Chapter 3

Karl was so obsessed with searching for the silk from Nuro Kingdom that he didn’t even notice a new worker heading down to the basement. Ellen’s father continued to pressure her with letters demanding money, but Ellen ignored him. After all, her father would never set foot in such a filthy place. Ellen thought her daily life was nothing special, except for playing with Innis and occasionally running into Baron Dermann. She tucked Innis in for a nap, asked Emma to keep an eye on her, and returned to her room—up until that moment.

“Where have you been?”

Ellen froze at the familiar voice as she entered the room. Baron Dermann, his thick arms resting on the table, glared at her, half-bathed in sunlight slanting through the window.

“……”

Baron Dermann rose from his seat and lumbered toward Ellen. She instinctively tried to step back, but stopped herself. The Baron’s needle-like, narrow eyes were furrowed, rage swirling violently within them.

“Ugh!”

His pudgy hand grabbed her slender wrist and yanked her forward, and Ellen, stifling a scream, lost her balance and fell to the floor. Bang. Baron Dermann slammed the door shut, instantly cutting off the outside world. His shadowed face, snorting and furious, was terrifying. Ellen hid her fear, forcing a gentle smile as she asked,

“You came so suddenly without a word. What’s the matter?”

She couldn’t frown or let her voice turn sharp with him. She had to be gentle, kind. Otherwise, the consequences would be far too severe.

Smack!

Baron Dermann’s thick hand swung up and struck Ellen’s cheek. Her head snapped to the side and her body collapsed onto the floor. Ellen cradled her swelling cheek with her palm and raised her head. Baron Dermann, nostrils flaring, shouted harshly.

“Speak. What are you scheming?”

“What do you mean? I truly……”

Smack. The sharp sound of flesh tearing rang out again.

“……”

Ellen, her face expressionless, touched her reddened cheek. Her pale skin was scratched by the Baron’s heavy ring, and blood began to trickle down. She had to force herself to smile in front of Baron Dermann, but the numbness in her cheek made it impossible. The Baron, still fuming, slapped her again.

A sharp sound echoed through the room. Baron Dermann, seeing Ellen refuse to scream despite her swollen cheek, looked at her with utter disgust. He threw a crumpled piece of paper at her. The moment Ellen recognized what it was, her expression hardened. It was the list of goods she’d ordered from the merchant Jigote.

‘I hid it deep in my drawer—how did he find it?’

“Did you… search my drawer?”

Ellen asked, clutching the paper with trembling hands. Baron Dermann snorted.

“I have the right to know what my wife is doing behind my back. Of course I did.”

“But you……”

Ellen wanted to ask why he usually didn’t care about her, but swallowed her words.

A violently crumpled letter fell in front of Ellen. She didn’t need to open it to know—it was another letter from her father demanding money.

“How much have you sent to your poor family? How much of my money?”

“I haven’t sent anything.”

“Don’t lie to me!”

Baron Dermann shouted, kicking the letter and spitting as he raised his voice.

“Then why were you packing your things? You were planning to run off with my money, weren’t you? To take it to your poor family!”

“No. The country’s in turmoil, so I thought it best to be prepared, just in case. I knew you wouldn’t believe me if I told you.”

Ellen looked up and met her husband’s glare with her black eyes, answering firmly. Baron Dermann, displeased with her gaze, slapped her again. The blow was so hard her head rang and her vision spun.

“Nonsense! What could possibly happen in this peaceful Kursh? Are you praying for the country to fall or something?”

Ellen wanted to retort—didn’t he know a plague had swept through the border, wiping out villages while the country did nothing, and that the Dermott estate had barely escaped it? Didn’t he know the Aryan Empire had blocked the Kursh Kingdom’s trade routes? But she held her tongue, suppressing her sigh of exasperation at Baron Dermann’s ignorance.

“Dear.”

“Don’t call me ‘Dear,’ you filthy woman!”

“……”

“Listen carefully. I’m going to take all those damned things you’ve stashed in the basement and throw them out right now.”

“……”

“You’re not to leave this room until I allow it. Do you understand?”

“…I will.”

“D*mn it.”

Ellen didn’t bother to stop Baron Dermann as he stormed out, kicking the door. Emma, who’d been anxiously waiting outside, entered timidly, and Ellen waved her hand.

“Innis?”

“She’s still napping.”

“Good. Emma, my husband says he’ll throw out the luggage, but he won’t. Tonight, secretly repack everything and move it through the hidden passage. We need to be ready to escape at any time.”

“But, if we do that……”

Baron Dermann threatened to throw everything out, but Ellen knew he would never. He’d end up selling the goods to the estate’s people for a high price. He was clever when it came to those things.

“If the enemy arrives and we try to escape then, it’ll be too late. Do as I say.”

“Yes, Madam. First, let me put some medicine on you. If we’re not careful, it’ll scar.”

“It’s fine. Leave it as it is.”

“But……”

“Emma, you know his nature.”

Baron Dermann hated even having a bandage put on Ellen’s injuries. If she did something he disliked, his wrath would reach Innis. In fact, it was a miracle he hadn’t taken his anger out on Innis this time.

‘Just thinking about when Innis almost got hit because of me…’

The memory sent chills down Ellen’s spine. It had started with Baron Dermann’s quarrel, but that didn’t matter. Innis had been in the room at the time, and his rage nearly reached her. Ellen barely managed to stop it, but ever since, she’d watched her husband’s mood even when playing with young Innis. That’s why she always moved Innis to another room for her naps.

“But what if it scars your lovely face? Please, let me put on a little medicine.”

“If it scars, so be it.”

“Madam! If that happens, your reputation in society……”

“Emma, I want to be alone.”

“But!”

“Emma.”

At Ellen’s firm tone, Emma looked as if she had much more to say, but finally nodded.

“Yes… understood. Still, I’ll bring the ointment.”

“……”

Ellen didn’t reply. If she showed her injured cheek to Baron Dermann, he’d be satisfied and let it go. Even if Emma brought medicine, Ellen wouldn’t use it. She feared his anger reaching Innis far more than a scar on her cheek. After Emma left, Ellen opened the window. The autumn wind, tinged with winter’s chill, soothed her burning cheek.

“Maple leaves……”

The garden was stained deep red with fallen maple leaves. Leaves constantly drifted down from the sky. Ellen leaned forward, reaching out, and a leaf gently landed on her hand. The red leaf, tinged with yellow, contrasted beautifully with her pale hand. The slightly damp leaf felt soft. As Ellen gently shook her hand, the leaf blended naturally with others, painting the world with its beauty. She closed her eyes. Was it because she’d met Theon? When she closed her eyes, she remembered those beloved red eyes filled with affection. Ellen marked her wounds with that gaze.

“Why am I suddenly thinking of this?”

She hadn’t thought about it before. Not consciously. But ever since meeting Theon in the basement, his eyes appeared vividly in her mind. Ellen rested her hand on the window frame and looked up at the thin clouds drifting lazily across the clear sky.

‘If war breaks out, wherever he is, he’ll surely join the fight.’

On the day she killed time by herself, Ellen regretted it—and didn’t. She’d had to be cold then. She had no choice.

A knock sounded. Ellen didn’t answer. After several knocks, the door opened and a small presence entered. Ellen assumed it was Emma, since no one else in the mansion cared about her injuries.

“Emma. I’m really fine.”

The footsteps approaching Ellen stopped. She caught her wind-tousled red hair and continued.

“When he loses interest in me, I’ll put on the medicine then. So leave it for now. Otherwise, next time it won’t just be my cheek.”

“……”

“Emma. Aren’t you listening……”

The footsteps resumed. Ellen frowned as Emma didn’t answer and was about to turn around. Suddenly, the approaching steps sped up, and before Ellen could turn, strong arms wrapped around her waist.

“……!”

Her delicate back crashed into a solid chest covered in rough cloth. The dank, musty scent of the basement flooded her nose. Ellen was about to scream when a voice whispered in her ear, freezing her in place.

“Ellen.”

Trapped in the man’s embrace, Ellen’s face was filled with longing and shock at the sweet, husky voice whispering her name. Those cherished lips grazed her cheek and ear, quietly calling her name again and again. Ellen clung to the arms around her waist and, in a trembling voice, called out a name.

“Lennox…….”

He was the man she had wanted to see but never wanted to see again, never wanted to call again—Lennox.

Before the lingering warmth of his whispered voice faded, a scream rang out beyond the door. Thus, Ellen’s lonely, desolate world shattered with his arrival.