Chapter 6
Then, Take it Off
Shed Lester's brow furrowed briefly upon seeing Liana, then quickly returned to its expressionless state.
Her wet, black hair was disheveled, as if she had just finished bathing.
Was it because of his unusually tall height?
It felt as if a massive shadow was engulfing the entire room.
"I should give you a chance to take revenge before you die."
Some say revenge is a fiery emotion.
But Shed Lester's eyes showed no such fire.
Instead, a coldness that felt like it could burn you with a single touch was frozen within them.
Frozen before that emotion, she felt as if she would shatter into pieces with the slightest impact.
His cool gaze flicked towards her legs before indifferently moving to the table.
He sat on the sofa without a word and poured himself some brandy.
Liana couldn't even dare to breathe properly.
Only the sound of the crimson liquid filling the crystal glass filled the room.
Being in the same space, she felt both separated from him and connected to him.
Perhaps it was because the scene before her overlapped with a memory from years ago.
Liana recalled the source of the alienation that washed over her along with the déjà vu.
Back then, Liana, or rather, Luise, had been sitting on the sofa. Shed had stood silently, watching her, just as Liana was now.
Their beginning had been the complete opposite of what it was now.
That's why this situation felt both familiar and foreign.
While she was lost in thought, the clear glass touched Shed Lester's lips.
The crimson liquid flowed into his mouth.
After taking a sip of the brandy, his gaze returned to her.
Liana, who had been watching him, quickly averted her eyes.
Shed held the glass and stared at her in silence.
Liana felt like she had become a statue.
A crude statue that wasn't very artistic.
Standing motionless in the middle of the room, she endured the gaze that appraised her.
His eyes seemed to scrutinize the statue, assessing its worth.
As if he could see through how terrible a botched job she was.
Liana wrapped her arms tightly around herself, as if trying to hide her crudeness.
Then, a dry voice, which could be mistaken for boredom, echoed through the air.
"I didn't expect the noble lady to be dressed and prepared like this for me."
A sneer flickered across his lips.
At that moment, Liana's face grew hot.
"Make her presentable."
That was the only order Shed had given to the servants.
His order hadn't meant this.
It had simply meant to heal her injured leg and make her fit to work as a maid.
But the subordinates had misunderstood his words.
Shame made her face burn with heat.
"...I'll be going now."
Realizing the mistake, Liana lowered her head.
She had been planning to gather her courage and speak to him when he came anyway.
That she didn't want this. That she wanted him to send her away.
That he wouldn't want this either.
So, if this wasn't the position he had originally wanted, then it was all for the better. So there was no need to be ashamed.
Liana limped, trying to escape the room.
But.
"I never gave you permission to leave."
The cold voice from behind her stopped her in her tracks.
It was an order.
Slowly turning her head, she saw him staring at her with indifferent eyes.
"Didn't you enjoy being favored by the Baron?"
At his words, Liana couldn't hide her crumbling expression.
From his expression, which showed no emotion, Liana could tell what she meant to him.
"It seems your servants thought of you as just that kind of woman."
Shed swirled the brandy in his glass loosely and sneered quietly.
She couldn't refute it.
The reality that she had repeated to herself every day for years felt particularly painful today.
"...I have nowhere lower to fall anyway."
Hiding her dry tears, Liana replied in a voice that she tried to make sound calm.
She had already experienced too much to be hurt by such words.
Then, there was a clink as the glass was placed on the table.
Following that, his footsteps sounded slowly yet clearly.
The footsteps stopped, and an arrogant, ruthless gaze looked down at her.
With the eyes of a collector who had finished evaluating the value of a statue.
"Then, take it off."
His emotionless voice rang out.
There was no hint of excitement in his voice as he ordered her to undress.
No. Rather, she sensed a cold anger.
Liana realized.
She was a cheap statue that could be broken without consequence.
He was simply testing her, toying with her.
A cheap amusement to kill time.
"You said you have nowhere lower to fall. Why, can't you do it?"
Shed looked down coldly at Liana, who was still covering herself with her arms and not taking off her clothes.
Liana couldn't say anything.
She felt like if she opened her lips, the tears in her trembling voice would be revealed.
Then, Shed, who had been staring at Liana, slowly leaned towards her.
As his breath drew closer, the scent of brandy stung her nose.
Ambo colored eyes beneath thick, long eyelashes stared at her.
A drop of water from her wet hair fell, plop, onto her white chest.
The cold droplet trickled down her cleavage.
Liana gasped and trembled her lips.
Her heart was beating so fast that she felt dizzy.
She had thought she would be numb.
She had thought that she would no longer be shaken by old, faded memories.
But her foolish heart began to beat to the rhythm it had remembered from long ago.
The man with the refined yet indifferent expression skillfully tightened the air around her.
Liana squeezed her eyes shut as he came so close that they were about to touch.
At that moment.
"Then I'll drop you. All the way to the bottom."
A cool breath brushed against her ear.
Along with it, a great force overwhelmed her.
Her lightly swung body was thrown onto the bed next to her with a thud.
"Ugh!"
The hair that the maids had combed fell onto the white sheets, and the opened collar lay scattered on her white chest.
The silk dress she had been wearing was barely hanging on her arms and legs.
She felt pain in her leg, which had been roughly treated.
Shed looked down at her pale white skin and untied his robe.
As he took off his robe, his firm, muscular body was revealed. Scars were scattered all over his skin. It was as if malice had been carved into an artistic marble statue with a chisel.
Liana squeezed her eyes shut, unable to bear the sight of those old marks. She knew the origin of those scars.
It was all her fault.
She had made him like that.
The memories of the past throbbed in her heart as if it were being squeezed.
"Luise."
As if to awaken that past more clearly, a familiar voice brushed against her ear.
His large body pressed down on her, subduing her.
A bird caught in a trap could flap its wings and struggle, but there was no way to escape.
This was a space built on Shed Lester's land, owned only by him, and Liana was just a maid.
Liana bit her lip, trying to hold back her trembling breath.
"...I told you not to bite your lip."
Shed stared at Liana with lowered eyelids.
At the look in his eyes, which seemed mixed with annoyance, Liana parted her lips.
"Sorry..."
Her pale lips trembled.
She couldn't make any excuses, and she couldn't promise any future.
All she could do for him was a meager apology that wouldn't help him at all.
"I'm sorry, Shed..."
For a moment, a ripple ran through his violet eyes.
Eventually, tears that she had been holding back flowed from the corners of her eyes and wet her ears.
Then, the hand that had been holding her tightened its grip. As if it would break her wrist.
For the first time, a fiery emotion flickered in his eyes, which had been endlessly cold.
"...Damn it."
Shed muttered a curse and threw Liana's body away as if discarding it.
As if all interest had faded, he got up.
His large hand grabbed the robe that was hanging off the bed and put it on.
He ran a hand through his wet black hair in a fit of pique, glanced down at Liana, and then walked out of the bedroom.
Bang, Shed slammed the door shut and strode down the hallway.
"L, Lord...!"
The butler, Werner, and the servants who had been waiting outside were startled and pressed themselves against the wall, bowing their heads.
They had no way of knowing what had happened inside.
What was clear was that the master of the Dukedom, Shed Lester, was angry.
More clearly than he had ever shown before.
"That woman. Who told you to put her in my room?"
Shed looked down at the butler, Werner, and asked.
The servants' hearts fluttered at the low, even voice.
"Th, they said to make her presentable."
"Damn it, when did I say I would bring a woman into my bedroom?"
"Th, that's..."
Isn't this the first time you've brought a woman yourself?
Werner, feeling wronged, barely managed to swallow the words that were about to burst out of his throat.
He had never brought in a prostitute, let alone a harmless Grandmother or a young child.
This was Shed Lester, who had been gossiped about for not even taking care of his fiancée properly.
But for him to bring a woman himself, there could only be one reason.
Especially if it was a young and pretty woman, there was no need to say more.
They had heard the words that the knights had told them.
That Shed had carried the woman himself? That he had treated her leg himself?
Therefore, everyone was convinced.
That this woman was the one.
But that wasn't it?
There's no way.
"Get her out of here immediately."
No, could that be it? Really...?
Cold sweat ran down Werner's back.
Shed Lester's eyes were murderous.
The butler swallowed hard and lowered his head.
"Yes, Lord."
After hearing Werner's reply, Shed strode away with rough steps.
