Chapter 4 – Suspicion (Part 4)

As Elysia suddenly got up and approached the balcony, Cassius clung to the railing to avoid being seen. He pressed himself against the outer wall, almost hanging from the pillar. Jumping down to the ground would make a noise, and he’d be caught immediately, so that wasn’t an option.

Unaware of the situation, Elysia leaned against the balcony railing and looked at the trees and landscaping surrounding the estate. During the engagement period, Elysia was using the guest room on the second floor of the east wing, and from there, she couldn’t see the entrance gate of the Duke’s estate where carriages came and went.

In other noble families, they usually paid attention to the view from the guest room, planting ornamental trees or flowers. However, what Elysia saw was a landscape where the trees were pruned to prevent them from growing too tall and the garden stones were trimmed to keep weeds at bay.

It seemed there hadn’t been any guests at the Duke’s estate for a long time, or they simply didn’t care about who stayed in the guest room.

Elysia vaguely recalled an article from the ‘Ladies’ Newsletter’ that her mother had read to her. It described the exterior of the Duke’s estate.

“The grounds surrounding the majestic mansion of the Grendel’s Ducal estate are more like a vast forest than a garden. Within that forest lies the beautiful secrets of nature preserved, and among them is a particularly refined garden. This garden was cultivated by the late Duchess…”

According to the article Lillian had read, there hadn’t been visitors to the Duke’s mansion for a long time, and the servants were tight-lipped, so the basis for the article was all old rumors. It ended by expressing hope that the heavy doors of the Duke’s estate would open wide once again, a sentiment shared by many ladies who subscribed to the newsletter.

However, Elysia was sure that if the reporter from the ‘Ladies’ Newsletter’ actually saw this place, they would write a completely different article.

Imagining how the ‘Ladies’ Newsletter,’ known for its exaggerated speculative articles, would introduce this place, Elysia mimicked her mother’s reading voice and muttered an imaginary article.

“There is a serious problem with the management of the Duke’s estate garden. Visitors to the Grendel family’s garden might think this is not a noble’s mansion but an old castle on the border. The landscaping does not seem to serve ornamental purposes and appears to be meticulously designed solely for functional reasons, suitable for monitoring intrusions by outsiders…”

Then she leaned her upper body against the balcony, propping her chin with one hand.

As Elysia stopped muttering to herself and leaned forward over the balcony, Cassius, who was hiding, thought he might be discovered and pressed himself even closer to the wall, watching her actions closely.

The gentle breeze blew Elysia’s hair, fully revealing her delicate profile. Despite her strange words, Elysia appeared lost in thought with a calm expression. The contrast between her peaceful appearance and the atmosphere of her words made Cassius even more curious about what Elysia was plotting.

Elysia, who normally wasn’t interested in flowers, was simply thinking that she desperately wanted a petal falling in the breeze right now. She needed something to change the desolate atmosphere.

“Madam, how are you?”

Both the hiding Cassius and the deep-in-thought Elysia turned their heads toward the voice coming from the garden. Standing on the stone path visible from the balcony was Aaron Hass.

Having come to the Duke’s estate for work, Aaron was looking for his superior, who hadn’t returned for a while, to report on time. Seeing Elysia leaning on the balcony, Aaron greeted her, and then his eyes widened when he noticed the Duke clinging to the balcony pillar. Cassius shook his head at Aaron, signaling him to be quiet.

Swallowing dryly, Aaron quickly composed himself and spoke to Elysia.

“Madam, if you stay out too long, you might catch a cold from the wind. I’ll have tea sent up, so please go inside.”

Unless Elysia entered the room and closed the balcony door, there was no way for the Duke to come down without being discovered, hence Aaron’s suggestion.

“Aaron, can I ask you something? I’d like an honest answer.”

“Yes, please ask.”

Aaron wanted to quickly answer and get Elysia back inside.

“Is there a special reason for the landscaping of the Duke’s estate trees like this? If I ask the servants, they’ll probably just say it’s tradition. But you, Aaron, can tell me the real reason, right?”

“It’s not a significant reason. I only know that it’s maintained as per the instructions of the late Duke Aisar.”

Whatever she asked about the Duke’s estate, the answer was always that it was according to the late Duke’s instructions. Hearing the same answer again, Elysia sighed.

“I see. No need for tea. I’ll be going inside now.”

“Yes, please make sure to close the balcony door; the cold air might come in.”

Of course, it wasn’t cold at all, but Aaron insisted nonetheless.

“I really can’t like the late Duke…”

Elysia muttered her thoughts on the late Duke to herself, then closed the door and went inside.

After confirming that Elysia had gone inside, the Duke jumped down to the ground. Landing safely, he straightened his clothes and signaled Aaron to follow him to the office.

As soon as the office door closed, Aaron asked the Duke.

“Duke, did you sneak into Madam’s room? Why were you hanging there?”

Cassius felt a moment of self-reproach for having to hide in his own house but quickly regained his composure, recalling the contents of the notebook he found in Elysia’s room.

“The Serenze family has conducted a very detailed investigation on me, to a level that could be threatening. Over a very long period. The item my fiancée received less than a day after sending a letter was that investigation report.”

Aaron’s eyes widened.

“How could that be? Didn’t they initially want to distance themselves enough to refuse the marriage proposal?”

“When dining with me, she tested me by assuming a situation where the nobility and the royal family disappeared.”

“The Madam did?”

Aaron was shocked at the implication that Elysia not only spoke of overthrowing the state system and treason but also tested the Duke.

“Shouldn’t we retrieve and analyze the report sent by the Serenze family? If we examine the information closely, it will be easier to find its source or those involved.”

Cassius shook his head.

“I had just entered the room, and she returned pretending to have injured her ankle, as if she sensed something. If we try to retrieve the report again, it could raise suspicion.”

If Aaron had seen the notebook Elysia received, he would have immediately recognized it as a collection of articles from the ‘Ladies’ Newsletter’ and social gossip.

However, the Duke, who always received information through reports compiled and refined by his subordinates, couldn’t know it was a collection of the ‘Ladies’ Newsletter’ and gossip. He didn’t read popular magazines and didn’t frequent social gatherings, so he was unaware of the appearance of the ‘Ladies’ Newsletter.’

“Could it be that the Serenze family sees their dealings with the Earl of Kumaran as more than just a simple transaction? Are the two families politically aligned as well?”

According to Ronan’s information, the Serenze family’s political stance was close to indifference or neutrality, but that could have been a smokescreen. If the Serenze family were indeed noble supremacists like the Kumaran family, it would be politically safer to break the engagement and find a new partner.

However…

“If we break the engagement without a fault on Serenze’s side, there will be rumors, and that wouldn’t be good for the Grendel Duke’s reputation. Moreover, the Duke would thoroughly vet the next candidate to prevent such an issue again, which could take an incredibly long time.”

Knowing the Duke’s personality, once a relationship was broken, he would become even more distrustful of others, possibly leading to a situation where he never chooses another fiancée and grows old alone.

Aaron’s rational mind told him to be suspicious of Miss Serenze, but his intuition strangely wanted to trust Elysia.

Having grown up as the second son of the Haas Trading Company, Aaron had seen many people trying to exploit the company. During his academy days, he dealt daily with nobles who belittled him for his merchant background and criticized his achievements. Based on his experiences with a wide variety of people, even at a young age, Aaron didn’t find anything suspicious about the new Madam. His intuition in such matters had been quite reliable.

Perhaps the Duke was being overly sensitive due to the unsavory incident involving his mother, the late Duchess. Aaron wanted to give the newly engaged couple a chance to truly get to know each other.

“Perhaps Madam was just trying to satisfy her curiosity about her fiancé by looking into a few things. It could be a misunderstanding, so why not spend time with her and subtly find out?”

Cassius pondered Aaron’s suggestion for a moment. There were many suspicious aspects, but it was still a stage where things needed to be confirmed. It was necessary to keep monitoring the correspondence coming and going, and as they grew closer, it would be easier to clear up misunderstandings or gather information. Cassius decided to accept Aaron’s suggestion and nodded.