#5.

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At that time, another carriage was heading toward the duke’s residence.

The two carriages passed each other at the straight entrance to the duke’s mansion.

Ellin, looking out the window, made eye contact with the owner of the passing carriage.

“Ah……”

The person wearing a pretty hat adorned with flowers and jewels was Silvia.

Unlike Ellin’s surprised expression, Silvia’s face was very dark. Her eyelids were red and swollen, perhaps from crying.

Silvia’s expression upon seeing Ellin was cold.

‘She must have come from the duke’s residence. Of course, she was close to the old duchess.’

Anyone who had attended even one party knew how close Silvia was to the duke’s mother.

That’s why people had no doubt she would become the duke’s wife.

Ellin felt her heart grow heavier and let out a small sigh.

The count’s daughter’s dark expression she had just seen bothered her.

She felt guilty, like she was the cause of this whole situation.

* * *

“Please wait here for a moment.”

She had expected to meet the impressive butler she had seen before, but he wasn’t there.

Instead, a maid guided her to the reception room.

“Thank you.”

When the maid withdrew, Ellin, left alone, slowly looked around the interior.

The reception room was bright with large arched windows adorned with heavily pleated white lace curtains.

The purple velvet sofa with golden legs was pretty enough to make her smile.

Being in this reception room that reflected the mistress’s taste made her feel warm, though her heart beat rapidly.

‘Oh?’

Ellin’s gaze fixed on one wall as she looked around the reception room.

Large and small picture frames hung irregularly, and one of them instantly captured her attention.

‘Wow……’

She had loved drawing since childhood.

Though she didn’t know whose painting it was or what it depicted, she was purely captivated the moment she saw it.

Forgetting her earlier tension that had stiffened her body, she admired the painting like she might be drawn into it.

“You seem to like that painting?”

Ellin, who had been entranced, was so startled that she let out an “Ah!.”

She had been so immersed that she hadn’t noticed someone entering.

With her hand on her startled heart, she turned to find a beautiful middle-aged woman standing at the doorway.

The painting on the wall was impressive, but the woman standing in front of the white door was also a work of art.

Her elegantly styled blonde hair and navy dress with a beautiful silhouette were both classic and captivating.

Ruby earrings like pomegranate seeds made her skin appear flawlessly clean.

Her unapproachable figure and aura alone revealed that she was the duke’s mother.

Ellin chastised herself for being so absorbed in the painting and quickly assumed a respectful posture.

“My lady. I am Ellin Nilson.”

Melissa approached Ellin with a subtle smile.

“Nice to meet you, Miss Ellin. I am Melissa Linderto.”

Melissa observed the young lady before her with an alluring smile on her red lips.

Though she was smiling gently, Melissa’s eyes were sharp.

Like someone assessing the value of an antique hidden under dirt and dust.

‘Not bad, better than I expected. No, surprisingly better.’

The young lady seeing her for the first time couldn’t hide her nervousness.

A bit stiff from tension, but with a transparent and bright face, trying not to make mistakes despite her anxiety.

And yet, there was a calm look in her eyes as she composed herself, trying not to appear servile.

In that brief moment, Melissa could see all these things one by one.

She was different from the young ladies who approached her with fake friendliness just because she was the duke’s mother.

Having heard so many negative things about the baron’s family, she honestly hadn’t expected much.

A young lady raised in such a family would surely be disappointing without even looking.

Perhaps she had set her expectations too low?

‘I’ll need more time to get to know her.’

Melissa approached Ellin with a smile.

“I’ve heard a lot about you. I’ve been away from the capital, so I’m only now meeting my future daughter-in-law.”

“Please speak comfortably, Madam.”

“I will.”

After Melissa sat on the sofa, Ellin calmly sat on the sofa beside her.

Like Silvia earlier, Ellin’s eyes first noticed the black stone on the table.

Unlike Silvia’s reaction, Ellin looked at it intently.

“It’s strange, isn’t it? I’ll call a servant to remove it.”

Ellin looked up with a start at Melissa’s words.

“Oh, no. I was just fascinated by the stone’s shape.”

When Melissa’s eyes brightened as if asking what she meant, Ellin tilted her head slightly and said,

“It looks like a mother embracing a newborn baby with her entire body.”

A small chill ran down Melissa’s spine at Ellin’s words.

Until now, among the countless people who had seen this stone, not one had seen it through the same eyes as her.

The young lady she met today had the same thought as her. It felt strange.

“Is… is that how it looked to you, Miss?”

Ellin’s ears turned red at Melissa’s words, seemingly embarrassed.

She worried she might have interpreted the old duchess’s precious item too freely without knowing much about it.

“I-I’m sorry. That thought just came to me when I saw it.”

Looking at Ellin, Melissa pulled her lips into a smile.

“Everyone sees things differently. Depending on one’s situation, the same thing can feel different each time. Isn’t that the charm of art?”

Ellin nodded in agreement with her words.

Her heart beat faster than when she was with the duke, and her hands grew cold while facing the lady who, despite her gentle eyes, was scrutinizing her.

Melissa examined Ellin again from up close.

Though not dressed extravagantly, she had a certain aura about her.

The kind that might not immediately catch the eye among other young ladies her age, but would make one’s gaze linger.

“I would have noticed you at parties, why don’t I remember you?”

Ellin’s cheeks grew warm at Melissa’s words, which sounded like both a question and a mutter to herself.

She hadn’t attended many parties, but even at the few she attended, the old duchess would have understood if she knew what Ellin had looked like.

To her stepmother and family, Ellin was something to be thoroughly hidden, someone who shouldn’t catch others’ eyes.

“I spent many days away from the capital nursing a sick relative.”

Ellin gave an answer that was neither false nor too revealing.

She knew well that disparaging her family would be like spitting on her own face.

“Oh dear. I’m sorry to hear they were unwell. How are they doing now?”

The old duchess asked with a concerned voice.

Ellin recalled her great-aunt earnestly asking her not to mention her.

“They’re much better now and currently in the capital. They came all the way from Castia to see my wedding.”

A gentle smile formed on Ellin’s lips as she answered.

“I see. That’s good. But…… did you say Castia?”

Melissa emphasized Castia with an enigmatic expression.

It was impossible to tell whether the place held good or bad feelings for her.

Ellin’s voice grew smaller, wondering if she had made a mistake.

“Yes.”

“We have a villa in Castia too. There was a rather unfortunate incident there once. Still, it’s a beautiful place.”

Ellin finally relaxed at Melissa’s words. Thankfully, it seemed unrelated to her great-aunt.

“The duke loves that place very much. I don’t understand how he can still love it after experiencing such a ridiculous incident.”

Melissa gently rubbed her temple, seeming to get a headache just thinking about that time.

Ellin tensed again at the mention of the duke.

Somehow, the unfortunate incident the old duchess mentioned seemed like the one she knew about.

Her heart hammered heavily, feeling like her secretly kept secret had been discovered.

“Perhaps you and Dominic crossed paths there once or twice by chance. It’s not a very large place.”

Ellin nodded slightly with an awkward smile at Melissa’s words.

“Perhaps.”

“How did you two first meet? For him to decide on marriage, there must be some extraordinary romance known only to you two.”

Melissa asked with subtle eyes that seemed to peer into Ellin’s mind.

‘Extraordinary romance? There’s no such thing.’

Ellin’s mind went blank at the sudden unexpected question.

Then, the familiar romance she had imagined daily began flowing from her lips without her realizing.

The tender romance of secretly loving someone for a long time, watching from afar, and suffering heartache wasn’t a lie.

Because it wasn’t a lie, she could feel the lady’s gaze gradually softening as she listened to the story.

“……and that’s how I received the duke’s proposal.”

By the final sentence, the old duchess even seemed to have tears in her eyes, so her answer must have been quite satisfactory.

“I didn’t know Dominic had such a romantic side.”

Melissa shrugged slightly and smiled.

Ellin was sweating so much that she hardly remembered how the conversation flowed afterward.

She became frightened by the fact that she would have to tell this story to the duke as well, since the old duchess might ask him the same question.

She would rather die. How could she possibly say those words!

It was more shameful than a love confession.

The first meeting with the old duchess, her future mother-in-law, seemed to end successfully.

But the meeting itself had been so draining that Ellin had to leave completely exhausted.

When she left the duke’s residence in the carriage, she felt like she had completed a major assignment.

“Let me off here, Charlie.”

She stopped the carriage heading home midway.

“But Madam told me to return immediately after your errand, Miss Ellin.”

“I heard Mother has somewhere to go this evening. Drop me off here and go home.”

“But……”

“Don’t worry. I can return by myself when I’m done. Could you tell Father I went to visit a sick friend?”

Charlie finally nodded when Ellin asked and started driving the carriage again.

The place where she got off was the central market.

Campbell Street was two blocks away from here.

She hurriedly walked while recalling the contents of the letter she received from Charlotte yesterday.

‘I’m not feeling well and can’t step out of the house at all.’

For Charlotte, who loved going out, to send such a letter—her condition must be quite bad.

She planned to check on Charlotte and keep her company while she was out.

Enjoying the afternoon sunshine while walking, she recalled what Melissa had mentioned earlier.

‘The duke loves that place very much. I don’t understand how he can still love it after experiencing such an incident.’

‘I was really surprised to hear that.’

Ellin carefully brought out the secret she had kept only in her heart.

The memory from Castia that she couldn’t tell anyone.

* * *