Chapter 44

Lord Jude.

At some point, Diane found herself turning to look at the man known as Lord Jude.

He looked back at her with no particular expression.

His face, devoid of emotion, somehow gave the impression that he was the kind of person who wouldn’t overlook injustice against anyone, not just her.

He seemed to act according to his own principles, regardless of who was involved.

Diane, unable to take her eyes off his face, suddenly realized she hadn’t thanked him yet.

“Thank you.”

He simply nodded at her thanks, saying nothing more.

At that moment, Diane realized her feelings about him.

Was he just blunt, or simply not interested in her? She couldn’t tell, but regardless of his feelings, Diane liked him.

Not just because he had helped her.

Sometimes, someone is just likable for no reason.

“Miss?”

It wasn’t until the Duke called her again, seeing her hesitate, that Diane finally tore her gaze from Lord Jude and climbed into the carriage.

As the carriage departed, she saw through the window the Duke approaching the Viscount and saying something.

What was he saying?

Why had the Viscount behaved so rudely toward her?

What had he meant to say about President Wale, who wasn’t even there?

And Lord Jude… What kind of person was he?

As the Duke, the Viscount, and Lord Jude receded into the distance, Diane’s mind filled with all sorts of questions, swirling without order.

She couldn’t find answers to any of them.

But one thing was clear.

She should never have come to the opera house tonight.

Even on the way home, she felt foolish for having thought about returning the handkerchief to the Duke, assuming she would be riding home with him.

The Duke had only brought her because he didn’t want to waste the ticket bought by Edward Wale, but she had gotten excited and fluttered, only to end up being harassed by a random man.

She desperately wanted to hide somewhere no one could see her.

But thinking about her own room only made her sadder.

Her room was on the fourth floor East Wing, second from the end, in the building called Brooks in Upper East Shire 7—inside the Wale Duchy’s Rettrang mansion.

Even the place she could hide wasn’t a comfortable refuge for her.

“Gale, Uncle Walt.”

She unconsciously called out the names of those who felt familiar and comforting.

But saying their names only made her feel like crying, so she opened the carriage window.

The moon was now hidden behind clouds, and the night outside was pitch black. She let the night wind hit her cheeks, hoping it would blow away her tears.

❖

The next morning, looking at the bright sun outside her window, Diane armed herself with a fresh mood.

She didn’t want to be trapped in the gloom of the previous night any longer.

She wasn’t sure she could manage it, but she tried.

The previous night, the Earldom people and the Duke hadn’t returned until long after she arrived at the mansion, so she hadn’t heard the sound of their carriage until she fell asleep.

Perhaps because of that, they didn’t appear at breakfast, and Diane was able to enjoy an unexpected blessing: eating alone with Leon.

She’d heard that noble parties often lasted late into the night, but since the Duke had never missed breakfast since she moved in, it was a little surprising.

Actually, maybe it wasn’t so surprising.

As she reflected, Diane realized she’d subconsciously thought of the Duke as a different kind of noble.

But he was more of a noble than anyone.

After breakfast, Leon went off to a string of foreign language lessons, and Diane went to her room before her walk to fetch the letter she’d written to the Tertz family.

The mail carrier only came to the ducal residence on days when there was mail to deliver, but the masters sent a footman into town whenever they had letters to send. So, the staff would either hand their mail to a footman or leave it in the basket in the hall.

Diane was about to go down to the basement to drop her letter in the basket.

“Good morning, Miss.”

Just as she was about to go down the stairs to the basement, the Duke appeared in the foyer, as if out of nowhere, and called out to her.

She’d thought he was sleeping in after skipping breakfast, but it seemed he’d been out for a walk.

“Good morning, Your Grace. Did you go for a morning walk?”

“Yes. I drank too much last night, so I couldn’t eat breakfast. I’m only just feeling clear-headed.”

“Oh, I see.”

Diane answered a bit dazedly, since she’d never seen the Duke drunk, even when he drank wine at dinner.

Then again, he only ever had a glass or two at meals, so it wasn’t really drinking.

“You were about to go downstairs?”

“Yes! I need to send a letter, so I was heading to the staff hall. There’s a basket for mail down there.”

“I see.”

The Duke glanced at the letter in her hand.

“You must have been quite shocked yesterday, with Viscount Anton’s rudeness.”

“No, it’s fine. I’ve forgotten all about it.”

Of course, she hadn’t forgotten.

But she’d decided to let it go, seeing the morning sunlight.

She wouldn’t be attending any more events with nobles, and there was no point dragging last night’s gloom into a new morning.

“I should have been by your side. I’m sorry. I think there was some misunderstanding with the Viscount.”

A misunderstanding?

She hadn’t even known the Viscount, so how could there be a misunderstanding?

Oh! Maybe he meant the question about her being close to President Wale?

What had that been about?

“No, Your Grace, you have nothing to apologize for. And I enjoyed the opera yesterday.”

She finally managed to say the thank you she’d meant to deliver on the way home.

There had been bad moments, but she was grateful the Duke had cared about her.

“That’s good to hear.”

But the Duke’s expression didn’t seem to lighten at all, which made Diane uneasy.

She didn’t want to talk alone with the Duke for too long.

She was afraid she might start feeling strange emotions again, like last night.

“Well, I’ll go down now.”

“Diane…”

“…!”

Just as she started down the stairs, Diane felt her whole body freeze.

Diane.

Last night, she’d thought she’d misheard.

But this time, it couldn’t be a mistake. The foyer was quiet, and the Duke’s voice was clear.

Her heart began to flutter again, following confusion.

“Lina. Miss Diane Lina.”

“Oh…”

Had he meant to call her ‘Miss Diane Lina’?

She let out a sigh—she didn’t know if it was relief or disappointment.

“The letter, give it to me. I have mail to send today too. I’ll give them both to the footman.”

“Oh! You don’t have to…”

“I’ll be sending it soon anyway. No need for you to go down.”

The Duke was already holding out his hand.

Diane hesitated, but since he was right that the footman would take both his mail and hers, she handed him the letter.

It was only one envelope, since she’d put the letters for Gale and Uncle Walt together.

After receiving the envelope, the Duke stood still, as if he had something more to say.

“Your Grace, I’ll be going now.”

She bowed and turned away.

“Yesterday…”

The Duke stopped her.

He definitely had something to say to her.

“Yes?”

“Yesterday, you wore your hair down, but today you’ve tied it up.”

“What?”

She had tied her long hair into a ponytail.

She’d tied it higher than usual today, wanting to start the day feeling refreshed.

“It would be better to wear your hair down, so your neckline is covered.”

“Oh!”

Diane couldn’t help but exclaim.

She had no idea what the Duke meant by that, and it flustered her.

Did he dislike seeing her hair tied up?

Her neckline, so exposed now, suddenly felt clammy with sweat.

She was sure the Duke only saw her as a mere tutor, not even liking her with her hair up, and her own weakness for his kindness made her feel self-loathing.

She avoided his eyes, lowering her head. Her gaze landed on the envelope in his hand.

Why had he asked for her letter, why had he stopped her as she passed by?

Why did he keep being so kind?

She was starting to resent the Duke.

“The letter you mentioned yesterday—is it for your brother?”

The Duke seemed to notice her staring at the envelope, and looked at it as he asked.