Of course, the Grand Duke Tebrio was notorious for constantly finding fault with Cedric as well.  There was no reason for him to come all the way to their residence.

And besides, the palace was in complete chaos preparing for the delegation.

For him to suddenly appear here of all places made no sense.

“I’ll have him escorted to the reception room first—”

“My lady… about that…”

Isabel, who had risen in haste and was adjusting her clothes, paused at Rebecca’s hesitant expression and looked at her in confusion.

“What is it? Is there a problem?”

“…He didn’t come to see you, my lady. He said he came to see Anna.”

“…What?”

The absurdity of it left Isabel momentarily speechless.

Then, she recalled what had happened yesterday.

She had clearly seen Anna with the Grand Duke.

And Anna had claimed she had merely given him directions.

But now, he had come to see Anna?

Why?

❖ ❖ ❖

“What exactly do you think you’re doing?!”

After forcibly sending Serena out and making sure no one else was around, Anna finally revealed her true expression, glaring at the Grand Duke Tebrio.

It was a bold, insolent gaze, one a mere maid should never dare show to a duke. Yet the Grand Duke only laughed, clearly amused.

“Well now, you should have listened to me. This house isn’t so bad, I suppose… but compared to my estate, the home of a sovereign, it’s hardly anything.”

After casting a casual glance around the neatly arranged reception room, the Grand Duke bent slightly and took Anna’s hand.

Anna shuddered in disgust and slapped his hand away.

“This is where I belong!”

“Is that so? If the Duke and Duchess of Francia were to learn your true identity…”

“Grand Duke Tebrio, I’ve only just heard of your arrival.”

Just as the Grand Duke pressed her with a sly smile, a voice cut in.

Startled, Anna turned around.

Isabel stood there.

“L-Lady Isabel…”

Flustered, Anna quickly rose to her feet.

Isabel quietly observed the two—Anna, visibly anxious, and the Grand Duke, who seemed to be enjoying the situation far too much.

Then, as if nothing had happened, the Grand Duke greeted her with a cheerful smile.

“Oh! Duchess of Francia! You’ve come at just the right time!”

Approaching them, Isabel maintained a composed smile, her gaze moving between the two as she spoke carefully.

“I heard Your Grace came to see Anna. It seems you must share some special connection.”

The atmosphere between them was strange.

Anna was clearly uneasy while the Grand Duke appeared almost entertained.

As expected, Anna’s claim that she had merely given directions was clearly a lie. But if that were the case, what possible connection could exist between her and the Grand Duke?

Anna was nothing more than a maid. She had no standing to even cross paths with someone like him. And the Grand Duke had never once visited the Francia household as a guest.

So how could Anna—who should have remained within the estate—have ever met him?

As suspicion deepened, Anna, who had been frozen, suddenly cried out.

“That’s not true! I only gave him directions yesterday, and he came personally to thank me!”

To come in person… for something so trivial?

It was absurd.

As Isabel watched her with clear doubt, the Grand Duke chuckled.

“That’s right. She gave such excellent directions. Thanks to her, I arrived without delay.”

No matter how the two of them tried to explain it, Isabel did not believe a word.

For such a reason, the Grand Duke had come personally?

A man who valued lineage above all else—who treated even palace attendants as less than stones on the road?

And instead of simply traveling by carriage, with countless guards at his disposal, he had asked for directions?

It was nonsense.

“How intriguing, that a man who travels everywhere by carriage would suddenly lose his way.”

“Haha! I simply felt like walking that day!”

The Grand Duke laughed heartily, casting a subtle glance at Anna, whose face had grown increasingly pale.

Isabel, too, observed them both with quiet suspicion.

Then the Grand Duke spoke again.

“Though I regret not spending time with you, Duchess, today I came to see Miss Anna.”

“…I see. It seems I have interrupted, having been startled by such an esteemed guest.”

Isabel smiled, her response coming a beat late.

“In that case, please—continue your conversation.”

“Thank you, Duchess.”

Though Isabel turned away with a faint smile, her eyes were cold.

Only after the door closed and she had completely disappeared did Anna finally let out a breath of relief. Then she turned sharply, glaring at the Grand Duke.

“What do you want from me?!”

“What I want… you know better than anyone, don’t you, Anna?”

Yes, from the very beginning, what he wanted was Anna herself.

Long ago, he had fallen for her fairy-like beauty at first sight. But Anna found the Grand Duke utterly repulsive. She had no intention of leaving the Francia household.

“I’m already Lord Cedric’s mistress!”

At her words, the Grand Duke scoffed.

“I am the younger brother personally favored by His Majesty, Emperor Kaidus III, the master of this Empire. Do you think I would be reprimanded for taking the mistress of some petty noble?”

His words were half truth, half falsehood.

As he said, he was indeed the Emperor’s only brother and the ruler of the Grand Duchy of Paruscal.

By status alone, Cedric von Francia stood beneath him.

However, the Emperor had long been losing patience with the Grand Duke’s constant reckless behavior.

On the contrary, his trust in Cedric had only deepened. If the Grand Duke were to take Cedric’s mistress, there was a strong chance the Emperor would not ignore it—and might even side with Cedric.

But Anna knew nothing of this. And so, his words filled her with fear.

“You promised me!”

Her voice trembled as she shouted.

The Grand Duke regarded her with a faintly pitying expression before stepping closer, cupping her pale cheek in his hand.

“I am not a petty man. I value promises very much.”

As he whispered, his eyes flashed dangerously.

“However… I came because I feared you might break your promise. After all, you’ve already broken it once before.”

Anna bit her lip hard, glaring at him with reddened eyes.

Yet unlike before, she could not bring herself to push his hand away.

The Grand Duke smiled faintly, pressing her further, as though she might collapse at any moment.

“So when I call for you, come willingly. No matter when. If you can promise me that, I’ll ask for nothing more.”

“…Then you must never come to this house again!”

“Of course, haha! When you behave so obediently, my heart becomes far more generous.”

Hoping desperately that he would keep his word, Anna reluctantly allowed herself to be pulled into his embrace.

The Grand Duke tightened his hold around her waist, satisfaction evident in his expression.

“As it happens, my brother will be holding a swordsmanship tournament in a few days. When everyone is distracted, it will be the perfect time for us to meet—don’t you think?”

Shuddering at his breath against her neck, Anna forced herself to answer.

“…Yes. I understand.”

❖ ❖ ❖

A few days later, just as feared, the black rain began to fall.

With its arrival, the scheduled swordsmanship tournament was canceled.

No one could step outside while the black rain fell, so Isabel remained indoors the entire time.

The black rain had begun ever since the land’s corruption. Anyone who came into contact with it would develop red lesions on their skin, and even plants would wither and fall ill.

And so, everyone was forced to stay inside.

Once the rain stopped, people—young and old alike—would rush outside to clean the streets and their homes.

It had been over a year since the last black rain.

For a moment, it had seemed as though it might never return.

But that hope had been nothing more than foolish wishful thinking.

Standing by the tightly shut window, Isabel gazed at the sky darker and more ashen than it had been a year ago, and at the black rain, now falling heavier than before.

Just then, Rebecca entered the room.

“My lady.”

Drawing the curtains shut, Isabel turned away from the window and walked toward the sofa, picking up the book she had been reading.

Rebecca approached and began reporting on the tasks Isabel had assigned.

“As instructed, all the roofs and windows have been covered with boards. The vegetable garden and the grounds have been sealed as well. We’ve brought all the livestock into the stables.”

“Since we don’t know when the rain will stop, make sure no one goes outside for the time being.”

At Isabel’s words, Rebecca let out a small laugh.

“No one would dare go out and risk catching a skin disease from the black rain—”

—“Aah!”

A sharp scream suddenly pierced the air from outside.

“What is that noise?”

Frowning, Rebecca hurried to the window and pulled the curtain aside.

She looked down and her eyes widened in shock.

“My lady! Look at that! That girl—Anna—is outside!”

“What?”

Unable to believe it, Isabel snapped her book shut and rushed over.

Looking down, she saw it clearly—Anna stood outside, in the pouring black rain.

Serena, wrapped tightly in a cloak, hovered at the entrance, unable to step out, stamping her feet as she shouted at her.

—“Hey! Get inside, now!”

But Anna only looked confused, as if she couldn’t understand what the fuss was about.

“She’s standing there without even covering herself properly, letting the rain drench her!”

Isabel’s gaze hardened as she looked down at her. Then, quietly, she ordered Rebecca to bring Anna inside at once and have her bathed immediately.

After a brief hesitation, Rebecca left the room.

❖ ❖ ❖

Serena splashed water over her hands as though washing off filth, scrubbing vigorously where she had grabbed Anna’s clothes.

Meanwhile, the maids hurriedly boiled water. Even as they worked, they muttered complaints about the commotion Anna had caused—ruining what little rest they had.

Anna watched them, bewildered, before turning to Serena.

“What’s going on? I bathed just a few days ago.”

The maids carried in a large wooden tub and filled it with a mixture of hot and cold water, then left the rest to Serena.

The moment they were gone, Serena snapped.

“Shut up! Take off your clothes and get in—now!”

Startled by her harsh tone, Anna quietly undressed and stepped into the bath.

“Do you have any idea what kind of trouble you’ve caused? And wasting water like this when it’s already scarce!”

Scooping up a basinful of water, Serena dumped it over Anna’s head without hesitation.

“Ah!”

Startled, Anna clutched the edge of the tub.

But Serena paid no attention, scrubbing her harshly with a coarse cloth.

“Why are you acting like this?! I just got rained on!”

“…What?”

Serena froze mid-motion.

She slowly turned to Anna, disbelief written all over her face.

“You… don’t know what black rain is?”