Chapter 5

A heavy silence settled over the drawing room.

Marquis Crowde narrowed his eyes as he looked at Tristan.

There was only one reason the duke would risk such a breach of etiquette by arriving in the middle of the night.

There was only one reason he had ridden here alone on a black warhorse instead of arriving in a carriage meant to escort his bride.

The moment the butler had announced Duke Tristan Carlisle’s arrival, the marquis had already guessed.

The duke knew Eliana had disappeared.

But how?

Even he had learned of Eliana’s escape only a few hours ago.

How could the duke, who had left his territory ten days earlier to fetch her, already know?

“I’ll take your silence as confirmation that my assumption was correct.”

“It sounds less like an assumption and more like a certainty. What exactly brings you here at this hour, Duke Carlisle?”

The marquis had no intention of letting this unreadable young duke dictate the conversation.

Trying to hide the truth from someone who already knew it would only make him look more pathetic.

Besides…

Ever since the duke had entered the room, there had been something faintly resembling contempt lurking within those dark crimson eyes, and it was beginning to grate on his nerves.

“I thought I should at least pay my respects in advance, even if it meant coming at such a late hour.”

Tristan spoke calmly.

“It seems Miss Eliana won’t have the opportunity to properly say goodbye to her family.”

“…You know where she is?”

“I’ve been fortunate.”

A faint smile tugged at his lips.

“It seems Miss Eliana has not.”

Surprise briefly crossed the marquis’s face before disappearing almost immediately.

Tristan didn’t miss that fleeting expression.

The corner of his mouth curled upward ever so slightly.

The silence deepened.

The already chilly atmosphere grew even heavier.

“Gilbert.”

The marquis finally broke the silence.

“Bring the marriage contract.”

At his command, the butler promptly returned carrying a bundle of documents.

The maids had complained endlessly while trying to smooth out the marriage contract that had been left crumpled on Eliana’s desk.

Even after their efforts, deep creases still remained.

Tristan didn’t seem to care.

He simply confirmed his own signature on the final page, glanced at the blank space reserved for Eliana’s signature, folded the document, and slipped it inside his coat.

His businesslike indifference only irritated the marquis further.

In noble society, a bride running away before the wedding was an enormous disgrace.

No matter how little the Duke of Carlisle cared for society or public opinion, no man could possibly be pleased that the woman he intended to marry had fled.

And yet…

Not the slightest trace of anger or humiliation showed on the young duke’s face.

If anything, he looked as though he had expected this all along.

“I’ll see that Miss Eliana reaches Carlisle safely.”

He spoke as calmly as if discussing the weather.

“If you’re disappointed that she couldn’t properly say goodbye, I’ll gladly bring her back to visit the territory someday.”

The marquis hesitated before asking quietly,

“What if…

she refuses until the very end?”

“I’ll persuade her.”

Tristan’s voice grew firmer.

“I want it to be Miss Eliana.”

He placed unmistakable emphasis on her name.

For the first time since entering the room, a faint glimpse of desire crossed his otherwise cynical expression.

Seeing it, Marquis Crowde found himself recalling the Empire’s Founding Festival.

When Duke Carlisle had first proposed the marriage, the marquis had been genuinely surprised.

The duke’s messenger had said they would discuss the details during the festival, but he had hardly believed it.

After all, Duke Carlisle had never shown himself at official events or within noble society.

He had practically become a legend—a man obsessed with hunting monsters who lived in the northern frontier forests of the Empire.

So when he suddenly appeared at the Founding Festival, people stared as though they had seen a ghost.

Yet the duke himself had approached with perfect composure.

Wearing that same unreadable expression, he had declared that he wished to marry Eliana.

When the marquis asked why it had to be her, Tristan had answered that he simply wanted a quiet marriage that wouldn’t attract public attention.

But…

The desire hidden in the duke’s eyes had seemed far too intense for such a simple explanation.

“Then I shall take my leave.”

The marquis, lost in thought, looked up at the quiet farewell.

Tristan had already turned to leave after offering a perfectly courteous bow.

“Duke Carlisle.”

The marquis called after him just before he exited the drawing room.

“…Please.”

He paused.

“Take good care of Eliana.”

No answer came.

For a fleeting moment, the marquis thought he saw a mocking smile pass across the duke’s lips.

But it vanished just as quickly.

Instead, Tristan simply nodded with a gentle expression before walking away.

Eliana awoke to a splitting headache that felt as though her skull had been cleaved in two.

Her vision refused to focus.

As she blinked sluggishly, an irritated female voice reached her ears.

“Can you even call that an excuse? If it were you, which would you pick—a perfect apple or one covered in bruises?”

“So this is somehow my fault? She suddenly screamed and tried to run! What was I supposed to do? How was I supposed to know she’d still be awake? If anyone’s to blame, it’s that idiot Pito for not preparing things properly!”

Among the overlapping voices, one name caught her attention.

Pito.

Her thoughts slowly began to clear.

Pito…

He was the man Bron had sent to escort her to Serapiano Monastery.

They had met beneath Alderon’s clock tower.

He had brought her to an inn, they had shared a simple meal, and afterward she had gone to her room to sort through the whirlwind of thoughts in her mind.

Then…

The intruders had burst into her room.

Someone had forced medicine down her throat.

After that—

Nothing.

“Hey, what was I supposed to do when she barely touched her food? Damn woman… I thought maybe she’d noticed the drug, because she only managed a few spoonfuls of soup. Anyway, don’t get so worked up over a tiny scratch on her face. She’s the daughter of a marquis, you know. She’s nothing like the people we’ve handled before.”

Pito chuckled.

The woman who had been complaining about apples snorted in annoyance and walked over.

Eliana instinctively shut her eyes again.

Her entire body trembled uncontrollably.

Her wrists and ankles were tied, so perhaps it wasn’t too obvious, but she desperately tensed every muscle, trying to suppress the shaking.

“Hmm… Really? A marquis’s daughter?”

The woman ran her fingers through Eliana’s hair.

“No wonder it’s so soft.”

She gently toyed with the strands.

“And her skin is so fair. Well, I figured she was from a wealthy family the moment she handed over a gold coin for a single flower.”

A flower?

Eliana’s heart pounded violently.

What was this woman talking about?

“If she’s the daughter of a marquis…”

The woman tilted her head.

“Don’t tell me we’re talking about Marquis Crowde?”

“So they say.”

Pito shrugged.

“Apparently she’s adopted or something. Seems even the Crowdes never cared much about her. Either way, nobody’s going to make a fuss.”

Just then, an old wooden door creaked open.

“We leave in about an hour, so get ready.”

The familiar voice echoed through the room.

“It’s been raining for days, and the roads are a mess. Better to head out a little earlier just in case.”

It was the slender man who had forced the drug down her throat.

As his footsteps drew closer…

Eliana felt a terrible sense of recognition.

No…

It can’t be…

“And it looks like our Miss Eliana is finally awake.”

The man seized her chin roughly.

The sudden pain forced her eyes open.

She stared at the man before her, terror filling her pale violet eyes.

“You seem quite shocked, my lady.”

He smiled warmly.

“You probably have a lot of questions, so I’ll remove the gag for a moment.”

With surprisingly gentle hands, he untied the cloth covering her mouth.

Her lips stung.

Several places had split and bled.

“B-Bron…”

Her voice shook uncontrollably.

“Wh-why are you… doing this…? What’s happening…?”

Unable to believe what she was seeing, tears quickly welled in her trembling eyes.

Bron gently wiped them away.

“You asked me to help you.”

His voice was as kind as ever.

“You said you wanted to escape the Crowde family.”

“So… I’m helping you.”

“You said… we were going to Serapiano Monastery…”

She stared at him in disbelief.

“What is all this…?

What did you make me drink?”

“My, my.”

Bron sighed.

“You’re still not understanding the situation?”

A click of the tongue came from beside him.

Pito.

“Think about it, miss.”

He grinned.

“Bron sent you to me, didn’t he?”

“You bought the flower just like he told you.”

“A red anemone.”

“Thanks to you, my pockets are a lot heavier now.”

The woman who had been playing with Eliana’s hair flipped a gold coin into the air with a satisfied smile.

She was the flower vendor from Alderon’s market square.

The very woman who had sold Eliana the red anemone.

“Then you met me and came to this inn.”

Pito shrugged.

“Sure, you barely ate anything, so you didn’t fall asleep as nicely as we’d hoped…

but whatever.”

He spread his hands.

“Then some scary men burst into your room.”

“You lost consciousness.”

“And when you woke up, your hands and feet were tied.”

He leaned in closer.

“So what do you think happened?”

A cruel smile spread beneath his mask.

“You walked straight into a carefully prepared trap.”

“A trap you never had the slightest chance of escaping.”