The weekend evening I had promised to go out with the Duke.
Since it had been a while since I last went out, the servants were unusually busy. They carefully brushed my long, slightly curly hair, applied fragrant oils, and helped me into the elegant evening dress that Helen had poured her soul into designing.
'I can't believe I pull this off…'
I couldn't take my eyes off the mirror. Thanks to my striking features, the voluminous flared dress looked stunning on me.
"You look absolutely beautiful, my lady."
"It's like watching a rose in full bloom. You're dazzling."
The servants chose their words extremely carefully, showering me with compliments while being mindful not to say anything wrong.
"Your skin is so flawless."
"And your lips, like ripe cherries."
"Hmph."
I knew better than anyone how entertaining and thrilling this face could be. But I held back the urge to bask in the praise and simply scoffed lightly.
As one of the empire's most notorious villainesses—and their employer—I was constantly practicing keeping a cold expression to maintain my dignity.
'I hate it when the character gets out of character..'
"My lady, the Duke will be arriving shortly."
Finally, the usually-unseen chief steward of the Duke's estate appeared and announced the news.
As an accessory, I carried a deep purple fan that matched my light lavender dress. I was already tall, but with high heels on, my view soared even higher.
A little while later, the Duke appeared in the lobby dressed in a navy suit. He radiated the dignified charm only found in handsome, mature men.
'Now this is what I call national welfare.'
Silently applauding the Empire of Asteia for blessing its citizens with visual delight, I took my place beside the Duke.
Good thing I practiced my expressions every day. If I hadn't, I might've been standing there dumbly, mouth agape like a fangirl meeting a celebrity up close.
"That dress is worth the price."
The Duke looked at me with a composed gaze before speaking coldly. His icy tone was just as hard to get used to as his stunning appearance.
'Men in this household really do get by on their looks.'
Swallowing the retort that almost escaped, I forced a polite smile and replied,
"My parents gave birth to me this beautifully, so I think it's only natural such a magnificent dress suits me."
When silence falls, I get more nervous, so I just kept going, trying to continue his blunt remarks—which only led to more flattery.
"Then take care of your body. If you ever pull something like that again, grounding will be the least of your worries."
He was referring to the incident where I had slapped my own cheeks without mercy. In front of a carriage adorned with a twin-headed snake crest, the Duke offered his hand.
'My first outing.'
Accepting his curt escort, I boarded the carriage. But as I looked out the quickly passing scenery, I almost gasped.
The front gate of the Duke's townhouse was still nowhere in sight.
'Why does it take this long just to reach the front gate?'
What I had briefly skimmed in fragmented memories and what I actually felt now were worlds apart.
But it wasn't just the mansion's sheer size that shocked me.
'Why are there no customers during peak dining hours?'
With a puzzled expression, I glanced around the restaurant. The two-story wooden interior was completely empty, aside from the table where the Duke and I sat.
"Is something wrong?"
"I was just wondering if this place isn't doing well."
"Is it because it resembles me? Not a very funny joke. Still, I appreciate your effort to lighten the mood. You've been quite mature lately."
'What is he even talking about?'
Feeling our conversation slightly off-track, the timing couldn't be better—the waiter arrived with the aperitif and bread.
'This is insanely good.'
From the rich butter and the soft, fluffy bread, it was clear this place served top-quality food. The idea that there were no customers didn't make sense.
'Ah, now I get it. He rented out the whole restaurant.'
As a humble commoner, I was both enjoying the taste of luxury and slightly overwhelmed by it. Quietly, I continued eating.
The formal dinners enjoyed by the Empire's upper class closely resembled French-style course meals. The variety of ingredients meant many different utensils were used, and handling all of them flawlessly without error was surprisingly nerve-racking. Every time a dish arrived, I couldn't help but feel tense—picturing how disappointed the Duke would be if I made a basic mistake.
Thankfully, thanks to the aristocratic habits engraved in this body, using the utensils wasn't too difficult.
"Deborah, did you bring another letter today?"
As I carefully worked on cracking open some shellfish, the Duke suddenly asked.
"I'm not rushing you. But since you've been delivering the letters one by one, I've come to look forward to them. It's rather enjoyable. Was that your intention?"
The reason I decided not to hand over all the letters at once and instead space them out was due to a bitter lesson from my past. Humans are ungrateful and fickle—they hold grudges for ages, but forget gratitude in an instant.
'A truth I painfully learned over 24 years of being everyone's gullible doormat…'
If you want to be appreciated, you have to stretch it out and keep reminding them. And of course, if it's someone you want to impress, you have to do it in a classy, subtle way.
"I'm just happy it brought you joy."
I responded indirectly, and the Duke let out a quiet chuckle like air escaping a balloon. Seeing his expression soften more than usual, I carefully made a suggestion.
"Father, today… I'd like to give you the letter in a slightly different way."
"A different way?"
"Yes. Would you be able to spare a little time after dinner?"
The Duke nodded as he took a sip of his white wine.
"Of course. These days, my promise with you takes top priority. Everything around me—whenever they see me—it's always talk about work. It's exhausting. And my sons, they're all so cold and distant…"
He let out a light complaint, then abruptly stopped speaking.
"I shouldn't be rambling like this in front of you."
"Please, speak comfortably," I replied.
The Duke narrowed his eyes at my response.
"That pink diamond—it's said to be going up for auction at the end of this month. Do you really have to get it to feel satisfied?"
As if testing me, he kept persistently asking until the meal ended, questioning what I wanted so badly. He even tried to gently coax me, saying he wanted to repay me for the letter and urged me to tell him anything I wished for.
'I didn't plan on using that letter to get anything…'
But if he keeps insisting like that, continuing to refuse would seem odd, too.
In the end, I shook my head. Maybe the Duke just wanted to say, "Deborah, you're just like that." Since all the effort I'd put in could be for nothing, I stayed cautious the whole time.
After two full hours of course-by-course dining, we stepped outside the restaurant to find heavy snow falling. The snowflakes were growing thicker, suggesting it wouldn't stop anytime soon.
As I walked toward the carriage parked across the street, the ground was slippery, and I slightly lost my footing.
"Oh dear."
The Duke clicked his tongue and extended his hand toward the ground. At his gesture, all the snow piled along the path melted away in an instant.
Having lived for 24 years in a world ruled by scientific progress, I couldn't help but feel awe at the supernatural scene unfolding before me. Seeing real magic with my own eyes was incomparable to CGI effects in movies.
"Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Because it was cool."
I murmured honestly, and the Duke scratched his chin.
"Good grief, I'm really spouting nonsense today. Get in."
Perhaps because he had just used fire magic, the Duke's hand—offered for escort—was now warm, unlike earlier.
Thanks to a soundproofing spell, the inside of the carriage was quiet. The Seymour family's platinum carriage, reminiscent of a limousine, cut through the snow and darkness as it carried us to the mansion.
"There's a new tea I brought in yesterday. I heard the aroma's quite nice."
Remembering my request to speak after the meal, the Duke took me straight to his private office.
"Prepare two cups of tea brewed with fresh leaves, and bring some refreshments."
"Yes, Duke."
The attendant approached carrying a tray with fragrant tea and snacks. He no longer looked at me with wary eyes, even though I'd been visiting the Duke's office quite frequently.
As soon as the snacks were placed on the table, I pulled the Duchess's letter out of my clutch.
"Didn't you say during the meal that you'd deliver the letter in a different way?"
The Duke spoke with a faintly disappointed expression, as if he had been curious and slightly expectant. I unfolded the Duchess's letter.
"Today, I'll read it out loud for you."
"Read it? Don't tell me you're planning to put on a play now?"
He suddenly lifted the corners of his mouth into a smile.
'Oh my…'
I nearly dropped the letter in my hand—it was the first time I'd ever seen the usually cold and stoic Duke smile so brightly.
"That's certainly a method I didn't expect. I never knew you had such a playful side."
"First, please close your eyes. You need to concentrate."
"All right."
With an amused smirk, the Duke crossed his arms and shut his eyes. Like an adult being roped into a child's game, there wasn't a hint of seriousness in his demeanor.
Standing before the Duke, who leaned back comfortably in his chair, I began to read aloud a poem titled My Heart is a White Flower.
It was a nature poem written by a famous poet of the Empire, using the visual similarity between white blossoms and falling snow to express the conflicting emotions of love.
"…When your absence chills my chest, I sing in the midst of that fragrance."
After finishing the poem, my throat felt dry, so I took a sip of tea. Even though the reading was over, the Duke remained still with his eyes closed, nodding slightly as if lost in thought.
"It's certainly the kind of poem Marien would like. It fits well with weather like today, too."
He stood and silently gazed out at the heavy snow falling endlessly, his eyes deeper than before, saying nothing.
A man with an indifferent personality who never even knew loneliness felt a rush of joy—as if the entire world were filled with white flowers—the moment he came to understand love.
When the woman disappeared, the white flowers suddenly felt cold, like snowflakes that had been snow from the beginning. But he came to realize that the fragrance she left behind always lingered by his side.
That was the essence of the poem.
***
After slowly reflecting on the deeper meaning behind the poem, Duke Seymour picked up the folded letter from his wife that had been left on the table after Deborah had gone.
"...!"
As soon as he unfolded it, his eyes widened in disbelief.