MPAWD 05

Chapter 05

“Come along, my dear. This is Duke Ballon.”

From early morning, maids swarmed around Lucy, dressing her in a beautiful gown and adorning her lavishly. Not long after, the baron summoned her to the reception room.

So all that chaos at the crack of dawn was because of this old man?

Perhaps he thought she wouldn’t comply willingly, because the baron hadn’t given Lucy even a word of warning beforehand.

Dragged into the reception room without knowing why, Lucy found a potbellied old man leering at her with a lascivious gaze.

The baron, using the kindest tone and gentlest expression Lucy had ever seen since she’d possessed this body, introduced the duke to her.

“This child is quite shy and not good at expressing herself. Still, when she heard she’d be meeting Your Grace yesterday, she was so excited she couldn’t sleep all night. Hahaha!”

Flustered by her blank, unmoving reaction, the baron spouted utter nonsense and gave Lucy a light push on the back.

“You’re far more dazzling than in your portrait. I’d heard many rumors about you for quite some time, young lady, but…”

None of them could have been good, she thought.

“My lady, I hope the day comes soon when I can take you as my wife.”

The duke’s greasy, shiny face moved closer. He lifted Lucy’s hand and planted a lingering kiss on the back of it.

What is this old man saying? His wife?!

Lucy froze stiff in shock at those thunderbolt-like words.

“F-Father… what is this supposed to—”

“A p-proposal? What on earth is—”

She asked in a trembling voice, turning toward Baron Diallo, who stood nearby.

“My dear, it’s no dream. His Grace has formally sent you a letter of proposal!”

Before she could finish, the baron cut her off.

“Our Lucy must be so happy that she can’t even speak properly. Hahaha!”

At his absurd words, Lucy was truly left speechless.

Duke Ballon said he wished to attend the upcoming imperial hunting tournament together with Lucy.

After the duke left, Lucy shouted at the baron in fury.

“I refuse to agree! This is my life—this isn’t something you get to decide!”

“What did you say?! Y-you… you wretched girl! Have you truly gone mad? I thought you’d been obedient lately!”

The enraged baron’s shout came crashing down on her. Before she could even react, she was shoved to the floor.

The baron always refrained from striking Lucy’s face or any parts of her body that showed when she went outside. This time was no exception—he skillfully avoided those areas while beating her mercilessly.

But as she tried to block his kicks, something went wrong, and by the time she returned to her room, two fingers on her right hand had begun to swell badly.

Anna wrapped Lucy’s hand in bandages, sobbing pitifully as tears poured down her face.

“Why did you have to do that…? It’s just a hunting tournament. You could’ve just gone along with it. Why did you have to get beaten like this? You should’ve said you were sorry, that you’d never do it again… You used to at least grab onto his pant leg and beg before…”

She clutched Lucy’s hand, crying bitterly.

“From now on, never say no or refuse in front of the baron. If you keep getting beaten like this and end up breaking a leg again like last time—if you’re left with some visible disability for life—he might sell you off to some awful place instead of even the duke’s house… h-hic…”

At Anna’s words, a fragment of Lucy’s memories flashed through her mind.

After all I’ve fed and raised you, you dare fall for some bastard son of a mere count’s family?!

When the baron discovered that Edwin and Lucy had been meeting in secret, he threatened to kill Edwin.

I’m sorry, Father! I’ll never—never see him again! He’s done nothing wrong… h-hic…

She knelt before the baron, being beaten as she begged and begged for forgiveness.

Most of Lucy’s memories were like this—always gloomy and sorrowful.

Frowning in discomfort, Lucy looked down at Anna, who was still holding her hand and crying.

“Anna, I’m fine. I thought I’d finally gotten the hang of taking a beating, but I guess it’s been a while. My hand slipped up.”

She meant it as a joke, but Anna only cried harder.

“Anna… should we run away?”

Lucy finally voiced the thought she’d been keeping to herself all day.

It was impossible—but even so, the idea refused to leave her mind.

Regardless of those thoughts, preparations for attending the hunting tournament proceeded smoothly.

The baron assigned two maids to Lucy.

Day and night, they tended to her skin, gave her massages, and bathed her by hand in warm water filled with fragrant flowers. Thanks to that, Lucy was enjoying luxuries she’d never known before.

“You must be happy, miss. Even if it’s only as a concubine, Duke Ballon is still…”

Of course, the maids’ mocking gazes were another matter entirely.

So it really is a concubine position. Figures…

Two days after the duke’s visit, Lucy went out into the city to have a dress made for the hunting tournament.

She was accompanied by Jessica, Jessica’s personal maid, and a rough-looking man acting as a guard.

However, in front of a large dress shop, they were forced to wait for quite some time.

Although they had made a reservation, their turn kept being pushed back by higher-ranking nobles, and those who went in showed no sign of coming out.

The shop attendant merely apologized and told them to wait outside because the interior was cramped.

Such was the sorrow of low-ranking nobility.

Baron Diallo, originally a merchant, was little more than a wealthy commoner who had bought his title with money.

“How dare they disrespect our family? There’s a limit to patience! It’s already been almost two hours!”

Unable to endure it any longer, Jessica stormed into the dress shop in a fury.

Moments later, she emerged with a triumphant expression and beckoned Lucy and the maid inside.

“You must have waited a long time, my lady. You should’ve told us from the start that you’re Duke Ballon’s fiancée. It’s an honor to have you visit our shop!”

A woman who appeared to be the owner approached Lucy with a warm smile and led them to a sofa.

Fiancée? What on earth did Jessica say? Does a concubine count as a fiancée too?

Amused despite herself, Lucy sat down, only to feel two women who had arrived earlier glaring at her with narrowed eyes.

“Duke Ballon? He’s getting married again? Didn’t he take a new wife just two years ago?”

“Oh my! That woman—it’s Lucy Diallo, isn’t it? The one whose groom ran away on the wedding day and caused an uproar at the ceremony! She looks so innocent, though.”

“Can’t you tell? That demure act of hers is classic fox behavior. She drags men around at every party, spreading scandals everywhere. What sane man would want to marry someone like that?”

Their whispers reached Lucy’s ears clearly. Having heard such remarks to the point of nausea, she let them go in one ear and out the other.

“Lucy, you should be truly grateful to Father. Without his efforts, do you think someone like you could’ve ever entered a duke’s household? And even once you’re there, don’t you dare betray us. Understood?”

At Jessica’s shameless words, Lucy let out a small snort.

“Really? Then why don’t you go in my place? As the duke’s concubine.”

Lucy stared straight at her and spoke in a flat voice. Jessica flinched, then twisted her face into an ugly scowl.

Her already sharp, upturned eyes made her look even more spiteful as she frowned.

“Do you think you’re any different from me? Once I’m married off, you’re next. At least I’ll go to a wealthy, high-ranking noble family. With how extravagant you are, who would even take you?”

Lucy sighed deeply, as if genuinely worried, then continued.

“Then how about you try seducing that Duke Ballon—or was it Duke Sibal-lon? If you’re lucky, he’ll die soon, and you can pocket a nice fortune and live comfortably for the rest of your life.”

At Lucy’s completely unexpected counterattack, both Jessica and her maid stood there with their mouths hanging open.

“Y-you…! Looks like the duke’s taken a liking to you, so now you think you’re untouchable, huh?!”

Jessica glared at Lucy, trembling with rage. Her hand twitched up and down, clearly itching to slap her but holding back.

Whether she got lucky and escaped, or unlucky and ended up marrying the duke, it was all the same in the end. Lucy had nothing left to fear.

“If you’re done watching, could you please take my measurements now?”

The shop owner, who had been watching the scene with keen interest, finally snapped back to her senses at Lucy’s words and hurriedly began taking her measurements.