this but still.
< — Damian — > (14)
What ended up happening was different from what Hugo was worried about. It was not a mass epidemic but a mass food poisoning. In this weather, whether it was an epidemic or food poisoning, both of these weren't common occurrences but the Duke didn't have to come in person.
The expression of the village lord that sent the report and hence wasted the Duke's time was dark.
"A poisonous mushroom?" (Hugo)
"Yes, your Grace. This mushroom looks edible on the outside but once eaten, it cases stomachache, diarrhea, vomiting and red spots all over the body."
As soon as the doctor familiar with poisonous herbs and poisonous mushrooms was brought in, he looked at some patients, asked a few questions then found the mushroom in the remaining food reserves. In a short moment, the problem was instantly resolved.
The villagers who were shaken by the fear of an epidemic were frightened out of their wits by the sudden appearance of the big-shot Duke however when the issue was resolved within a couple hours of the Duke's arrival, their expression changed to that of wonder.
Their gazes were full of awe as they looked at the Duke inwardly saying to themselves, 'as expected, that's our Duke.'
"If the mushroom is from around here, there's no way the people wouldn't know about it."
"Yes, Your Grace. This mushroom is not one to inhabit this area. You have to go a bit more to the north with colder climate to find it."
"How did this happen?" (Hugo)
"Speak truthfully." (Village Lord)
In response to Hugo's question, the village lord urged an old man that was tied up with a rope and prostrated on the floor. The old man was a shop owner who ran a food store in the village and was the one to supply the mushrooms.
"Yes..yes…Uh…a few days ago, I bought a large quantity of food stuff through the upper channels but I don't know what happened…"
"Enough. You made this situation happen, did you not? What feelings in the world did you have to unleash poisonous mushrooms on your people?"
"Ai! I'm innocent, my lord. This one would never do such a thing on purpose."
As the Duke watched the situation unfold, with the old man tearfully expressing his innocence with a runny nose, an official came to report to him.
"I think the upper channels will have to be placed under watch and tracked. The mushrooms cannot be distinguished properly hence one cannot tell if the supply is indiscriminate."
"Dispatch and track immediately. Investigate along the upper levels to see if they have suffered any similar damage. The doctor will remain behind and treat the patients. Collect all the mushrooms discovered in the village and dispose of them."
"Yessir!"
Responses came from all over the place.
"Your Grace, I made a mistake judging the situation and have caused you unnecessary trouble."
The village lord apologized somberly.
"No, the quick reaction was excellent."
The expression of the lord that had readied himself to receive the Duke's wrath brightened considerably.
"Deal with the rest of this."
"Yes, Your Grace."
There was nothing else to see in the village. Although their horse riding for three hours straight ended up in vain, the situation here was much better than an epidemic occurring.
Hugo and his Knights left for Roam, leaving a few people to handle the remaining affairs. The day was getting darker. When they weren't too far from Roam, Hugo and his knights gathered around a small fountain to quench the thirst of both horse and man.
Hugo took a guess at what time it was and by his estimate, by the time they reached Roam, it would be quite dark. It was likely that dinner time would be adjusted or it would be a little later than usual.
Hugo called for Dean.
"Go ahead and tell them not to blow the horns when I arrive."
It would be good if he could arrive before the meal began but if he was a little late, he didn't want her come out and meet him during her meal. Dean received his orders and departed earlier. After a while, Hugo and his Knight took their horses and began heading back en masse.
They ran without rest and arrived at Roam. Hugo rode his horse all the way inside the castle before stopping. One of the servants was surprised to see Hugo coming down from his horse and quickly ran inside. After a while, Jerome came running out.
"Your Grace arrived the castle yet there was no announcement…"
"I told them not to make a fuss."
Hugo immediately started heading to his office followed by Jerome. After a while, the three siblings dedicated to serving the Duke came into the office with a change of clothes. They waited on Hugo as he changed out of his dusty clothes.
"What about dinner?" (Hugo)
"It's almost ready." (Jerome)
"I didn't come late then."
Hugo went straight to his desk and sat down. There were several documents laid out for him to look through. There were also documents in the corner, marked red for urgency.
'No time to breathe,' he muttered to himself as he picked up a document and opened it.
"Did the garden party go well?"
Because of the party, the atmosphere in the castle was gloomy all day. Remembering the words of the madam telling him not to say anything directly, Jerome replied:
"Yes."
"Call me when dinner is ready."
Hugo leaned halfway across his desk, his butt sitting halfway on his chair and began to read through the document.
* * *
Lucia slept off after taking the medicine for headache and when she woke up, she continued to remain lying on the sofa. Even though she had taken some medicine before sleeping, the headache still hadn't eased up.
Her throbbing head was irritating and she didn't feel well so Lucia lay sniveling and unmoving on the bedroom sofa.
Around when dinner was almost ready, her headache had settled down so she began to move and a maid came in to tell her that the Duke had returned.
"What? He's back?"
Lucia thought he wouldn't be returning today. She asked the maid to bring a mirror and as expected, her eyes were swollen. If she knew it would be like this, she would have placed a pack on her eyes.
"Bring me a cold towel."
Lucia could only use this as a temporary measure. However, there was not a lot of time. It was announced that dinner would be out very soon.
"How is it? Do my eyes look very bad?"
"It has settled down a lot better than before. At first glance, one cannot tell."
If he didn't notice during dinner, then it was fine. After dinner, he would be going back to his office; after all, he usually got busier when he returned from an outing. Lucia kept the cold towel on for a bit longer, hoping that her eyes would settle down a bit more. She didn't want him to know that she had cried for nothing.
When she went down to the dining hall, Damian was already there. Hugo came in a little later and sat down. Hugo picked up his spoon and his gaze naturally fell on her. His forehead wrinkled and his hand froze.
As soon as he placed the spoon down loudly on the table, the atmosphere in the dining hall froze over. He swiftly got up and approached her figure that was looking rather embarrassed.
His hand clutched the table while his other hand held her jaw to face him. Her reddened eyes were clearly revealed to him. His gaze deepened and his eyes looked like they would burst into flames.
"What happened?" (Hugo)
Lucia was conscious of the surrounding gazes on her and naturally turned her head, dropping her gaze. She didn't know he would react like this. She thought that even if he noticed something, he would ask her questions later. She was deeply embarrassed because the servants as well as Damian were in the room.
"Let's eat first…"
He firmly grabbed her chin again and lifted her head backward to look over more carefully. Her clear amber eyes were heavily red. Did she cry? Why?
"Jerome!"
The always ready butler, Jerome, gave his master the answer he wanted.
"At the garden party, the ladies performed a party-break."
"Party break?"
"It is an act of artificially ending a party where many of the attendees keep silent."
"Reason."
"…Young Master Damian."
Hugo didn't need to hear any more, he could roughly grasp the situation.
"What did they do to you?"
There was violence within his soft voice.
"Nothi…didn't do anything…"
They merely rejected the party with blank expressions and silence but didn't do anything to her directly. She didn't feel displeased at all and it wasn't enough to make her cry. It was just that she felt sorry to Damian and was crying because she was upset. She had also already cried to her heart's content.
However the moment he asked her what happened, her nose got sore. It was the same principle as tears coming to one's eyes when seeing someone else tear up. She was going to calmly explain to him the events that transpired when he came back, but his words were bringing her to tears.
Hugo's expression stiffened as he watched tears begin to fill her eyes. He lifted her from her seat and took her into his arms. Like carrying a child, one of his arms supported her thighs while his other arm was wrapped around her back so her head could be buried in his chest.
"Move our dinner to the second floor. Damian, eat and go to your room."
"Yes."
Damian looked on worriedly as the Duke carried Lucia out of the dining hall in his embrace. He was worried about Lucia because she hadn't come out of her room almost all day and his heart felt uncomfortable all day long.
Damian hoped to see his mother smiling just as usual when tomorrow comes.
< — Damian — > (15)
TN: Yes! it's another chapter~ I'm in a good mood!
Hugo carried her in a hug as he entered the bedroom and sat on the couch. Lucia buried her face in his wide chest and burst into tears.
Hugo stroked her head as he rhythmically patted her back. Her sobbing did not stop, rather it grew even louder. The crying was not only because of the garden party. Lucie herself did not even know why she was crying so much.
She was just sad, and in the face of his gentle comfort, her tears refused to stop flowing. She hadn't been able to cry since she entered the palace at the age of 12 and crying so much now was as though she was washing all that away.
Hugo gently stroked her back without saying a word however he was seething inside. Even though she seemed weak, he knew just how strong of a person she was. What in the world could have happen for her to cry like this?
Those wives that have nothing to do with their time must have lost their minds. To his woman that was too precious to even touch, they dare? He will make them regret it. His deep rage was continuously increasing.
After a long period of time, Lucia leaned forward in his arms and her crying was starting to come to an end. Hugo simply hugged her, not saying any comforting words or telling her not to cry, however, she felt a lot of comfort from his attitude.
Lucia lifted her head, fixing her gaze on him and he looked down, meeting her eyes.
"No more crying?"
Lucia felt more or less embarrassed as she nodded her head. After crying like that with no restraint, she felt somewhat lighthearted.
"I have to…wash up…"
She felt ashamed to show him her face smeared full of tears. He grabbed her as she tried to get up and held out a wet towel. Lucia did not know because she was crying but in the meantime, a maid had come in and tactfully placed it by the side. She took the towel and meticulously wiped her face then she looked down and found the front of his shirt wet from all her crying.
"It's wet…because of me."
Lucia hesitated for a moment then she reached out and unfastened a button on his shirt. As she unfastened it one by one, his well-defined chest muscles were gradually revealed and her hands began to tremble more and more. When she got to the middle, her heart was pounding too hard and she took her hand off.
"Bring a change of clothes…"
Hugo grabbed her wrists mid-speech. She looked at him in surprise and found his eyes shining dangerously.
"Finish taking it off." (Hugo)
She glared at him with trembling eyes then she swallowed hard, and reached out to unfasten the rest of his buttons with shaky hands. When the last button was undone, she subconsciously swept her hands across his naked chest. She was impressed by the firmness of his skin and her heart throbbed at the sight of his refined and beautiful muscles.
Suddenly, shame washed over her and she quickly took her hands off and began to turn around as if to get up but his hands moving to catch hers were much faster. His lips quickly met hers and his tongue swept over her lips then he smacked his lips as though mulling over the taste.
"Salty."
Lucia's face instantly turned red. There was an obvious spark in his red eyes that were fixed on her. His always passionate and wanting gaze was glued onto her and her body reacted sensitively to this gaze.
It was a cute and innocent reaction to the extent of a loud pounding heart. Her body felt hot, her breathing quickened and the deep part between her legs felt electrified.
As she gazed into his red eyes, she recalled once thinking that the red color was very cold. However, she couldn't remember when that was. At some point, his gazes on her had become like this all the time.
'Does he…always look at women he's in the bedroom with this way?'
She recalled the scene of Sophia Lawrence desperately clinging to him. 'It's not like the Duke of Taran is the only man left in the world', she had mumbled to herself and clicked her tongue. That's why they say, 'the world is full of things one doesn't know and one shouldn't put their mouth in other people's businesses'.
She didn't think a day would come where she could understand Sofia Lawrence's feelings like this. She wondered if there was any woman who could receive such a gaze and bear it when it suddenly turns cold. As time went on, her love of him gradually grew bigger and bigger.
Her determination to love him and not hope for a requital was strangely shaken the more tenderly he treated her. She was afraid that one day she would become the type of clingy woman that he despised.
'It's fine like this.'
For now, she was happy enough. He was a very tender and passionate husband. To ask for more would be greedy. In this way, she comforted herself.
Lucia placed both hands on his shoulders and pushed down, using it to propel her body upwards. As his eyes were fixated on her, his head naturally went up to meet her eyes. The feeling of looking down on him from above gave her a strange and odd sense of superiority.
She pressed down more on his shoulders and lowered her head to kiss him. She gently bit his lower lips like he always did to her and licked his lips with her tongue. Soon enough, the carefully started kisses gradually became provocative. Because he stayed still, she acted more lively in rubbing over his lips.
When their lips separated, the embarrassment from what she just did seemed to flood over her and the heat from her face spread throughout her body.
"You haven't eaten because of me. You must be hungry…"
Before her sentence could finish, he grabbed her neck and greedily devoured her lips. Her lips were swallowed at once and his tongue dove into her mouth. As his tongue rummaged the inside her mouth without reserve, her hands grabbing onto the collars of his shirt trembled.
The kiss was long enough to leave her breathless. When he moved away, she began to gasp for air.
"You're talking about food now?"
After stirring me up like this? He growled, feeling the heat in his body rising.
"…I'm hungry too." (Lucia)
Hugo sighed heavily. Although it didn't really matter to him if he didn't eat once or twice…
"…Can't have you go hungry." (Hugo)
Hugo carried her like that and went out into the drawing room connected to the bedroom. There were meals for two people already set out on the table. The meal was over shortly.
Lucia, the hungry one, couldn't eat any more and lay down the fork and around the same time, Hugo also finished his meal.
Translator's Corner:
*We have achieved a community goal on patreon for the first time ever ? ?!!! Fireworks! Cannons! Knives! (Wait what?)
*I hope no one else has issue finding last chapter. The Novel Updates link is corrected.
*If no mishaps happen, releases will increase to 4/week for the whole of September, starting September 1st.
< — Damian — > (15)
Lucia called the maid and asked for a change of clothes to be brought for him. For a while, she sat on the sofa, completely absorbed in watching him as he changed out of his shirt. Looking at his revealed upper body, she fell into delusions.
Just like how he caresses and licks all over her body, she wanted to lay him down and taste him. When such a thought arose in her mind, she was startled and jumped in surprise.
'You really are crazy.'
It was fortunate that no one could look into her head. While she was adjusting her breath to calm her pounding heart down, Hugo came up and sat beside her on the sofa.
"Still not feeling well?"
"No, I'm fine."
Lucia leaned her head on his shoulder. His arms went across, lightly grabbing her shoulders and wrapping his arms around her.
"Thanks to you, it's okay now. After crying so much, I feel quite refreshed. Have you ever had such an experience?"
"I don't know. I've never cried before."
When his brother died, he felt like his heart was being ripped out so he ran away from his horse to be alone and screamed, however no tears fell from his eyes.
Lucia was not surprised to hear that he had never cried. Since it was him, it was quite reasonable.
"Now, tell me. What happened?" (Hugo)
"…Just as you heard earlier. The garden party was a mess due to the party-break. The guests were displeased at my introduction of Damian, but I did not want to concede, so I simply dismissed the party. It's something that often happens in high society."
"If it's a common thing, why did you cry your eyes out?"
"That…wasn't just because of the party. I was a little upset because I felt that Damian was hurt by my wrong judgement of the situation."
Does one cry till they're exhausted because they feel a little upset? Hugo could not understand her psychology behind bursting into tears so even though he wasn't convinced, he let it pass.
"The boy is not that weak."
"Yes. He is your son, after all. But he's still only eight years old. He's young."
"Who was the initiator?"
Ferocity lay hidden beneath his soft and calm tone. From deep within his red eyes, brutality overflowed as if he would pounce and rip someone's throat out in an instant. The normally hidden nature of Hugh was awakened. He felt the desire to find the person who gave her pain and make them taste blood.
The savage beast in his eyes hid itself the moment Lucia lifted her head.
"Don't do anything." (Lucia)
"…Don't do what?"
"High society is a woman's matter. You shouldn't interfere."
If he interfered, it would be utter chaos. The very foundation of the northern high society would be shaken. If such a situation occurred, not only Madam Michelle, even Kate could turn their backs on her.
"…"
When he became sullen and did not reply, Lucia appealed to him.
"Please promise me. Promise me that you won't interfere with this."
"I'll take care of it."
"Hugh! No, don't do this for me. I won't blame you nor will fingers be pointed at me."
"Who dares?"
"Hugh!"
He couldn't resist the sight of her quivering eyes as she implored him.
"…Okay."
"You promise?"
"I said okay."
Inwardly, he was grumbling. He didn't want to idle around and do nothing. She didn't have the heart to completely step on them till they couldn't make a sound.
Hugo didn't know about other things but he was very confident in crushing people under his feet. However, he couldn't even show that off to her and prove his skill.
"What are you going to do?" (Hugo)
"I'm still thinking. I don't plan on having a hasty retaliation." (Lucia)
"You don't plan on letting it cool down and blow over, right?"
"I'm not a fool to overcome this by remaining silent. I'll deal with it nicely, don't worry."
"What's so complicated? Bring a few instigated…"
Lucia's head abruptly shot upright, revealing narrowed eyes and Hugo closed his mouth.
"I'm saying this again, but don't ever do something like that. This is different from men's. The world of women is not that simple."
Whether man or a woman, they both die when they lose their neck so Hugo couldn't understand why it was so complicated. However, he obediently replied that he understood. It was somehow terrifying to see his docile wife looking so aggressive.
"So you really don't need my help." (Hugo)
She looked really energetic. Even if he didn't want it to the extent of clinging and whimpering about it, he would like it if she complained to him.
"I will tell you if I need it." (Lucia)
Hugo couldn't help but wonder if such a day would come. He felt bitter as he'd seemingly once again confirmed that she would be completely fine, living without him.
"Why didn't you ever ask about Damian before he came?"
Argumentatively, the cause of the garden party situation was Damian. Hugo had known that she thought the child to be cute but it seemed that her feelings towards the child were much deeper than he thought. That's why it was surprising.
Until recently, he thought she held no interest in Damian because she'd never asked him anything about the child.
"You never mentioned the child to me first so I didn't think I should talk about the child." (Lucia)
"Why?"
"The day I went to find you in the Capital, you warned me when I mentioned Damian."
"…Did I?"
"And I knew that even if I asked out of pure curiosity, it would be hard to see my intentions as pure. It is likely that if I had asked about details on Damian, you would have wondered what my intentions were."
"…"
Hugo was thrown off guard and couldn't say anything. She was right. If she had shown interest in Damian shortly after they married, he wouldn't have taken it as a natural interest. Even though her personality wasn't one to keep everything locked inside, her considerations were deeper that he'd thought.
"I called Damian back because of the status elevation process."
"That hasn't been processed yet? Is there perhaps, something else I need to do?"
"There is no such problem but since he's becoming your legal son, I thought you should at least know the boy's face. And no matter how long ago I was provided the documents, I won't process it without talking to you."
Lucia's eyes grew round as she stared at him. He looked somewhat disgruntled.
"I know what you're going to say. You're going to say you thought I would handle it without asking you, right?"
Lucia gave a slightly bashful smile. Hugo sighed.
"That's right. I am a rogue. I know you think so."
Lucia felt somewhat sorry as she looked at his slightly crestfallen appearance.
"…I don't think of you like that. Really."
"…Then what do you think of me?"
"You are a very competent lord. Before I came here, I didn't know the north was such a comfortable and steady place to live in."
"Is that so."
He replied dryly. Her praise wasn't very pleasing. A competent lord? Those words weren't the ones he wanted to hear from her.