But strangely, whenever she saw such lavishly prepared dishes, they wouldn’t go down her throat as if something was stuck. All of this was not for her, but for the fetus she might be carrying. It was never for her.

As she grew increasingly anxious, these were foods she simply couldn’t eat with peace of mind.

And another thing. The face of her sick sister kept flickering in her mind. Even in the days when they could barely eat thin corn soup, her sister always smiled, saying that what her older sister made was the most delicious.

It had always weighed on her mind that she couldn’t feed her sister delicious food during her growing years. But now, having such luxurious meals served at every meal felt like she was chewing on sand.

“I’ll have the chef prepare new dishes. Do you have any preferred ingredients? We can procure anything, so please let me know.”

“No, no. The food is all excellent. When have I ever eaten such things? These are all too good for me.”

“Then why……”

Mrs. Letten, who had been making eye contact with Celia for a moment, nodded as if she had guessed something.

“Perhaps, are you worried about your family at home?”

Those words made Celia looked up at Mrs. Letten in surprise. To be precise, it wasn’t her family but only her sister Sophie that she was concerned about, but she couldn’t say that truthfully, so she just passed it off with a vague smile.

“Speaking of which, could I ask a favor of the Duke? I’m worried about my sister… and father at home. It would be nice if I could hear some news about them.”

Mrs. Letten nodded with a smile at Celia’s words.

“I’ll speak to the Duke about it, so don’t worry and eat your meal first.”

Mrs. Letten said, putting the fork back in Celia’s hand.

“Th-thank you. I… didn’t want to ask such a favor.”

Celia blushed with embarrassment. It was already embarrassing to be served by someone who had been close to the former Duchess, but asking about such sensitive matters made her unable to lift her face. Fortunately, Mrs. Letten was favorable towards Celia and showed kindness. Whether she was serving her separately from her loyalty and affection for her former mistress, there was no sense of discomfort from Mrs. Letten.

“It’s nothing. It’s what I should do. And the master has ordered that you should lack nothing during your stay here.”

“The master……”

If Andros had been the master when she first came to this mansion, now, Eugen had become her master. Celia felt an inexplicable sense of discomfort at this strange difference.

Now it was Eugen, not Andros, who held her life in his hands.

The legitimate heir of the Hilbert family.

A man who, from a young age, possessed an extraordinary mind, perfect looks, and noble blood, admired not only in the social circles but by everyone in the empire.

She heard that his wealth and territory were beyond measure.

It was foolish of her to dream of deceiving such a man. But now it was too late to tell the truth.

If she had told the truth from the beginning, perhaps she could have gained the Duke’s sympathy and left this mansion with some money. But now… she would be fortunate if she didn’t disappear without a trace on charges of coveting the Duke’s wealth.

This wasn’t what she intended.

Celia let out a deep sigh, unnoticed by Mrs. Letten, at the lies that had grown out of control.

***

After finishing her meal, Celia went out for a walk. The walk was her favorite time of the day.

At first, she thought they were just trying to hide her away in a corner because they were ashamed of her existence. However, after staying for a few days, that thought was completely reversed.

Unlike the gardens of other nobles artificially arranged with matching colors and heat, the back garden of the Hilbert ducal mansion seemed like a pastoral countryside scene transplanted as it was.

Celia walked along the path to a small hut made as a model. She liked the cheerful sound of water made by the small waterwheel installed next to the hut, and she liked looking at the clear pond water created at its end.

Unlike other ponds that usually have a murky green water color, this pond was deep and clear enough to see the bottom clearly as new water was constantly circulating and flowing in.

On the surface, withered water lily leaves floated, fitting for the late autumn season. Imagining that when the lush green season comes, those broad leaves would fill with water and pink and white water lilies would bloom fully, she couldn’t help but smile.

Then she quickly came to her senses.

The lush green season. There was no way she would be here until that season. Instead of indulging in such romantic sentiments, she should be figuring out how to survive.

Recalling the look in Eugen’s eyes when she last saw him, her body began to tremble involuntarily. He seemed like a beast hiding a cruel nature beneath an elegant shell. Regardless of his extremely kind attitude and tone, he was a person who gave off such a feeling.

Celia tried to drive away the chill spreading throughout her body by wrapping herself with the shawl on her shoulders. To forget Eugen’s gaze that kept flickering before her eyes, she looked back at the pond. As she moved her gaze here and there following the fish swimming slowly under the water lily leaves, she took one more step forward to see more closely.

“Huh…?”

One more reflection was added to the clear water. Startled by the figure of a tall man much taller than her, she screamed.

“Aah!”

The shawl wrapped around her body slipped and fell into the pond. At the same time, her body, losing balance, tilted towards the pond. Celia unconsciously closed her eyes tightly.

Thud.

Her rapidly tilting body was caught by someone’s hand and barely regained balance.

“……”

Celia caught her breath in the arms of the person who had embraced her. It had been quite a close call, nearly falling into the pond in the chilly late autumn weather.

As she caught her breath, she thought about what this situation was. Who was this person who suddenly appeared behind her?

“What if you became fish food?”

Celia came to her senses at the pleasant baritone voice echoing in her ear. Could this voice be, could it be.

“……”

“Despite how it looks, the water is quite deep. There are even deep spots inside. If you’re not careful, it would be difficult to get out on your own.”

“Lord Eugen?”

Celia finally lifted her head and looked up at the man. A faint smile played on the face of the man she could barely face by craning her neck to the point of pain.

“Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Ah, Your Grace.”

Celia, with a flustered face, broke free from his embrace and straightened her clothes.

As soon as she left the man’s warmth, the cool air immediately enveloped her body. Celia stared with surprised eyes at him who had suddenly appeared.

Jet-black hair and deep blue eyes. Smooth porcelain-like skin and a towering height… He was a breathtakingly beautiful man just to look at. She thought that even the most haughty lady would blush standing next to him.

But she shouldn’t do that.

After all, she was here now in the capacity of the late former Duke’s wife.

“Were you looking at the fish?”

Eugen’s gaze fell on the pond.

“They’re pretty.”

Eugen smiled at the brief answer.

“I’ve heard that looking at pretty things is good for the fetus too. But soon you won’t be able to see them anymore.”

“Why……”

She asked back in surprise.

“Winter is coming soon. Before that, we’ll take out the fish from the pond and raise them in a warm place. Otherwise, they’ll all freeze.”

“Ah, I see.”

Celia couldn’t hide her disappointment.

“The fish aren’t living there, they’re being raised there.”

“……”

“From start to finish, if the hand of the caretaker doesn’t reach them, they’ll die soon.”

At that moment, she felt Eugen’s eyes shine extremely coldly.

“Can we call that living?”

“……”

Unable to find an appropriate answer, Celia hesitated before opening her mouth.

“It was people who put those fish in that pond, wasn’t it? The fish just swim and eat what they’re given.”

As she said it, she realized it was just like her situation. The reason her heart chilled at the question of whether the fish could be called alive was precisely because of this.