The Mansion Awaits Spring
Chapter 50
April said.
“Go to your room first. Hurry.”
April chased Fezin away, knowing he was struggling just to calm himself down. By the time she remained in her room, brushing her hair and cooling her flushed face, Bauman’s voice drifted in from outside the door.
“My lady, a guest has arrived. He says he is a young man from the Grand family.”
Since she had announced at the party that she was seeking suitors, she had expected people to visit.
She just hadn’t expected anyone to show up at the crack of dawn.
April threw on a robe and opened the door.
Bauman spoke with a troubled expression.
“Young Master Fezin still seems to be in the mansion, yet a suitor has already arrived….”
As April and Bauman were contemplating what to do, Madame Eve suddenly burst into the room. Her eyes widened.
“Why are you still in your robe? Since there are no elders in this house, even if you want to refuse him, you have to do it yourself, Miss Lunos.”
“Ah, I suppose that’s true.”
“Change your clothes, quickly. Mr. Bauman, go and prepare tea in the drawing room.”
“Wh-which drawing room should I use?”
“Use the east drawing room on the second floor. The wallpaper there is the most intact.”
Madame Eve swatted Bauman on the back, urging him to leave.
As Bauman hurried off to the east drawing room, Madame Eve rushed the dazed April into a shimmering apricot silk dress and matching gloves.
Looking at the silk dress, which was thin enough for midsummer, April remarked, “It’s cold.”
“If you’re going to reject him, it won’t even take thirty minutes, so bear with it. You must act as if you always wear this dress at home, Miss Lunos—not like you dressed up specially. Do you understand?”
“I suppose it was nice not having to do things like this for the past seven years.”
“That kind of joke could ruin the atmosphere, so don’t say it if you happen to have feelings for the Grand family’s young man.”
Dressed in an instant by Madame Eve’s expert hands, April draped a shawl over her shoulders and headed for the east drawing room.
Vincenz Grand, who had arrived first and was waiting, rose from his seat with a leisurely air when April appeared.
Because of the cold, April’s skin had turned a pale, almost translucent white.
Usually, when a suitor visited, it was custom for an elder of the house to meet them and converse first, but April had no choice but to handle both the rejection and the acceptance herself.
Had she even glimpsed her parents rejecting a suitor, she might have known what to do, but since her fiancé had been decided from the start, she had never witnessed such a thing.
Pondering what to say, April greeted Vincenz and sat down across from him.
“You’ve come a long way. Thank you for making the journey.”
“Yes, it was quite far.”
She didn’t particularly like that answer, but April maintained a smile and lifted her teacup.
Vincenz continued.
“Let’s both be honest.”
I think you’re being plenty honest already, April thought, looking at Vincenz as if signaling him to continue.
He carried himself with an air of grim determination, as if he had made up his mind before coming here today.
Vincenz spoke again.
“Your primary goal is to obtain an heir to carry on the Lunos family line, is it not?”
“That is correct.”
“I believe there is no one better suited for the task than I.”
“For what reason?”
“I believe Miss April…”
“It’s Lunos.”
“Pardon?”
“We aren’t close enough for you to use my first name, are we?”
April took another sip of tea before continuing.
“Since we agreed to be honest.”
Vincenz faltered for a moment but soon curled his lips into a smile.
“Yes, we did. You’re right…. At any rate, I have two older brothers. I have no responsibilities toward the Grand family.”
“…….”
April set her teacup down, prompting him to keep talking.
Vincenz went on.
“Most importantly, I do not care what people say about Miss April… Miss Lunos. At the party, I felt as if… I was enchanted by your beauty.”
“…….”
“Miss Lunos, the nobles are afraid of you. Men who can make up their minds like I have are rare.”
Vincenz emphasized several times that her options were limited.
April did not feel good, and she knew exactly why.
Vincenz’s words were a form of intimidation. And intimidation, in the end, was about pressing down on the very things one was already worried about.
April fell into thought for a moment before speaking to Vincenz.
“You aren’t very romantic.”
“Being realistic is a good thing.”
“But it lacks charm.”
“What did you say?”
“What charm is there in stating facts everyone already knows?”
Vincenz’s brow furrowed briefly at her reply, but he soon forced a smile again.
“I see. My apologies if I was too realistic. Speaking of romance, how would you like to go to the cinema with me? I will come to pick you up on Wednesday.”
“Hmm….”
“Once you get to know me better, you’ll find that I can be quite a romantic man.”
April stared at Vincenz.
There were many things she disliked about him, but she was interested in the ‘Grand family’ itself. It was because they were a family that owned ships.
Before accepting the date, April asked an important question.
“I intend to hold a funeral for my parents next spring.”
“……Pardon?”
“If you’re going to date me, I thought you should know that.”
Vincenz looked bewildered by her words.
He replied, “That… does not seem like a good idea.”
“Why?”
“The Grand Ducal family won’t like it.”
“It is a necessary task for the Lunos family.”
Vincenz took a sip of tea, his throat suddenly dry.
April continued.
“To marry me means becoming a member of the Lunos family. You will live your life knowing that the reconstruction of the Lunos family is your destiny.”
Vincenz knew that even if it wasn’t him, many suitors would be frequenting this house.
While they currently hesitated to approach Lunos out of fear of the Grand Duke’s reaction, what kind of family was Lunos?
They were a family with a vast estate along the river, located closest to the provincial capital.
When the people of the Right Island thought they couldn’t survive without piracy, Lunos was the first family to cultivate that land through means other than pillaging.
Vincenz himself could not become a Lunos, but his child could.
Vincenz looked at April’s face.
Seeing her in the light, she had a different aura than she did at the banquet.
Was it because she hadn’t experienced the world at all for the past seven years? There was an innocence buried deep within those crimson eyes that resembled a rose with thorns.
Her youthful skin and her elegant eyebrows—which anyone would agree played a crucial role in her beauty—were exquisite.
The silk dress clinging to her body made her skin, pale from the cold, look as though it were covered in snow.
In truth, it was April herself, rather than the Lunos name, that had drawn Vincenz here.
In fact, it was a pity she was a woman of a family that could build a monument of glory on honor alone.
It should have stayed ruined, Vincenz clicked his tongue inwardly. If it had, it would have been much easier to possess her.
April was lost in thought.
She, too, knew that the Grand family was too influential to reject even a single date outright.
Vincenz grew increasingly bold, sensing that this matter would be decided in his favor.
Just as April was finally about to speak, Bauman’s voice came from outside the drawing room door.
“My lady, he is asking for… an escort out.”
To that, he reluctantly added, “Young Master Fezin is.”
Vincenz’s brow furrowed.
That policeman was in this house?
