The Trash Lady Who Stole the Duke's First Night
Chapter 26
“Did your conversation with my father go well?”
“It seems Marquis Hoffmann is quite concerned about Aquitaine.”
“…My father came here on his own accord, entirely against my wishes. You must have been exhausted right after returning, so I apologize on his behalf. I tried to dissuade him, but I couldn’t stop him. I am truly sorry.”
Carlos waved his hand dismissively and rubbed the bridge of his brow.
He was exhausted after dealing with Marquis Hoffmann, who had shown up in person with a marriage contract in hand from last night through the early dawn.
“Just to be certain, I want to make it clear that the conditions in that marriage contract are not my intention.”
“I know. You always said you hated marriage.”
Grita matched Carlos’s wide strides, her hand briefly tightening on her cravat. Her knuckles clenched.
“……Honestly, wasn’t it you, Sunbae, who hated marriage even more? You always loathed women who threw themselves at you just for marriage. And they were all so gorgeous, too. If I were a man, I would’ve snatched them right up. What a waste.”
“You should have snatched them, then.”
“I’m not interested in romance.”
Molten iron splashed from dozens of blast furnaces. Carlos and Grita stepped naturally between the spatters of red-hot metal.
The clanging strikes of horseshoes hammered into their ears. An old blacksmith chuckled gleefully as he drew out the molten iron in long ribbons as if performing a party trick.
In the midst of the roaring racket, the conversation between the two quickly subsided into silence.
Maintaining a half-step distance, Grita lightly brushed his back.
“Sunbae. How about a glass of beer today? My treat.”
“You don’t drink.”
“It’s a hot day. Thought I’d get into the spirit.”
Carlos raised an eyebrow and smirked softly.
“I don’t have time. I’ll cover the bill, so go catch up with them. A lot of your peers are staying in Schweiz right now.”
Grita stared at him intently before nodding.
She watched the toy-like, dainty daggers Carlos was browsing through.
Slowly caressing her own thick wrist, she glanced down at her well-muscled chest, her expression hardening slightly. The moment Carlos picked up a dagger set with a blue-green stone, her lips quickly curved upward again.
“How about introducing Lady Aquitaine to my peers or juniors?”
“…What?”
“Since she’s still engaged to you, Sunbae, just a casual introduction to get acquainted for now. Lady Aquitaine seems fond of alcohol and quite interested in men, so I’m sure she’d gladly join.”
Grita handed the sword to be repaired to the old blacksmith, speaking as casually as if commenting on the weather.
“From what I’ve observed, she chats effortlessly with the squires and smiles warmly at them. She really seems to love people.”
Holding the dagger set with blue-green turquoise, Carlos stared at Grita with an unreadable expression.
“I’m in the same boat as you, Sunbae, so to be honest, I don’t really understand ladies who are desperate for love and marriage.”
Grita smiled, furrowing her brow slightly.
“Seeing her constantly sparkling her eyes at men and trying so hard to be adored makes me feel for her. She almost seems starved for affection. That’s why I’d like to introduce her to a decent man soon.”
Flames shot high as the old man, who had been performing tricks with the molten iron, tossed in another log of firewood.
“She’s naturally cute and coquettish by habit, so no matter which peer I bring, they’ll all find Lady Aquitaine charming. I think they’d hit it off in no time.”
While the fire roared like an inferno, Carlos said nothing, his dark shadow looming larger.
Grita inspected the gems on the dagger this way and that, shaking her head with an indulgent laugh.
“Still, Lady Aquitaine is happy as long as someone dotes on her, so that’s a relief. She leans on any man far more easily than expected, and she’s not picky in the slightest. She’s truly pure and innocent.”
Grita picked up a dagger identical to the one Carlos held and wore a warm smile.
“This would suit Lady Aquitaine well. Would you mind if I gave it to her as a present?”
❖ ❖ ❖
“…Y-You son of a bitch.”
The bicycle, hung with bags of books and fruit, lay overturned in a patch of lilacs.
Beneath a weeping willow whose branches drooped all the way to the ground, Elio huddled, hiding herself among the dense leaves.
“Hic. You awful… awful bastard…. You son of a bitch. Hic. You said… you said you’d issue a correction.”
The moment she looked back at the newspaper someone had abandoned on the bench, sobs slipped through her clenched lips.
Lübeck Gospel of Grace Newspaper
A Disgraced Wretch of a Fallen Lady: What Price Must Aquitaine Pay for Humiliating Schuppenhardt?
Forty-two members of the Emperor’s Faction issue joint statement opposing the Schuppenhardt marriage.
“A marriage to an unprecedented commoner criminal who humiliated a noble gentleman goes against the teachings of the Holy Book…. We cannot conceal our devastation at our sexual morals degenerating to the barbaric level of the Kingdom of Cyprus….”
－Minister of Justice, Marquis Duran
Elio murmured in utter disbelief.
“H-Humiliated… humiliated…?”
How could she possibly humiliate a man whose entire body was like a lethal weapon?
She couldn’t believe the Emperor’s Faction had gone so far as to issue an official statement against such absurd nonsense.
Elio rubbed her hot, swollen eyes and looked at the newspaper on the right.
Cyprus Starlight Companion Newspaper
The Woman of Schuppenhardt’s Young Duke: Aquitaine’s Astounding Reversal, Innocent of All Sins!
Desecrating the Holy Union Is the Ultimate Arrogance Defying God’s Will.
“A sacred union achieved through sheer, exquisite seduction. We must not frame this little lamb as a criminal without a shred of evidence…. May Lübeck’s aristocratic society, which condemns a woman’s active sexual self-determination, remain trapped in its bigotry forever….”
－High Priest Foucault of Cyprus
Beneath all manner of sensational headlines, an interview with the clergy and even a portrait of her were printed.
With an even more baffled expression, Elio threw the newspaper to the ground.
Even the cool breeze blowing from the stream could not cool the heat in her cheeks. Her eyes stung from rubbing them so much, and her head throbbed with dizziness.
Breathing in short, tearful gasps, Elio looked up at the steep Duke’s Castle across the stream.
…How am I supposed to confront him…?
Having calmed her sobs a little, she stared at the Duke’s Castle for a long time before dropping her head.
What if he demands his money back? What if he says he’ll find another lady? What about the house, then? Do I have to return the money for the bicycle too? Can it even be refunded?
Elio’s swollen eyes blinked rapidly.
I don’t even really need to ride it. The Papal State is close, so if I just walk there….
Staring blankly at the bicycle’s dirty wheels, she wiped her falling tears with her frayed sleeve and crawled toward the fallen bike.
She pulled out a scrap of tissue caught in the spokes. Bunching up her soaked sleeve, she tried rubbing away the black grime smudged on the wheel.
Growl. Her stomach rumbled loudly without a shred of tact. The tears she had been holding back burst forth once more.
“How can a loaf of plain bread cost nine hundred Shillings? Everything, hic, …is a total rip-off.”
Did feeding just herself have to be this expensive? It was so ridiculously pricey that it brought her to tears.
❖ ❖ ❖
“Young Master! I have confirmed that Marquis Hoffmann has completely left Schweiz. Now you can rest in peace—!”
The Butler, smiling brightly as if a heavy weight had finally lifted from his chest, stepped into the office and froze in his tracks.
Catching sight of the man illuminated by the afternoon sunlight, his white eyebrows quivered.
Across Carlos’s broad neck, clear scratches made by a woman’s fingernails were visible. Strawberry juice and lipstick were smeared across his collar.
“…Didn’t you say you were going to the smithy?”
“I went.”
“…Did you stop by Madam’s villa as well?”
“Yeah.”
Carlos shoved the books on dragons to the side and casually flipped through the documents.
Rubbing his drooping eyes, the Butler set down a green envelope and a parcel. A low, raspy voice leaked out.
“…I told you to rest. At least get some sleep. Please leave Madam to the maids and just….”
“What’s that?”
Carlos cut him off.
“…It is urgent mail sent by Her Highness the Imperial Princess. She sent a package along with it.”
At the Butler’s gloomy tone, Carlos wiped his face.
Just looking at the obnoxious, piglet-pink ribbon tied around the green envelope made his head throb, ringing with the Imperial Princess’s shrieking, pig-slaughtering voice.
“Where’s Aquitaine?”
“…She is out playing on her bicycle.”
With a slight chuckle, Carlos took off the gold bracelet stamped with the ducal family’s winged crest and turned his eyes toward the corner of the desk.
The lilac blossoms, which had also been relocated to his office, were still white and moist. As if freshly bloomed.
Lest they die if he touched them, he had only watched over them without daring to lay a finger on them.
The immature buds were so tiny and clustered—making one wonder if they were even fully grown flowers—that they seemed like they would crumble at the lightest brush.
Did she really purify them? Not that a few days were enough to judge someone’s true capability, but still….
Following Carlos’s gaze, the Butler looked at the white lilacs with somber eyes.
“…Young Master. Are you going to continue your relationship with Lady Aquitaine?”
“Why?”
“Is she not Valentin’s daughter?”
“Did Valentin give birth to Elio all by herself? Her face is the spitting image of Yunus. She took entirely after her father.”
Carlos looked at the white lilacs, the corner of his lips curling upward in a smirk.
How had she not inherited her mother’s sturdy build, only getting her father’s pretty looks…? Though her father had been handsome, he had still been tall and well-built.
Taking after his face was at least something Elio should thank Valentin for, given her mother’s penchant for handsome men.
“…She is a wicked woman whom even God could not forgive. Is she not the daughter of a spy who deceived us for over a decade? You must keep your distance. It is an ill-fated bond that should never be brought close.”
“God seems to have graciously forgiven her. He said He doesn’t hold children liable for their parents’ sins.”
At Carlos’s nonchalant reply, the Butler’s pale face hardened.
“Young Master. You cannot even keep her as a mistress. Do you wish to see tears of blood flow from my eyes?”
The Butler’s fingertips trembled before actual tears began to drop.
At the elderly Butler’s sudden burst of grief, Carlos couldn’t help but laugh in utter disbelief.
“A mistress? For a kid like that?”
“Young Master! Then why did you prepare the master bedroom?!”
The Butler glared with wide, wrinkled eyes, as if telling him not to even think of fooling him.
“Tsk. Anyone hearing you would think you’re my father. Feels like I have three fathers now. Two crazy ones and one who worries excessively.”
“Young Master!”
“Don’t worry. I don’t even see her as a woman.”
Watching the old Butler looking ready to wail at any moment, Carlos clicked his tongue.
“Once the engagement is broken, I plan to find her a decent nobleman’s son. I’ll provide her dowry, too.”
“…….”
“She deserves at least that much compensation for her trouble.”
Gazing at the lilac petals, Carlos placed a cigar between his lips and took a deep drag.
“She’s naturally cute and coquettish by habit….”
“Seeing her constantly sparkling her eyes and trying so hard to be adored….”