Chapter 123

Chapter 123

The Duke stepped abruptly closer until he stood right before me. I forgot every word I’d meant to say and just gazed mutely at his face. I saw him every day, yet a shy feeling crept over me. Probably because of his confession yesterday.

“Nothing unusual happen?”

He looked down at me and asked. I met his blue gaze and gripped his sleeve tightly.

“Unusual?”

“A lot happened yesterday, didn’t it? What did the servants say?”

“Ah!”

The events of the day suddenly came rushing back. I nodded vigorously and began spilling out all the words I’d stored in my head.

“Don’t even get me started. The others are teasing me mercilessly. At this rate, I might just die of embarrassment.”

“What did they say?”

“Well… they call me the D…”

I was about to mention how the ladies-in-waiting called me madam, then clamped my mouth shut. The word felt far too embarrassing to utter in front of the duke. So I couldn’t dare open my lips.

“Hm?”

When I offered no reply, the duke stared at me and asked again, almost like he was prodding. I just shook my head silently. Then I shifted the topic.

“No, it’s nothing… Nothing important. More to the point—how about you, Duke? You went to the Imperial Castle today. Anything happen?”

“Quite a bit, actually. Benat received his peerage as young marquis today.”

Ah. Right. I’d forgotten.

It suddenly came back to me—the time I went to the dessert shop with Hereis and heard about the young marquis. The marquis and his wife were separating, and he meant to pass down his title, didn’t he? Looked like today marked a kind of full stop on all that.

“Ah… I heard the news too. By chance, when I went outside to see a friend. So the marquis and his wife made that decision?”

“Yes. You knew already.”

“The young marquis must be beside himself.”

“Seems that way. He’s been burying himself in work lately. First time I’ve ever seen that kid live so diligently.”

The duke replied with a playful tone, as if trying to lighten the mood. It was a light jab at his friend. I let out a small puff of laughter. Then I lifted my head again to look at him. There was one more thing I wanted to ask.

“Are the marquis and his wife all right?”

“…Truth is, they still get along well. But maybe not as a married couple. If I had to guess, they probably felt it was time to stop.”

“Mmm… That’s hard.”

I furrowed my brow slightly as I spoke. The idea that a relationship could be severed just because someone decided to end it was rather frightening. But the marquis and his wife must have reached this conclusion after enough agreement. This kingdom is against divorce, yet they still chose to separate. A bitter feeling settled in me. I tightened my grip on the duke’s sleeve. He quietly took hold of my wrist.

“Does it bother you?”

The duke fingered the edge of my wrist for a moment, then asked.

“Well… I suppose so.”

“Yes. You’ve always been the sort to worry about others.”

“I do tend to meddle.”

I let go of his sleeve and added that. I felt embarrassed, wondering if he was scolding me for being a busybody. But he said nothing more. He just lowered his hand lightly and caught my fingers.

“I rather like that about you.”

Huh? This man—he just swoops right in.

His sudden confession caught in my throat. I’d heard the same words countless times even just yesterday, yet they refused to settle, to become familiar. My heart clenched for no good reason, leaving me stammering out some vague, evasive answer.

“Come on… what’s so good about having such a big heart?” I asked, forcing a chuckle.

“It’s not big-heartedness. It’s thoughtfulness — caring about others.”

“Well… the Marquis and his wife are such good people. I suppose that’s why I worry about them more. But it’s not like there’s anything I can actually do. I can’t offer clumsy condolences… and congratulating them would feel just as wrong.”

“And there — that’s your caution showing.”

“…What’s that supposed to mean? Are you just saying you like me because I’m me?” The words slipped out before I could stop them.

I froze mid-sentence. I hadn’t meant to say something so embarrassingly vulnerable — not from my own mouth. The Duke went silent too, caught off guard. But then a soft laugh escaped him, the corner of his mouth quirking up.

“Maybe so? I do think I’d love you no matter what face you showed me.”

“……”

Looking at him now, the Duke was bolder than I’d given him credit for. Even as the tips of his ears burned red, he could still toss out lines like that without flinching. When I’d first arrived at Cuvershaiden, he’d seemed nothing but a workaholic — all cool composure and frosty demeanor, buried in duty day and night. The past me would never have imagined he had this kind of shamelessness in him.

And yet, absurdly, I found even that endearing now. I’d loved the Duke when he was merely serene, but I also adored this side of him — the one that caught me off guard and made my heart flutter. It gave me a certainty: no matter what face he wore before me, I would always love him.

I said nothing, just fidgeted with his hand in mine. There was so much I wanted to say, words surging with the tide of emotion. But they wouldn’t come. Sadly, I lacked his brazen nerve. So I just bit my lip and held on to the quiet stillness settling around us.

“In any case, Laura. You don’t need to dwell on the Marquis’s household. Those two surely thought long and hard before making their decision.”

It was the Duke who broke the silence first. I gave a small nod. He was right, after all. Besides, worrying too much over these matters could itself be an intrusion. Better to let it go quickly.

“And there’s something else I need to tell you. Actually, I looked up some records today about that decapitated soul…”

He continued, and I snapped my head up to meet his eyes.

“You mean the ghost in this manor?” I asked.

This was about the headless ghost of Cuvershaiden — the soul that remembered its past life yet refused to seek reincarnation. Though a string of incidents had pushed it from my mind, it was still a matter that needed resolving.

“That’s right. I’m talking about that soul who supposedly went by the name Edil in his last life. I figured that if he’d suffered a punishment as severe as beheading, there would be a record of it in the Imperial Castle.”

“So you found it?”

“Yes. About seventy years ago, it seems he killed the man who was his owner. To be precise, he killed the second son of House Aujentes, the Count’s family at that time.”

“What? Excuse me? He… killed someone?”

Good heavens. He was a murderer. That was something I had truly never considered before.

‘Ah, now that I think of it…’

Come to think of it, that ghost had once rattled off every misfortune he’d suffered in his past life in minute detail. But he had never once confessed to the crime he’d committed in that final life.

It struck me then—someone wouldn’t receive a punishment as extreme as beheading for a minor offense. The conclusion was simple. He had truly committed murder, and we were harboring a killer within the ducal house.

“I don’t know why he committed the murder, but whatever the reason, we can’t keep him in Cuvershaiden. I have a feeling he might be more dangerous than an ordinary soul. We need to find a way to send him out quickly.”

“You’re right. If he committed murder while alive, there must have been a grudge deep enough to drive him to it. If that grudge lingers as an attachment, then it really is dangerous. Hmm… But that ghost is an earthbound spirit, so driving him out won’t be easy. And since his soul’s energy isn’t tainted, we can’t perform an exorcism either.”

“Then we should start by meeting with a priest and asking for advice.”

“Yes. Let’s do that.”

I nodded slowly in affirmation. Then I turned my gaze toward the window. The sun was already tilting, stretching its red rays across the sky. While I’d been exchanging various stories with the Duke, time had slipped away. Of course, it was well past the end of the workday now.

The headless ghost would likely show itself soon enough. On any normal day, I wouldn’t have given it much thought. But now, having just heard that he was a murderer, I couldn’t help the unease settling in my chest. I felt as though I needed to get back to my room immediately.

“Your Grace, I’ll take my leave for the day!”

I spoke as I gently set his hands down in a tidy fold.

“…Shall I escort you?”

He asked in that low, rumbling voice. It seemed he was trying to accommodate me, in case I was frightened.

“Well, would you?”

Truth be told, I didn’t really need it. The sun hadn’t fully set yet, so there was still some time before the ghost appeared. Besides, there weren’t many ghosts left in Cuvershaiden anymore. All I had to do was avoid the paths they walked. But I decided not to refuse his kindness. Because a small, selfish part of me wanted to stay with the Duke just a little longer.

After that, we stepped out of the study and moved slowly down the corridor. But just as we were about to round the corner — the headless ghost glided into view without warning.

“Aagh!”

“Gyaaah!”

His sudden appearance caught us so off guard that we clutched each other tight, startling.

“What the—you never showed up here before! How can you even be in this place?!”

I ended up shrieking outright. The headless ghost drooped his shoulders, sulking. Behind him, Shion came into view — holding a man’s head in both hands.

“Noona! Oppa!”

The child shifted the head to one hand and waved the other.

“Shion? Shion… what are you doing here?”

“Me? I’m playing tag with this oppa!”

She smiled, utterly bright, and pointed at the headless ghost’s torso.