Chapter 3: Thorny Path (Part 4)

Knock, knock.

There was no response to her knock. Unsure of what to do, a passing maid spoke up.

“The Duke went out early this morning. If you’re looking for the Duchess, go to the drawing room.”

Nodding, Sophia headed to the drawing room. Despite knocking several times, there was no response from inside.

After several knocks, Sophia said, “Excuse me, I’m coming in,” and opened the door, but no one was inside.

Just as she was wondering why she had been so kindly directed, a sharp voice came from behind.

“What are you doing here alone?”

Turning around, she saw the Duchess of Loden, who had neatly tied brown hair like Clive, pale skin, and a sharp impression.

“I came to pay my respects.”

“At this time? My, you really come quickly. Tomorrow, come to my bedroom two hours earlier.”

“Yes, I’ll come earlier tomorrow.”

Two hours… Considering preparation time, she would have to wake up at least three hours earlier, but Sophia accepted it without complaint.

After greeting her, Sophia headed back to her bedroom. Emily entered as if she had been waiting, carrying a tray of food.

Fortunately, the meal was decent. For breakfast, soup, bread, and fruit were prepared. The soup was clean-tasting, the bread was soft, and the fruit was fresh. The only problem was that Sophia had to eat alone.

At the Dveshi household, meals were always shared with the family if they were home. Having been accustomed to eating in such a warm atmosphere, eating alone was hard to get used to.

After finishing her meal with a sense of discomfort, Sophia felt a sense of boredom. There wasn’t anything she particularly needed to do.

In a typical marriage, she would tour the mansion and check on her future duties, but this was a marriage filled with resentment, so there was no need for that.

Instead, wandering around the mansion might make the Loden family uncomfortable, so she had to avoid them.

This was evident from the attitude of the Loden maids. When she asked for something, they would help but with a reluctant expression, otherwise treating her as if she didn’t exist.

Therefore, Sophia had to rely on the maids who came with her from the Dveshi household for any requests.

“I’m glad they came with me.”

With a sigh of relief, Sophia opened an unpacked bag in one corner. She took out things she had brought just in case.

Inside the bag were books, embroidery supplies, and art materials. These were all things Sophia enjoyed doing in her free time.

She had thought the Duchess of Loden wouldn’t leave her idle, but it turned out to be the opposite.

It was fortunate to have free time, but she didn’t know how long it would last. So, she decided to make the most of the given free time and picked up a book before lying on the bed.

Spending the whole day idly reading, the day grew dark, and Emily entered the room with dinner. She looked much more exhausted than usual, prompting Sophia to ask worriedly.

“Did the Loden maids bother you?”

“Fortunately, they didn’t.”

“Then why do you look so tired?”

“It’s just that the work is hard.”

“You can be honest with me. I know it’s not just because of the work. The Loden people aren’t kind, are they?”

Emily looked troubled by Sophia’s words, then sighed deeply.

“Yes, to be honest, they ignore me when I speak to them. So I had a bit of trouble finding where things were.”

“Those nasty people!”

Seeing that Emily was treated the same way as her, Sophia felt a pang of guilt and cursed aloud for Emily to hear.

“It’s just territorial behavior. We’ll get used to it, so don’t worry. We’ll be fine sticking together.”

Emily smiled reassuringly at her.

“If anyone gives you a hard time, bullies you, or picks on you for trivial things, tell me.”

Emily intended to stay quiet at the Loden house, but she wouldn’t stand by if someone from the Dveshi family was mistreated.

Emily assured her it was okay and stayed by her side until Sophia finished eating, even helping her with a bath afterward.

“Emily, I’m glad you’re here.”

“I’m happy I can be of help.”

They continued chatting about various things, which helped ease Sophia’s anxiety about Killian possibly entering the bedroom.

Killian entered the room just as Sophia had finished her preparations for bed. He came in right before she lay down.

Sophia immediately got up from the bed and approached Killian to greet him politely. Even though it was a contractual marriage, basic manners had to be observed.

He also nodded courteously to Sophia and spoke.

“I thought it would be better for you to rest comfortably, so I deliberately didn’t come in last night. Did you have a good night?”

“Huh? Yes.”

Sophia replied shortly to his courteous words.

She couldn’t be relieved just because nothing happened last night. Thus, she remained cautious of his seemingly kind demeanor.

“I didn’t have time to apologize yesterday. I apologize on behalf of my brother for his rude behavior.”

“Yes…”

Sophia again responded briefly.

She was slightly curious about Clive’s whereabouts, but not enough to ask Killian, so she didn’t inquire further.

As the conversation paused, there was a moment of silence, and then Killian spoke again.

“Do you like the room?”

How could she like it? If this weren’t the Loden house, she would have immediately complained about changing the room, but she didn’t because she wanted to see how far they would go to bother her.

Moreover, she wanted to show that such harassment didn’t bother her at all.

“In fact, this room was prepared for your and my brother’s honeymoon.”

As expected, this was a room for her marriage with Clive. It wasn’t surprising, but there was one thing she was curious about, so she asked Killian.

“Did Clive like stuffed animals?”

“He absolutely hated them.”

I knew it.

Whether he answered honestly because he was straightforward or to let her know they did it on purpose, Killian’s answer wasn’t particularly pleasing to Sophia.

It only made her realize more that Clive was a man who spoke with empty words. When his words came to mind, her expression hardened, and Killian asked.

“Don’t you like the deer? Then I’ll have it removed immediately.”

Of course, she wanted to ask for the deer to be removed, but Sophia didn’t say that. It was obvious they placed it there to scare her, and removing it would mean she was scared, which would be playing into their hands.

I can’t let them look down on me!

“It’s fine.”

Not wanting to act according to the Loden family’s expectations from the first day of marriage, Sophia had to give an answer contrary to her true feelings.

“That’s a relief.”

A brief smile appeared on his lips, followed by an unexpected statement.

“Finally, we are a married couple.”

“What?”

Huh. What is he talking about?

Sophia thought she must have misheard. It sounded like he wanted to marry her.

“What are you saying? Anyone would think we got married because we wanted to.”

Naturally, her tone was sharp.

“Am I not to your liking as a husband?”

Once again, Killian’s words were baffling.

He, too, didn’t find me satisfactory, so why was he asking such an obvious question? 

Sophia couldn’t understand Killian’s inquiry.

“Isn’t it obvious?”

“I see.”

Killian’s slightly disappointed reaction left Sophia bewildered.

Did he expect to be welcomed? Could it be that he’s lost his mind because of this sudden, unwanted marriage?

As she pondered, his eyes began to narrow.

“Are you still holding onto feelings for my brother?”

“Fe-feelings?”

The absurdity of his words made Sophia stutter unintentionally. Feelings? If she met him, she’d be more inclined to grab him by the collar than to hold onto any lady-like decorum.

“Seeing you stutter in surprise, it seems that’s the case.”

Failing to respond properly, he seemed to misunderstand.

‘I would never like a man from the Loden family!’ she wanted to say, but was there even a need to explain?

“Well, he’s better than you.”

Sophia expressed what she usually thought. Of course, the unspoken part was ‘though both are terribly unpleasant.’

At that moment, Killian’s eyes flashed. It was as if he was emitting a murderous aura, and it frightened her. Feeling it from afar was one thing, but experiencing it up close made her breath catch and her body tremble involuntarily.

Surely, he’s not going to kill me, right?

Even though she knew it was an irrational thought, the fear that Killian might actually kill her weighed heavily on Sophia’s mind.

His gaze was sincere. Being inflexible and straightforward, Killian seemed intent on fulfilling the King’s orders step by step. It was more severe than she had anticipated.

Didn’t he dislike me? 

His apparent willingness to maintain a diligent married life with a woman he disliked left her speechless.