Chapter 10

When Nick was little, he had been timid.

He overthought everything.

He was always conscious of his older brother’s hatred toward their stepmother.

Even after Ken left home, Nick couldn’t immediately change the way he treated her.

He didn’t know how to repair a relationship that had already fallen apart.

The only thing he could do…

Was quietly enjoy the cakes his stepmother baked for him.

But now…

He was an adult.

He had come of age.

He no longer wanted their relationship to remain distant and awkward.

He wanted to stop calling her “Stepmother.”

He wanted to accept her as simply…

“Mother.”

“I wanted to call her Mother.”

At his coming-of-age banquet, he had finally gathered the courage to greet her with a smile.

Seeing her warmly return his greeting had given him hope.

“I was finally going to open my heart.”

The moment he woke up that morning…

Nick searched every corner of the mansion for Kasia.

Thank you for raising me all these years.

From now on, I want to call you Mother instead of Stepmother.

He had practiced those words over and over.

Again and again.

But…

He was too late.

By the time he had finally gathered all his courage and gone to find her…

…She had already left.

Nick lowered his head.

Holding it in pain, he let out a quiet groan.

He had truly wanted to become her son now.

He had truly wanted to accept her as his mother.

Not because he had forgotten Diana.

It was simply because he realized that the living should build better relationships with one another.

Even reaching that conclusion had taken him years.

If I accepted my stepmother as my mother…

Wouldn’t that be betraying my real mother?

Wouldn’t that be a sin against Diana, who rests in her grave?

There had even been a time when he devoured several books every day in search of an answer.

Surely wise people of the past would have advice.

Surely someone could tell him what a stepmother truly meant.

After struggling with those thoughts for so many years…

He had finally realized the answer.

Following his own heart was the right thing to do.

Rather than agonizing over something a hundred times…

It was far more meaningful to take a single step forward.

He had only just realized that.

And then…

She left.

He had never imagined this would happen.

If he had known…

He would have approached her sooner.

If he had known…

He would have found the courage much earlier.

Their sudden, unexpected parting buried Nick in unbearable misery.

“Don’t try to dress up your own cowardice.”

“And don’t blame me for Stepmother leaving, Nick Whitdrian.”

Dusting off the wrinkles in his shirt, Ken spoke coldly.

Nick remained silent, clutching his head.

His body gradually began trembling.

Watching him without the slightest emotion, Ken finished straightening his clothes before turning toward the Duke.

“The knights are occupied with their training these days.”

“I’d appreciate it if you wouldn’t call me here again over matters like this.”

“That’s all I came to say.”

“……”

“If you have nothing else to say, I’ll be leaving.”

“As for Stepmother…”

“Handle it however you want.”

“…After all, my opinion was never considered in the first place.”

Ken muttered quietly before bowing to his father.

Just as he turned to leave the office—

“Ken Whitdrian.”

“…?”

Ken stopped.

When he turned around…

The Duke was looking at him as though he still had something left to say.

Their sharp gazes met in the air.

Then the Duke spoke clearly.

“Do not treat her disrespectfully anymore.”

“……”

Ken didn’t avoid his father’s eyes.

The office filled with sharp tension.

After a long silence…

Without saying another word…

Ken turned around and walked out.

Bang!

The office door slammed shut.

Within the heavy silence that followed…

Nick, who had been groaning in anguish, slowly raised his head.

“…No matter how I think about it…”

“I can’t let Mother leave like this.”

He wiped away the tears staining his face.

Then he clenched his fist firmly.

Rising from his seat, he looked at the Duke.

“I’m going to find Mother.”

“Even if I have to do it alone.”

“She can’t have gone very far yet.”

“We can still fix this.”

Speaking as though making a solemn vow…

Nick hurried out.

Bang!

The office door slammed shut once again.

“……”

Left alone…

The Duke silently stared at the door through which both of his sons had departed.

At last…

A long, heavy sigh escaped him.

A knock came at the door.

It opened slightly.

The person standing there was the butler.

Holding a tray with freshly brewed Ceylon tea, he spoke awkwardly.

“…I’ve prepared the tea.”

“But it seems it won’t be of much use now.”

“Come in.”

“It’s a night when even a little company would be welcome.”

At the Duke’s invitation, the butler entered the office.

Since even the Duke had no intention of drinking tea…

The hot tea prepared for the three of them became the butler’s alone.

The room remained wrapped in silence.

Only the faint sound of the butler sipping tea could be heard.

Having served the ducal family for decades…

His manners were impeccable.

Even that sound was barely audible.

The Duke finally spoke.

“You are one of the few people who served both Duchesses.”

“You could say I’m the only one who was close to both of them.”

The butler nodded.

“The former head maid also knew them both.”

“But she was dismissed long ago.”

“…What kind of person was Kasia?”

The butler’s hand stopped halfway to his lips.

He turned toward the Duke.

“You mean…”

“My own opinion?”

“Yes.”

The Duke nodded.

“Speak honestly.”

“I know many rumors about her are already spreading throughout the mansion.”

“I want to hear your thoughts.”

Unlike everyone else…

The butler roughly understood that the Duke and Kasia’s marriage had been little more than a formal arrangement.

Because of that…

The Duke wanted his opinion more than anyone else’s.

As though finding the question interesting…

The butler placed his teacup down and thought for a moment.

“Well…”

“She was…”

“It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to call her an excellent Duchess.”

“So excellent that I scarcely feel qualified to judge her.”

The butler’s eyes drifted through old memories.

He spoke as though reminiscing.

“There was a time when Your Grace frequently traveled on official business.”

“A rumor suddenly spread that one of the village wells had become infected with plague.”

“It turned out to be a false rumor started by a small group who wanted to drive out a race that had only recently settled in our territory.”

“As people became terrified of the well and insisted those newcomers be expelled…”

“Do you know what the Duchess did?”

“……”

“She walked over to the well herself…”

“And drank the water.”

“That was the very first thing she did.”

A gentle smile appeared on the butler’s face.

“She was truly a wise woman.”

“And deeply compassionate.”

“But she also possessed remarkable resolve.”

“…I see.”

The Duke answered quietly.

The butler nodded.

“The former Duchess and the current Duchess were very different people.”

“Of course, the late Duchess was also a kind and virtuous lady.”

“A wonderful Duchess.”

“But…”

“Lady Kasia was more realistic.”

“At times…”

“She even seemed rather lonely.”

“……”

“To me…”

“She looked like someone who needed comfort.”

“That’s why…”

“I’m deeply saddened that she has left.”

The Duke looked at the butler.

Only then did he truly notice the sadness lingering on the old man’s face.

The butler smiled faintly.

“Your Grace…”

“Sometimes you fail to notice the expressions of those around you.”

“…She always told me she was fine.”

“And I believed I had done my best for her.”

“Well…”

“Was she really fine?”

The butler finished the last sip of his tea.

He gathered the tray, preparing to leave.

After bowing respectfully…

He added one final sentence before walking out.

“She was probably very lonely.”

“Simply because she lived in this mansion.”

“……”

The door quietly closed.

The Duke remained seated in silence for a long time.

* * *

Axion Whitdrian.

When he first read the letter and the divorce papers…

The first emotion he felt was bewilderment.

He couldn’t understand why she had fled the estate the very moment seven years had passed.

Of course…

He had never been a good husband.

That was only natural.

Their marriage had never truly been that of husband and wife.

Throughout all seven years…

He had constantly felt an invisible wall standing between them.

The dead wife’s best friend.

Those words created a barrier that was impossibly high.

Strong.

Thick.

Impossible to break.

The title itself felt like forbidden territory.

It even stirred a sense of moral restraint within him.

Though they could have lived more comfortably together…

It made him maintain an excessive distance.

He had never believed she felt no loneliness behind that wall.

He simply…

Wanted to take good care of her.

And…

He had believed he was doing exactly that.

He knew she had sacrificed many things to enter House Whitdrian.

He reminded himself of it constantly.

She is someone I should be grateful to.

Someone I ought to care for willingly.

Yes.

He truly believed he had done his best for her all these years.

He had considered it his duty.

He thought…

They had been getting along fairly well.

Perhaps…

That was why he felt so bewildered.

His gaze fell upon the letter and the divorce papers lying on the table.

He had never imagined she would leave the estate one day…

Leaving behind nothing but a single letter.

It felt like running confidently down a road…

Only to reach a dead end and realize…

He had been walking the wrong path all along.

He thought they were fine.

Even if he had been a distant husband…

Even if they had been a somewhat detached family…

He believed they had respected one another’s boundaries and lived peacefully.

There had been painful moments…

Like Ken running away.

But he believed such hardships were simply obstacles every family had to overcome.

They had learned each other’s limits.

They no longer crossed them.

It wasn’t a family overflowing with love.

But neither was it a family overflowing with hatred.

It was…

A quiet relationship.

Plain…

Yet peaceful.

A relationship built upon respecting each other’s boundaries.

He had believed that, considering how their marriage began…

It was actually a rather successful relationship.

Apparently…

She didn’t think so.

When had it begun?

When had they started looking toward different destinations?

The Duke lowered his eyes.

“If… just if…”

Her cautious voice echoed in his ears.

It had probably been shortly after Ken ran away.

After Ken was found…

The maids had told him everything Ken had done while he had been away.

He had apologized to Kasia then.

During that conversation…

She had asked him,

“Someday… if I ask Your Grace for a divorce, just as our contract states…”

“Will you grant it?”

“…Was it then?”

“Was that when she decided to leave this mansion?”

What had he answered?

Of course.

It was part of the contract.

Naturally I would.

If that was the case…

Had she endured all these years without ever showing how difficult it was?

Had she spent seven long years patiently waiting…

While carrying a heart that had already closed itself off?

And then…

The moment those seven years ended…

She simply left.

Leaving behind only a letter…

And divorce papers.

A bitter expression crossed the Duke’s face.

Then…

Had the bright smile she wore at Nick’s coming-of-age banquet…

Been because she was happy that the day she had waited for had finally arrived?

He felt empty.

As though everything had become hopelessly tangled.

After sitting silently for quite some time…

The Duke summoned someone.

The office door opened.

The Commander of the Ducal Knights entered.

The Duke gave his order.

“…Find the Duchess.”

“Yes, Your Grace.”

The commander bowed.

The Duke added,

“Even if you find her…”

“Do not let her notice you.”

“Simply learn where she is…”

“And report back to me.”

Even if they were to finalize the divorce…

Before that…

He wanted to speak with her one last time.