Chapter 2

Five years had passed. Thinking about it now was meaningless. That’s what Ellen thought. Yet, the figure that surfaced in her mind grew clearer the more she tried to erase it. Just as those beloved red eyes were about to become vivid—

Bang.

“……!”

Ellen flinched at the dull sound echoing through the basement and turned her gaze toward the source. There, a man dressed in shabby, worn clothes was bent over, picking up spilled flour. It was someone she’d never seen before.

“Who is this man……?”

“Oh, I’m sorry, Madam. This fellow only arrived recently.”

A middle-aged servant stepped forward, bowing deeply as he pressed the man’s head down. Ellen looked down at the man held by the servant and spoke.

“Name?”

“…….”

The man did not answer. Ellen’s brow furrowed. The servant hastily answered.

“Madam, this one is mute.”

“Mute?”

“Yes, yes. Butler Karl hired a few people at the Master’s order a week ago, and he’s one of them.”

“…….”

At that, Ellen nodded calmly instead of getting angry. It had been five years since she married. After becoming pregnant with Innis, she lost all authority over the management of the mansion, and to this day, had not regained control over the Baron Dermann household.

All rights of management and approval within the mansion, which the lady of the house should naturally have, were handled by Karl, the butler. To Baron Dermann, Ellen was nothing more or less than someone who could make him stand out in social circles. So it was not surprising that she only now learned about new hires. She could count on one hand the times she’d had a proper conversation with him.

‘Mute, huh.’

A faint smile appeared on Ellen’s lips as a cherished memory surfaced, but it quickly faded. She hardened her expression and asked,

“Fine. Then what is this man’s name?”

“I don’t know, Madam. The Master just calls him ‘the mute bastard,’ so everyone else does too.”

“Is that so?”

Ellen looked over at the man with his head bowed, then picked up a piece of parchment and a pen nearby and held them out.

“Write your name here.”

Again, the servant quickly interrupted, pressing the man’s head down even further.

“Madam, as I said, he’s mute……”

“Even if he’s mute, he must have a name. Does he not know how to write?”

Ellen cut off the servant and asked. The man shook his head. When Ellen waved the parchment and pen at him, the man brushed away the servant’s hand pressing his head and accepted them.

“…….”

Ellen’s black eyes met the man’s red eyes, half hidden behind a filthy cloth covering his face. Whether from an injury or not, the man’s face was twisted, even with the cloth covering it. But even though his eyelids drooped hideously, the man’s steadfast gaze could not be concealed. While Ellen was briefly captivated by his eyes, the man quickly scribbled his name on the parchment and handed it over.

Theon.

Ellen took the parchment with the man’s name written on it and quietly repeated his name. She stared at Theon for a long moment. Theon did not avoid Ellen’s gaze. His piercing, unyielding eyes made Ellen turn away without realizing it. Fiddling with the parchment, Ellen fell into thought for a moment. If he’d only been employed for a week, Karl was surely keeping an eye on him.

‘As expected…….’

Ellen gave a bitter smile.

She had repeatedly stressed that this had to be done in secret from Baron Dermann. Yet the middle-aged servant, who had brought someone in as he pleased, bowed and called her Madam but looked down on her behind her back.

Even so, she had no choice but to involve him in such secret matters, because aside from Emma, there was no one in the household on her side. In truth, there was no one here she could trust.

In fact, she couldn’t trust anyone here. The servant, and the others, would do anything for money, no matter how uneasy they felt. She used them only because they were tight-lipped. So she sold off the jewelry she’d brought upon marriage and paid them high wages to entrust them with this work.

“All right.”

Given the situation, Ellen had learned to quickly give up on most things happening in the mansion. She glanced at Theon and turned away. It was more urgent to distract Karl’s attention before word reached her husband. Theon’s persistent gaze clung to her back, but Ellen didn’t notice, preoccupied with how to divert Karl and keep things from reaching her husband.

* * *

“Nuro Kingdom’s silk?”

Karl, whom Ellen rarely called, entered the study with an annoyed look. He repeated her unexpected words with a puzzled expression. Ellen smiled faintly, resting her chin on one hand and nodding.

“That’s right.”

“Of course, silk from that land is of the finest quality, a commodity beloved by all noble ladies. But……”

“I would like to make a hair ornament from it and wear it at the upcoming ball.”

“Madam.”

“What’s the problem?”

“Nuro Kingdom was destroyed fifty years ago, so getting that silk is nearly impossible, as you know……”

Ellen cut Karl off.

“I know. But the craftsmen who made that silk haven’t all disappeared, have they?”

“…….”

“Or is it something else? Are you saying you can’t obey my order?”

“That’s not it…”

Karl hesitated with a displeased expression. Ellen sighed softly and stood up. A loose strand of her neatly combed thread slipped down across his forehead. As he brushed it back with a sour face, Ellen smiled slyly and dropped another strand onto his forehead.

“Karl. You forgot something.”

“What…….”

“Even if I’m only Baron Dermann’s wife in name, I’m the one who maintains his reputation in society.”

“…….”

“You know, Karl? In society, my husband is just a aron with money, and other nobles avoid him. But the reason he can show his face at social gatherings is because of me. That’s why I need to use rare items to boost his prestige. That’s my role here.”

“Even so, Princess Rosalie herself has been desperately searching for Nuro Kingdom’s silk……”

“If I, the Baroness, were to wear such rare and precious silk, then Her Highness Princess Rosalie herself would be intrigued. If all goes well, my husband could gain ties with the royal family. Then my husband will praise you for acquiring the silk and reward you handsomely.”

“…….”

Greed quickly flooded Karl’s face. Swallowing, he imagined himself laughing while receiving a fortune from Baron Dermann. His sour expression brightened, and he bowed confidently.

“Leave it to me, Madam. I’ll get it, no matter what it takes.”

“Good. You can handle the silk purchase without my husband knowing, right?”

“Yes, Madam.”

“I’ll trust you, Karl. Now, you may go.”

“I’ll take my leave.”

Karl left, beaming, and Ellen wiped away the sly smile from her face, her expression hardening again. She sat down and let out a shallow sigh.

‘For now, Karl’s attention is elsewhere.’

If it were so easy to make a connection with the royal family by obtaining a single piece of silk, her father, Viscount Valère, wouldn’t have struggled so much. Ellen opened her desk drawer and took out a letter from her father. It still asked for money. At the bottom was the reason Ellen was preparing emergency supplies out of Baron Dermann’s sight. Recently, the Aryan Empire had blocked the trade route to the Kursh Kingdom, and the royal family’s actions were strange, causing trouble for business.

‘There might even be a war.’

Ellen sensed it. In the Aryan Empire, Crown Prince Richel Aryan was acting as regent for the ailing Emperor. According to society gossip, he was friendly and handsome, but no one could tell what he was thinking. Ellen had seen him a few times, but only from afar. The Kursh Kingdom, long accustomed to peace, was rotting from within due to luxury and indulgence. Even when an epidemic struck the border, relief efforts were lacking. Fortunately, Dermott estate where Ellen lived was spared, but it wasn’t time to feel safe yet. The people’s resentment grew, and the central capital was lost in decadence.

‘At the very least, Innis must be safe.’

Crunch—the letter crumpled under Ellen’s hand. She no longer cared what became of her father. She no longer cared what became of Baron Dermann. She no longer cared what became of herself. But Innis—Innis must be safe.

‘At least Innis……’

After giving birth to Innis, Ellen wept with joy and despair. She held the newborn Innis and silently sobbed all day. She was happy but sad, loved Innis but despaired at the thorny path ahead, and cried thinking of the one who had suddenly disappeared from the Valère family one day.

‘Lennox.’

For the first time in ages, she recalled a single name. Ellen bit her lip and buried her face in her hands. A name she had sealed deep in her heart. A name erased five years ago, now impossible to find anywhere. The ache in her dulled heart spread.

Suddenly, Ellen recalled the ruined face of the man named Theon she’d seen in the basement. Though he had nothing to do with Lennox, the man’s eyes stuck in her heart and wouldn’t fade. Ellen shook her head, trying to banish those eyes. But the more she tried, the more his gaze and the name Lennox left a cold, painful scar on her heart.