Chapter 1: Consummation on the Night of the New Moon (3)

“……Just for a moment of fresh air.”

“At this hour, without even a maid?”

“……”

The excuse she barely managed to utter was far too flimsy.

Terian, ever the noble, refrained from stating it outright—but both of them knew.

There was no such thing as a personal maid who accompanied Larie closely in this mansion.

That had all started after her family had wronged Susan’s parents, once loyal retainers.

At moments like this, Larie was painfully aware of how lacking she was in eloquence.

If only she knew how to speak with grace, maybe this sharp silence wouldn’t keep slicing between them.

In every way, she just didn’t suit someone as aristocratic as him.

“Stand up.”

That was when Terian closed the distance and held out his hand.

His expressionless eyes were fixed on the hem of Larie’s skirt as she sat on the grass.

Under his gaze, Larie became painfully self-conscious.

Flustered, she instinctively reached out—but startled again, she quickly withdrew her hand.

She had sat down in pain and confusion, and now her hands were covered in dirt.

Suddenly, she felt filthy.

She couldn’t bring herself to touch his hand with such a soiled one, and just as she was about to retreat—

Terian swiftly caught her hand.

“Ah.”

Before she knew it, a tremendous force pulled her up.

Standing up straight in a daze, she realized her body felt much better than before.

The pain that had seemed endless had once again vanished almost eerily fast the moment she entered the forest.

No sooner had she fully stood than his face suddenly came close—so close she could feel his breath.

As Terian’s body heat drew near, her cheeks, chilled by the night air, tingled as if from a phantom burn.

Then, in an even colder voice than before, he spoke.

“Don’t come to places like this in the dark. Unless, of course, your family is up to something strange again.”

“That… that’s not it…”

“Do you understand?”

“…Yes…”

Larie, who had meant to say more, instead chose to shut her mouth.

Over the past two years, she had come to realize painfully well that, because of her inherited curse, no matter what she said, it would always sound like an excuse.

“I’ll go ahead, Your Grace.”

“……”

As he watched her hurriedly disappear, Terian’s expression stiffened.

She claimed to be sick, but up close, her condition showed no signs of illness.

It was entirely different from what Susan had reported.

There were only a few possibilities he could imagine for such a baffling situation.

Was she feigning illness this time?

“Master.”

At that moment, the butler who had been silently standing nearby held out a handkerchief.

Terian took it with some confusion, only then realizing—

“Ah.”

His hands were covered in dirt from helping her up.

“……”

Terian stared at his palm for a moment, then lazily wiped it off with the cloth.

Then he gave the butler a command.

“Find out if someone recently gave Susan a large sum of money.”

“Madam Susan… sir?”

“Yes.”

It was strange that a report of Larie being unwell had been delivered to him at all.

The Tromperie’s were always sly with their schemes—it was best to investigate even the smallest clue early.

Of course, it was unlikely that Susan, who surely cursed the Tromperie’s, would have willingly cooperated with any of Larie’s plans.

The butler’s expression darkened, perhaps recalling the events from half a year ago.

Originally Larie’s personal maid, Susan had refused the Tromperie family’s persistent attempts to buy her off. She had declined their request to report on Larie’s surroundings—that is, Terian’s movements.

In return came a cruel act of revenge. Her father, who worked at a trading company, lost one of his legs in a carriage accident. It could have been dismissed as just an accident, but during a routine visit, the Baron and Baroness Tromperie had sneered in passing.

‘If only you’d cooperated, perhaps your family would have stayed intact.’

Later, another servant testified about that mocking remark, and its meaning became clear.

At the butler’s plea, Terian looked into the details of the incident. It was discovered that someone had harmed Susan’s father using a cleverly disguised scheme that couldn’t be punished even under imperial law.

Still, even in such a situation, it was possible that Susan had been tempted if offered a large sum of money—especially with her father now unable to work.

“I’ll report back shortly, Master.”

At the time, Larie had stood by in a half-dazed state as Susan turned down her position as her personal maid. The Tromperie’s had pounced on the opportunity and tried to insert one of their own maids into the vacancy.

Naturally, Terian and his mother opposed the idea. There was no reason to accept someone who was practically a spy.

And so, that awkward void had persisted for half a year. Terian had assumed Larie would eventually give in and ask for another personal maid out of sheer inconvenience—but she had remained firm.

She had endured nearly six months without even one attendant by her side.

“……”

Until her hair, like a river of stars, disappeared into the mansion, Terian quietly watched her retreating figure.

❖ ❖ ❖

The next day.

Just when she thought her condition had improved slightly, it worsened again. Though she felt better than she had when she nearly collapsed the day before, the chills running through her body were a bad sign.

Putting strength into her arms, Larie struggled to stand and made her way to the bathroom. Though she had no maid to assist her, she was used to washing and dressing herself.

Though it was troublesome, having no one around actually brought her peace of mind. Who knew what her family might try next?

Besides, her life in the Baron’s household had never been that of a typical noblewoman anyway. The Tromperie’s were wealthy, but that abundance had never been allowed to reach her.

Perhaps fearing rumors, her parents had limited her attendants to only a small number of trusted maids. As a result, the other maids in the house viewed Larie as extremely difficult.

Of course, the few who knew the truth never treated her like a mistress. She often had to tidy her own room. The only relief was that those maids rotated frequently.

In contrast, people here had been so kind—at first.

“……”

As she combed her tangled hair with trembling hands, Larie suddenly froze. It felt as if a bloody mass was clotted inside her chest.

The events from half a year ago passed through her mind with a damp, suffocating sensation.

‘It’s all your fault! My father… my father’s leg…!’

Susan’s occasional screams still echoed in her ears. The resentful gaze she had received was just as vivid.

All the staff at the duchy, upon learning the details, had surrounded Larie with reproachful looks. Larie had been frozen in place, unable to react, unaware that her family would go so far as to do that to Susan.

She had wanted to offer an explanation but couldn’t bring herself to speak. Did someone with the blood of Tromperie even have the right to make excuses?

‘Butler. Keep the commotion in order.’

It was, surprisingly, Terian who quelled the commotion. Though everything had been shattered, a faint glimmer of hope flickered in Larie’s heart.

But like a speck of dust, that tiny hope quickly vanished. Terian’s gaze toward Larie was colder than the perpetual snow atop the highest mountains.

‘That’s as far as your insolence goes.’

His words had been directed toward Susan and the other servants, but his eyes stared straight at Larie.

Only then did Larie realize why he had stepped in. It was because, at least in name, she was still the Grand Duchess. Any insult to the Grand Duchess was, in turn, an insult to him—he had no choice but to act.

The Duchy provided Susan with compensation. Though only symbolic, they even helped punish the coachman responsible. But there was no way to deal with the true instigator—Baron Tromperie.

Because of that, Susan’s position had become ambiguous. The Baron kept insisting on sending a new personal maid, and someone had to remain by Larie’s side at the duchy.

But after the incident, no one wanted to serve Larie. Susan, who still needed to support her family, remained nominally in that role.

Larie felt pity for the girl whose position had been left in limbo. She also knew Susan roamed the estate, picking up tasks wherever she could.

“Sigh…”

That’s why Larie had secretly delivered her entire life’s savings to Susan’s parents’ home.

She had saved that money since childhood, hoping to one day escape her family. Though it was her entire fortune, the sum was sadly not large.

That was probably why Susan still couldn’t leave the estate—why she couldn’t even give up the position of personal maid to someone she loathed so deeply.

Susan had been a diligent maid, and despite Larie’s quiet nature, she had always tried to talk to her. From those conversations, Larie had learned only that Susan’s family lived in District 4—and that was where she had headed without hesitation.

It had been a reckless act, but at the time, Larie had been desperate. Sadly, bad news always found a way to spread, and after much searching, she had managed to find Susan’s house.

“……”

Her hand, frozen like a statue, finally began to move again.

The silver hair her mother always cursed as unlucky looked even duller today, and Larie found it displeasing. Staring weakly at her reflection in the mirror, she thought lifelessly—

Her own escape had become utterly impossible now, but she still wished she could’ve saved up a little more money.

That way, at least Susan could have escaped this dreadful place.