At the southernmost edge of the White Duchy stood a detached villa belonging to the House of White. The southern lands were known for their breathtaking summer scenery, and every year, the family had this residence built so they could enjoy it to the fullest.

After leaving Aurora, Karsten made his way straight to the villa. Entering the place he had instructed Benon to prepare, he immediately spotted Breti standing nearby, trembling.

It was hard to believe that someone with such a noble bearing had been forced to work like a slave in a place like that.

‘If that child were still alive, would she look like this?’

Karsten brushed aside the thought that had crept into his mind, then took a seat in the chair set out for him and murmured quietly.

“Your age.”

“I turned twenty this year.”

Her voice, soft and clear as a bead of jade rolling across glass, lingered in Karsten’s ears. The low, melodious tone resonated deep in his core. Karsten forced his trembling fingers to still and asked another question.

“You look a bit young for that.”

“My birthday was just last month.”

Karsten savored the sound of her voice. Was this really the voice of that child? He mulled it over for a long moment before finally lifting his gaze to take in Breti’s appearance.

Even dressed in shabby clothes, she carried an inexplicable air of grace.

‘She could prove useful.’

Her appearance was far too refined for a mere servant, and Karsten found himself more than satisfied as he looked her over.

Just then, a knock sounded at the door, and Benon entered the room. With his bored expression restored, Karsten issued a command.

“Turn her face toward me.”

At the man’s order, Benon roughly grabbed Breti’s shoulders and turned her face this way and that. Breti resisted weakly, but Benon’s grip was unyielding.

“…Ugh.”

“First, I need to check for any flaws.”

But what truly chilled Breti’s heart was Karsten’s quiet remark.

The word “flaws” alone dragged her into despair. The humiliating reality of having to let Benon move her face as he pleased left her burning with shame.

After inspecting her from face to body, Karsten finally lifted a hand, signaling Benon to stop.

The moment the command was given, Benon immediately let go of her.

“For someone of your status, you have a surprisingly noble appearance.”

Rising from his chair, he spoke as he took slow, deliberate steps toward Breti.

‘Out of your place, aren’t you?’

Just hearing those words made Breti’s face burn with shame. The quiet humiliation washed over her, and she lifted her gaze to look at Karsten as he approached.

“I can only assume you expect me to use this out-of-place appearance of mine for your own ends.”

At her bold words, Karsten’s green eyes, tinged with blue, flashed sharply.

Breti recalled the words Madam Aba always threw at her.

“Do you have any idea how much your father owed me? Unless someone shows up willing to pay double with interest to buy you, don’t even think about escaping my grasp.”

Blinded by greed, Madam Aba had steadily increased both the interest on her father’s debt and Breti’s price. She was determined to sell her off for a fortune.

Whether through misfortune or good fortune, however, no one had come forward to buy Breti. This was only because Madam Aba had demanded such a high price for her.

“So is that why you value someone as worthless as me?”

Paying a fortune—dozens of times what she was worth—it was no wonder Madam Aba had lost her mind over it.

Lowering her gaze, Breti fiddled with her sleeve.

“If that’s what you want from me, then…”

From within her sleeve, she drew a small knife and pressed it to her own throat.

“I would rather choose death.”

If this was the humiliation that awaited her, she would rather die than endure it.

Breti always kept a small knife hidden in her sleeve. She had intended to use it on Dylan, who had been pestering her earlier. She had dealt with countless men who had tried to take advantage of her. She had had to become stronger in order to protect herself.

Whenever she played her last card like this, men would quickly back away, wanting no part in the trouble. She would never let this man violate her will.

To be sold off again, to lose control over her own body—she would rather not live at all.

Breti pressed the blade closer to her neck.

“Death, is it?”

Anyone else might have been startled by Breti’s sudden action, but the man didn’t even blink. His gaze on her was filled with nothing but boredom.

The fact that he seemed completely unfazed only made Breti’s heart tighten with anxiety.

“Benon, leave us.”

The moment Karsten spoke, Benon released his grip on Breti and exited the room. Left alone, their eyes met in the silence.

“Yes, it’s true I bought you because I needed you. But—”

Breti shivered as she read the fierce light in his eyes.

The man took a step closer. The nearer he drew, the more Breti shrank back, inching away from him.

“For the price I paid—”

When there was nowhere left to retreat, the man filled her entire vision.

“I never agreed to tolerate your insolence.”

His piercing blue-green eyes seemed to freeze her in place.

Breti’s hand began to tremble. The knife she’d been holding to her neck slipped from her grasp and clattered to the floor. At the same time, she herself collapsed to the ground, unable to stand.

Karsten gazed down at her coldly.

“It’s late. That’s enough for today. Get some rest.”

Having said all he needed to, Karsten turned away and headed for the door. Scrambling to her feet, Breti called out after him.

“Who are you, really—?”

Before she could finish, the man was suddenly before her, his hand clamped harshly around her chin.

“Since when did dolls have mouths to speak?”

His grip tightened, emphasizing the word ‘doll.’ The pain from his rough touch was sharp, but it was that single word—doll—that sent Breti plummeting into despair.

She’d always been treated this way—so why did this man’s words feel even more humiliating?

Karsten’s blue-green eyes bored into her, sharp enough to pierce right through. Frightened by that gaze, Breti could do nothing but clamp her mouth shut, as if she’d swallowed her own tongue.

“Have you already forgotten that I said I wouldn’t tolerate your insolence?”

Karsten’s hand languidly stroked her cheek. There was nothing warm about that touch. It carried the same chill as his eyes—cold, with not a hint of kindness.

“I usually don’t buy damaged goods. Who would have thought that the thing I bought today would come with such a glaring flaw—a mouth that doesn’t know its place.”

‘Flaw.’

Hearing him speak that word, Breti’s cheeks flushed hotly with renewed shame.

“Dolls don’t have mouths.”

“…”

“Everything you’ve said tonight has been out of place.”

With that, he left Breti alone in the room.

The room she had been left in was nothing like the cramped space she had lived in at Aurora. While that room had been freezing cold even in summer, here a roaring fire filled the room with warmth. Unlike the windowless closet she was used to, this room was flooded with sunlight.

“I’m cold.”

Yet despite the warmth, Breti shivered, chilled by the unsettling wind that seemed to swirl around her.

💙💙💙 💙💙💙

“…Miss.”

“…”

“Miss!”

Startled by the feeling of someone shaking her shoulder, Breti’s eyes snapped open. A young woman, about her age, was looking at her with a lively expression.

Sitting up from the sofa, Breti blinked several times, struggling to adjust to her surroundings after dozing off.

‘Ah, that’s right. I came here yesterday.’

Breti had never been blessed with much imagination, so there was no way she could have ever pictured a place as luxurious as this.

The fact that she’d been sold to a cold-eyed man and practically dragged here by the giant—none of it was a dream.

“I never said I’d tolerate your insolence, either.”

That meant the words he’d spoken last night hadn’t been a dream, either. As Breti recalled what the man had told her, she let out a sigh inwardly.

“But why were you sleeping here, miss?”

The young woman who’d just woken Breti up tilted her head in curiosity.

“…When I woke up, I found myself asleep here. I’m sorry.”

Breti quickly bowed her head, apologizing. All her life, she’d been used to sleeping on hard wooden floors, so she hadn’t dared to use the bed. After much hesitation, she’d settled on the sofa instead.

‘Maybe even this was overstepping…’

She glanced cautiously at the woman, wondering if sleeping on the sofa had been wrong too.

The woman’s expression suddenly darkened. A moment later, she stood and bowed politely to Breti.

“Good morning, miss. My name is Bagi. From now on, I’ll be your maid.”

Startled by the unexpected introduction, Breti scrambled to her feet from the sofa.

“H-hello.”

“Oh dear, miss, you mustn’t use honorifics with me.”