Hoping that he had misheard, the Count was momentarily speechless.

But as soon as he realized what had happened, he exploded with fury.

Unable to control his anger, he grabbed the neatly arranged vase on the table and threw it across the room.

The glass shattered into countless pieces.

The flowers scattered across the floor and came to rest at Liam’s feet.

Startled by his father’s sudden outburst, Liam stood frozen to the spot, his fists clenched tightly at his sides.

He wanted to defend himself.

He wanted to say something — anything.

But the words only circled helplessly in his mind.

“You hired people who you’d heard were trustworthy to investigate her? Do you have any idea how much money the House of Parsen has invested in people like that? The moment someone starts investigating the House of Parsen, Michael is the first to know. Do you know why? Because he pays them several times more than anyone else ever could. Do you understand now?!”

The Count struck his own chest with his fist, as though it were about to burst from frustration.

He was beginning to wonder whether his son was deliberately acting like an idiot.

“I… I only thought it might h-help somehow…”

“Enough!”

The Count slammed his palm onto the desk.

The sharp crack echoed through the study.

“Michael’s eyes and ears are everywhere. How many times have I told you that? And you still don’t understand?”

It was absurd that he had to explain something so obvious to his son. He nearly laughed.

Pressing a hand to his forehead, the Count slumped heavily into his chair.

He knew better than anyone how disloyal information brokers could be.

The moment Liam hired them, they would have gone straight to House Parsen.

Michael was not the sort of man who would quietly overlook something like that.

This was Michael’s way of warning Liam.

Not through House Parsen’s own legal counsel…

But through a man named Node.

“Attorney Node primarily handles trade disputes and commercial litigation involving enormous financial interests. He’s an expert in lawsuits that last anywhere from one year to well over five.”

The Count’s mind flashed back to the lawyer’s earlier explanation.

Only now did everything fall perfectly into place.

Node’s refusal to settle any of the eight lawsuits.

This showed that he was not interested in resolving the matter quickly.

Whether the trials ultimately ended in victory or defeat was almost irrelevant.

His true intention was to ensure that Liam would not sleep peacefully for years to come.

The Count had assumed that the Duke would never respond personally to rumor-based articles.

This was precisely why he had bribed several reporters.

His goal had never been to destroy Eveline outright.

All he wanted was to prevent the Duchess from becoming firmly established in high society.

After all, scandals had a way of feeding themselves.

All it took was a few tantalizing rumors to spark idle curiosity.

For a while, at least.

The plan had seemed to be working.

That is, until Jade, the eldest son of House Akite, unexpectedly stepped forward and flooded the newspapers with articles exposing the truth.

That red-headed man, who could neither be bought nor intimidated, ended up helping Eveline in the most unexpected way.

Still…

A faint stain had been left on the Duchess’s name.

The effort had not been entirely without reward.

“…Fool.”

The Count groaned in irritation and rang the bell.

A moment later, Bent, his most trusted servant, hurried into the study.

He immediately noticed the shattered glass and flowers scattered across the floor. Sensing the grim atmosphere, he waited silently for the Count’s orders.

“Until his confinement is over, don’t let him take a single step outside.”

Pointing at his son with one finger, the Count closed his eyes wearily.

At the dismissive wave of his hand, Bent turned to Liam without hesitation.

“You must leave.”

Liam looked as though he wanted to protest.

In the end, however, he quietly left the room, closing the door behind him.

Leaning heavily back against his chair, the Count pressed his temples.

His head was throbbing.

But that pain was nothing compared to the crushing weight in his chest, as though twenty stones had been piled on top of it.

Fortunately…

The gift he had painstakingly prepared for Eveline was still there.

However, now that Michael was watching Liam so closely, he would have to be even more careful.

For the time being…

If he wanted to avoid exposing himself prematurely, he would have to wait.

***

Anna was busy sorting the luggage that was to be sent ahead to the ducal castle.

Packing the duke’s belongings was never particularly difficult.

He visited the castle every year, so everything he needed was already there waiting for him.

The Duchess, however, was another matter entirely.

This would be Eveline’s first extended stay at the castle since their wedding.

Consequently, the pile of luggage that Anna had started to organize grew larger and larger.

Dress after dress…

Everyday clothes…

Hats in every color.

Indoor attire…

It seemed never-ending.

Aidan and another servant had already finished packing Michael’s belongings when they entered the dressing room.

As the head steward was overwhelmed with tasks to complete before leaving the capital for an extended period, Aidan had stepped in to inspect the luggage himself.

Anna looked over the small pile prepared for the duke before speaking hesitantly.

“Um… shouldn’t we pack a few extra ties?”

Only three ties had been laid out on top of the five new suits tailored for this year.

Anna pointed to them and glanced at Aidan.

Along one side of the dressing room was a whole row of ties.

To Aidan, they all looked virtually identical.

Every single one was blue.

As far as most people knew, Michael wore dozens of identical ties.

Aidan believed the same thing.

He had simply assumed that the duke, who was not particularly interested in clothing, had ordered them in bulk.

Unaware of Aidan’s thoughts, Anna carefully picked out two more ties.

“I think these colors will match the suits better.”

To Anna, each shade was distinctly different.

But after she laid them across the jackets, Aidan stared at them in confusion.

“Aren’t they all exactly the same?”

“N-No, they’re all different. This one is a warmer blue—a blue with just a hint of yellow. And this one is a cooler blue with the faintest touch of violet.”

“…Blue can be warm or cool?”

His expression made it clear he understood absolutely nothing.

Still, with plenty of other matters demanding his attention, Aidan decided not to dwell on it.

“Let’s just pack all of them.”

He took his tie with him when he left the dressing room with the servant, along with the rest of his luggage.

At that moment, Eveline entered the bedroom.

She had come to tell Anna that she didn’t need to pack so many clothes.

Instead, however, she found herself listening with interest to their conversation.

When she had first looked through Michael’s wardrobe, she had also wondered why he owned so many blue ties.

To her, they were all different shades of blue.

Ever since childhood, she had been able to distinguish gemstones and notice the slightest differences in color and light.

But she knew most people probably couldn’t.

Anna, with her skilled hands, could just as easily tell the subtle differences apart.

Eveline suddenly recalled the way Anna had watched her make the bracelet, unable to take her eyes off the process.

‘Perhaps this is what it feels like……to discover a precious gemstone buried beneath the earth.’

***

Before she knew it, the morning before they were due to leave for Razan had arrived.

As dawn broke, a light drizzle began to fall.

By the time the raindrops had dampened the leaves, the sky had cleared as though it had never rained.

Eveline had woken up before sunrise, when the rain had first started, and spent the early hours reviewing Beaufort’s accounts.

After turning page after page of densely written ledgers, she finally decided to clear her mind with a walk.

The estate was still quiet.

The day had yet to truly begin.

After descending the neatly laid stone steps and making her way around to the rear of the mansion, she saw a black horse galloping steadily towards the low mountain behind the estate, beyond the back gate.

The horse was black.

Its rider was dressed in black, too.

The animal’s flowing mane and the rider’s dark hair seemed to move as one.

The distance was still too great to make out his face.

Even so…

There was only one person who would be riding there:

Michael.

Eveline woke up to find that he had already left the room.

It seemed that he had gone out on his usual morning ride.

As he drew nearer, their eyes met, and Michael gradually slowed his horse.

Once the horse had stopped, Michael tied the reins to a nearby tree.

As if recognizing that it was finally time to rest, the horse snorted softly.

Michael immediately walked towards Eveline.

He was dressed in perfectly fitted riding clothes.

With every step he took, the fabric stretched neatly over his long legs.

Looking at him now, no one would ever guess that he had suffered from chronic insomnia for years.

“Going for a walk?”

“Yes.”

When Eveline answered, Michael fell silently into step beside her.

She had only planned to take a short stroll through the garden.

Instead, they found themselves walking towards the back gate.

At the end of the neatly paved stone path was a dirt track leading up the privately owned mountain behind the estate.

The climb wasn’t steep.

Nevertheless, with no sign of another person anywhere along the path, the area felt strangely secluded.

The forest was filled with the scent of fresh grass and rain-soaked trees.

Although the trail was gentle enough for a mountain path, it was far more demanding than the leisurely stroll Eveline had envisaged.

Fortunately, having grown up in Beaufort, surrounded by mountains, she climbed without difficulty.

After walking along the damp trail for some time, she finally spoke.

“I only found the pen you gave me a few days ago. It’s late, but… thank you. I was genuinely surprised. I never expected a gift like that.”

Whatever the reason…

It couldn’t have been easy to replace something that had been lost.

Especially when that fountain pen had meant so much to her.

She was sincerely grateful.

“I should be the one thanking you, but I missed the opportunity. I especially like this medallion.”

He lifted his right wrist, the bracelet swaying gently as he spoke.

After reaching a spot where the trees opened up to reveal a wide view, he stopped.

He stepped onto a large boulder and took a longer stride.

Eveline felt oddly embarrassed by his thanks.

She had only made the bracelet because he had asked her to.

But before she could dwell on this, he held out his hand to her.

“Come up.”

Michael stepped onto the broad, flat boulder and reached down to take Eveline’s hand.

With a gentle tug, he pulled her up beside him.

In an instant, she found herself standing on the solid stone overlooking the entire ducal estate.

The mansion, built of weathered stone, was perfectly symmetrical, exuding the quiet dignity of centuries of history.

Towering arched windows stretched across each floor and balconies adorned with flowing, irregular carvings lent the imposing structure an air of elegance and old-world refinement.

“It’s beautiful.”