The sound of the door opening caused the woman sitting in the chair to flinch.

Kedilen entered his office and calmly approached, staring at the woman’s back.

He walked to his desk bathed in gentle sunlight and sat down softly in the chair.

The man sat up straight, basking in the gentle sunlight that chased away the chill. Kedilen stared intently at Emma, Ludmila’s nanny sitting before him.

It was a treasure map brought by his sister Celia. A map to guide him to the treasure that was Ludmila.

“There’s no need to be so afraid. I didn’t call you here to harm you, so please relax.”

As Kedilen’s voice flowed softly, a maid emerged from the passage connected to the refreshment room.

The maid served fine tea to Kedilen and Emma, then bowed respectfully at the door before withdrawing. Now alone in the quiet office, Kedilen grasped his teacup.

“Please drink. I prepared your favorite tea. I’m sure you’ll like it.”

“…The lady.”

Emma’s tightly closed lips finally opened just as Kedilen was about to tilt his cup.

She held the teacup in her hand, biting her lip hard. Kedilen savored the taste slowly, as if observing her, while taking a sip of tea.

Finally, as the teacup settled onto the coaster, Emma released her bitten lip.

“What do you plan to do when you find the lady?”

“What do I plan… I don’t understand your question.”

Kedilen let out a quiet laugh and gently pushed up the corners of his mouth, meeting Emma’s sharply opened eyes.

“It sounds like you think I’ll do something to Ludmila when I find her. I’m just looking for her. She’s my wife. I’m simply bringing her back to my side. Nothing more, nothing less.”

“…”

“Of course, I’m angry and disappointed that she suddenly disappeared. But I’m sure she had her reasons, so I don’t intend to show my emotions recklessly. I’ll talk to her thoroughly and fix whatever she was dissatisfied with. How…”

“Does that answer your question?”

A gentle voice without fluctuation softly echoed through the quiet office.

Perhaps it was due to his calm smile and pleasant voice. His words felt like a completely sincere expression.

Feeling anew that Kedilen was a capable politician, Emma bit her lip.

“…I know you’ll beat the lady again.”

“Beat her?”

“Did you think that just because I’ve grown old and my eyes aren’t what they used to be, I wouldn’t see what was happening right in front of me? There are things you know without seeing and things you feel without touching.”

Emma’s eyes, though filled with fear, were more certain than ever as she lifted the teacup in her hand and took a sip of the hot tea.

“The Marquis will never let the lady go. And you won’t change either.”

“Is that so−.”

Kedilen slowly rolled his eyes, drawing out the end of his words. Perhaps due to weeks of living on the run, Emma’s hands and clothes were shabby. Seeing her appearance so different from when she was with Ludmila, a sneer settled on Kedilen’s lips.

“So.”

The sharp voice dropped just as Kedilen’s eyes met Emma’s.

“So what are you going to do?”

“…”

“You’re the one who came to find me. Begging me to bring Ludmila back. But it’s troublesome if you act like this. Your attitude as the one asking for a favor is quite inappropriate, isn’t it?”

“That’s…”

“I need Ludmila. I need to know where she disappeared to and bring her back. How I’ll treat her after bringing her back is entirely up to me. It’s not a matter for a mere nanny to interfere with.”

Kedilen, filled with malice, pushed back his chair and stood up.

With his hands behind his back, he stood in front of the sunlit window, looking down at the divided garden.

It was the middle of winter. If a woman like Ludmila had hidden from his eyes, it wouldn’t be through normal means.

Even if she had taken some of her jewels when she fled, there weren’t many ways for a noblewoman outside the system and laws to keep herself safe. And Emma must have come to him knowing this.

“I heard you went to my elder sister begging her to save Ludmila. Doesn’t that mean you felt I was safer than wherever Ludmila went?”

Turning around with his back to the sunlight, Kedilen looked down at Emma intently.

“Tell me where Ludmila went.”

“…”

“Nothing will change if you keep your mouth shut. If your reason for coming to my elder sister… to me was for Ludmila’s sake, then speak. I’ll promise you then.”

Kedilen gently pushed up the corners of his mouth, meeting Emma’s eyes trembling with anxiety.

“That I’ll never lay a hand on her again.”

It was around dinnertime when Ludmila got off work at the lumber mill.

Only after the sun, which had been dyeing the ground red as it set, disappeared beyond the western mountains could she change out of her dust-covered work clothes.

Returning to her bedroom and sinking into the bathtub, Ludmila let out a slow breath.

Having been cooped up in the lumber mill since dawn with barely any sleep, her whole body felt heavy.

Fortunately, thanks to a neat sandwich delivered to the lumber mill, presumably on Aden’s orders, she hadn’t skipped lunch, but the fatigue was unavoidable and it felt like her eyes could close at any moment.

Staring blankly at the ceiling in the quiet bathtub, Ludmila wiped her wet face with her hands.

Her cheeks, which had been quite cool, turned bright red as if about to melt in the warm water.

After washing her face several times, Ludmila exhaled again and calmly rested her head against the bathtub.

Her eyes fluttered as if she could fall asleep at any moment.

Ludmila forced herself to keep her eyes open. There was still work to be done.

She needed to return to her room and organize what she had learned at the lumber mill. How much value was sleeping there. If she could tell him that, he would be pleased.

‘Aden…’

The thread of her thoughts reached the name of a man. The image of him scolding her angrily was still vivid in her mind.

‘Strange man.’

If he disliked her methods and found them damaging to his honor, he could have trampled on them as much as he wanted.

There was no need to get angry like that. He could have ignored her or insisted she follow his ways. However, Aden did not choose such paths.

Before she died. The Aden she had encountered on that quiet night was surprisingly cynical and indifferent towards her.

That’s why the image from that day was strongly imprinted in Ludmila’s mind, and she had concluded that Aden was that kind of person.

But the behavior he showed here was far from indifferent.

Though rough, he was delicate, and while seemingly uncaring, his consideration was palpable.

“Haa−.”

An unpredictable man.

Recalling her conversation with Aden, Ludmila lightly summarized her impression of him.

As her body melted in the warm bathtub, sleep gradually approached. Blinking her drowsy eyes and struggling to stay awake, Ludmila’s eyelids finally closed.

Before long, silence settled in the motionless bathroom, without even the sound of water.

Aden stared intently at Ludmila standing before him.

Her platinum blonde hair, neatly combed, flowed elegantly down her back, and she wore a comfortable dress. In her hands were documents filled with writing, and her posture was upright.

“…”

And a white cloth mask covering her mouth. Faced with this rare sight, Aden smirked crookedly and tilted his chin.

“What’s that about?”

“…I fell asleep in the bathtub yesterday.”

“And?”

“When I opened my eyes, the water had gone cold…”

“So you caught a cold?”

Ludmila nodded with an embarrassed eye-smile. Perhaps because the white mask covered her mouth and nose.

It should have been her usual smile, but her narrowed eyes seemed particularly beautiful. Aden let out a small sigh, leaning back in his chair and flicking his chin.

“If you caught a cold, you should rest. What’s that in your hand?”

“Ah, this is a document I made based on the information gathered from the lumber mill yesterday. It’s an estimate of the value sleeping in the lumber mill and the potential profits if sold.”

Ludmila placed the documents on the desk and took a step back as she continued speaking nonchalantly.

“It’s my first time doing this kind of business, but I’ve dealt with Kedilen’s affairs occasionally, so I roughly know the method. Though it might be a bit amateurish, I think the framework shouldn’t be too different, so it would be good for you to check it.”

Aden’s eyes, which had been fixed on Ludmila’s face, dropped vertically.

Did she write this document last night in that condition? He wasn’t sure whether to praise her or scold her for such a reckless act.

Recalling her promise yesterday to prove herself to him, Aden pushed up the corners of his mouth crookedly and nodded slightly.

“I’ll take a look.”

“Co…”

“And you should see a doctor.”

Aden’s eyes, which had risen vertically again, pierced Ludmila.

“It’s fine. I…”

Ludmila stopped speaking as Aden pushed his chair back, shaking her head in a light refusal.

Aden stood up, gripping the desk, meeting Ludmila’s eyes which had widened in surprise.

“Ah, Aden?”

Aden effortlessly closed the gap with Ludmila, who was backing away hesitantly, and pulled on the strap of the mask she was wearing.

“Wait…!”

In a moment, the mask was removed, revealing her flushed cheeks underneath.

Aden let out a chuckle at the sight, which contrasted starkly with her usually pale face. And she was saying she wouldn’t see a doctor looking like this?

“I know you’re a stubborn woman.”

Ludmila retreated hesitantly, covering her exposed nose and mouth with her hand.

Aden’s mouth curved crookedly at her exaggerated behavior, as if the germs coming from her mouth were terribly infectious.

“So I won’t insist further. Instead, choose.”

“Choose?”

“Either get examined by a doctor.”

Aden lowered Ludmila’s hand covering her mouth.

Placing his palm on her now exposed mouth instead, he let out a small laugh.

Since she wouldn’t listen to simple persuasion.

“Or let me examine you.”

He had no choice but to find his own way of handling her.