Lately, the Fernaness Mansion had been abuzz with stories of Lina and the Duke. Because of this, the maids in the mansion’s kitchen were gathered closely together, gossiping away.

“Could it be love?”

Someone spoke in a soulless voice.

A few days after Lina had returned to the mansion with the Duke.

The brooch that was said to have been stolen by her had been officially announced as a gift from the Duke, and Lina had been unable to return to the mansion for some time as she was receiving treatment after an accident.

But nobody believed that story.

“Lina stole and ran away, but the Duke turned a blind eye. Because he loves her.”

Kitchen maid Lilda spoke confidently.

“Besides, our Duke who had been so depressed, how is he now? He’s returned to his original self, hasn’t he?”

Everyone nodded in agreement to her words.

“So, what do we do now?”

Lata asked worriedly, covering her mouth with her hand.

“What do we do! We must bow down from now on. We could lose our heads at a word from Lina.”

At these words, the expressions of the maids who had joined in tormenting Lina and those who had not were sharply divided.

“Could Lina really go that far…?”

“Right! Lina was never that malicious, was she?”

“Why did you guys, who knew that, torment such an obedient child like that?”

Lata exclaimed angrily.

“Is Roen more in trouble than us?”

“Oh, him.”

Lilda twisted her lips, mumbling with a mocking smile.

“You should consider it over,”

“I hated seeing him act like Susan.”

“Right. How great would it be if Lina could get rid of him this time?”

The maids who had grievances against Roen began to add their comments one by one.

Listening to the other maids’ gossip from behind the wall, Roen returned to his room and slammed the door shut.

Crash!

He then threw what he had been holding onto the floor.

It was thrown with such force that the wooden floor almost cracked. The object that had been rolling on the floor was the brooch that had caused the stir in the mansion.

“It can’t be!”

His voice was filled with rage.

“What? A gift to Lina?”

Then what in the world was that object lying on the floor? Roen looked at the seemingly broken brooch with icy eyes.

‘I was going to put it in Lina’s room eventually…!’

Since the Duke had said he had given it as a gift, there was no longer any use for it.

Now there was nothing he could do with it. He had to get rid of it as soon as possible.

And now, Lina was no longer in the same position as him. A strange feeling of inferiority and jealousy engulfed him.

Inside the carriage to Harlen territory.

Lina’s neck was starting to feel stiff as she stared out of the window.

She wanted to relax her stiff neck and shoulders immediately, but she couldn’t bring herself to turn her head.

‘Why in the world.’

Lina glanced inside the carriage. She caught a glimpse of the Duke, who was sitting diagonally across from her.

‘To go by carriage…’

That morning. The Duke, who she had naturally assumed would be riding a horse, had climbed into the carriage with her.

And at that moment, Lina had wished that she was the one riding a horse instead of him.

Moreover, the inside of the carriage, designed for maximum mobility, was so narrow that if the two of them stretched out a little, their bodies would touch.

‘Going with the two of us in such a cramped space.’

There was no way she could chat with the Duke all the way to the territory. Lina’s mouth, which had not uttered a word all the way, was about to taste bitter.

And.

The man who had looked at her piercingly as the Duke climbed into the carriage.

‘Was his name Lawrence?’

A man with dark blue hair and brown eyes, who she had heard was like the Duke’s right arm.

‘He has a reason to dislike me.’

Certainly, how many people would regard the woman referred to as their superior’s government favorably?

Though they had never spoken, it was certain that she disliked him.

Had he been merely looking at the everchanging landscape for a while? Duke Valige, who was sitting across, opened his mouth.

“Your name.”

“Yes?”

She asked, looking at Valige who had spat out incomprehensible words.

“What’s your real name?”

“Ah.”

He must have thought that there would be a real name since he knew her identity was fake.

“It’s Lina. My name is my real name.”

But her name really was ‘Lina.’ It had been so from the time she opened her eyes 400 years ago until now. Since it was such a common name, there were many who shared it.

Just like the child named Lina that she had taken on as a false identity.

“Your age?”

“Age……”

Lina trailed off, seeming troubled. She was torn between whether to state a higher or lower age.

“The age is correct, too. Twentyfour.”

However, since she had already worked in the mansion for a few years, it seemed difficult to lower the age further. She was actually over 400 years old.

“Lina. Twentyfour years old……”

Valige muttered her words in a low voice. Then, as if he had lost interest, he asked no more questions.