Chapter 4 (Part 7)

The two climbed the stairs in silence. Therese was acutely aware of the Duke’s large hand on her shoulder and back, and it was driving her mad.  

She still couldn’t believe how startled she had been when she woke up at dawn. She had been leaning on the Duke’s shoulder, fast asleep.  

‘When… no, why…?’  

She couldn’t remember how they ended up sharing the same bed.  

‘…Ha.’  

It was probably the first time she had ever seen Jeremy’s sleeping face. His soft blonde hair was tousled, and his golden eyelashes quivered slightly with each breath.  

‘Even his sleeping face is perfect.’  

When she saw the Duke’s eyebrows twitch, Therese quickly shut her eyes. She couldn’t let him catch her secretly watching his sleeping face.  

Trying to clear her head, Therese responded coldly.  

“Your Grace, you don’t need to concern yourself with my affairs.”  

They were going to divorce soon anyway, and she didn’t want to disrupt the harmony between mother and son because of her.  

“Are you still talking about that?”  

“I was only saying it because your mother seemed upset.”  

“After my father passed away, my mother’s nerves have become quite fragile. I hope her words didn’t hurt you.”  

“……”  

Therese was at a loss for words after hearing such unexpected comfort. She was used to enduring such verbal abuse as part of her daily life.  

“I… I’ll take my leave now.”  

Though it felt like she was running away, she couldn’t stay there any longer.  

‘If I listen to him any longer, I feel like I’ll start to waver.’  

Therese could feel the Duke’s sharp gaze piercing her back, but she didn’t turn around.  

* * *  

Roshan, whom Therese thought was still recovering, was in the office working. When she spotted him, she placed her hands on her hips and glared at him.  

“You shouldn’t even be walking yet.”  

The two stood facing each other in the office, their gazes locked in a tense standoff.  

“I’ll make sure to rest earlier than usual.”  

“Why don’t you ever listen?”  

“I want to stay by your side and assist you, Master.”  

Seeing the determination in Roshan’s eyes, Therese shook her head. It wasn’t easy to dissuade him when he looked like that.  

“Fine. But if you’re in pain, you must rest immediately. And don’t sit in the chair for too long.”  

Only after adding several strict conditions did Therese allow Roshan to return to work. Otherwise, he would have likely gone behind her back to continue working.  

The two resumed their meeting after a long time.  

“From what I’ve found, the number of disappearances among young men and women is unusually high.”  

At first, she thought it was limited to women, but investigations revealed otherwise.  

“It’s likely tied to criminal activity….”  

As Roshan read through the documents, Therese quickly added,  

“They must have been caught up in something suspicious.”  

There were often cases where desperate young people in difficult circumstances were lured with promises of jobs, only to be forcibly taken aboard ships or made to work in rural areas without being allowed to return home.  

“Not only that, but there are also increasing rumors of strange sightings.”  

People claimed to have seen glowing white figures or individuals flying through the sky.  

While such reports could easily be dismissed as drunken nonsense, the sheer volume of such accounts could not be ignored.  

“I have a bad feeling about this.”  

Though there were always minor incidents, it was rare for her to feel such a strong sense of foreboding. Moreover, it was the first time Roshan had been injured so severely.  

“Are you still not going to tell me? Who did this to you?”  

“I apologize, but I was knocked unconscious in a single blow and couldn’t get a proper look at the attacker.”  

Roshan’s voice, daring to lie before his master, wavered like a candle in the wind.  

As Roshan hung his head low, Therese also felt a solemn mood settle over her.  

“I see.”  

That day’s events had been a tragedy.  

Most of the guild’s warriors had died, and Roshan himself had barely escaped death.  

‘He must be someone with dangerously exceptional skills.’  

Hiding her worried expression, Therese turned to the next page of the documents.  

“How are things at the border these days?”  

“Since the last battle, the monsters have been quiet.”  

He was referring to the time when Duke Richard had left immediately after their wedding.  

“It’s fortunate that they’re quiet, but….”  

Muttering to herself, Therese’s gaze deepened.  

No one knew how, when, or why monsters had come into existence. All they knew was that monsters had always been part of the empire’s history. Sometimes they threatened the empire’s survival, and other times, as now, they were subdued by human strength and remained quiet.  

“How are you doing, Your Grace?”  

As she busily flipped through the documents, Roshan cautiously asked.  

“What do you mean?”  

“Your health… or other matters.”  

“The poison isn’t unbearable as long as I don’t overexert myself. And as for other matters….”  

Therese’s voice, which had started lightly, gradually trailed off. By “other matters,” he was referring to her marriage. To reassure Roshan, she had to say that everything was fine.  

‘But nothing is fine at all.’  

The Duke she had met again seemed unchanged yet profoundly different. He paid too much attention to her and confused her far too often.  

‘Why is he acting this way toward me?’  

Outside gambling houses or clubs, the Duke always acted as if he genuinely cared for her.  

‘It’s just for the sake of the family’s honor, so I shouldn’t read too much into it.’  

A button fastened incorrectly should be redone from the start. That’s why divorcing the Duke was the natural course for Therese.  

“If anything happens, please let me know.”  

At Roshan’s earnest request, Therese smiled faintly.  

“What could possibly happen to me?”  

Facing her bright smile, Roshan couldn’t bring himself to laugh.  

* * *  

In the end, Therese had no choice but to attend the ball hosted by the Emperor, which meant she needed a new dress.  

‘I can’t possibly wear that red dress.’  

While it might be amusing to wear it and make Maria Richard faint, her father would surely faint as well.  

‘I can’t let that happen.’  

Therese visited the dressmaker’s shop she had frequented since childhood.  

“Well, look who it is!”  

The dressmaker greeted Therese warmly. The owner was a tall woman named Cecilia.  

‘Waaah, my dress is torn.’  

‘Little Miss, don’t cry. I can fix it so it looks good as new.’  

Their relationship had begun when young Therese, wandering around the bazaar, tripped on a rock and tore her dress. Cecilia, who saw the unsightly hole, brought Therese to her shop and mended the dress.  

Originally, Cecilia had made a living by collecting and repairing secondhand clothes. Her skill was so exceptional that her alterations often looked more elegant than the original garments, earning her quite a reputation.  

‘Cecile, let’s open a dress shop.’  

‘But Therese, I’m poor.’  

It was Therese who helped Cecilia, who had been working from home without a proper shop, to open one.  

‘I’ll invest in it.’  

‘I can’t accept your money, Miss.’  

‘I’m not giving it to you. It’s an investment. Pay me back once you start earning money.’  

Thus, Cecilia’s shop in the capital gained popularity through word of mouth.  

Her main clients were poor nobles or merchants, but anyone who wore Cecilia’s clothes became a regular customer.  

After all, there weren’t many who could create affordable yet elegant outfits.  

“Did you trip again?”  

“Cecile, do you think I’m still a child?”  

Therese pouted as she looked around the shop, bustling with customers.  

“I’m just glad you had graced this humble shop with your presence, Duchess.”  

“Cecile, how about making a dress for me, the Duchess?”  

Cecilia’s eyes widened at Therese’s suggestion. Though her shop was popular, no famous noble ever visited. The aristocracy preferred well-known designers educated abroad or traditional ateliers that served the Imperial Family and high-ranking nobles.  

“But Miss—no, Madame—I’m not skilled enough to make your dress.”  

Therese had heard this before. In the past, Cecilia had declined to make Therese’s ball gowns, fearing it might harm her reputation.  

‘And Maria didn’t allow it either.’  

Her mother-in-law refused to accept an unknown designer and always chose Therese’s dresses without consulting her.  

‘But I really like Cecile’s dresses. They’re comfortable and beautiful.’  

Moreover, Therese knew something else.  

In the next five years, Cecilia would become even more famous.  

‘I just want to help her get there a little sooner.’  

This might be her only chance to repay the love Cecilia had shown her.  

“I might trip if I don’t wear one of your dresses, Cecilia.”  

When Therese batted her big blue eyes, Cecilia bit her lip nervously. She also knew how terrible Therese was at dancing.  

“Will it really be okay?”  

“Of course. I’m Duchess Richard. Who would dare say anything to me?”  

Reassured by Therese’s confidence, Cecilia finally picked up the measuring tape hanging from her wrist.  

“Then let’s take your measurements. With the ball so close, I might have to pull a few all-nighters.”  

Despite her earlier hesitation, Cecilia’s green eyes sparkled with excitement at the thought of making a new dress.