Chapter 4

When he pushed open the door to the drawing-room, something that hadn’t been there earlier hit him in the face. The room was filled with cigar smoke.

‘They’ve turned it into a raccoon den already.’

The young man squinted through the hazy air and found a displeased man. With a face marked by profound fatigue, the man exhaled a puff of smoke and asked,

“Where have you been?”

“It’s been a while, young duke.”

Casually greeting him, the young man sat across from Damian Heaven. At the sound of Lord Gopher urging him, he belatedly offered an answer.

“I took a brief tour of the estate while waiting for you. I visited here as a child, so I felt a bit nostalgic.”

Damian silently rubbed his temples, clearly thinking, “As if.” Gopher Allnight smiled, unfazed.

“A lost child was wandering around the estate.”

“A lost child?”

“With His Grace Heaven unwell, it’s concerning. The servants seem distraught, too, since they didn’t even realize they’d left the only young lady wandering in the middle of the estate.”

While it’s not uncommon for servants to subtly haze a new master, such behavior was unthinkable in a family like Heaven’s.

Someone must have instigated it—or perhaps someone of higher rank harbored resentment toward the newcomer. Testing the waters, Gopher mentioned a rumor circulating in society.

“My prospective fiancée can’t possibly be a fraud, right?”

“If you’re suspicious, you’re free to refuse.”

The response came immediately. It wasn’t a serious question to begin with. Heaven wasn’t the kind of family that would be fooled by a mere con artist; if they were, they would have lost their standing long ago.

“The decision-makers are rather stubborn. If you could convince Her Grace, I wouldn’t be so adamant, but that would be difficult, wouldn’t it?”

Gopher narrowed his eyes and asked the man, who remained stoic and exhausted,

“Do you find this marriage arrangement unreasonable?”

“As you said, it’s not my place to judge. I’ll keep silent.”

He handed over a set of documents without a hint of emotion.

“Until the paperwork is finalized, do not visit the estate. Bleria is not ready yet.”

“So that’s why you kept the engagement a secret from her?”

“Did you meet her?”

“Don’t make her wait too long. We’re going to be tied by marriage, after all. We should get along.”

Damian Heaven flicked his cigar aside and stood up.

“If you’re genuinely concerned about family harmony, I expect better manners next time. You may not realize, but roaming around the estate and gathering information are not things a friend of Heaven should do.”

“If I unintentionally offended you, I apologize.”

As Gopher collected the documents and rose to follow Damian, he added,

“While we’re at it, could you refrain from—”

“That won’t happen.”

Damian cut him off and left the drawing room.

As the door closed, Gopher tilted his head, exhaling a short sigh. “How prickly.”

They said Damian had taken over the family’s affairs due to the duke’s worsening illness. His face looked like he hadn’t slept for more than thirty minutes. Still, it didn’t seem like fatigue was the only issue.

Gopher leaned down to pick up a teacup. The lukewarm tea slid down his throat, leaving a trail. It was good tea, though tainted by the pungent smell of that foul cigar. What a waste.

“My Lord!”

The door burst open, revealing a familiar face.

Gopher sipped more tea and greeted him.

“Welcome, Sir Merion.”

“Where in the world did you go—cough cough! What is this—cough!”

What else? The mess left by a chain-smoker.

His knight stumbled forward, eyes tearing up.

“My lord, please! This isn’t the Allnight estate. How can you wander around alone?”

“No one at Heaven’s would harm me. I got bored waiting, so I stirred things up a bit.”

“Don’t lie. You went to see Lady Heaven!”

“You’ve got a sharp eye.”

“My lord!”

Ignoring the knight’s lament, Gopher set his cup down.

“This is Heaven! Don’t you know how His Grace is?”

“Well, they shouldn’t have kept her hidden for a month. We’re practically engaged, after all.”

Gopher handed the document envelope to his bear-like knight and straightened his clothes.

Merion kept glancing at the door, eager to leave the “raccoon den.” But curiosity won out, and he cautiously asked,

“…How was the lady?”

Gopher’s gaze flicked to Merion.

“How was she?”

Bleria Heaven looked like someone who had lived as a commoner. She was perceptive but lacked confidence, and she was honest yet fragile. How her personality would evolve in this new environment remained to be seen, but she wasn’t bad for now.

For all his preferences, Gopher preferred people who were easier to read than an inscrutable snake. They were better for gaining favor, dealing with, and using. He knew this, so he had kept her hidden until now.

After adjusting his cravat, the young man casually chose a response that might pique the knight’s interest.

“She’s pretty.”

“Pretty?”

It wasn’t a lie. Bleria Heaven was indeed beautiful. Despite her tangled hair, her crimson eyes sparkled like the sun.

The contrast between her pale, almost colorless body and vivid eyes was striking.

“Yeah, she’s pretty,” Gopher repeated with a smile.

***

Mel was summoned to Damian’s office early in the morning. Sitting on the edge of his desk, Damian smoked a cigar while a dozen servants stood with their heads bowed across from him.

The room was thick with smoke, like a fog-covered lake, making Mel’s mouth dry. When she made her presence known, Damian tossed his cigar into a coffee cup and stood up.

“You called for me?”

“Do you know who they are, Bleria?”

“Aren’t they the household staff?”

Most of them looked familiar, even if she didn’t know their names. Mel scanned the group but didn’t see Lucy or Pearl. However, she did recognize a maid who often took Lucy away and a servant who had called her a fraud.

‘Could it be… because of that?’

“Not the examiners who determine the authenticity of their master?”

Her guess was spot on.

All of them were the ones who had doubted and disrespected her.

“Bleria Heaven, who was thought dead, returns after living as a commoner? Hard to believe. Doubt? That’s understandable. They can whisper that she’s a fraud and that the Heaven family are naive fools. But,” Damian’s voice lowered dangerously, “leaking rumors outside is unacceptable. It’s embarrassing. For me.”

Mel flinched at the sudden use of slang she had been taught never to use. But words were the least of her concerns.

Though Damian neither raised his voice nor scowled, the tension in the room was suffocating.

“As if I’m not tired enough already. How thoughtful of you all. Am I also juggling an heir’s trial to see if I can handle the family’s affairs alone?”

“N-no, that’s not—”

“Silence.”

Bang! The sound of his fist slamming the desk swallowed all other noise. Damian approached Mel, who had instinctively held her breath. His hand, resting on her shoulder, was gentle, but the feel of his prominent knuckles was chilling.

He patted her out of habit.

“When someone enters a house like Heaven’s, they usually know their place. Why do you think it was different this time, Bleria?”

“Well, I—”

“I must have seemed cold to you. They assumed I doubted you, too, and acted as if they were following my unspoken orders.”

“…”

“I apologize. After making such a grand declaration, I’ve neglected my duties as your brother.”

The oppressive atmosphere weighed heavily on Mel. Her dry lips felt glued together, but Damian demanded an answer.

“My dear sister, what should I do with them? Speak, and I’ll do as you wish.”

His voice was chilling. Mel had heard him use this tone only once before—when he informed her of Norma’s death.

‘If I say the wrong thing, these people…’

Her heart thudded as if it had slipped out of place. The burden of holding a metaphorical sword she’d never wielded felt immense. She wanted to run but knew she couldn’t.

Lowering her gaze like a guilty criminal, Mel forced her trembling tongue to move.

“Fire them… Please.”

“That’s all?”

“Don’t give them any recommendation letters, either.”

The silence dragged on. Each second felt like a weight pulling down her shoulders, like stones tied to her petticoat. The temptation to take back her words grew heavier by the moment.

Thankfully, it ended. Damian patted her head.

“My sister is so kind.”

His cold hand finally withdrew, and Mel exhaled the breath she had been holding.

“Dismiss all the ringleaders and accomplices from the estate. Those who merely stood by will have their pay docked for three months. We’ll let it slide this time. I hope they’re moved by my leniency. If the same happens again, they’ll lose more than just their jobs.”

With that, the servants began to file out under the butler’s guidance.

‘They’ll resent me, won’t they?’

Mel knew it but had to raise her head. It would seem strange for a noble who had issued punishment to appear timid.

However, the expressions she met were not what she expected. Instead of resentment, there was relief and gratitude.

They were grateful because they could have lost much more. They believed she had spared them.

‘But I’m not even a noble.’

A sense of guilt coiled in her chest. As the door closed, Damian turned back to her.

“Why did you keep quiet until now?”