In the aristocratic society of the Krania Empire, where complex etiquette based on age and status was strictly codified, failing to acknowledge a greeting was a grave offense.
The Duchess of Monde had made her displeasure and disdain for Kaella perfectly clear by pointedly ignoring her. Honestly, it was an action driven by pure, petty emotion.
‘If only there had been witnesses… No, what does it matter?’
What was the point of dwelling on it now? Kaella had reached a bitter conclusion during her arduous time as the Grand Duchess of Lyussenford: even if she protested, no one would take her side. It was better to swallow the insult and let it fade. At least then, things would remain quiet. Nothing would happen. If she dared to speak up, she would only paint herself as the villain.
‘If I fight it, the incident will just fizzle out, and I’ll be the one told to be more understanding.’
The Duchess of Monde had lost her prospective son-in-law, and the poor Lady Lavalle had been robbed of a long-term lover. If Kaella were to argue, she would simply be labeled a spiteful heiress, further fueling the rumors that she had stolen another woman’s man for marriage.
Moreover, this was the Imperial Palace. The Emperor was already on edge due to the Empress, and Kaella, who was walking on eggshells to survive, had no desire to be the protagonist of any new scandal. She only wanted peace.
“My lady. You have a guest.”
Having finished her duties at the palace and confirmed that her father would not be having a private audience with the Emperor that day, Kaella returned home and turned to her butler.
“It is the Grand Duke of Lyussenford.”
The name alone exhausted her.
‘Why has he come? Has he come to tell me I must beg for forgiveness from the Duchess of Monde? He’s surely here to criticize my lack of composure.’
It was obvious. He had always blindly shielded Beatrice, which was why her time as his wife had been so suffocating. His unreadable violet eyes would always stare at her as if in silent condemnation, and Kaella had struggled constantly to endure that gaze—to be a perfect wife. As if such a thing were even possible for her.
Because she had foolishly clung to a hope that could never be severed, Kaella had been quietly eroding from the inside. As soon as she heard of his arrival, she braced herself for the weight of his silent disapproval.
“Why is he here?”
“He said he had something to give you. He added that if you are tired, he is willing to return in three hours.”
He had made his firm intention to see her clear.
“Tell him to wait.”
“Yes, my lady.”
Kaella eventually rose and smoothed her attire. There was nothing to lose. She had already erupted in anger, run away from home, and shown her ugliest sides; if he intended to pick a fight, she would not cower. Rather than pretending to be a virtuous noblewoman, she would choose to be unapologetically angry until her dying day. At least she still had the capacity to feel such rage.
Sitting before the mirror, she hesitated while brushing her hair. The image of the Duchess of Monde turning away from her greeting flashed in her mind.
‘It’s not my fault.’
If the Duchess wanted to vent her anger, she should have gone to the Emperor or the Grand Duke; choosing Kaella—the one who had maintained perfect etiquette—was the act of a coward. If anyone should be demanding answers, it was the Duchess approaching Duke Ostain, not harassing Kaella.
Everything related to that house or the Grand Duke was always suffocating. Often, she would find herself sitting alone at her vanity, rubbing her aching heart.
Kaella put the comb down with a clatter and walked to the drawing room. The Duchess had taken her frustrations out on an easy, undeserving target; there was no rule stating Kaella couldn’t do the same. Though, she acknowledged, the man waiting for her was anything but an “easy” target.
“…I apologize for the sudden visit.”
He handled his sword with lethal grace, yet standing still, he carried the tempered air of a well-educated scholar. She had seen him return from war, weary and stained, only to spend his nights recording journals by the firelight. Kaella despised that she remembered such trivial details.
“I should have sent word beforehand…”
“It is fine. To what do I owe this visit?”
The air between them was stiff and formal. One was overly cautious, the other was stoking a silent fire of defiance.
If he had come to lecture her, Kaella decided she would not stay silent. She was destined to die in this marriage anyway; there was a world of difference between holding her tongue and speaking her mind. The trouble was that she had suppressed herself for so long that she kept forgetting she was allowed to be angry.
‘It’s okay to be angry. I’m going to die anyway. It’s okay.’
Kaella murmured to herself, standing before Peon. He was so tall that she had to tilt her head back to meet his gaze. He stood holding a large box, his expression uncharacteristically dark.
“That… I…”
Peon started to speak, faltered, and then chose honesty.
“I came to apologize. I heard that the Duchess of Monde ignored your greeting today.”
He had come to apologize? Kaella stared at the Grand Duke in bewilderment. He was looking down, his handsome brows knitted in genuine frustration.
“You were subjected to humiliation because of me. I am sorry.”
Was he mocking her? Or was she still dreaming? She had felt the weight of her regression, but seeing this man behave with such raw contrition, she wondered if she were merely hallucinating in the north tower of Lyussenford. She stared at him blankly before gesturing to a chair.
“Please, sit. Did the rumor spread that far?”
“Yes.”
“I didn’t realize there were eyes watching.”
If this stoic, wooden man had come to apologize with such a haggard face, the rumor must have permeated the entirety of Krain.
For Peon to appear three hours after the incident meant news traveled fast. It seemed there had been no shortage of onlookers. That was fortunate, though she kept that thought to herself.
“The Duchess’s behavior is my fault. I am truly sorry, Lady.”
The words *it’s not your fault* rose to her lips, but Kaella clamped them back. No, it *was* his fault.
“The Duchess visited me this morning, but it seems she could not accept my explanation. You were subjected to her venting because of it. I am sorry.”
A man apologizing at every turn was foreign to her. It was rare enough to see such humility from an equal, yet he did so with natural, quiet grace.
She had heard Peon was a man of deep character and affection toward his own people. She had observed it from the sidelines, but Kaella had never been one of “his people.” She had been excluded, left to watch an affection that was never meant for her.
“I see.”
Seeing Kaella nod without emotion, Peon felt a chill run through him. He did not want to provoke her—not the woman who had lashed out in anger, nor the woman who had run away because she loathed this union.
If she was like this even now, he could only dread how much influence the Duchess of Monde must have exerted over her before the regression.
The woman who knew how to be angry now hadn’t once complained back then. So many things must have happened for it to reach this point. There must have been many trials he hadn’t bothered to acknowledge behind her back.
“I am ashamed. I am sorry.”
“Are you saying she ignored me because of Your Highness?”
“I have no intention of making excuses. As you know, there were many reasons for the Duchess to believe I would be her son-in-law. When the marriage announcement was made, she came to demand an explanation.”
“And you did not give her one she could accept?”
“It was… impossible for her to accept.”
Kaella looked up at him. “Why?”
“Because the Duchess would not have wanted to hear that I and Lady Lavalle are no longer in any relationship.”
Wait. Kaella blinked, doubting her ears. That Peon—the Grand Duke himself—would openly state that he and Beatrice were no longer together? It was entirely out of character.
However, she did not let her surprise show.
“Did you tell her that?”
“Yes.”
Peon offered no long-winded justification. Even if he had, the fact remained that he was the man who had cast aside a woman—whether lover or childhood friend—to choose the daughter of Duke Ostain.
“I will ensure this never happens again.”
Peon observed Kaella, who looked visibly exhausted. Her cheeks were gaunt, her skin pale, and dark shadows clung beneath her eyes. Her neck and shoulders, visible between her shawl and collar, looked thinner than before. He knew he should leave.
“I am sorry for the intrusion. Please accept this small gift I have prepared.”
“You didn’t need to bring a gift, Your Highness.”
Kaella shook her head, but Peon did not withdraw the box.
“Please, Lady. It was prepared for you. I don’t expect it to soothe your wounded heart, but I hope it brings some small comfort.”
Had she ever received anything from Peon? The situation felt incredibly awkward. A vague anxiety pricked at her; a woman who had been treated harshly for so long learns to fear kindness.
“Think of it as a wedding gift. It is yours.”
Peon placed the box on her lap. “Open it. Go ahead.”
She lifted the lid of the black velvet box and stared at the stones inside.
Refined, transparent gems of various shapes and sizes lay nestled in the velvet. Even the smallest was significant, and all radiated a brilliant, icy light. Her blue eyes widened as she looked back at him.
“Y-Your Highness?”
“It is a top secret, but a diamond mine was recently discovered in Lyussenford.”
He spoke of it to her without a moment’s hesitation.
In truth, it was a mine Kaella knew well. How could she not know of the Kervan mine, which had been the catalyst for the Emperor’s attack on Lyussenford in her previous life? It was a place where diamonds poured out, and in her former life, Beatrice had begged for them, while Kaella had never even seen one.
The first raw stone found had been over 4,000 carats, and the twelve cut gems were known as the Kervan Diamonds.
At the time, the three largest had been offered to the Emperor to delay the war, and the rest were poured into military funds. Two of the smallest had gone to the Monde family.
“These were cut from the largest raw stones.”
He had intended to offer them in a more refined setting, one meant solely for her. He pushed aside his annoyance with the Duchess to look at Kaella with a sudden, earnest focus.
“I know well that marrying me is a terrible fate for you. As I promised Duke Ostain, if you wish, I will grant you a divorce once the situation is safe. Until then, I will do my best. Please accept this.”
Kaella gripped the box, her knuckles turning white. The Empress had collapsed, her father had survived, and now the mine—which was supposed to be a state secret discovered years later—was being handed to her instead of the treasury.
It was strange. It was terrifyingly strange.
“Your Highness, this is far too generous…”
“There is no such thing as too generous for you.” Peon cut her off. “Is there anything else you would like?”
“Yes?”
He had already given her the Kervan Diamonds, and now he was asking for another request? Was this man truly losing his mind?
“It is a marriage you did not ask for. Is there nothing else you want from me?”
There was one thing. If he was going to kill her later, she wanted to be spared the north tower. But she couldn’t say that. Kaella hardened her resolve and shook her head.
“Nothing for now? Then please think about it carefully and tell me later.”
“Your Highness, I appreciate the gesture, but shouldn’t these go to the imperial treasury?”
“The Lyussenford finances are secure. I can certainly do this much for the daughter of Ostain.”
“But this is too much. His Majesty will be displeased; it will cause endless gossip.”
If the greedy Emperor found out, there would be hell to pay. If Beatrice found out? This Peon didn’t seem like the man she knew at all.
He watched her anxiety, then nodded calmly.
“I see.”
“So, I will return this. I will accept the gesture, but I cannot take these.”
She had to receive nothing, die quietly, and remain invisible. Kaella closed the box and pushed it toward him.
“My thinking was short-sighted. I apologize. My way of treating a lady is unrefined. It is natural that you would be flustered by my rushing things.”
“No, even just your intention is enough…”
“I will have things properly made one by one and give them to you again.”
“Yes?”
The Grand Duke stood up.
“That would be better. I was in such a hurry to arrive because I thought you must be heartbroken, and I didn’t consider the proper protocol. I apologize.”
He bowed his head.
“I will visit you again soon. Do not worry about the Duchess of Monde. I will take care of it. Please think about a separate gift as well. I wish you peace.”
“Ah, yes… yes?”
For the first time, Kaella watched the receding back of the Grand Duke with an expression of complete incomprehension.
Why on earth was he acting like this? Her husband was defying her every expectation.
However, before the shock could fade, news arrived that the Duchess of Monde had been officially banned from the Imperial Palace.