Chapter 3.3

“…Your name is?”  

Caron barely managed to ask, unable to finish his sentence. Brown hair and brown eyes—no matter how he looked, she didn’t resemble the woman from that night. But there was something about the glint in her eyes, and that strangely sweet apple scent, that completely captivated him.  

“Your Grace, my name is Aness.”  

Aness, too, felt her heart pound as she saw the suspicion flicker in Caron’s eyes. She mustered her courage and continued,  

“Please, I beg you, just think it over one more time. My father went to the Marquisate of Bastide without knowing anything. And do you really think the Marquis’s son would just let my sister have her way? Please, examine who the real victim is here.”  

It wasn’t easy for Aness to stand here. Seeing his face again brought back memories of that heated night, and she felt her cheeks flush.  

But now was not the time for sentiment. Her mother, father, and sisters—her whole family’s fate depended on this, so there was no room for personal feelings.  

“Hmm, I’m sorry, but there are no exceptions in my book. I never grant special favors to anyone.” 

Caron, regaining his composure, took several steps back to distance himself from her. This incident was the first test case under the law enacted by the Emperor’s decree.  

In other words, if he handled it leniently, similar incidents could keep happening. Caron Perschtmann had never shown mercy to anyone when handling matters—he was a cold-blooded man.  

He had even flatly rejected a request from Joseph, a friend he’d known since childhood, turning him into an enemy.  

He even thought he should be wary of the woman before him, who carried the scent of apples. With his sensitive sense of smell, he couldn’t help but be shaken.  

Looking closely, the woman in front of him had brown eyes and brown hair, but she was plumper than the woman from that night, and her aura was strangely different.  

In other words, this sweetly scented woman was not that woman. All the more reason not to show any leniency.

“What did you say? Favor? Are you saying you won’t even consider our circumstances when we truly didn’t know anything?”  

Aness, her face red with anger, put her hands on her hips and glared at him. At her brazen attitude, Caron looked down at the small girl and declared once more, as if making an official announcement.

“I assure you, Baron Klein will receive a heavy sentence. And I’ll tell you now, all your family’s property will be confiscated by the state, and after the Baron serves his sentence, your title will also be revoked.”  

At that dreadful declaration, the Baroness, who had been holding on until now, collapsed again. Imelda quickly supported her mother, and Erika, too, fell into despair and slid to the floor.  

If Gilbert didn’t take her in, she would have to give birth to an illegitimate child and live in hiding for the rest of her life.

“You! You’re truly a devil! How can you be so heartless? Aren’t you afraid of heaven?”  

While everyone else was in despair, only Aness couldn’t hold back her anger and lashed out at the devilish Duke.

“Well, let’s say that’s true. I have so many nicknames already, one more won’t matter.”  

Caron, hands behind his back, turned away, trying to escape the scent of apples. Aness, her fists clenched and trembling, knew she had to make a decision quickly.  

She needed to confess that she was the woman he spent that night with, the one he kissed so passionately, that she was carrying his child.

But Aness bit her lower lip and bowed her head. She didn’t want to entrust her body to a man like this. She was sure he would only despise her, and she would end up adding more shame to her parents after Erika.  

‘Fine, you wicked devil! Beast! I’ll give birth to your child and use it to torment you. No, I’ll make sure to torment your child instead. All your offspring are cursed anyway.’

Aness came to deeply resent the man she’d spent her first night with. Caron left, completely unaware that the rude girl glaring at him was the very woman he’d been desperately searching for, lost in his own thoughts.  

Come to think of it, the woman who had plotted with Joseph to trick him might just come to him of her own accord. She must have had a purpose for taking his chastity. If so, she might come looking for him to demand something.

‘Yes. If she comes, I’ll lock her up in my room forever so she’ll never see the world again. I’ll keep her by my side as my bride, tormenting her every night, making her atone for the rest of her life.’

Caron, in his own way, was cursing the woman who wouldn’t be caught so easily.

***

The already insignificant and humble Klein Barony was now completely ruined, and rumors spread that even their title had been revoked. And it wasn’t just a rumor—it was fact.  

The Baron was sentenced to a long term and had to spend ten years in an underground prison. The situation for the family left behind was even more miserable.  

Erika, now an unwed mother, was so afraid of people’s scorn that she locked herself in her room and slowly lost her mind, while the Baroness lost touch with reality and could no longer do any work.  

At least Dana, the maid, stayed out of loyalty and brought in odd jobs. Imelda helped outside with menial tasks like shearing wool, and the youngest, Aness, rolled up her sleeves and joined the workforce. They had to do work like milking cows and goats—jobs usually done by commoners.  

The problem was that Aness was in the middle of her pregnancy, making it hard to work. Even though Dana tried to stop her, she stubbornly kept working, cursing that devil every chance she got.  

‘Devil! When I give birth to your child, I’ll make sure to torment it. I’ll make it suffer in your place.’

But it was a ridiculous vow. How could she torment an innocent baby in his place? At least, perhaps out of some conscience, they were allowed to keep their old house.  

Joseph, who had been hiding from Duke Perschtmann’s surveillance, was pleased to hear that the Klein family had fallen.

“Now the time has come. I suppose I should step out.”  

Joseph sent a messenger to contact Aness. At that moment, Aness had just finished milking cows late into the evening, exhausted, and was about to collapse into bed.  

She checked the note that the messenger boy handed her, and suddenly came to her senses.

“Joseph?”  

Follow the boy I sent and come to my house at once. I have something important to discuss.  

                                                         – Yours, Joseph.

“Ugh! That scoundrel!”  

Furious, Aness tore at her hair, quickly threw on her cloak, and left the house. Dana, who was making thin corn soup in the kitchen, looked out and asked,

“Miss Aness? Where are you going so late at night?”  

Seeing the youngest lady run out so excitedly after a long day of work made Dana wonder.

“Dana, have dinner with my eldest sister first. I’ll be back soon.”  

Aness hurriedly climbed into the carriage waiting outside the house. Her skirt was stained with cow’s milk and smelled awful, but meeting the culprit who had brought her to this state was more urgent.

She hated the devilish Knight Commander most of all, but she hated this man almost as much. Why did he give her that drugged tea and cause all this trouble?  

As her belly grew, it would become harder to hide. With her mother already out of her mind because of Erika, she had no idea how she would keep it a secret.

“Fine, since he started all this, I’ll at least hear his reasons. Maybe he has a solution. He’d better. If not, I won’t let him off easy!”  

Aness clenched her fists and ground her teeth in the carriage. Maybe she could use this to blackmail him and save her family. After all, he was the most powerful guild master in the country.