Chapter 3.8

“Oh, how adorable. It’s amazing, really. How could he look so much like him?”

As the maids finished their hard day’s work, they gathered one by one in the staff housing and took turns cuddling the darling Ian.

Thanks to the maids taking turns watching him during their breaks, Ian was growing up without a care in the world.

“I know, right? Doesn’t he look just like the Duke? It’s so uncanny how identical they are.”

Taking turns cradling the babbling baby, the maids each shared their thoughts. Aness, changing into comfortable clothes and tying her long hair, felt a pang of guilt and quietly turned her head, pretending not to hear.

Inside, she was deeply worried. The older Ian got, the more he would resemble the Duke. How long could she keep this hidden? Part of her even wished the Duke would recognize him.

‘But now he’s about to get married. Tomorrow is the engagement party. Maybe if he hurries up and has a child with his new wife, he’ll be so distracted he won’t care about me and Ian.’

Perhaps that would be for the best. With a heavy heart, Aness took Ian in her arms and headed to her room.

The sleepy baby grabbed a lock of his mother’s hair and began to doze off.

If she opened the window in her room, she could see several fruit trees. The staff housing was behind the garden, so it was peaceful and had a lovely view.

“Apple trees? They’re ripe. They look delicious.”

Rocking her son in her arms to sleep, Aness laid him on the bed and went over to the window. Suddenly, memories of her childhood came flooding back.

Even though they were poor, her youth was fairly happy. The kind old lady next door would always say her apples were bruised and hand over a whole cartful for free.

When they ran out of potatoes or corn for soup, they’d make jam or apple pie with those apples. And Aness was always in charge of that.

She was good at cooking, so she managed to make all sorts of things. Of course, her favorite was sweet apple pie.

If only she could get her hands on expensive strawberries, she’d make strawberry pie, but since that was impossible, apple pie was the go-to. Because of that, Aness always smelled faintly of slowly simmered sweet apple juice.

“Should I pick a few? After tomorrow’s party, maybe I’ll sneak into the empty kitchen and make one for myself. Oh, I bet Ian would love apple pie too. Yes, let’s do it.”

Having decided, Aness threw a loose tunic over her nightgown and ran outside. The garden bathed in soft moonlight looked truly beautiful. The tall apple trees gazed down at her kindly.

***

“You’re making the right decision.”

Butlerman Volteman was doing his best to persuade him, but with the engagement party just a day away, the Duke was feeling only indifferent and uncomfortable.

“Maybe I’m making a mistake.”

He sat at his desk, propping up his chin, gazing blankly out the window bathed in moonlight.

“Lord, after all, all women are the same. You say you’re suffering every night? That means it’s time for you to get married. If you build intimacy physically every night, love is bound to blossom before you know it.”

Volteman, worried that the Duke might change his mind and cancel the engagement, chattered on anxiously. Just three months ago, and six months before that, engagements had been broken off in this way.

If it were broken off again this time, it was obvious it would become the laughingstock of the social circles. Of course, even so, marriage proposals would continue to pour in, but in the case of the Marquis Marieclaire’s family, being such a powerful house, things would certainly get noisy.

“I’ve gotten used to taking care of things myself. So, maybe I don’t actually need a real woman.”

Caron, still resting his chin in his hand, gazed blankly outside, then suddenly tilted his head.

“Hmm, don’t you smell apples from somewhere?”

“Apple scent? I don’t smell anything.”

“No, I definitely smell it. Where in our garden are there apple trees?”

Rising to his feet, Caron put on his outer coat and asked.

“There are a few trees in the garden in front of the staff housing. Why do you ask, Sir? If you want some apples, shall I go pick a few for you?”

“No. That’s fine. I’ll take a walk around. I just suddenly miss the scent of apples.”

“What? All of a sudden?”

A man so indifferent to scents suddenly talking about apple fragrance left Volteman dumbfounded, but the Duke was already walking away into the distance.

‘He must be feeling restless because of tomorrow’s engagement party. Yes, this time, it really will lead to marriage.’

Volteman nodded to himself in relief. In the past, the Duke had gone through with things without a thought, but now, seeing him so preoccupied, the chances of a real marriage seemed quite high.

‘Whew, it really does take a long time to forget that woman. Still, it’s a relief. At least he’ll be marrying at thirty, even if it’s a bit early.’

Ever since that night with the mysterious woman, the Duke had suffered every night. Burning with desire, he had tried to relieve himself countless times, so perhaps that was why he felt even more in need of a woman.

“Your Grace the Grand Duke, at last, our young master is getting married!”

Volteman looked up to the heavens and shared the happy news with the late Grand Duke. If he married soon and had a son to carry on the line, surely the late Grand Duke and his wife would rejoice in heaven.

Moreover, the fiancée he was to marry this time, Lady Hariel, would make a perfectly suitable bride anywhere, so it was truly a relief.

***

Caron walked slowly around the garden, following the moonlight. On the night breeze, a sweet apple fragrance drifted gently.

Drawn by the scent, he slowly approached the apple trees. He couldn’t understand why he missed the scent of apples so much tonight. As if bewitched, he moved closer to the trees, then suddenly stopped in his tracks.

He was not alone in the quiet garden. Someone had kicked off their shoes and was climbing up a tree.

From the flutter of her skirt, it was clear it was a woman.

Standing under the tree, Caron looked up and froze. Someone with brown hair was shaking the branches vigorously, causing several apples at the ends to fall to the ground, and then she quickly scrambled down, excited.

She triumphantly gathered the fallen apples in her wide-spread skirt and, already biting into one, turned around with a happy face—only to find someone right in front of her and almost fell over in shock.

The man standing tall as a mountain in the moonlight looked intimidatingly large. Thinking he was a knight patrolling the mansion, she hurriedly bowed her head. In the darkness, she couldn’t see his face clearly.

“Ah, um… I’m sorry. I just really wanted an apple…”

She knew well enough that everything in the Duke’s mansion belonged to the master, so even as a servant, what she had done was no different from stealing.

“So, you know you’ve done wrong. Then, are you ready to accept punishment?”

The man before her spoke in a heavy, solemn voice, and Aness, startled, shrank her shoulders. There was a sense of déjà vu. It was a voice she had heard before—chillingly cold and frightening.

“Ah… you’re…”

Terrified, Aness began to back away instinctively. The apples gathered in her skirt tumbled to the ground and rolled away.

Caron now began to approach her slowly. As if drawn by a magnet, he moved relentlessly toward the source of that sweet apple scent.

Backing away in a panic, Aness bumped into the tree and froze in shock. But Caron did not stop. Before she knew it, he was right in front of her.

“Ah, really, I’m sorry.”

Now, Aness could see clearly who this man was.

Caron Perschtman, Duke of Perschtmann. He was staring at her with a gaze so intense it was frightening.

She couldn’t breathe. As his lips drew closer, the memories of that night came flooding back, leaving her unable to move.