Chapter: 3
“What did you say?!”
At that moment, Lea’s shriek—like a scream—rang through the room as she sat on the sofa, warming herself by the lit fireplace. Startled, Nartas, who had been eating snacks on the sofa in front of the fire, dropped them onto the floor.
“What did you say to him?!”
Once again, Lea’s shout echoed through the room.
“Nartas Berther, he said…”
“And you just stood there after hearing that?!”
Lea irritably swept back her neatly arranged, wavy red hair and glared at Nartas with icy eyes.
“Hic—!”
Only eleven years old, Nartas jumped in fright and hiccupped.
“Th-that… I wasn’t sure. It happened so fast—hic!”
The bold attitude he’d shown in front of Roselyn was nowhere to be seen. Hugging a cushion to his chest, Nartas shrank into himself.
“Ha!”
Lea set the teacup she was holding down sharply—yet without making a sound—on the table. One must keep proper decorum at all times. That was the secret by which Lea, born of a lowly family, had ensnared Jonas Nuremberg, the tyrant of the West.
There was only one thing she could not restrain: her shouting. Of course, even that rule did not apply in front of Jonas.
“These wretches…!”
Her hands, calmly folded on her lap, trembled as she bit her crimson-painted lips.
The next morning, at breakfast, Lea openly criticized Ludiana.
“It seems Ludiana still lacks caution.”
“……”
“She also lacks pride and awareness as a Nuremberg.”
“…I see.”
No matter how much Lea tried to belittle Ludiana, Jonas’s response remained lukewarm.
In the end, Lea played her final card.
“Ludiana called the Nuremberg heir ‘Berther.’”
Halt.
Jonas, who had been mechanically cutting his food, finally stopped.
“Nartas… is that true?”
Jonas shot his son a piercing glare.
“Y-yes!”
Nartas replied, his body stiff with tension.
“Rupert.”
“Yes, Master.”
“Summon Ludiana to my office.”
Jonas resumed moving his cutlery.
Heh.
Lea slowly raised her glass of water to her lips, hiding the upward curl of her mouth as she smiled.
“Haa…”
She hadn’t expected him to stay still, but to think Jonas would act personally.
Summoned by Jonas, Ludiana headed toward the main building, staring at it with an incredulous expression.
The neatly maintained exterior walls and blue roof. There were no grand ornaments, yet every material used was of the finest quality.
‘Compared to that…’
The annex—so desolate one might doubt anyone even lived there.
‘I need to leave this place as soon as possible.’
Allen Pianus, whom she had met at her mother’s funeral in her previous life, said he sent a letter on the day of the emperor’s coronation.
But Ludiana had no memory of her mother ever receiving such a letter.
It was rare enough that she would surely remember it. If she didn’t, then someone must have intercepted it before delivery.
And the one who managed the letters was the butler, Rupert.
Arriving at the office door, she knocked.
Knock, knock.
“Come in.”
At the indifferent voice, Ludiana opened the door and stepped inside. Yet Jonas, who had summoned her, did not spare her a glance, focusing only on the documents before him.
“You called for me?”
“Ludiana.”
“Yes.”
Crunch.
Ludiana bit her lip.
She bit down so hard that the metallic taste of blood spread in her mouth, but she didn’t care.
“Did you disgrace the name of Nuremberg?”
Jonas finally turned his gaze toward her. A vivid blue vein stood out on his forehead as he frowned.
“No.”
“Do not do it again. Unlike you, Nartas is the heir of Nuremberg.”
“Yes.”
“Leave.”
Clicking his tongue softly, Jonas returned to his piled-up work.
Ludiana bowed and left the office. In the hallway, Rupert was waiting for her with a worried expression.
“Miss, are you all right?”
He was one of the few servants who still looked after the three women in the main house.
Even that had become difficult now, under Lea’s watchful eye.
“I’m fine.”
Ludiana gave him a faint, sorrowful smile.
“…I’ll escort you back to the annex.”
With a dim smile, Rupert escorted her. When they reached the annex, Ludiana called out to him in a calm voice.
“Rupert.”
“Yes, Miss.”
“Isn’t Father being too cruel?”
Even calling Jonas her father made her teeth grind with hatred—but she had no choice.
She needed to stir Rupert’s sympathy.
“Miss…”
“Nartas hit Irene first.”
Lowering her head, Ludiana spoke in a trembling voice, as if on the verge of tears.
Seeing this, Rupert approached her without a word and offered a handkerchief.
‘As the butler of Nuremberg, he can’t speak ill of the head of the family. But that’s fine.’
All she needed was to appear as a pitiful, unloved daughter.
“Thank you, Rupert… Could you grant me one favor?”
“Of course, Miss.”
Ludiana dabbed her eyes with the handkerchief Rupert gave her. There were no tears, of course.
“I want to visit my old room just once—on the day before the coronation ceremony.”
Rupert’s eyes wavered slightly, and his body stiffened.
“Miss…”
“I know it’s a difficult request. But please, just once.”
With a forlorn expression, Ludiana neatly clasped her hands at her chest.
‘I’m sorry, Rupert. But… I have no other choice.’
“…Understood, Miss.”
His tightly pressed lips finally curved upward, and Rupert showed his familiar, kindly smile.
“Thank you.”
Ludiana smiled brightly back at him.
“I’ll have the room prepared for that day.”
She nodded lightly and walked away.
Time passed quickly, and soon the day before the emperor’s coronation arrived—the day of the banquet hosted by the imperial family.
As the center of power in the West, the Nuremberg household was naturally invited, and the main house had been bustling since morning.
Though she had not officially received the Nuremberg title, Lea—who had already borne an heir—was also scheduled to attend the banquet.
Internal family matters lay entirely within the authority of the head of the household, so even though she was not the legal wife, Lea was already called Lady Nuremberg.
‘She must be frantically dressing herself up since morning.’
“Unni, is there a festival today?”
The annex, devoid of servants, looked no different from usual, but it was easy to tell that the estate was busy.
Standing on a chair with her forehead pressed to the window, Irene asked.
“Yes. A new emperor is being crowned.”
Ludiana carefully helped Irene down and smiled warmly.
“Really?! Wow!!”
“Ludi…”
Watching the affectionate scene between Ludiana and Irene, Roselyn smiled fondly—then let out a bitter smile.
After exchanging a few more words with Irene, Ludiana stepped away from the window and approached Roselyn.
“Mother, I’m going out for a bit.”
“Where are you going, Ludi?”
Lea despised seeing the three women in the estate, and after becoming pregnant, she became even more blatant in her harassment.
Eventually, under the pretext of caring for Lea’s mental and physical health, Jonas banished the three women to the annex.
At first, servants were assigned to them, but after giving birth to Nartas, Lea subtly dismissed every servant in the annex.
And with an heir already secured, Jonas raised no objections.
“I have somewhere to go!”
Roselyn’s worried gaze followed Ludiana as she left the room with a bright voice.
Slipping out, Ludiana quietly made her way into the front garden of the main house. Just then, Jonas and his party were departing the estate.
After confirming that the carriage had exited the main gate, Ludiana carefully headed toward the place she had agreed upon with Rupert, watching her surroundings.
“Rupert!”
The elderly gentleman standing by a tree with his hands neatly folded smiled broadly, deep wrinkles forming around his eyes when he saw her.
“Miss.”
Seeing Ludiana run toward him with an innocent, bright smile, Rupert felt a sharp ache in his chest.
He knew well the culture of Kalatos, which prized heirs above all else, but to Rupert, Ludiana was still a precious young lady.
Yet from the moment the second mistress arrived, even he could no longer look after her.
The guilt of having abandoned a young girl had always weighed heavily on him.
“Shall we go?”
Rupert courteously escorted Ludiana. Seeing his careful movements, she smiled slightly.
‘Yes… Rupert was always this kind of person.’
“I told the maids to clean the room in advance. Would you like to have a cup of tea inside?”
Standing before an oak-colored door that wasn’t flashy but exuded elegance, Rupert slightly lifted the basket he was carrying.
“Sure.”
Talking properly with Rupert after so long made her forget her purpose and lifted her spirits.
One of the very few people on her side in Nuremberg.
‘But will he grant this request too?’
Forcing down her unease, Ludiana boldly opened the door.
“Cough! Cough, cough!”
Blue bedding, a bed adorned with silk—and a room thick with dust greeted her eyes.
The forcefully opened door sent dust flying everywhere, making Ludiana cough repeatedly.
“Oh…! Oh dear!”
Panicking, Rupert hurriedly opened the terrace door.
“Miss, I’m terribly sorry. There must have been a mistake.”
In a rush, Rupert removed his gloves and brushed dust off a chair.
‘Haha… I knew this would happen. What was I even expecting?’
Disappointment surfaced on Ludiana’s face. She only needed a pretext to enter the main house, yet she had unconsciously allowed herself to hope.
“It’s fine. If Lady Lea Berther found out that my room had been cleaned, it would put them in an awkward position too. I understand.”
Suppressing her bitterness, Ludiana gently stopped Rupert’s hand.
“Rupert, it’s all right.”
“Miss…!”
His fingertips trembled slightly.
‘This young lady… just how long must she endure this?’
Having served the Nuremberg family since his youth, Rupert was furious that the current household couldn’t even offer a proper cup of tea to such a young lady.
“More importantly, there’s something I truly want to ask of you.”
Regaining his composure, Rupert straightened his back and neatly clasped his hands in front of him.
“Please tell me, Miss.”
This time, he would surely fulfill her request.
“Please bring me the letter that came from Allen Pianus.”
Rupert’s smile froze instantly.
